Lucille goes to pot 

loves pot...

found pot

Actually make that pots..

I used to find a lot of funky junk on Craigslist until other people started copying me (story of my life...... and yes, Martha, I'm talking to you!)

On Sunday night, I perused just in case, and hit upon this stash of white and black enamelware in Vancouver. They made the mistake of saying OBO which meant it wasn't too intimidating to ask for a better price.

I flew there and back.... a mere 2 hours...and today set about cleaning them up so I could take them to my booth at the antique mall.

But as too often happens......

I just couldn't let them go.

They bring out the inner farmgirl in me. (the one that wears cute aprons and takes baskets of homemade bread and pie to Mr. Farmer in the field...not the one slinging manure)

So.....

I played with them for a while...

Autumn colours make such a striking contrast

This is a vintage diaper pail. The label says it can be used later for a garbage can. Glad they didn't say Soup!!

Fall pretties

vegetable soup in bed???? (It's my blog, okay?)

Yam soup coming up

too big for the pot

too big for the stove (I crack me up!)

soup de jour

(Please ignore the fact that just maybe this was a potty in a past life)

farmhouse mantel

bathroom counter vignette

pears in a row

classic black and white

Now that I've had my fun,

 it's time to bid them adieu.....

Here they are now, stacked and ready for someone else to fall in love with.

 If you like I will sell you one (for an arm and a leg)

I really should have shown you a 'before' of the insides of some of them....ranging from light yellow to darkest brown.

They submitted to a firm elbow, bleach, baking soda and every other concoction I could think of. Some took overnight soaking to be completely white and sparkling, others took just a few minutes but they are all lovely now.

It reminds me of us. ....so many shapes and sizes, often lovely on the outside but with varying degrees of stains on the inside where people can't see.
 Some of us need a bit more scrubbing than others.

How precious to know, 
that the healing hand of God will gently remove those stains
 and restore us to the sparkling persons he intended us to be so we
can be put to good use.

Today my prayer is that you will let the warmth of his love

 wash over you

and make you brand new.

BLINGITY-BLING -BLING

Sorry I haven't been in touch lately! Why it must be at least a month or so.

What?

 Seven  months?????????? My stars!!!*******

That's what happens when you are flitting around the globe.

 First it was the Pulitzer for one of the little volumes I wrote last year entitled 'The Art of Exaggeration'

 then the Chelsea Flower Show to introduce my newest hydrangea/delphinium cross

 (requires heavy staking),

 then off to Oslo to see my 7 year-old grandson receive the Nobel for his working lego model of the human body (f**ts on command)

Next I finally baked that white chocolate merinque replica of Buckingham Palace

  the Queen has been begging me for (she ate it at one sitting),

then rushed back to see little 5 year-old Davis cross the finish line at the Boston Marathon

 (he hopped the last 10 kms. to give others a chance)

I had hoped to be in Paris for the debut of my new 'Glitzy Granny' line of jumpsuits (order now and receive a free package of Depends) but there was a cancellation at the Mayo Clinic and I had to hurry back for my brain transplant. ( I performed the surgery on myself which was quite exhausting)

The jury is out on whether or not it was successful.

Ha!

Meanwhile things have slowed down a bit and so I have been fiddling around my townhouse, making little changes.

This is the first place where I have had the luxury of a walk-in closet.

 It sounded so wonderful.

 In truth, it became the graveyard of all things with no real home....

errant Christmas decorations,

 empty boxes (just in case),

 clothes collected over years, slipping off hangers,

 Queen costumes (don't ask), 

luggage,

 odd socks....

you get the picture.

In a moment which can only be described (by me of course) as pure genius, I decided to turn this dark secret blemish into....

wait for it...

A Dressing Room  (cue music)

OOH-LA-LA

I removed the door ( while hubby was out, dragged it away, then told him later......works for me!) and hung silvery curtains....going for a little bling. I bought them at Homesense along with the shimmery little rug.

I had found the vintage stool awhile ago at a thrift store and it is loving its new pride of place.

Tres chic Paris bins hold shoes and jeans.

Hubby (once resucitated) hung the sweet chandelier.

I moved a dresser in from the bedroom, glammed it up with my jewellry box, and a mirrored tray to hold parfum bottles, propped up a mirror,  hung pictures and scarves, coralled purses and foldables in bins, paraded hat boxes.

Removing the door allowed room to hang robes and belts on the side wall.

I pretend I am special now.

Instead of running back and forth between bedroom dresser for undies, to closet for clothes, to dresser for scarf, to bathroom for jewellry, to dresser for socks and belt, having left a trail of nightie and robe and been unable to unearth a coordinating purse ( the horror!) and knocked 3 things off their hangers and been kabonked on the head by a teetering suitcase (soft-sided my foot!).........

sigh!!

