My Cozy Home

birthday wishes and new arrivals...

  Happy Birthday to my mom, who just turned 60 on July 7th.  We were able to be together to celebrate her special day.  I love you mom!! 

Mom loaded her car with all of the treasures that I couldn't bring back with me on the plane in June.  I'm very excited about my new chair (also pictured here), which made it's way from Washington to Idaho, Idaho to North Dakota, and finally, North Dakota to Minnesota.  It's now in the entry of my house - making me smile every time I see it.  I love it and am so glad that I got it from JuneBug at The Farm Chicks show in June.  And once again, the bag that I got at the JuneBug booth is also in the picture.  I love it so!

Just brought these flowers home from the farmer's market this morning.  I enjoy arranging flowers in a no frills, relaxed sort of way.  Nothing too fancy.

In addition to the chair from JuneBug, I also got this great chalk board.  I'm enjoying having a new focal point on that dining room wall - I had the Ironstone platters and liked how they looked together.  Me thinks I need more Ironstone platters though....

 

There's my big boy - K.C., laying next to my new pillow (which also made the trek in my mom's car with many other treasures).  It's a wonderful heavy linen ticking. 

 I have to say, I hate polishing silver, but it sure looks nice when it's done. 




 

A growing collection of starfish and my new "Cottages on the Coast" book that Steven got for me.

I hope you're all having a nice weekend.  We are grilling tonight and I'll be making some strawberry rhubarb crisp for dessert.  It's so good and will hopefully be picture-worthy so that I can share it with you.

fantastic fun at the farm chicks

This is a cautionary tale of what happens when a girl from Minnesota visits her mom in Idaho on the same weekend of The Farm Chicks show in nearby Washington.  I warn you, this post isn't for the faint of heart.  Once Mom established that she could and would in fact drive any and all bulky purchases to North Dakota so that we could pick them up to take back to Minneapolis....well, understandably, it was "Game On" from that point forward.  This bit of news led to the procurement of a chair, old suitcases, a stool, a framed chalk board, a huge pillow, a doll house, a basket....you get the idea.  Everything else that could be squeezed, rammed, folded, pushed, prodded, or otherwise placed somewhere on my person or baggage came back with me on the plane...yah, it was pure, unadulterated goodness.  Everyone should have a weekend like that.  Here are a few pictures of Evy, me, and my mom.  Steve stayed a safe distance back in Minnesota....really, it was better that way ; )

My mom brought her Farm Chicks cookbook to get signed, as you'll see below.  This is us with our excited faces on.  We were definitely excited.

 

We had so much fun in the Duchess booth.  This is where I got my fun suitcases.

Evy posing with her new doll house from Unexpected Necessities.  We'll have fun decorating it.

The Barn House Boys had such a great display - I wish I could have gotten more home with me - good thing I didn't live closer or I would have had to make an emergency trip to a U-Haul store to rent a trailer.

My new chair from Gladys at JuneBug Furniture Designs.  I could have bought out their whole booth.  Below is the back of the chair.

Look at those cute buttons!

Just a few of the fun things I got - this is at my mom's where they still sit until July 4th weekend!  The pillow on the chair was also from JuneBug and is made from Rachel Ashwell Shabby Chic fabric.  JuneBug also made the cute ruffled burlap bag hanging from the chair.

A few of the other fun things I got - pictures, books, lotion, a paper flower....who doesn't need a sparkly paper flower?

Mom and Evy with Serena and Teri from The Farm Chicks.

Yep, a great weekend. 

** Also wanted to say hi to Cathy from Red Wing, MN who I saw at Haupt Antiek Market way back in January.  She recognized me from my blog - I was shocked.  Hope you are well Cathy!!

the odds and ends of january....

I've had a number of pictures to post lately, none of which seem to relate much to one another.  I guess there doesn't need to be a theme exactly, it's just nice when there is one...says me.  Odds and ends, mixed with a bit of this and that are okay too.  When my mom was here she and I fixed up an old crib that had been used by my great grandma for her six baby girls.  It stayed in our family and was used by my mom for her dolls when she was growing up.  I painted it and my mom made a nice cushion for the bottom of it.  Evy's babies have a new place to take a nap now.

                                                                                                                                                                  

My mom sewed different colored buttons on the end of the cushion for the enclosure.   

                                                                                                                                                                           

                                                                                                                                 

This is a slate that got on Saturday at Haupt Antiek in Rosemount, MN

                                                                                                                                                               

I got this little "mother" box at Hunt and Gather in Minneapolis, MN.  It's been featured in Country Living and is just 20 minutes from my home. I also got an old clarinet there as well and have it next to my old trumpet.

                                                                                                                                                          

And now for the important stuff.  I purchased several goodies from Rosemary who makes fantastic creations - the kind of wonderful goodies that just make you smile.  This is one of the cones that I got from her.  She sent me two because she wasn't sure which color I would like better.  I love them both!  This one hangs on the french doors between the living room and the family room.

