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Flea Market Finds for Texture Tuesday

 
(Kim Klassen textures applied: sonnetmagic and pourvous)

I was a girl on a mission. There were two things on my list I was hoping to find on my trip this weekend to Scott Antique Market. A HUGE antique/flea market show held once a month in Atlanta. {They also have an Ohio venue as well.}

The french boy mannequin is something I bought in Florida last summer on vacation. He's not new. But he was fresh off the crate from France when I just happened thru the doors of this antique store I love to visit when we're in the Destin area of the Florida panhandle. These two delightful dealers also set up monthly at Scott's and will happily bring any merchandise up from Florida to Atlanta. If you're ever in the Destin area, and you love European antiques at FAIR PRICES, you need to visit Misty and Ann at Antiques on Holiday.

So what did I find? Those blue doors! They were on my "mission list"....!

 
(Kim Klassen textures: mayzee. Also applied a dry brush effect.)

 About a year ago, which is how long it's been since I last attended Scott Antique Market show, I passed up a pair of doors quite similar to these. I've thought about them ever since. The same dealer was there again and this time I bought a pair from him.

I didn't find one of the things on my list, but I made up for any disappointment with some other wonderful finds!  The silver trophy champagne bucket was one of the things I dragged home. It is engraved with a date of 1953 on it. YEAH! Something older than me! ha ha!

I'll share some of the other little treasures another time. Meanwhile, if you'd like to see the magic others have worked on their photos using Kim's textures, head over to Kim's to check out the other participants in today's Texture Tuesday party.

 
It's supposed to be delivered today. Months of searching...debating...she made a decision!

 
Meet my new family room coffee table.

Handcrafted of unfinished, solid reclaimed pine timbers from 100-year-old buildings in Great Britain (source) {love this store}

I've debated about it for a long time. More than I wanted to spend...but I love the casual feel, the ability to tuck some neat storage bins underneath...and you're welcome to put your feet on it. And my Mr. Fun {aka my dear husband} liked it the best of all the choices.

 

I think it will look wonderful with the new rug and the vintage blanket chest that I'll be using for a footstool with a chair. I've had my eye on this chest for a while as well...found it at The Queen of Hearts in Buford, GA. A favorite  antiquing haunt...

 

After a long time of having green being the more predominate color in my decorating, moving over to a softer blue, taupes/browns/neutrals is proving to be a fun change.

 
I've got a long, long, long way to go on this room. But I've always been one to sort of let things evolve [unlike Mr. Fun who gets it done NOW!]. However, the vision is coming together nicely...

As a side note, that soup tureen is one of my favorite pieces of ironstone. It is a discontinued Spode pattern called Gadroon. Replacements Limited has it for sale at an asking price of $339. I paid........$50 for mine. Scream with deeeee-light!

 
This is a sofa table I bought at least a dozen years ago. It was a fantastic bargain way back when, but more importantly, I loved it.

Which is something I've learned the hard way......whether it's furniture or clothing, ONLY BUY what you really LOVE {and can afford} and not because it was a good deal. In the long run, especially with furniture, you'll keep it forever. I've used this piece in at least 5 different rooms through the years. And now it's being moved into the new family room redo.

Working on lots of house things, being mom and wife, and a few other hats have kept me from spending a lot of time blogging. I keep up, so to speak, in my google reader, but very behind in leaving comments to so many amazing bloggers I so enjoy peeking in on. 

 And still waiting for Spring to arrive....lol! xo, Sue

Buying time... {Mentionable Giveaways & Free Image}

...does anybody know where I can buy more time?

Oh, if only it were that easy. No doubt the line would be long and the scuffles in the store would make for some great comedy show episodes.

Well, sometimes TIME is for sale...and these are two of my most recent "time" purchases. I found them both at the Scott Antique Market this month. 

And speaking of good finds...

Look what I dragged home from an antique store. It's not antique...and it's not in any color {lemon yellow} that matches my decor...but look at all those yummy curves, details, and frenchy-style to this piece. And the best parts? It is in mint, like-new condition...a high end piece of furniture with a low end price tag on it. Pennies on the dollar for what it originally cost...my kind of deal.

Love the hardware...a creamy white distressed finish...Which is exactly the type of paint job that will eventually be given to this piece...............

I think I mentioned that we are going to "re-fluff" the nest a bit. Partly because it needs some updating and also to FINALLY repair/replace furniture that our 22 month old Lab chewed to pieces during her puppy months. GRRRRRR....

