Sumpen Out of Nuten

My bathroom needs serious help. I currently have nothing, nada, zip, zero hanging on its forlorn walls, that is until now.

 

Excuse the glare, but it's a small bathroom on vanity light steroids. I picked up two of these beautiful frames and mats for $1 a piece at a local thrift shop. They were originally a matching art "set," I'm guessing circa 1985 because of the ugly mauve color scheme.

The moral of this short story is, don't overlook ugly. Take a look at the bones and determine what you can makeover. Heck, us girls do it all of the time! The frames were a solid wood painted ivory with two beautiful and contrasting mats. Though this photo doesn't show it, the frame, the glass, and the mats are all excellent quality. I printed out two art photos I found on the internet that I really loved and framed both prints. I can now at least relax a bit until I paint. Bare walls screaming at me? Yep, they honestly do.

A Charlie Brown Christmas

So much going on lately that I haven't had time to post anything or work on my projects. I hope to finish the lamp tomorrow and show the "after." I did yard sail some this morning before I went to spend the day with my mom shopping for Father's Day Gifts and birthday gifts. I haven't done the mall in like 10 years, but mom is in a wheelchair so we have to go where she can get in and out. You should have seen the look on the 24-year-old sales clerk's face at Victoria Secret when she rounded the corner and seen my mom in her wheelchair. Priceless! No push-up bras or sexy undies for mom, but she did want to find that perfume her granddaughter wore that she liked so much!

But back to the treasure hunting. I found some VERY cheap art at a multifamily yard sale this weekend thanks to sweet Diane and her Facebook tip. Thanks Diane! All of it is on the nautical side, which is the direction I am going for without being cheesy nautical. Love this print and it reminds me of the lighthouse at Cape Hatteras:

This print drew me like a moth to a flame because of the type of boat depicted.  I used to see these boats on the Chesapeake and even the Potomac when I was a little girl fishing with my family and I just love nautical maps. It actually looks awkward hanging in my dining room even though it is a large print because there is just too much wall for one picture. It's just plain lost here. Any ideas?

It is actually a print of Hilton Head, South Carolina and surrounding area. The flash and lighting just don't do it justice.

I found this tricked-out, I mean framed-out, mirror for $7 to complete the art wall in my bedroom.  This is my first attempt at layering and doing an art wall and it reminds me of what Stacy London from "What Not to Wear" always says: "It doesn't match. It goooeeesss!"

 

And go it does. I must save my reputation here and tell you that there is no smudge like the flash is showing. Heck, this girl goes cheap, but some things are worth the price. I love Perfect Glass. If I have to wash or polish something, don't make me do it three times Windex! Since I found my lighthouse picture, I moved the art from the hallway over the computer desk so this wall is finally on its way. I picked this oil painting up this winter at the Starving Artist show in Charlotte:

I know, you are distracted by my cute family on the computer.  Well, they are cute, so I don't blame you for looking.

Finally, I have to give you some context as to why I love the white mugs I purchased today for $2. Here's the thing: they are an entire set of matching mugs. I never knew one could attain that. Aspire, yes. Attain, no. You know how when your kids are little and every ornament on the tree is made out of macaroni or yarn and well, you go through Home and Gardens and your tree, well, it just looks like something Charlie Brown threw together. Well, I could not wait to get rid of my rag-tag, mismatched collections of mugs. Just because I can! I don't have to save every 99 cent mug some kid or coworker gives me from the dollar store (sorry guys). I can have grown-up, matching mugs.  And yes, we love the little bugers, but I can COLOR COORDINATE my tree now if I want!

These just make me smile. Now I have just got to stop keeping the roads hot every weekend and actually get some painting done. I also think I have officially missed spring cleaning my windows as it is now almost July. My grandmother would roll over in her grave. And the oven and refrigerator are long overdue for a little TLC.  I don't think there is a soul who hates cleaning her oven more than me and I have a self-cleaning oven. I can dust and mop till I drop, but I hate crusty-nasty ovens and that yellow globby substance that always accumulates under the vegetable bins in the fridge. What is this stuff?

Art with a History

Last July, my daughter and I spent a day shopping before attending the Greek Festival in Charlotte.  On the way to visit one of our favorite home furnishing stores in Fort Lawn, I spotted this beautiful old home on the side of the highway.  My daughter is a fantastic picture taker so she crawled her way through the weeds and climbed a hill to snap this pic of an abandoned farm house.

I love the beauty of decay and thought this house had such a story to tell. Who lived there? What happened? I can almost see the children running around the yard and some large dogs napping on the porch. Notice the old outdoor room on the second floor. I imagine some sisters giggling in the dark as they try to cool off from the heat of a Southern day to get some sleep almost underneath the stars. Then we found these railroad relics:

I asked her to put her special touch on them and send them to me. I framed them and now they hang over my couch in the living room. So for just a few bucks, I've got a photo display of a special day with my daughter that is now a keepsake: