Friday, December 24, 2010

From my home to yours this Christmas Season! And a Christmas Prayer for a Friend & her family...

Merry CHRISTmas Friends!
In preparing for this wonderful time of celebration, I am reminded
of all the family and friendships God has blessed me with throughout the years and I'm so grateful!
In preparation for this occasion, I have been one of Santa's little elves working on this dollhouse. I found it unpainted at a yardsale at a nearby Antique Shoppe a couple months back. I thought it would be the perfect gift for our grandie, Cate.
I used gray for the roof, pink paint for the interior walls and a very light minty green for the external paint...and painted the front porch gray to match the roof. I even added pink shutters to the home, a MUST for all little girls.
The little doll standing in the front door is a mini Madame Alexander doll that I found at the outdoor yardsale as well. She came with the little boy sitting on the retro chaise lounge I made for the cottage. Finishing touches were the custom drapes I made for inside the home and a few pieces of furniture using what I had in my home. And, what would the home be without a few Christmas Wreaths hanging in the windows? Found those teency weencies at Holly Lobby. The pink lace, replicating a light pink snow, was found at Goodwill in perfectly mint PINK condition~ :)

Cate will be surprised, and I will love adding to this cottage throughout the next several Christmases.

As I close in sharing my Christmas post today, please remember a dear Blogging Friend of mine from Mimi's Garden, Kathy Black, in your prayers. Her family experienced this week the highest high and the lowest low. Kathy's daughter in law, Jenny, and her son had their first child. Jenny experienced complications and as a result died on 12/22. The baby, a precious little girl, was born by emergency C Section and last I heard was doing fine. My heart has been so heavy for Kathy, her son and grandbaby girl...and the rest of the family. In your own celebrations this Christmas Season, please say a prayer for comfort & hope for Kathy and her family.

My heart & verbal reply screams out in response to all the Happy Holidays I hear in line and everywhere I go this year, Merry CHRISTmas~I chirp merrily back. I cannot leave Christ out of the REASON for this Season!

Love to All, and especially to Kathy Black & her precious family!
~CC Catherine

Monday, November 29, 2010

Christmas came early...I'm so glad the box said, OPEN NOW!

Pictured above are all my great gifts that came all the way from Canada, from my Bubblin Over friend, Claudie! I screamed when I seen my pink toilet tissue she sent me~ ;)
I'd been in the Christmas spirit since mid October when I began decorating for a Holiday Open House tour here in my neighborhood. So when the package arrived......I was in the mood to rip it open!
A sneak peak at my tree~ And a new ornament, an Eiffel tower, that I found at Goodwill. I love it! The theme of this tree is vintage, pinks, silver, gold, and whites.
This is a distant view of it... and you can see the gifts on the ottoman in front of the tree that Claudie sent me.
Oh my, who's this? Well... it's "moi", with my new Pink Ear Muff band that Claudie sent me...and my new pair of gloves she embellished! Check out the vintage earring that she adorned the one glove with. I LOVE IT Claudie! ;)
What's this? It's my Abbie, she wanted to model the Pink Ear muffs too. ;)
Well, tons more to decorate to get ready for the Holiday Open House tour this Saturday; gotta run for now~ Will try to show pics later!

Hugs to all my Blogland Friends! And especially...a BIG HUG & Thanks to Claudie for my lovely EARLY Christmas Gifts! :)
~CC Catherine





Monday, October 4, 2010

These R a few of my F*A*V*O*R*I*T*E things!

