French Romance in a Box

I love all things French and when they're shabby chic and French...all the better! So, of course, this was my inspiration for this box. Before it was a beat up, blue painted, chipped box. I had to sand it (it was quite lumpy in spots) and then I painted it with Old White chalk paint. I wanted to give it an old antique look so I distressed it with sand paper and then Tim Holtz distress ink. Stamped it, added the painted embellishment and Viola!

The inside it covered in my favorite "go to" paper -- velvet paper. You can get it at JoAnn Fabrics for $1.99 a sheet. Love it!

sharing at: Timewashed

A Little Paris

I barely have time to craft, but I did last weekend before soccer, lacrosse and wrestling! I found this little suitcase box in my stash and went to work. I painted it a light buttermilk (because it was on my craft table after I painted all of my heart charms). I also found this pretty Paris label in my stash and used gel medium to secure it.

Inside, I added some velvet paper to the bottom (so jewelry is protected) and then I used gel medium to attach all these bits of mulberry paper. Oh, I stamped the mulberry  paper with French script and Paris postage symbols before I ripped it to shreds and secured it. I love the transparent result.

After all the gel was dried, I lightly antiqued it with a soft sponge and Tim Holtz Distress ink (I love that stuff). Happy that it turned out the way it did.

Linking to: Jennifer Rizzo  and Common Ground and A Little Knick Knack

Kitchen Storage Solutions

Yes, I'm on a storage rampage. I can't stand clutter, yet my house is more cluttered than ever -- comes with the territory when you have four males living at home.  I'm always in the kitchen (when I'm not in my office or bedroom) so kitchen clutter drives me nuts. I thought I designed the perfect kitchen 17 years ago, but I've learned that drawers need to be deeper for utensil storage and those corner lazy Susan's don't always work.
The other day when I reached for a lid, everything spilled out.  I emptied out the cabinet and purged an entire bag of unneeded stuff and searched Pinterest for ideas...nothing seemed to work. Then I remembered these cool wire containers I purchased at a garage sale! Perfect for lids without looking too messy. Now everything is within reach. (I apologize for the photos...I think something is wrong with my camera. I took these on a tripod and they are still blurry.)

Next, I had to tackle the utensils. Everytime I reached for a spatula, they got tangled and then the whole thing tipped over. ERRRGG. I hated it. Inspired by something I saw on Pinterest, I gathered my seldom used (but pretty) Polish pottery pitchers (gotta love the alliteration). After I stored my toaster (which we seldom use), I arranged them on my counter, but didn't overcrowd them. I like the look and they are easy to grab.                                                        Before:

After:

I use the cute these jars (above) from Anthropology to hold my sugar, sweetener packets and chia seeds (put them in my smoothies).

My drawer (below) now holds all measuring spoons and my Keurig coffees!

I think I've finally found some solutions!

Sharing at Tatertots and Jello and at 

Let's Talk About Storage, Shall We?

Yes, January through March is my time to organize (much like everyone else). I'm really trying to scale back, but with three kids, it's tough. So, I'm trying to find unique and fun ways to store things. Here are some ideas that I've gathered.     Left: curtain rods to hold pot lids...constant source of irritation...pot lids.                                                                                                                

  source






Another source of irritation that I plan to somehow tackle is my front entry...strewn with backpacks, shoes and sport equipment, I can't seem to get it organized--ever! Some ideas:
If I had a big enough wall and wide enough hallway, this might work:

(source)

We do have a hall closet, but I doubt it would ever look like this:

Love these little rollaway bins...could actually work!

                                                                         (source)
This is really cool...I just wonder if my kids would use it.

                                                                              (source)
This is probably more realistic, but then again, that darn wall space and tight entry hall:

                                                                    (source)
Well, we shall see what solutions I can come up with...any ideas?

A Little Pretty Pouch

When I was cleaning/reorganizing my closet this weekend, I found a plain little muslin bag. I was so excited because I wanted to create another one of my romantic bags for my shop. So, I gathered some of my antique doily scraps and searched for a perfect little pattern in the lace to sew onto this pouch. I also found a little vintage jewelry piece for embellishment and this is the result.

There's something very romantic about lace and muslin, isn't there? Linking to:
Timewashed

After Christmas Sales

We all love bargains, right? I hit the stores with my mom in Pittsburgh and found some awesome clothes more than 50% off. I even got an incredible deal at a local consignment store on a $2 shirt...I'll show it to you when I have a slight tan (it's a summer top). Anyway, I'm having a 40% off sale at my Country Tag Sale shop on selected items...and there are some bargains for sure!!
Here are a few:

 A beautiful vintage wreath pin for $6:

A Sarah Coventry Christmas pin for only $4.80!!

This gorgeous hand-painted vintage candlestick from Germany, $7.20

                                 Stop by and see the rest at Country Tag Sale!!

Scenes from Celebrations

Well, we are back to the real world after having an incredible break over the Christmas holidays. We traveled North to Pittsburgh to visit with both of our parents. As usual, the gathering place was at my inlaws and we played night after night of board and card games. The daytime was reserved for shopping and playing out in the snow!!! Above: Brown paper packages from Santa under our tree!
Here are some scenes from the fun:

Above: Playing with packaging (not the toys). Below: Let the games begin!!!

Below: Surprise visit from my niece who drove about 11 hours in a snowstorm to surprise her parents and the rest of us!

                                     

                                                              Happy New Year!!