The Doiliest of Lamp Shades

I guess I really like doilies.  Two thirds of what I found at the flea market this weekend resemble a doily.
One is a milk glass candy dish which has scalloped edges that make you think, "Why yes I'll have a butterscotch, thanks grandma."  The other...OH-HO the other...such a find.

As we wandered through the labyrinth that is the Rose Bowl Flea Market in 90 degree heat, we stumbled upon a cute little stall with what I would call shabby chic accessories and furniture.  I started looking through a pile of lamp shades to adorn the vintage lamp my uncle got me years ago.  The woman started telling me that she takes vintage pillowcases and turns them into great unique lampshades.  I found this one that I absolutely loved, I took it home, and put it up immediately. 
See:

Isn't it just adorable?

You can imagine my surprise when I removed the plastic wrapped around it to find that it actually looks like this:

 

I just happened to be lying in bed admiring the lampshade when one scalloped edge fell down.  I started overreacting immediately.  "What!?! I paid $40 bucks and it's falling apart already?"  The hubby walked over to the lamp and said, "Hey, I think it's supposed to do that."  He pulled down all the scalloped edges and I felt silly right away.  Not only had I been wrong, but I had bought this thing not knowing what it was really meant to look like.  Good thing I like it even more now.  As they say, 'all's well that ends well.'

Clocks Can Be Cute Too

What!?!  A clock that looks like a doily!?!
Sign me up!
As a fan and frequent browser of Etsy, I found the perfect clock for the craft room. 



 
Decoylab has a great shop full of handcrafted items, most of them made from bamboo.  Not only are there delicate doilyesque clocks like this one, there are cute little animal ones too.  You could get a hedgehog clock if you really wanted to.  I'd seen a few of these around the boutiques on 3rd street, but hadn't come across this one until I browsed Etsy.  You can bet I pressed the heart button and added this shop to my favorites. 

It's a little pricey for a 7" clock, but I think worth it since it IS handcrafted and unique.  But don't worry, the hedgehog is a bit cheaper. 

Nightstands

After two years of harassing my husband to paint the rooms, they are finally done.  I now have no excuse to leave the rooms in disarray.  He reminds me from time to time that it is now my turn to do my thing.  He in no way nags the way I had for the past few months, but I now feel eager to furnish the rooms in unique and fun pieces. 

First room at hand is our bedroom.  It is now a rich purple gray and just screams for romantic touches.  I frequented TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and Ikea, but seemed to be attracted to the accessories and details of the room rather than the main pieces of furniture to set the stage for this romantic boudoir.  After months of searching  I found myself in the following predicament: I had scoured the furthest reaches of the internets and malls and came up with an empty cart.  PBteen had some cute ideas, but everything was a little too mass produced and expensive.  My next option was to thrift it. 

Yesterday my brother (the artistic eye) and I roamed around Pasadena antique shops and used stores to see if any treasures could be found.  Turns out the Huntington Collection in Pasadena, which hosts estate donations is quite a gold mine.  There are some great steals for pieces in really great condition.  Here's our find...Behold the nightstands:

  

The pair only set me back $60.  Quite a bargain for a set of Italian made wooden pieces.  With my romantic room in mind, the curve of the legs and top edges fit in perfectly.  Even reminiscent of this PBTeen find:

Only my find has a bit more character.

Now the hard part awaits...making this beautiful piece of furniture what I envision for the room.  Already bought in preparation for this feat: sandpaper, tack cloth, black spray paint, and sealing spray.  Though, I'm not quite ready to tackle this yet.
Once I am, you'll be first to know. 

It Smells Like...

Freedom.

One week away...I can smell it.
I can see it too.  When I squint really hard, I can see ...






DIY pillow projects.
And...

Bedroom decorating...

I see lots of fun projects, late wake up times, lunches on the balcony, books, home decorating finally getting done, time with family, outings with friends.  I see...
SUMMER!!!

A Spring Break That Will Live in Infamy

Ah...Spring Break.  A time to to take a short respite from the hustle and bustle of the school year.  A one week opportunity to get away from the mundane.  A last chance to vacation before the summer arrives.  But for one not so lucky teacher, it has become a week to recover from the extremely potent germs bestowed upon her by her oh so sweet students.  Like a gift really, a streptococcal wrapped gift.  One that once opened, will grace you with the most painful of swallows, fever, and headaches.  If you like that, then perhaps your students will hide in that gift a little extra surprise.  Maybe a little pink eye will catch your fancy?  Well, my students were just that generous.  You can imagine how this present unraveled on our trip to wine country.  I'll spare you the gooey details.

And now, spring break is half way over! Just thinking about it makes me ill.  It has got me chanting, "I can't wait for  summer."  I had all these great craft projects lined up, work projects to do, and redecorating to accomplish.  All I can say to console myself now is..."I'm going to do all of this...when it's summer."

With that, I cross my fingers and hope that the next few months are phlegm free.

Tah Dah!

Remember this project?

Well, it's finally done.  After a few trips to Compatto Yarn Salon in Santa Monica, lots of one-on-one tutoring, and hours on the couch stitching, I present to you the beanie of all beanies!

 

Don't look too closely, or you will see how I had to stitch the cable on the edge rather than pick up stitches to knit it.  (Lesson learned: Do NOT, I repeat, NOT cut the tail end of your knitting as it will not maintain its strength.)  Contrary to my fears, the hat actually does not unravel when I put it on.  Quite an accomplishment really.

So it only took...March, April, May, June, July...5 months to complete, and now it's the middle of summer and pretty much unnecessary.  But come December, you'll see me rockin' this bad beanie round town.  And, yes...it's supposed to look like that.

Interesting Wall Ideas

Now that our walls are the perfect shade of cloud.  I need to find some way to adorn them.  The main hurdle is finding something to make the large dining room wall seem less overwhelming.

 
I contemplated a large self made oil painting, or a credenza with large framed posters layered on it leaning against the wall, I even thought about a huge watercolor to decorate it.  I also ran through putting up shelving and layering photos against the wall that way.  But I feel that our home would be full of too many versions of the layered/salon style framed wall.  So, last night the husband helped me find some ideas.

The first is probably my favorite.  I think we may be sold on this idea.  It's even in our colors!


The second is also tempting.  I was thinking I could showcase the same fabric patterns that would be featured in my quilt throw in the living room.  That way both rooms could be tied together.  I think this is probably the more affordable of the two options.

As you can see, we are trying to throw tradition out the window with our decor...at least in the dining room. :)