Can't Get You Out of My Head

I spied a pair of these, at what has become a favorite place of mine, Julie's Upscale Retail in Door County. 

My finds from Julie's are worth their very own blog post.  Hubby just picked up a small car load this weekend. Stay tuned for more on that! 

I'm picturing them, in our future Door County home of course, used like this:

Image via Canadian House and Home

Or this...

Lonny

Image via Canadian House and Home

Or here...

Image via Canadian House and Home

Or...sniffle...here...

Image via Elle Decor

And quite frankly, it is killing me. I want, I want, I want! 

But at this point, it's all hypothetical, that one day, in the near future, I will have the (high ceiling, fairly large proportioned) room that could pull these off with smashing success...madness I tell you!  I just hate to think of losing out, on what most certainly could indeed be a once in a lifetime opportunity. A bit dramatic, I know. 

But I get like that with the old, the unique, the antique, the real deal. 

The inspiration behind the Pottery Barn...

"With glass on four sides and a sloping roof, this lantern resembles an antique street lamp with its distressed bronze finish"

 or Restoration Hardware

Sigh. Nothing compares to the original does it? 

I suppose, I could always just put them at the end of my long, winding drive, with the stone gate. 

Which is also pretend, at this point. 

I am alone in this affliction? 

P.S.

Now don't go buying them out from under me without a "are you sure you're aren't going to snatch them up first?" warning.  I have Julie's on speed dial. :)

Friday Love

Image via Lonny

I think I just might need me a pink, velvet tufted cocktail ottoman.

Enjoy your weekend!

Under the Weather

Hello? Hello? Yes, I'm here, I'm here! Oh goodness me. So sorry I'm late!

I'm going to blame the cause of my long absence or tardiness on blog posts on...motherhood... A 17 month old who has discovered my keyboard. A 4 year old who wants to play "fort" under my legs whenever I sit down.  Top that off with the holiday madness and two weeks of in-law relatives staying with us and I was mentally kaput.

But here I am. With a nasty cold. But ready to get back on track. Yesterday I took 2 hot showers to ease congestion.

Unfortunately, not in this shower. I wish this was my shower. It's not.

Sorry, this is one of those oldies from the files...I don't remember where...

At present, our current sole full bath is also our master bath and the whole room might just fit within the confines of the aforementioned dream shower.

The one redeeming feature in our bathroom had been Kelly Wrestler's Imperial Trellis wallpaper in the soft aqua colorway. A huge investment, oddly, for such a small room.  But at present, it is peeling off the wall and sort of corroding to make a long story short. Perhaps not the best choice for a bathroom. Just so you know. But Imperial Trellis is "out" anyway, right?

That's it for now...the 4 year old is getting rowdy underneath the fort walls...

Friday Love

Image via  Lonny Magazine

I love this daring, jewel box of a bedroom. I'd feel so special dreamin' in here. 

Here's to a restful weekend and sweet dreams! 

Junk Bonanza, My Haul

Seems pretty pitiful after all the photos of things I didn't buy, doesn't it? 


I soaked up loads of inspiration from Junk Bonanza, but the reality was I had to stick to my list and buy within a budget. And these purchases made me very, very happy!


I bought everything in my first sweep of the place! 


The little end table was much needed for one end of my living room. I love the distressed, antique blue/Swedish influence in the finish and the lines were lovely.  It was from Beth McIntyre, Wicked Stitches. 

Image via Decor Demon

I didn't get a photo, but Beth had an amazing dresser painted just like the one in designer Betsy Burnham’s Los Angeles home. If I had a baby boy, that would be a must have, and while I consider myself a DIYer, this one seems a bit to tricky for my taste!

The painting was not on my list. It was a heart stopper for me and from Green Cricket Salvage. Another Beth, and she's from Madison, Wisconsin. I loved her tennis racket mirrors, too. She has a cute blog and Etsy shop. 


The lockers and numbered bucket are for my future laundry room project, more on that later. You previously met my chalkware dog, Violet.  

The letters, F (as in Fine)  and D (you guessed it, Dandy!) are super heavy and you'll see more of them. I just need to find an ampersand but apparently those are hard to come by!


In previous junking outings,  I've just walked past the vintage clocks. But the one I found at Junk Bonanza had such great lines and my accent color, a lovely spa blue. So happy I could bring this one home. In hindsight,  just wish I'd snapped up more of the great old clocks and the vendor's name.

