A Little Studio Time for Myself

Hi Bloggie Friends,

It has been so very long since I've done any creating just for myself, but this weekend was a break in the cycle.  A couple of weeks ago, I picked up this fun little frame at my local thrift store.  It was made in Italy, was VERY gold, and did I mention, it was PLASTIC.  EEEEOOOOWWW!  Anyway, I thought it had potential, and went ahead and purchased it, even though my husband rolled his eyes at me.

I'm terrible at remembering to take "before" pictures because I usually just want to get to work, but I did find this image on Pinterest that is what my little piece looked like except mine was a really garish gold.  I saved the little cherub for use in another project sometime.

A little chalk paint, a little wax, clear, followed by brown, and then adding back a little gold with a wonderful French gilding wax gave the frame the look I wanted.  I covered over the worn red fuzzy backing with a nice damask paper and finished the back (not pictured) with a similarly styled vintage wallpaper.   Then, I added a pretty lady and some gorgeous old French silk ribbon work trim.  After putting her all back together, this was the result.



Beautiful details...

Love me some beautiful old ribbon work any day of the week and twice on Sunday!

And here she is, hung on the wall in her forever home (well, okay, maybe just her "for now" home, but whatever).  I'm so pleased at how it turned out. 

Thanks for coming along for the show and tell.  It's been a long time, hasn't it? 

Until next time,

Sew...How are You?

Hi Bloggie Friends,

Do you have a "thing" for sewing implements, especially pretty ones?  Well, I do-don't judge.  My mom sewed like nobody's business and so I think I have a soft spot for anything sewing related.  Lucky for me, I've managed to pick up some awesome things over the years like the spools of silk ribbon above and the amazing little lady tape measure shown below.  She's porcelain and I like to imagine she's Marie Antoinette.  She's missing the first couple of inches of her tape, but I don't care, I think she is still awesome.

Wouldn't you love to have this beauty in your studio?  Found it out in cyberspace-a girl can dream, right?

This tape measure has my favorite, little ribbon work garlands.  Also just a dream from cyberspace, but yummy...

A pretty oversized pin cushion, sewing bag, and stuffed sewing basket from my Etsy shop...

Pretties from Pinterest...

 A silk ribbon chatelaine used to hold sewing supplies like scissors, thimbles, awls, and strawberry emories...

 Amazing sterling thimbles...notice the one on the right is engraved "Doris".  How sweet, don't you think?

This one is my favorite.  I love anything with cherubs on it.

Hope you enjoyed this brief little tour of pretty sewing items.  Do you collect vintage sewing stuff?  Some day I'll have to share some more of my collectibles with you, but for now, let me leave you with an image of a sweet little antique bisque dolly I dressed this weekend.  She will eventually be put in my Etsy shop, but for now, she is making me smile.

And one more pretty picture...my old roses were faded but still worthy of admiration.

Oh, and one more thing: I am so grateful to share a beautiful online magazine from my blog friend Kerryanne from Woodberry Designs.  It is called Simply Shabbilicious and sweet Kerryanne has featured my little closet of dreams.  Go check it out.  You will LOVE it and word on the streets is, it will become a published magazine in addition to an online one with the next issue.  Thank you Kerryanne for including me in your wonderful publication!



Until next time,

What do lavender sachets and Marie Antoinette have in common?

Marie's beautiful image is on a lavender sachet just listed in my Etsy shop, Elegant Farmhouse, that's what!
They are SO beautiful and fragrant and will add that little je ne sais quoi to YOUR elegant farmhouse with their beautiful vintage laces, millinery, and seam binding.  In case you miss out on Miss Marie, by the way, she has several friends in the shop that are equally lovely.

I'm linking up to Debra's Vintage Inspiration Friday. 
Until next time,

UPDATE:  Please join me in my Romantic Prairie Style Photo Challenge.  Show me your style! Click here to learn more.