Christmas on the Front Porch

I'm not sure if my little slab of concrete

would pass for a front porch,

but I decorate it anyway.

I found this rusty, crusty wagon

with a broken wheel at the flea market.

I added one of my favorite wooden boxes

a lantern, and some wrapped gifts. 

This is my Charlie Brown Christmas tree.

I haven't yet decided what needs to go 

on this side of the porch.

I keep looking for pillows for the bench.

So much for small town businesses.

This is the view in the day.

This is the view at night. 

I'm not satisfied that it is blog-worthy, but

 for 29 years it has been my humble abode and it is 

HOME.

Have a Great Weekend, 

Bonnie:)

"The Lure of the Label"

When my nest became empty, 

I had to fill it with something. 

My present-day fill, 

Junk!

It is often at an auction that I get

the best deals on

crates and wooden boxes.

My daddy's first cousin lived 

in Florida so we got a cardboard box 

or a nylon bag of oranges for Christmas every year-

no wooden box in my day.

In antique stores and flea markets.
a crate like this may sell in range from $35-$50.

Wooden crates are collected now and are often 

found in sheds, under junk, under the house, 

in storage or in the attic.

Dusted off they are used as bedside tables, 

book cases, toy chests, storage and 

of course, displays in antique stores, 

booths and flea markets. 

I recently read an article entitled, 

"The Lure of the Label."

In early years, fruits and vegetables 

were shipped in large quantities by railroad.

Labels with colorful art

attracted buyers and boosted growth.

Around 1955, the wooden box

was replaced with cardboard.

Nothing can replace the character of aged-old wood, 

loose nails and water stains

unless it's the natural wood grain and holes or the label.

Now crates are produced in mass production

and sold in home good stores and 

leading retail craft stores.

Will have fun using my crate 

for display this weekend.

This is the time of year 

to get busy in the booth. 

Have a Happy Week, 

Bonnie:)

Sorry that I've been absent these days. 

I've been burning up 1-20, I-75. amd I-24.

Riverfront Antique Mall: Meeting Distressed Donna Down Home

What a day of pickin'!

You know me, I got lost took the scenic route again,

with the help of Google.

I'm headed to Riverfront Antique Mall 

in North Augusta, SC, 

home of the famous blogger

Distressed Donna Down Home.

I called Olive at 

OliveOut

who lives across the river somewhere close-by.

"WHERE IN THE WORLD AM I AT?"

 How was she to know?

"Where are you?  What do you see?"

She knew exactly where I was.

I was going in circles.  

Go Figure!

Olive said, "Look for Aisle B."

And there she was!

My first meeting with a real-life blogger!

I was so excited I didn't get any photos of Donna's booth

but I did buy some things. 

She's my kind of gal.  She even had two baskets of FREEBIES.

I'll share my findings later. 

They are still packed in the trunk.

I do mean packed! 

I asked the owner, 

"Can I take pictures?"

"Uhhhh.  Not sure."

OOPS! TOO LATE.  

I shot these before I met Donna. 

The above display was the first thing I saw when I walked in.  

What an impression!

Shabby and Chic
and
Pretty in Pink

Rusty and Crusty
or
Linen and Lace
you will find at Riverfront.

A rusty, crusty plant stand, 

NFS.

Is this not the cutest?

Crates and wooden boxes,
Painted furniture and chalkboards
were everywhere.

This was another darling booth.  

I was shopping for resale 

so I had to pretend these were NFS.  

Several things in here were 

"For Display Only."

After all, 

presentation is everything. 

Well, for some. 

Honestly, I prefer a good dig. 

I didn't check the price.  

I can't believe I passed this by. 

This would have been perfect in my milkglass room. 

Distressed and framed scrapbook paper.  

What a grand idea!

I left with a trunk full of goodies and some good ideas!

This will not be my last trip to Riverfront.

Fun!Fun!Fun!

Bonnie:)

I'll be sharing my finds on my next posts. 

Move, Change, Rearrange

Reading blogs makes me want to

move, change, rearrange.

So, I stopped to shake things up a bit.

I knew it wasn't quite right.

It's amazing what just a lift will do.

Which do you like best?

I just love my soup tureen.

I've photographed it before.

This time I seemed to capture

the crackled, aged finish.

I'm off to peek in the windows of my blog buddies. 

Happy Weekend, 

Bonnie:)

I have enough ironstone now to set a table.

I'm looking for just the right tablecloth or place mats. 

I'm linking to http://www.town-n-country-living.com/autumn-abounds-link-party-260-cash-giveaway.html

Please Turn the Heat Off!

It's still steamy here!

Ughhh!

The beach doesn't even attract me.

I'm so over this heat. 

I tell you what!

Today, I was a substitute for the 8th grade classes.

