Brimfield

Remember when I told you that I was going to Brimfield the next day  (Thursday)?

ok maybe you don’t. Well when I woke up at 5am it was raining like crazy.

So I watched the weather channel and it was not looking good.

I kept thinking maybe in Massachusetts it’s not so bad….

ok it’s only an hour and a half away so how different could it be?

I decided to go back to bed.

Not a hard decision……I like sleeping.

By 9 am the weather cleared up and the sun was shining….not a cloud in the sky.

I thought I had made a terrible mistake.

No so…..

It turns out many of the fields were flooded out

and the May field that always opens on Thursday

couldn’t even open……..and that never happens.

Well Friday was a gorgeous day with the sun finally coming out around midmorning.

This  booth was shared by a few different ladies

all with amazing taste right up my alley. This booth filled up fast. I did a quick spin around and while I went around the corner

to go ask a price on a cool zinc container on this shelf it was already scooped up.

That happens to me a lot.

But I consoled myself with other things: )

I used to grow myrtle topiaries. Now I just grow them for myself.

This booth had some great letters and if I had thought of it

I could have cleverly written out something.

Love this metal cabinet.

Seeing it again now…. I should have gotten it

but when it’s still early in the day you just don’t know what’s around the corner.

maybe a U

I did get a great set of brown transferware from here that I’ll show you later.

George asked me why I needed more.

I didn’t have that pattern.

silly

The button and ribbon lady that I showed you in the last post wasn’t there this time but

the ladies that have all those vintage tablecloths had her space and her regular one too.

This time she brought her buttons and ribbon to the show.

I looked at these for a long time and then realized that I have a ton of similar ones that

I bought at an estate sale a couple of years ago that I need to organize and change out the matting.

I keep meaning to show you. Maybe you can help me decide how I

should display them.

 .

It was so hard to resist not buying more.

I did though get some great ribbon

in a color I hardly ever buy

Can you guess what color?

Joining up today for White Wednesday

with sweet Kathleen of Faded Charm.

Will be back with more of Brimfield on my next post.

Table redo and paint technique

A couple of weeks ago I painted an ugly side table.

You may remember me telling you about it. If not you can go HERE for a quick recap.

I never did tell you what my technique was.

I had come across one of my old books called the Painted Kitchen that turned out to

be from the now  famous Annie Sloan.

In that book she of course used her chalk paint.

I never even paid any attention to it back when I first read the book.

I don’t think anyone was selling it in the states.

Turns out that she uses it as chalkboard paint too.

I knew how to make chalkboard paint so I thought I’d use it to paint furniture too.

Now since I’ve never used AS paint I can’t really do a fair comparison.

I do plan on getting some soon but for now it was

fun to try this method.

And I liked the results.

Ok now you want to know the details.

All you need is 2 tablespoons of sandless grout

to 1 cup of latex paint.

Mix well.

I did not sand the piece.

I think on this occasion it worked to my favor that it was rather beaten up on top but I did clean it with a damp cloth.

The paint dries fast…..from the sandless grout.

After a short drying time I waxed the surface with butchers wax. I’m sure you could try any wax with similar results.

Then I put on another coat of paint.

Then dry and sand.

Waxed again with straight wax first.

Then I added gel stain to the wax to add some depth.

You can also use tinted wax.

Dry and puffed out.

See EASY!

I painted the legs too but decided that I wanted to make a skirt for it.

A strip cloth skirt so I could still have the top exposed.

I used an old pillow case and attached the strips to a single piece of fabric.

Then used velcro to attach to the table.

I had some cool fabric I had picked up at the quilt store ( Coastal Sewing Machines)  that resembled

  tape measures and used a few strips for added interest.

(think I may need to add more)

Good for hiding things underneath the skirt.

Just found this lace and yesterday and thought maybe I might add it to the edge.

What do you think?

Is it too much?

Maybe I could make that detachable too.

When I was making my skirt my friend Suzan was making  strips for her

lamp too.

See more of Suzan’s makeover

HERE

Maybe I’ll use a small light under my table?

that would be fun.

Not sure what I’m going to decorate the table with. This was just thrown together.

The only thing I know I want is the orchid.

Every room needs a plant.

Even if it is a fake one.

Permanent botanical( sorry)

My dear friend Annie gave me this. It’s wedgewood…

but I’m sure you didn’t need me to tell you that.

It’s delicate and regal.

I may not be using it in the room but for now it makes me think of her.

So for now it will stay.

I hadn’t planned on using blue in this room this time around but when I do

I want to use this photo as my inspiration for the bedding.

Found it on the latest post of Barn House

Click on photo and go to the Barn House blog to see more.

Those guys are incredibly talented.

Linking up to White Wednesday

Have a good week!

Giveaway at Z’s

Do you know my friend Z?

Actually Suzan ( with a Z) of Old Grey Mare

Well not only are you in for a treat when you see her humungo giveaway

but you will fall in love her and her blog.

We met around 2 yrs ago when we were doing White Wednesday.

Back in the day when there was no linky.

Remember that?…ok not all that long ago.

I knew from a few emails back and forth that this was someone special.

Ok I could write a whole post about how I feel about her but I’ll stop gushing because I

really want you to go to her blog and win some of these lovely gifts that these very talented and generous

gals have offered up for grabs.

My contribution is a Jeanne d’Arc Living Magazine.