                                                                                                                                                               

This is the second cone, which works perfectly in my bedroom.  It actually hangs from my nightstand, but the lighting wasn't as good there so I moved it to the door.  I also got the little "Dream" banner that is set in the top of the cone.

                                                                                                                                                               

For some reason my camera wouldn't quite focus in on the little box, but I'm sure you can still see how lovely it is.  It sits on my night stand atop "Jane Austen's Guide to Good Manners; Compliments, Charades & Horrible Blunders" 

                                                                                                                                                            

And this...this is the wonderful crown that Rosemary made.  I just love it!  I love it all and am so glad to have her beautiful creations in my home.  She is so detailed and uses such pretty materials.  Thank you Rosemary for allowing me to purchase these lovely  works of art!

                                                                                                                                                               

I've recently received a couple tags and an award.  I will write about those in my next post along with some photos from my mystery bookshelf which recently received some Nancy Drew additions thanks to my very sweet and thoughtful husband.  I hope you all are well my friends.

                                                                                  

birthday fun and antiquing...

Hi friends.  It was my birthday on Wednesday 12/5 and I had a nice time.  Steve, Alex, Evy, and I went to dinner and I opened my presents there.  We had fun.  I got some fun things such as Coco perfume by Chanel, Lovejoy (BBC mystery show from the 80's, 90's), and "Merry & Bright" by Country Living. I also got a Shabby Chic book too.  I've really enjoyed the Merry & Bright book - perfect for this time of year.  My mom sent me some fun stuff too, among which was the below glittered trees.  Some folks were asking about the coffee cup from the last post.  It's from Bailey's.  I have a boy cup and a girl cup.  The girl cup is even wearing a pearl necklace.  I'll have them both in my next post.  They're so fun.

These trees are so fun, and very sparkly.

Here's a little banner I got whilst antiquing on Friday.

Can you see the little silver cup?  It's engraved and says, "Compliments of Mr. & Mrs. John Monson".  It's so cute.   Hope you're all having a great week so far.

newish old things, oldish new things...

I'm back AGAIN from California and certainly happy to not be planning another trip anywhere for awhile.  This time it was a business trip to San Jose.  It was a very nice trip, great hotel, a whole lot of amazing food and wine - really, as business trips go, it was very, very nice - no complaints here.  There's nothing quite like being at home though, especially at this time of year.  I love fall so much that I don't want to miss any of the beauty that Minnesota has to offer.  Green grass, leaves of burnt orange and burgundy, clusters of maple trees at varying stages and peaks of color, apple orchards, pumpkin patches, hay rides, cool nights sitting in the back yard with a fire burning.  It's a really great time of year here.  I've taken some photos of the new items I got in California and mixed them in with a few fall displays around the house.  Thanks for being patient with me being gone lately.  I really appreciate it my friends.

I found this Halloween garland to decorate my tree in the entry.  Not sure if you can see it, but I have hung old skeleton keys from ribbons and looped them over the branches.  Skeleton keys...get it?  It's all about the theme for me :o)

                        Gourd goodness.

Isn't he cute...he kind of falls into the same category as "pumpkin guy" from a couple of posts ago.  There's just something about that silly pumpkin grin that makes me grin in return.

                                                                                                                                                                                                            This basket is located on top of the below cabinet.  My mom gave me the decorative garland, which I wrapped around the basket. 

This cabinet is at least 100 years old, and was on my grandparent's farm.  It's simplicity really appeals to me.  It can be so easily embellished, and especially looks great with autumn accents.  The apron hanging on the right is from the Farm Chicks, which my mom got for me at their antiques show last September.  I love those polka dots. 

I haven't gotten these hung yet, but they'll probably be in our bedroom.  They are sketches from the 1930's.  I have another in our room that is very similar, which I got last year.

   

A cute little tag that I'd like to try and mimic when I get a chance.  I have it hanging from the lamp next to my side of the bed.

I'll be sharing more fall decorating pictures very soon, as well as a couple of other things I got in California.  I can't believe we're already heading into the second week of October.  It's still in the 70's and 80's here, which is amazing, but I'm sure it will be cooling off soon.  Hope you're all very well.

antiques find new home and loving guardian - shouts of "hurrah" heard round the world...

I have taken pictures of most of the antiques that I got while attending the amazing, and very rewarding Junk Bonanza a couple of weeks ago.  I believe I've established a new speed record for myself, and perhaps even the world for finding just the right place for said new goodies.  I believe it was providence, dare I say, divine providence that the new antiques slipped so easily into our home.  I digress.  Here are pictures of most of the items, although the hand and ring displayed inside the cloche are not pictured, but are very happily sitting on my bedside table looking quite like they've always been there (do I hear utterances about divine providence again?  ehem, okay, okay moving along).  I plan to try and capture some of the other items I got, a couple are Halloweeny so I'll save those for a bit later.

