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This is a picture of a eastern European cabinet I bought several years ago. The vase was a gift from a friend and the metal cross w/ the turquoise stone was also a gift from another friend. I love all of these pieces. It has been so rainy or cold or windy lately there haven't begun to be any interesting yard or estate sales. But this a.m. there was a liquidation sale at a local machine company. Sounded different and interesting and a place to find metal. Well, I didn't know what a lot of the machine stuff was, but their prices were right and I got a heavy duty gray metal book case for $15. It looked like new. The rack I was using for my forever magazines, i.e. Country Home, etc. was swaying in the middle. So these sturdy shelves fit the bill. I put a white linen runner on top for contrast. Additionally, the rack was made available to put in the new greenhouse which I was also happy about. All in all - it was a productive day.
Here a few shots of some of our beach finds. The top right picture shows a rock with shells and other things embedded in the rock and some "Chinese writing" rocks. These rocks are very interesting. In the top left corner, my husband went out to run on the beach and came back with all these sand dollars. The lower left picture shows our sea glass which included clear, green, amber, aqua and our first, 2 pieces of cobalt. We also collected a number of really beautiful rocks that had different colors. I wish I would learn more about rocks so I could identify some of these. Some of the broken shell or rocks pieces are so smooth, you just want to keep rubbing them. We love wandering and collecting on the beach. And, Kira, our dog was just in heaven. She doesn't understand why we leave.
This little plant stand also came from Trinidad's on our trip. It was great fun getting to shop at his place.
We visited Atelier De Campagne in Watsonville on our trip and this was one of my favorite finds. It's an old wash basin stand with great age. We have been hauling it with us in the RV which is where the pic was taken (please excuse the the towels and dog bone). Trinidad and his partner have such great stuff they bring back in containers from France and elsewhere.
The rain left finally and we woke up to sun and blue sky with puffy white clouds here and there. Spent the day wandering and collecting sea glass and other interesting finds on the beach. Oh yes, and throwing and throwing the stick for our dog. She'd chase that stick all day if we just kept throwing it.
One of the things I have enjoyed collecting are wire flower frogs. I have found most at yard or estate sales and flea markets. At this point in time, the criteria I generally use to decide whether to add a new one is: 1) it must be wire or metal, 2) is it different from what I already have, 3) do I find it attractive or interesting, and 4) is it reasonably priced. There are a couple that I have seen and would really like to have, but they were so expensive, I couldn't bring myself to get them. I went to a yard sale one Saturday morning and was the second person there. Unfortunately, the first person was a dealer who walked out with a whole box full of interesting old frogs that he bought for $5. Darn!!
As I was stepping through mud puddles, dodging things being blow out of the tree and getting drenched today to go out and check the yard, I was reminded of the above family story. It was published in an old Kansas newspaper and I have shortened it here. I guess I'm just not as hardy as my ancestors. There are so many stories of their adventures and really scary situations they frequently handled. Maybe it is just that they just had different challenges than ours in current times.
Several years ago a little violet managed to find its way to a crack in the bricks on our front porch. Each summer I think it might not make it because the bricks get hot and there is not water except what I occasionally give it. Then in the winter I think it won't make it because the bricks get so cold. But I've been wrong. It has survived and grown and now - this year for the first time - it is blooming. Here it is only 42 deg. out today and I have these little violets to greet me at the front door.
I think I posted a pic of this crib before it was put together. I put the 4 sides together to study it for possible uses. I have the springs, but I am considering using it as a planter box and would leave the springs out in that case. We'd build a box that would set inside on the ground. I was thinking about planting a few vegies that climb and sprawl, i.e. a bean, squash, egg plant. The big thing now is to see if I can find a spot in our small area where we have sun that will handle the crib in a visually pleasing way. This crib is actually a youth bed size so it a bit wider and longer than a regular crib. I will have to move current plants out of the garden to make this change. There is plenty of time until planting time is here. More to come on this spring project.
There just isn't anything attractive in my garden right now, so I've found myself searching photos of other seasons when things were green and better groomed. These pieces of drift wood and rocks were brought home in Oct from our trip north to Washington and Canada. I brought quite a bit home and was trying to think of creative things to do with the various pieces. This was one piece I put together.
Here a few shots of some of our beach finds. The top right picture shows a rock with shells and other things embedded in the rock and some "Chinese writing" rocks. These rocks are very interesting. In the top left corner, my husband went out to run on the beach and came back with all these sand dollars. The lower left picture shows our sea glass which included clear, green, amber, aqua and our first, 2 pieces of cobalt. We also collected a number of really beautiful rocks that had different colors. I wish I would learn more about rocks so I could identify some of these. Some of the broken shell or rocks pieces are so smooth, you just want to keep rubbing them. We love wandering and collecting on the beach. And, Kira, our dog was just in heaven. She doesn't understand why we leave. 
As I was stepping through mud puddles, dodging things being blow out of the tree and getting drenched today to go out and check the yard, I was reminded of the above family story. It was published in an old Kansas newspaper and I have shortened it here. I guess I'm just not as hardy as my ancestors. There are so many stories of their adventures and really scary situations they frequently handled. Maybe it is just that they just had different challenges than ours in current times.
I think I posted a pic of this crib before it was put together. I put the 4 sides together to study it for possible uses. I have the springs, but I am considering using it as a planter box and would leave the springs out in that case. We'd build a box that would set inside on the ground. I was thinking about planting a few vegies that climb and sprawl, i.e. a bean, squash, egg plant. The big thing now is to see if I can find a spot in our small area where we have sun that will handle the crib in a visually pleasing way. This crib is actually a youth bed size so it a bit wider and longer than a regular crib. I will have to move current plants out of the garden to make this change. There is plenty of time until planting time is here. More to come on this spring project.
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