Craft Room Reveal!

Stick a fork in it 'cause the craft room is finally done!

Though these amateur photos of mine don't do it justice, this space turned out just as I'd hoped. It's happy, colorful, has a vintage charm, and inspires creativity.

Here's the before photo where it looks like a tornado hit the room.  Oy vey!

And here are the afters!

On this bright and lovely beadboard wall there used to be a book case. (It's barely visible on the far left of the before photo above.)  I removed it in favor of an oilcloth-topped farm table that now serves as a sewing table, and a gallery wall of fabric art and prints.

I completely forgot to take close-ups of the art, but I'll do another post with vignettes, and share a couple of the little projects that went into the room.  For now, let's stick with mostly broad views. :)

If you turn your back to the sewing station, you see this armoire I painted last year and a shabby blue book case to the right. The armoire holds crafting supplies and pillow forms.  The book case contains bottles of fragrance and essential oils, and finished candles that are sold in the Harmony Farm Candles Etsy shop.

On the wall opposite the blue book case is a double window. To make the most of unused space above the window, I hung scrolled iron brackets and placed a painted 1x12 on top for a shelf to display part of my model horse collection.  The front edge of the shelf is edged in an adorable red crocheted lace tape.

To the right of that window is the doily clock I made last month.  The shelves, originally unpainted from Michael's, now sport jaunty coats of paint and hold frames and knick-knacks.

And in my enthusiastic haste to take these photos, I didn't remember to get a closer shot of the blue desk, which I painted in 2010.  Sheesh!  Though I added a bit of Cath Kidston wallpaper to the front of the door of the desk, the thing I really like about the desk now is this milk glass lamp that sits on it. It was a yard sale score, and while it worked, the shapely shade was very dingy.  With the addition of strips of sweet Tanya Whelan fabric, it fits right in with the vintage, colorful theme.

So there it is: the long-awaited (for me, anyway!) craft room.  I'll be back next week with more photos and close-ups, and info on where many of the accessories were sourced.

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Coming Up for a Breath of Air

After much relaxing last weekend, this week has been a busy one.  How is it already Friday evening?!?

I'm way behind on blog-visiting and comment-leaving.   Needless to say, I've totally neglected this blog, too!

Part of the reason for that is we weren't home for the first half of June.  We took an all-out family vacation to Florida with stops at Disney World, SeaWorld, and LEGO Land.

LEGO Land may have been my favorite theme park

Cinderella's Castle at Disney World

Cypress Gardens in LEGO Land

I think you can tell this is from SeaWorld :)

And while at Disney, I met Cindy from Cottage Instincts!  She's an absolute delight--which you can already tell from her blog--but meeting her in person just confirmed that.

All the theme-parking was followed by a relaxing stay on the white-sand beaches and translucent jadeite waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

And a visit to Ybor City in Tampa where I took far too many photos of the charming casitas found there.  Because I want to downsize and live in a casita.

So, upon coming home, I had reality to return to, several candle orders to fill, library meetings to attend, and those sorts of thing this week.  Good stuff, but busy stuff nonetheless.

I've also been prepping the house for an appearance in A Sort of Fairytale's Bloggers' Home Tour, held by the lovely Stacey, on the first of July.  Which means I've decided to try to hammer out several projects leading up to that and cram too much into too little time! :)

Seriously, I'm beyond tickled to be participating.  If you haven't seen the series, check it out here.  Such a lovely variety of beautiful homes to behold!   And while you're visiting A Sort of Fairytale, pop in and visit Stacey's new design services business, Cottage Industry.  She's holding a giveaway through Monday to celebrate the grand opening!

Back to the home tour though...since I can't leave well enough alone, I'm madly repainting beadboard, trying to finish a few small furniture projects, and putting the finishing touches on the craft room.  (Which, with God as my witness, will be done in time to go on the home tour!)

So here I am, coming up for a breath of air, to say hi, and hoping that your week has gone well. I'm looking forward to catching up on your blogs and seeing what you've been up to!

Take care,
Erin

Porch Sitting

The weather has been gorgeous here this weekend.  

Warm, but not too hot; sunny, and very little humidity.   Perfecto!

Besides working on a few furniture projects--which of course I'll share with you!--I've also spent a bit of time either laying on a blanket reading in the yard, or sitting on the front porch. 

Feeling inspired by the beautiful weather, I put together a little porch vignette
with items from around the house.

The chair was already on the porch, so that was easy.  I picked up the vintage galvanized dairy cooler from Nest a few months back and hadn't been able to figure out what to do with it.  

Now, it's an end table!

Love these pillows so much.  The one in front came from the Plain Jane Dawson Etsy shop and features Cath Kidston's Rosali fabric, which was available from IKEA several years ago.  Behind it is a blue-and-white Union Jack pillow from Vintage Tails in Hillsborough, NC.

