Insane Asylum for Sue?

 

 

Ever feel as if this is where you might belong?

 

          I feel this is where I might be headed soon….

I saw this sign on a vintage window at the Springfield Extravaganza two weeks ago and it just caught my eye. I wonder why?!  I think I am going nuts!!  These past few weeks have been a blur, with all that is going on around here. And now I am trying to get organized for my trip to Florida next week for a wedding and the furniture market in North Carolina a couple of days after Florida!

The daughter of our good friends, Rick and Kim is getting married Oct. 9.  This will be a fun shin-dig, ‘cause Rick and Kim are absolute hoots!  Kim puts me to shame when it comes to the definition of the words, “Crazy and wild.”  She said we would be meeting the future parent- in-laws together at the rehearsal dinner! Images reminiscent of “Meet the Fockers”  keep coming to mind.  Yikes! And I’m not even related! 

    

Rick and Kim look perfectly normal, don’t they? He’s retired military; they golf & play tennis; they have two perfect kids; they have me for a friend…..   *smile*

But Kim and I are not what you would call ordinary- we are really kinda nutty and often get into situations that have our husbands walking off and pretending not to know us. I know that those of you who know me personally are nodding your heads- I can see you….    uh huh…..

So I’ll definitely try to put my best foot forward when I meet their daughter’s future in-laws. If we’re lucky, Mrs. In-law  will turn out to be just like us and the night will turn out to be loads of fun and mischief!  I’ll have to let you know when I get back. I’m sure Mr. Sullivan is hoping I will behave and not disgrace the family name. He’s not going with me, by the way, so there will be no one to rein me in.

Until then, I wanted to show you what I bought recently. I know that most of you already have something similar to this-  I’m only now jumping on the bandwagon to buy one because I’ve been too lazy to drive over to the fabric store to get linen and paint to create my own.

 

I found this at Tuesday Morning and love it. Fits just fine against the back cushion of the leather chair in the great room.  I think it adds a little touch of European flair to my eclectic room.  Ooo la la…

And maybe, just maybe~  I’ll get out of the asylum and have enough of a renewed sense of peace and calm so I can get over to Joann’s to purchase what I need to make a pillow of my own.  I’ll let ya know if that happens any time soon….

Sunflowers in a Bulb Tray

 

Last week I put together a new vignette on the sofa table in the great room, using a wooden bulb tray as its base.  I purchased the tray from Julie and Shannon,  two sisters who ran the Gathered Comforts  booth at the Springfield Antique Extravaganza . The girls had some really fun and unique items at both the Extravaganza and at the Country Living Fair held in Columbus over this past weekend.  They sell on Etsy, so why don’t you stop by their store to see what they have.

Originally used by flower growers to dry bulbs, the tray is basically a wooden drawer with a screen as its bottom.  Mine is about  3.5 inches deep and about 13 inches wide- plenty of room to fill with pumpkins, gourds and an apothecary jar filled with faux sunflowers.

 

I liked my deep tray so well that I bought a smaller one from the girls when I saw them again at the Country Living Fair. It is only about 1.5 inches deep and 11 inches wide. It has divider, whereas my larger one does not.

Pottery Barn sells the trays for $99.  I paid $20-  oh how I love a bargain!

 

 

I filled the apothecary jar with dried gourds, wooden pears, and dried salal leaves. Then I just arranged a few bunches of sunflowers in varying sizes.

 

 

I filled the tray with a variety of gourds, pinecones, and pumpkins. And  I stuck some wispy strands of grass into the arrangement of flowers just because……..

 

 

 

I was still playing around with the grass when this shot was taken- I ended up pulling out most of it and  leaving only about six stems.  What’s the rule?  Just when you think you’re done~  Edit, Edit, Edit…

 

 

There is such a variety of color in the gourds and pumpkins, so the midnight black color of the crows adds a lot of contrast to the autumn hues.

 

 

This mottled gray pumpkin is my favorite- he looks like he has freckles!

 

 

Once again I’m using one of my wooden spools in a display. This one holds a battery operated candle whose flame flickers in golden amber.  

 

 

 

 

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Linked to:

TableTop Tuesday

 

                                  

 

 

  Fall  Open House

 

 

A Few of My Favorite Things Saturdays

                                                          

              

                          

                           

                               Vignette Fridays

         

                   

Country Living Finds…

 

 

 

I visited the Country Living  Fair in Columbus yesterday and ran across  the “Nest,” one of the hottest and most popular booths at the show. It was the first booth to grab my attention as we entered the first row of vendors shortly after the show opened. There were at least a hundred people clamoring to get into the tent to select fall decor from the displays. There were oodles of wreaths, pumpkins, acorns, and Halloween items displayed in baskets and on tables, but I wasn’t able to take any photos- it was that crowded! You can visit the shop’s website here, to see a miniscule sampling of what they were selling.

The merchandise was crafted from wood and other natural elements. I loved the wreaths and the pumpkins, but decided to come back later in the morning when it might be less crowded.  I also didn’t relish carrying around a huge wreath for the rest of the day.  Note to self: always check to see if there is a package check with porter service-  I didn’t find out about that until later in the day.

Well, I didn’t make it back to the Nest until after lunch and I’m sure glad I didn’t wait any longer than that. Many of their items were already sold out, but I was still able to select three of the things I had been coveting.  I purchased two pumpkins and a square wreath.  I’m not sure where I’m using the wreath as of yet, but I’ll show you where I placed the pumpkins.

