Hearts and Roses

You know I can't resist hearts and roses--especially guilloche pieces and pink!  I added these to my shop recently....one is a rather large guilloche piece.  It was designed as a pendant and could certainly be used as one, but I put it on some ribbon so that it may be seen to be used as an ornament as well.

Then I played some with my new rose beads and made this pretty pin last weekend. I really do like these beads and thought they worked well into this setting.  I love the detail and the rich pink coloring.

Hope you like them too.  Enjoy!

Heart Shaped Vintage Jewelry Ornament

Here is a picture of the pink mirrored heart ornament embellished with vintage and antique jewelry pieces.  I finally finished it, added it to my Etsy shop, and just love the mother-of-pearl and light pink pieces (not to mention all of those rhinestones).  Hope you like it too!

Vintage Jewelry Embellished Ornaments

I had such a fun time making these ornaments!  I can picture them being hung in a home all year round--on a knob, a shelf peg, on the corner of a boudoir mirror, anywhere really where a spot of color and sparkle is needed.  They are mirrored ornaments covered with vintage jewelry pieces.  They have been listed in my Etsy shop.  I'm working on a pink heart-shaped one which should be done later in the week (it is becoming my favorite one so far!).  Perhaps I'll post it on here for you to see.  Hope you like them! ; ) 

September in Wisconsin

I think if I were to recommend to anyone the month to visit Wisconsin it would be September.  The high heat is over.  The humidity goes down.  The days are sunny and bright.  There is warmness in the air yet a touch of crispness.  The evenings are cool and refreshing.  It's beautiful here in September.  Lately it has been quite foggy and moist in the very early mornings only to burn off by mid morning yielding a fabulous day. 

My pink geranium is still blooming beautifully.  I love plant pot "sticks", and this one is a green and white flying bug on a copper stick.

The hummingbirds are still here, though I know soon they will begin their long flights to warmer climates.  It has been so hard to get a picture of them!  Thankfully after a prayer that I'd be able to capture one on the camera, this pretty lady landed on our deck chair and posed for me.  I think they are one of the sweetest creatures God created.  I shall miss them when they all leave and have been taking the time to watch them and get my fill in before they do. 

Also, I couldn't resist a shot of this spider's web.  The dew on it turns it in a piece of lace studded with diamonds. 

Roses in Bloom

I love this time of year when the roses start to really bloom. I pruned most of my bushes this spring--scaring a few with my unstoppable clipping perhaps. They look a little small...but I know they will be full and pretty soon. So far so good as far as the tent caterpillars go this year. They have been terrible the past few years eating my bushes down to the stalks. We are prepared this year....and are determined not to lose any bushes to them and their incredible destruction.

This is what the roses from my huge bush out back look like up close--they are rugosas. Though they are not the fancy kind but are hearty and fragrant and beautiful.This is what we see from our deck. We have a lot that extends a good distance in from the road. Mom brought literally a stick about a foot long to us from Maine about 4 years ago. It was October, and I wasn't sure it would survive. I planted it with banana peels and so hoped that it would make it since it was something from Maine and reminds me of the salt mist roses seen along the coast--a wonderful remembrance of growing up there. Well, not only did it survive, but it has flourished into this huge bush taller than I am. It smells wonderful, is hearty, and I just love the mass of green covered with pink. What a delight to look out back and see this...and I bet you can almost smell them!

Roses from Hubby

I love how when my husband comes home with flowers...he is ALWAYS grinning from ear to ear as if he were really, really pleased with himself. Well, he should be, and I'm always pleased when he comes home with some. It doesn't happen terribly often, but when it does I'm just thrilled.

Somehow he always knows when I need them most and what in particular would be the best flower. Guess that's part of being married for over 20 years! Thank you, dear hubby. These smell wonderful and are such a pretty, bright spot in my day.

New Year...New Calendar

A new year means, of course, a new calendar. I can't bear the thought of paying full price for a calendar, so we usually wait until the last week of December to buy our new ones at 50% off. The kids each got one for their rooms and one for their school desks, and I got my favorite "Teapot & Tea" calendar. I really love this calendar. If I'm going to put something up on a wall in my home--visible to all--it must be pretty and be in keeping with the decor of my home. This calendar certainly fits the bill. Each month is gorgeous...although this year unfortunately Joni has included a very ugly witch teapot for the month of October. I was so disappointed! This is one thing I have liked in the past about this calendar in particular...each picture was very general for the entire month...not just one day of that month. I think the October teapot is SO ugly, that I am taking a favorite picture from 2010 to paste over it. I don't do Halloween and definitely don't do witches and don't want to see that all month! Anyway, otherwise each month is beautiful and interesting in every possible way. Now I am taking the time to convert anniversary and birthday dates from the old calendar to the the new one (if I didn't write them down, I'd forget for sure), my husband's schedules, appointments we've made already, etc. Oh, happy new year to everyone. I hope it is a good one for you.