On the milk cooler sits a vintage doily, a turquoise vase with some pretty purple flowers (weeds, no doubt, but who cares!), and this Cath Kidston mug filled with Dark Cherry Berry tea.   

Mmmm to the tea and the mug!

Hope you've had a lovely weekend and Happy Father's Day!

-Erin

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A Few of My Favorite Things

Good Monday evening, everyone!

I'm joining Laura of The Ironstone Nest today for a "My Favorite Things" link party.

As the name implies, participants post a list of their favorite things, be they favorite home decor items, DIY tools, books, crafts, beauty products, recipes, or anything else.  The party is a fun way to get to know other bloggers and to perhaps find some new "must-haves."

Here's my decidedly random list of favorite things, most of which don't apply to topics I normally write about here at Carolina Country Living. :)

Favorites for summer-ready feet, hands, and nails:

Foot File - keep it in the shower, use it daily, and your feet will thank you!  (Found mine at Walmart for a couple bucks.)

Sally Hansen Instant Cuticle Remover...also available at Walmart - does wonders to clean up cuticle overgrowth on both toes and fingers!  Though the bottle says to leave the product on for only 10-30 seconds, I find my nails and skin aren't bothered by applications of 5+ minutes, which seem most effective for really cleaning up cuticles.

Cuticle pushers - use these with the cuticle remover to gently scrape away the dead skin.

Buffing block - so great for finger and toe nails, especially if you go au naturel much of the time - I smooth and buff my nails after trimming them and it gives a subtle, polished appearance

ELF's Nourishing Cuticle Pen - this little pen costs only $1!!  And it's handy to keep in your purse or make-up bag for swiping onto both fingernails and toenails.  The almond oil blend truly does moisturize cuticles!

 Favorite movie I found in the $5 bin:

This quirky British comedy, shot in the most beautiful English countryside I've ever seen, now has me wanting to find a farm on which I can keep my chickens, raise cows, cook delicious meals, and host a writer's colony. 

Favorite summertime beverage:

Celestial Seasonings Black Cherry Berry Tea - makes the most delicious iced tea when lightly sweetened. 

Favorite way to listen to music:

Spotify - I don't have an iPod or any other MP3 player, so when I'm at home, I use the free version of Spotify to listen to all my favorite music.  You simply download the app to your computer, then build and save playlists to your heart's content.  If you do choose to upgrade to Premium, you can listen to music on your smartphone, offline, and more.

Favorite skin care item:

Devita 17% Vitamin C Serum - I'm in my 30s now and my skin is definitely in transition.  Stabilized Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that protects the skin, as well as helps to brighten and firm.  This effective serum, intended for the face, is comprised of mostly natural and organic ingredients and can be found for less than $25.  (I also use and highly recommend Devita's High Performance Glycolic Acid Blend and Optimal Rejuvenation DMAE & Alpha Lipoic Acid.)

Favorite recently-discovered-TV-program-on-DVD:

My friend Heather recommended this series to me when we were talking about our collective disappointment over having to wait until 2013 for season three of Downton Abbey.  Lark Rise to Candleford has certainly filled that British-costume-drama-void in my life! I finished season one of this 4-season BBC series last month and love the look into 19th century rural and town life in England.  The characters and setting are utterly charming--and Brendan Coyle (Mr. Bates from Downton Abbey) is one of the main characters!

Favorite lip gloss:

NYC Liquid Lipshine in Nude York City - one of the most versatile lip glosses I've ever had.  Less than $3 a tube and complements all skin tones.  

Favorite coffee addition:

For a treat you can't beat, add the simple, but decadent, combination of evaporated milk and sweetened condensed milk in either hot or iced coffee.  Click here to be taken to an excellent iced coffee recipe that uses this creamy concoction.

Favorite children's book to read and re-read:

Miss Rumphius was published 30 years ago, but I only read this delightful book for the first time last year when my son brought it home from preschool.   The story of Miss Alice Rumphius touches me on many levels as she grows up, works in a library, travels the world, then settles down in a cottage by the sea, and seeks to make the world a more beautiful place with her lupines.  I pretty much want to be Miss Rumphius.   

Favorite candy:

These morsels--found at the checkout of the local Hobby Lobby--supplanted my 20-year favorite candy, Hot Tamales, when I found them this year.  

Favorite perfume:

Day-to-day, I wear patchouli essential oil and rose fragrance oil dabbed on my wrists and neck.  However, for special occasions, or when I just want to feel ultra-feminine, I adore Tokyo Milk's Waltz. It smells like a Southern summer evening with heady notes of linden, honeyed rose, wisteria and white musk.  

See?  Told you it was a rather random list of favorites!

The party is open through Friday, so please join in the fun. I'd love to read about your favorite things!

-Erin