Color Play in My Booth

I am planning to make 2013 very colorful, especially in my booth.  I've already started the transformation with the signs at the top of my booth -  188  is on a very large chalkboard-ish background.  There's no mistaking my booth number!  The letters on paint cans with colorful coordinating tissue paper is such a fun way to pump even more color into my space.  It just makes me happy to look at it.

I also did a little rearranging and color grouping.  First I pulled some things out - especially the remains of my Christmas decor.  Most of my Christmas things sold, luckily, but I had brought in a few things to keep the holiday look going.

The showiest of the color groupings turned out to be the pops of yellows, golds and oranges on my corner cabinet.  Talk about cheerful!  That sweet corner cabinet isn't likely to escape anyone's notice now!

I'm working on some signs and hope to have them ready to hang on the wall soon.  Meanwhile I wanted to use the wall display space in a way that was fun, yet easy to take down.  I displayed my vintage albums.  Wow.  I really like them there!  *Oops - That top one needs to be moved down just a bit.

I moved the bamboo etegere against the wall.  I was able to hang the wrought iron planter on the wall inside the big shelf.  That's going to work well for some upcoming plans for this space.  The white cabinet to the left of the etegere is just for storage.  Still, the white is bugging me.  Clearly this cabinet needs to be a fun color - turquoise maybe???  I usually prop a large picture in front of it so it's not so noticeable.  Unfortunately, I have nothing to prop there at the moment.  I made do for now by just tying a burlap bow on the handles.

The shelf with the multi-colored backgrounds was way overcrowded.  I thinned it out and grouped a little bit.  Three things sold off this shelf before I could even finish.  See the holes?

Last, I changed the retro and wood table theme to green and turquoise.  Lousy picture.  It is much prettier in person.

Stop by and see it in person if you can!  Lots of the vendors at Rockin' B have been changing their booths and bringing in new things.  It's really looking great.

Gesture of Love for Newtown... Give Peace a Chance

What if, for the rest of this month, WE THE PEOPLE used our pocketbooks to support peace as a gesture of love for the 27 who lost their lives in Newtown, Connecticut?

We are at a major crossroads in our country.  We can continue on the path we are on or we can choose a more peaceful path.

WE THE PEOPLE could turn to this new path, no matter what age, race, religion or political affiliation. There is no need to wait for political action and party debate. Lobbyists and special interest groups would have little influence over the results.

What if all the presents we had purchased that had any relation to violence were returned?  The action packed violent video games, the weapons – real and toy… all returned.  What if nobody wanted them this year?  Companies making violent games and toys and weapons would lose money.

What if, for the rest of the month, we didn’t go to movies that were violent and we didn't rent or buy DVDs that were violent? Violent movie attendance – zero.  All of them - box office flops. Studios making violent movies would lose money.

What if our television viewing didn’t include crime shows, murder shows, scary shows?  What if we found better shows to watch?  Advertisements supporting the violent shows would not even be seen.  Companies supporting violent shows would lose money.

What if we led our children by example to shun violent choices and used our new choices as a way to do something positive in honor of the Newtown victims?

If we all did this for the rest of this month, would our choices change us forever?

Would we begin to turn to a life with more peace and more happiness?  Would our little children then be safe at school?

Would we realize that our lives are happier and more blessed with peace?  Might we make the commitment to continue choosing peace over violence?

Would those who had been making money promoting violence begin to choose peace over violence, too?  If there’s little money to be made with violence, then there’s little incentive to invest in making them.

America is made up of WE THE PEOPLE.  Perhaps it’s time that WE THE PEOPLE made our voices heard loud and clear.  If even half of WE THE PEOPLE shunned the violence that has crept into our everyday lives, it could have a major impact.

I am only one person.  It may be that no one joins me in this action.  Or maybe, just maybe, lots of people are ready to make a difference and they realize that WE THE PEOPLE wield a great deal of power when we join together.

Feel free to share this, pin this, copy this, paraphrase, whatever.  Just help spread the word.  Please.

Flowers on a Stool

It doesn't take much to make me happy.  I moved things around just a little while putting out Christmas decor.  I needed to move this kalanchoe to a new location.  I put it on this fabulous old stool from my porch.

