High Tea and Girls Day Out

Yesterday I got to spend an afternoon with 2 great friends.  We began our "Girls Day Out"  with an afternoon tea at this cute little tea room in Woodstock called Tea Leaves and Thyme.  It was reminiscent of my childhood days when I would pretend to have tea parties. 

This was a big girl's tea party.

Next it was off for SHOPPING at the Woodstock Antique Market.  Remember I decorate on a budget so if I find something that I really like, I will duplicate it without spending a lot of money.

Cute little chalkboard.  I know I can duplicate this.  After careful examination I discovered that it is a plastic tray (yes, plastic) from the dollar store and the center is painted with chalkboard paint.  Can you see the price tag?  It was $9.95!  You have got to be kidding me!

I have seen this so many times before on other blogs and I can definitely do this.  Off to Goodwill to look for old books.

Now this is something that I CANNOT duplicate.  These are beautiful tassels created by Traci at Timeless Southern Home.   I have featured her before: A Unique Find.  

There it was calling her name! 

Aren't they just beautiful!  We went there just so I could show my friends these tassels.  This is going to look so pretty in her kitchen.

This is next on my "to do" list. 

Add a Little White

I needed a little change to my bedroom so instead of putting a lot of money into new bedding, I decided to make a subtle change by just adding a little white.   What a difference it made by just this small change.  In the fall, I'll just take it off and put the comforter back on.  (I'm still keeping it folded at the foot of the bed).  There is a Tuesday Morning in the same shopping center as the gym where I work out.  I'm not sure if this is a good thing or bad thing because it is too tempting.  Yesterday, instead of turning right to go to my car, I turned left and walked right to the store.  There it was, a beautiful Matelasse coverlet with matching shams and it was in white! The price was too good to pass up so I bought it. What a difference it made by just adding a little white to what I already had.  I'm all about doing things on a budget.  It adds a little "summer" to my bedroom.

This is before:

 This is after:

 

Oh, and while I was there, I found this cute little fake book.  I couldn't pass it up because I have just the spot for it.

Joining Wow Us Wednesdays

A Unique Find

Recently I made a little trip to the Woodstock Antique Market just to purchase one of Traci's beautiful tassels. She has a little booth stocked with all kinds of cute little tassels. Click here to  pay her a visit at  Timeless Southern Home


Isn't this beautiful!

My Hanging Lantern

I have been wanting to hang a lantern from the ceiling of my porch for a long time. A few weeks ago in The Pottery Barn, I saw some lanterns hanging from the ceiling so I grabbed my camera out of my purse and took this picture.

I decided to duplicate the look. The Pottery Barn has some great looking lanterns but the prices are a little more than I want to pay.

On my way home, I stopped into T.J. Maxx and look what I found.

And look at the price!

I then found this battery operated candle with a REMOTE CONTROL. How cool is that? I won't have any trouble turning it on while it is hanging from the ceiling.

Now a trip to home depot to purchase rope and a hook. I wanted a rustic look so instead of using a chain I used large rope.

My husband came up with a great way to tie the knot so it won't fall. I like my version better than the one at The Pottery Barn.

I'm Back With a Little Monogramming

I took a little break from blogging but I'm back now. Spring is here and I have a lot of projects planned to complete.

I want to share with you how I achieved a designer look to my bed. One day while browsing through a major department store, I saw a comforter set that I really liked but it was very expensive so I decided to duplicate it. I grabbed my phone, took a picture and set out on a scavenger hunt. I found a comforter set at a very famous discount chain that had a similar pattern in the same color scheme but cost a lot less. Instead of using the bedskirt that came with the set, I found a crinkled bedskirt at Tuesday Morning. Then I searched for coordinating pillows and found the perfect ones at Old Time Pottery.

Now for the finishing touch: I had the pillow shams monogrammed.

I'm linking to Addicted2decorating

I need a Little Spring

First it was the snow and ice and now it is rain. Last weekend we had 2 beautiful sunny days but it was just a teaser. It has rained all week so I decided to make my own springtime by making a little trip to "Michaels".

I started with a few cherry blossoms and a crystal vase that I already had.

Add a few twigs that I found in my back yard.

I then added some greenery. To make it look more realistic, I curled some of it around my finger.

Then I added some glass beads.

Add a little moss and it's done. Very simple.

I needed a little more color so I added one sprig of "Forsythia". Now I have brought a little spring into my home.

Slideshow design created with Smilebox

Country Living Inspiration Tree

Remember the teddy bear tree that I posted earlier?  My friend actually had the original picture that was featured in a 1987 issue of Country Living magazine ( not Southern Living).  I actually think that my friend's tree looks better because she has the bears evenly distributed and balanced with the large bears at the bottom and the smaller ones at the top.  My mother in law even said that the Country Living tree looked a little more cluttered.  What do you think?

Thank you A. for sending me the picture.

Country Living Teddy Bear Tree from 1987

A Partridge in a BEAR Tree

We went to visit some dear friends tonight and as soon as I walked into their home I had to grab my camera out of my purse.  The Christmas tree was decorated entirely with teddy bears. It was adorable! Large bears, middle sized bears and small bears.  You might remember that several years ago there was a teddy bear tree featured in Southern Living.  My friend did a fabulous job recreating it. 

The mantel even had teddy bears.

Isn't this just adorable!

Breakfast Room Bears

This was displayed in the hallway.

I would love to see a little child's face after seeing this tree.

I have searched all over trying to find the picture that was in a past issue of Southern Living.  If anyone out there in blogland has a picture, please forward to me.  Thanks.