Asking for Your Prayers

I don't often share personal matters here, but today I come asking for your prayers for my Mom. Yesterday, her beloved miniature schnauzer Jenny died.  Jenny would have been 10 in September, and was the light of my Mom's life, and a huge part of the family.  On Wednesday night, Jenny suffered a terrible seizure that lasted at least 1/2 hour.  My sister and Mom rushed her to the vet.  She then was taken to an animal hospital yesterday, where an MRI revealed that Jenny had suffered a massive stroke, which then caused the seizure.  She passed away yesterday at the hospital, and my sister, Mom and I went to get Jenny and bring her home.  It was one of the saddest, most heartbreaking things I have ever witnessed.

Jenny was so healthy and active and loving, right up til the very end.  She never met a soul she didn't love.  This comes as a total shock.  The last time I saw her was Tuesday, and she was her usual frisky and playful self.

My mom, who is 85 and has moderate dementia, is devastated and shocked.  So are we.  She keeps forgetting why they took Jenny to the vet in the first place.  I worry what this loss will do to her.  Jenny was such a huge comfort to my Mom when we lost my Dad 8 years ago to leukemia.

Could you please pray for comfort and peace for my Mom?  It really means alot. Thank you so much.

Flying Fun

It was such a beautiful and sunny day yesterday, that hubby and I decided to fly in his plane down to Kelley's Island, Ohio, which is in the middle of Lake Erie.  It was my first time going up in the plane since we moved back to Michigan, and it felt so good to get my wings back!

The 40 minute flight there was beautiful.  The first shot is a view of farmland not too far from our home.  Love all of that green!

Here we are, approaching the island.

We took our nifty pair of red folding bikes along.  We just fold them up, put them in their carrying cases, and pop them in the back seat! The red bikes against hubby's blue and white plane look rather patriotic, don't you think?

Ok, I'm getting a bit ahead of myself in all the excitement!  Here we are approaching the runway.

Wow!  That runway sure looks short! No worries, it's just an illusion!

Good thing I don't have to worry about landing this puppy!

Kelley's Island is nice and flat, making it perfect for bike riding.  Good thing there aren't too many hills, as neither of us have ridden bikes since two years ago.  And I am feeling it today (but in a good way, I guess!).

We saw a man tooling around in this cute little Model T.

 

 He parked it right next to a shop that rents out bikes.  Love the pink ones! 

Darn!  Looking at this photo, I realized that I forgot to take a picture of a giant sized aqua Adirondack chair, that you can just get a tiny glimpse of in the upper right of the photo.  Oh well, next time!

Isn't this Gothic style vintage home just the cutest?  It is my absolute favorite on the island.  Just look at that lovely white picket fence, beautiful porch, and gorgeous gingerbread trim! Oh, and the window at the top, which they had shuttered.

***Sigh***

Gorgeous!  I've never seen any trim just like it.

Ok, I could also totally see myself living in this amazing stone mansion! They have been busy renovating it for the past few years, and it's a stunner!  I would dearly love to live in an old stone house.  Imagine how cool it would be in the summer, and warm in the winter!

Love the cupola at the top.  Bet that would be a great place for watching the sun rise and set over Lake Erie!

Here is a side view.  Love that round window at the top, and the corbels, too!  I am so glad that this house is being restored to it's original grandeur, rather than just torn down, like so many other older building seem to be these days!

And here is my very own cute private pilot!

Snapped this shot on the way home.  Off the wing tip at the horizon is Pelee Island, Canada. We've also flown there several times over the years with our bikes.  It's a much larger island, and lots of fun to visit.

And here are more Ohio islands, including South Bass Island.

It sure was a fun day, but whew, am I tired!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Birdcage Reveal

The other day I showed you some of the treasures I found while out garage saling.  One of my very favorite finds that day was a cute little wire birdcage.  While it was nice to begin with, I just knew that it could be oh, so much better after a shabby chic makeover!  So here is what she looks like now!

 And this is what she looked like when I discovered her!

 Of course, I had to paint her my favorite creamy dream white, and distressed her a bit ('cause she is shabby, after all!), and added one of my tea died bird tags.

 I have so much fun creating these tags, which I guess you can say is one of my "signature looks".  I've added them to everything from cloches, vintage book bundles, and baskets.  To a tea died tag, I add a snippet of vintage sheet music, a sweet little birdie stamped image, and a silk hydrangea bloom, which I've glittered (they don't call me the "Glitter Queen" for nothing!).  I then tied it all on with a generous bow of wonderfully crinkly taupe seam binding.  Oh, and I added a tiny rhinestone, for a bit of added bling!!

 Love these cute little hearts!

 And it's got a nice big door that really opens.

 I think she is much happier now that she is shabbyliscious! While I would dearly love to keep her for myself, I'm going to put her in my Etsy shop later tonight.  (note to self:  be on the lookout for a neat birdcage to makeover for myself!!).

Do you love birdcages as much as I do?
I'm linking up with Kathleen for White Wednesday. Be sure to visit!

Vintage Shabby Chic Candle Sconces

Vintage candle sconces are one of my favorite things to transform, and today I wanted to share with you some of my latest creations.  I was super thrilled to discover a pair of vintage Homco sconces last week, in a design that I'd never seen before.

Of course, they didn't start out life looking this gorgeous!  Oh, no!

This is what they looked like when I found them in a dark and dusty corner of a thrift shop!  Ugggh! I'm sure that many people would have overlooked these poor things!

