A Peek At The Bedroom At Bellamere Cottage

Hi Girlies!



Oh my gosh.........It's the Sunday Favorites Anniversary! A WHOLE year of lovely bloggers sharing their lives.

Have you ever visited the sweetest girlie, Chari, over at Happy To Design?
You won't want to miss this chance...she is so DEAR....what a delight. :-)



Right now I'm actually sewing for the master bedroom spring re-do so I thought it would be the perfect time to post pix of the room as it is now.


This post was originally from 4.18.09....just about one year ago!


Soooon it will be a blue room.

(I must say....I just took a peek at the post........I think it took me a smidge too long to get going.



How embarrassing.


It's in PRINT!


*******************************************

Original Post



I was going to wait to do pictures of the house after I finished Spring cleaning, but I'm not doing very well in that department. This grieving thing is so hard and I'm just not making any progress, unless you could call going in circles progress???? My Mum passed away the day after Christmas and I just am not myself. So on we go........The bed is new/old. About 15 years old, actually. I had it powder coated in white. It used to be a rather ugly green.

I love the fabric in here and in the bathroom. I think I bought it at least four times so when I was getting ready to do this room and was going through my "stash" I kept finding pieces of it.........obviously I must have intended it for the bedroom??? :-)

This is my hubby's favorite room in the house and it's the most feminine. I think men actually like all the foo-foo, they just don't like to admit it!

Ahhhhhhhhh...........the chandelier. Five dollars at a garage sale. It is actually just a drippy light fixture that I dolled up. It was brass and the "arms" are supposed to go down and hold those little glass shades that are screwed on??? I painted it, turned the arms upright, added the candle covers from the lighting store and went to town with crystal prisms. I beaded some little drops too. Easy peasy and CHEAP!

Click on any picture to enlarge.........

I "married" the two pieces on the right side of the bed. They're both just little pieces I've stacked up.

The side table on this side (my side) is a piece one of my sweet friends gave to me years ago. I love it!

I don't recall where I got the chair on the left........I've had it for a longgggg time. I do know I didn't pay much for it, I have a passion for chairs and have the hardest time passing one up. I just saw one this past week at the thrift store for six dollars. I had to tie my sweater sleeves in knots to get out of the store without it.

Twice a year we have an all-city garage sale here. I bought the little cabinet at last year's sale for 30 dollars. It's not old, but it's small and shallow so it fits nicely here. It's full of candles. It smells yummy when I open the doors.

Oh yes.............more on the all-city garage sale. Several years ago I was driving past a home while the lady of the house was putting these out on the curb for FREE! I rolled my window down and asked her to hold them for a second while I turned around. I nearly rolled my car getting back there. They were nasty brown herculon, but I whipped up a new slipcover......CUTE......don't you think? The blue is a bit of "poison" in the room. I hate it when everything is tooooo matchy. The other chair is in my closet. I don't have any room for it right now. Maybe someday?? :-) Can't get rid of a chair though, right?

Well, darn it..........two of these pix...........sorry! :-(
Pretend you didn't see the other ........K???

As I've said..........I have tole trays in EVERY room.......... Can you really have too many?

Tiny slip for this little chair. I'm going to paint a number on the back of it, but haven't had the gumption to get it finished.

I LOVE this old cabinet. I bought it many, many years ago. It's supposed to go in the kitchen, but I don't have room for it there in this house, so it's in here. I could never get rid of it. And, yep, that's a nasty old t.v. sitting there on top. I can't get rid of that either. I can see it in the mirror every morning from my bathroom while I put my make-up on. Gotta stay in touch with the world out there.

Isn't this the most adorable little vintage hat? Three dollars years and years ago at a garage sale.

I love old mottos and this one is just so sweet.

Might as well use up some of those old pearl buttons! Vintage white barkcloth and damask linen.

These pillows actually started their life in the kitchen. I bought wicker chairs for the table so we'd sit in there more and wanted them to be really cozy and comfy. No one still sits there, except for meal times and everyone kept removing them from the chairs anyway! The yellow pillow is made from part of an old bit of linen.

Simple little garage sale shelf all dolled up...........naturally, after I went to all the work to add the trim and little balls the darn thing warped. I've been looking for a new one for a long time.

Ahhhhhhhhhh...........that's my little grandson when he was just a little guy.

My tiara.........it's only a cheap one.......I'd like to find a really pretty one.........or two........or three! My daughter wears hers with a cute apron when she cleans. She swears it makes cleaning more fun. :-) That big blue "diamond" was my Mum's.........

