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Where Bloggers Create

 
With my hand on a vintage french missel {english translation: Bible} I hereby swear that I am a vintage-aholic of the worst degree.

*I have collected "vintage" for decades

**and I stuff it all in my wonderful bonus room above the garage.

***Adding to that overstuffed room are all the supplies I use

**** in my TOO NUMEROUS to mention crafty pursuits.

 
 
The previous photos are a sampling from the pics I posted last year for the tour. The posts are located here and here. I posted so many pics last year, and since not a whole lot has changed, it's easier to refer those who might be interested to those posts.

But a few things have changed...

 
An old vintage french wine rack, or bottle dryer as it is sometimes called, was added to the room.  

 
I've moved it around a few times and continue to add vintage dolls as they become adopted into my collection.

 
 
Another addition to the room this past year is this shelving unit. I just happened to be in the parking lot of an antique store as this was coming off a truck.

 
The top shelf is loaded with vintage Christmas.......it's just too pretty to pack away!

 
I will also admit to being totally obsessed with vintage dress forms.

 
I purchased this one off of Ebay quite a few years back [for approx. $50]...she's a 3-D inspirational board of sorts...and I love her dearly.

 
I am forever pinning new items to the form...

 

As a point of reference, to show you the size of this beloved dress form, I've placed another form next to her...

 
 
Being a visual person, I like to have a lot of my stuff "out"...

 
 
Another way fun addition to my room this year...

 
...is the Crepe Myrtle tree that has now grown tall enough to show off her pink blooms through one of my windows....

I'm looking forward to spending the next few weeks {months?!} visiting all the entries to this year's Where Bloggers Create Party. To see a list of this year's participants, head over to Karen's place at My Desert Cottage.

An enormous thank you to Karen for hosting this spectacular event! One of my fav's in all of bloggieland! May wonderful things come to you for all the time and effort you invest in making this such a special, and much anticipated event!!!!

Vintage French Wine Rack

 

Make note of the small words their language...they go well with the next photo.

 
Seventeen year old son comes into the sanctuary {aka: my studio}. Very pleased to see that he notices the newest addition to the place.  When I mention that I've named one of the dolls, he asks which one? I point to the dolly above and tell him that I've given it HIS NAME. Even he couldn't help but laugh, right after he rolled his eyes of course.

I wonder if the prevelance of teen-agers rolling their eyes so much has something to do with their eye muscles not having fully developed yet....you know, like an involuntary reflex? Wink, wink.

  
Back in July after finding this wonderful french bottle {wine} drying rack at an antique shop in Florida, it took up residence in our kitchen. But after spending some time there I decided it was just too big for the space. So I moved it up in the hallway by the door to my studio. My plans were to use it for storage/display purposes...

And it sat.

And sat some more.

Totally in the way. Of course.

    
FINALLY, the inspiration {{{motivation}}} for getting after it came when I noticed that Rebecca Sower has one in her art studio too.

 
With over a 150 hooks and 8 tiers high, this wonderful piece can hold a lot of stuff.  

It would also be a great piece to display vintage Christmas ornaments... or photos,

or a vintage hanky tree,

or just about any collection would be fun...  

 

 Would love to continue adding more dolly heads to the piece. But they are becoming harder and harder to come by...or come by at a decent price. Like a lot of the things I enjoy collecting, I have a price point I won't surpass. But since I am a women as well as a collector...

...well...I reserve the right to make an exception now and then.

Xo, Sue

Where Bloggers Create, Part II

 

I warned ya'll that there might be a few follow-ups to the original tour...was having voo-coo computer issues on my first attempt. Most of my computer issues tend to fall within the realm of  "not the brightest bulb when it comes to technical stuff"...{{{sigh}}}

Not sure about you, but I am in blog heaven bouncing around the list on Karen's blog visiting as many places as I can squeeze in here and there. Going down the list from A-Z was getting boring so in order to mix it up, I copied and pasted the list to a Word document and printed a hard copy. As I visit each blog I place a little check beside the name. It's also a great way to make notes to myself so that I can easily go back and find some of the inspiration I would like to follow up on at a later time!

But over and over again, I am struck by how many creative souls there are scattered throughout this huge world. So many unique expressions of who we are...

   a variety of styles

a wide assortment of creative pursuits

more hoarders {{{ha ha}}} than I dare to count

There's a growing list of blogs I'm adding to my google reader. Not sure how long, if ever it would have taken me to stumble upon them on my own. I even enjoy following blogs of people who create or pursue interests I might not necessarily ever pursue. But I appreciate the beauty of what they create, or the warmth, or humor, or wisdom that oozes from their posts.

 But the one common thread I see over and over again, are the kind hearts living out there in blogland. Hearts that love, nurture, and cherish their family and friends. Hearts that have an instinctive need to express and exercise their creativity in a multitude of ways. I like to think of them as the treasured souls who add color, music, depth, and more sunshine to this world!  

Before I head out as my MUST DO LIST {think: once on to do list but got ignored} is demanding attention, I wanted to mention the paint color on my studio walls as I've had quite a few requests asking for the color. It is a Behr paint {carried by Home Depot} and the color name is Valley Mist 460E-2...mine is in the eggshell finish. Had never worked with this brand of paint before but was very happy with it's quality. 

