Home Updates, Accessories & Tours

Adding Something New…

/2 Comments/in , /by

 

 

Good Morning Everyone,

I hope everyone is well! I have been so busy the last few days trying to get things done for Lauren. Our college list is full of to-dos! I am also gearing up for the Showhouse. It is done and the house tours start next Saturday! I am nervous but excited at the same time. My mother-in-law’s birthday is next week, and I am still trying to get her birthday gifts. She is so hard to purchase for. There are a lot of events coming up and I am just trying to make sure that I stay on top of everything. 

I received a great response on my recent Instagram poll about adding the vintage Elizabeth Arden beauty jars! I wanted to give you guys a sneak peek below. 

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley

 

Beautiful, aren’t they? What I learned is that they date back to the 1970’s -1980’s era. I am still trying to find out more information on them. I think that they are so beautiful and if you love a beautiful vanity like me then having one of these is perfect for you. They will be on the website soon! Have a great weekend! 

 

 

A Desk Update

/3 Comments/in , /by

 

 

Good Morning,

Everything is in full bloom here! My Canadian choke cherry tree is blooming and so are my lilac bushes! My peonies are coming up as well! I’ve got the Peony festival scheduled on my calendar. I hope we can attend this year!

Lauren’s college visit went very well. There is a lot that we have to do. She got to see the campus, her potential dorm room, and meet her Art Director! It was a very productive day. I on the other hand, got a new delivery recently…

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

 

This was my desk in my office. It is actually my dining room table from my first apartment in 2002! I have been using it as a desk all this time. It has been great. It has provided me with the space that I needed and saved me a lot of money! Most of you know that I have been on the hunt for a new desk for some time now. I have been collecting office inspiration for a few years now and I am still trying to find items and decor pieces that fit into my style and what I need. 

 

 

I went back to the furniture store that I purchased my new dining room table and dresser from and found the desk version of my table! 

 

 

I do love it. It is called the Charthouse Office Desk and I got it on sale 2 months ago! I got a steal! It’s not on sale now so I am really happy that I got it while it was. 

 

 

It has so much table space. I love having all this room. I can actually do some paperwork in my office and write! I have never had that before. My old dining room table was not big enough if you can believe that. Also, the color goes so well with my office decor. My office is my next project area. I am trying to wait until the kids go to college. I can’t believe that I am staying that but they both will be going in the fall. My stepson is taking his furniture in his bedroom so I can finally clear out his room! Yay! I am going to move some things in there and get rid of some other items. I can’t wait to purge both of their rooms! 

Another idea that I have been thinking of is adding vintage pieces to sell from my antiquing adventures to my website. This past Sunday I found these gorgeous vintage Elizabth Arden vanity jars. 

 

They had “made exclusively for Elizabeth Arden in Japan” on most of the porcelain jars. I had to buy two!

 

 

Gorgeous! Now my question to you all is if I went back and purchased a few more of the jars and added them to my website would you purchase any? Let me know in the comments section below! 

 

Nicola Bathie ~Spring Table Styling Tips

/2 Comments/in , /by

 

 

Good Morning,

It’s the last week of March! My goodness! I have been so busy this month and I am gearing up for a busy April as well. In the first week of April I am taking the flower arranging orientation class for Random Acts of Flowers. I am so looking forward to arranging bouquets for hospital patients! Then we have Easter! I look forward to listening to my favorite preachers and teachers discuss our Lord’s triumph and spending time with family. This year I decided to make turkey and dressing along with Jennifer L. Scott’s black forest cake. I will share how that all goes. 

We also have our daughter’s freshman day at her soon to be college, and the Guild’s Decorator’s Showhouse starts! Lots of things going on! I also hope that the weather will be a little better. I am so looking forward to seeing the peonies this year. I know everyone is looking forward to spring. I was recently looking at my Victoria magazine and saw an article about Nicole Bathie’s beautiful tablescapes. 

 

Photography via Nicola Bathie McLaughlin

 

In the March/April issue she gives her tips on how to decorate with vintage pieces and antiques. Nicola mentions to “not be afraid to layer.” I am learning about and experimenting with this technique. It truly is all about what you want. I know things that I put on the table have been conversation starters. 