Pretty plates............

Gosh I love yellow and pink together!

Look! There's my beautiful daughter and my little guy.......


I hope you've enjoyed the little tour. As I've said, I AM NOT a minimalist. Not that I don't like that look, I sure do, but I seem to like lots of things around me.

Please don't forget to check out all the other lovlies!



Thank you for coming!



God bless you!

Spencer


Now, you're going to want to go over to see Chari at:


www.happytodesign.blogspot.com


And, don't forget to wish her Happy Birthday! :-))


xoxoxoxoxox


PS......she's having a giveaway too! :-)

Button, Button, Who's Got The Button? Well, Thanks To My Sweet Friend, Connie, Bellamere Cottage Has A Button!

I mentioned in my last post that I simply couldn't figure out the button thing for my bloggie and my sweet friend, Connie, came to the rescue. Wasn't that the nicest thing? I appreciate it soooo much.

Thank you Connie!

See it right over there on my sidebar? You can take it to add to YOUR sidebar if you'd like to. :-)

I must say, I'd be so delighted to see it out there in blogland somewhere.


You must go visit that sweet little girlie.....

You'll find her here:

www.connie-livingbeautifully.blogspot.com


You'll love her. Be sure to check out her new little footsie covers. I want about four gazillion pairs of them. They are DELISH!


Sending you all huge hugs, blessings, and wishes for a glorious week ahead.


xoxoxoxo
S

Posies At Bellamere Cottage *Part Two*..............Happy Pink Saturday too!

Happy Pink Saturday little Sweeties!!!!!

I know you're going to want to see loads more PINK.....so

head on over to see Miss Beverly at:

www.howsweetthesound.typepad.com

You're going to LOVE it!

So, that little green pot of baby tears is one of my very favorite pots! It's a cute little cement pot underneath all of that "hair"... :-) It dies every winter, but always comes back in the spring. The little blop of white? Yeah, that's a little bird that's just LOST in all of that green hair.

This is what I see from my kitchen. Bellamere Cottage is just that....a beensie cottage...and the yard? Yep, the same......SMALL....but I LOVE it! I can't begin to tell you how much pleasure and joy this tiny plot of land gives me. It makes my heart sing!


When we downsized we looked at condos.......While there is so much to be said for that style of living, it didn't quite suit us, so we bought the teeny house with the tiny yard instead.

Perfect for us!

And, true to form, just like my house........I'll stuff it as full as I possibly can!

We have one of the canvas style gazebo's out there. I've thought about the permanent solution for the entire six years we've lived here. I finally came up with the perfect idea about two weeks ago. It'll be in the plans for next summer. That is if my half-husband isn't married and way too busy with projects for his little missus by then! :-)

(Yeah, I posted this story awhile back....There is nothing "weird" going on...)

It makes me smile!

See those petunias in the middle there? Yep, that's actually a flower pot of tunies! WOW! They really love that spot. I'll remember that for next year.

And, the tall pink flowers? Cosmos! They're HUGE! I love 'em. Gosh they were easy to grow. I've never tried them before.

To the left? Yes, those would be my roses. I do NOT like this variety at all. I don't remember what I bought, but they get watermarked and look yukky. I'm so disappointed.

I hope you all enjoy your PINK weekend!

God bless all of you. You're just the BEST!

Hugs and Lovies,
Spencer

It's Pink Saturday.... Come On Over To The Cottage!

Hello to all you little sweeties!

I can't believe it's already Pink Saturday again....whew, have I been a neglectful blogger....but a REALLY good gramma! :-)

I've so enjoyed my little guy. He's been staying with us for most of the summer which is just the BEST thing ever for this 'ol gal! We went to see UP this week....it was so sweet. I have to admit, I cried! I don't normally, but I sure did with this darling movie.

Sweet Beverly is hosting this Pink Saturday party. She puts so much into coordinating it and I appreciate her so much. She's such a doll, isn't she?

Please go see her and all the other pink lovelies at:

www.howsweetthesound.typepad.com

You'll be so happy you did!

And now....a little peek around the cottage. I thought I'd better get busy and take some new pictures. Things have grown quite a lot since I took pictures last.

I've said before that we live in a planned community in a little bitty cottage....(just under 1500 square feet).

The back gate.........I LOVE this pot! I see it every day when I drive in......it always makes me smile.........hey, I'm a simple girl. It doesn't take too much to thrill me! :-)

I think we have about 13-14 hydrangeas..........I LOVE them. Some of those blooms are just crazy big! Aren't they just the happiest little flowers?