Pictured new items are the golf club set with plaid bag, the bag sitting on the floor nearest the chest, and the riding helmet sitting on top of it.

Okay, so this guy isn't part of my recent antiquing expedition, but he's cute, and really that's about all the explanation necessary I think.  I got him at Michael's - he may look familiar to you.

Pictured here is the snapshot of lab coat people outside the Natural History Museum.  Love the lab coat people.  I know that not everyone would agree that Mr. Pumpkin Guy is cute, but I think he's hands down adorable.  I just paused to look up at him as I type this.  Yup, he's still totally cute, and in case you're wondering, he is indeed still smiling. 

I really, really like the Fall Harvest sign that I got.  It's in the kitchen - the room you can see behind it is the dining room.  The DR is a very pale gray color - the Kitchen is that caramel, butterscotchy color.

Here is the tartan plaid Pendleton blanket that I got (I already posted a similar picture earlier). 

A close up of that great Junk Fairy wand that I got at Kari's wonderful booth at Junk Market. It's tucked into the Halloween tree.

Well, I don't have a picture of everything I got, but it's a few things just so you can see how they're fitting in.  They're mingling well with the other antiques and decorative elements.  They haven't started any fights or even engaged in any name calling.   So, success all around I'd say.  Also, I wanted to let you know that I'll be out of pocket a bit over the next week.  I hope everyone's doing well.  Thank you for being such wonderful blogging friends.  It really does mean so much to me.  Talk to you soon.

antiquing splendor...

What could be better on a Friday than taking the day off of work to experience a full day of brilliant antiquing?  That was actually a rhetorical question - no answer required because there isn't much that could be better - maybe some things are evenly matched - I'll give you that, but I can't off the top of my head think of much that is better than a day off to find amazing antiques.  My sister-in-law (Erin), and I got an early start on Friday morning to go to Junk Bonanza - an annual event that is put on by the Junk Market girls Sue and Ki - contributing editors to "Country Home" magazine.  We got there just before it started so that we could experience it all from the beginning.  It was WONDERFUL!!!  Every booth was good - no crap, just great stuff!!  Over 100 vendors were there, including the beautiful, talented, and very sweet Kari from Artsy Mama.  I was so excited to meet her and see her pretty creations.  Here we are at her booth.  The Junk Fairy wands were made by Kari - they are so cute!  Kari had so many wonderful things in her booth and she displayed them so well.  Also, her dad took the pictures and was helping Kari in her booth.  He is so sweet - what a cutie!  Also, thank you Erin for being my antiquing buddy all day - we did have a fantastic time.

It was so fun to meet Kari in person - I'm so glad she lives near me.

                                                                                                       

                                                                                                                                           

Look at those great Junk Fairy wands - so cute!

My loot!

Look at that golf bag.  I got the bag and four old drivers for $18.  I really love that plaid.  Also, I was very excited about the tartan blanket, and the riding helmet that was made in Greenwich, CT. 

                                                                                                                                                               

Kari made the wand and the Halloween witch that is laying over the top of vintage ledger paper.  I love them!

I got the tall glass cloche to add to my growing collection.  The hand under the cloche is cast iron - It's so heavy.  The ring is from The Junk in My Trunk - the creation of a fantastic woman named Karen Ross Smith, who was also at Junk Bonanza.  The ring is a beautiful vintage button.  I also got a bobby pin with a very cute vintage button. They are really great - Karen does a great job with the jewelry - they are really well made.  And seriously, that hand is fantastic for displaying such a great ring!

 

Skeleton keys from Kari's booth, a frog, and ironstone platters to add to yet another collection.

I nearly had a spasmic attack when I found this bag - $14.  Yes, $14.  The bag, riding helmet, and golf bag are all in my entry now - I'll take some pictures later to show the new display. 

Just wanted to show my new tartan blanket on the bench in our family room.  I sure do get excited about those colors - especially at this time of year. 

Tonight we have a block party in our neighborhood.  Not sure what I'm making yet.  Last year I won the prize for best salad, which was an asian salad and so good.  Not sure I'll be winning any prizes this year.  Hope you have a wonderful weekend!   

haupt antiek market, candles, and a heart-felt thank you...

First and foremost I wanted to thank you for all of the comments that I received about my last post.  It really, really touched me and I'm so grateful for your kindness, support, thoughtfulness, and friendship.  Aren't we so lucky to have this amazing network of friends - it's a gift we keep giving to each other.  Thank you so much - I'm giving each of you a huge hug and blowing you a kiss.

                                                       THANK YOU!!!