I have a thing for old stools.  I never can pass them by at yard sales, auctions and such.  I love the blue pot, too.  I even like how it's all crusty towards the bottom.  And that color!  Mmmmmmm.

And the plant - I love kalanchoes.  I haven't had one in ages, but several decades ago, I had one that lasted for years and years.  I'm glad I finally got around to getting another one.

I Do Not Blog Alone

I have plenty of help when I work on the computer.  Sissy is almost always by my side.  She mostly sits to the side and offers advice.  Occasionally, when she feels very strongly about something, she will walk in front of the computer, over the keyboard, or bite my fingers.  She needs to be picked up and cuddled while she elaborates.

Sissy is a fairly small cat which makes her seem forever a kitten.  She's incredibly smart.  She watches television. I thought I had blogged about that before, but I couldn't find it in my posts.  The photo below is from 2007.  Her favorite show at the time was Meerkat Manor.

Sissy understands English quite well and carries on conversations with us. Her language s a bit harder to understand to others, but she lets Rudy and I know exactly what's she's thinking on a regular basis.  In the photo below, she's just yawning, but catching a cat on camera in mid-conversation is not easy.

Oh my gosh, I love this cat!

By the way, her "new" blankie is a fabulous vintage throw from my friend, Sharon's, yard sale.  It had been her son's.  I fell in love with the color and feel.  It's nice and thick.  Sissy has a very good sense of style and she decided it suited her as well.  She claimed it and since she is a bit on the spoiled side, I let her have her way.  At least I still get to look at the blankie on my desk.  :-P

Pet Friendly Christmas Cheer

Yesterday, I brought out a few holiday decorations.  I can't seem to get in the mood for pulling out everything like I do some years.  In fact, I don't think I'll even do my main tree this year.  Some of our furry four legged babies are getting old and have issues.  A bit of incontinence. (That part is driving me slowly insane.)  Not as sure footed as they once were.  And one of our cats seems to be almost completely blind.  The younger fur babies are destructive crazy overly playful.  Decorating in a zoo can be tricky and I'm not prepared to create a pet friendly Christmas wonderland.  Less will be more this year.

The easiest spots to decorate are those up high.  So that's mostly what I did.

These trees were meant to be part of a porch vignette, near the front door.  Our black labs (also affectionately know as  The Little Heathens) are still requiring a minimalist look on the porch.  They are still in the chew and destroy years.  So, I set up the trees inside.  It's not great, but I wanted to see them.  The Heathens will probably (hopefully) be past the worst of their chewing by next year.  Meanwhile, they are so much fun that it seems silly to worry about where those trees are.

I put a 36 inch tree on top of the old wardrobe in our family room.  This photo doesn't do it justice.  It has some really really pretty ornaments on it.  Many of the prettiest ones came from two different yard sales.  Both were ones where the people these items had belonged to had significant stories that really impacted me.  Some of the other ornaments were ones I've had for years.  I've never really been particularly into the all gold Christmas tree look.  It seems too formal for us.  Still, I'm enjoying it and not letting the fact that it doesn't go with our look bother me at all.

The Christmas card holder hanging on the knob is actually a walker bag.  I had made several of these bags for my sweet mother-in-law years ago.  This one was just for Christmas with a cross stitched Santa. My mother-in-law has been gone for a long time, but I kept this bag and use it to hold Christmas cards.  I sure do miss her.

I usually put old Christmas photos under the glass on this table every year.  I save all the photos and photo cards I get every year.  The table full of photo memories really is one of my favorite holiday decorations.  Yesterday, I didn't even want to bother with it.  What is wrong with me?  I really am happy about the upcoming holidays.  I'm not in a bad mood.  I just don't feel like pulling out all the stuff.  Instead, I stuck a Christmas tree skirt under the glass.  I like the skirt.  I didn't have a Christmas tablecloth.  I wanted some color.  It's a little bit tacky, but who cares!  By the way, the bowl in the center is not filled with potpourri.  It's cat food.  If the cat food is left in the floor, the dogs will get it.  They know not to get it when we are nearby, but they are incredibly clever about getting it when we are in another room.  The food needed to be put out of reach from the dogs.  Since Rudy and I seldom dine at this table, it became the cats dining table.  Oh my gosh.  I am fully aware of just how low we have sunk.

