An Exciting Find!

Saturday morning my mother and I went to a few sales. We found nothing exciting, but it was a nice day to be out and it's always fun looking. We stopped at Marshall's to check on something and while we were going home, we saw a yard sale sign. So, we pulled up and found a few folding tables lining the home's driveway. There were several milk crates filled with vintage glassware. When I walked up to the first one, I glanced in and this little beauty caught my eye. I immediately gasped and grabbed it. My heart skipped a beat because this is the only glass missing from the adorable set of carousel glasses which had belonged to my grandparents!

I didn't see any prices, so I asked the woman how much she was charging. The reply sweetened the deal...a quarter each. It's in pristine condition and she had only this elephant and the giraffe (which we already had, of course).

 

 

This is the way the set has looked for as long as I can recall. I never had seen the pink elephant, but after my post on these glasses (July 21) I did a little research in an effort to determine what the eighth one had been. I should also add that upon reading that post, my Aunt Kay provided me a little more background on this family set. I hadn't known how Grandmother acquired them, but now know that she was given the set at a Rotary Club meeting in the 50s and they were among her favorites.

 

 

This is the complete set as it appears in the butler's pantry now.

 

By the way, these adorable little vintage Christmas juice glasses spoke to me and were also in perfect condition. I bought all six of them, too! I don't usually get these types of items because my cupboards are too full as is, but I had not seen this style or pattern before and I will enjoy using them. However, I can't stuff in any more!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Garden Walk

It's another beautiful day, so I snapped a few pictures while I was outside.

 The hibiscus are about finished blooming.

The vincas are still going.

Geraniums still look good.



We still have roses budding.



Marigolds are troopers, of course, and will bloom up until it frosts.

The petunias are starting to peter-out.

Our Tardiva hydrangea blossoms are getting tinged with pinks and beige as they begin drying.

Someone has been nibbling on these leaves. This mix of impatiens and coleus came in a basket as a retirement gift from a sweet family at school.
 



I love the brightly colored zinnias.

Look who I found on my walk! This (harmless) yellow garden spider has made a home on the shrubs by the air conditioner units. Can you see the elaborate zig-zag running down the bottom of the web?

Stripping Weather

I have been stripping a piece of furniture and with our low humidity and pleasant temperatures, I decided to take advantage of the weather conditions to work on it again today. It's a small chest of drawers which was first used in my mother's baby nursery. Years later, my parents used it for me. When used in my baby room, it was painted white with pastel colored drawers--each a different color. It was later painted glossy white with bright shiny red drawers for use in the bedroom that my sister and I shared. In third grade, I got my own room and my parents bought me a beautiful French Provincial bedroom set. I loved my canopy bed and its matching pieces! The dresser to that set replaced my chest of drawers, but we still used it for supplemental storage over the years. I have had it for much of my married life (in my basement) and recently decided I would like to give it a new look and purpose. So, I  began stripping it. I will paint it once I have this (tedious) step completed, but I am considering colors. I'm leaning toward a distressed finish, but we'll see.

 

 

This is one of the drawers before I started working on it.

 

Here it is in progress...

It's almost finished. I need to go back and get the small areas along the edges.

If you are in the market to strip anything, I highly recommend this product that I found at Home Depot. You simply spray it on, allow it to sit and then go back and scrape. It does a very decent job with fairly minimal effort.

Last summer I used it on an old family table from Randy. When the brown paint was stripped, we found this beautiful wood beneath! I just sealed it and opted not to paint it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

'Snow' Kidding...

Who in her right mind makes a snow project on a lovely summer day? I recently saw a cute idea online and it got me thinking. Someone had made a snowman from three stacked fishbowls. It was cute, but large so I thought maybe I could tweak it to make it on a smaller scale. I had an ivy bowl and my mother had two. In my (extensive) Christmas stash, of course, I already had artificial snow and some mini figures used in a Christmas village I did last year.

 

 

I decided to play around with it while it is still fresh in my mind.

 

 

I sprinkled a little snow into each ivy bowl and then placed the dollar store figurines on top. I happened to have the hat and scarf (which I borrowed from a stuffed Christmas penguin in my collection), but a knitted infant hat would work and the scarf could be made from wide ribbon. This particular scarf needs to be "squished" a little more tightly as I think it appears too broad.

 

 

 

 
Here are some close-ups of each ivy bowl, from the bottom up.

 

The figurines are available, seasonally, at dollar stores. I bought some of mine during post-holiday sales for 50 cents and was even more fortunate to snag some for a quarter at a garage sale. The dollar stores also carry ivy bowls. I don't know that they sell the bagged faux snow, but you can find it in most stores that carry trees and other Christmas merchandise.

 

 

This was a quick, enjoyable project...'snow' kidding!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tuesday's Tablescape

As summer slips away, I wanted to do one more table with a coastal theme.

 

 

I found this white shell at a yard sale for 50 cents and I just filled it with some potpourri I had.

