A SENTIMENTAL SALVAGE

We used to have this pretty little tree just outside our door, down the path.

Every spring it would sprout dainty little pink flowers.  It was a wonderful tree.  A few years back, one of the tenants here put 2 little bird houses up in the tree. I have no idea who made them, but they are very sweet, and they were so cute up in that tree.

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Well, I recently took a trip to California, and when I came home my tree was gone!!!

I guess it had died this winter.  I never noticed.

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The other day I noticed the two little bird houses just laying on the ground under a bush.

I had to rescue them!

(Sorry, that isn't the best picture of them)

They are so cute though.  Cute little primitive wood with an old wire hanger to hang it.  They don't look that great, but they are adorable! They just need a little work.

They just needed a coat of paint and some love!  Don't we all?

I sided on a dark charcoal paint and I had some fun with some moss ribbon and lots of hot glue!

I think it would be so cute if I could find a little metal star to put above the opening.

I just love that rusty hanger top!

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I'm going to keep one of these for myself, and put the other one in my shop, so someone else can give it a proper home in a new tree.

"BEEP BEEP" from The Little Road!



I LOOK AT THE WORLD AND I SEE IT IS TURNING

A couple weeks ago I got a little tip from my Aunt (who by the way is another junking fanatic) her church was putting on a huge rummage sale to help raise money for kids to go to camp.

I showed up almost an hour before the doors opened and was still in the back of a huge line.  Though there were tons of other people to contend with, I did manage to pick up a few things for a whopping total of $15 bucks!!

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One of the things was an old globe with a dent in it. Junk to most right?  Who really wants a glob with a dent in it right!?  Well, I snagged it for $1 and check out what I did with it!

I had a little kid moment, while I was taking the glob apart.  I wanted to see just how this thing worked.  After getting it apart I was able to pop that dent right back out.

I painted the inside of the glob a shiny metallic blue, and lined the edges with some brown ribbon.

Poof! Lamp Shades!

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As fun as these are, they will be up in the shop soon.  Just as soon as I can find a cheep pair of lamp bases that aren't ones that I want to keep.  Non the less, I wanted to share what I pulled off with only $1.

"Beep Beep" from The Little Road!

NEW TO MY ETSY SHOP: EASTER GUM DROP CANDY WREATHS

I know its just about that time for everyone to start decorating for Easter.  So while you're pulling out your eggs and your chicks and your bunnies... Don't you think you're missing something on your front door?

Just added to MY ETSY SHOP are these super fun and ever so tantalizing Easter gum drop wreaths.

I made them with sugary sour gum drops, so every time I look at them, my mouth starts to water.

Tied with a pretty little Easter bow.

These wreaths are hefty but can comfortably be held to any surface with those nifty pull and stick hangers. I currently have two available in MY ETSY SHOP for $35 a piece, but I am happy to take custom orders with your favorite color of ribbon.  Oh! Don't forget that my blog readers get 10% off their purchases in my shop!

Enter code "Blog10" when you're checking out!

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I'm pretty sure Easter is one of my favorite holidays...... Mostly for the yummy Easter candy.

Best candy of all the seasons!

If you didn't catch the link to my shop, click HERE

Or just click the link that says "My Etsy Shop" on the right of the page.

"BEEP BEEP" from The Little Road!



MARK TWAINS TAKE ON PAINT

My husband Curtis can attest that I've gone through the whole enchilada of paint colors.

Benjamin Moore

Valspar

Behr

Sherwin Williams

Ralph Loren

Restoration Hardware

I could go on.

Our little condo by the sea has been so many different shades, the walls are probably about an inch thick, just from paint!

The bad part about all this is, I never really seem to hate a color until my whole house is covered in it.

Then I look back and wonder what was going on in my head.

This yellow makes my living room look like an African safari........ Or a big vat of Queso.

One time I painted my whole house a light color of grey.  My Dad came in and said it looked like a battleship.  Out with that color! (He was right!)

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So the point I'm getting at is, I've been through the wringer with paint colors (and paint brushes) and I can honestly say that through lots of hard work, hard labor and persistence, I do, in fact have a perfect color palate.  (That of course works for me)

So I thought I would share with you.

Walls Walls Walls!

My perfect wall color is by Bher and it is called "Wheat Bread"

Its a little grayish and a little oatmealy, maybe even a little pink.  I am super in love with this color because it compliments every other color out there.  One thing I know about my style is that all my pictures, nicknack's, decorative items, and even some of my furniture is very colorful.  I hate having my walls compete with my stuff. It makes me feel like my living space is at war with one another.  After the day is done, this color is soothing and its just enough color to warm the house up.

Now onto my ceiling, molding and accents.

I am head over heals in love with Benjamin Moore's "Chantilly Lace"

Who knew I could love white so much!  Dare I say that its almost a neon white?! It makes me feel like I'm stepping into a cloud.  It radiates and projects light all over the house, and considering the fact that our little place technically only has 2 windows, we need all the light we can get!  I've used this on all our ceilings and moldings.  It compliments the "Wheat Bread" perfectly!  I've even painted some of my furniture with this color, and its turned out equally as beautiful!

Check out this ceiling painted with "Chantilly Lace."  It looks like they've used a high gloss but you get the idea.  I actually love the look of the high gloss too, but you don't need it that shiny to get reflections off your ceiling, the enamel will give you a little of that same effect.

Last but certainly not least on my paint spectrum is this "Mark Twain Gray Brick" from Valspar.

I think everyone has to admit that the name of their paint color slightly influences them to buy it.  The name of this swatch makes me feel sophisticated, mysterious and adventurous!

Marketing at its best, right?!

Aside from all that, I really do love this color.  Though I don't think I could ever use this as a wall color in our already dark place.  I do really love it for the occasional accent wall.  My husband and I have painted all our doors this color, and I'm also planning to use it inside my new closet office that I'm working on.  This color still really compliments my "Wheat Bread" and makes my "Chantilly Lace" just pop even more!  I also love complimenting this color with my favorite wood stain (that Ill tell you about next.)  This is a great accent color for all my needs!

Oh! It also really compliments my favorite bed side tables that I snagged from Ikea!  Almost a perfect color match if I do say so myself!

Remember that stain that I mentioned I love so well?  "Ipswich Pine" by  Minwax is that perfect dark golden that I love.  Simply buy a few knotty pine boards from your local store and start staining away.  This stain pools into all the knots and turns them a dark dark brown, which makes those knots just so beautiful.

See what I mean?!

Pair that against that lovely "Mark Twain Grey Brick" and I think it looks gorgeous!

I picture my office looking something like this!

With shelves and decor like this!!  Oh yeah!  I'm lovin it!

What are some of your favorite paints and stains?

"BEEP BEEP" from The Little Road!!

Most of the pictures used for this post were found on

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