Creative Teacup Lights

I have great appreciation for creative people with unique ideas...and this person has the most fascinating things--vintage teacup lights! I saw these on Etsy today. How can I not like, well, anything with a teacup involved in it? So, I thought I'd show you these. Hop on over to this seller's Etsy shop at Mostaza Seed to see her other work.

Mmmmmm!

I just discovered this at Walmart. We had never seen it before. Have you? It has probably been around for the last 10 years....but this cranberry version of Stove Top is super yum. It was on the end of one of the aisles. I tried to find it in our regular grocery store, but with all the varieties of Stove Top available, this one wasn't anywhere to be seen. We like cranberries anyway. They give a nice little sweet bite to whatever they are in AND they sure make a dish or cookie pretty with their gorgeous, deep reddish-pink color. I always keep a container of Stove Top on hand in case I ever need a REALLY quick meal. I open up a can of chicken and stick it in the water with the butter before putting in the stuffing. *ching* Instant yummy meal in about 8 minutes. Anyway, if you haven't tried this...I'd recommend it. Yum!

Some Last Roses of Summer

Perhaps it is because of all the rain we received in August and September, but my roses are still blooming beautifully. What a treat to have them to enjoy so late in the season! I thought I'd share them with you. Wish I could transport their scent as well, but you will just have to imagine that on your own. Enjoy!

Roses in Full Bloom

I was hanging out the laundry the other day when--*sniff, sniff*, mmmmmm!--my nose was full of the scent of roses on the light breeze (pictures above). Now, hanging out the laundry is a pleasant enough experience, but coupled with the scent of roses on the air, it is one of THE MOST pleasant of experiences. So, I took a walk around the house and took some pictures of some of my roses to share with you. I just love roses--their scent, their colors, their shapes...everything about them is wonderful (well, except for maybe those nasty thorns!). Enjoy!
These are on the far back part of our property and are wild roses from Maine.
These thorny beauties are on the side of the garage--they add lots of color and fill a wide empty space, the garage wall.
These are out front under our dining room window and make the room smell wonderful when the window is open.

Dining Room Changes

One of the main factors that confirmed our choice of house plans when we built our house several years ago was the "turret room", as we call it, which is the rounded dining area off the kitchen. I thought it looked English and cottage-y and bright and pretty. I wanted a crystal chandelier, and we found the perfect one at the price we had allotted for it. When the builder finished the ceiling he put, I thought, a cheap-looking piece of wood in the very top rounded part of the room. I looked at that for years not liking it all the while. It didn't match the surrounding wood. AND...the chandelier was too high up into the ceiling and sort of got lost up there. Well, my parents surprised us by having an electrician come to lower the chandelier this past week. During this process, my mom painted the center top of the ceiling the same color of the walls (she is very brave getting way up there on a ladder) while I cleaned and polished all of the crystals until they gleamed. I'm most delighted with the results! The light is now stronger down where we need it, the ugly wood piece is now covered with paint, and, yes, the chandelier is down where we can see and enjoy it.

Dusted and Rearranged

I'm not a big fan of dusting--in fact, I rarely do it! However, when I do have occasion to dust...like all the family coming over this coming weekend, so I had better dust...things certainly look great once done. So, this is the case with my hutch. It had a gray hue to it...a fuzzy gray hue...so it was time to dust. I also rearranged my teacups and teapots by adding some new ones (like the lovely blue flowered cup and saucer from my sweet friend in the UK, Paulina of Swept and Garnished) and putting away others for awhile. I'm pleased with the rearranged, dust-free look. Perhaps I should have company come more often!