I put out some other decor, too and hope the mood will hit me for a little more.  We'll see!

Naturally Flavored Water

I like water.  I have a PUR faucet filter, so I guess it's a little step up from saying it's just regular tap water.  But sometimes, I like to make my water a little more special. It's so easy to cut up a fruit or vegetable and put it in a pitcher.  Voila!  Flavored water.

Not every fruit or vegetable is a good fit, but many are.  Citrus and berries are easy favorites.  Cucumber is really refreshing and super hydrating. Fresh, frozen... it doesn't matter.  You just need to let it sit for a while in the fridge.  Give it time to flavor the water.  As you drink from it, you can keep adding a bit of water and it will last all day.

It tastes great and adds a few extra vitamins to your day. And - it's really pretty.  Suddenly, your day seems a bit more special.

Here's a shot from a few weeks back.  I cut up an orange and I added a couple of kumquats that my friend, Martie, grew in her back yard.  De-Lish!

I must have been feeling really special that day since I even took the time to stage the photo.  I keep thinking about a recent post on Funky Junk where Donna talked about how our blog photos are often smoke and mirrors and that the camera is often focusing on the only clean spot in the house.  I'd be willing to bet there was a giant mess behind me the day I took this photo.

New Painting in the Foyer

We have been living with many naked walls since we moved to our "new" house almost 4 years ago.  I've been hanging things piece by piece, but only when I found something I really liked.  One more wall has been dressed.  I just hung a wonderful painting on the huge wall in the foyer.

Painting is by Mary Winterer, 1980 - Shirley said the painting came from the Theo Waddington Gallery in Montreal.  

Shirley, my booth neighbor and friend,  brought it to the store ages ago.  I was drawn to it immediately.  I find it very relaxing and fresh feeling.  I adore porches, so I suppose this painting was meant for me.

It stayed at the store for a long time and I thought about getting it, but never could figure out where it could go.  Then Shirley took it home. I missed seeing it.  One day, I asked her about it and one thing led to another.  Shirley's booth mate and master carpenter, Joe, built a wonderful rustic frame for it and now it's mine.

I still had no idea where it would go when I brought it home yesterday.  I didn't really think it would work in the foyer because I stupidly didn't think it was large enough for the wall.  I propped it on the bench and immediately realized - it was perfect for that spot.

The painting is much larger than I realized.  That's great because there's a lot of wall space to cover.  The bench (an old church pew from Rudy's grandmother's church) is around 8 feet long.

It's a painting I love and now I'll get to see it every day.  Doesn't art make a home more homey?

Since I had all the picture hanging tools out - level, stud finder, hammer, nails... - I hung 3 more pictures.  These are some I came across while yard sale-ing.  I had put them in my booth and put a great price on them.  One day I saw they were gone and I panicked.  I missed them.  I had fallen in love with the colors.

I hung them in the stairwell opposite the porch painting and church pew.  My husband, the fine art critic, says they look like giant boobs.  I tried to shake my head and act all mature, but I have to admit, they really do!  Oh dear.

Table Talk in Senoia

Table Talk is a fabulous store in Senoia.   My hair stylist, Suki, knows I love good decor and displays and she told me I had to go check out their new Christmas decor. Table Talk is a mix of elegance and humor.  Their decor is over the top and completely inspiring.  Every direction you look is a treat for the eyes.

You can also visit them on Facebook.

Table Talk in downtown Senoia

They have the longest table on earth right down the center of the store.  

HUGE mantel beautifully decorated

ENJOY SENOIA!!!

Amazing Chandelier Decor

They have creative displays from ceiling to floor.

Bits of humor are everywhere.  Just look at these bottle labels in the Man Cave section!

The bathroom is the prettiest store bathroom ever!!!

They have LOTS of Christmas trees in the store.

One of the trees is elevated on this fabulous cart - these guys are geniuses when it comes to the details!

The views from every direction are spectacular.  This is the view from the back.

They have lots of great products in the store.  They sell what they love.  They are in the process of getting an online store.  If they sell it, you can pretty much guarantee it's good stuff!

I bought the Fresh Wave odor eliminator crystal gel.

It got rid of the awful wet shoe smell in my darling hubby's closet!  

If you are in the neighborhood, drop in and say hello!  They are the nicest people!!!

