Thrift and Auction Treasures

I am a firm believer in keeping your eyes open for a great find! After all… why pay full price, when you can have it so cheap? 😉 Here are a few of my latest finds.

This little print above is one that I just picked up in my local thrift shop for .99 cents! I love roses, and for .99 cents … it had to come home with me 🙂

I try to find things to display in my little Victorian glass house, so for Spring it’s a simple cast iron bunny & eggs 🙂 The little vintage lace piece was in a $1 box of goodies that I picked up at auction!


I love this new platter! I just picked it up from the thrift store for $1.99! I love the bright red apples & the different shades of green in the leaves, stem, and platter. When this piece caught my eye I had to pick it up, because I knew that it would go with my decor perfectly! When I brought it home – I simply added it to the new Spring display (I think it will work for most of my displays 😉 in my vintage pine cabinet.

A Great Fabric Resource!

As I mentioned yesterday, last week my daughter & I took a little trip down to MD to spend a week with my mom & dad. While we were there, my mom took us to a wonderful fabric outlet store! The prices are very good, and most items are 50%-70% off! I don’t think I spent more than $5 per yard for any piece that I picked up! They have gorgeous choices piled from floor to ceiling!




Here’s the information about the store:

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The Interior Alternative Fabric & Bedding Outlet
3 different outlets in DE, NC, & TX
Phone: 302-454-3232

Description: Featuring Waverly, and other designer brands. Seconds & closeout fabrics, comforters, bedspreads, pillows, trims, and accessories.
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I thought you might like to see a few of my finds… and maybe you’ll want to discover a few treasures for yourself 🙂


Blue & Gold Toile With Trim

I will use this fabric & trim to make an inspiration board. I have lots of different fabric so I can also change it out for each season.



Fabric for my Harvest Table





It already matches the seat covers perfectly!



Red & Blue Vintage Style Checks & Roses

I want to use this fabric to make some vintage style aprons for my daughter & myself. I want to make a red apron with blue pockets & a blue apron with red pockets. And while we’re at it… why not add some ruffles as well 😉

A Storybook Life – The New Issue is Ready!

The new issue of “A Storybook Life” is out now!

If you have not subscribed to the monthly newsletter & would like to, you can subscribe with one click at our site: http://www.LittleCountryVillage.com

Once you subscribe, you will get an email with this month’s newsletter inside.

Enjoy!

Pearl

Here’s what’s inside the latest issue:

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In This Issue:

From the Cottage – Pearl’s Ponderings

Letters to The Editor

How to Boil the Perfect Easter Egg

Elegant Easter Eggs – Your little masterpiece will be the talk of the hunt!

Have a Designer Look For Your Walls Using $1 per Yard Fabric

No Mix, No Measure, Delicious Rhubarb Crunch Cake

You can Have a Beautiful Cottage Garden Even in a Temporary Space!

Interesting Things You’ve Got to See – Pearl’s April Picks!

Various & Sundry Other Tips & Treasures
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Pink & Green Inspiration for Your Home and Garden

Are you in love with pink & green? If so, I thought I would share some great pictures to help give you some inspiration for your home & garden.

I especially love the center picture! I’ve decided to use a color similar to this one on the walls in my creative space. Here are my thoughts as of right now.
Walls – lime/chartreuse
Trim – white
Accent Fabric – Black & white toile
Accent Colors – Red, Deep Blue, Black

I will share the pictures as I progress 🙂

Take a minute to share your upcoming project ideas with us!

Brand New Site Almost Done!

Hello everyone!

Our new site is almost complete! After years of having a website online, I felt is was finally time to do some spring cleaning – and organizing 🙂

As you can see, I haven’t been able to post here for several days, because I’ve been really working on re-building my website.

After lots of programing, everything is nearly done! I’ve been writing online for many years now, but I haven’t had a good way to share all of my articles – while keeping things organized for my readers.

I’ve finally completed the new article database & I will be spending the next few weeks adding all of my past articles to that section. Here are just a few of the ones that I’ve already added:

Learn to Raise Magnificent Monarch Butterflies
Cake Recipes – Scrumptious Easy Layer Cake
Make your own pita bread!
A New Way to Save Using Rain Checks!
How to Safely Transplant Your Garden Plants

Check back often – as I will be adding new articles on a regular basis!

Pictured:
I’ve always loved the colors pink & green together. Here, I’ve mixed a piece of pottery ($5 at TJ Max), a small iron bunny ($4), a Waverly mustard & red toile tables runner ($6 TJ MAX) and my gathering basket.

How to Give Your Room a Designer Touch Using Old Chandelier Crystals!

A few years ago I was given an old (but not vintage) brass colored chandelier. The gal who gave it to me said she simply hated the piece & couldn’t wait to replace it with a more modern style of light fixture. Of course, when she offered it to me, I gladly said yes, because I knew that I could think of someway to use it.

Fast forward a few years after the chandelier has been waiting in my basement for just the right project… A few days before Christmas, I came up with the idea of removing the crystals and finding a way to hang them in the window. I wanted to use all of the pretty pieces of glass, so nothing would be wasted. So… after putting my brain in creative mode, I decided to make a sort of window mobile / curtain of glass.

Step #1 – Remove all of the crystals

crystals

Crystals have been removed & are in a bucket waiting to be cleaned.

Step #2 – Clean
I put all of the pieces in a small cleaning bucket & soaked them in water/dish soap/ and a bit of alcohol. The alcohol helps to keep water spots from forming on the glass.

Step #3 – Lay out to dry
crystals drying

Step #4 – Hang curtain rod inside of window casing.
* Be sure that hanging crystals will not interfere with opening the window – or opening curtains.

curtain rod

Step #5 – String the Crystals
I didn’t want to see the string used to hang each strand of crystals, so I used clear nylon sewing thread (you could also use fishing line). Because I didn’t want to stand up on a ladder & string each crystal, I decided to lay the rod across 2 chairs & stabilize each end with a pair of heavy books. For my project, I wanted the height of each piece to be a bit random, but you may choose to make everything more even.

Step #6 – Hang the rod in the window
* VERY CAREFULLY 🙂

I am really enjoying my new display – even before I have my curtains up… that project will be for another day (soon I hope 🙂