Not sure if I'll tackle this one myself or pay someone to do it. Time will tell...

And while we are on the topic of TIME, there's still time to enter these two wonderful giveaways by two darling bloggers. 

Patty at THE MAGPIE'S NEST is a Virginia cutie-pie who is celebrating having posted in excess of one thousand two hundred posts..........whew. That girl has her fingers in every sort of artful adventure known to man and has such a creative spirit! {and a sweetheart of a person to boot!} She's offering up three of her beautiful wool felted heart pendants. Click here to enter the drawing! I've thoroughly enjoyed having met Patty through blogging many months ago.

Linda at Linda Jo's Obsessions is a Texas cutie-pie who is celebrating 500 posts! As we all know, everything is bigger in Texas so she's stretching her party over five days. Each day this week she'll be showcasing yet another giveaway! So far there's a copy of Tracie Lynn Huskamp's beautiful book NATURE INSPIRED, a darling little embellished notepad and a gorgeous lace heart. I've recently become familiar with Linda Jo's blog and she has the most deeee-lightful sense of humor and has lots of artsy adventures going on as well.

Go visit both for the prizes but stay for the inspiration....

Here's a photo of my large clock face I'll share with those of you who collect old images for your artwork. Please feel free to save it to your computer for your own personal use. This girl was way too big for the scanner bed...

The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen all at once.  ~Albert Einstein {What? My life feels like living proof that it can all happen at once...I see you nodding your head in agreement!}

Xo, Sue 

 Credits: Textured onlays from Kim Klassen's collection
 

Smile Big!

I am! I am! Such a simple gesture but oh, such a delightful way to spend your time. I'm guessing you've heard that smiling, from a physiological standpoint is much easier to do than frowning. Here's some other interesting facts on smiling for all you Cliff Clavin types who love to collect trivia... 

Wandering back to why I'm smiling...

I was forced {{{aw shucks!}}} to head to the monthly flea market held here in Atlanta (Scott Antique Market). A couple of darling antique dealers from Florida who do the show were bringing up some items I purchased while vacationing in their neck of the woods last month.

Big smile when I finally pulled into the lot and began taking in all the fabulous junk. 

No...these chairs aren't my items. But if the pair of chairs with the caning on the side had not been sold I would have been sorely tempted to make them mine. But I did buy several of their screen printed images for future projects.

And I'm still kicking myself for not having grabbed the pair of doors second from the left.

 We {that would be me, myself, and I} are in the beginning throngs of taking on some major redecorating and finishing a big chunk of our lower level. Hubby likes to tease that he's given me an unlimited budget and I will most likely exceed it! Okay. Maybe you have to be married to an accountant/businessman to think that's funny. But truth be told, he knows that I am a terrific bargain hunter who will dig and dig until I find most of my stuff at great prices.

I've been scouring consignment and antique shops for several months. It will take quite a few posts to share it all...but I've found some yummy stuff. Some you needed a little vision to see what it "could be" ....and some, no further explaining needed.

No further explaining needed...

The little bench with the barley twist legs {huge smile} is one of the pieces that came up from Florida. It was fresh out of their container that arrived from France. The framed art is like a petit-point tapestry...gorgeous to me. I'll probably do something with the frame...maybe some antique white paint & glaze.  

Guess what else I purchased from the Florida antique dealers? Squeal and smile.

I'll stop my show and tell for now on recent finds. We are long overdue to spruce up the place...we moved into this home about 9 years ago and most of the original decorating is still staring at us. Normally I am someone who is constantly changing and fluffing up one area or another. But as a family we went through so many twists and turns and one challenge after another that "normal" just sort of went out the window for a long, long season.  

Part of my smiling big goes beyond the fun of getting something new. It's about finally feeling like doing some decorating. Some fluffing up...taking on some long overdue projects. 

And the icing on the cake? Mr. Accountant is even smiling because he not only likes what the little shopper of the house is bringing home, but he also likes the deals I'm scoring as well. Or is he smiling because the mama is smiling? You know..."if mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy..."

I'll go ask him which one it is...  

Xo, Sue

Recent finds...a fun giveaway...free images, and what not!

Whew! That's a lot for one title...buy hey, I'm trying to cover a lot of bases in one post. So many fun things going on in the blogosphere (and atmosphere).

