Apple Basket Makeover

 

I am spending more and more time dreaming in white in blogland, and I am happily addicted to pinning lovely whites and creams like crazy on my pinterest boards. In my own home I am still drawn to incorporating worn leathers and warm wood tones which add depth and a "lived-in" feel to the ethereal beauty of  my cottage white walls, white distressed furniture pieces and decorative accents. I love too many different decorating styles to ever have a completely white or strictly shabby chic decor, but I doubt I will ever back to putting much color on my walls even if the white/cream "trend" goes out. If trends revolve back to bold color, it won't matter...I am sold on whites for life! As a collector, I love the creams and whites on our walls because they provide the perfect back drop for my ever-evolving displays and vignettes. Despite having a lot of junk and collectibles, the walls create a sense of calm unity and the look is always pulled together.

I am now getting to the point that I find it hard to resist slapping white chalk paint on anything and everything because I am obsessed always so pleased with the results whenever I do. I was really sick with the flu last week and all I really felt like doing was pinning. All the inspiration was driving me crazy however, so here is what I did this weekend to satisfy my white cravings...

Earlier this summer I bought several old apple baskets at a yard sale, like the ones in the picture below. I love these types of baskets. So many memories of going to the market with my mom and seeing them filled with fresh produce.

source: http://rowhousenest.com/2011/05/08/basketville-baskets/

Mine had been outside so it was a little warped and mildewy. I sprayed it with a bleach and water solution and let it sun-dry. Then I painted it with a homemade chalk-paint recipe. White love strikes again! I had some extra burlap so I adorned the basket with a generous bow. It turned out even better than I thought. There are so many uses for this basket, both functional and decorative, especially with fall coming. Even empty, it is still so pretty.

For now the basket is sitting in this chair. I recently found it at a yard sale for $1. Since it was already white and a little chippy I kept it just the way it was. No extra work. Score!

 I stuffed the basket with a beautiful vintage chenille twin coverlet. Then I made a little stick bundle out of some broken chair spindles that I salvaged from some other furniture makeovers.  

These leftover spindles from misc. broken chairs (previously brown) were
originally tossed out by the garbage, but
I thought they still had possiblity for crafts or decorative potential, so I brought them in and painted them white too!

         Here is a prime example of why I chant the "use what you have" decorating mantra.  I love how this little spindle bundle turned out. Now it looks so pretty tied up with an old crochet remnant and scraps of burlap. And to think they were destined for the landfill!

   I also put this sweet little book in the basket as a prop for the post photos. It was a surprise gift from my best friend when I dropped off her birthday gift. We all know it is better to give than recieve, but its still always fun to receive! In addition to its lovely cover, the book has the most tantilizing pictures of various French flea markets (on my life's to-do list). Until I actually get to make that dream come true, I will settle for wandering through the pages.

Enjoy your blog visit!

 

2013:

http://startathome.blogspot.com/2013/10/furniture-and-paint-party-18-and-50.html

 

 

2012 Linking up:

http://fadedcharmcottage.blogspot.com/2012/08/white-wednesday-167.html

http://thestylesisters.blogspot.com/

http://blissfulrhythm.blogspot.com/2012/08/home-and-garden-thursday_29.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ADelightsomeLife+%28A+Delightsome+Life%29

http://bec4-beyondthepicketfence.blogspot.com/2012/08/under-100-linky-party_29.html

http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com/2012/08/time-travel-thursday-112-talented-time.html

http://www.primpjunktion.com/

http://commonground-debrasvintagedesigns.blogspot.com/2012/08/vintage-inspiration-103-all-things-home.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed: blogspot/bCGJMl (Common Ground)

Demijohns

Hello everyone! Just a quick post about a demi-john I found for $1 back in late spring when my peonies were in bloom.