I've talked before about starting ivy to do your own topiaries........this is one of them! Isn't that great? Holy cow! I've taken a gazillion starts off of this little gal, including one I'm starting now. I did buy the frame for this one......I think it was about 30 dollars, but WAY cheaper than buying a finished topiary. I saw similar ones at Smith and Hawken for about 150 dollars.

I think this little gizmo is supposed to be used for party beverages, but I'm using it for my front porch party instead........I bought both pieces at the Goodwill for 19 dollars! I think it was supposed to be 100 dollars according to the original stickers. What a bargain.

I don't think it would work very well for parties any more.......I drilled tons of holes in the bottom. :-)


Those flowers look red, don't they? They're PINK!

The front steps. Whew, we get tons of moss around here (It's Western Washington.......of COURSE we have mosssssssssss!)........I love it on my steps so I leave it. It's cute AND it saves me tons of work.

Don't you wonder why they put the railing on the LEFT side? I'll never figure that one out.

On each side of this big 'ol hydrangea are ground cover hydrangeas. They really don't cover anything, they're sort of upright, but quite cute....and blue.

I got FOUR of those great chairs..........a table and a chaise for 65 dollars at an estate sale....isn't that unbelievable? No really........I DID. The table needs to be welded, but still....a great buy.

Little cement bunny......cute little guy, and heavy as can be. I love using my little saucers upside down.

I've tried the Martha plan for adding moss to my clay pots.......some worked out quite well and some are still waiting to be great. Buttermilk or yogurt. If you have moss you can smear a bit on the pot as well to expedite the process. I like my pots to be yukky. They sort of suit the cottage.

I made that little topiary over on the right too. It's actually one of those primitive style hat racks, but worked perfectly for the topiary. I just buried the base in the dirt.

There's that Bellamere Cottage sign again....made from an old headboard. Don'tcha just love a cheap re-do? I used to have this posted on Rate My Space.......we have an All-City Garage Sale every year in our little community.............I never participate........I HAVE to shop. :-) But a couple of years ago a gal knocked on my door squealing............"I've seen your house on RMS!!!!!!..........oh my gosh, I was screaming in the car to my girlfriend and said we just had to stop"!.....hilarious. I've actually seen this sweet little gal at quite a few estate and/or garage sales. I sort of felt famous for just a moment there. Hey, I have to grab stardom wherever and whenever I can. Sad, isn't it?

I have never had any luck with verbena, but it's my BEST friend this year. It is HUGE. This picture doesn't even show how far it's hanging down. I'm going to try seeds next year. Have you ever tried growing them from scratch?

The little plants are about four dollars each, so if I could start them from seed it would save a bundle.

It's a puny little mallo plant underneath the window on the left side. I had some lovely wallflower there until it went to heaven.....that mallo will get HUGE....and there are two peony trees planted in there as well. I'm not a minimalist outside either. :-)

Thanks for coming to visit the cottage. It's a happy little place.

I've been ever so neglectful with my blogging. I miss you all! I'm going to get peppy and catch up any minute.

God bless all of you. You are FABULOUS.........and I am grateful.

Huggies and Lovies!
Spence

There's A Handpainted Island At Bellamere Cottage!

Happy Pink Saturday! I'm so happy you came to visit!


Get your morning cuppa and kick back for a little bit and enjoy all the lovely girlies at Miss Beverly's.......... www.howsweetthesound.typepad.com


So little chickies.......here's the story of the island at Bellamere Cottage....

As I've said, our home is in a planned community and there were only SOOO many choices as to style, colors, hardware, etc. when we built the little cottage about six years ago. One of the options that WAS available was a center island for the kitchen. According to THEIR plan, it couldn't have an overhang for stools.......now, tell me......how are you supposed to sit at the island with no stools?

Ahhhhhhhh...........but this is where the handy, dandy half-husband (see previous post) comes in! Oh, what a great guy to have around! He and my adorable little hubbs built a wood top for me WITH the desired overhang. It was just plywood, however.......yeah, that's just not going to work, is it?

No problem! The lady of the cottage.......that would be me.......came to the rescue with her little paint bucket and a couple of brushes. .........let's tape off the center and free hand the posies around the edges........roses are hydrangeas would look happy, don't you think?? A couple of coats of primer, a base coat of paint and some dolling up..........about 4 coats of Diamond Finish Varathane.......and VOILA'!!!