Amongst all these other wonderful handmade goodies it may not seem to measure up

but for those of you that know this publication you know how beautiful and inspiring it is…… for the others,

you have no idea what you are missing.

This magazine has had a amazing effect on my decorating style and many others.

About half of my home has reflected this style for a long time yet the other half

has been a mish mash of different identities.

It’s been since I learned that my niece from France was coming for a visit this Fall ( hi Vanessa)  that I have

finally decided to tackle some of those projects that have been on my mind for 2 years now

( ok much longer then that)

The guest/sewing room has been a disaster for years now. Disaster is too strong a word.

Well, ok sometimes it was hard to walk around in there without injuring yourself…but

I knew where everything was….and I certainly knew where the pillows were.

EVERYWHERE!

and not all pretty ones either….just ones that I thought I’d recover …..someday.

You know in my spare time while working 7 days a week….ok I digress.

Today I finally finished another piece of furniture.

Whoo hoo!

and I have my friend Z to thank for it.

Yep between her and Martha I made my own chalk paint.

A book from Annie Sloan that hubby bought me yrs ago also convinced me I was on the right track.

At the time I had no idea who Annie Sloan was and that I had one of her books.

Imagine my surprise when the woman’s name that everyone has been talking about was staring right at me.

Well it was exciting for me : ) Doesn’t take much.

Also pays off to clean and organize.

I started with this:

 

No Photoshopping done just to give you the real deal.

If I did I would Photoshop a railing for our deck.

I won’t go there.

You can see it had some damage to the finish but that was a plus. I did no sanding just a slightly damp cloth to clean.

I had taken a photo of it after I painted and sanded but I had it on Manual setting from the day before.

It was overexposed and forgot to look to see if it came out.

I blame it on not having my morning coffee yet.

This is after it was waxed with Butchers wax.

Not sure what all the different waxes make.

I had Butchers so that’s what I used.

I’m  a big believer in using what you have.

It just gives it a finished look and along with antiquing it gives it a mellow effect.

You can see how the damaged grooves helped the look somewhat.

I’m rather happy with how it came out.

This post is getting a bit long…..

are you still there? lol

So I’ll be back with how I accomplished  it and the one I did with talc.

Now don’t forget to enter Suzan’s giveaway

HERE

GOOD LUCK

Oh yeah almost forgot,

joining Kathleen at Faded Charm for

White Wednesday

Thanks for visiting

My new family

       

                                      One World One Heart

                                        Isn’t that a great concept?

                                       I hate to admit it but I didn’t participate totally ……mainly because I didn’t realize it until it was

                         the day that everyone posted their creations…….and though I dabble in altered art

                              ……I’m not that good 

                                                 nothing like these gals

                                      OWOH is a worldwide blog party that over 800 participated in.

                                    I did though comment on Julia of Vintage with Laces post.

                …..and guess what?  I WON!!!!

                                                I was thrilled when Julia emailed me that my new family was coming to live with me.

                                                   

  

   

                                          Whata ya think of my new family?

                                        No this isn’t really them but I would love me a few sheep.

                                        But for now I’m very content with this gorgeous card.

                                    Love the subtle tones.

                                 Sweet Julia must have remembered how much I love sheep.

                                              

                                 Yes

                             Julia I love my new family!!!!

                              

                                                  

                                             My newly adopted 5 sisters and a cousin.

                                               

                                         They are very well behaved and seem to get along well with each other.

                         Whew, that was  a relief.

                             I thought I was going to have to referee during squabbles :)

                    but they are very lady like.

                                    

                          The lace details and small embellishments are so well balanced and keep your

                    eyes moving from one gorgeous piece to another

                                     

                              

                                

                   I found the perfect place to display it…..my wire wall tree.

Or I guess you could call it my family tree:)

                   The new sisters and cousin are enjoying the living room

                  I think.

                                

                      This is one of the prettiest collages I have ever seen or

                    been lucky enough to own….I want to enjoy it as much as possible

                so I may move on the wall next to my bed.

                                I had seen many of Julia’s work before but to see it in real life it’s even more magnificent.

                             

               This is the tag she sent too. I’m crazy about this vintage botanical

                             that is made on fabric and lined with delicate lace.

                            

                 and the wonderful hand written note on the back.

                 I just have to show you the way Julia specially wrapped

                  the whole package.

                                 

                    She sewed and glued  pieces of lace, fabric and text on the paper that

she wrapped the collage in. Isn’t that clever?

                    Julia also sent me a German home décor catalog called Mirabeau that she knew I would go crazy for.

                        She added some little notes of the things that struck her fancy.

                        

                  It’s an online shop that carries furnishings everything from Kitchens

        to Bedding.

                        

                    I would love this for my studio or my kitchen too.

            I think we need a Mirabeau here in the US.

                        

                     To die for table and stools

                         

                              Dreaming of a bubble bath in this tub

                            

                               Great tablecloth made from scraps of fabrics and lace.

               A great upcycled idea.

              May have to put this one on my to-do list too.

          I think Julia and I could do some damage with this company.

           There was nothing I didn’t like in it.

         It has some great ideas in every decorated rooms

            filled with all the soothing colors of white, grey and cream.

              Julia I can’t describe how much I love everything you sent and

                   how happy you made me.

               This “one” heart is so overjoyed to own something

                    made by your own two hands.

                   THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH!!!!!!!!

      Joining up to White Wednesday with Kathleen

      of Faded Charm.