Get Moving

Hey, there,

How's your week so far? Mine was much improved by lunch with an old friend today. Catching up with someone known for decades is always fun and sustaining. She told me that her son's family is leaving for a cruise on the Mediterranean Sea next week. He has been working in the Netherlands, so they are taking advantage of the chance to see as much of Europe as possible before they return to the US. And that's what summer is traditionally about, isn't it? Taking a vacation, whether to exotic ports or close to home. People want to hit the road. In honor of that I did a little travel inspired decorating today; here is the result.

Here is a reproduction 1934 travel poster framed, some little toy suitcases, a pair of binoculars and a compass; what else do you need to hit the road?

Where to go? How about New England? That's where this colorful assortment of antique buoys was photographed for a postcard. It's framed in a Kirkland's frame found at the Sand Dollar. 

Or you could do like Frederick Harrison, who went around Britain with a furry companion named Pugwash. 

 

What place is calling to your imagination? Are you going to be able to get on the road or take to the skies this summer? Bon voyage!

 

Michele

 

 

 

It's all beachy

Hello, all,

It's hot and going to stay that way. The kind of weather that makes you long for ocean breezes. We have no prospect of that right away, but that's no reason not to head there in our imaginations. Thus, the decor is due for a change. 

So we said goodbye to the hydrangeas and hello to:

this aid to sea dreams. Stay tuned for more seaside vibes as the week continues.

Take it easy.

Michele

 

 

Sunshine and Dollar Tree

Hello, all,

I went to Dollar Tree today and they are really ready for summer. If you have kids you can find a boatload of fun.

If you want to have a party, host a graduation or get married, they've got you covered. To keep your kids busy:

bubbles, giant wands and bracelets.

Kites. frisbees and sidewalk chalk.

Flipflops, hats and sunglasses.

Glasses for lemonade and cute dessert dishes:

An insulated bag to take to the pool or the beach, sunscreen, fly swatters, snacks and drinks. Really, it's hard to think of much you'll need in the next three months that isn't available at Dollar Tree, except a car to get to the beach in or furniture for your patio. 

Michele

PS I'm not compensated by the store in any way, but was blown away at how much bright, cute stock there was on my trip there this week.

Silver and Succulents - the Sequel

Hey, there, how's life? It's not raining here, so everyone is relieved and happy. 

A while back I tried planting succulents in silver containers, a couple of mugs, a sugar bowl, and a julep cup. That project was fine until someone stole the whole birdcage full of plants off the front porch. Okay, time for Plan B. Live succulents outdoors didn't work. That leaves fake ones in the house. Last week at Goodwill I found this bowl:

It's large, nine inches across not including the handles. For $3.99 less the senior discount, it went in the cart. Today I played around with the fakes and came up with this:

They are stuck in a mass of wadded up brown paper and the surface covered with Spanish moss. The thing about succulents is even the real ones often look fake, the way they grow waxy and perfect. It makes it a little less shaming to use them instead of live plants, at least to me. I like the way it turned out, and expect this bowl may have multiple uses throughout the year.

Take it easy!

Michele

It's always cool

Now that summer is racing towards us with the speed of a bullet train, escaping the heat is a priority. We can't really have an aquarium in a house full of cats, so I adapt the terrarium this time of year to give an illusion of the cool dimension that is under water. Like this:

 I've picked up these little fish tank pieces over the years at thrift shops.

All the greenery was in a bag at Value Village, so it was a good score. White sand on the bottom is from Dollar Tree.

Here's a close up. The little diver has several buildings to check out and a bridge to cross.Never mind the temperature outdoors, he's cool as can be under the sea!

Have a good one!

Michele

Time Travel

Hello, all,

I was supposed to meet a friend for lunch this morning but that got pushed back a week, leaving extra room in my day. How about we take a trip back to 1955 and see what was going on then?

The cover picture is from a feature on a visit to an editor, Jean Austin. 

This is the story mentioned on the cover. Apparently it stopped traffic because it was a Cape Cod cottage located in Florida. It was entirely furnished in Early American and Colonial reproductions. 

Here's the dining room. It's certainly consistent, as are all the rooms pictured. Did you ever think of using antique crimping irons for cigarette boxes? Where's your imagination?

Some things don't change. Crafts were popular then, too. Here's a page of instructions for making bottles into animal ornaments.

People weren't as completely on board with the open floor plan as they are today. Here is an advertisement for a plastic kind of folding wall to separate spaces easily.

This page offers a way to see if your design instincts are on track.

Did you pick these choices? If not, you would have been in disgrace in 1955.

How happy is this lucky woman with her Republic Steel Kitchen? Downright ecstatic, it looks like!

This was during the baby boom, so using Old Mother Hubbard was an easy and appropriate choice. In the Republic Steel Kitchen inside her shoe, you can see she made her brood  Jello, and there were seven flavors to choose from then. She could also buy fine satin ribbon, a five-yard roll for .50 cents, have her old fur coat restyled into a stole or buy a Johnny Planter, a self-watering container for plants that fit atop the toilet tank. Are you getting jealous yet? I didn't think so. 1955 is fun to visit, but not fun at all to return to if it was possible, no matter how nostalgic old Saturday Evening Post covers might make it seem. Life is good, now. We should all remember that and be grateful.

Till next time,

Michele

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Monday = Hectic

Hi, Friends,

How is your week starting off? Ours began with sunshine, a welcome switch.Too bad  because of circumstances it's such a busy day for me there was hardly any time to enjoy it. There was a lot of paperwork and packages to wrap this morning. Is it even necessary to tell you that's when the printer decided to balk and stop cooperating? After working at Manna till 1:30 sStill left to run were errands to get gas in the car and to the post office. Once home lunch was the most urgent item on the agenda, at least to me. The cats thought they should get first dibs on my energy, but they were overruled. Then it was time to call the city. On Friday our giant, rolling recycle bin was stolen off the curb. The trash container was left, but no bright green container for recyclables. Isn't that odd? It will supposedly be replaced in 7 - 10 days. I'm just glad all that was required was to wait on hold for a few minutes. 

All this boils down to not much time left to do anything around the house, yet doing something not totally mundane was what I wanted most. As is so often the case, the small, simple redo was what worked with the situation, mostly that Mr. B will be home early before teaching his class. Thus, the little shelf revamp:

It's contents got switched to silver, one small candlestick and one double handled sugar bowl. 

That's Spanish moss in it, picked up on a walk around the neighborhood. My kids used to say those came from fur ball trees, and it's not a bad description. That's all for now. See you tomorrow!

 

Later,

Michele