A BLOG GIVEAWAY!! And another Great Book.

I'm going to start with my BLOG GIVEAWAY!! Whoohoo!!

 Here's how it works... I purchased this "THING" on craigslist. ($75) I should add this "Thing" is quite large measuring 33" wide x 22" and 12" tall.

I have no idea what it was (or should be) used for?

So your mission should you choose to accept it......Sorry for going all Mission Impossible on ya! I couldn't help myself *winks*.... is to come up with your best guess about how it could or should be used? So peeps give me some ideas because I need all of them I can get! Then just become one of my  friendly followers (If you aren't already *winks*) and leave me a comment. Come on don't be shy! Let your imagination go wild! The one with the best answer wins! 

Here's a view of the inside.

And the winner will receive this antique Danish(?) pillowcase 21"x21" with embroidery initials. It translates to "sleep well" and has two small ties sewn inside for closure. But wait!....There's more!

Almost two years ago I was also doing a giveaway when my mom became very ill and I stopped blogging. So that prize will also be added into the mix!

Isn't it beautiful?

This darling little art nouveau jewel box will also be added to sweeten the prize. It's seen a little wear and tear in its long lifetime but this only enhances its charm.

Inside it contains a touch of mink to cushion some special treasure.

So please join my giveaway and start guessing!

I'll award the prize two weeks from today! Sunday Feb 13th. It could be a VERY good Valentines day! *winks*

 

OK and for another good book....if you haven't read it yet?

 "The Bed" By Alecia Beldegreen,

It's another one of my favorite go to's.

 I have beds on the brain lately because I'm straining the little gray matter that I DO have to come up with a canopy idea for my master bedroom. I've actually been pondering this for some time and it needs to happen! The ceiling is sloped so a beautiful corona just won't work *sighs* So I'm open to ideas for that too. You can view my master bedroom HERE

Isn't this a luscious cover? A taste of things to come.... And the text is just as beautiful as the pictures....Lots and lots of em!

These are just some of the images. I couldn't share many of the best because they're two page spreads. Poor little scanner couldn't do it sorry.

I'll take that portrait please.

My cat would love this....But not as much as his mommy!

Italian beauty-liciousness!

And French of course!

This is soooo cool! It's all been done with a sharpie marker! Sorry about the crease, it was a two pager.

And some wonderful trompe l'oeil!

If I had this painted theatrical backdrop I'd remodel my whole living room around it!

Have you ever traveled by train like this? I don't think I'd ever fly if I could avoid it.

Absolutely gorgeous!

This lit a la polonaise is one of my favorite beds. One of these days I'll have me one!

Just look at those cherub sconces!

Or how about swathed in lace?

 

And more lace....

Do you think I could find one of these on craigslist? Probably not, but stranger things have happened!...Not to me...but maybe to you? *winks*

If you enjoyed these images you're going to love this book. And you can pick it up for only $4.59 (Shipping included) HERE A real steal for a large hardcover book.

Thanks for stopping by!   Vanna

Flea Market Finds And A Couple Of Questions For My Friend Debra.

I'd like to share some of my recent and not so recent flea market finds with everyone.

Some of you might know that I'm a craigslist addict! Well I admit to being a bargain shopping addict period *winks* The hunt is so exhilarating! Plus it keeps me off my bum....nuff said.

Craigslist is where I found this garden cherub. He'd been under some trees for some time. $95 which is quite a lot for me, but it was love so home he came.

Do you see the column base he's standing on? I found a matching set of two of these for $30 on....yep you guessed it.....craigslist!

Here comes my expert question for my friend Debra (Don't call her Debbie....Trust me on this one *winks*) from the beautiful blog Acquired Objects . Do NOT click on this link if you're prone to drooling OR if the sight of too much beauty makes you want to throw out everything in your house and start over! (Trust me on this too because that's how I felt *winks*)

 Debra is a fine antique textiles dealer and connoisseur of the exquisite. And by fine I mean FINE! Like sell an arm or leg or first born fine!

 Now if anyone else wants to give this one a shot I'd love to hear from you too! 

I found this set of chairs for $35 at a garage sale of sorts a while back...It was actually more of a junk store sale with stuff in a huge garage.

The lady I purchased them from told me they were Swedish. I'd never seen a set quite like them before. They'd been completely stripped (I could cry!) and had  horrible polyester brown plaid upholstery on the seats. Which I promptly ripped off. I can still see small vestiges of white paint here and there. I felt so sorry for them sitting there all nekkid and unloved. My husband tried to dissuade me from buying them but (as usual) that only made me more determined.