 

 

She also mentions that “petite bud vases add intrigue in between other accessories; they also make the perfect take-away treasures for guests.” I love that idea! Using a single bud vase as a gift? It’s simple, elegant, and I guarantee you the guests will love it. I know I would. If you want to see the rest of Nicola’s ideas just read the rest of the article here. 

I really love Nicola’s style and I get a lot of inspiration from it. I hope this article brightens your day. It did for me! Have a great Monday!

 

 

FrenChic ~ New Antique Store!

/2 Comments/in , /by

 

 

Good Morning Everyone,

Happy Valentine’s Day! I know it is tomorrow but I just wanted to say it early. Yesterday Mr. Shockley and I went to a new restaurant. It was called Monterey Cuisine. I ordered the roasted chicken, mushroom risotto, and honey roasted brussel sprouts. My husband got the filet, with house purple mashed potatoes, and broccoli. It was so delicious! We are definitely looking forward to going again. 

If you read my blog post on Friday, then you know that I took the day off went and watched Funny Face at a vintage theater and visited a new antique store. It was such a wonderful day. I went and visited two antique stores. I went to FrenChic first and it was a really cute store. 

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

 

Walking into the store I spotted this beautiful bird cage and lots of beautiful porcelain surrounding it. 

 

 

It spent a lot of time on the first floor looking at all of the art, light fixtures, vintage rugs and jewelry. 

 

 

 

I walked around the corner and saw these huge tassels. I loved the colors! The black and gold looked so sophisticated. I knew that I had to find a place for it in home. 

 

 

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley 

 

I then turned around another corner and saw this gorgeous tablecloth! It was only $20! I had to have it!

 

You can see my gold tassels in the distance hanging on the curtain rod. 

 

I purchased the tablecloth and tassels. Once I left there I went and visited Vintage Whimsy . I didn’t see anything there, so I left and headed to the vintage movie theater. I grabbed a small popcorn (no butter) and a small lemonade and went and got a seat. There only about 30 of us in the room and it was wonderful! I sung along and absorbed all of the vintage fashion and decor in the movie. I enjoy Funny Face. It reminds me of the movie called, “The Devil Wears Prada” but I love this so much more! I am thinking about buying it on dvd. I found it on Amazon recently. 

I don’t mind spending days by myself. Never be afraid to explore your city. Find all of the elegant things that you can! Have a great Monday!

 

 

 

 

My First House Shift ~ The Guild

/2 Comments/in /by

 

 

Well Hello to February!

It’s already February 3rd! I am trying to plan my month, but things are up in the air since I got ANOTHER summons for jury duty, and I don’t know the status of my car yet. It is at the collision center, and it will be fixed I just don’t know when I will be getting it back. Our rental is nice but it’s a little too big for me. My husband is enjoying it for sure!

This weekend I have a little bit of running around to do. Lauren has her hair appointment and I need to go and get a few things. I am on the hunt now for a hair stylist. I do miss going to the salon at least once a month, so the hunt has begun.  

Last weekend I got to do something fun. We have started our house shift duties for this year’s Showhouse. The demolition has started on the Showhouse for the year (my Guild group) and the contractors and designers are showing up! My shift was only 4 hours and during that 4 hours you sign in the contractors and designers as they arrive. We have some light housekeeping to do, and we wrap up the light fixtures as they take them down. The other fun thing is seeing the house before and after the changes. Right now, some of the old decor and accessories are still up. I can’t show pictures of everything, but these two things caught my eye. 

 

photo credit Mrs. Shockley

 

So this Venetian mirror is in the downstairs bathroom. I love but I think it is going to be taken down and a new mirror will be going up. Such a beautiful feature!

 

 

 

This wallpaper was a second! I just love all of the different chinoiserie jars on this wallpaper. Now how fun is that? I know that this is not staying which is another reason why I wanted to capture it before they took it down. So lovely!

My next house shift duty is not until the end of this month. If I am allowed, I will share another detail that I like. Have a great weekend everyone! 

 

 

Don’t forget to shop the boutique! Dresses are still under $30! Valentine’s Day is approaching! 

