~~~~SHABBY COTTAGE CHIC NAPKIN RINGS~~~~ A Simple Tutorial For You

 ~PRETTY SPRINGTIME SETTING~

One of the things I love about romantic cottage chic decor is that you can create pretty complements for your home and be as simple or elaborate as your heart can imagine!  Yesterday I worked on some charming little Napkin Rings for a Spring Brunch I'm hosting for three of my closest friends in the month of May.  Thought I'd let you tag along as I show you just how I they were made!

 ~VINTAGE 1970'S WOODEN NAPKIN RINGS~

The old Napkin Rings you see above are from the 1970's and were manufactured by Home Interiors.  Originally they were a dark walnut and well...you KNOW I just couldn't have that!  After a light sanding I painted them with VALSPAR'S Spray Paint (Churchill Vanilla) and then shabbied them up just a tad!

 ~VINTAGE SATIN RIBBON IN PINK~

A gentle wrapping of vintage pink rayon ribbon gives the Rings just a tiny hint of my very favorite color in all the world!  Pink Rules around here (make no mistake about it)!  These days though I definitely lean towards using the palest, softest shades I can possibly find!

 

 ~VINTAGE MILLINERY and PARCHMENT ROSES~

Because I decided I wanted the Rings to be a "complement" to my table rather than the focus I decided to keep them fully romantic, but understated!

 ~READY TO ASSEMBLE~

~SUPPLIES SET IN PLACE~

 ~CREAMY WHITE ROSES A MUST~

After wrapping each Napkin Ring with vintage ribbon a single large cream rose was hot-glued over the seam. 

 ~PINK and CREAM FOREVER~

Next came the placement of two vintage pink velvet leaves.  They were hot-glued over the ribbon and up-close to the center rose.  Two smaller cream roses were then hot-glued on top of the vintage leaves!

 ~PINK RIBBON FINALEEEEE~

I opted at the last second to add two sagey green leaves atop the pink leaves before hot-gluing the vintage pink bow in place.  It was attached at the base of the center cream rose!

 ~SWEET and ROMANTIC TOUCH~

  ~VINTAGE LINEN NAPKINS~

Last year I found a brand-new-vintage-set of pure linen napkins at an estate sale...

~BELGIUM NAPKINS~

They were only a few dollars and trust me when I tell you they are 1000th better than anything I've ever purchased new from Dillard's!

 ~A LITTLE TABLE PREVIEW~

Here's a sneak-peek at the mock run-through of the table.  Not sure just what silverware I'll use or even the dishes~  But, at least this will give you an idea of what I'm planning!  This project was SIMPLE and I hope it will inspire you to create something lovely for your own springtime gathering!

Hope you are having a beautiful Spring-Fling kind-of-day!  Blessings to live your day with Joy and Passion~

Love to you...

~ROMANTIC DINING ROOM - Valentine's Day Ready~

~ALMOST VALENTINE'S DAY READY~

A House Without Lace
Is Like a House Without Music

Well peeps...I'm more excited than I can tell you! Believe it or not our formal dining room makeover is ALMOST finished. Save for the crown molding and the painting of my dining room chairs (the French chairs in the photos are from my breakfast room), the really big stuff is about done. It's been so exciting turning what was our formal living room into a beautiful dining retreat.

~OLD HOMER LAUGHLIN PLATES~

Lovin' the English Garden Centerpiece

We still have a few odds and end to wrap up...our French Doors are masked off and ready for paint (what a job that was...two two-sided doors with all those little windows) and I still need to hunt down some fabulous vintage complements for some 2die4 final WOWZER touches.

~LACES AND SUCH~

Along with so many of you who have a passion for things made with the hands, my love of vintage lace and trims shows through in this room. Dining Room or not, the cabinets are filled to overflowing with some of my favorite old finds...snippets of aging embroidery, samplings of old linens and the loveliest laces I've ever seen. Plus, vintage china tea cups are a must as well as a few pieces of the lovely (but inexpensive) stemware my Mother painstaking collected from Green Stamps when I was a young girl. I found even more pieces at local tag sales...what fun!

~PRETTY VINTAGE TABLE~
(fabulous lace cloth from my friend Kim)

I moved this lovely old sofa table into the room from my Den because it was just the perfect piece for anchoring our large picture window. If you ever come to my home you'll find that nothing EVER stays in the same place for very long...

Just ask my Mr. AGPMan...he does most of the heaving moving for me! :)

~VINTAGE MIRROR~

Here is the vintage mirror I showed you a few weeks ago. She is beautiful all by herself!

~STRAWBERRY SHAPED SACHETS~

When my girl married a couple of years ago my mother and I made about 300 of these little sachet beauties for her wedding favors. Truly a labor of love...such fun...such work...but sooo beautiful. I kept a few and proudly showcase them all over my home. Here you can see three underneath my favorite Cloche.

