My Cozy Home

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.

                                                                                  

goodies from abroad...

My friend Sophie sent me a wonderful goodie package from England.  It was a birthday/Christmas present and I just love what she sent.  I showed the "NOEL" gilded letters in my last post, but she also sent this wonderful pillow and cute hand towels from Laura Ashley.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  The little candle lights are from my mom.  When they are turned on they flicker like candles.  I really like the little polka dot towel from Sophie.

                                                                                                                                                            Another Laura Ashley hand towel above.

See the little paper crown on the cloche?  Below is a picture of Evy on Christmas day wearing a paper hat from her English Cracker.  We all were wearing them while eating our Christmas waffles.  Good times.

                                                                                                                                                      

                                                                                                                                                             Sorry for the big gap between posts.  I've been working, trying to spend time with family - you know, all that stuff that everyone deals with at this time of the year.  My mom and grandpa arrived today to celebrate a belated Christmas, as well as New Year's with us.  I'm looking forward to a week off of work starting on 1/2.  My mom and I will be antiquing, watching old movies, eating popcorn and chocolate.  We may even work in a fun sewing project.  I hope you all had wonderful holidays, and that you'll have a Happy New Year.  We'll be opening presents again - Christmas round two.  Thanks for putting up with my spotty posts.  I'll get back on track soon I promise.  Hugs to you all!

Where has the last week and a half gone?  You'd think in that time I would have finished my Christmas shopping.  Yep...you'd think so.  Anyhoo...moving on.  I wanted to finish a quick post and then work out.  I'm trying to be resolute about working out.  I often just want to curl up in my corner of the couch and read magazines or watch fun shows that we have on DVD...you know, mysteries.  But, I can't let go of the working out thing.  It makes one's brain function better, makes you live longer.  I must do it.  So, after this post, I'll head down to the basement and begin the work out.  And I'll be so happy afterward - I always am. 

I wanted to show you the wonderful "NOEL" sign that I got from Sophie.  Thank you Sophie!!

The little Santa next to the "NOEL" sign is a vintage candle.  He's now a cream color, but I think he use to be red.  I guess he faded over time - now he's the perfect color.

                                                                                                                                                                              

Here are the little Bailey's cups I recently got.  You saw the boy cup already a couple of posts ago, but I wanted to show you the girl cup as well.  Do you see her little bow and pearl necklace?  I think they are so cute.

A reading nook.

One of our outside windows - there is a mirror image on the other side of the house.

   

The mirror in our foyer reflecting our living room fireplace.

Hope all is well with you and that you are further along in your shopping than I am.  Happy Holidays!!

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.

holiday glow, and random things about me....

Every year I think that autumn is my favorite time of year, but then autumn passes, and think maybe Christmas is actually my favorite time of year.  It's so magical, so cozy and warm.  I've taken a few pictures of the living room, but also added a couple of dining room pictures because Heather asked to see more of it.  And lastly, I'll share 7 random things as requested by Nancy, and what I was doing 10/20/30 years ago as requested by Joyce.

This is our fireplace mantel in the living room.  This glow made me feel warm against the outside snow that is mounting by the minute here in Minnesota.

This is the tree we cut down in our back yard.  It was in a bad spot, one that would have eventually pushed out some of our stone retaining wall.  We didn't want that to happen so we decided to use it as a Christmas tree this year.  I don't normally like to cut down trees from our yard, but in this case it had just gotten too big and was going to start causing damage.  As I mentioned in my last post, it's a bit of a free spirit.  It has bald spots and isn't uniform, but I like it.  It's just doing its own thing, perfectly imperfect.

   

My morning coffee.

"Greetings" banner from Bayberry Cove.

Heather had asked about the dining room.  Here are a couple of pictures.

Sorry that the picture is a bit grainy.  I was having some issues with it and had to switch to our other camera that allows for additional settings.  At any rate, you get the general idea about the dining room at least.

 

And for Nancy, 7 random facts about me:

1.) I organize my underwear by color, they are folded like a little package, and lined up within an organizing container in one of my drawers.  I do the same with my bras.  My closet is also color coordinated from lightest to darkest.  I also use all the same kind of hangers - they are wooden and are the same color.  Does this random fact make you want to run screaming from my blog?  Now that I've typed it out, it does sound rather...obsessive.  All my handbags are in cloth bags and sit on a shelf in the closet.  That didn't sound any less weird did it?  Okay, moving on.

