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!

Monday, August 2, 2010

Parisian Bistro Meets Tropical Oasis Sunroom

Hello everyone and happy Monday!
Today I thought I would give you a little tour of my favorite room in the house, our sunroom.
We really like spending alot of time in here, and enjoy eating breakfast and lunch here.  It is at the back of our house, and since our back yard is surrounded by woods, there is lots of privacy.  We often see deer come right up in the yard (they eat my hostas!), and we have tons of squirrels, chipmunks, and bunny rabbits that our little dog will watch by the hour!

When I first saw this cute little green bistro set a one of my favorite local stores 2 years ago, I just fell in love with it. Well, a week or so later hubby surprised me with it as a wedding anniversary gift!

Here is another shot.

I wish that I had a before picture of this chandelier, but I transformed it several years ago, long before blogging!  It started out life as a hideously ugly (and I mean ugly!) lamp hanging in our entry way.  It was black, with a really ugly gold glass globe, and was circa 1970 Spanish style...yuck!  After removing the glass and wiring, I spray painted it Heirlomm White (of course!), added some pretty blue crystal beads, a votive candle, and viola!  One of my favorite trash to treasure projects!
I'd been looking for a bistro sign for a long time and just never seemed to find the right one.  When I spotted this last year at Hobby Lobby 1/2 off, I was thrilled!
 This is one of my favorite pieces of furniture, my Grandma's old sewing machine.  I really love the French bird print above.  It's just a large sheet of decorative paper, and I got the frame (that used to be gold) at a garage sale, which I couldn't wait to spray paint!

Here's a closer look.  Sorry for all the glare!  I just couldn't get a good picture!
I love my wire plant stand!
One of the greatest things about our sunroom is all the light we get.  Aside from all of the large windows, we have 4 skylights in the room (I couldn't get them all in this shot!), so it's really nice & bright.


I found this vintage needlepoint picture at a yard sale many years ago, for just $2 I think.  I really love the colors, and it's in the original frame.
This is looking towards the kitchen.
Our fountain. It decided not to work when I took this picture!  Phooey!  For awhile, it bugged me that I had a bit of a French theme going on, as well as this Hawaiian looking fountain.  Then it just hit me the other day!  There is "fusion cooking", why not "fusion decorating"?!  After all, our sunroom is full of tropical looking plants, and who says that can't go with the French feel?
Ok, this doesn't fit in with either the Parisian or tropical feel!  Hubby has a plane, so he often gets plane related gifts!  So this silly sign is a good conversation piece!

We have two large hoya plants hanging in here.  They finished blooming a month or so ago, but luckily I still have a picture to show you of the gorgeous blooms!  They were full of these waxy looking blooms for months!  I wish you could smell them!  They release their scent at night, and it's just heavenly!

I love to sit here in the winter during a snowstorm and enjoy a nice cup of hot cocoa!  Feels so snug & cozy! I am so lucky that I have a handy hubby!  He built this room all by himself!

Well, that concludes our tour! Thanks for stopping by! I've had such a busy day today cleaning and doing laundry, so I think I just may have to relax in the wicker chaise lounge with nice glass of wine as soon as I am done here!

12 comments:

Christine said...

Hi Donna,
I just love your space! I can see why you enjoy it so much. It looks so inviting, I can totally imagine sitting out there with a cup of coffee (or wine!). Kudos to you and the hubby...
Christine

Victoria said...

Wow, I can certainly see why that is your favorite room in the house! What a lovely place to relax and watch the birds go by!!! Just lovely:)

Linda @ Itsy Bits And Pieces said...

Donna~ this is such a lovely room! I can definitely see why you would spend lots of time there! I love the idea of fusion~ if you surround yourself with what you love, it all seems to work for you!

Anita @ GoingALittleCoastal said...

You're so lucky to have such a beautiful sunroom! Such large pretty windows to see your lovely yard.

Sissie's Shabby Cottage said...

What a warm and inviting room with wonderful views. I love it.

hugs
Sissie

Leo said...

What a beautiful room.. especially with the windows overlooking the backyard... is that a turquoise deck? What a nice husband you have to surprise you with the bistro set... very sweet.

Wendy said...

I LOVE IT! When we get a house...I'm pretty sure I want a sunroom like this! You did a fantastic job decorating!! :)

Amy Chalmers said...

You are lucky to have a handy hubby to make your sunroom for you both to enjoy! I love sunshine and it is the best accessory a room can have, no?

Heaven's Walk said...

Hi Donna! First of all, what a great sunroom! Just beautiful! It's cozy and inviting, and the perfect place to spend a rainy (or snowy!) day dreaming about summertime. :) I'm now obsessing over your French body pitcher. Where did you nab it?? I've started collecting them and have been on the lookout for a zinc one.

Second - on Debbie's blog you mentioned that you were located in southern Michigan? Where abouts? Just wondering if it's close to me at all... :)

Third - thanks for visiting and following my blog! It's always such a joy to hear from you, friend! :)

xoxo laurie@heavens-walk

Debbie said...

LOVE your sunroom!!! I have a sunroom, but it's just that... sun!! Gets WAY TOO hot in there - even with a fan and windows, so it becomes rather useless. Of course maybe if MY sunroom was as beautiful as your sunroom I would just sweat it out!!! LOL GREAT JOB!

Thank you so much for visiting me and leaving such a sweet comment about my bottles. I've been "following" you for some time, so I appreciate you stopping by!!!

Unknown said...

Your sunroom looks great. It’s a perfect place for reading or enjoying a cup of tea. You have a lot of unique yet lovely pieces too! You did a great job in combining a Parisian bistro and tropical oasis theme! It kinda reminds me of my mom’s, so I love it! :D
Aldo Finney @ Jacob Sunroom & Exteriors

Graphics said...

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