This is actually the THIRD time I've painted it. I discovered it's not a good idea to leave a cleaner bottle on top of it on cleaning day.........ewwwwwwwww.....it was so sad.......then I repainted it with a golden border and HATED it, so, as they say, THREE times is a charm.

This is a temporary solution for the island top. I didn't care for any of the upgrades they offered for our counters, so I just went with the standard laminate and will be replacing all of the kitchen counters in a few more years.....so, in the meantime, this painted countertop works just great for us.


I tried for two days to take decent snaps of the kitchen and living room to share for Pink Saturday and couldn't get them to look right. I have a Canon G-9....it's a pretty good camera, I think, but my shots all looked FUNNY! Almost grainy???? Does anyone have any tips? I don't know what all those little buttons are about?? :-) I just use auto, but I think another setting might work better. We were actually having sunshine here in the NW too.... Things that make you say hmmmmmmmm.

God Bless All Of You!!!

Have a wonderful and safe weekend.

Thank you SO very much for visiting.

xoxoxoxo

Spencer

It Really Is The Small Things In Life! Show and Tell Friday. An Award!!! Yippeee! And, Random Stuff.... :-)

Hi there little Sweetie-Chicks! I've been ever so busy and my blogging has been on that 'ol back burner!

First up.........it really is the SMALL things in life........My darling Hubbs installed a new faucet for me! Isn't it a cutie? I had the yukk-o builder's grade number that was none too pretty......although efficient!........Now, this is really big stuff here at Bellamere Cottage. My dear, darling Hubbs is NOT a MR. FIX-IT.....He has learned a few things along the life's highway, but not toooo much in the home repair department.............because............

This is the back yard of the home where my DH grew up. He surfed EVERY day........he didn't hang around learning how to change faucets, re-roof a house or change oil. He was way too busy LIVING! And, he has loads of pre-cancer stuff to prove it. His Dr. calls him a dermatologist's dream.......Those two little "bumps" out there are the Mokes...pretty? Yeah, what a way to grow up!

This is the view to the right...........the Koolau mountains...........My MIL lives on the canal.........so, straight out is the canal.........right....Koolau's............Oahu, Hawaii.....

Left..........yeah, the Pacific Ocean.......wouldn't it be a tough place to grow up???

He moved here about 17 years ago to be with his girlfriend. No, that was NOT me...... :-) But, after that didn't work out, God brought us together miraculously and we've been living happily ever after in the beautiful NW.....

My dear, darling hubbs and I actually had one of our two wedding receptions right here on this very lawn....... :-)

Now, you won't want to miss all the other lovelies who will be listing fun and interesting things! Please check them out at There is no place like home........it's on my sidebar! :-)




Now, onto the Mount St. Helen's eruption.........well, I was amazed! I got comments from lots of gals who lived a LONG way away and got some ash or who heard about it on the news....day and night! This was so long before cable news shows with their round the clock coverage and certainly before the internet. I had no idea so many people were "in the know" and remembered it..........yeah, I DO live in a bubble! :-)


On a totally different subject..........should you need batteries.......ANY kind of batteries, I'd like to suggest Interstate Batteries as your choice. I saw one of their commercials recently where they asked if you knew Jesus.........!!!!!!!!!! WOW, WOW, WOW!!! I have only seen the commercial once, so I can't tell you exactly what the commercial said, but I sure DO remember that! I'll be making all my purchases from them from now on. You may even have a superstore in your area.....but they sell on the net too.

I simply cannot figure out how to add a link, but if you search for Interstate Batteries you'll find it! :-)

And now!!!! I've been given an award by the wonderful Melly over at His Pink Princess. I'm so pleased. A GOLDEN HEART! WOW! Thank you Melly......you really need to visit this little gal, if you haven't already, she is a DOLL......from Down Under!! You'll find her link on my sidebar........you know I can't handle that linking thing........

Part of this award is to give it to five other Golden Hearts......Well.........I thought and thought and there is just no way I can only choose five. Every single one of you has lifted me up and brightened my day........Soooooooooo..........if you've left a message for me please take this golden heart as your very own!!! You're ALL Golden Hearts to me! xoxoxox



I hope you have a glorious Memorial Day weekend........I'll be spending mine remembering our fallen. I am grateful to them and to the other dedicated men and women AND their families who are serving now and who have served. If you are one or know one.......GOD BLESS YOU!!


