The worst blogger....in the wooorld!

So, if anyone has ever watched Keith Olbermann's TV show on MSNBC, you know that he has a segment titled "The Worst Person in the World." Well, queue the music people, because I am officially....The worst blogger in the woooorrld! I have not added anything of value to the blogging world in months now. Unfortunately, it's only because I have been so incredibly busy with my full time job that hobbies have had to take a back seat. I think that things have started to resume to normal for me though and look forward to blogging more soon. I certainly need some projects! I actually went to a thrift store for the first time in months last week, but didn't find anything great. I'm going again this weekend though and hope to find something to play with!

So, sorry for being the worst blogger in the world! I hope to resume my blog again soon!

Wow, what a busy month!

Ok, so coming soon turned into a month! May was an extremely busy month at work and socially, so I had no time to blog!
But, I'm on vacation this week and will be posting some of the projects I finished since my last blog plus some great GW/yardsale/thrift store finds.

This weekend's project has been the yard. Actually, it's been a slow moving project for several months. We were just stumped on what to do with this very large bed near the front door. We are halfway there now, but the weather has not been cooperating the last few days.

Take a look at the photos to see where we are now:
I've posted them on Photobucket for now, but will post here later.

I hope the weather will cooperate with us today!

Coming soon...

So I've been a little bit too busy with work and housework to blog much over the past few days, but I have some great things to share!

I finished "rehabbing" a "little cart" for my breakfast nook and discovered in the process that it was a Majestic Model 90 radio case...from 1930! And I paid $10 for it! Yay!

I also found some GREAT deals today at Goodwill. And won $150 on a $10 scratch off lotto ticket when I was pumping gas!

Tablescape Thursday and $5 Window treatments

It's time for Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch!

I'm going a little outside of the box with this table, as it's not traditional spring colors, but I centered it around the custom made (for someone else) valance that I found at the Humane Society thrift store. I couldn't pass it up for $5 when I had nothing on my breakfast nook window. I don't think it will be a permanent fixture as I can't see it fitting in year round, but I like it for now. It's dramatic black background with spring flowers in toile pots seems perfect for right now.

With this table, I decided to use my favorite dishes that I've had for a few years. The dinner plates and salt/pepper shakers and mugs are Tracy Porter for Target "Octavia Hill" pattern.


Aren't they pretty?

They are sitting atop some great Pier One chargers that I bought off Ebay for $6/4. The chargers are a black leather like material with gold etchings. (Sorry for the bad photo, I couldn't seem to get a good one of the chargers.)


The salad plates are Better Homes and Garden from Walmart.


You've seen the green goblets before, in my first tablescape. They came from Target and I love them.

The napkins and napkin rings are from Kohl's.

I wanted to keep this table simple, so I used a green Goodwill vase with some clippings from my shrubs and yard as the centerpiece.

You'll see a few of my Georgia plates hanging on the wall next to one of the things I've had the longest in my house, a lamp that I've had so long that I don't even remember where I bought it.

I've got a plant stand sitting next to the lamp with my favorite Pewter pitcher and a new glass jar from GW. Underneath, a green houseplant that I've had for a while sitting on a white plate.

We only need one fork and a butter knife, remember I'm keeping it simple! Flatware from Belk's.

Tablecloth is Fieldstone Luxury from Target, bottom one from GW.



I hope that you like my simple Tablescape and my great window treatment!

My First Mosaic Monday

Welcome to my Guest room, featuring my newly refinished coffee table! Read more details about it here and here

I'm excited about this being my first post to Mosaic Mondays at the Little Red House

Refinished Coffee Table and Welcome to my Guest Room!

I'm linking to Metamorphosis Mondays at Between Naps on the Porch! Be sure to visit the other fabulous Metamorphosis'!
I'm also linking to Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays because there is a whole lot of thrift going on in this room!

So, I finally finished my coffee table re-do that I started on Monday. After a week of working in the evenings (ok, so I took one day off, I admit it!)I finally finished yesterday afternoon. I'm pleased with how it turned out.

I picked up this table from my Mom's "Destined for the Dump" pile. It had been sitting outside for a while and had lots of grime on it and I discovered when I started sanding that it had quite a few waterspots (probably from me as a child!) and needed a really good cleaning before sanding. I didn't know when I took on this project that my husband recently sold our sander because the charger didn't work! So, I'll be picking one up real soon because hand sanding this baby was lots of work!