2.) I'd like to own a mystery book store - all mysteries, all the time.  I'd have antiques in the shop, overstuffed chairs, and a fireplace.  It would be called "Creaky Door Mystery Bookstore". I'd have coffee and tea, and cookies available too.

3.) When I get home from work at night I practically run to our bedroom to put on my comfy clothes.  I usually wear a black Adidas track suit, or a brown velour pants and jacket outfit.  I must be comfortable.

4.) I had lasic surgery three years ago - IT IS SO GREAT!

5.) I love the show "Psych" - love, love, love it.  It's hilarious, and it is a mystery show: win-win for me.

6.)I moved from Idaho to Kansas City, MO when I was 18 for college.  After college I moved to Minneapolis, MN for work.  I bought my first house when I was 22 -was the best investment I ever made.

7.) When I met my future husband and I found out he loved old music, old movies, antiques, kids, and talking about feelings - well, I thought I had hit the jackpot.  As it turns out I did hit the jackpot and have been happily married for over nine years.

10/20/30 - Is a request from Joyce to share what we were doing 10, 20, and 30 years ago.

10 years ago: I was 24 and engaged to be married to Steve and we were planning our wedding, which would occur on 8/1/98. 

20 years ago: I was 14 and was in 9th grade at Lakeland Junior Highschool in Rathdrum, ID.  I was looking forward to my 15th birthday, which is on Dec. 5th.  We were about to have a school dance on Dec. 18th, which is when I started going out with a boy named John - we dated for about two years. And no, I'm not guessing about the date. That was the actual date of the dance and when I started dating John.  The things we remember even years later.

30 years ago: I was 4 and was about to turn 5.  I remember that one of the birthday presents I received was a Little House on the Prairie book.  My presents were wrapped and sitting on the floor next to an antique ice box that was in our dining room.  I remember them sitting there and I remember that morning when I opened the presents.  My mom still has that ice box in her kitchen.  We had recently moved to Rathdrum, ID from North Dakota after my dad died in a car accident.  We lived on a mountain - a beautiful mountain in Idaho.  I loved that home and my years there.  My uncle now lives in that house, which is nice to visit when I go back to Idaho.

Sorry for the very long post, but I wanted to accomplish a few things in this one. I hope you are all doing very well and enjoying your weekend.  The snow here is beautiful and I'm enjoying some relaxation in our cozy home.  Until next time my friends.

halloween tree and the name game

As planned, on September 1st I dragged out all my autumn and Halloween goodies.  It took all day to get things positioned.  While decorating I burned one of my 1803 candles - the one called "Prairie Home", which smells like pumpkin bread and spices.  Those are the kind of days I really enjoy.  Being at home, decorating, baking, reading, hanging out with my family.  Usually there is a good mystery movie tossed in there to round out the evening once Evy has gone to bed.  I'm just going to show one of my Halloween trees today.  I can't show all my fall stuff yet, otherwise, what the heck would I talk about later in September and in October.

Not sure if you can see it, but it says "Boo".

 

                                                                                                                                          

                                    

                                                                                                                      

 

                                                                                                                                                            

   

                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

                                                                                                                                                   

                                                                                                                                                   

                                                                                                                                                    

                                          

                                     

And, I was tagged by Sophie for the name game.  Here are the rules: Players, you must list one fact that is somehow relevant to your life for each letter of your middle name. If you don’t have a middle name, use the middle name you would have liked to have had. When you are tagged you need to write your own blog post containing your own middle name game facts. At the end of your blog post, you need to choose one person for each letter of your middle name to tag. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

C: Coffee - I lived for 32 years of my life disliking coffee.  It always smelled so good though - Steve always made it and I wished I could like it.  Then I discovered flavored creams - Like Hazelnut, and Pumpkin Spice, among others.  Once I added that delectable flavoring to the coffee, that was it, I was hooked.  Yum.

L: Laughter - I do like to laugh, a lot.  I like to make people laugh and be the recipient of the wit of others.  And when you live with Mr. Steve Andrews, you can't help but laugh - He's just the funniest guy.

