Nativity 2017

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When I was a child, I used to spend hours playing with the nativity set my mom had. I’d rearrange the characters and tell myself their story.  Baby Jesus had to go in the back of the stable so he could stay warm. The three wise men had to be arranged just so, so that their faces looked at Jesus. The sheep had to look natural (you know it when you see it).

When I became an adult, I wanted a nativity scene just like the one with which I had grown up. I found plenty of beautiful porcelain figures, crystal sets and even nativities done as s’mores. Just not what I was envisioning.

Until one day in a Christian bookstore, I found the nativity that filled my heart with joy. Real looking characters, just like my mom’s. I could imagine my children and grandchildren rearranging them all Christmas season. The only problem was they were expensive. VERY expensive.  My sweet husband gifted me the holy family that year and thus began my collection. Continue reading

Drop Zone

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I am a rule follower. Ever since I was a child I was the one who got in line when the teacher said to and I was the child who was annoyed at the children who were still running around. I have always been the old soul rule follower.

So I feel a little angst when I don’t do what’s expected. As I’ve grown older, I’ve realized that sometimes breaking a rule is the better decision when it’s what is right for you. Calm down, I’m not talking about being selfishly immoral. Seriously, I still like healthy boundaries.

I’m talking about using the space in my home the way that works for my family even if it wasn’t intended to be that way. Our small-ish house doesn’t have a dedicated room for dining, but this problem was balanced by an eat-in kitchen.

Except we never eat in the kitchen. We had a table, but it was primarily a dumping ground for anything we brought in the house. Then add to that the fact that we had no mud room and our coats/shoes/computer bags joined the mess on the table. Continue reading

Changes

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They say change is inevitable. Things are either advancing or retreating, improving or deteriorating, Over this past summer it was sometimes hard to tell the difference. When last you saw my home the kitchen cabinets were half painted, the base boards were removed to replace the flooring.  You can see some of the disaster zone here.

Fortunately, we’ve been making some progress. Continue reading

Touch of Fall

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To be honest, it has been very difficult to get in the mood for Fall decor. I truly think the pumpkins on my front porch have baked in the 90 degree, record breaking weather.

This year amidst the mess of remodeling, I knew I had to keep Fall decor simple. Especially since I will need to start Christmas decorating in early November. What? Well, between the many rehearsals and concerts that I will need to attend during the holiday season, and anticipating hosting family at Christmas, I probably should have put up my tree last week. Just kidding (not kidding).

So here are a few spots around my home I managed to dress up for the Fall season. Continue reading

Joy Reflections: The Importance of Kindness

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It’s been a LONG time since I last posted and I wanted to catch you up on a few things before I get to today’s Joy Reflection. I am still living in the midst of redecorating chaos. We have tried to tackle too many things at once and ended up not finishing any of them.  So I hope soon I can show you some pics of what we’ve been doing.

Today I thought I would reflect on an important lesson I learned as a teen: you can change the world with kindness.

When I was a senior in high school I got my first job (first of MANY!) as a page at the down town library. A page’s main duty was to re-shelve books and materials that were returned to the library.

I was assigned occasionally to the Periodical section where we got magazines and newspapers for patrons that could not be checked out, but could be photocopied. It sometimes involved a trip in the world’s scariest elevator that dropped about six inches every time you entered. And it took you down to the darkest basement, like a scene from Ghost Busters, but not as nice.

But that wasn’t even the hardest part of the job. My boss was. Continue reading

The Small-ish Porch

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I live in a small-ish home with a small-ish porch. I understand. Size is relative. My small could be someone else’s big. So let me clarify, it’s not a tiny house, it’s just a home that’s not big.  Many people my age talk about down sizing. They move from their McMansion to a cute cottage or bungalow once the kids move out and life priorities change. We moved from a miniscule apartment to a small-ish home in 2011. This is our up sizing and empty nest all in one.

When we first saw this house, I was so glad to see a front porch, even a small one. To me a porch is the essence of homey.

 One thing I’ve learned about my homes over the years. Continue reading

I do it, me!

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“I do it, me!”

