Just paint over it............

Remember the guest room makeover last year? I painted old vintage shutters. All that happened after my first trip to Provence in high Summer. Sunny colors of fabulous Vincent Van Gogh paintings, fields of sunflowers, lavender, purple iris, rich red grapes, cobalt blue sea ~ were my inspiration.

Second time around, last October, the glaring sun had faded the countryside. Autumnal shades surrounded me - russet and ochre of the vineyards after the harvest was over, lavender fields turning to dusty gray under paler washed blue skies. Still stunning ~ I loved it all, even more perhaps.

Dried lavender fields and windmill - nr. Minerve, France. Oct. 2008


Last week I dragged the shutters out into the 'cloud shine', better painting when the sun's not too bright.......or scorching hot!

I lightly sprayed unevenly with cream first, then dry brushed with Valspar's Gravity.
I like this softer look. On entering the room, which is small, you no longer see the shutters first and foremost!

Vintage monogrammed hemp French pillow cover purchased at La Madone in Provence.

Do your decorating projects occur spontaneously? Do you enjoy refinishing, repainting, re-purposing items in your home?
Do you usually buy new furniture, or hunt for gently used, vintage or antique items? Have you ever had a mad moment when, on a trip, you purchased an item which had to be shipped home because those overheads are so minuscule?
How about shipping an entire container load from Europe..............now that's my dream!

Pink Saturday - Cottage Pink

Many a childhood ramble took me here to the village of Cockington in Devon. Wandering along the lanes from my home up on a hill down into the valley near the sea, passing these pink cottages was always fun. Yes, they were even pink that long ago!!!

Rose Cottage is now a tea room with lovely gardens by a stream.

The former School House is a quaint gift shop.

Bet you would have loved going to a school this pretty!

Nice to be back participating in Pink Saturday. These pics are from my recent visit home to England in April.
Hurry on over to visit Beverly at How Sweet the Sound to see all the fabulous Pink Saturday posts.

"Thieves Market"

It was quite some time since I'd visited the Thieves Market Mall in town. Surprising how sometimes those old strip shopping center store fronts hide treasures you didn't know existed. One booth in particular caught my eye, so many things in my style.

Although I liked these....................................

........and would like to find a spot in my kitchen for this.....

......................I really fell in love with these! More aged books to add to the ones I purchased in France last Autumn.

When I enquired as to the price - no tags - the cashier thought they were just being used by the booth owner as props. She called her and asked if she'd sell them, she said OK.......a bargain at $3 each. How about those pretty tinted glass drawer pulls. There were dozens in many unusual muted colors and designs.

Above ~ the 'new' old books are the horizontal ones on the right in my dining room dresser.

A few more standing here next to the leather bound French prayer books I found at a French brocante.

Mirepoix, France ~ October 2008

French brocante, North Carolina junk store.....who knows what treasures are tucked away in dusty corners waiting to be discovered. Next week I'm off to New England and I've already located a shop I must visit in New Hampshire. Perhaps I'll find something special to share with you.

Santo Bastidor

Several years ago I was shown a 'santo bastidor' in a tiny mission church in San Antonio, Texas. The priest was actually British! He had come to serve the Hispanic parish for a short time after training in Spain to become proficient in the language, but stayed on for several years. It was sunset. The sun cast its fading rays on the mission bell creating a beautiful image. He graciously unlocked the tiny church and showed us around, pointing to the walls he had painted and the furniture he had repaired out of love for this poor community that had embraced him. The life sized santo (saint) was stunning. It had been stolen and damaged, but recovered and repaired and was kept locked up for safety. When we left the mission it was pitch dark and I recall the difficulty we had finding our way back to the car.

I have been interested in these statues ever since. Originally from Colonial Spain, they were used in religious celebrations as the Virgin Mary or other Catholic Saints. During community fiestas they were decorated in flowers, jewelry, wigs, and handmade dresses which covered the 'cage' skirt. Remaining authentic santos are hard to find and command high prices. They have the beautiful patina of age, sometimes glass eyes, and often stand on ornate carved bases.