A: Antiques - Well, I don't even think I need to explain this.  It really is one of my absolute favorite things to do.  I've always loved it - since I was a little girl and my mom and I would go antiquing together.  And I always will love it - I'm an addict and that's all there is too it.

I: Inspiration - I've never been quite so inspired as I have since I started blogging and meeting all of you wonderful people.  I've become more artistic and have tried my hand at some projects.  Things I probably wouldn't have done if I hadn't started blogging.  I look at my home a bit differently now as I style and restyle, and shuffle things around.  I think, "I bet this would make a good little picture for my blog".

R: Reading - I LOVE to read.  And, it's mysteries for me.  Like antiques, I have always, always loved reading mysteries.  It started with my mom and I reading Nancy Drew and Trixie Belden together - snuggled up in my bed, taking turns reading to each other.  I love the intrigue, the suspense, and the fact that I'm usually cozied up in my home as I read them.  It's safe, and a bit scary all at the same time.  I do hope that Evy will have the same love of reading that I do.

E: Evelyn - My daughter, my companion, my inspiration.  She allows me to be a child right along with her, and I love it.  Seeing her playing, and the incredible imagination that she has is a reawakening for me.  I really appreciate and admire her imagination, and hope that she carries it with her all her life.   

As you can see, my middle name is Claire, named after my aunt Claire.  I love my middle name.  And since there are six letters in my middle name, I now need to choose six people to tag - Kim from Vintage Pretties, Karla from Sugar Bear Designs, Mary from Across the Pond, Rosemary from Roses Petite Maison, Priscilla from Priscilla's Cottage, Jen from The Cottage Nest. I apologize if any of you have already been tagged.

Hope you are all having a wonderful Labor Day weekend.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

bed knobs, bookcases, and a brilliant new job

Bed knobs:

Sophie from Sophie Honeysuckle said that she wanted to see people's beds.  Everyone (including Sophie) have probably seen my bed before, but here it is again.

   

Not sure if you can tell, but the accents (the toile, the coverlet and shams) are brown, with the duck egg blue.  I really love the combination.

 

The phone is from Pottery Barn.  I thought it looked sort of French 1930's.  The bed is from Room and Board and is a four poster bed (these pictures don't really show that).   

                                                                           

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

Bookcases:

This is one of the bookcases in our living room.  The other bookcase is filled with my mystery stuff.  I started organizing my magazines in this bookcase because they were all over the place.  I tried to organize them in stacks, but all I got were a bunch of stacks - stacks on the floor, stacks on tables, or any surface that was handy.  Now that they are in the bookcase they are so much easier to find, and they look so much better.  Especially the Country Home magazines - love the the colors and patterns they use for the binding.  The rocking chair is one my grandma refinished.  She also made the needle point seat that is barely visible. 

 

The bottles and little stand are from a post office - the stand use to have stampers hanging from it.  I put individual flowers into the bottles sometimes.  The chalk dog is one I got with my mom in Buffalo on an antiquing excursion.  The colorful boxes hold greeting cards for every occasion.  It's very handy to have cards around - and I love the colors and organization of the boxes.  You can see the Country Home mags on the lower right - love all the colors.

Many of you have probably seen this picture too, but I thought I would include it since I showed the other bookcase.  The bookcases are on either side of a window in the LR and are mirror images of each other except that they are filled with completely different things.

Displayed are all of my mystery DVD's, some of my Nancy Drew books, mystery games, old typewriter, magnifying glasses, old flashlight, Maltese Falcon replica, 1930's picture of Basil Rathbone playing Sherlock Holmes, and of course my deerstalker hat. 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Brilliant new job:

You all have been so great to me with your many positive comments regarding my job change.  I wanted to report back that I absolutely love my new job.  My team is so great, very top notch.  And my manager is wonderful.  The change has been so dramatic that I sometimes can't believe that I didn't do something about it sooner.  But, good or bad, we do get stuck in our routines, afraid of change because what if that change brings something worse.  I happily get up every day for work now, and no longer have the "Sunday blues".  So for anyone out there contemplating a job change, it just might be your best move yet.  For me, stress has now been replaced with excitement.  My commute is an hour less every day - that's approximately 240 hours a year of my life that I just got back.  No longer do I have to think about laying off members of my staff and all the many other unpleasant things I had to do every day at work. 