I forgot to take a true before shot, but here's after I had sanded a lot of the front, taken off the hardware on the doors and taken off one door:



And here it is in my guest room! (Click on the image to see full size)







I'm thinking about moving the shelves and putting the big black mirror (that I got at a flea market for $5) on top. I'll post pics if I do!

The How to Section: I (gasp) spray painted the body of the table with Krylon Satin Black. I stained and painted the the top. I painted the black diamonds first with interior black gloss and then stained over all of it to give the paint a more rustic and uneven look. I left the stain on longer in the circle and the edges. I finished it off with a spray coat of polyurethane. I created my own stencil for the diamonds. I tried to come up with a diamond that was the right size to both begin and end with a full diamond but the math wouldn't work out right for me, so I decided to end on a half diamond. They sell a Harlequin stencil at Hobby Lobby for $17, but I was being cheap, as usual! The center I half used a stencil and half freehanded. The stencil wasn't really large enough so I added some embellishment and englarged it freehand. The circle was created using a plate and I freehanded the circles around the circle (whew) just to give it a little less of a "perfect" look.


While I am sharing, I thought I would show you the rest of my guest room. Welcome!





This little sign makes me laugh, because I DID join the Navy.

I found this print of an old Wamsutta sheets ad in a Cato Clothing store about 6 or 7 years ago for about $4. I love it!

So, I hope you enjoyed my guest room. Here's where everything that we haven't already discussed:
Bed and End Tables: Target
Bedding: Walmart (can you believe it?)
Lamps: Hobby Lobby
Accessories from misc. places. The frame was a gift from a friend for Christmas.
Shelves: Target
Candleabra on table: Antiques/Flea Mkt in Cottondale, FL -$10
Silver tray, GW about $5
And the BEST DEAL OF ALL....I found the white vases you see on the table at an antiques store in Sasser, GA last week. I paid ONE CENT EACH! A penny!!!

Thanks for visiting, hope to see you again soon!

I'm also linking to Thrifty Treasures ,Penny Pinching Party and

I am in love with this new collection from Lenox!

Palatial Garden by Marchesa for Lenox. They have the entire collection posted on their Facebook page. I want it so badly!

Check our Lenox on Facebook

Weekend Thrifting, Table Re-do, etc..

I haven't had time to post about my excellent finds this weekend, but expect to see photos soon!
First, I discovered that the town that is only 7 miles from me is nothing but antique stores. I have no idea why it took me two years of living here to discover this! Actually, I do...this town literally consists of one street and I don't drive in that direction often. When I do, I drive right by and think nothing of it. They have a fairly popular flea market, but it's not popular because it's a flea market...but because it has concerts a lot with people who were famous 20 and 30 years ago. The concerts are vintage like the merchandise. However, the concerts are not as expensive as the merchandise. I did find a few things that I would like, but I thought they were overpriced, with the exception of some dishes...but I've bought too many dishes lately, so I put those on hold.
The only reason I went to the flea market this weekend is because I slept in too late to go to any yard sales. After I was a little let down at the flea market, I decided to ride around to see if I could find any yard sales still happening. Well, I didn't see any in this particular town, but noticed as I was driving past that there was an antiques store. I knew I had to come by there on the way home so I kept driving to the next town (only ten minutes away). I saw a sign for a thrift store that I didn't know was around, so I went and visited. Sadly, they are about to close up shop due to the lack of donations, but I found a set of custom made valances with the bed skirt...$20 for the set. It's very nice decorators fabric. I didn't need the entire set, but thought the long valance might look nice in my breakfast nook. I got it for $5.
I stopped in at the "antiques store" on the way back and was completely shocked that the entire street was nothing but antiques stores! WHAT?! I went to every one. I was mainly just browsing, but I found one store that had a lot of small things like, oh vases and flatware for ONE PENNY! I will be posting photos soon, I promise!

I picked up an old coffee table from my Mom that she had decided to trash. I am in the process of refinishing it now and actually plan to use it in my guest room under some shelves. I'm having fun with it, but it was very hard to strip and not easy to paint because of "nooks and crannies". I'm actually a little sore from it! I should be done tomorrow and then I will be posting pics on Friday or Saturday. ***EDITED: I just can't wait. I'm going to post a sneak peek at below***

I'll see you all for Tablescape Thursday tomorrow, which is in my breakfast room, so I'll be showcasing the new draperies! NOTE: Ok, so I didn't make Tablescape Thursday. The table re-do sucked me in and between that and work, no time to put the finishing touches on the tablescape. I'll be here next week though!

