I Have New Cute Boots

And, "These boot are made for walking".  Sounds like Nancy Sinatra, doesn't it?  

These boots are made by Sporto and they are some of the most comfortable footwear I have had in a long time. It is like a silken glove. And, they are really fun to wear.  I wore them with a white turtle neck sweater, black skirt and black tights along with my brown/black tweed winter coat. It nevers fails that I receive comments/compliments.
.

As you problably know by now, I rarely pay retail for anything. I love after-season sales. I kept watching these go down in price until I was comforable with the price. The all black were sold out and at first I thought no to the white. Any, then I said, "Why not". I am so glad that I got them. Oh, another thing I really like about them is the heel. It is a 2-inch  heel that is just perfect for me given my less than average height of five feet.

I hope you are having a beautiful day.

Very Fun Website And Animation

Take a look at the graphics on this web site - http://www.catimini.com/. I came across this web site from France and found it to be very pretty and very amusing. The design and animation is what caught my attention. I thought I would share it with you.

Adorable clothing for children!

Catimini is a trendsetting line of children's clothing from France.  Flowers and characters from French storybooks are the preferred motifs. They are what I would call high-end clothing for "kids". Don't ya think?  But, oh, so sweet.

Have a Happy Day.

~Mary~

Hats Off To You

Like I said yesterday, knitting has been in my hands lately. I have started wearing hats occasionally because sometimes I am having a "bad hair day" or my arms are just to sore from my cervical spine problems to reach up with a curling iron. I also have a rotator cuff tear in my shoulder that needs repair. And, on top of that, I have terribly fine hair that lacks any body. I would love to be a "wash and wear" girl. But, it just ain't so. 

I wanted a hat in a neutral color and I had some Patons Classic Wool Merino (100% wool) in Natural Marl. Can't get more neutral than that! I like that it is wool. And, I had fun making it because the pattern was fast and interesting enough to cause me to look forward to fininshing. I made it over this past weekend and I wore it yesterday. The pattern can easily be modified to make it a little more slouchy by repeating the 10 rows of lace pattern. It fits fine but, I know I will make another hat that is more slouchy!

The name of the pattern is Meret by Woolly Wormhead. It can be found on the Ravelry website.

I really like the star pattern. However, it must be blocked in order for it to show the detail otherwise it kind of folds on itself. The hat color goes nicely with one of my winter coats. My coat is a brown tweed and the photo above this one is a more accurate color of the hat.

Once again, hats off to you. Have yourself a wonderful day.

~Mary~

What An Interesting Piece Of Art

I think this art work by DC artist Rania Hassan is fabulous. I wish I could get it for my sewing room. It is so clever and unusual. Just what I like in my decorating.  Unfortunately, it is out of my price range.You can check it out on Etsy at http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=22616007 and see what I mean. And, be sure and check out her profile. Such talent!

Speaking of knitting, even though I have been quite busy with life, I found time to do some easy, easy knitting on a Misti Chunky Ribs andRuffles scarf. The pattern is available on the internet. Actually, I have several projects in the works that are getting my attention. It just depends on my mood as to which one gets picked up. You know how we can waver from excitement to boredom with our creative/craft projects. I am also trying to give some time to my charity projects.

I hope you are enjoying the start of a new year. It is a little hard to realize that the first month of the new years is almost gone. From looking at other blogs, it appears that many, many new interesting projects are being started. It is so refreshing to start the new year. I hope your projects are going well.

The bonus today is that we have sunshine! It looks like it is going to stay for a while. After having much rain and snow here in the California foothills the sunshine feels delightful. My driveway and yard is a total mess with tree branches (some two inches in diameter) and leaves everywhere I look. Thankfully, none of the large trees presented a problem. Whenever we have storms, I never can avoid thinking about the two cedar trees in my yard that are cabled together for stability. See http://everydaydelight09.blogspot.com/2009/06/i-live-in-trees_26.html. They sway a lot but I feel a little reassured since the cabling was done.

That's it for today. Stay well.

~Mary~            

Antique - No, Not Me

This little beauty is quite old and very unique. It is so interesting and just the right size for this spot at the corner of the dining room. Do you think you can guess what its intended use is? I would never have been able to guess the answer, at least without opening the drop-down door. It is a liquor cabinet! The front is cane with glass on the inside. It is in almost perfect condition. Now, let's look at the inside.