A Teacup Chandelier...and in my favorite Blue & Whites...
Stopping by my favorite place at Aunt Bee's! The first thing you find is her glass jar of cookies to your right on the counter! I'll have one today Aunt Bee, Thank You! :)
Next to the cookie jar, you'll find her business cards...she's the SWEETEST lady you'll ever meet!
She serves piping hot coffee to drink free while I roam the 70+ vendors in her Antique Shoppe
How can I not fall in love with this oil on canvas?
And teacups galore, this one was "only" $4~
I couldn't walk away without falling in love with this pink hand inscribed bedroom dresser...Oh, how I want that! It spells out PINK just walking by it! Lovin it... This caught my eye as SOON as I walked in! French & Fab!
This next item,only $8! A "totally" fabulous purchase! I can't wait to wear a vintage black dress and wear this little lady! You'll see her below with a special piece in my collection of vintage wear!
These little piggies cried all the way home...not really! :) But they'd like to! I already have my own Kitchen Piglet - these are ONLY $15 or less. I think they are $13.99. If you're interested in them, post a comment and I'll call Aunt Bee to see if they are still there. They ARE a super catch! The little chalkboards are removable too.
How do you like my vintage hat with the vintage black slip that belonged to my grandmother? I want to get a pic wearing these together... Vintage is SO chic! The armoire was a great purchase at a yardsale two years ago for $75. We use it for the TV in the Pink Guest room!
This, "I HOPE" will be the next hat I add to my collection! She's only $10! Can't you just see this on me? I can too! ;)
And this lovely? She's a plant......I met her at the Athens GA Botanical gardens last week. Isn't she a BEAUTY?
Thanks for dropping by and enjoying a few of my favorite things!
Hugs to all~
~CC Catherine
Be sure to drop by this week to visit the following and enjoy many other interesting & favorite things!

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Primrose Lane ~ A Sweet Vintage Haven both Inside & Out!

In a little piece of Heaven on Earth, you'll find Primrose Lane. She's a little Vintage Boutique in Franklin, NC. June is the owner of the boutique, and she's just as sweet as the shoppe's name!
I fell in love with this little Haven and just had to snap pics with June's approval to share with all my friends in Blogland. I have nothing to gain from sharing June's information, with the exception of a sense of hope that we will all keep her in business by visiting her if you're in the Franklin, NC area. I want her to never fade away, nor the boutique! ;)
Here you will find precious ornament chandeliers & floral umbrellas hanging from the lattice suspended from the ceiling... Parisian items for all us Francois lovers, chic hats for all occasions, shawls, teacups, and on an on and on! To the right of her entryway of the boutique you'll see a Bistro Tablescape all set up, as if to invite you in to sit and stay awhile! Tea anyone? ;)
The photo of the home outside is one taken nearby Primrose Lane that I couldn't resist sharing, somehow it made it's way into this post! ;)

































































































And for the finale in the Primrose Lane post, you can finish the visit off in the nearby Coffee Haus & Pub if you've overspent your budget when you visit her in Franklin! ;) On the opposite side of this Coffee Haus is a great big Antique Barn that we enjoyed and it was "BIG"! ;)
Be sure to drop by the following blogs this week to enjoy all the other wonderful posts:
Hope you've enjoyed your visit at Primrose Lane today! Give June a call if you've seen something you can't live without! I'm sure she'd be happy to ship something to your door, for sure! ;)
You can also email her at hjune2@gmail.com to let her know how much you enjoyed learning about her boutique in this post if you like! I'm sure she'd appreciate the hello and feedback on the items featured in this post.
~CC Catherine

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Strolling through life one day at a time while breathing in the spectaculars along the way!

Welcome Friends!
Open the door & come on in to see the places & things I got to experience in my journey up North the past two weeks.
As you walk through this "Mystery Door", you'll be amazed at where it's going to lead you in the small rural community I grew up in...I sure was!
It leads you to this porch that overlooks a pond that was owned by my 6th grade teacher many moons ago! His daughter now owns the property and built this fabulous porch that overlooks the family pond that my Great Uncle fished at when I was a young girl.
This is the view of the external "faux" windows and flower boxes that greet you when you walk up to the building.
As you can see from the rear side of the building...the door is screened, the opposite side of the door that has the lace is on the porch entry side, which really makes you feel like you're indoors.
What you cannot see is the fact that there is a fountain on the top of the tin roof that with the flip of a switch becomes a recycled water pump/fountain from the water in the pond. The rain falls off the edge of the roof and you sit and breathe in the beauty, as well as hear the sound of the rain trickling down... The love seat rocker makes a great addition to allow you to rock & enjoy!
Then on to CT to an ice cream shoppe, this was in their flower garden which I found quite amusing...but sweet! See the hula dancers?
A drive down a few side streets in CT proved to me that New England states know how to showcase that Cottage look I so love...check out these posies on a side porch~
I had to grab this CT home with the Pink Door for my Pink friend Claudie! The side door was pink also......and it was a dream to see it matched the pink geraniums in the front door! :)
This home was my favorite. The blue/white awnings were on three sides of the home. Gorgeous!
Then to a little antiquing in Glastonbury CT. Deb, check out this rooster painting! Superb!
This little mirror is for a small child, if I would've had a pickup truck, it would have come home with me for my grandie! It was only $70 and was in great shape!
French Pottery I adored...couldn't miss snapping them!
What a chic showcase, couldn't resist! And, she had pink netting sashed on the mannequin!
Last, but NEVER least, a Chandie made out of brass & marble! I still am considering calling the shop and having it shipped to me. It was GORGEOUS!
Well, thanks for coming on my little tour!
I hope to share later this week the exciting trip we had when we visited Franklin, NC recently.
Hugs to all my blogging friends~
And drop by Susan's on Wednesday to enjoy her Outdoor Wednesday where you'll see other great outdoor shots, I'm sure!
Merci~
~CC Catherine