Here's the before:

Ok, so that's semi before. I had already taken off one door and sanded a good bit of the top. It was worse, if you can imagine.
And

Here

Is

The
...During...almost done..




What do you think?? I should note that this is not for my living room, but for my guest bedroom, which is done in all black and white with a little bit of French flair.

Ok, so it's not quite finished, but I'm still linking to:

$50 Pottery Barn Giveaway at Miss Bloomers

Another new blog that I've discovered this week (there are so many!) is offering a $50 PB gift certificate to celebrate the one year anniversary of her blog. Go check it out!

Weekend Getaway to the North Georgia Mountains

Here's a funny story about how I discovered this little wonderful place called Hiawassee, GA.

Ten years ago, my boyfriend and I were both in the Navy. We were both stationed on the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), an aircraft carrier.

In August 2000, Joe received new orders to the USS Iwo Jima,(LHD-7). We had discussed marriage several times, but it wasn't possible while we were on the same ship. When he got his new orders, he asked me to bring him my "underway schedule" (A list of dates that I would be at sea). He compared it to his and then, what I thought jokingly, we decided that we would get married on March 24, 2001. We arrived at this date simply because it was the only time when we both had two weeks at home together...for the entire year. One week for the wedding, one week for the honeymoon. Soon, he called his parents and told them that we were getting married. The ring and all of the rest came later, but for then, we were engaged. It was absurd, but I was happy. Like most girls who have just become engaged, the next few months were a flurry of planning...choosing locations (we chose my hometown in Georgia, although we lived in Virginia) colors, invitations, my wedding gown, bridesmaids dresses, and the all important honeymoon spot. We decided that we would use that and go to Acapulco. We were so excited!

Then on a very cold Virginia day, the wind was let out of my sails. I was told that my sailing dates had changed. Far too much had been done at this point to change our date, but it looked like I would be at sea until March 20th and would go back out on March 31st. So, now we were down to 11 days total. Soon after, his schedule changed and he now had to be back in VA on March 28th. Not long after, mine changed again and I had to be at sea until March 22nd. We were now down to 2 days before the wedding (in which time we had to make the 12 hour drive to Georgia and have rehearsal, finishing touches, etc). We only had 4 days after the wedding, which meant that Acapulco was certainly not an option. It just so happened that a friend of my Dad & Stepmom's had a family cabin in North Georgia that we could take a mini-honeymoon in.

Somehow, against ALL ODDS (*and let me assure you, the odds DID NOT end there, Murphy's Law was in full effect, I'll save those funny details for later*) we managed to get married on March 24, 2001. After the wedding, we headed to Hiawassee, GA. We were tired, excited, relieved, so many emotions!

What we discovered when we got to Hiawassee was a quaint little mountain town and the most perfect little cabin we could have imagined. The view from the porch (pictured above) could easily be a postcard. It's amazing! Our only regret about our little mini-moon spot was that we couldn't stay longer.

Since then, we've made several trips to the area and have managed to stay in the sweet little cabin a few more times. Each time, making new memories. Our life has changed in a million ways since the first time we went to the cabin, yet the simple beauty of both the area and cabin remain the same. Sitting on the porch and looking out at God's beautiful work, it's hard not to be thankful for your blessings. We've had many in the years, and one of the best is that we have been able to spend time in this cabin that my Dad's friends have so generously shared with us. We've never had the chance to meet them, but we know they are special people! Thank you, Davidson family!

This year, we discovered a Drive-In theater not far from Hiawassee! I've never been, so this was a wonderful treat for me!


More photos for you to enjoy:
North GA Mountains, 2010

For you Tablescape Thursday ladies, you'll enjoy these photos from the cabin dining room: Antiques, Fiestaware and silverware with the receipt from delivery on...11/04/1968! (Which just so happens was exactly 10 years before I was born)The owners have beautiful things!

I'm still loving the spring colors! Welcome to rural Georgia!

It's time for Tablescape Thursdays at Between Naps on the Porch! Be sure to go look at all of the beautiful tablescapes linked there!

So, I almost missed out on tablescaping this week because I got behind in my "chores" while I was off enjoying the North Georgia Mountains this past weekend. We had a wonderful weekend and I'll be posting photos soon.

Some of the highlights (other than my first time ever going to a Drive-In theater) were the many, many antique and thrift stores we stumbled upon. It seemed as if everyone was selling things! Luckily for me, I found quite a few little treasures.

Click on the photos to see the full image.