Hugs and Kisses,
Spencer

Yipppeee! I'm Home!

Yay! I'm home to little Bellamere Cottage.......yes, this IS a picture from last October. I guess I should get out there and take a spring picture. The little, bitty bush under the window was a replacement for a bush that croaked, so it's a bit small. I'm hoping it takes off this year. I bought beauuuuuuuuutiful hydrangeas to add to that area too. I think spring has finally sprung (ok......sort of)........here in the Northwest so we can get out and make that yard pretty.

:-)

It's good to be home and my girl is doing just great. I came home last night and right after I left my little grandson hopped into the shower. When he got out of the shower he was holding the towel over his face, sobbing........poor little guy........he MISSED me! I miss both of them too. We had a good time just being together, although it would have been a lot more fun if my girl had felt better.

Thanks again for all your prayers and caring. It helped me so much.

This is not a good week for me..........Mother's Day is Sunday and this is my first year without my Mum..........it's soooo sad.

Blessing you!

Hugs,
Spencer

It's The Entry at Bellamere Cottage!!!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend! We had a great time celebrating my DH's birthday. Whew, they sure add up quickly! We had a great dinner out with Dodi and Brett, and I did take pix but they didn't turn out.......darn it all!

My Mum passed away very recently and I inherited this adorable little table from her. It was my dad's mom's...........so it's been around quite awhile. It was one of my Mum's favorite things, so I'm thrilled to have it.

Just one of the trays my from collection. I just love old tole. It's so sweet and we think of it as little bits of art. I have them EVERYWHERE! Yep, including the bathrooms.

I bought the lamp (part of a pair) at an estate sale years ago. I LOVE them. Throw in some china and I am a HAPPY girl.

The walls are a very pale blush pink. What an easy color to live with. It's so happy. Of course pink IS my favorite color! :-) Darling Hubby loves it too. Whew am I grateful.

Ahhhhhhh.........the floor. Our teeny little house with the tiny little entry is in a planned community. When we built the house we did get to choose all the floors, cabinets, etc., however, the choices were very limited. We ultimately plan to have hardwoods throughout the main area of the house, but that's going to be down the road sometime. Our darling little pooch, Ruby Mae PetuniaBelle loves to fly through the house and use that little rug you see there as a surfboard. Her little feet have made several lovely scratches in the floor, so until she slows down, the hardwood floors are on hold.

At any rate, I originally chose vinyl. EWWWWWWWWW.........it was so nasty. That's just not right for an entry. While I was lying in bed one night, unable to sleep, this great idea came to me.......(some of my best ideas come then).....!! Why not tear up that nasty floor and paint it! I had painted the bathroom floor in our old house and it had held up so well, why not try this one? Up came that nasty vinyl and a little paint and I have a floor I just LOVE! I'd paint the whole darn house if I could. It's been painted for about four years and if Little Ruby Mae wasn't so wild it would still be perfect. Oh well........we wouldn't give that little cutie up for anything, so the scratches are a small price to pay. It's painted on the subfloor, so the whole thing cost about twenty five dollars! YIPPPEEEE......!!!!

Tiny, but full........just like the rest of the house!

I LOVE this old frame.........it's one of my favorite things......yeah, I know.....everything is my FAVORITE thing! I bought it at a garage sale years ago for fifteen dollars! It had a hideous painting in it that I pitched........hmmmmmmm.......thinking I probably shouldn't have done that after watching Antiques Roadshow........might have been a mistake?? :-(

I had other plates hanging in it, but while my Mum was here not too long before she passed away she thought these would be prettier, so we changed them out. It was her idea to hang the center plate vertically........I would never have thought of that. She was a clever girl. I miss her so much.

The beat up, pooped out garland is my husbands maile lei from his daughter's wedding last October in Hawaii. Poor guy, happily lives with pink walls and tons of fru-fru, I'm not about to deny him his memory here...........He always laughs and tells me the only space he has in this house is his chair and his closet. He's such a sport. Gotta love a beat up, dry old (maybe dusty too??) maile lei then, right? :-)

Eventually the whole shin-dig on that side of the little entry will change, however. I've been working on a wool applique quilt for that space for two years now. I worked on it a ton while I was caring for my Mum........now it's hard for me to pick up. It makes me so lonely for my Mum.......maybe sometime in the next couple of years it'll be up on that little wall.

I hope your week is packed with blessings!

Happy Monday!

Kind Regards,
Spencer

PS..........you can click on any of the pictures for a larger view!