Looking forward to meeting more of you through your blogs as well as continue to see what other bloggie friends I've been following for some time are up to these days.

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

Collecting Time...

 

Spent some good hours over the weekend in my room above the garage, otherwise known as my art studio. Sifting, getting distracted, sorting, getting distracted, pitching, but determined to bring some organization to this disorganized space. As I was doing so, I couldn't help but think how drawn I am to pieces relating to time...

It also occurred to me that time has a way of moving quickly...more so with each passing year. How can it be possible? Where has the time gone? 

You see, thirty years ago today my highschool sweetheart and I said "I do"....

 
At the ripe old age of 22, fresh out of college and knowing everything there is to know about anything {ha!} we embarked on a life together. Through the years and passing of time, we've learned a lot. Mostly, that we didn't know as much as we had originally thought we knew!

Although we've learned firsthand that time is a patient teacher...thank goodness!

So here we are thirty years later...and my little bluebird of happiness and carved rocks pretty much sum up the years...

However, there should be a rock with the word humor as it has always been one of the blessings we've shared. A favorite quote I think you girls will enjoy:

When I married Mrs. Right, I didn't know her middle name was ALWAYS.

And even better, whenever I offer up those gentle words of "I was right" my Mister replies, "one in a row"........... yes indeed, let's not forget humor.

xo, sue

The Last Time, I HOPE!

Welcome to Pink Saturday! Thank you for taking the time to visit.  Today we are  back in my studio. Slowly, but surely, the work continues of painting furniture, unpacking boxes, organizing  supplies.  I can't wait to have it all finished so I can spend time doing what I truly enjoy...creating.

I've sanded, stripped, painted, varnished, stained, etc. this table I bought for $15 more times than I care to remember. I hope this is the last time.  Just in case you think I change its appearance every other week, I should tell you I've dragged this table with me for the past 20+ years. It was an estate sale find, made of solid oak and very sturdy.

It's newest "redo" includes the carved onlay used to cover the gap from having inserted the table leaf . After a quick sanding, the table recieved a coat of primer, three coats of paint, and a little bit of glazing. And last, I pulled out the sewing machine and turned a king size sheet into a little dressing skirt for the table. Self-sticking velcro strips were used to attach the skirt to the table. It was the perfect solution for allowing me to store supplies underneath.

Hanging just above the table is this shelving unit I made over a year ago from an old picture frame. It too received several coats of new paint. If you look closely, you may notice that I painted the beadboard backing a shy hue of pink.

There are two shelves that will eventually find their way home to this unit. Right now they are drying. So I took the liberty to "fluff" up the table and shelf unit with some pinky items still waiting for a permanent home in my studio. But for now they all agreed to pose for Pink Saturday's post.

Before it slips my mind, for those who visited last week, I meant to tell you that the Sedum Autumn Joy plant is also a wonderful drying flower. Tucked in this old Victorian boot is a sampling of some that I plucked from my garden a week or so ago.

For a complete listing of all the participants in Pink Saturday, head over to Beverly's. She's the hostess who makes this happen each week.

xo

Sue

 

PAINTING FURNITURE

Today was a new beginning of sorts. Another major change in my life. After nearly four years of working from home, today my DH drove to an office...in a big building just outside of downtown Atlanta. I knew it was coming for a long time. But still....

But he was so excited. Like a child who was waiting for his birthday to finally arrive. I felt....lonely, displaced, weird. The house all to myself --well, almost. There's still the four-legged little girl who would like to play every minute of every day.

Wanting to feel like I spent the day doing something worthwhile other than moping about having lost my best buddy to an office building, I grabbed the gallon of primer and a paint brush. With tools in hand I entered my art studio...the one that is still a work-in-progress.

 

By lunchtime, I had this little sideboard finished. It's tucked in an alcove in my new art studio and will eventually house some vintage goodies. So intent was I on keeping busy, that I was nearly half way through the primer coat when I remembered to snap a "before" photo.

Nothing like a little bit of success to spur you on to the next challenge. Hmmm...what should I tackle next? Since the furnishings in my art studio are a mish-mash of  thrift/antique store finds, hand-me-down furniture and what nots, I knew eventually I would try to bring some semblence of cohesiveness to the furnishings {hence, the room} by using paint.

How 'bout this thing? Dare I paint it out? I came up with a lot of reasons not to...but I swallowed hard, shoving those not to reasons aside and began brushing on the primer. 

After all, I reasoned, I could always wipe it off if I changed my mind, say, in the next 10 seconds or so.

That 10 second window came and went and it was soon obvious that a commitment had been made. I was going to paint it out. Time for the dolls and all the other junk sitting on the piece to be moved to safer ground.

While I'm still a little iffy about my decision, I know that once it is finished I'll be happy with it.

 Spurring on my optimism is this four-tiered, rotating utility shelf, if you will, that received a spray painting this weekend.

 My little vintage treasures display much nicer on a lighter background, don't you think? I'm trusting that this will be the case with the big desk unit as well. And come to think of it, maybe everything will work out just fine with this new change of DH working outside the home, as well. In fact, he called me midway through the day still gushing about how excited he is about this new chapter in his life.

Yes, it's been a good day. We were both able to work on something we love doing and see progress being made and a vision coming into focus. Can't ask for much more than that now, can we? Yes indeed, it's been a good day.