My mom used to say that was my favorite phrase as a toddler. Not much has changed. I occasionally think I can do something I’ve never done before. I once saw a Christmas quilt in a magazine and thought “I can do that.” even though I had never quilted in my life. So I cut out all the pieces and sewed the top together. It was great…

Until I realized, I don’t know how to quilt this, or bind it. I began begging for help and advice. I finished it several years later. It is not a masterpiece of quilting, but I’m sort of proud of it. Here’s the only photo of said quilt I have, along with my beautiful daughter about nine years ago on Christmas morning.

So, recently I was looking at this corner of my dining area and imagining how I’d hang the gold framed paintings around the rug and how every thing on the wall is part of my story etc. blah, blah, blah.  Then I noticed the lamps. The really tall lamps with the shiny, silky, gold shades. I thought about buying new lamps, but who wants to spend money. Besides, I’ve always liked the slim bases and didn’t want lamps to take up a lot of table space. It’s just those lamps weren’t working. They were too tall and taking up wall space where I want to hang paintings and those shades were a little too fancy-dancy for the look I want.

I wanted little bits of gold in the picture frames juxtaposed (I like that word) against the more rustic elements on the table, not the Trump Tower penthouse!

As I sat staring at them, I thought “On HGTV they take light fixtures apart all the time. I bet that I could take the upper part off and buy new shades, and have just the lamps I want.”  So, I began dis-assembling a lamp with my own phillips head screw driver. I felt so handy.  I even remembered to unplug it first. Then, I couldn’t get it back together.

When my husband came home, there were parts all over the table and me grumpily sitting next to the carcass of a dead lamp. He examined my mess and declared I needed an extra part to put it all back together.

This part here.  A one inch threaded pipe. Apparently I had removed the long central core that everything attaches to, but I didn’t have a shorter core to put everything back together. He got the part. He assembled it. He did the other lamp too.  So much for “I do it, me.”

 

With a new pair of dark gray linen shades, they still look great and give me more wall space. Now I have to hang the paintings.

Oh Sweetheart!

Thanks for reading,

Celeste

Vintage Market Days

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I have so much to share with you today. Yesterday, Doug and I went to the Vintage Market Days being held here in the St. Louis area. If you missed it, you can still visit today or tomorrow. It is in the Chesterfield Mall parking lot and tickets can be purchased at the gate.

We had a beautiful, sunny day. The crowds were larger when the market first opened, but it was never too crowded to look at the booths.  We took a lunch break and came back in the afternoon when there were fewer people and the day had cooled down a bit.

My first purchase…Just like the bride who doesn’t want to buy the first dress she tries on, I like to look at everything, decide what I want, and buy the best. Ha! At the first booth I spot this little,ornate, gold frame that tells me it is perfect for my dining area wall. Okay, come home with me.

I wish I could tell you how luscious that Georgia Peach soap smells.

I grabbed one of the peach and also a French Linen.

This next vendor had the most charming “booth”.  Happy Camper Clothing had this charming little camper.

It serves as both a sales booth and dressing room.

Here is a shot inside the camper.  They will be opening a store on Main Street in St. Charles, MO at the end of this month. You can find out more at happycamperclothing.net. They have a fun selection of shirts.

Doug and I stopped to admire this hall coat rack thingy (yes, it probably has a proper name, but I don’t know what it is) and met the owner of Liberty’s Closet. Jeremiah told me that most of their work is custom and this was their first show. They have a Facebook page and an Etsy shop. Check them out.

Bella Vintage Home’s displays are so appealing. I love their vintage glam vibe. I went home with one of these cloche and wood slice bases. Can you imagine all the possibilities you could put under that cloche? My brain is buzzing with all the decor ideas.

The Chicken Coop booth has great farm house style. I bought an item from them that I am looking forward to showing you soon.

Finally, I was looking for some greenery that I could add to my home. Stc Finds has a great variety and the owner is very helpful in explaining what each plant needs. You can find them at Facebook/stcfinds.

In my next post I’ll share some of the items I bought from these vendors and others. If you attended Vintage Market Days or this looks like your style, let me know in the comments.

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Thanks for reading,

Celeste