Here's another little treasure I dragged home from our recent trip to Florida. And despite the unrelenting heat for months here in Georgia, my flowers survived my absence.

But the cloud formations lately have been so thrilling... (me thinks mr. sky is trying to apologize or compensate for his friend mr. air who has been scorching this part of the world)

And if you love sky scenes, check out these moon beam pictures my friend, Patty has captured in the skies of Virginia. She has a way of zeroing in on anything that shines...I loved these photos!

Despite the fact that mother nature is more than capable of doing her own decorating, I added a little tree beauty to her world in order to showcase another little treasure from my Florida trip...

I merely took advantage of those little branches that pop up randomly where they're not supposed to be on mature trees and "tied" my new tray to the tree.

While my usage of the outside layer to this photo does not due this artists' creations justice I did want to share with any photoshop veiwers a gorgeous blog offering fabulous textures. I am still learning photoshop where these textures will rock when applied properly...my rendition is a cheap version (strong emphasis on cheap) of just layering and using a transparency brush to reveal my photo. The "real thing" is beyond dreamy...

Check out Kim's blog and her beautiful photos! Her prices for these textures are so reasonable and she even offers up free ones if you sign up to receive her newsletter.

And speaking of free stuff...

Terri has recently posted a couple of wonderful digital image freebies here and here. Go grab 'em! I had the pleasure of meeting Terri and her FUN ART when she won one of my giveaways.

So guess where that leads me to next. Yep! A giveaway... Connie is offering up a couple of yummy things...

Here's one of them! Isn't she a beautiful seamstress? Yes, indeed! She also has two adorable grandbabies...one is brand new. Check out those precious photos when you visit as well!

Now that we're talking about giveaways, I just realized that this is my 100th post since moving my blog to Typepad. Time to pull together a giveaway of my own...hmmmm... so many possibilities. Stay tuned....

Warm hugs to all the fabulous souls in the blogosphere...you all fill my world with so much inspiration!

xo, sue

Falling in love while on vacation...

I did.

I freely admit it. I fell in love while on vacation. More than once...and many of them I dragged home with me. To live. Forever!

The few who wouldn't fit in the car will be hitching a ride in mid-August and heading this way.

Here's the first boy. He is quite youthful in appearance, much younger than the rest I've taken in before...and despite his flaws, I instantly fell in love...

If you share my love of old European antiques and dress forms in particular, I know you would have wanted him too. He's unlike any dress form I've ever laid eyes on before...and fresh off the boat.

One of my favorite antique stores in the Destin area of Florida, Antiques on Holiday, were just unpacking their newest arrivals from their latest shopping trip in Europe. Nothing was even priced yet...but the beyond sweetest shop owners said to just ask and they'd check their inventory list and price anything I was interested in...

Do you see this little name plaque of sorts written on this little boy's chest? Misty, one of the sweethearts I met at the store explained the purpose behind this tag. It was her best guess that this form was custom made for some little boy probably back in the mid-1800's. More than likely he was from a very wealthy family, perhaps even nobility since his name was on the form. Rather than having to be present and go through fitting after fitting while his new clothes were being made, a custom dress form was used for the fittings. As this child grew, a new form would be made.

While standardized dressforms were commonly employed during this era, the presence of the name plaque is the dead giveaway that this form was custom made for a particular person.

As you can see, he's hit a few rough patches in life...but those battered places have found a way to add more character to his being...same as real life, huh?

Don't miss the word PARIS in the diamond-shaped stamp...

Not sure exactly where or how I'll display him yet. Any creative ideas?

He stands quite nicely when propped against something...And by the way, that pedestal and planter were clearanced-priced items I snagged at Hobby Lobby years ago for very little jingles. By running around to several Hobby Lobby's in my area I was able to find two of each. The money I saved I now put towards this newest little "manny"...at least that was my story to Mr. Wonderful who didn't even roll his eyes when he saw this tattered treasure.  

Still have lots more FUN STUFF to share when I get a chance. And the three items that didn't fit in the car but will be arriving in mid August are hitching a ride to the Scott Antique Market held monthly in the Atlanta area. If you're local to the area and love European antiques at very fair prices, Antiques on Holiday are located in the North Building, C2.

I'm so glad this little guy, or any of my other wonderful finds weren't made of wax or they would have melted on the ride home. Our dashboard thermometer read anywhere from 100 to {{{see photo below}}} for the whole six hour ride home...