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Le Parti de Cloche ~

~Merci to my friend Marty for hosting "Le Parti de Cloche"!
To see many more Cloche ideas, click on Marty's Cloche button above and visit the other lovers of glass covered riches~
Many of these speak for themselves...but for those who don't...
As a teacup collector & lover, this ordinarily sits in the middle of my new 80" round Dining Round table. The cup is a new one from a guest that attended a Tea that I hostessed in May. Underneath the cup is a pair of vintage pr small girls gloves. My friends Julie & Claudie from Canada presented them to me when they visited in March for my granddaughter, Cate.
Some days I just need more color and I "Pink" it up a bit with one of my vintage hats underneath it.
This little cloche is only about 8" tall and the items you see underneath it are literally 1/4" tall for the teacups, 1'2" tall for the sugar/creamer, and the little girl seated & bear are only about 3" tall. My little granddaughter Cate runs to this every time and it's so precious...until she knocks the cloche top off... :)
Here's a distant shot...
I find that the items I put under my cloche are the things I adore the most...and photography is one of them! Here you'll see my dad's vintage camera he brought back from World War II. Surrounding it are the black & white photos of my three grandchildren. Memories to last a lifetime...
In one of my Guest Suites, the newly named "Pink" room in honor of my "Pink" friend Claudie! You'll see underneath the cloche a little bubblin over clown doll she made me. In front of the cloche is a bunch of glass Pink grapes I recently picked up. A closer shot of the Bubblin over clown doll is below...with the lid off so you can see the details on her
In my grape room with the Dresden Plate quilt my mother hand stitched for me is my collectors Doll "Kathleen". I bought her to remind me of another dear friend back in PA many moons ago ~ every time I see her I remember the many years of friendship that Kathleen and I've shared...over 25+ years...
This little French Stuffed Poodle is close to 50 years old. It was a gift to me as a small child from my Meme. She's missing a nose, but I still love her! :) The French Poodle that is! haha! And of course, I'll always love my Meme~
Another view with the cloche lid removed...
Claude, the converted bear creation made out of the recycled Asiatic Mink Fur that belonged to my Meme , is showcased under a cloche cylinder type of glass and I topped him with a straw hat to keep the dust off his lil head...He loves it there... When he wears necklaces, I call him Claudette... :) Today he's Claudette! I adore open picture frames randomly sitting on my Master Bedroom mantel...and often sit them just here and there...
Who said a cloche has to be round....??? Look in this little glass container...it's my Meme's vintage jewelry that I often wear at my tea parties...
Another picture of Claudette! :)
I call this a Cloche "Fakeout"... Can you tell what I did? If you can, let me know in your comment.
This one was a bit tricky, but it can work with a little ingenuity! A Cloche in a Door Hanger! Yes! And inside is a PINK feathered little birdie from a friend named Claudie! I have her all over my home! ;)
I made the door hanger arrangement prior to Claudie coming for her March visit and hung it on the door of the newly dawned "Pink" room! One more lil view...
And last, but not least, a touch of Francoise...with a vintage key and Parisian stamped hanger that Debbie from "Confessions of a Plate Addict" put on a hostess gift she brought me last year. I've kept it and typically hang it on my guest room door. For ambiance, I added my copy of a French Newspaper that I brought home from a trip back in 2001.
So, there you have it, all my Cloche ideas!
Merci,
~CC Catherine