Shirley's Gluten Free Picks

I have two friends who are severely allergic to gluten.  I am trying to go gluten free, too.  Again.  I've done it before, but fell off the wagon. I'm back again and I really think this time I will be more successful.

 I'm not allergic like they are, but I definitely feel MUCH better when off of it.  On gluten, I am very sluggish and my brain gets pretty foggy.  Off, I am much more energetic and alert.  And oddly, I sleep better.  After not sleeping well for years and years.  Is it a fluke?  I don't know.  Time will tell.

Since I have two experts at hand, I have been picking their brain for tips.  Shirley has a Pinterest board with some of her finds.  It's called Gluten Free PLEASE.  I have also started a Pinterest Board to help me keep track of recommendations. Mine is Food - Gluten Free.  Some things on these boards are super healthy.  Some, I will happily eat, but not brag about publicly. Some I may never even try, but they might inspire me.  By the way, isn't Pinterest the greatest thing!?!?!?!!!

Here are some of Shirley's recent recommendations.  These will likely show up on my Pinterest board later. She sent me a bunch of snack choices.  Snacks will make sticking to gluten free easier.  I also need to talk to Martie and Shirley both about good substitutions in recipes and favorite go-to meals.

Shirley says these are the best of the bread crumbs. Yummy. I am very happy to know about these. I have several recipes that call for bread crumbs and now I won't need to alter them beyond recognition.

Shirley likes this marinade.  I have used it before and liked it.  I never realized it was gluten free.  There are tons of sauces and condiments that contain gluten.  Oh my word it's complicated if you are highly allergic.  I'm going to do my best with those, but first I'm going to try to work on the big changes.

This is Shirley's favorite BBQ sauce.  I looked up the ingredients and it also has no fructose corn syrup (which I also avoid).  I have been using (and LOVE LOVE LOVING) Sticky Fingers.  I wonder if it is gluten free.

She says she couldn't cook without these -

Shirley says this bread takes forever to toast but it's not too bad tasting.  My hubby is interested in avoiding gluten.  I was surprised to hear him say this the other day.  He is loving most of the recipes - in fact he likes the gluten free versions better than the ones made with traditional flour.  Very interesting.  However, this man loves a sandwich.  He said the other day that if I could just find a bread that he liked, he could go gluten free with no problems.  Maybe this one will work???

Shirley says she loves this.  I usually cook my rice the traditional way and brown rice takes forever.  I have to admit that there are times when I avoid a recipe calling for rice because it would take too long.  Maybe I need to have this on hand and quit being such a purist. 

I am really glad to know about this soup.  I need some quick and easy things to grab when I'm hungry and there's no time to think.  In the past, it was easy to make a sandwich and go.  Forget that.  And I'll bet the soup is better anyway.

Shirley says this is her comfort food.  I also see that she has two different brands.  I need to remember to ask her if she prefers one over the other.  I bought one of them but haven't had a chance to try it yet.

I'm looking forward to trying this out, too.

Here are some other products that Shirley says are staples around her house.  I have been using the Pamel's baking and pancake mix for a long time.  I use it in place of flour in all sorts of recipes, like this pumpkin bread.  I haven't tried any of the Glutino products, but I will.

I'll be trying these salads soon -

Shirley says this is the only pasta she'll eat.  I have tried the quinoa pasta and liked those.  I have not tried these, but plan to soon.

Shirley said she's totally addicted to these.  I have known about them for awhile.  In fact, I posted a recipe that uses them a while back Fruit Salsa and Cinnamon Chips.

She says this greek yogurt is great with nuts and gf granola.

Shirley says, "Ok. No laughing. This is a kid snack! And it's delicious!! Not at first. But you get used to the taste and crave it!"

Shirley says this is her other addiction.  I'm not a big chip person.  Except with a tomato sandwich in the summer.  And if I can't find a bread I like, tomato sandwiches may be a thing of the past.

Here's a pretzel she likes. 

Shirley -

Thanks for all the great ideas!!!

Use Crates to Create Instant Storage

Interesting Idea - Use crates to create instant shelves and storage.  They can be stacked or mounted on the wall.  

Here's a little inspiration -

Etsy

Next Door Laura

Herb Crates  - Source - The Lettered Cottage

Houzz

Flick River

DIY Life