 

I re-worked the cocktail table in the great room just slightly to include a little more color with the two pumpkins.

 

 

The smaller of the two pumpkins is crafted in a two-toned mosaic design.

 

 

The larger pumpkin is constructed of sage colored wooden balls sliced in half.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Linking with the following parties:

Mosaic Mondays

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Seasonal Sundays

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Kitchen Table Vignette

The kitchen table is constantly getting make-overs, but it has stayed the same for a couple of weeks now, sporting a cloche and some vintage finds.  Since we are now empty-nesters, we have plenty of room to sit down and eat at the table without moving anything around or out of the way.

 

The cloche holds a “planted” leaf ball that I created last fall. It’s surrounded by dried black-eyed peas, a few buckeye nuts,  and some old type-setting blocks.

 

If you would like to see how the leaf ball was created, you can click the tutorial link on the sidebar.

 

 

A faux concrete pot lays on its side, spilling a few dried nuts and leaves.

 

The glare from the glass is somewhat obscuring the type-setting blocks, but you can probably still make out the fall leaves, the acorns, and the wheat bundle.

 

I think we would all like to enjoy the words stitched on these mini pillows. 

 

I found this metal piece while digging through a box of discards at a yard sale. I don’t have any ideas as to what it really is; but I thought for the price of a quarter, it made a nice tray for some dried fruit, nuts, and leaves.

 

 

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I used three wooden spools to display a few items. The clay pot holds a candle that has the yummiest fall scent.

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I’m linking to  Vanessa’s Inspiration Friday

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Artie’s Vignette Fridays Party.

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Julia’s Fall Open House

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How to Vignette with Junk

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Fall Door of Welcome

   

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Kristin at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia is hosting a linky party to show off her newly finished front door. 

Since our front entryway landscaping is under construction at this time, I opted to show you what the door looked like last fall.  Apologies for the re-run to those of you may have already seen it…. 

 

 

I love the oval glass opening and the brass caming on our garnet colored door; it lets so much light into the foyer. Since neither Mr. Sullivan nor I are talented house/door painters, we opted for a factory painted finish when we purchased the new entryway five years ago. There are no brush strokes to mar the smooth finish of the surface.  Heaven help us if we decide to change door colors anytime in the future!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I filled a basket with  a variety of faux fall flowers- hydrangeas, sunflowers, chrysanthemums, and cat tails.  The colors really pop against  the background of the door.

Kristin mentioned in her post that she had painted her door hardware with Oil Rubbed Bronze paint. Hmmm… Wish I had thought of doing that before I went out and bought a new lockset last week. I guess I could always try painting the existing one to see how it turns out. I’d certainly be saving a fair amount of money that way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

My metal dragonfly cloche was filled with an assortment of dried leaves and fruits and accented the bottom of the table with larger dried gourds. 

 

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I’m hoping the landscaping work will be done soon. I’ve had to hire someone new to do the work that was originally planned. I had been waiting over two weeks trying to deal with  a landscape contractor who never followed through on his work. Why, in these trying economic times when people say that they need work, don’t they just finish the job they started?

  I have a good feeling about the guy that will be doing the work now. “They” say things always work out for the best…

 

Extravaganza Ecstatic

 

I attended the Springfield Extravaganza over the weekend and I came away with everything I went looking for! I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to find the treasures I was hunting, but luck prevailed and I now own both a vintage spritzer bottle and a wrapped wine jug. 

 

I have been looking for one of these seltzer bottles for several months but have been unable to find one in the price range I felt comfortable paying. I’ve seen them being sold for $38 upwards to $100- but I knew I could do better if I was diligent.   I’m glad I waited because I found this Romanian bottle for only 12.99. I did a little happy dance when I saw the price tag!

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I couldn’t believe it was so heavy when I picked it up to show Mr. Sullivan my discovery. Turns out it is half-full of whatever was originally in the bottle! I originally saw it in the booth around noon, but I waited until we were done shopping and were ready to head home before I purchased it. It would have been pretty awkward to carry it around the fairgrounds for a couple of hours. I think when I go to the show in the spring, I’ll buy one of those lined carts so I can haul my purchases around more easily. 

 

 

I found his wrapped wine jug, with its label intact, at the same booth where I bought the bottle. Although I know I didn’t visit every vendor at the fairgrounds, it was the only place I saw selling them.I hope the dealer  will be back in the spring so I can buy one that has double handles. 

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It’s a single handled jug and I only paid $ 30 for it.  The dealer was also selling the ginormous jugs, as well. They were about two and a half feet tall and sold for $175. I wouldn’t even know where to put something that large!

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Just to give you an idea of how expensive these wine bottles really are, here is what is available in the Pottery Barn catalog~

 

                                                 Found Woven Wine Bottle

                                                                                $99.00 – $279.00

Glass bottles like these, called demijohns, were originally used for storing wine in the villages of Transdanubia, a wine-harvesting region of Hungary. During the early 20th century, they were often wrapped with willow branches for durability and easy transport over long distances.

• Textural wicker is woven by hand.
• Each vintage bottle has slight variations that make it entirely unique.
• Handles on the bottles may vary from single to 3 handles as each is hand woven.
• Quantities are limited.
• Catalog / Internet Only.

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I bought several other things at the show and I’ll show them as soon as I get my vignettes done.

I’m joining Debbie and Rhoda at their linky parties.

Stop by for a visit and share some comment love.

    

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