So, after giving them a much needed bath, I couldn't paint them fast enough!

I've used my favorite "creamy-dreamy" white, followed by just the right amount of distressing to give them shabbyliscious appeal!

Who would have thought they could look this pretty?

The details of these sconces, made of a Syroco type of molded resin, are amazing! I've put them in my Etsy shop, along with the next sconces below.

I wish that I'd taken a before shot of these babies.  They were an awful shiny dark brown when I found them while we were still living in Washington State.  I painted them the same antique white as the other sconces.

They are made by Dart Industries, and truly have the look of carved wood!  Of course they had that awful cheap, plastic-y look when they were shiny brown!

Love the floral design!

I think they are much happier now!

I'll be linking up with Kathleen over at Faded Charm for White Wednesday.
And Kerryanne for Shabbilicious Friday Be sure to visit!

Garage Sale Loot!

Hello everyone, hope you had a great weekend!

On Friday, I lucked out and found some real treasures at a nearby neighborhood garage sale. Well, I should rephrase that and say "treasures in the making", as I'm planing on transforming nearly everything that I'm about to show you!

As soon as I glimpsed this cute little wire bird cage, I just knew that it had shabby potential! I've already painted it creamy white (after giving it a good bath, of course!). and it looks oh, so much better! I'll be sure to share the "after" with you, once I finish adding a few embellishments.

And I couldn't scoop this vintage desk organizer and coordinating pencil holder up soon enough!  I've been lucky to find quite a few of these organizers, that I've transformed with some paint and tlc, but I'd never been fortunate enough to find the pencil holder, too.

This is one of the last organizers that I painted.  Isn't it gorgeous?  So much better than dark and boring brown, don't you think?

I also love finding interesting easels that I can paint, so was super excited to find this neat wire one.  I can't wait to give it my shabbyliscious treatment!!

Ok, I'm so sorry for the not so attractive view of my legs as reflected in the mirror!  Do you know how hard it is to get a good shot of a mirror, without accidentally appearing in it???  At any rate, I was thrilled to find this large mirror, from a Home Interiors party, I think.  It's in excellent condition, and is so much prettier in person.  Ditto with the frame next to it (which I am going to turn into a chalkboard)!  I'm painting them both cream (gee, I think I should by stock in Rustoleum paint, I sure use enough of it!!).

Also I found a pair of tall wooden candlesticks, in dire need of some help! Not only are they covered in wax drippings from head to toe, but the previous owner had nailed in some awful little candle cups at the top.

One of my favorite finds of the day is this beautiful vintage tin, made in Belgium.  I originally was going to put it in my Etsy  shop, but as soon as I got her home, I knew that I couldn't part with her!  The colors are amazing, and I love the gorgeous flower and swirl design.  I have one other neat old vintage tin (from England, I think), so I guess I need to hunt for one more, so that it is an "official" collection!

I'm also always on the prowl for unique picture frames to paint. For some reason, these are appearing round in the photos, but they are actually oval shaped.  The prints of San Francisco (which don't even fit in the frames!) are going "buh-bye"!!!  Even though the glass in one of them was broken (which I'm going to have replaced), I couldn't pass these beauties up!  They are made of a molded resin (like Syroco), and will be so much happier once I get them painted dreamy creamy white!

And last of all, I found this pretty vintage wooden pedestal bowl.  I've transformed quite a few of these babies, so while she might look a bit drab at the moment, she'll soon get a fab makeover, like the pedestal bowl in the last photo!

While this pedestal is a bit different, I just wanted to give you an idea of what a difference paint can make!  I found the one above while living in Washington State, so I think I'll paint my latest pedestal this fun beachy color as well!
Ok, I've got to run, I'm off to do some painting!
Hope you have a great week!

Vintage Aqua Mirrors

I've been showing you mirrors that I've transformed lately, and today I wanted to share with you some of my latest creations!  While "dreamy-creamy" white is still my absolute color to work with, I also really love bright and cheery aqua!

The three mirrors here were all made by Homco.  I thought for sure that I had a "before" photo of this one,but I guess in my excitement to paint it, I forgot!  Anyway, the frame was an awful brown, and trust me when I say that it was not in the least bit attractive!

 

I think she is so much happier with her new look!

 I've been lucky enough to find several of these mirrors in the past (I've got a friend who is also always on the prowl mirror hunting for me as well!).

 I really love how this beauty turned out!  I did remember to get a before photo taken of this one.  A few months ago I also made over one just like this, that I turned into a chalkboard (below). The mirror of that particular piece was in really bad shape, so I had my handy hubby cut a piece of masonite to fit, that I covered in chalkboard vinyl.  I've since sold it in my Etsy shop, and would love to make another one like it!

 Not so pretty "before"!

 Don't you think this would be pretty in a beach cottage style home?

 Ok, I was bad and didn't take a photo of this next mirror and shelf before I began painting it. I found the two at a neighbor's yard sale last weekend.  Also made by Homco, they started out life white, and just looked really, well, "plastic-y"!  (that's a word, right?)

 It's amazing what a difference paint makes, don't you think?

 They no longer have that "cheap-o" plastic look!

 I've put all of these in my Etsy shop.  Tomorrow I am going to some neighborhood garage sales.  This neighborhood has an annual sale every summer, with tons of homes participating!  So, hopefully I will find some treasures to transform, and maybe even get lucky and unearth some more mirrors!

Have a great day!
Linking up with Debra at Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday.
Be sure to visit for tons of inspiring ideas!