The baddest bunch I have EVER taught, and I can't say, 

"A mean little girl without a daddy."

They were just B-A-D, BAD!

Yes, sirree!

Talk about being run over!

I'll admit it!

My bad, tough self!

They slap ran all over me and jumped 

and hooped and hollered and high-fived about it too.

I have NEVER, did you hear me????

NEEEEEEEEVER been so humiliated and shown

such disrespect. 

And get this, 

some kid turned the heat on.

Oh yeah, the heat was on, 

and I'm talking 80 degrees.

Seriously???

So I'm dreaming of Fall.

I'll show you some of my favorite pins. 

Last year I used whites. 

This year I may add color. 

The verdict is still out.

These I can do. 

Does anyone remember apple-bobbing?

I think this would look great 

as a centerpiece for a farm table. 

Don't you agree?

Oh how I wish I had a fireplace. 

Do you think "cozy" when you look at this?

This is cute and easy, but think about this with candy corn.

I can just smell the yummy.

Easy peasy!

A box or drawer, 

fall berries and pumpkins

and candles from the Dollar Tree

and less than $10.

I can do something like this with my white jars!

Yes, I can!

No, I didn't scream, 

"Please turn the heat off!"

I'm not ready for 50 degrees either

and they would show me two opposite extremes,

I'm sure. 

I told the teacher next door, 

"These kids are out of control."

She said, "Yes.  Now you know why we can't keep a substitute."

Yeah!!!!

Somebody's got to love them. 

But I think I'd rather love on 

the little ones. 

Can we turn the heat off?

Bonnie:)

A Dried Hydrangea Wreath

Nothing inspiring, just playing around
with a few new and old finds.

I found the dried hydrangea wreath in Juliette for $2.
I use the white-washed wooden box often, and
you're more than likely to find a piece or
 two of ironstone in every room.

It's what I like about white.

The bird has been around for awhile.
He kinda flits from room to room.

Tonight he found a home in the work-in-progress room.

I'll be flitting around tomorrow
looking to find new adds for the white room.

Happy Hunting,

Bonnie:)

Red Suitcases

I was coming out of the flea market 

when I saw one of my favorite vendors

moving in.  

Cyndi's shop was the first place I had a booth.

She managed a large flea market and I 

had a small corner.  She said she really liked 

my style and wanted me to move with her

to her new shop.

I did.  It was a renovated 

men's store.  My spot was 

a small dressing room that I could 

hardly turn around it, but 

it was perfect for me.

I made it mine.  It was ideal for my all white.

Now we would be working close to each other again.

Back to my story...

In the back seat she had two suitcases.

RED!

I was unloading her trunk before she could get in.

(Don't you just hate people like me!)

I'm sure she was going to use them as props.

She does great presentations.  But being my sweet friend, she sold them to me for $11, A STEAL!  The small one for $5 and the large one for $6.  I'm sure she was going to sell for more.

Inside and out, they were in pristine condition.

She said they were her mother-in-laws.

They smelled like Chanel #5 on the inside.

Her MIL lives in Charleston, SC and is 

a true Southern Bell. Everything she 

has is first class.  She had a shop in Charleston

for several years.

I placed them atop my mama's quilt and the wooden

box that I bought recently to add to the room 

that I am working on.  I will paint it soon, I think.

Just moving them around for now. 

Please pardon the cord. 

Have you ever seen this color in vintage luggage?

Bonnie:)

Wire Baskets Revisited

Wire Baskets

I shopped Home Goods and Hobby Lobby while in Nashville and found some amazing baskets. My favorite was the locker basket. They were all new but made to look old.

While I love the new, I am still captivated with the truly vintage baskets.

Again, I asked Mr. Pickrell if I could pick around and take some photos.

I'm guessing this was a grocery store display/basket. It had the old ad on it and was truly vintage. Maybe it held veggies. I don't think I've ever seen one of these before. I'd love to have one of these in my shop for holding pillows. LOVE IT!
This basket is great for holding magazines.

This was not the typical basket for canning, but I think it displayed these canning jars well.

My favorites all together-canning jars, wire basket, and a wooden crate.

This was actually a post from 2012.

I'm having a blogging block.

Hope you enjoy wire baskets as much as I.

I'll be making a trip that way next week

to see some real treasures-

my babies:)

Bonnie:)

Drawer Reveal

The sweet little drawer turned out okay.

I'm not one to add color,

but I needed something to make it pop!

I will probably distress it a bit.

 I painted the detail with Southern Honey, 

Ellie Mae.

Chalk paint works well on brass 

so I painted this brass candle stand 

that's been sitting on a top shelf.

I think the blue canning jar 

draws the eye to the detail on the drawer.

The birdie needs a nest.

That will be another Spring project.

For now he has a new home.
The dome on the candle stand
will have to be his nest for now.