needing help

Hello bloggers,

We are redoing our laundry room soon and a few years ago I came across a photo of a black and white vintage inspired laundry room.

She had slim cupboards built into several walls and I am guessing they were about 6" deep and lined them with pegboard and shelves inside to hold paint cans, paintbrushes, tools, dog leashes etc. They were built out of wainscotting and had large iron strap hinges I think on the outside.

The washer and dryer were an under counter model topped with a counter top and I think a ticking curtain hiding them. Vintage dog prints were on the walls and an industrial wall light on each side.

Does anyone know where to find this photo and the source? I am wanting to built something similar to this in our back entry way to hold tools, cans of paint, etc.

I've tried searching and am having no luck.

Eye Candy I bought for my new kitchen

From Ebay I ordered from Mexico a hand hammered deep farmhouse sink in copper and a hand hammered square sink for our prep sink.
Look at these beautiful adjustable swivel iron bar stools from Wisteria. They are called Cooper's Small Draftsman Stool and it lists the information as follows:

This faithful copy of an iron draftsman stool from France in the early 1900s makes a great stool, and in our house, is Cooper’s favorite. Made with authentic vintage engineering.

• Sleek finish
• Inspired by a French draftsman stool
• Functional design

They will be perfect for all the various ages of children in our home. They can raise, lower, and make themselves dizzy till their heart's content!

Funky, Fun, Fresh Interior Designer

John Jacob Interiors

Photo 1:
Love the round wooden architectural pieces behind the sofa.

A large coffee table with lots of room for books, shells, lion heads, and greenery.



Photo 2:

Exposed timbers and glass vases are stunning.











Photo 3:
Pitchforks hang on the back wall and old clock parts hang in rustic triple frames.







Photo 4:

Love the ironstone plates on the wall.

The transom window over the french doors give added light.







Photo 5:

I heart the old wagon wheels that take up some space in this lofty room.

Shiver me timbers....

I love the timber beams and iron supports.

The arched window over the patio door mimics the arch in the fireplace opening.

This makes me drool....slurp!











Wood and iron railing. Very simple, very stunning.















Love the stonework and timber in this living room.

The timber beams have a slight arch just like the fireplace opening.

The horizontal straps on the wooden posts really give it a rustic character. Lots of wood going on, but yet it still feels open and airy with all those windows!

Beautiful Homes & Garages near Briar Cliff Village in Kansas

Doing some drive by shooting...camera shooting that is!!

Here are some lovely homes near the Briar Cliff Village in Kansas.

Look at this neat walkway bridge...a flowing stream is below it. Love all the stone work.



Look at these stone arches...beautiful!

I love the architectural details in this front facade of the home.

Love the small brick arches over the windows of this garage. This garage reminds me of a carriage house. I love the brackets on the front of the garage under the roofline. The iron brackets on the garage doors make it look more carriage like.

Make these Patriotic Coasters

Found these on the Country Sampler website.

They look relatively easy to do. I love the red ticking napkins they show in this photo as well. Pick up some ticking at the fabric store when you get the fabric to make these adorable coasters.

Country Sampler suggests displaying them in a woven basket on the dining table, using one as padding beneath a glass vase, or feather into your decor in any spot that needs a little patriotic perk-up!

She sells seashells by the seashore

Well not really by the seashore but I got this seashell planter here in Iowa of all places! I found a new consignment shop in Cedar Rapids called STUFF. They have 4 locations in the Cedar Rapids and Iowa City area.

I picked this up for $2.99 and really love the texture of it.







Here it is on the side of my fireplace mantle with some of my old wicker covered bottles I have been collecting for 10 years or so.










I went out to my garden and picked some hosta, honeysuckle, and porcelain vine leaves for a fresh natural look.

I love the simplicity of the leaves, but you could add white daisies, yellow sweet peas or even blue salvia if you want an added pop of color. Tuck in a small flag for the Fourth of July.

The rope ball I picked up at Walmart of all places!

What do you put on a shelf?

Here are some of my favorite photos from Ballard Designs which if you haven't heard of before you MUST check out their site and request a catalog. I've used it for years after one of my employees brought in a catalog to my store, A Touch of Country. Thanks Nancy if you are reading this!
The above photo is perfect for your own design studio, craft room, mommy escape room or whatever you may call it! They used a paper towel holder to corral pretty ribbons that are ready to be made into bows and tied on pretty packages for your friends & family. A glass jar hold paintbrushes or you could hold markers and colored pencils.

Don't have money for the fancy artwork shown above? Simply put your child's artwork in black or white frames and poof! You have one of a kind TREASURED artwork!

The above photo shows them in a kitchen. I have a sink similar to this one at the farm we are currently buying. It is sitting on an old metal base in the basement. I have been thinking of installing the sink part of it in our new laundry/mudroom.
The black shelves hold dinner plates, wine glasses and baskets of bottled beverages.
I even love the photos of silverware. Maybe I could find some old family ones and glue actual silverware to sheets of toile paper or maybe burlap fabric. Hmmm...

Here they show 2 of the same size and a small one on top. I would have never thought to do that, but I love how it looks! I really like how they left enough room to add a lamp and some topiaries. Stacks of books and more wire baskets coral odds & ends.

Here the shelves are again in the laundry room. Love the glass jar with laundry soap. I saw a jar similar at Goodwill yesterday for just a few dollars.
Jars hold clothespins and balls of jute string. Ironing spray and an iron are kept nearby and a clock to keep track of the time. Maybe time would go by fast as you iron in this pretty room!

White shelves corral office necessities...books, file folders, envelopes & journals.
So nice, neat and contained.

Blue & White Dishes

Aunt Carol's sideboard in her dining room is
gorgeous filled with silver, blue & white dishes and baskets.

I love the white urn stacked with blue & white ceramic balls.

