Antique Lace

On my thrift outing that landed me the $585 bird cage for $5, I also came across a stash of this antique lace. At $2 for the lot, I couldn't resist. I much prefer rick rack or ball fringe, but I just know I'll find a use for these lovely trims.

A Weekend of Planting, Cottage Cheese Ceilings, Paint Chips and Cleaning

What a whirlwind of a weekend. We never made it to (nor did we do the usual planning for) our church's Trunk or Treat. Well, we figured, someone else needs to bask in the glory of being the best trunk. We're givers, we Gahan Girls.

Hastings delivered an obscene amount of shrubs and plants that my dad, Fred, and I took most of Saturday planting (and we just made a small dent). I pruned trees as well. And made a trip to Pike Nursery, coming home with 10 bags of mulch, 5 of soil amendment, and lots of 2 for 1 perennials. And I did get a beautiful Bowl of Cream peony; have been wanting a peony plant for a long time. This particular one was not the pink I've always dreamed of, but it was half price, and so I figured it was worth a shot to see if I can grow one with success. As it was such a beautiful day, cool and breezy, the chore of planting was hardly work.

I made a trip to Benjamin Moore to look at paint colors for the exterior of my house. I know what I think I want — gray with white trim and black shutters, but as I looked at all the different shades of gray and white, I became a bit overwhelmed. The paint store has a color specialist who popped over to chat. She is coming to my house on Thursday morning to consult on color choices.

On Sunday I stripped my bathroom ceiling of all the cottage cheese and painted it white. Looks so much better. But what a huge mess. It took me 2 hours of cleaning after the cheese removal before I could paint. Getting the stuff down is a piece of cake, but the mess it makes when it falls. Oy vey.

And, of course, I listened to Christmas music all weekend. Ahhhhhhhhhhh.

Laundry Light

To camouflage the lone light bulb in my laundry closet I wound up getting this cheap shade at IKEA, decorating it with a few scrapbook paper butterflies crafted using a Martha Stewart paper punch.

Update on the $5 Bird Cage

A couple of posts ago I pictured a bird cage I got at a thrift store for $5. I found out how much a similar one sold for:

Yowza!

Laundry Room Redo

My laundry room is really more of a laundry closet in the ken. Its walls are in desperate need of painting, the shelves begging for a good cleaning. And so this weekend I decided to put pieces of scrapbook paper on the walls to cover some of the dings and smudges. I purged much of what was on the shelves. And it looks very quaint. I have a lone light bulb in the ceiling and am wondering what to use as a decorative cover. Any ideas?

BEFORE:


AFTER:

Oh yes I did . . .

On a beautiful Saturday in mid-October it hit me. The need to begin playing Christmas music. And so up to the attic I went and came down with all my Christmas CDs. A day of nesting and holiday music. Perfection.

Thrifting Bonanza — Part III . . . The Bird Cage

I chanced upon this beautiful Le Bert birdcage. I have been wanting a bird forever (and need one like I need a hole in the head!), but beyond the desire to have another heartbeat in the house, I do love birdcages for their decorative appeal. This one was a rare find. Much like the other items I gravitated toward at this particular thrift store, it had no price tag. She gave it to me for $5. I googled it and finally found one at North Fork Pet and Antiques (along with sooo many other beautiful cages and antiques). I have an email into them to find out what it's worth. Will let you know once I hear from them!

Thrifting Bonanza — Part II

If I'd have NOT bought this white hobnail mirror, I would have had major major regret. I love white hobnail. This frame came with these other pieces. The butterflies are just decorative. The basket and vase are wall pockets. And they're all plastic. The whole lot was $10, a little more than I like to spend when thrifting, but I think it was worth it.

This jewelry box was being used to display men's old watches. I asked if it was for sale and was told sure, $2! I have something very special planned for my vintage jewelry boxes. You'll see come next year!

Uncle Shuck's

By sharing this adventure, I'm shredding any ounce of dignity I ever had. On Saturday afternoon our church youth group took a trip to Uncle Shuck's up in Dawsonville. It's got a pumpkin patch, hayrides, a bonfire, a corn cannon, lots of good food, and corn mazes! Here is an aerial view of this year's design.
We did both the regular mazes. It was muddy as all get out, from all the rain we've had here in Georgia, and so maneuvering through the corn was not just figuring out your way, but figuring out where to step. I had my purse with me and carried it in the crook of my arm. We got to laughing about how goofy I looked. One kid asked why I brought my pockeybook into the maze, to which he added "do you have checks to write or something?" — which we thought was the funniest thing ever. Here I am in all my "that lady's a character" glory.
A small group of us decided to stay for the haunted maze. That meant hanging out for an hour and a half until it got dark, but there was plenty to do (including good people watching, hands down one of my favorite pastimes). We watched zombies and Freddy Kruegers arrive, no doubt the people who would be scaring us. It was getting darker and darker. The bats were out in full force, flying above our heads and swooping in a little too close at times. When the sky was black, we went in.

It was horrific. We got chased by masked children with powered-up chain saws. People jumped out of the corn. You'd come around a corner and at the end of the row stood a barely-visible figure who would slowly walk towards you, but you couldn't turn around. Zombies dragged their almost lifeless bodies out of the corn, grabbing for your ankles. And with every blood curdling scream, I wet myself a little, until by the end of the haunted maze I had completely emptied my bladder. My pants were wet down to my knees. The lady who writes checks in corn mazes was a mess. And she had a blast!

