Really, Anthropologie?!

Are you really charging $198 for an old telephone?

I think I just saw one of these for $2 at Goodwill.

Other ridiculousness:

Please please please, tell me no one else would pay $2,100 for this easel.



Now, don't get me wrong, I love Anthropologie as much as the next gal, but sometimes they are just down right crazy.

Here's some not-so-crazy things I'm craving from Anthroplogie:

These unique magnifying sconces priced at $48.

It's not like anything else I've ever seen before.

Simple as that.

This mouse pad priced at only $12.

It's cute and clever.

It would make me giggle every time I saw it.

I've noticed that Anthropologie is a lot like Pottery Barn.

A lot of the stuff is things that you could find at a flea market. Everything is crazy high-priced. A closer look, however, will sometimes reveal quaint little finds, making the search worth it.



Handmade Jewelry



I know most my readers have a passion for antique and/or handmade.

Are you looking for a unique piece of jewelry?

Check out the things that my friend Beth makes:

These are just my favorites.

There are a lot more to see on any one of her sites.

You can find these on her web page, her etsy shop, or her Facebook page.

Can't afford to buy something now but love her work?

Just "fan" her on Facebook, so you can find her in the future!

Got your taxes back and looking for a way to spend it?

Support this local artist and old high school friend of mine by buying some beautiful handmade jewelry.

She has many items with a large range of prices!

Beth's goal is to get over 1000 fans on her Facebook profile, so even if you don't want to buy something, I would love for my readers to show her some support!

This is the new object of my affection:


100% of the proceeds from these cherry blossom earrings will go to the relief in Japan. These weren't on the Etsy website at the time of publication, but you can find it on her regular website http://www.bethmillner.bigcartel.com/product/100-goes-to-japan-cherry-blossom-earrings

What girl doesn't want awesome earrings plus donating to a good cause?
Once I get my taxes back, this will be one of my first purchases!

Closet Progress

I completely forgot to show you the work I had done in my closet before the inspector came.

Sorry!

I took down this row of hooks.

I know it's just a closet, but screwing some hooks into a 1x4 just seems lazy to me.

Like my mom says:

"Do it right the first time or just don't do it at all."

It's solid advice, really.

So I routed the edges, primed and painted it, and reattached the hooks.

I don't have a picture for you. I'm going to wait 'til the closet is fully done.

Then, my oldest helped me out in the shop to build a door.

Those hinges are awesome. They are old cast iron hinges that were in my grandpa's workshop.

I picked them up the day before I took this picture.

What luck, hey?

My grandma is moving out of her house, so we're clearing everything out.

I have some pretty awesome antique tools.

The doorknob was also free. I was looking for something in my workshop, and I ended up finding the little wooden knob.

I still have to paint the door, though.

It's going to be painful to paint. You know how much I love birch grain. I'm going to hate covering up such beauty, but the door would look best white.



I still have a lot of work to do in the closet. However, it probably won't be done until after the Spring semester, in a little less than 2 months.

I was really hoping to knock it all out during Spring Break, but that didn't happen.

I need to buy a whole new box of floor planks, because I'm one plank short.

They don't sell individual pieces, either.

See it in the left corner?

And of course I can't put in the baseboard until that piece of flooring is down. I don't want to paint the door trim (those are primed pieces) until the baseboard is up.

List of closet stuff to do:

-paint the door

-finish the flooring

-put in the baseboard

-wood putty the nail holes and paint all the trim

-put up the wall hooks

-build a light box to cover the fluorescent tube lights

-build a shoe/purse cubby area

I'm also going to be building some utility shelving inside the utility part of the closet for paint cans.

It will be much easier than tripping over everything in our messy basement.

On another note, we had a taste of Spring in our area. Most of the snow was gone, my flowers were poking out of the ground, the birds were chirping.

Then we had a crazy nasty snowstorm.

But we're in full Spring mode anyways.

The snow will melt eventually.

;)

Forcing Branches

Yesterday, shortly after my Birthday Roses post, I received a comment from one of my lovely readers:

Have you met Courtenay yet? If you haven't, visit Signal Hill Interiors.

So, her comment got me thinking, "Why should we have to wait for lilacs?"

I know that forcing blooms is possible, but I've never read about forcing lilacs.

So I did a little research.

Check out this page at BHG.com

If you scroll down to the bottom, it actually says that March is the best time to force lilacs indoors!

On Page 3 of that article, it will give you step-by-step basics to forcing branches.

If you're viewing this on a phone (where navigation can be tricky), here's the direct link to the tutorial:

http://www.bhg.com/gardening/trees-shrubs-vines/care/forcing-branches-into-bloom/?page=3

I'm (hopefully) going to be giving this a try.

If anyone successfully forces their lilac branches, send me a picture of them in their full glory!

Just click the link "Contact Me" at the top of this page and attach a photo!

Happy bloom forcing everyone!

Birthday Roses

Okay, so my birthday was actually yesterday.

My husband surprised me with a dozen roses and breakfast in bed yesterday morning.

Isn't that sweet?

However, I always find it hard to display them.

I'm really not a fan of the cliche roses and baby breath jammed into a run-of-the-mill vase.

It screams "cheesy Valentine's Day present" all over it.

How do you mix cheesy roses with an antique-loving country-girl-at-heart?

Cut the roses short and display them in Ball canning jars!

Too bad I don't have any antique turquoise ones.

Oh well, can't be picky, can we?

I love how flowers can brighten up any room.

I'm getting pretty excited lately.

My bearded irises just poked their heads out, so I know it's not too far off when my lilac bushes will be in full bloom.

The usually bloom in May.