Her hutch is filled with lovely treasures.
Lots of eye candy here!

It's a Cloche Party!

Join Marty over at A Stroll Thru Life for a cloche party! Tons of fabulous ideas you won't be sorry you peaked! HeeHee! Anyway, look at my photos below and then click on the cloche link to get in on the party! Have fun!

This one above is from Southern Living At HOME and features a framed photo under the cloche. The cloche is sitting atop of wood with the bark still attached. I have also see these wood circles used as chargers.

Here Southern Living At HOME place a old fashioned clock under the glass cloche. What a statement it makes!

Here in my store, I featured 2 cloches. One is sitting in a grey-green birdbath that has been filled with spanish moss, ivy and a rattan basket weaved ball. Tucked under the table, sitting on a green cake plate is the other cloche that is also covering a smaller rattan ball.

Outdoor Topiary out of a tomato cage

It's SHOW & TELL FRIDAY!!!

Click on the show and tell button on the bottom of the page to see more great show and tells!

Here is a fall topiary I made. I used a tomato plant cage and turned it upside down. Then I took floral wire and tied the "legs" that were sticking up. These are the legs that normally you push into the ground. I then soaked 3 grapevine wreaths in water to soften them a bit. Once pliable, simple start at the ground and wrap grapevine all the way around the cage securing every once in a while with floral wire. Keep wrapping cage until you get to the top.

Furniture Tops

In this post I am going to show you a few of my favorite "tops" of things
in my sweet Aunt Carol's home. The above photo is in her formal living room.

I love the angel root vine she wrapped around the candles to give them some added texture.
A book is propped open on a cake plate on stand and then topped with a paperweight.

The cloche holds an abundance of juicy pears to help pull the yellow tones into the room
from the picture.

This photo is also in the formal living room just as you enter the room.

A square wicker shade adds warmth and texture. An old wooden bowl
is filled with an assortment of round balls. The wire basket on the left is
filled with pine cones, greenery and pheasant feathers...it is a gift we gave her in
remembrance of her husband, Larry. He loved the outdoors!
Some old books are pressed together in some Fleur-de-lis bookends...
notice the magnifying glass laying nearby?

This photo is from her living room. The room where she hangs out to chill and
read her favorite books and magazines.
A whitewashed arched clock, a bowl of apples, a stately urn filled with grass are among
a few of the things I love. The stacked leather boxes add subtle texture as does the rusty
armillary sphere. Notice she has a stone bird, some stacked items and an urn!
I talked about a few of those things in my last post.

Thanks Aunt Carol for such fabulous photos of inspiration.
Your home is always welcoming and of great comfort to me.
I always feel pampered when I visit.



I get my love of decorating from my mom, Sandy and my aunt, Carol. They ROCK!
and THANK YOU!

Quick & Simple Spring Decorating for your Living Room

Quick & Simple Spring Decorating for your Living Room

Spring is the time to renew, refresh & revive your living room. After the long winter days give a nod to spring with these quick & simple ideas that will give you the feeling of freshness!

Remove those insulated drapes or heavy window treatments and lighten up with light colored drapes, woven blinds, or let the full sunshine in with nothing at all on your windows! You may want to have a roller shade to pull at night if you are not in a private area.

How about your furniture arrangement? Try rearranging furniture so that the conversation area faces your windows, you may get a sneak peek of the robins looking for worms or a newly formed crocus slowly peaking its top out from the snow. Now is also a great time to get your rugs cleaned or better yet, pull out those sisal rugs or rugs with lighter tones, florals or light geometrics might be the answer. Change sofa pillows and throw rugs to lighter, casual colors. Lime greens, oranges, reds, pinks, aquas all look spectacular mixed with chocolates and ivories.

Clear off your fireplace mantle and show simplicity at its finest with a bouquet of tulips, a stack of gardening books, and a bird’s nest nestled under a glass cloche. Mix in a few colored tealight & taper candles for some added sparkle in the evenings. If you are done with your fireplace for the season, clean & empty out the logs and insert a basket of white twigs mixed with white fairy twinkle lights. These are similar to Christmas lights, but have teeny tiny bulbs for a magical effect.

Give your coffee & end tables a fresh look. Remove the stacks of books & clutter and go simple! A floral arrangement on the coffee table and a new spring decorating book or magazine is all you need. Remove the dark shades from your lamps and invest in new, lighter & brighter colored shades. What an easy and affordable way to change the look of those lamps you’ve had forever. Maybe they are in need of a little spray painting. If the base of your lamp is black, try painting them ivory. If they are brass colored, simply prime and paint them a hot new metallic like copper or brushed nickel.

For the top of an entertainment center, I like to place an urn filled with a trailing ivy plant, a stone bird, a birdnest, and a stack of wicker suitcases. If you don’t have wicker suitcases, try using a stack of wicker baskets, picnic baskets, or even a wicker charger propped up with an easel.

If you'd like to post on your blog, fabulous! Just reference my blog http://nataliemeester.blogspot.com

copyright 2009 Natalie Meester

Spa bathroom

Fill a glass bowl with lotions, candles, loofahs, nail poilish and washcloths. Set this on a tray with handles...
ready for you to grab and pamper yourself! Don't forget the lavender oil!

Dreamy whites. See the 3 glass vases filled with cottonballs, Q-tips & cotton squares.
You could use old jars like canning jars, pickle jars, jelly jars. Simply soak the labels
off in a pan of dishwater and soap. Scrape off labels 20 minutes later and then follow
up with goo gone or lighter fluid to remove the sticker residue.

A glass carafe holds mouthwash. Fill a magazine holder with toilet paper.
I love the white wainscotting, it's very crisp and clean looking!

Keep a tray nearby for your cup of tea or glass of wine while you are
soaking your cares away!