It's the Bees Knees

It's the bees knees.  I love candles but I have a lot of allergies and can't handle most scented candles.  Pure honey-scented beeswax candles though, well let's just say they are a whole new ball of wax ;).

I bought this beautiful amber depression glass bowl at Vinnie's for $15.  Once I got it home, I wasn't sure what to do with it. Yellows are not a prevalent colour in my decor.  Then last Sunday I went to Warkworth (Ontario) for a drive.  It's a cute little village that seems to attract a lot of artists and artisans.  If you are in southern Ontario, you should it out.  I'm heading back on March 10/11 for the Maple Festival.  Hopefully, I'll remember my camera this time.  They have a craft and vintage sale -yay!

Anyways, I went to the Cheeky Bee http://cheekybee.com and was over the moon when I saw (and smelled) their gorgeous beeswax candles.  I bought a large pillar one and knew I had found a use for my bowl.

It looked a little stark just sitting in the bowl and then I remembered Brenda at http://www.cozylittlehouse.com piling shells around the base of one of her candles.  Sooo I went to the buck store yesterday and found bags of shells.  The purple just ties it in with my dining room so now it sits in front of the window - ready to scent the house with sweet honey.

Bye bye for now.  I'm off to make a batch of chili for the freezer and creme caramel for tonight's dessert.  Check out http://dinneratjulies.blogspot.com later for the creme caramel recipe.

Julie

Snow Day

I'm having a snow day today.  I'm not leaving the house!!

Yesterday I was wearing running shoes when I met the girls for lunch.  There was no snow left and today we are a winter wonderland again.  I took pictures through the  window so the quality isn't the best but brrrrrrrrrrrrr.

This the gingko tree in my backyard

This is the beautiful magnolia tree in my backyard

This is the view down my street today

Now we need something colourful - the tulips I bought yesterday to celebrate the smell of spring in the air.  I guess I was a little premature.

Here's some plates from my leaf collection...

Here's some of my McCoy pots...

and here's a lovely plate I got at Value Village...

Have a nice  Friday.......

Julie

Lazy day....

Winter is back, there's snow on the ground again and it's a day to just lay around.  That's Finn, my little guy.  He's about a year and half and a wild little cave lion kind of cat.  But like any 2 year old, he's an angel when he's asleep.

So nothing productive was accomplished today but sometimes, that's the kind of day you need.   Today it was good to sit back, have a cup of tea and read a book.

I'd rather be inside, warm and cozy when it snows outside.  But my beautiful niece, Allyson is an outdoor girl so I thought I'd share one of her pictures with you.  She actually goes camping in the winter, IN A TENT!  Enjoy the scenery...

Julie

Vintage Handkerchiefs

I was washing and ironing fabric today so I could start some sewing.  I found these vintage handkerchiefs in the drawer and put them through the wash as well.  They are so beautiful.  I'm not sure what I'm going to do with them but I would like more of them...

and this one is my favourite...



Good night from Lucy and Finn

Julie

Sarah Richardson

Meet my favourite interior designer, Sarah Richardson.  She has been influencing my own design sensibility for 15 years.  Tonight I'm going to share images of her rooms - some of my favourites...

An office in one of her house makeovers - the red in this office is why I chose red for mine...

My favourite laundry room of all time - hands down!  This isn't a great picture but the glass tiles are gorgeous greens and yellows.

Beautiful view from Sarah's island cottage living room

Sarah and her gorgeous husband, Alexander

This is what Sarah was able to do with a pig sty  (above and below)!!!

I had this one as my screensaver for a while.  I just want to curl up here with a book and a cup of tea.


Such a cheerful bathroom in her farm house.

one of her signature kitchens

The island kitchen cottage

I love her use of 2 fabrics on one chair

beautiful nursery

the bunkie

incredible light fixture

...and this is where the magic happens, Sarah's office in downtown Toronto...

Julie

Vintage Values at Vinnie's

I've been shopping at Vinnie's again!  I got some great vintage finds at some really great prices...


A pretty silver candy dish that I'm going to use for a candle.

A sweet Foley tea cup circa 1930/40s

A ream of pure Irish linen

Crisp pink cotton edged pillowcases

Crisp white cases with pink hand tatted edging

 I really would like to put those pillowcases through the laundry and make up my bed with fresh crisp pretty linens.  Just think about all the time someone spent working on that lovely edging and then folded the pillowcases up in the closet.  I'm sure she thought they were too good to actually use them.  I can imagine I would have a really good sleep but I've decided to open an Etsy store next year and so I'm starting to stockpile some lovely vintage things to sell.  Oh well, back to the linen closet with these...

Julie

Vintage Tableclothes

I was sorting through drawers this week and pulled out all my vintage tablecloths and dresser scarves.  They were all freshly laundered and pressed this week - ready for the next party.  Some of them belonged to my Mom and the rest were given to me by my cousin before she passed away.  I know that some of them had belonged to her mother and she knew I liked old linens.

My favourites are the yellows and blues.  Some have holes worn in them and some have stains that won't come out but I couldn't love them any more if they were perfect.   They are a woven history of my family and tell the story of countless dinners. 

I can feel the warmth and the love in the snowy folds and the simple stitchwork...

A crisp dresser scarf that my mother bought in 1946.  We are using it in the guest room.

This is an idea I got from Claudia at http://www.mockingbirdhillcottage.com/ for protecting my sewing machine.  I've covered it with one of the dresser scarves too.

Julie

There's a Storm Coming.....

It was just that kind of a day...

Julie