Paperwork Pillow

Took a vacation day today to get some stuff done around the house. Heating/AC guy came this morning to give the furnace a good once-over for the Fall and Winter. My chimney sweep, unfortunately, had to cancel on me. We had tons of rain this morning (and it still continues as I write this at 1:30) and he was dealing with flooding at home. Harleigh has to work today (she has off school for the holiday and wanted to get some hours in).

Here are some pix of Gideon, my little man always under foot. I was shredding a bunch of old paperwork which he found quite useful as a pillow.

Thrifting Bonanza

After I dropped Gideon off at the groomer's yesterday, despite all I had to do at home, I stopped in to two nearby thrift stores and will share with you my great finds over the course of the next few posts.

First, a quilt. It didn't have a price on it so I took it up to the register. "How does $6 sound?" the girl asked, "But I think there's a sham to go with it. Let's have a look." She found the sham, which had a tag that said "Sham and quilt — $45." Oops. She said she had already quoted me $6, so she stuck with that price! Harleigh is in a hippy-girl phase AND needed a bedspread, so this was a great purchase.
Harleigh loves daisies, so I picked this up for her room as well. This little print has a sage green velvet matte which makes it even more charming.
Vintage linen napkins.
This quilt stand has been in the one thrift store forever, marked at $45. On this trip it was marked down to $5. Snagged by Mama Gahan.

Beat

After the afternoon at the groomer's, Mr. Gideon is pooped. He surrenders to sleep as soon as he gets home to Chateau Gahan, spread-eagle on the cold floor, big white fluffy paws so doggone kissable.

Hanson

Harleigh has loved Hanson since their mmmbop days. And the three brothers have actually gone on to create quite a niche in the indie rock genre. (Not to mention that they're still adorably handsome.) And so when tickets went on sale for their TOMS "Use Your Sole" tour making a pit stop here in Atlanta at The Tabernacle, The Gahan Girls were all over it. HelloGoodbye opens for them. Harleigh will be down on the main floor in a standing sea of die-hard fans singing every word of every song, and I'll find a soft stadium seat up in the balcony, pockeybook on my lap, 49-going-on-16.

I love this!

A few weeks ago at a craft fair I stopped by a fun booth where the woman makes those towels you hang on your fridge door or oven door handle. You know the ones, with a crocheted top and a button. I bought a few, mainly for Harleigh. I finally threw the one out that we had (it was worn to cheesecloth) and she had a fit. It's one of those things around the house that speaks "home" to her.

Well, the lady making the towels also makes these holders for plastic grocery bags. I've always thrown the plastic bags into the cupboard above my stove. I bought this holder on a whim, and I LOVE it!!! It keeps the bags corralled into a contained space, they're easy to pull out, and the holder hangs in my pantry, taking up no space at all.

Great find at CVS

Last night I popped into our neighborhood CVS to pick up a prescription (and to get Harleigh one of those great new rubber headbands . . . no longer do girls have to endure those hard-headband headaches!). While waiting for the prescription to be filled I shopped. And at one of the end caps was a sign for 90% off. I really don't need Class of 2009 thank-you notes, but I pounced on these plastic storage tubs. At 59 cents each. That's right. 59 cents. I got 10. This weekend will be garage organizing time!

(And yes, I do drape a quilt over my backseat like it's a sofa. Makes it feel homey!)

Migration

With my personal desk now set up in the ken (pix to come), the seafoam green dresser moved to the living room. I like it better in here; it goes nicely below the" window" and holds the phone. The re-done lamp now has a more fitting home as well.

Dressing the Bike for Fall

The Concert

Our church's youth concert last weekend was a big hit, enjoyed by parent volunteers as much as by the kids. The Oswald Brothers Band was the perfect draw, three adorable and personable brothers (along with a friend) playing contemporary Christian music, a pop number or two, and their own creations. Lots of screaming girls. And the brothers were such enthusiastic entertainers, and they stayed well past the concert to sign CDs and t-shirts and even take pictures. We had food and drinks and handed out glo-stix. Fun fun night!


[Bottom two photos courtesy of Matthew Braden]

Resurfacing

What a week it was. Work was super busy. Harleigh was gone on a school retreat to the mountains all week (which translated to my routine being a bit akilter; not to mention giving me a taste of what it will be like when she goes off to college). It rained ALL week. A co-worker's wife was in a bad car accident which left me feeling on edge about how distracted we all get with cell phones, gps systems, etc.

But the week is gone. Done. Bye-bye. Church was wonderful this morning and now we have our big youth party and concert tonight, which I've poured my heart and soul into. I pray that it is well attended and holds up the youth of our church and community as valued beings.

I found a sweet embroidered picture this weekend and it is now hanging above the door going from the hall to the foyer. It has embroidered portions and printed sections on the fabric. I made the mistake of trying to get some stains out with bleach and you can see where my attempts got the stains out but also bleached the background super white. Ugh.
And here are the flowers that Harleigh got me for my birthday. With each day the bouquet got more beautiful as the flowers opened!

My Cubicle Looks Like a Floral Shoppe

Yesterday I turned 49. Thanks to all my blog friends for sending sweet wishes. I promise I will get back to you all over the weekend. Here are some pix of the flowers that came my way. A spring bouquet from Amanda, peachy pink roses from Courtney, and lilies from my Harleigh (who's working part-time after school and on Saturdays at Chick-fil-A, and put some of her hard-earned cash towards her mommy).

Note in the picture of Amanda's bouquet that there is a fan on my desk, pointing right at my face, for every time I get a hot flash. Needless to say, it stays on all day.