Isn't that the cutest thing you have seen in a long time? Even though alcohol consumption in this house is quite minimal these days, I still enjoy using the barware. I really don't want to get rid of the pretty decanters, especially when I have a nice place to keep them.

I want to draw your attention to the floral drapery with the stripes on the sides. When I first saw the fabric I knew it would be something I would like in the dining area. With my love of garden and flowers, I thought it would be nice to incorporate some florals somewhere in the house. Since I have sewed since early in life, I knew I could make some drapery. They are fully lined and I do enjoy them. The stripes look nice with the painted red stripe that defines the separation of the dining/living room. The drapery rod had been in my clothes closet (not the ends) before I had new rods, shelving and drawers installed. It's just another repurposed item that found a good and new home!

Now, how about a little more wimsy and some trivia. I have some vintage nude ladies ice tea glasses that are called The Three Graces. They are another great conversation piece!

"Made by George Duncan & Sons, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, pieces have  three designs known as  Three Sisters, Three Graces, and Three Fates. This was one of the most popular patterns of the period (1870's - 1890's). The model was long thought to be Elizabeth Bair, the wife of John Miller, who registered the patent in 1878.

In the 1960's LG Wright, a company famous for reproducing old Early American Pattern Glassware, revived the three nude ladies pattern. It was discontinued in 1968.

"The Three Graces, in Greek mythology, are the three goddesses of joy, charm, and beauty. The daughters of the god Zeus and the nymph Eurynome, they were named Aglaia (Splendor), Euphrosyne (Mirth), and Thalia (Good Cheer).

The Three Graces presided over banquets, dances, and all other pleasurable social events, and brought joy and goodwill to both gods and mortals. They were the special attendants of the divinities of love, Aphrodite and Eros, and together with companions, the Muses, they sang to the gods on Mount Olympus, and danced to beautiful music that the god Apollo made upon his lyre. Like the Muses, they were believed to endow artists and poets with the ability to create beautiful works of art."

I hope you enjoyed this post and all of it's trivia. You will just have to wait and see what I come up next time.

~Mary~

Look At These Legs

Are these magnificent or what! I found this plant stand on ebay when I was redecorating a few years ago.  I thought I would show it to you since the recent posts have been about my home.

It is made from a tree log and it is in two pieces. I think the skirt is "something else". I guess you could say that it nicely covers her "unmentionables".

And, look at the detail on those high heel shoes.

It is a great conversation piece!

One unique thing about surfing ebay is that you never know what you will happen upon. I can't imagine ever seeing something like this in the stores that I have access to living in the mountains. The man that delivered it said "it was all the talk among the warehouse men" when he was loading it into the truck.

Oh, and the metal room devider works nicely between the dining area and living room. I bought that at a very good discounted price from a furniture store that was going out of business a few years ago.

Maybe, I need to rename my blog something like "decorating on the cheap".

Tomorrow, I have another interesting piece of furniture to show you. Yes, bought on ebay.

~Mary~

Mission Accomplished

I am finally getting back to my blog after successfully completing some labor intensive house cleaning and enjoying an informal get-together with friends for a tostada buffet dinner. We really had a good time.

Let me show you some photos of my house, at least the part that I have been able to put into an orderly way. I wish I was better when using my camera. I miss having a wide angle lens! But, this will give you an idea of my home.

When I bought this house, the fireplace surround was a very dingy, dirty looking red brick. For numerous reasons I did not want to remove it and start over. So, I found a product called Brick-Anew which when applied (in four stages) produced  a focal point instead of an eye sore. The color selection I chose is called Trilight Taupe which is a combination of three different paint colors applied seperately in layers. I finished it off with a sealer. The kit included an instructional video which was excellent. I am very pleased with how it turned out. Just a note, the propane stove is new. It replaced a wood burning stove. All the issues with procurring, stacking and storing the wood as well as disposal of the ashes became to much hard work for me.  You may be able to see that I really enjoy interior decorating.

Isn't SHE fun? I love the wimsy that she brings to the room. I have named her Tallulah.

According to Tallulah Bankhead, “Only good girls keep diaries. Bad girls don't have time.”

When I start decorating, I have no idea where the universe is going to take me. The room just evolves. I think the room ended up with this picture (print from ebay) being the  theme. Note the lamp (photo is further down) that has a monkey similar to this picture. When I saw the lamp, I could hardly believe the similarity.