 

 

 

The placemats, shell napkin rings and shell-tipped skewers were gifts  I received for my sweet 16th birthday in Madeira Beach, FL. That was many birthdays ago! I have enjoyed using them numerous times throughout the years.

         (I worked and worked with this placemat picture and I can't get it to appear right-side-up. Sorry!)

 (The shell-handled skewers are in a tiny glass vase.)

 (Each real shell is glued to a lucite napkin ring.)

 

The green pinch glasses were a wedding gift from my aunt, Kendra, and that was also a long time ago!

 

 

 

 

There is a cool breeze today, the humidity is low and it's a very comfortable 75 degrees. While it may not feel like a day for a beach tablescape, it's still fun! 

Salad

Last night I made this salad with fresh produce. We eat a lot of salads, especially during the summer when we can take advantage of fresh-from-the-garden ingredients. This recipe was shared by a friend years ago and I often make it.

 

It doesn't show too well in its glass bowl, does it?

 

Italian Tomato Salad

3 or 4 tomatoes, seeded and cut into 1 inch wedges (I sometimes use fresh grape tomatoes instead)

1 large cucumber, seeded and sliced

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup sliced green olives

1 Tablespoon dried basil

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

3 Tablespoons olive oil

salt

ground black pepper

 

In a bowl, combine tomatoes, cucumbers, mozzarella and olives. Place basil and lemon juice in a small bowl. Slowly add olive oil, mixing briskly with a whisk. Season with salt and pepper. Pour over salad and toss until combined. Serve immediately.

 

 

A Ten Cent Creation

This summer I found this black star at a yard sale. It still had its original price tag on it ($9.99) and was covered in a few years' worth of dust. It was marked 10 cents! It's tough to see, but it's a half-star on the front with an opening on the other half. I don't know why this photo is upside down...

 

My mind began thinking of its possibilities. Maybe it could work for a 4th of July decoration filled with faux plants or patriotic something-or-others? It could even make use during the Christmas season. I cleaned it up, removed the tag (which was petrified on and needed "Goof Off" and elbow grease) and decided to spruce it up with a light coat of silver metallic spray paint. I wanted more of a gun-metal finish on it so I went sparingly. Can't you just see it filled with ornaments this December? I am planning on a silver and gold theme this holiday season so it could very easily find a place in our great room in a few months.

 

 

Interesting Insects

Remember when I did my teacher wreath with all of my educator pins? I mentioned then that I also have many other "collections" of interesting pins I have worn over the years. When I saw my insect grouping, it made me think that I should do something with them for summer decoration purposes. Long ago, I bought this little frame at a garage sale. I don't have a "before" picture, but it was gold and in poor shape. I hit it with a little oil rubbed bronze spray paint and thought it would be about the right size to display three of the pins. I picked one of the butterflies, a dragonfly and grasshopper. I had a few quilted scraps left from last week's ironing board project. Guess what? One of them perfectly fit in the frame, so I assembled the project.

 

 

 

 

 

Tomato Pie

Sadly, tomato season is starting to wind down. Freshly-picked ripe tomatoes are so good and just can't be replicated by the hothouse fruit supplied at groceries the rest of the year. My parents picked ten tomatoes before pulling out their  plants this week and several friends have mentioned that their plants were finished producing, too. My mother made delicious gazpacho from hers. I stopped at the produce stand today and decided to make tomato pie. It's a summertime favorite of ours! The pie, hamburgers grilled outdoors, fresh corn-on-the-cob and fresh watermelon rounded-out our dinner. 

 

 

 This is the recipe I use:
 
Tomato Pie
1 pie crust
3 large tomatoes, skinned and cut into wedges
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon basil
1/2 cup mayonnaise
3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
 
Bake crust in preheated 425 degree oven for 5 minutes.
Remove pie crust and reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees.
Fill shell with tomato wedges. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, oregano and basil. In a bowl, mix together mayonnaise and cheeses. Spread over the top of all tomato wedges, making sure cheese extends to all edges.
Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
Enjoy! :)

Tuesday's Tablescape

Inspired by the Chinese lanterns, I put together this table.

These chopsticks are mine from my childhood. I think I used to be able to eat with them. I don't think I can operate them now.  :)

I used my white dishes since I didn't want to distract from the centerpiece.

This adorable Chinese pin cushion is my mother's and is a souvenir from  the 1982 World's Fair (Knoxville, TN).

When my sister was working International tours in the early 90s, she brought my mother these beautiful dolls.

 Jodi also brought my mother this gorgeous silk tapestry from the same trip to China.

See the screen behind the dolls? My grandma gave it to my mother several years ago. It has intricate, colorful Asian designs.

You can see a little bit of the screen below behind the tall black tea canister. In the 50s, my dad's aunt and uncle gifted my parents with several pieces from Asia. I incorporated their tea canister and a set of black coasters. I didn't want to cover the pretty designs on them, though, so I put them next to the glasses. There is a red dragon ornament leaned against the canister. It came from our dear friends who brought it from China when they adopted their sweet daughter 17 years ago.

Is anyone else suddenly hungry for Chinese food?