I fell in love with the placemats and napkins pictured below the minute I saw them in the Hiawassee Antique Mall.


I couldn't wait to find the perfect dishes to go with them. And then I remembered that I had recently purchased some of the new Better Homes and Gardens melamine plates at, of all places, Wal Mart. I bought them for outdoor picnics, but they seemed to want to sit on these placemats!
Later that day, I stumbled upon these unmarked saucers and thought they were pretty. When I decided on my tablecloth, they wanted to join in today too!


The second day I was out thrifting, I happened upon a roadside rummage sale where I found these wonderful Prill knives! I loved them and got them for a steal ($5 for all four!) My forks are tucked into the napkins, but these needed to be seen! :)


The "tablecloth" is actually just a ream of vintage fabric that I found in Goodwill last month. I had planned to get someone to make it into a tablecloth for me, but decided to go ahead and use it for this.

The glasses here are honestly ones I never thought I would be posting online, but they seemed to fit. They are the Coke glasses that came free with McDonald's value meals last year, haha!



Mr. Birdie flew in from Hobby Lobby, one of my favorite stores for home accents, since I like to change up things often and their prices allow me to play with home trends.

The "Georgia Peaches" plaque that birdie and our sweets are sitting on came from Target about ten years ago. I bought it in Virginia Beach, VA. I stumbled upon it one day when I was very homesick and I've loved it for many years now!



The silverplate saucer and white candy dish have been around my house for a while too, they always come in handy! I need somewhere to put those fresh Easter Reese's cups!

The pewter pitcher, although beaten up is one of my favorite items. I live on a street called Pewter Court, so I've started collecting more pewter, as "corny" as it sounds. I really love my neighborhood though!



The pitcher sits atop a hibiscus plate that was a gift from a friend many years ago.

I hope that you enjoyed your trip to my breakfast nook! Maybe one day I will actually get some daylight photos for you all!! Thanks for looking!

My FIRST Tablescape Thursday!

First...I'm sorry for the formatting issues, I'm new to Blogger and learning my way around!

So, I've discovered Tablescape Thursdays at Between Naps on the Porch which I am pretty sure is going to make me:

1. Spend too much time in antique thrift shops


2. Spend too much money


3. Drive my husband insane


4. Give me countless hours of enjoyment!

So, I'm starting with a Spring table that I have moved now to it's third spot in my home. It started on my bar, moved to my breakfast nook and has now graduated to the dining room. Although I'm not quite sure I like it better here than the breakfast nook! I've learned this week that this is not as easy as it looks, but just as much fun and I have once again realized that I am NOT a photographer...

It was a long and cold winter by Southwest Georgia (as in mosquito and gnat country) standards. So, I'm welcoming Spring with open arms! Since this is my first tablescape, I've only set out finger foods, but just imagine that there's a few courses cooking in the kitchen! I hope that you will enjoy your visit!

Click on the photo to see the full photo.











So, I'm not much of a photographer! But, here's what you see:
Plates: Rose China found at an antiques store (Antiques and More, Albany, GA)for $3 each
Polka dot plates are from Target - $2.49 each
Saucers found at Goodwill for $1.25 for all 4
Placemats, Napkins and Napkin rings: Kohls
Plaid/Gingham fabric: Goodwill
Silver Coasters under pink coffee cup: Garage Sale
Pitcher: Gorham (wedding gift 9 years ago today!!)
Green Goblets: Target a few years ago
Pink Coffee Cups: Arcoroc France from Goodwill (2.22 for all)
Vase: Gift from my sister a long time ago...Don't you love the perma-calla lillies?
Green glass candle holders (or sauce cups or shotglasses): Antiques store in Cottondale, FL
Silver dish and FABULOUS Amber cake plate: ShopGoodwill.com
Pink Gingham server: Kmart last year for a whopping $1.29
and last but not least, thanks to the Cakery in Albany, GA for the goodies on the table, because I had no time to do anything because I'm about to be off for a long weekend to celebrate my 9 year Anniversary!

I'm really going to blog this time, no...really!

I have discovered a wonderful blog http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com that I have been following for a month or so now. It captures my passion for design - especially that of the Southern kind! I've decided to join in on the fun she has on Thursdays, it's called "Tablescape Thursdays" and since I love finding interesting dishes, this will be a lot of fun for me! I have spent hours looking at others who have participated in the previous weeks and must say that I'm a bit nervous to post my own, but excited too!

So, improvements are coming to my lifeless little blog, prepare for fabulousity to soon ensue!