Sea Shells and Roses

Bonjour Mes Amis,

Each summer I always love to bring out sea shells that we've collected on beach vacations over the years.  Not only do they say "summer is finally here!", but they also serve to bring back many wonderful memories of places we have visited.

 So a few weeks ago when I received the most beautiful hand painted shell from a very sweet and oh so talented friend, I could hardly wait to incorporate it into one of my shell vignettes!

 I knew right away that I wanted to create a shell display in my glass apothecary jar, that was a garage sale bargain from last summer. You may have seen me use it in various displays thru out the year.  

I've placed it on a pretty large silver tray, along with some sand dollars, a little glittered shell and a pretty pink rose.

 Ok, now back to the star of my vignette!  Just look at this shell with the most gorgeous hand painted roses!  Isn't it beautiful?  I love the touches of blue that my friend added amongst the roses and leaves.

 I think it looks perfect with my sea shell collection!

Oh, I forgot to mention that I added some decorative sand to the bottom of the apothecary jar.  I found a bag of it last year at Jo Ann Fabrics.

 Here is another close up of the shell.  Love!!

 It's on our dining table, along with a vintage white eyelet runner that I've had forever.

 More shell and rose love!

 It's hard to see in the photos, but there is a nice clear glossy coating to the shell, giving it a glass like sheen.

 Here is one last look.

Have a great weekend!

Recent Projects

Bonjour Mes Amis!

Hope you all had a great weekend!  It's been hot and muggy here at the chateau, making it the perfect excuse to stay inside and work on some projects!

So today I thought I'd share with you some of my latest creations, which I've put in my Etsy shop.

 I was super excited to discover this large galvanized flower bucket recently, and just knew that a pretty label from the Graphics Fairy would be the perfect addition!

 I've used this gorgeous French perfume label quite a few times.

 I think the colors are so pretty!

 Ok, do you ever have those projects sitting around forever, all but forgotten?

Well, I had this cute little vintage wooden desk organizer stashed away for several years.  Can you believe that it was bright orange when I found it?  Ugh!  Well, I had originally painted it aqua, and just wasn't crazy about it.  Oh, I almost forgot that I added the cute little wooden ball feet too (love!).

 I finally pulled this poor puppy out of the cupboard a few weeks ago, and gave it the makeover that it deserved!  I painted it creamy white, and bought the prettiest little clear glass knob for the drawer.

 I'm so much happier with it now!  

 I also painted a set of matching frames the same creamy dreamy white!

Just for fun, I added the most gorgeous Parisian themed wrapping paper to the inside of the frames.  The paper was gifted to my by a sweet and thoughtful friend.  I can hardly wait to find more uses for this pretty paper.

 Of course the paper can easily be replaced with photos or artwork.

 Oooh, la, la!

 You know how much I love creating chalkboards. And how much I love picture frames.  So I just had to turn this cute oval frame (which was formerly boring brown!), into a new pretty in pink chalkboard!

 I think it would be so cute in a little girl's room or nursery!

And of course, I couldn't resist sharing a few photos of our little girl, Katie!

 She will soon be 5 months old, and is growing up so fast!

She sure has quite the personality!

 Here she is on one of her favorite perches, the wicker bench at the foot of our bed.

 All this picture taking is making me sleepy!

Keep cool, and have a great week!

Tea Cup Bird Feeder, and Puppy Goes Camping

Hi everyone, hope you are having a great week!

Today I wanted to show you the cutest little bird feeder, that I received a few weeks ago as a birthday gift from my sister.

 Isn't it charming?  She purchased it at a farmer's market, and it's fashioned from a tea cup and saucer that's been glued to a milk glass vase that's been turned upside down.  What a great idea, huh?! A heavy plastic stake came with it to support it.

 My sister knows that blue and white is my very favorite color combo, so I was thrilled  to put it in my garden!  I've placed it among some of my hostas, and sweet William that have just started blooming.

Aren't they gorgeous?

