Lumpy Couch

If you read my blog at all, it is no surprise that at our house, life revolves around a gazillion cats and dogs.  There's one helping me type right now.  It's time for her special treat so she's biting my fingers to remind me.  Decorating with pets is a challenge.  Keeping a house tidy and clean with them all is something I definitely haven't mastered.  As soon as something looks neat and tidy, one of them comes along and rearranges.

Case in point.  The sofa.  It's a favorite with all of our babies.  Sadie and Cocoa are the most frequent couch potatoes.  I put a quilt over to give it a little protection.  Sadie keeps it nice and neat, but Cocoa has decided it's great fun to rearrange when we aren't looking.  When I saw it completely messed up the other day, I assumed Cocoa was the guilty party.

On closer inspection, I noticed a suspicious lump.

Here's the lump -

Unfortunately, an hour or so later, dear hubby came in with the dogs.  Sadie didn't know Little Bit was under the covers and jumped right on the couch on top of her.  Little Bit was not pleased.  Today, I noticed that Little Bit was taking up the whole couch --- on top of the covers.  It's much safer.

Yard Sale Addict

I just finished mapping out my yard sale route for tomorrow.  I looked thru tons of ads and planned and plotted and felt my hopes rising. I keep thinking, "Maybe the next one will be the big one!"  Maybe I'll hit it big.  

Image from Zap2It 

It occurred to me that I'm probably thinking the same things a gambling addict thinks.  The stakes may not be as high for yard sale-ing, but the patterns and emotions are probably similar.  And I lose far more often than I win.  For every good yard sale, there are about 20 duds.


When gamblers win, they are hooked even deeper.  It's no different for a yard sale addict.  I've found THE MOST AMAZING THINGS at yard sales.   Quitting for me would be next to impossible.

Should I be looking into 12 step programs?  Is there any help out there for those of us addicted to yard sale-ing?  I'm only half joking. 

Outdoor Kitchen Station

Over the last few years, I've posted a number of times about how I like to cook on our screened porch during the worst of the hot summer weather.  It just seems wrong to cook inside.  My favorite outdoor cooking tool is a crock pot.  I now have a small collection of them in different sizes.  I continue to fine tune my system and this year's big improvement is a "new" cooking outdoor station.

I found a vintage metal desk in a shade of blue I have a hard time resisting.  It was love at first sight.

Since it's metal, I feel very comfortable turning it into a mini kitchen and having things cook on it.

There are two empty cubbies where I suppose drawers used to be.  Those hold two very colorful cutting boards and a surge protector.  I will likely figure out better uses for these spots.  Pot holders would be nice.

I made a simple, no-fuss curtain out of fabric left over from a previous project.  Clip on rings hang from a tension shower rod that is pretty much out of sight.

Most importantly, all my crock pots are stored behind the curtain.  Note that the metal cabinet is a bit chippy.  Mostly, I love the chippy-ness, but it's a bit too rough even for me where the crock pots are stored.  That will get an upgrade of some sort down the road.

The geranium on top looks pretty and I'd love to say that whenever my station isn't in use, I have it fully decorated.  Unfortunately, that's not true.  I borrowed the geranium and the bird from other spots on the porch just for the photos.  When I put them back, it just wasn't the same.  Hmmmm.  I guess I need to do a bit of rearranging.

This post is linked to Funky Junk Interior's SNS #142!

The Marigold Cupboard

A few weeks ago, I bought a vintage cupboard.  My first instinct, not always right, was to put it in my booth at Rockin' B.  It would look wonderful there.  I changed my mind on that rather quickly.  There was a spot in our dining room that needed something tall.  Would it fit?  Yes - barely!

Most would probably describe the color as mustard yellow.  I don't like mustard, so I'm calling it marigold.  A few years back, I wouldn't have cared for this color.  Those 70's colors - harvest gold, avocado green and whatever it was they called that brown were never my favorites.  For some reason, I seem to be liking them more when paired with colors I love, like turquoise or red.  I'm surprising myself.

Hubby felt sure I intended on painting the cupboard.  I gasped in horror.  The chippy paint gives it character!  Hubby doesn't appreciate an abundance of character, but thankfully, he doesn't care about such things enough to let it bother him.

I love the old red handles.  Bakelite, maybe?  The drawer handle was missing.  I plan to try to find something similar at a vintage hardware store a little south of me.  Til then, the glass knobs will do.

I brought home the Ball sign I painted and put it on top of the cabinet.  I decided I'd be heartbroken if the thing sold.  I love the apple tree branches in the granite pitcher.  Both of those are purchases from the same place as the cabinet.  I added a couple of my ball jars.  The arrangement works, but... I really think I need some red up there.  That whole corner needs some red.  It's very likely this arrangement is temporary.

The top doors have a chalkboard finish.  I had fun playing around with quotes and settled on a Dr. Seuss one to start with -

The inside has a backboard of red. It's basic plywood, which I never like, but the color is good.  The doors will stay closed.  Should I ever decide to keep them open and use the spot for display, I'll replace that backing. The shelves gave me extra storage for some things I'd had in high up cabinets before.  I especially like having the trifle bowls more easily accessible.  I love using trifle bowls!  And now I don't have to pull out a step stool to get to them.  Confession - Who knows when I'll use those bowls next.  I haven't exactly been Suzy Homemaker in the kitchen lately.

A side note about leaving the doors open - since I spend so much time on displays and vignettes for my booth, I find myself less eager for displays at home. I don't see myself opening those doors anytime soon.  I'm curious.  Do other booth vendors feel that way, too?

Another side note - I bought this cabinet and a number of other things from a couple in Senoia who were moving further out.  They had a wonderful old house and had even been part of the Senoia tour of homes in the past.  The pieces they were selling were ones they couldn't fit into their newer home.  I can't imagine what pieces they took with them.  The wife seemed rather sad or maybe just tired from moving.  I hope it was tired.  I keep thinking about them and hoping they are happy in their new home.

Too Hot

Three Days in a Row of Temps over 100... Ugh!  The electricity flickered a little while ago and scared the wits out of us.  I'm way too spoiled to survive this heat without air conditioning!