I now glide into my new space, hang my nightwear, assemble and change into my complete outfit, pose on my pouf as I select earrings, spritz myself dramatically, select the perfect handbag, bat my eyelashes at my oh-so-clever self reflected in my shimmering mirror and

 swoop into my day.

Hope I run into you. 

You are the real bling in my life!!!

IS IT SO WRONG?

I'm in a quandry.

I succumbed today to the cheery faces of some pink and yellow primulas.

I've seen them out front of stores for a few weeks now, but refused to plant any til the ones in my garden were blooming as well.

.........which they are. 

I drove twice past the garden centre sign that read...

PRIMULAS.....$.95

and then turned in

.....just for a peak mind you.

I was undone.

They whispered, then called me,

quite loudly, 

and then a dozen of them literally jumped into my arms and prevailed upon me to take them home.

How could I possibly say no? 

"Yes", I said. "I will take you home my little darlings. I will promenade you in my front window boxes. I will sprinkle you with rain water. Your perfume will waft over my garden, your frilly dresses adorn.....

or something like that..
.
It's hard to remember exactly...I was so taken.

I just know that when I got home, they were in the trunk of my car.


And the next thing I knew, they were smiling up at me from freshly-tilled dirt.


Oh,

 but back to the quandry.

You see,

I have friends in cold places.

If they wanted to check to see if their primulas were blooming they would have to remove six feet of snow,

that is if they dared to venture out in the sub, sub, sub zero temperatures.


So

is it mean-spirited to post pictures of my pretties?

Probably.

Would it be construed as excessive gloating?

Most likely.

Could they not try to see that I am proffering a glimmer of hope?

Not even a chance.


It's hard to be so misunderstood.



So.............

 don't look if it offends you

but feast your eyes if you'd like a little treat for your winter-weary eyes.

My mini-daffodils are just set to burst open and the hyacinths have big knobby buds, but the tulips will be a while yet. 

They are my spring favourites. I have hubby trained to pick up bunches at the local market to spring up my home and I love to give them as a little gift.

I take some wrapping paper and ribbon with me to the store so they look extra pretty, and I buy little gift books at the thrift store and cut out the cute pictures and embellish them to make sweet gift tags...tres thrifty.


I hope wherever you live that you will soon get to see the miracle of another spring unfurling. 

It always comes.....

eventually,

and perhaps sweeter for the long wait.

IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE .....................

Welcome

Dining room dressed up

New mantle decor

Dining table

Feona's handmade ornament circa 1984

A fabric garland

Ordinary items make a holiday vignette

What could be in those boxes?

Pretty ornaments....many are vintage

The dollhouse all decked out

Morning bliss....the fire, music, lighted tree and COFFEE

Shortbread...Love the coffee ones with white chocolate

Salted caramel chocolate squares...yummers!

Homemade salted caramels....I'm seeing a trend here

Cozy corner

A painted 'Picasso" poinsettia from my daughter....so pretty

Special envelopes with donations for African children

Davis' handprint immortalized

Jerod's handprint on my pretty bauble

Love little cardboard houses

Having a lot of red helps 

Make them pretty

I always come back to the manger

................CHRISTMAS!!!!

....HAPPILY EVER AFTER.....

A birthday...

and then

an anniversary.....

and then

 Christmas all in a row! 

I am so blessed.

Many of you know the circumstances of my new marriage 4 years ago. (You can check it out here http://mslucille.blogspot.com/2014/09/real-tears-after-27-years-of-being.html )

The sweet little chapel where we pledged our love

I wrote a gripper of a poem to put on the front of our invitation.

If we'd written the script, we'd have been cherished sooner,
hearts protected,
unrejected.

We would have slept sweeter,
safely nested,
souls rested.

We woud have danced.


But if we' written the script, we'd have foiled the plan,
characters confused,
timeline skewed.

We'd have settled for less,
still hoping,
just coping.

Not much of a dance.



Someone else took the pen; He caught us off guard.
all-knowing.
blessings flowing.

Someone else tilled our hearts,
seeds planted,
dreams granted.

A reason to dance.


We ponder the words He's written, their beauty sates our souls.
ending undeserved,
joy unreserved.

We adore the way it's ended,
no more waiting,
souls mating.

It's time for the dance!

May I have this dance for the rest of my life?

Fallish flowers on the tables (Yes, I did them the morning of the wedding....no stress here!)

Did I mention that I made my living room drapes and pillows from the tablecloths I made for my wedding? (Mrs. Thrifty)

 The best part was having dear friends and family celebrate with us.


Kinda thinking we won't make it to our 50th, but thankful for the time God gives us.

 Life was meant to be shared.