When you don't see me adding things to eBay or even Etsy you can pretty much figure I'm busy doing other things or working in my own home. Now that I have a local booth in an Antique Mall my time is just not my own. But, I wouldn't have it any other way...

More soon!

Blessings to you as you stay true to what you sincerely love...

RAINDROPS AND ROSES - Staying In For The Day...

RAINDROPS AND HAND PAINTED ROSES

Crystal raindrops are falling hard against the windows of my La Chaumière de Briarwood today. My plans for visiting my favorite antique haunts and vintage decor shoppes have been dashed! I do not like driving in pounding rain and so I don't. Despite the gloomy, almost lemony-gray colored sky, I welcome this random watering of the earth. I breathe it in and it calms my restless spirit. I'm not TOO upset that my day's plans were altered...

I'm still a bit agitated over my ordeal of two days ago. Truthfully, I was looking forward to a little shopping and discovering charming new finds... and of course lunching at Mimi's with my precious friend, Lindsay. Instead, I will stay home and work play at restocking both my ETSY and eBay shelves. (It's going to be a while before I get enough product finished to reopen my Website...I will though...just be patient with me, OK?).

Here's a sampling of what's coming up....

Circa 1940 Drop Front Secretary

This simply delightfully sweet, drop-front Secretary will soon to be adorned with hand painted pink roses and dainty sagey green leaves... So shabby chic!

OPENED UP!

And you ONLY THOUGHT I was taking a break! NOT! It takes a LONG TIME to base paint things and this is only a small portion of what will be offered up before Christmas! I love what I do...so much fun and therapeutic, too! Especially so on days like today... I don't have to get dressed up and trudge through puddles or drive on rain-slicked streets to complete a project!

LOTS OF PRETTIES COMING UP

I especially love the vintage shoeshine box above and the soon-to-be pink rose ornaments! Yummy!

And...this charming vintage hanging lamp is just too good to be true! She will eventually have hand painted roses and rosebuds accenting each candle cover...SWEET!

Circa 1960 HANGING LAMP
Shabby PINK Chic

One last bit of news...

I'm ALMOST finished with the TUTORIAL on HOW TO PRINT IMAGES ON FABRIC! I hope to have it all ready for you by the middle of the month!

Blessings to you as wrestle with the rain, bask in the sun, whistle while you work or lazy the day away enjoying the very life you've been given...Rebecca

AN OPEN LETTER TO My Beloved...MY VALENTINE

MY BELOVED AND I

(Yes! That is us in 1977)

In a world where the nightly news is full of grim predictions on both marriage and parenting, I'm thankful that in at least one category I've been very fortunate to not fall through the statistical cracks... Now, this can in no way, shape or form be attributed to anything I have done...on the contrary! I just happened to find an amazing man...

It is with great pride I share publicly an edited version of the Valentine letter I mailed today to the man of my dreams...

"Dearest Steven..

I suppose in many ways, this little note to you is way overdue. I should have made time to pen these thoughts to you many, many moons ago. Regrettably, I’ve allowed years and years of busy days and hectic nights to pass by without reassuring you of my constant love, ever growing respect and admiration. It is you I love…only you…forever you! Always and forever you will be my Valentine.

I believe you are a true “Giver”. I’ve never known anyone who can match your generosity in time spent or in money given or love shared. It is important to me for you to understand that even if no one else ever notices how big your heart is, I do.

I suspect we both will be long gone before either of our children will fully understand the depths of your love for them. I’ve never known a person to work so incredibly hard and yet require so little in return from those who claim to love them. You have set the mark of selflessness beyond the reach of all of us. I feel ashamed that my restless heart will never equal yours. In over thirty years of marriage I have often failed at being all of what you deserved and I can only pray that if blessed with another thirty I’ll be afforded the chance to repay you for all the kindnesses you have bestowed upon me.

I want you to know that I believe you to be the best father and husband in the world. Your work ethic and your commitment to the success of your children remains unequaled. Your faith in me has been nothing less than inspiring. Your love and devotion to the three of us, even when it meant giving up on your own dreams, convinces me that you alone are worthy of everything good…everything lovely.

I pray God’s grace and an added portion of strength be showered upon you today. I pray for you clear thoughts and tireless shoulders as you work with purpose and joy. Mostly, I’ll be praying that you will be blessed with the knowledge that you are deeply loved by this pink rose lovin, can't find her cell phone, 'um, honey...I ran out of gas again', 'Can you fix another chair for me?', high-maintenance gal...


Looking forward to more “us days” and sharing my heart with you…"

Blessings to you as you celebrate with those you love this Valentine's Day...

Rebecca