Demi-johns (Dames-Jeannes in French, or "Jimmyjohns" in South Eastern US slang) are large glass containers covered in wicker or burlap to keep out the light to protect the alcohol, or for protection during transportation. Many people choose to display them without the coverings due to the lovely colors and shapes of the bottles, or simply because the wicker is damaged. It wasn't until blogging that I became familiarized with these bottles, and I was intrigued after seeing the gorgeous displays and collections many of you have put together. I don't necessarily copy trends in decorating so I didn't specifically set out to find one, but when I happened upon mine for $1.00 I certainly snatched it right up!  I have also noticed them in the Pottery Barn and Ballard catalogs, and I have come to appreciate their old world charm. I vaguely remember my mom having one when I was very young.

                                                           Source: Pottery Barn

Here is mine...a little tattered on the bottom, but for a dollar, how could I pass it up? Overall its in great shape and I had no idea how pricey they can get. $300 in Pottery Barn!

 I'm sure this little beauty will appear in future posts once I have found the perfect spot for it. For now I am off to search for inspiration and while I'm at it, I'll share some of the images I find with you. Enjoy!

Source: http://thetialys.wordpress.com/tag/demijohns/


Source: http://harmonyandhome.blogspot.com/2009_07_01_archive.html


Source: http://savvysouthernstyle.blogspot.com/2011/05/vintage-love.html

Partying with:
http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com/2012/08/feathered-nest-friday_16.html
http://bec4-beyondthepicketfence.blogspot.com/2012/08/under-100-linky-party_22.html

Pretty Little Post

We have already been back-to-school for a week! August is flying by and I have had no time for blogging, pinning, decorating, or junking lately and I feel so out of sorts. So this evening I decided to make some time to sneak in a "pretty little post" for White Wednesday and the upcoming weekend blog parties. Since I am short on time I am using some things that I had worked on and photographed earlier in the summer, but didn't get a chance to post. Its not a long post but there are lots of pretty little things in yummy whites and creams for you to savor!

To begin, I want to show you the first bottles I embellished back in the spring and early summer.

    The first step of cleaning them is always the most tedious! They were so dirty that I decided to use antique sheet music to cover the bottles entirely. Then came the fun part of adding the vintage lace, buttons, burlap and some scrapbooking stickers. I really enjoyed working on them and I now I am totally hooked on embellished and altered bottles. I have since found other easier and more creative ways cover them: (http://junkaholicsunanimous.blogspot.com/2012/07/busy-embellishing-bottles.html).

            Pictured above is the very first bottle I worked on which inspired several others. In the background you can see some of my favorite junk finds that I worked into a vintage vignette for this photo. Also, I just noticed that after the all of my attention to detail, I neglected to notice one of my son's Lego Star-Wars light saber pieces... No way I am editing that out. That's real life folks!

 While I was working on the bottles I also experiemented with making some coffee filter flowers and paper flowers to put in the bottles.

My first was a very simple carnation with a vintage button in the center

 Next I got brave and tried out a paper flower using antique sheet music with a vintage brooch in the center. This one was tricky, as the old music was fragile and ripped easily. I love it but for now I think I'll stick with the coffee filters or maybe card stock.

        Love this small bottle too. It is topped by my first coffee filter mini-rose. It looks so similar to a dried rose its hard to tell the difference. I will definitely be making more of these!

 I had this "F" sticker in my scrapbooking stash so I personalized this one.

While I was decoupaging away I decided to cover this cheap foam necklace holder to sell, but it turned out so pretty that I had to keep it. After all, I needed another way to display more vintage-blingy finds on my dresser. In the background is a Beethoven inspired bottle that I created and sold the next day in my antiques booth. Of  all the things I made, its the only one that I didn't hoarde for myself  decided to sell.

                      And lastly, a sneak peak of some of the things in our new shabby-romantic bedroom, the perfect place for lots of vintage dreams in whites and creams! Once I get back into the swing of things with school I will be posting the full  bedroom reveal. Until then, have fun blog-hopping!

Linking up: http://fadedcharmcottage.blogspot.com/2012/08/white-wednesday-165.html

http://commonground-debrasvintagedesigns.blogspot.com/2012/08/vintage-inspiration-101-town-and-prairie.html?utm_source=BP_recent

http://thecharmofhome.blogspot.com/2012/08/home-sweet-home-80.html

http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com/2012/08/feathered-nest-friday_16.html