Sunday afternoon lunch

From looking at all the beautiful tablescape blogs, 

I began purchasing dishes, a little here, a little there.

But along with my new dishes came a little guilt too - more

dishes than one person needed and how was I

 to justify this new addiction?

So . . . I decided to start having people over to eat and

I started with my parents for a simple Sunday

afternoon lunch.  I'm ashamed to say it's been

years since I've invited my aging parents over for a meal, 

mostly because I'm just too busy (at least that's what I

told myself).

Since it was an absolutely beautiful 80 degree day, I decided to

have the meal out on the deck.  My impatients on the table were 

looking somewhat scraggly, so I added pumpkins, gourds, moss, and pyracantha berries to the arrangement to set the mood.

I set the table for three with my new fall leaf dishes from

Dollar Tree along with plaid napkins I found at Old

Time Pottery.

It's a pretty simple table as I haven't been able to justify to

myself yet buying chargers and napkin rings.  Notice that

"yet" is the key word here.

I discovered the beauty of the table was not in the dishes, 

but the company of my parents, the beautiful day, and 

the colorful table arrangement.

My parents were delighted to be invited and we had a

wonderful time together.  I shall not wait as long to

invite them again.

I am linking up with The Tablescaper  for

Seasonal Sundays.

So Simple

We are so often overwhelmed by all the

"things" in life, that we miss the very beautiful 

and simple things.

I found this very little plate at

Goodwill a few weeks ago for $.59.  I laid a

soft bed of moss from my yard in it and topped it

with a mini pumpkin and was amazed at its

simple elegance.

Sweet little gourds making a statement in 

simple settings.

These little fellows found their way into an 

old rusty muffin tin.

And then there are gourd topiaries sitting 

proudly on their perch.

Can you tell I'm fascinated with gourds this year?

I am joining Cindy at Show and Tell Friday over at

My Romantic Home.

Fall Porch

It has been fun giving my front porch a little 

extra attention this year.  Usually I'm so busy with

school and homework that the seasons just pass me by

with little notice, but I am determined this year will be different.

As you come up my front sidewalk, the first thing that greets 

you is my rod iron welcome sign which is attached to the

white picket fence post.

Next you approach the front steps which are laden with

pumpkins and mums.

I decided to mix up the

colors and varieties to add  more interest.

Intermingled with the pumpkins and mums are my pink

begonias that are still hanging on and didn't want to be left out.

According to my design class and "Universal Design"

recommendations, one should always have a bench on the

front porch to accommodate a weary visitor or for the delivery

man to leave his packages.  But I keep a bench on my porch

just because I think it looks more inviting and homey.

I made my door arrangement from a beautiful sign my

sister gave me, made with vinyl lettering from 
Uppercase Living.  I added a combination of silk
flowers and Sweet Annie behind the sign to enlarge it
and make a brighter arrangement.

The colors in the door arrangement are brilliant and stunning.

And sunflowers always make a statement no matter
how you use them.

Oh, here comes Biddy, my elderly female cat to welcome you now.

I am joining Debra at Common Ground for her Fall Porch Party.
Won't you join us?

.

 

Cozy Corner

A cozy living room corner on a rainy fall day.

The glow and fragrance of scented candles.
Chrysanthemums and gourds. 

An afghan and pillows on a comfy couch.
A  good football game.
Saturday afternoon doesn't get any better than this.

Oh my goodness - I discovered Goodwill!

To say I didn't know about Goodwill would be a lie.  

I have been there once or twice in my lifetime.  The last

time I was there, 3 or 4 years ago looking for

furniture to refinish, they had nothing but junk that

I would not take home for free.  And so,

I never went back.  My mom recently recommended I look

for furniture there, but I blew off her advice.  Today

while visiting numerous new blog sites, there was 

the reoccurring theme of the good deals people

were getting at Goodwill.  So, I looked them up in the

phone book and found two stores nearby.  One, I visited on the bus 
ride home.  I had to go back with my car since I couldn't carry 

everything with me on the bus.  Mostly the furniture I

saw was in bad shape or very overpriced, or both.

What I did get, was some dishes for myself.  Here is what

I brought home all for around $14.

These are the four soup bowls I found, so pretty in fall colors.

I thought they'd look especially nice with Chili or Sausage 

Tortellini Soup in them.

There was only one of each of these, but there is only one

of me and I live alone, so that works.

There were four of these green plates and I love the little

vase.  It was the only thing I bought that was over $.59.

I only purchased two of the raspberry plates, but they had two 

more which I will probably stop back and get tomorrow.

There were two of each of these plates, so I could serve my daughter

or a friend for dinner.  I love dishes with bumps on them.

I wasn't able to get any real sets, but over time, I know I

will acquire enough to mix and match and hopefully soon I'll be able to

participate in the Thursday Tablescapes hosted by

Between Naps on the Porch.  I can hardly wait!
~

Last, but not least, I bought these little fellows.  

They were 5 for $1.00.

I thought they'd make great toys for Moby, my grand puppy,

when he comes to visit. He's a miniature dachshund and he loves
stuffed animals.  At that price, it's no big deal if he tears them up,
which is what he loves to do most.

I'm afraid I will probably be frequenting Goodwill quite 

often now, especially since one of the clerks filled 

me in on the details of the best times to shop.

Market Day

Market Day has now come and gone.  It has been a long time

since I was a vendor at an outdoor show and I forgot how 
exhilarating and exhausting it can be all at the same time.

The good news is I sold many of my lovely treasures and 
they all found loving new homes.

The first piece to sell was the dark wood cane chair that was also

my first day, first blog and finally finished blogs. 
One of my favorite pieces, a picture I found at a yard sale is
going to a wonderful home in Missouri.  

Everything on this piece is new except the picture and the frame.
The matting, hardware and even the glass (which I 
accidentally broke) had to be replaced.  Gale, the lovely
lady who bought it is going to hang it in her lake
house in Missouri.  Gale was here in town for the Country
Living Fair, as were several of my other customers.  It
was so kind of their hotel to refer customers on down to our
fair, which didn't have an admission or parking fee.  Gale also
purchased my darling white cedar chest, which will be 
traveling back with her.

What follows are more pictures of our booth.  My sister, Lynette,
did all the beautiful paintings and boiled wool purses.

This little gourd topiary was also one of my favorite things
and I was thinking I would get to bring it home to set
on my mantel, but a lady snatched it up right at
the last minute.

This is a cute arrangement I made just using an old rusty
muffin tin I found at a flea market and adding some moss and
precious little pumpkins and gourds.

Here are the twins displayed amidst other pretty things.

I'm sad to say, only the pink paisley twin found a loving home
with a little girl.  The green chair came home with me.

All in all, it was a very good day.  Now I can relax a little and
catch up with my own home and garden.
Unfortunately, I think my daughter will be chomping at
the bit for me to start on her duvet cover and bed skirt.  She keeps 
reminding me how patient she has been and I respond 
with, "remember it's a Christmas present that I am graciously
not making you wait until December 25th for". I would bet
she'll be over today and inquiring as to when I'm going
to start on it.  More about the duvet cover in future blogs when I
get it finished.

Country Living Fair

The good part ~ a very lovely show with lots of

varied and talented venders.

The bad part ~ a horribly hot, windy, and draining

September day.

Anyways, back to the good part ~ for those of

you who could not attend ~ lots of pictures to share that

speak for themselves.