Oh So Pretty

...a thank you and an update...

I can't tell you how touched I am by all of your lovely words of support and encouragement on my past post.  I appreciate it more than I can say.  Thank you, friends.

My girl loves kindergarten!  She is a social butterfly and has been cooped up with her mama too much this summer. She is beyond thrilled to have new friends, new teachers, new books, new clothes, new snack, new everything. Mama is staying busy with household chores, volunteer commitments , stocking my opening-soon Etsy Shop and, of course, doing a little bit of thrifting. 

Wanna see what I've found?

I can't wait to store all of my pretty supplies in these...

This is Ava's bed.  She couldn't wait for me to put on the "new" sheets and pillowcase that I found and will be thrilled to see it when she gets home this afternoon.  I love how it looks with the Shabby Chic ruffled pillowcase - almost the exact roses...

And lastly, ruffles! This is a girl's dress laying on a pair of gorgeous drapes.  I bought the dress to cut the ruffle off but my girl is insisting that she wants to wear it.  You can't argue with a girl wanting a pretty new dress, right? The drapes are heading off to my dear friend and are destined to be one of her luscious lamp kits...

Have a lovely long weekend!

Here we go!

It's finally here.  My husband and I just dropped our girl off for her first day of kindergarten. How can she be this old already?  She was so excited and not nervous a bit.  I am so proud of her! Oh, and the big girl outfit?  All her - believe me...the only thing that I got in was the hair bow!

This is going to be the longest of days.  I have lots of errands and chores planned to keep myself busy and I will be counting the minutes until 2:25 when the bell rings!  I miss her already...

Enjoy your day, friends.

Yard Sale...

...at my house tomorrow morning.  We picked a great day - it is supposed to be 96 degrees - woohoo! If you're in the neighborhood stop on by for a glass of sweet tea.

Hope everyone finds some treasures this weekend (and that I can sell a bunch of mine too!).

Presto - Chango!

I have such a hard time cutting any of my vintage wallpaper.  I have rolls and rolls and just can't bring my self to anything more than just admire it.  I guess I just want to make sure that if it has lasted this long already that I use it for a worthy project and don't "waste" it. 

This was perfect.  Now I can admire it and stay organized!  I started with an unfinished wood crate, painted it with acrylics and glued on some pretty wallpaper. 

How's that for simple? "Quick and easy" -that's my middle name - er, wait , that's not what I meant..."Almost instant gratification" - that's my kind of project (that's better)...

Beauty in the details...

My craft room/storage room/office/guest bedroom has been in need of a massive clean-up for a very, very, very long time.  I am gearing up for my Etsy Shop Grand Opening(!) and a huge yard sale before the season ends so this is a great time to get organized. 

Redecorating (my favorite bit!) will come after I hold the sale and get rid of all of the orphaned furniture that lives here in this room.  In the midst of all this mess, I find glimpses of what I hope this room will eventually be - one of creativity, beauty and inspiration.  Here are some of the bits and pieces that that inspire me as I sit here...

Hope that today you too find joy and see beauty in the details...

Mama needs a new pair of shoes!

I have been on the lookout for a nice, comfy "running around town" shoe.  I've never been one who wears tennis shoes and sweatpants (not that there's anything wrong with that) and once I became a stay-at-home mom, I had a hard time figuring out how to dress comfortably and stylishly.  I often rely on tips from my "stylist"(Lori), who calls to let me know when the best boots are on sale over at Nordstrom or when Target is carrying some fabulous embellished (but age-appropriate) T-shirts. 

So, I am rather proud to say that I found some, I think, really cute tennis shoes that will have me feeling pretty in the carpool line.   What do you think?

I mean, really. Pink satin ribbon and taupe eyelet?! Come on!

As much as I love them, they don't even compare to the beauty, the sparkles, the all-around-foofiness of my little girl's new shoes.  Are you ready for this? Ta Da!

Why, oh why don't they make these in my size?  My girl is so excited to wear on her first day of kindergarten next Monday.

Here's to you finding something today that will put a little spring in your step!

They call me a tease...

Throughout the summer, I have been participating in my first Round Robin.  The other participants are Lori, Dede, Victoria and Bonnie.  I have had a hard time  focusing this summer - I think that Fall and Winter might be better times for my next Round Robin.  I kept pulling it out and then getting distracted. The girls have been patient but Victoria is probably wondering where these are - they are on their way now. 

Here are some sneak peeks!

...I'm just waitin' on a friend...

I will just be sitting on my porch all day waiting for my friendly postman.  I am hoping that he will be bringing me this lovely couple -

Lisa, over at Pink Paint and Roses, had this for sale and I was lucky enough to be one of the winners. Yes, she had a pair! Can you even imagaine?! I lost the auction and was so dissapointed but then she contacted me to ask if I was interested in the matching lamp. Why, yes, yes I am!   Can't wait to meet them...

more vintage dresses

As promised, here are a few more pretties from my collection.

...my favorite...silk satin gown...reminds me of Myrna Loy in The Thin Man movies...

...detail...

...fancy girl's dress...

...sweet baby dress - love the bows and ruffles...

...$3 estate sale prom dress...

...sweet little bed jacket...

...here are some more pretty details...

My favorite vintage store in Greensboro is Design Archives.  I find lots of treasures there. The owner, Kit,  is so wonderful and you can even shop on line.

Here is my little shopping assistant...

If you'd like to see more vintage prom dresses, Rachel Ashwell has put together a touring collection that will be visiting all of her Shabby Chic stores this summer.  It looks SO lovely - wish that I could go see it!  If you do, I'd love to hear about it.

vintage dresses

I adore vintage clothing - the fancier the better.  Give me a bit of silk, a little ruffle, some ruching or a tease of tulle and I am gone.  Here are a few pieces that hang around our home...

...vintage prom dress...

...pretty pink gown - can't you see it at a dance at the country club?...

...little girl's organza dress - my daughter is itching to wear this one...

...sweet girl's dress...

...petticoat that I use as a tablecloth underskirt...

...detail of little girl's pink silk and black tulle dress...

...detail of little girl's slip...

...$5 Goodwill find...love the back detail...

...pink petticoat that I used to play dress-up with as a little girl...

That's all for today.  My sweet girl is begging to play dress-up now, sounds like a wonderful idea. 

I've got more to show you tomorrow - see you then.