 Here's a closer look at the tea cup feeder.  I think it's such a fun idea, I would love to try my hand making a few!

 I think the birdies will enjoy it (if I can keep the squirrels out of it, that is!).

 My peonies finally bloomed, but most of them were in their glory last week, when we were away on a camping trip.  Phooey!  At least I was able to pick several blossoms today for a nice bouquet.

 Since I was in a pink mood this morning while snapping these shots, I thought I'd show you a close up of one of my spirea bushes that is in full bloom, and looking oh so pretty!

 Hot pink impatiences.  For some strange reason, they have hardly grown a bit since I planted them (two entire flats!) in early May.  At least the flowers are pretty!

 We spent last week camping in our motor home in Northern Michigan, along the shores of Lake Huron.  We were especially excited to take our Katie on her very first trip, and she had a blast!

Here she is at the beach that was just literally steps away from our campsite.

                                            Working on her tan with Daddy:)  

                (who was feeling rather camera shy, and insisted that his head not appear in these photos!)

 Where are my sunglasses when I need them?

 And here is a view of our campsite from our "back yard"!

 Taking a little break from the sun in the motor home!

 Camping can be exhausting for a little puppy!

 Nap time with lambie.  Night night!

More Paris Sights

Bonjour Mes Amis!

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

Today I thought I would share a few more photos of our trip to Paris. Wow, it's hard to believe we were there two weeks ago!

One night we decided to take a one hour tour along the Seine.  A very touristy thing to do, but hey, we're tourists!  We had taken the tour twice before, but never tire of seeing the gorgeous monuments and sights from the river!

 Isn't the Eiffel Tower just magical at sunset?

 Above is my very favorite bridge, the Ponte Alexandre III.  I wish I had gotten a better shot of it, but since it was a chilly night, we decided to sit down below, rather than on the top deck.  

Below is another tour boat.  It's also very popular to take dinner cruises on the Seine. We've not done that before, maybe some day!

 Here is another shot of "my" bridge.  You can get a peek a boo glimpse of the Eiffel Tower in the back ground!

 The infamous Louvre museum.  It was built in the 16th century as a palace, and it's huge! 

 Below is the Musee d'Orsay, full of Impressionistic work.  It was originally built as a train station.

 Did you know that Paris also has a Statue of Liberty?  Much smaller than ours, of course!  It is so funny to see her standing guard near the Eiffel Tower!

 After our boat ride, it tried to sprinkle a bit as we were walking back to our hotel, and we were treated to the most amazing rainbow, below!

 About a 10 minute walk from our hotel is the Marche aux Fleurs (flower market).  It's the oldest and one of the largest flower markets in all of Paris, and is always one of my favorite places to visit!

Just look at these amazing orchids!

 I snapped these outside the window of the Maison de Orchidee (house of orchids). While I was trying to avoid the glare on the window, I think the reflection of the buildings looks pretty neat!

 Inside the market were the most amazing decorative bird houses!

Hubby was admiring them too.  I would have loved to bring one home, but they were very pricey (not to mention the fact that it would've been tough to fit in my carry on!!).

 The hydrangeas were just stunning!  They all were so perfect looking, they didn't seem real!

 Have you ever seen a plant like the one below?  It was so unusual, I just had to snap a few shots.

Not sure what it's called, but the blossoms had to be at least 12" long!

 I just love this art deco style metro (subway) sign right outside the market.  Notice the neat lights, too?

A block from our hotel was the cutest little hand sewn dress shop for children.  Of course the blue color is my favorite, and I think the clothes hanging from the lines by clothes pins is just too sweet!

 I love seeing how Parisians dress their children.  Definitely different than here in the states.  No matter what the age, they are oh so stylish!

 And last of all, an incredible fountain on Rue Saint Michel, which depicts the archangel St. Michael (the protector of France) conquering the devil.  Built in the mid 1850's, it's an impressive 85' tall by 49' wide, and originally was supposed to be of Napoleon Bonaparte. So that is your little history lesson for today! 

Hope you all have a great week!

Au revoir!