Image by David Prince for Martha Stewart Living, January 2003

It got me to thinking of a photo I'd saved from way back in Martha Stewart Living and always wanted to implement....a full mantle of clocks for New Year's Eve!

Onto the next search!

Junk Bonanza, Part Deux: The Ones I Let Slip Away

Old Hi-Lex Bleach sign. This would have been so great in my laundry room / basement redo. If you’re the vendor from this booth & no one else snatched it up…call me!

I can’t justify everything. Quite a few times at Junk Bonanza, I had that initial ping.

Like a moth to a flame.

Oh! How neat! How pretty! Wow!

The internal conversation with myself usually continues down one of three paths.

a) If I had the money that would be mine.  No question!

b) Seriously. I do not need this. What would I even do with it?  Oh. Yeah. That.

c) I have no idea why I like this.  I’m weird.  Walk. Away.

And sometimes, on occasion…

d) None of the above.  I don’t care. This one will give me nightmares if it is not mine. Now.

Which very well could be one of the primary culprits behind the start of Fine & Dandy.  I’m not confirming or denying.

Here are the ones I left behind. (Cue sad music)

Drat! I want that cupola!

I think the pair of these chairs were $95. Gorgeous!

I would not like this piece had it not been painted. The color is lovely and it just caught my eye. About four times.

Loved this glider and the traditional/modern dichotomy that the finish gave off.

Oh! These shapes! I’m part Irish!  

In hindsight, this would be such a great backdrop display piece for Fine & Dandy.

A potting bench like this could inspire a gal to garden more. Might change the color, but loved the lines.

These fell into the "Am I weird?" category. But I liked them. 

Only $39 as I recall for this star (ya, the one behind the tree!) and it was the old, real deal. 
Pretty over a classic beach house fireplace.

Clock face was only $39 as well.

The chickens drew me over - $55 for the set of 3, how fun for a brunch tablescape! Then I began inspecting that metal table they were on. That was only $65!

That plain ice bucket and wine bottle holder, just lovely.

Cute stainless planter for a nice wide kitchen window sill.

Next up: My Junk Bonanza Treasures

Junk Bonanza, Part I

A few weeks ago, I attended my first Junk Bonanza. Last year, I had a one month old baby around the time of the show, so logistics (like healing from childbirth) have just gotten in the way previously.

Not this year. In 2010, Junk Bonanza was marked as firmly on my calendar as important holidays and family gatherings. I even managed the expectation with Love that I would be spending just a teensy bit of moola. (I’m not always as forthright in these matters.)

Needless to say, Junk Bonanza was amazing.  As many bloggers have noted, there were so many incredible things that it was difficult to focus and yet, it was so inspiring.

At one point, I ran into Ki Nassauer, the brains behind Junk Bonanza. Beaming ear to ear, I thanked her and told her I felt like a kid at Christmas time.  Ki, my Santa.

I heard from a few vendors behind the scenes, that Ki and her crew are trying to gage interest for a spring Junk Bonanza.  I hope this happens!

I’ll let my pictures do the rest of the talking.

I managed to get there before the doors even opened! 

Ms. Macs Antiques had one of the best booths visually in my opinion, with great stuff. The “man of the booth” spent a great deal of time building the booth structure…

Including this amazing back wall that resembled tin clapboard.  

And hello? The fish was pretty amazing.

This poor gal had a broken arm but she was still striking and you have to wonder about her past.

Old ceiling tins. I have one I bought years ago that I just love. I noticed these looked like they were coated with perhaps a poly spray to keep the pesky lead based paint intact. Good idea, noted, although I think I would use a matte poly. 

I’m usually not a fan of something this “shabby” but this caught my eye. Wouldn’t it make a fun nightstand in the right room, even in a more modern setting? Just a bit unexpected.

The industrial, galvanized metal look was everywhere.

As were locker baskets, buckets and medical cabinets.

This bucket of silverware nearly prompted me to sit on the floor.

A pair of neat old "Resort" signs.

Just loved the coloring on this little guy. 

And if you could make him “chill” wouldn’t he be a darling accessory for your next summer party? 

Be sure to catch the next episode of Fine & Dandy: 

“Junk Bonanza - The Ones I Let Slip Away”