How about you? What are the temps in your area like? 

dreams versus reality

Yesterday the movers came and loaded up my daughter's belongings which were doing an interim rest in our garage until the lease on her new rental began, in a new city...

My DH and I dutifully supervised the loading in an effort to make sure the right things got on the truck. Lots of "stuff" in that garage these days...sigh.

Then we blazed the trail for the moving truck to follow us to the daughter's new place...

After days of doing battle with this summer cold,

 that likes me so much it refuses to leave,

 and all the hours spent coordinating this move,  

I was looking forward to stealing some quiet time away

in my artsy craft room...

HOWEVER

When one walks through their back door and sees this waiting...

...evidence that there is a houseful of teen-aged boys, dreams quickly get traded for reality, don't they?

On Thursday an out of state visitor arrived to spend five days with our youngest. Since the little visitor --all 6 feet 4 inches of him--was a former neighbor and dearly loved by all, our home has become reunion central! It's amazing how many men-sized teens can bunk out for the night in one child's bedroom. 

Here's hoping that one day soon a little free time will emerge so I can share some of my recent finds and catch up not only on bloggy business but also on rest and life in general. Meanwhile, I'll sneak in this latest snag...

Twenty-something dollars at a local antique shop!!! It is large...maybe 30" x 36"...and the portrait is a pencil drawing! Still not sure just exactly how I'll use this when I do some re-fluffing of our home...will probably give the frame a paint job....hubs thinks the baby looks a little creepy {WHAT?!} so maybe it will have to be replaced...

More sharing is on its way when reality begins to align itself with my dreams.

She says hopefully....

 
  One of several old blue canning jars I picked up recently stuffed with a few hydrangea from my garden. The sustained heat in this region fried a lot of my moppy head friends and cut short their season of gracefully showing off their beautiful colors.

 Some little creepy bug has invaded my being and I'm not enjoying its presence one little bit. Can't decide if it's a sinus infection or one of those viruses that have been going around. All I know, is that it is winning...

 
It chooses to visit me right in the middle of my "busy-as-a-bee" season....! Have lots of irons in the fire, many that are time sensitive so resting yesterday was not an option. Spent hours on the phone coordinating utility hook-ups for daughter's new rental. Seems they like to have parents on the hook for those bills instead of college-aged students. Hmmm...wonder why?

And while I was tucked away handling all those calls...

 ...this little family member with the white fur coat was busy in the kitchen eating the leftover pizza oldest son forgot to put away. Naturally, it was one of those mega-sized take and bake pizzas. And even more naturally, oldest son ate only a few slices so Miss Sophie (the one in the white fur coat) had herself quite a feast! But the revenge of such an over-indulgence was swift and severe...and was all mine to handle, each episode... for several hours.

All other family members were out and about...DH had a business dinner, the boys had soccer and what-not...just us two sick girls left to man the fort. One rested, and the other did not.

The one who didn't rest was originally planning to share some recent finds on her blog.

 DH and I have decided that we will plow ahead with having the house spruced up a bit and I've got a budget to work with for decorating and such. To that end, I've been hitting lots of antique shops...made some really fun scores at fabulous prices. The photo above is one of MANY of these late 1800's lithographs I made an offer on to a dealer and he accepted my offer. They are each 11 x 14...this larger format is harder to find and even more difficult to find at the bargain price for which I obtained them.

Hopefully this cruddy crud cold/virus will decide to release its grip on me and I'll have a chance to soon show you some other fun stuff in their "potential" state and what I hope to do with them...

Meanwhile, here's a scan from my personal collection you digital manipulators might enjoy having in your stash for your personal use...

In "real life" this is a four page, handwritten  French deed on that old yummy cotton type paper I just adore.

Hope everyone had a safe and memory-filled long weekend!

Xo, Sue

Vintage Doll

In my last post I mentioned that I was having to go and tidy up an offspring's apartment after a move out.....

#!@&*!!@#%+?<%$#!!!!

Thank you for letting me vent. Now, to more pleasant subjects...namely, new Dolly Love...

...despite the fact that she is in pieces...save for a couple little boo-boo's on the dress, she is in beautiful condition....

I almost missed spying her... in a plastic ziplock, tucked under a shelf...when I saw the original price, which was a steal in its own right, but to slather on even more incentive, she was marked down by 50%.

  

I mentioned she had a little dress...