Little Lily is in on one of her very favorite spots to take a nap! The black and white photos are photos I have taken and printed with my scanner and printer. The abstract art is a canvas reproduction of Composition VII, by the Russian painter and art theorist, Wassily Kandinsky. He is credited with painting the first modern abstract works. According to his words, Compostion VII which he painted in 1913 "was the most complex piece he ever painted".

I think the picture speaks for itself.

 

Because my home is quite small, we served ourselves in the dining room and sat in the living room with trays. It worked out very nicely.

Since I was setting up by myself, I like to set out all of the serving dishes ahead of time. It makes it easier for me to remember everything and then I don't find something in the refrigerator later that I wanted to serve!

This is the mosaic kitchen backsplace that I made when I remodeled the kitchen a few years ago. I will post more photos of the kitchen at a later time. I have had a difficult time taking good photos because of the glare from the ceramic mosaic pieces. I will say, the mosaic project is one of my most favorite projects I have ever undertaken! It is so much fun for me when people say to me "No - - - you didn't do that!" And, then they say "It's so professional."

The next photo has the monkey lamp with the tall tail. Compare it to the previous shown picture and you will see what I see.

This five piece canvas wall art gets a lot of compliments,too. The various color tones seem to pull all the colors in the room together. There is even a tad bit of red.

And now- let me show you the bathroom that I thoroughly enjoy since redoing the entire room. I love-love-love it, especially the spa wirlpool tub!

The lights over the tub are on a dimmer which makes it very relaxing and romantic.

This was the typical 1970's bathroom with a little aluminum framed window. Now the room is two feet deeper and has a nice big window for lots of light.

When I decided to start updating my home I knew I had to do it in the most economical manner possible. As a result of that I did a lot of the labor ie., painting and installation of as many things as possible ie., towel bars, hardware and many more things. Also, I did a lot of shopping on ebay and that worked out fabulously. I think you would be surprised at how many items came from ebay. One example, is the bathroom sink with the gold trim. It is a $300.00 sink retail and I was able to get it for less than $100.00 including shipping. The detail on the sink is quite lovely.  Buying in that manner saved me a lot of time as well as money. And, it was fun trying to put the house together in that way. I think it looks like it cost a lot more than I was able to spend.

I hope you enjoyed a little tour of a little of my home. When I get the other half of the house in order I will post more photos. The other bathroom also turned out lovely. It has a hand painted floral sink that of course came from ebay.

This is certainly a work in progress with lots more work to complete. There is a fair amount of painting to complete such as doors and trim in the hallways. I have to work at it very slowly because of the limitations with my back problems - and also, I am getting older and it is getting more difficult for me to do every thing I want to. But, I really like the outcomes. 

~Mary~

I Am Still At It

Yes, yes, yes, I am still at it and I am making progress even though it is slow going. Just look at that carpet! It is not very old and it is a beautiful carpet to start with. This if the first time I have cleaned it with the steam cleaner (that I can't live without) and it turned out great. I have to do a section of the room at a time but I eventually get the room completed. I always want to make sure the carpet is thoroughly dry before moving (pushing) the furniture back in place. I really love a clean house and hopefully I will be able to do better at keeping it that way. My back problem is such an issue in keeping up with everything. But, this is a good time of the year before the garden needs so much attention. 

I have a good motivator to keep going with this intensive housecleaning. I am having several friends in for dinner this coming weekend. I planned that intentionally so I would start to get my home back into the order that I like and want. The front part of the house is sure to be a big improvement. The sorting and purging of the bedrooms and sewing room is goint to be another story. But, I am determined! Life is so much more enjoyable when everything has it's place and is generally in it's place.

I have been a naughty girl sitting down at the computer. But, I thought I am certainly overdue in posting. Yes, I am still alive, in pain and very, very tired. It will be worth it.

It is now time to get back to the cleaning. No, I am not going to start surfing the blogs or I will not get my scheduled activities for today completed. I know all to well how that goes. That is one of the reasons that I got myself into this situation.

~Mary~

Housework To The Recycle Bin

The time has come for me to put my nose to the grindstone and do some serious housecleaning - - - and sorting and purging. I seem to get sidetracked from the cleaning project I set out to do and subsequently never finish.  This relatively new behavior has resulted in a very cluttered house in which I have difficulty finding things. I could blame that on forgetfulness, but I know better.

My posting will be a little sporatic depending on my progress with this New Year commitment.

I will leave you with these visuals. My favorite is the second one.

See you soon.
~Mary~