star gazing in the garden

How could you not love Stargazer Lilies?? So pretty with pink and the white, towering high and smelling so good.

The Stargazer lily was created in 1978 by Leslie Woodriff, a lilybreeder in California. The plant is an Oriental hybrid lily which she named "Stargazer," because the blooms faced the sky. I would always love getting them in at the florist.

Does anyone else have them in their garden?

coffee table vignette

Another arrangement in my home. This one is on my coffee table in the living room. Surrounded by a scrapbook from our recent cruise and our wedding album. This one I made at work when I first started at my current job, it was finally marked down and it was always one of my favorites I made, so I had to get it!! Arrangement with tan hydrangeas, spanish moss, and green ferns. Simple and elegant.

find of the week: green bird

This little beauty I found at a sale not too long ago. A beautiful glass cloche accented with a glass green bird on top for a handle.

For now I placed both on a pretty vintage dinner plate. It sits on an antique sewing table in my front living room window.

I got this a small little plant called Episcia, Pink Dream; at the local flower shop back in March. I just love the pink and green leaves. One of my favorite color combos!!

hydrangeas

I was so hoping that my hydrangeas this year would bloom. Last year I had no luck with my hydrangea plants. But this year, I am pleased to say that they did! Now I don't have one of those HUGE bushes I see in almost everyones yard. Mine I bought at Home Depot, a small plant, so I was hoping for the best. The blossom I got this year is amazing. Beautiful light pink in color and a huge flowering head. Just take a look!

This is from another hydrangea bush I just recently got handed down to me. A little darker in color and still beautiful!

Hydrangeas for me are a beautiful sign of summer!

my favorite thing

Cindy over at My Romantic Home is hosting a "Our Favorite Things" event about your own home.

My favorite thing about my own home is my Welsh Hutch. My Grandfather made this for my husband and I for our first wedding anniversary (last year). He had made my Mom and Dad one long ago and I had always loved theirs.

It's great to store my fancy dishes and serving pieces, along with my linens to dress the table. I will always cherish this hutch because it has so much hard work and love that went into making it. And it means so much that my Grandfather took the time to make it for us!!

a new look for me

I thought it was time to get a banner made for my blog. I've been looking around to see whose style I really like, then I came across Gail from Mind Wide Open. I really liked hers on her blog and saw examples of her work. She's the one to do it! I really love how it turned out, fitts me to a "T"!!!

Thanks Gail!!

new items in the shop!

Matted floral pictures

Mini silver spoons

beautiful hankies

wedding flowers

Yesterday was a very busy day at work, I had to create wedding flowers for a customer. This was her second wedding, so it was a smaller event and wasn't really sure what she wanted. She showed me a piece of fabric she was going to wear for her wedding dress, a beautiful taupe color.

I picked out some neutral colors and added a touch of pink. I wrapped the stems in a satin taupe ribbon.

This is the matron of honors bouquet, similar to the brides, just a little smaller and with purple accents. She is wearing a deep eggplant color with taupe colored shoes. I sure they are going to look beautiful carrying these bouquets matching perfectly.

These are the boutonnieres and corsages; same color theme for each.

I also had to make this beast of a bow. A customer came in wanting a huge bow for a sweet 16 present... a car!! It took awhile to make, but hopefully it will make the statement!

great find of the week- beautiful hankies

Here's a couple of finds I found at a recent sale, that just called my name AGAIN! I maybe it is just an excuse just to buy it now!!

This beautiful hankie was at an estate sale Friday, hand embroidered with an "S" on it. It had a couple of spots on it, but for 75 cents, who cares! Plus I had an idea for it that wouldn't be using the whole hankie. At the same sale I came across this small gold frame. Perfect!

It took me a while to get the hankie in the small frame centered and not all switched up. But I think the result it great! Looks great on my shelf in my living room.

Here's another framed hankie I found at a sale, looks great on my hutch, next to my sugar and creamer!

lucky letters and numbers

Thinking about what to blog about today, I was looking around my house getting ideas. Then these caught my attention.

I was a sale a while back and found these gold metal letters. That were my initials, I just had to get them, whats the chance they would have mine?!?

A couple years ago I found a bunch of these tiles in a basket at a little shop. They were marked down to like 5 for a $1, so I wondered what I could do with them and what the numbers could represent. This was summer before I got married, and looking at the numbers closer they "spelled" out my future wedding date! How lucky to find them! It was a sign!

I love finding things like this, things that just suit you that you have to get them or you will kick yourself the moment you leave that sale.

Mind Wide Open Creative Contest- "Remembering Lily"

Over at Mind Wide Open, they are having a contest to get your creative juices flowing. I had to include this image of a girl, and use any medium to creative art with it. Also given was the work "Remembrance" to inspire you.

I decided to make a pillow, and named it "Remembering Lily".
I created a story about the pillow and the image of the girl.

I used "remembrance" by including an old postcard this girl, Lily sent to her parents while away at school in Paris. Also items that this girl might have worn, like the buttons, lace, anything that her parents can remember her by while shes gone at school.




I also used lace, vintage buttons, fabric, silk flowers, and paper.





So please head over to Mind Wide Open and vote for me!!

miss-matching frames

I have never really followed decorating "rules" when decorating my own home, I usually just decorate with anything and how ever I want; whatever looks good to me. One example is my photo walls. I have 3 different collections in different parts of my home. The one above is in my family room, using frames from Pottery Barn, garage sales, my prom, and vacation souvenirs, just to name a few. Using different sizes, shapes, textures and colors.

This set is using 2 types of frames, different colors, and colors. I like how they have the same mat in each one to give it a common thread.

This one is in my hallway going upstairs. Another grouping using different types of frames.

When I worked at Pottery Barn, a lot of my customers wanted to create a photo wall, and asked my opinion about if they should use the same or different frames on their wall. I told them it's about personal choice, what kind of feel you want your walls to have.

I call it decorating "suggestions" not decorating "rules" Do what you want and what looks best to you.

great find of the week...

I've seen these cuties here and there, the Bailey's Cream and Sugar pieces; I've always kicked myself for not picking them up. Then last week when I was at a sale I spotted them on a table with a bunch of other things on it. I had to get them immediately before someone else did!

For $3 they were a steal!


They are so cute!!

They are now living on the top shelf of my hutch. I think they will be very happy there :)

This is going to be my new feature every tuesday, great find of the week!