But I failed to mention that it is stinkin' cute ..... {apologize for the nasty slang but i'm still recovering from my cleaning job from yesterday...}

The vintage millinery flowers are still in her hair...I know if she had been my dollie as a child, those flowers would probably be missing by now! But I know one little pink girl who would have kept her this pristine...

For any Georgia bloggers, I nabbed this little beauty from THE QUEEN OF HEARTS up in Buford, GA. Same goes for the tart pan and the three old Kodak film canisters...

Me been a good little antiquer these past few days. And shamelessly, I'm within an inch of cashing in my stash of coins I save for emergencies...I think I've found something that I can't stop thinking about...sounds like a bona fide emergency to me...!!!

Stay tuned...

Xo, Sue
 

Where Bloggers Create Party

Don't ya just git giddy when something you've wished for, waited on, dreamed of, but mostly

WORKED HARD FOR, !!!finally!!! happens?

For most of my "creative life" which now spans decades, my creative space and supplies were scattered throughout our home in closets, bins, tucked under beds, and so forth. The dining room often became command central. And upon walking by such headquarters one would immediately receive the distinct impression that command central had been heavily bombed! Chaos reigned supreme.....
 

 But when I read that Karen, at My Desert Cottage was hosting her second annual WHERE BLOGGERS CREATE PARTY I knew this was the motivational spark I needed to get busy.

I inherited the bonus room above our garage several years ago, but as life goes, for a number of out-of-my-control-bumpy-mountains-in-the-road-of-life reasons, the room never got put together.

Until now....still have a little ways to go, but the hardest parts are behind me. NOTHIN' like company coming to set a body in motion, is there?!

I worked like a mad woman. Or perhaps madder than normal would be more appropriate...what is normal anyway, does anybody know? Stay on task Sue...

Jewels got sorted...

...dolls got hats...

...and with each little accomplishment I could feel the cobwebs that had taken my creative spirit hostage begin to release their sticky grip...speak nothing of the physical cobwebs in the actual room...

My rusty imagination began to awaken...it was all I could do not to stop what I was doing to follow the latest inspirational muse...but untrue to my given nature, I kept plowing through box after box, bin after bin, sorting, tossing, organizing...

Why, even fresh flowers were lovingly gathered from my garden and scattered throughout the room...they are such happy little creatures, aren't they? Not to mention that nothing, save a warm hug, says welcome friends more than fresh flowers.

Despite the fact that I am beyond blessed to have such a wonderful place to now work on a variety of creative pursuits, one major flaw in this room is the lighting. Although there are five windows, each is housed in an alcove which can be a real issue...especially at night. One thing I have invested in to counteract this challenge are Ott lamps. JoAnn's, Michael's, Wal-Mart, among others carry this brand and routinely put them on sale at 40% off.

The majority of my furnishings are hand-me-downs that were used previously in our homes through the years. Several pieces came from thrift stores and one piece was stolen. Yep. You heard it right. Theft. That would be the bin housing my stash of vintage wallpaper. It's original purpose was to house goober pairs of golf and other sporting shoes in our garage. The idea being that my family members would dutifully and joyfully place their shoes in the tidy little cubbies......NOT.

 

A year or so ago this vintage dress form came up for auction on Ebay. It is about three times the size of my other dress form I'll show in the next photo. She has been the perfect 3-D inspirational board, if you will, and I continue to pin new items to her daily.  And BTW, I was the only bidder and shipping cost me more than the dress form. Felt badly for the seller, but happy for me!

I've taken way too many pictures of my newly organized space...excitement about my new room and working with crummy lighting conditions most likely influenced my excessive photo snapping...

 

Here's an oversized spice rack I picked up at Goodwill for maybe $5 or so. I love making, giving, and receiving mail {handwritten letters....ahhhhhh....love 'em}. I used to be so much better at sending these personal greetings. Hence, I am hoping that having this little rack hanging on my studio wall will be a visual reminder to improve upon sending more snail mail to brighten someone's day.

 

Not withstanding the fact that I've rambled long enough, Typepad or my computer has chosen this point in time to go into total rebellion. Consequently, on both accounts, I'll bid my farewell and continue this tour in another post {or two+!} in the coming days.

Thank you for your visit and I'm anxious to head out to see all the other creative work spaces. But before I go, I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to Karen for what has had to be a monumental undertaking to keep an event of this size so well organized.

Warm wishes to all,

xo, Sue