 My neighbor came over to take a look at them for me. She's also an antique lover and knows more about furniture than I do. She thought they looked Swedish also, and thought they might possibly be 18th century? They are completely pegged together. They appear to have been recovered many times. There are lots of nail holes. The carving is all hand done. The back splats are slightly curved to make them more comfortable. Any ideas peeps?

I also found a purse at the Value Village seen here with the chairs.

The large lidded basket was a Goodwill find for $14.99.

Close up on the leg detailing.

Peg detailing.

I thought they might look beautiful stained in gray?

 Here is my dear friend Christine with another gray Swedish chair. What do you think? Would my chairs look good in this same gray? Or perhaps I should paint them white?

I'm sharing this purse (?) because it's an example of how I'm very influenced by my favorite bloggers. Do you ever find yourself buying things for this reason?

 This is my $4.99 piece from the Value Village. It's made of what appears to be old velvet. The tassels and threading are metallic

I thought it looked very 1920's.

Close up,

Well when I spotted this piece it reminded me straight away of a picture I saw on Debra's blog in a post about her amazing textiles HERE Again the drool alert is in effect. AND you might also want to sell some organs...just sayin'

Could this possibly be an occasion where education meets opportunity? (Aka luck!)

This picture below that I stole  borrowed  (Sorry Debra I'll remove it if there's any problem I promise) is one of the divine pieces of antique Italian velvet from around 1600 that Debra owns. Can you say "TEXTILE ENVY?"  Doesn't it look a little tiny bit like mine? *Hands clasped in prayer* It's even a similar shape?

What do you think Debra? Could mine be worth a little finger? Or maybe just a fingernail? *winks*

Another CL find. Asking price $75...taking price $65. It has a squishy down cushion and is very petite. Perfect for the end of a bed or in my case a home gym which I use (Rarely) to put on my running shoes.  The 1960's greeny gold upholstery is actually growing on me!

This sweet little petit point pillow was a $20 find at a local antique mall. It helps to break up all that greeny gold lol!

Well that's my finds for this week. I hope you'll come back next week for some more flea market fun! 

I'm linking  up with the beautiful Cindy at My Romantic Home for:

As well as my dear friend Laurie at Bargain Hunting And Chatting With Laurie for:

And the wonderful Linda at A La Carte for:

And Debra at Common Ground for:

Be sure and drop by and check out all the other found treasures!   Vanna

You've GOT to see THIS!!

My friend Dawn at Bohemian Valhalla gave me the heads up on this site. It's called Interior Alchemy. I was BLOWN AWAY!! So was Dawn! I think you will be too *winks* There are 49 pages of the most enchanting enticing images! If you like any of the images below please go see Dawn's post  HERE. Her blog is currently a  secret treasure for the lucky few....But that won't last for long *winks* Trust me you'll be happy you did!

Thanks for viewing!   Vanna

Pet Pawty at Debbiedoos!!

Today I'm joining the party over at Debbiedoos!

These are pictures of a couple of my fur babies.

Unfortunately the computer that houses my pet pictures crashed and I'm waiting to retrieve them. So I'll have to make do with the few I have.

This is my Shelby Maine. She's 14 yrs old and the sweetest, kindest slow as molasses dog in all of Gods creation!

Here she is on her sofa being a goof!

All of our foreign exchange students love her! Sometimes too much *winks* This is our last student Ai who somehow fell asleep on her. Seriously it has been my experience that Japanese kids can fall asleep anywhere! Must be built into their DNA....But I digress....

 Right after I took this shot she looked up at me with the most pleading expression as if to say "Please get her off of me mom" But she's far too polite to just move and wake Aichan up. Awwww that's my sweet baby!

 Caught brown pawed! Here she is on a sofa she knows she's NOT supposed to be on! Looking all regal beagle.

And a favorite spot under the table during breakfast. Looks like she could use some coffee! Those eyes look just like her moms first thing in the morning!

This is my youngest Luca Rey. He's a two yr old American Bull Terrier mix....And he's a very pushy boy! But by far the most loving of all my fur baby kids. If for a second you should look sad? He's right there to put his head in your lap and try to cheer you up.

 All of my fur babies (4 total) are pound puppies or were unwanted in some way.  I'm very blessed to have each of them in my life!

Luca Rey at his happiest! Safe and secure in Daddy's arms!

Thanks for stopping by!