Last weekend Steve, Evy, and I went to the Haupt Antiek Market in Rosemount, MN.  If any of you have the October 2006 issue of Country Living you will be able to see them featured.  It's a very fun place to go.  An old house, yard, and out building filled with wonderful antiques.  It's open once a month for four days, and each month there is a new theme and all new antiques.  They also contributed to the book "Celebrating Home", which I LOVE.

    

I only got four things as I am saving myself for September 7th when I will go to Junk Bonanza and to Buffalo, MN for the some major antiquing (will be primarily at Buffalo Nickel Antiques and Second Hand Rose).

I got the little clock, called a "Baby Ben".  So cute.

Below is a picture that I found at Haupt.  I love the colors and it matches the blue of our paint so perfectly.                                               

I got the little ink well next to the phone.  I wish it had the top to it, but maybe I can find an old pen that would look good sticking out of it.  I think my dad had one, I'll have to ask my mom.

 

I found this large cloche - I do love a good cloche ya know.  I have three now, small, medium, and large.  It works great on the cake stand.

And finally, I wanted to share with you a wonderful candle find - 1803 Candles.  They smell sooo amazing, are handmade, and are soy.  They are wonderful!!!  Here are the two that I have and I love them!!  You can order them online - I HIGHLY recommend them.

   

The packaging is so cute and uses regular canning jars.  Farmhouse is my favorite of the two, but I really like both of them very much.   

Evy and I are off to get her a hair trim at Kid's Hair, then to Michael's for some Martha Stewart supplies, and then to the mall to do a bit of shopping for Evy and I.  Sounds like a super day I think.  Then, for tonight, Steve and I will be watching "Midsomer Murders - Garden of Death" we just got in the mail from Netflix. Last night it was just party, party, party as we watched "Highschool Musical 2".  Pizza, popcorn, chocolate - a very fun night!

Thank you again for being my supporters, visitors, and friends.  We are all so fortunate to have this forum to share our thoughts, hobbies, and general goings on in our lives.

Thank you and have a wonderful weekend!!

A few of my treasures (picture overload)....

These are some of the items that I purchased the day my mom and I went antiquing.

I think I inadvertently adjusted something on my camera, which resulted in grainy pictures - sorry about that.  Isn't that chalk dog great!  I was so excited when I saw him.  And the tartan plaid book - it looks great with a set of scottie dog bookends that I had (not the ones you all saw in this post, but a different set - I tried to take a picture of them, but the plaid sort of freaked out the camera and it didn't know where to focus - resulting in bluriness).  I'll see if I can get a different shot of the bookends so you can see.

I loved this pink star with the tinsel in the middle.  It's in Evy's room now.  Sorry for the grainy picture below.  I found that holder and then added pictures of my great grandma Emelie, postcards from relatives in the early 1900's (the one with Lady Liberty and flags is to my great grandma Emelie in 1907 and is written in Norewegian).  I also have some very old tickets to a play that were my relatives from the early 1900's (they are in the envelope on the right).  There are a couple of receipts there too.  All of these things were at my grandparents farm - oh the treasures they had there!

The below are a couple of other dogs I found .

Here are some prints that I found - they are propped up against my couch.  Again, what is the deal with my camera!

I'm includint the picture of the scottie dog book ends and the tartan plaid book - it is very blurry - sorry.  But they are so cute!

  This is in my living room.

And these are just a couple of pictures from the Buffalo Nickel where we were antiquing.

I love this diplay and all of the great colors.

Bikes with baskets - just love them.

Sorry for all of the pictures, but wanted to try and make up a bit for being so absent lately.  My mom and I are having a great time, and are going to have tea today at Lady Elegant's Tea Shop (with Evy too).  I'll bring my camera to share the experience.

Antiquing...

     I went to an antique show on Thursday called A Gathering of Friends.  Gail from The Tattered Nest was also going to be there this weekend, but we went on different days.  Hope you found some good stuff Gail.  Here are most of the things I got.  The little dogs are bookends - they are so cute.  I really like the scalloped ironstone platter, and that lovely little blue hand towel.   

Love those bookends.

      

I thought this cookbook was so pretty with the color and pattern.  The cake, pie, and cookie recipes sound so good.  The pictures of the food and tablescapes are great too.

     I wish I could have captured the amazing color of this book.  It's a really great blue, with some gray in it.  The lighting makes it look like it's faded.

    

This is another book that I got at the antiques show as well.  What I love about decorating with antiques is that you can pick up a book from 1990 and it's still so relevant.  I love the floor, farm table and cabinet in this picture.  I've gotten decorating books from the early 80's as well, and while some things are outdated, the use of antiques, and vintage accessories and materials still makes them very interesting  and inspiring to me.

     I hope you all have  a great weekend.  Steve and I are taking Evy to get some new shoes, one of which is ballet slippers - It's all she's been talking about since we brought it up.  "I'm getting baway swippers!", says Evy.  May your day be as exciting!