Many santo bastidors are from the Philippines, as was this newer reproduction. The carved wood is smooth with a beautifully painted aged finish, the arms and hands are movable. I felt fortunate to come across this santo locally. She is quite striking and fits into my new way of accessorizing with fewer but larger meaningful pieces.

The wings are a wonderful 'extra'. They are metal with a gilt finish, and detachable. I will use them during the Christmas season along with a jeweled pendant and perhaps crown the santo with a woven wreath of holly and ivy.

The face of this santo is almost mesmerizing in its shape and countenance. The eyes look straight ahead, a secret, bemused smile seems held back. A feeling of calm and peace emanates from the figure.

Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.

~ Mother Teresa ~

France or bust!!!!!

When I stayed in what my friend Corey described as "the most beautiful place in Provence" ~ and she was so right ~ I fell in love with everything in Nathalie's amazing house. Her little hallway with the black walls and beautiful accessories, including the bust of a lady, became a decorating project in my home when I returned after staying at La Madone in Provence.

Nathalie's hallway at La Madone, Provence ~ October 2008

I do have the dark walls ~ paint color is Valspar's Graphite ~ a mirror, table and small crystal candelabra, but I'm still hoping to find a lady as lovely as Nathalie's.
All of these above are at Market Imports, however they are too large for my little table so I'm still hunting.

Bolts of Blue

Have you ever come across one of those 'chintzy' decorative fabric outlets? You walk in, stop in your tracks, sigh, and think good grief where did they dig up these awful prints and unrealistic colors! The first rows of fabrics displayed on horizontal racks seem to be from an era not even vintage, more a time warp, '80's and early '90's when we all seemed obsessed with mauve ribbons winding through teal colored roses.......on our drapes, sofas and beds!

But don't turn and leave. Walk on to the rows in the back. Here you will find the vertical bolts stacked precariously, three, four deep................and above them a wonderful sign displaying the bargain price of some truly gorgeous fabrics. Plain colors, linens, velvets, damasks, canvas, quilted, textures...........with affordable prices whether you need 12 yards to slipcover a sofa, or half a yard for a gorgeous pillow to toss on a chair.

Dining room makeover ~ February 2009
My French decorating projects now seem to revolve around gray-blue or blue-gray. Understandably I followed the handwritten sign stuck on the wall which said BLUE.......every shade of blue imaginable. Before long I was in BLUE HEAVEN!

It was one hundred degrees in the parking lot on Saturday! After stopping at a thankfully air conditioned antiques market mall for a quick hunt through several booths, I saw the sign for this store across the street.

If you sew, you collect fabric. Well you do, don't you? You have a fabric stash. A yard or two of this, a length of that, perhaps even a bolt of your own, propped up against a wall, awaiting inspiration and a sewing machine. No matter how many yards or metres you have squirreled away, for some reason you always find something lovelier and you have to buy at least one yard. A little voice in your head whispers "I'll make a pillow with it if nothing else, it's just too pretty to pass up".

Also, a great selection of trimmings of tassels, braids, gimp, fringe, cording etc. languished on shelves, and the prices were great.

A vintage mannequin awaits a gown in a watery shade of blue. Perhaps the palest blue linen for a hot southern Summer's day. Often, decorative fabrics are perfect for clothing also ~ the linens and cottons come in wide widths and can make attractive inexpensive garments.

Mannequin offered at Market Imports.

Do you have bargain fabric stores near you? If you're a sewer check them out, you may be surprised at what could be hiding in the back!

Heavenly Gates

Love is the master key which opens the gates of happiness.

~ Oliver Wendell Holmes

Happiness is like those palaces in fairy tales whose gates are guarded by dragons: we must fight in order to conquer it.

~ Alexandre Dumas Pere

Sunsets are so beautiful that they almost seem as if we were looking through the gates of Heaven.

~ John Lubbock

Blue hued gates to where? Doors of mystery. Step through them into a garden green. Swing them open, place your bare feet on the cool tiles of an atrium or courtyard. Press the door bell. Or lift the heavy iron door knocker. Will it open for you? As you wait patiently, run your hand across the carvings. Feel the iron nail heads worn smooth by time and weather. These are entryways with stories to tell.

All images taken at Market Imports, Raleigh, NC ~ June 2009