Hi Dear Chickies! It's a Sunday Favorite... :-)

Hi dear ones....

I'm still very busy playing nurse here at the cottage, so I thought it would be the perfect time to join the sweetest chickie ever.... Chari....over at Happy to Design. This meme was designed to showcase older posts that newer friends wouldn't have had a chance to see.

Isn't that just a dandy idea?

I thought so too!


You can join in right over here.


The Hubbs went through the surgery just fine. Who would ever think they could repair cartilage and a torn rotator cuff through three beensie little incisions? WOW! He's up and around, but still a bit loopy from the meds.... and in a lot of pain. But, I trust he'll be good as new VERY soon.


If you've been reading my blog for awhile you'll know about one of our bestestest friends.... Bobby. He's actually been my Hubbs' best friend since elementary school.

You know.... the one who found his soul mate and married her last march?

Well, he has heart disease.....and will be having triple bypass in the next few days. I'm praying like crazy for this wonderful fella. He's been such a good friend to us. Will you say a little prayer too?


Now, onto this old post.... It's originally from 03.04.09.

You can actually see the wall color in the first photo.... a very pale blush pink. I think it looks more grown up than a true pink.... but, that's just MY opinion. :-)


I'll be around visiting each of you as soon as I can.



Right now, I'd better go take care of the Mr.


xoxoxoxoxox

We have a teeny little hallway between our living room and bedroom at tiny Bellamere Cottage. I just have to adorn every single corner of this little house. I am NOT a minimalist! So, let's fill it on up! I bought this simply adorable NEST sign at Joyworks in Snohomish, WA. Joyworks is one of my all time favorite places to find cutsie home items. If you live in NW Washington, you've got to visit Historic Snohomish. It's delightful.......full of darling shops and antiques. Does it get any better than that?



I know, I just am NOT a photographer, but this is the full shot. I bought the gate years ago. It's one of my all time favorite things. Of course, I have tons of all time favorite things! :-) I love this piece because it fits anywhere without taking up any room. I was determined to decorate this tiny area, so I put a bookcase there originally. There is a closet to the right which allowed us to open that door about halfway. I knew it was tough, but I wanted that bookcase THERE! You know how determined we ladies can be. Finally, I just couldn't stand it anymore and was delighted when this idea came to me. It's perfect there and that silly closet is totally accessible now. Oh how happy Mr. Bellamere is.

Note added: No, nothing's crooked... it sure looks like it though. I'm a "use a level for everything" kind of chick.... :-) Crooked makes me crazy.... Even the pictures of crooked are making me nuts.

As I've said......I make lots of things, but rug hooking continues to be a hurdle for me. Why can't I get it??? This is my very first piece. It is FABULOUS....ok, here's the truth. My darling friend, Jan, is champion rug hooker. I did the center flower (the lighter pink one). You'll recognize it. It's the homely one? Well, I had picked the flowers all around it out so many times there was little hope of having any burlap left on which to hook, so Jan took over and finished the piece for me so I could at least enjoy it. It's just great in this little spot and I LOVE it........well, all except that dang flower.......

Yes, I have said I'm NOT a photographer.....pardon the arm shadows! :-) I have a weakness for vintage pitchers. I don't even know how many I have, but PLENTY! I have "overstock" of quite a few and still bought another one last week....shhhhhhhhh.........don't tell my hubby!

More from my dear friend. She made me this darling little puppy for my birthday. I know it's hard to tell, but it is edged with black fringe. We both collect dog things and this little chair would be nothing without this sweet little pillow. It's one of my favorite things. See? I have too many favorite things.........

I got this little chair from my daughter. She had JUST had it recovered and left her purse sitting on it.............she had perfume in her purse............it leaked.............BIG STAIN. No problem.........I have a solution! So, this little ruffled slipcover was born. It covers the icky spot and matches my room............no need to take it in to have it recovered. Now, that's a money saver! I am a THRIFTY girl. :-)

The back. Like you wouldn't recognize it?

I took a snap of the light fixture in the hallway too, and I can't figure out why it didn't show up. For Pete's sake. I have been here for about two hours trying to get the pictures in the right order............I kept messing something up and had to start over. I have a couple of things I need to get done today, so I'll post the light fixture another time. I've been trying to replace all the original fixtures with cute old things and only have a few left to find.........




Have a wonderful, blessed day!
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

We have a teeny little hallway between our living room and bedroom at tiny Bellamere Cottage. I just have to adorn every single corner of this little house. I am NOT a minimalist! So, let's fill it on up! I bought this simply adorable NEST sign at Joyworks in Snohomish, WA. Joyworks is one of my all time favorite place to find cutsie home items. If you live in NW Washington, you've got to visit Historic Snohomish. It's delightful.......full of darling shops and antiques. Does it get any better than that?

I know, I just am NOT a photographer, but this is the full shot. I bought the gate years ago. It's one of my all time favorite things. Of course, I have tons of all time favorite things! :-) I love this piece because it fits anywhere without taking up any room. I was determined to decorate this tiny area, so I put a bookcase there originally. There is a closet to the right which allowed us to open that door about halfway. I knew it was tough, but I wanted that bookcase THERE! You know how determined we ladies can be. Finally, I just couldn't stand it anymore and was delighted when this idea came to me. It's perfect there and that silly closet is totally accessible now. Oh how happy Mr. Bellamere is.

As I've said......I make lots of things, but rug hooking continues to be a hurdle for me. Why can't I get it??? This is my very first piece. It is FABULOUS....ok, here's the truth. My darling friend, Jan, is champion rug hooker. I did the center flower (the lighter pink one). You'll recognize it. It's the homely one? Well, I had picked the flowers all around it out so many times there was little hope of having any burlap left on which to hook, so Jan took over and finished the piece for me so I could at least enjoy it. It's just great in this little spot and I LOVE it........well, all except that dang flower.......

Yes, I have said I'm NOT a photographer.....pardon the arm shadows! :-) I have a weakness for vintage pitchers. I don't even know how many I have, but PLENTY! I have "overstock" of quite a few and still bought another one last week....shhhhhhhhh.........don't tell my hubby!

More from my dear friend. She made me this darling little puppy for my birthday. I know it's hard to tell, but it is edged with black fringe. We both collect dog things and this little chair would be nothing without this sweet little pillow. It's one of my favorite things. See? I have too many favorite things.........

I got this little chair from my daughter. She had JUST had it recovered and left her purse sitting on it.............she had perfume in her purse............it leaked.............BIG STAIN. No problem.........I have a solution! So, this little ruffled slipcover was born. It covers the icky spot and matches my room............no need to take it in to have it recovered. Now, that's a money saver! I am a THRIFTY girl. :-)

The back. Like you wouldn't recognize it?

I took a snap of the light fixture in the hallway too, and I can't figure out why it didn't show up. For Pete's sake. I have been here for about two hours trying to get the pictures in the right order............I kept messing something up and had to start over. I have a couple of things I need to get done today, so I'll post the light fixture another time. I've been trying to replace all the original fixtures with cute old things and only have a few left to find.........

Have a wonderful, blessed day!
Spencer