We just bought a new laptop for home so you will be seeing more of me.  Blogging in the basement wasn't fun - I always felt I was missing out on something upstairs, and as a result, wasn't posting as often or visiting you as often.  Now I can blog outside, in the kitchen, in the bedroom - where ever the mood strikes me.  Much more convenient.

Thank you all for the visits - best wishes to you!!

bits, and bobs, and things....

I had to step onto the wooden trunk in the living room to get this aerial shot of the ironstone platter with vintage buttons.  Either that or I'm very tall - but it's one of those two possibilities.  I found the platter and buttons on a recent antiquing trip and thought it would be cute to put the buttons on the platter and add a few candles.  My mom and I used some of the buttons for our sewing projects.

The below picture may look familiar if you saw this post.  I swapped out the green bowl for a very old egg basket that I found when I was antiquing with my mom.  I have always liked old egg baskets and I especially loved this one and its simplicity.  The green bowl now houses cookie cutters in my display cabinet above the sink.

The below is in our master bathroom.  The little French bucket holds our lavender cleaning products and lavender linen spray.  The soap is Savon De Marseilles - I love the blockiness of these soaps.  The little flowered bag was made by a local woman in the Twin Cities.

I hope you are all having a safe and wonderful weekend my friends :o)  I'm about to make some coffee in our new pretty coffee maker...sometimes I just like to stare at it.

Comforts of home....

Many of the treasures I have are from my grandparents - lovely remembrances of generations past.  I have beautiful pieces from my great grandparent's wedding, Victorian calling cards from their visitors in the early 1900's.  Teacups and saucers, postcards, dishes...I'm very fortunate indeed that my family cherished these items.  Many of the dishes are in this built-in cabinet in our living room.  When I look at them I feel connected to generations past, and know that they would be very pleased that I am caring for their keepsakes, making sure they are around for the generations that will follow me.

This is the built-in corner cabinet in our living room, chock full of treasures.

Wanted to show the whole thing.

The teacups here are very old, as is the frame and postcard behind it.  You can click on it to get a closer look, but it is a Christmas postcard to my greatgrandparents that is written in Norwegian.  On the back of the postcard it says, "To Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan Pederson, From Inga Inslany  December 23, 1911

I know I keep showing glimpses of my couches, but I just love them.  I had them slip-covered and new pillows made two years ago.  Picking out the fabric and deciding what fabric would go where was very fun.  I love being in here and sitting, scrunched into the pillows with a fire going - usually looking up occasionally from my book or magazine to view the mystery nook, as shown in below post.  The view makes me smile.

I love how the fabric from the curtains mixes with the sofa and pillows - my heart is actually smiling when I look at this (aside from the one on my face).

A supply of comforting home magazines is at the ready

This chair was refinished by my grandma, and look at that cross stitch she did for the seat.  I love this rocking chair.  The lovely pillow was found in Idaho when my mom and I were antiquing.  I know that everyone has their own "comforts of home".  These are just a few of mine.  Have a wonderful day :o)

Saturday and the sun is shining...

It's a beautiful day today and I have renewed energy.  The work week really wears me out and I desperately needed sleep.  How surprised I was that Evy slept until 8:30am.  Saturday's are my day of the weekend to get up with Evy, and Steve has Sunday's.  I was grateful that she slept.  While she was still asleep I got up and made coffee.  Steve and I hung out in bed reading, sipping our coffee.  Not only that, but Evy got up in the greatest of moods.  A bright, shiny Saturday indeed.  This area with the desk is part of my mystery nook.  Where I'm standing taking the picture is a set of built in bookcases with my mystery goods on display.  The next picture is more of a close-up of that area.

 

My dad brought this clock back from Germany with him when he was in the service.  I love this clock.  It sits in between the mystery bookshelves and the desk.

This is the mantel in the living room - near the mystery corner.  Love those Staffordshire dogs with the little baskets.  My mom gave me that lovely print above.  The frame is absolutely perfect for it too. 

Web designing brother-in-law is sick and won't be coming over this weekend to assist with blog make-over.  The "reveal" will have to wait a little longer. 

I do hope that everyone has their very own "sunny" Saturday, whether it come in the form of toddlers sleeping in, a nice cuppa, a wonderful walk outside, antiquing, reading, a bit of puttering about...what ever it is, let it be sunny.