I love reading a good story…..something that makes you laugh, or cry, but that lets you into the lives of the characters. Likely, that’s because people mean so much to me. An old song floats through my brain….”photographs and memories”….and my walls at home are covered in both.
With a new year beginning, perhaps your walls need an uplift as much as your spirit! So let’s take a tour of some of my favorites here this month…
Laundry is something that we all have to do so why not jazz up your laundry space with a tin photo in a shabby frame? Let your imagination go with me….Sally’s mom was so busy today! Leaving her doll on the floor, Sally grabbed her dolls and toys and set out to work alongside her mother. Surely those dolls needed clean clothes too!
Betsy stretched her small frame until she stood on her tiptoes. Still, she couldn’t reach the knocker and she wondered how she could deliver her mother’s freshly baked bread to their sick neighbor? The aroma wafted upward toward her nose and she wobbled unsteadily, trying her best not to dump the loaves on the ground with her stretching. Feeling defeated, she spied the wooden bench next to the door. Perhaps she could leave the loaves there?
It had been a long season already, the winter claiming the trees with its icy breath. Carol turned toward the window when she heard a familiar chirp. The birds were back! Perhaps spring was coming sooner than she had dared to hope! It was in that moment that she turned toward her wall hanging and knew its truth: her own nest had become a place of rest and retreat for her during the winter months. But with the chirping outside her window, she realized that the time to spread her wings had come….
Where did I put that letter I meant to mail? If only I had a place to clip all those notes to myself so I could remember to do the things I wrote on them! Sure would be nice if that recipe was clipped on the wall where I could read it! Maybe I could clip the mismatched socks here in the laundry room and the kids could collect them as they needed them?
Oh, for a touch of spring to put on my porch! Wait! Didn’t I see a great idea at Burlap & Lace last week?!?
It was time to turn the doldrums of the day into a memory. Taking the soapy hands from the sink, he turned her to him and whispered, “May I have this dance for the rest of my life?” Her heart melted beneath the strength of his arms. The dishes could wait….
Ridicule always awaited her…simply because she was different! She didn’t care anymore. With a determined sense of abandonment to all that had previously held her back, she walked out the door and faced a new day of opportunity.
With the sun streaming in the window, the rims of the bicycle glistened and she smiled. Seeing the flowers in the basket and smelling the fresh air of morning wafting in through the open blinds, she swung her feet over the side of the bed and onto the wood floor. An adventure was awaiting her today….
Some things are just to make you laugh….
Others are to make you live what you believe…
You get the picture! So let me give you a few other ideas for your walls. Maybe these don’t tell the stories we’ve just discovered, but they add fancy and fun in other ways…
Mirrors are great pieces to make any room look larger. You will find quite a selection here, and don’t be surprised if they are not hanging! I like to lay them on a table and add decor to the top!
Shutters and frames make excellent wall decor. They can stand alone or in a grouping, and don’t be afraid to add a touch of greenery or to wrap a piece of art in a frame! Shutters are excellent ways to add a rustic touch to any room, and the slats are perfect for slipping in cards received or bills to be paid! Or even a photograph or two!
Use decorative plates and chargers, old gate pieces or fences, and even old oil pans filled with plates or flowers to give a unique flair to your space.
Want art gallery pieces without paying art gallery prices? From abstracts to more modern pieces, you will certainly have stunning pieces to choose from.
For the garden enthusiast, you’ve met your match! Anything metal, rustic, wood or floral grabs my attention. I’ve been known to splash these items throughout home and yard alike!
Sandy, don’t look so sad! You got to wear your blue dress while sitting for this portrait! But Connie, YOU got to wear the blue tie at your neck!
Only my sister will understand that last one! But you get the point. Wall decor can be fun! So enjoy the journey of sprucing up your spaces this month and don’t forget to let your imagination enjoy the journey with you!
~Blessings,
Connie
The pattering rain on this ‘ol house’s tin roof brings a certain comfort to the chill of the day. January is upon us, which translated means….a new year on the calendar, a year older for this shopkeeper, new venues to create, new challenges ahead, new friends to meet….the list is long. So let me back up a step or two and bring you back to a couple highlights for me from 2017.
As we pop our heads out to the porch, I don’t mind admitting that I am having an early case of spring fever! My sister has always loved blue, and so for some reason (maybe she has been on my heart a lot lately!), I decided to bring in touches of blue and yellow throughout the house this month. And I don’t mind saying that wicker has become a new favorite of mine! This love seat has got to be the most comfortable piece of furniture I’ve had grace this porch! Sold as a set (cushion included), pair it with the oval table and you’re ready to sit and sip lemonade!
I’m loving this metal table and chair set…perfect for the porch, deck or to use inside! Remember how it was showcased last month? Let me remind you….
Ok, back to January’s offerings….
Chippy meets burlap meets rust…..huh? This old rusty spring is my new favorite piece! I had it as an umbrella stand last month. This month? Perfect for faux florals to soften the corner of the room!
I’ve also created a linen closet for those of you who – like me – love finding linens to use on your bed, your table, or anywhere really!
August 2014 will always be sweet in my memory. This is my moma….who I swear has NEVER answered the phone when I called without a smile to her voice, and who – as I have been doing some soul-searching this past week – is a huge part of my story of “why” I do what I do. Simply stated – she has inspired me over the years, not so much by what she has said, but rather by what she has exampled before me.
I just celebrated my 57th birthday two days ago. And if you know me at all, you understand that I am a processor….I think (and speak) out loud a lot of the time when I should be quiet and ponder before opening my mouth. But in the end, if you know me, you understand. That’s just the way God wired me. And it takes a lot of grace to love me!
This was the first house I remember growing up in. I was blessed to have come from a small town where I could walk to school and then home again every day. When I was a young girl, my mom would allow me to “play office” with her by setting up a card table in my room which was across from her office. She equipped my “desk” complete with my own adding machine and drawer of paper money. I would then have my sister come to my “shop” (which was my room) and purchase things. I wanted her as a customer so much that I even gave her money from my cash drawer to use in “purchasing” my goods! Thinking about that now, I laugh at how I had to coerce her to play my silly “shop” game. I believe that experience impacted us both in ways that are still unfolding.
The year was 2008 and my son was in high school, during which he took art classes. During the summers, he would often have some project or another going, as would I. It was during this time that he taught me the fine art of making my own pallet signs. This was my first one, and I was quite proud! I used stencils for the design work because I couldn’t paint a lick! And I used spray paint, of all things!
burlapandlace3 