Welcome to my blog!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I believe that everyone can have a beautiful home without spending a fortune! One of my favorite things to do is find creative ways to re-purpose things I already have on hand, or have picked up at yard sales and thrift stores. Join me as I share with you some of my favorite ideas for crafting and decorating, as well as travel adventures, and fun things that I pick up on my treasure hunts! Much of my work is influenced by my love all things French, nature, and of course shabby chic! I have gotten so many creative ideas from you very talented bloggers out there, and I hope that I can be an inspiration to you as well!

Friday, October 29, 2010

Oooh, La, La Tags!

Bon Soir Mon Amis!
I have been busy lately making some Parisian themed tags that I thought I'd share with you tonight.


Tea died tags, Parisian rubber stamps, brown velvet rick rac (love!), vintage French book pages, rhinestones, crinkly seam binding, and my glittered French roses.  Yummy!


I just knew when I first learned to make these glittered paper roses, that I soon would become addicted!  Well, I guess I have moved beyond addiction and am now officially obsessed with them!  I just can't seem to stop making them!

I am offering a set of three of these tags as a special free gift with purchase, to the first three people who place an order from my Etsy shop.  I am not mentioning this offer in my shop, it is just for those who see it here on my blog.  So, if you place an order, drop me a line that you saw my tag offer and I will include three of them with your package.  You can visit my shop here if you wish.  Have a wonderful night!

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Let's Go to the Botanical Gardens!

Hello Ladies!
It's been a dreary, cold & somewhat rainy day here in Michigan.  The perfect kind of day to visit our local Botanical Gardens!  We are so fortunate that we live just a few minutes away from this amazing place; we are members there, so we visit often.  There are miles and miles of hiking trails, gorgeous landscaping, and a beautiful conservatory.  Today we took our dog for a walk there, dodging raindrops.  Then, we rewarded ourselves with a trip to the conservatory! Come join me!


There are three different rooms here in the conservatory.  First we'll check out the tropical dome.  The second you step inside, you truly feel as if you are in Hawaii!  It's warm, very humid, and full of gorgeous lush plants, like the bird of paradise that I've pictured in the first photo.  Check out this huge papaya tree below!

I love anthuriums!


Huge fan palm, and a pretty pink flower that I'm afraid I don't know the name of!

Next, we are heading to the arid dome.
This prickly pear cactus is huge!
Love this big agave plant.



More prickly looking plants. Ouch!

Next we head to my very favorite, the temperate house.




The great thing is that there's always something different blooming each time we visit.




Love this camellia. It's so perfect, it doesn't even look real!





 Gorgeous orchids!


I love these fuchsia plants.  They always make me think of ballerinas!
There are also some amazing bonsai.  They are just so fascinating, I think!


Well, that wraps up our little tour for the day!  Wow, it almost feels like a mini vacation!  Some day I'll share with you photos of the grounds, which are equally stunning.
Hope you are having a great night!  Now I need to get caught up on everyone's blogs and see what you've been up to!

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Vintage French Roses.....Ooooh, la, la!!

Bon Joir,Mon Amis!
Yesterday I showed you the window that I transformed with Redoute roses.  Well, today I'd like to share with you some decoupaged wall hangings that I made with more of the lovely roses!  Hey, I can't grow roses, so I figure I might as well create with them!  First of all, just who is this "Redoute" person, you may ask?
Redoute was the most sought after and talented French botanical illustrator of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. And, Pierre-Joseph Redoute just so happened to be the personal art teacher of Marie-Antoinette! Oui!  He also instructed Napoleon's two wives.  Pretty impressive! Ok, enough of the history lesson!

 Vintage French book pages, gorgeous roses, crinkly seam binding, and vintage crystal earrings!  Oooh,la,la!  I have placed these wall hangings in my Etsy shop.  You can see them here if you are interested.


You know by now how much I adore this lovely seam binding!

Here's an up close look at those pretty earrings.  You can never have too much sparkle!
Hope you are having a tres magnifique day!
Au Revoir!
I have linked up with:
The French Cupboard Holiday Preview Party
Funky Junk Interiors SNS 
Beyond the Pickett Fence Under $100 Party 
Between Naps on the Porch Metamorphosis Monday

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

A Window Makeover

Hello ladies!

I have seen so many of you do some amazing transformations on old windows, so I thought I would show you my window makeover!  This was a project that was a long time in the making.  Or, I should say it was a project that took me a long time to get around to!  I felt so guilty walking by that poor old window, month after month!  So finally I took the time to give it a much needed facelift!

It was in pretty bad shape when my mom gave it to me, so after lots of scrubbing, reglazing the windows (thanks to hubby!), and the addition of some nice creamy white paint, she was looking better already!  I love roses, so I was thrilled to find a book at our library's used book sale of Redoute roses!





The hardest part was picking out my favorite roses, they all were so pretty!  I then added them with some spray adhesive to the back side of the window.
 Ok, here is what she used to look like!  Very tired, sad, and worn out!  This picture is actually pretty flattering, too!
 Here are a few close ups.  Love, love, love roses!



I've got it hanging over my white wicker love seat downstairs.  I'm so happy the way she turned out!  Now I need to hunt for some more old windows to transform!

I am linking up with Kathleen over at Faded Charm for White Wednesday.  Don't miss it!