Trying to Stay in Beauty

/4 Comments/in , /by

 

 

Good Morning Everyone,

Sighing…. It has been a long weekend. Nothing really bad just dealing with people. Today I get to take my car to the collision center finally! Driving around my car with dirt on it and with all the damage from the accident has not been fun! But I keep reminding myself that I am still blessed despite the issues going on. 

I was recently inspired by something….

 

photo via Pinterest

 

I saw this photo on Pinterest and it inspired me to pull out an antique that I purchased some time ago and use it. Do you see the silver container with the Q-tips in it?

 

photo via Mrs. Shockley 

 

I realized that I had something similar to that and decided to pull it out and use it! Now how great is that? I love it! But something also triggered me looking at it. This past weekend my family and I were eating dinner a Chic fil A and my husband noticed a table with two women sitting there. For some reason they were staring at us and had their noses turned up. My husband became irritated but then realized that we can just ignore it. I could not. I then became infuriated and wanted to confront both women at the table. 

I slowly began to talk to myself in my mind and began to rehearse and remember certain scriptures that encouraged me. We then got up from our table and began to walk toward them because we were leaving the restaurant. Once I passed them one with the attitude gave me what I call a “fake smirk”. I then cut my eyes at her and continue to walk. When I turned around, I saw her eyes follow my daughter. I mean she turned her head all the way around! I felt myself turning into the Incredible Hulk! 

I talked myself into leaving and getting into my car but I am going to be honest I wanted to go right back in the restaurant go right up to her face and ask her what her problem was! I have just about had it with women and their attitudes, and it is getting worse! I went to sleep still angry about the situation and woke up the next day feeling horrible. Then I walked by my new antique Q-tip holder. I saw how beautiful it was next to my sink and at the moment I realized who I was. 

I was a woman who created a life built on beauty and elegance and I was letting a stupid moment like that get the best of me and I didn’t like that. I felt defeated for a moment but then I was reminded that I did not act on it. She didn’t win. I did. Because I was the leader, and she was following me. Not the other way around. I remembered Jennifer L. Scott’s quote, ‘be too big too care”. I need to make that my word of the year. People are just nasty in so many ways. I know that the Lord is helping me to find balance in beauty and firmness. I want to be firm when needed and remain in beauty at all times. What are your thoughts? Any recent issues for any of you? Let me know in the comments section below and put out those beautiful antiques to use. Enjoy them!

 

 

New Soundings… An Antique Store!

/2 Comments/in , /by

 

 

Good Morning,

These Fridays are coming fast! This weekend I just have a few errands to run. On Wednesday I went to Woodhouse Spa to have my monthly pedi and also got my first facial! It was a dream! I have made a decision that when family or friends ask what I want for my birthday or any other celebration I will be saying a gift card toward services at Woodhouse! I loved it!

I may also consider having them give me gift cards to my favorite antique stores. I found a new one recently. It is called Surroundings.  My husband had suggested it to me a while ago, but it just didn’t look like it had anything. Boy was I wrong!

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

 

As soon as you walked in it was wonderful blue and white ginger jars everywhere! And they were not the cheap ones either! 

 

 

Then I turned around and saw this dreamy display! I wanted practically everything on it. Especially the one with the gold accents. 

 

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley

 

A gentleman by the name of Gary owned the store. He said that he had been there for years and gets new shipments every other week. He had artwork, vintage chandeliers, porcelain lamps, beautiful rugs, and vintage furniture. Every nook and cranny was packed with vintage finds. 

 

 

I circled the store 3 times. Yes 3 times! I could not help it. Every time I came around I found something new to look at. 

 

 

There were so many things that I wanted. Including this beautiful green ginger jar. Isn’t it a lovely color?

 

 

After talking with the store owner and walking around a few more times it was time to make a few purchases. I got the gold leaf frame, bubble bee, Hermes inspired card box and the Together at the Table book! I have not had a chance to look at the book but will be sure to share it soon. Oh I also purchased a Hermes inspired blanket.  I may share it in my January Favorites. 

Let me know what you think about the new store! I know that I will be returning again soon! I have some video footage of it as well and may share it on Instagram. 

Have a great weekend!