Weekend Happenings

First of all, I'd like to thank Sadie of Lollishops for putting my shop on the Lollishops front page this past weekend! I was surprised and delighted and thankful to see my shop up and for the exposure. Thanks, Sadie!
Mom and I went to a couple of estate sales where I found some sparkles to sell in my shops and these two beauties...actually something for myself!
This first little creamer hails from Germany and has the sweetest roses on the front. I also love the frilly lace look along the edges of the piece. I'm eager for my roses to bloom so that I may cut them and put them into this. I think it will look beautiful.
Then this was sitting on a shelf--I couldn't believe no one had picked it up yet. It is in perfect condition, and, of course, the pattern matches the Old Country Roses pattern I'm trying to economically collect at thrift stores and estate sales. I have another teacup in this pattern--but not this style. I like how the inside of the cup is full of roses which is quite different from my other teacup. There is nothing like taking a sip of tea and seeing a beautiful pattern while sipping.
I finished the Petite May Basket Swap basket for my partner, Tracy of Cotton Pickin Cute, and have shipped it out to her. No pictures yet since I don't want to spoil her surprise, but once I know she has it I will post some pictures of what I sent her. I hope she likes it. It was fun to do.
I was up late Saturday night on this computer, and the screen started doing strange movements. I thought my eyes were unusually tired. The pictured continued to move which made me nervous, so I stood up and noticed that our monitor was smoking! Oh, no! My husband who had already gone to bed came running out and knew all of the things to unplug. Whew! I'm thankful--very thankful--that I was still up...that we hadn't gone for the evening....that my husband was home who knew what to do...the Lord took care of us! I have never heard of a computer monitor catching on fire before, but that one was quickly on its way. I'm grateful that what could have been bad a bad situation was taken care of by the Lord. We had a "spare" downstairs which I'm using now. I'm thankful for that too.
Oh, here is a screen shot of the Lollishops front page in case you'd like to see that I really was on the front page there!

A Box Full of Antique Beads

When my sister-in-law was visiting from New Zealand last fall, we talked a lot about beads and the ones I work with and the ones I use to decorate around my home...and, yes, the ones that I'm looking for. Well, while at an antique shop before she and my brother and their family headed back to New Zealand last week, she saw these beads, thought of me, and sent them. What a wonderful surprise! It is always a treat to find out that someone is thinking about me--and enough to actually spend money on me!
One thing I like about old beads is that, well, they actually look old. I like that old beads are slightly different in size and shape--they are not the precise exact-sized beads that one can buy from the store in those little tubes today (though I admit to preferring these when working on a piece of jewelry). Some of these beads are golden yellow and golden brown; others are orange-red to red with green leaves and metallic copper leaves. Other than the copper leaves, they are all glass and are gorgeous. These will go up in my home somewhere. I'll find the right places...and think of and pray for my dear sister-in-law when I look at them.

A Pretty Laundry Room--Now Completed

I had done a post...many posts ago...about our laundry room. It was just as I wanted it--complete with lots of roses and beautiful colors in green, red, pink, and yellow--except for the ironing board cover (which was gray and covered with ugly house drawings). You may read the post here if you'd like--laundry room. The ironing board cover I had was ancient and in poor shape. Well, I finally broke down and bought a new one for myself, and I dare say that our laundry room is completed and looks completed. I really wanted to support a handmade supplier, so I found Hestia Houseworks on Etsy. Not only did I have a great experience with them with friendly and fast service, but in return I also received a beautiful, quality ironing board cover. The material is gorgeous and goes well in the rose-themed laundry room...and it feels great to support a fellow Etsy-ian. Hooray for handmade! ; )

"Tea Time Tidbits" Special Posting #10

I love little cottages--in all shapes, sizes, and forms. Perhaps it's an extension from the '80's when they seemed to be very popular. Whatever the case, I am gathering a little collection of them on my mantle. Unfortunately a mantle is only so wide and so long...because I'm running out of room! I have a clock and a plate and a thimble...(sounds like a good topic for another post)...and, of course, some cottage teapots and this cottage tea mug which are absolute necessities for this tea lover! The tea mug is from the Allyn Nelson Collection. The two teapots are James Sadler designs. I LOVE James Sadler's teapots. The timbered one is "Anne Hathaway's Cottage" (No, not the actress--Shakespeare's Anne ...though I bet she wishes it were her house), and the other one is "Rose Cottage".
There is a "Wisteria Cottage" out there that is lovely and I'd like to get someday. The detail on these teapots is truly amazing--little animals, profusions of flowers, lifelike additions. These little tea related cottages are pleasant and pretty, and I really enjoy them (one reason why they're up on the mantle!). If you're going to have tea, it might as well be in something pretty, pleasant, or personal. Then the entire experience will be the best it possibly can be.

Having Guests--Putting Roses in Their Room

We are having my brother and his family stay at our home this week--how wonderful! It has been great to catch up with him and visit with my sister-in-law and their children. I haven't seen her and two of their children for almost five years! (It's pretty expensive and quite a trip to get to and from New Zealand.) But, just where does the time go? Yes, we can call and e-mail, but there is nothing like a face-to-face visit with plenty of hugs. My brother is the preacher and Bible institute teacher, and they have been living in beautiful New Zealand for almost 20 years now.

For some reason I'm convinced that a guest room should have fresh roses (and maybe a little dish of chocolate, too). I know I really enjoy fresh flowers in a room (and chocolates--*wink*). So, I went around our house yesterday picking some of the last beauties of the summer to put in their room (see above). These were the best and prettiest--and only the best will do for our honored guests.