I want to be a professional Rosarian.

I love roses.  Like, more than Coca-Cola, more than Parks & Rec, more than getting film developed and not having to forego meals for a week because it was so expensive - I LOVE ROSES.

Chris and I often go to the Old City Cemetery - a historic cemetery in Lynchburg, VA full of beautiful century-or-more-old headstones, antique roses to make you swoon, and birds upon birds upon birds for the avian enthusiast in both of us - to take a peaceful walk and just relax.  In all the years I've been going, I've about died of jealousy over their collection of (quite old) antique roses, but I never knew until last Sunday that they actually sell rooted cuttings of their roses!  I, my friends, am the proud new mother of a Mademoiselle Franziska Krüger - my first antique rose.

Yesterday I just sat on my porch staring at her and gently stroking her leaves.  I'm telling you, I'm nuts about roses.  And I want to be a professional Rosarian.  Now I'm wondering where I can take cuttings of roses here and there for rooting without getting run off...

i don't know.

this post is one of those, "i need to blog but where do i start?" type deals. wow, i mean, where do i start? i didn't do much blogging last week because it was so busy, and i had something planned for friday and today, but i think my brain just got jumbled. i guess the biggest thing was my little car accident on friday. luckily it wasn't my fault, and luckily i was in my company car which didn't fare so well, and not my own, and luckily no one was injured aside from whiplash. so i've been complaining to chris like a little old lady, and my house is a mess because my back hurts and i don't feel like vacuuming. but what i did do was hunt for bottles! chris and i met up on friday before the accident and i found a few, then i had a delicious lunch with auntie amy (and the hummus was so good i'd sell chris for more). then on saturday pop and i went on the hunt for more bottles for me to crochet cover.

i'm so happy with the bottles i found! i have to admit though, my hoarder tendencies could take over if i let them and i could decide to just add more and more bottles to my collection, but i have to keep that beast under control. i also got two books (they're new, and they were only $2 each! hardbacks, people!) and this stereoview of a crystal garden. i love the soft colors, and of course i love crystals and all that natural stuff. there was a big basket with probably 200 stereoview cards of all different places and scenes. to be honest, i could have gone crazy with those, too, but i stopped at one!

oh, and chris and i also made mint oreo blizzards on saturday evening. i only like oreos for about 4 days a month if you catch my drift, and that blizzard was absolutely delicious. if chris hadn't eaten all of the loot, i'd make another one for dinner tonight!

i hope you guys had a good weekend! what did you do?

two things i love around my home

I know the title says two things, but since I'm the boss of this blog, I've decided to add three because they're all equally special! These three things were given to me by my dad and stepmom, and I just love them, especially the second one!

The first cage is metal and wood with folk art painting, and it even has a tray that slides out for handy cleaning! The second (my favorite) is brass with a swinging green parrot inside. The third is all wood, and I added the vintage feathered bird.

Last, do you remember how I had something really interesting to tell you about a chair my grandma has? Well, here's the story... A friend of my Granny Maude's (my grandma's mom) just disappeared. No one knows if he died, was murdered, etc., he was just gone. When the man's son was going through the his possessions, he decided to give this chair to Granny Maude. She thought it was the ugliest thing she'd ever seen, so she gave it to my grandma. I think we've all had our pictures taken in this chair over the years, and everyone has wondered where it came from since it's so unique. My dad and stepmom finally decided to take it to a high end antiques dealer to get more info. They discovered it came out of a castle, is from royalty (not king, but duke or count), was commissioned most likely for the children, is from England, was made from hand in the early 1800's, is one of a set of probably 10 or 12, and at first glance could be worth $15,000 or more. Crazy right?!?!? My dad got in touch with an antique furniture dealer in England who is going to study it more to provide some more details, so I can't wait!

If you want to play the two things game, go link up on Kassi's blog. I'll have pictures of my fun antiquing day coming Thursday, and I can't wait to share them!

wishlist wednesday!

Today's wish list Wednesday is all about vintage displays. Pretty much everything in my house has come from a thrift shop or antique store, and it's all had a previous life which I think makes it so much more exciting! Sometimes, it's fun to give new life to an old item in a completely different way!

I don't currently have a glass dome, or cloche, but it's on my list of things to look for. I plan to put mine on an old plate or tray (of which I have MANY) and put a small plant under it.

I've got pencils and pens all over the place, and a nice and interesting way to control the madness is by putting them in a flower frog, be it metal or glass!

I only have a few actual vases (which stay in the cabinet under the kitchen sink) because I'd much rather put flowers in an old pitcher or decorative old drinking glass. I think it gives the arrangement more character, and it gives me a reason to have even more old dishes!

I like using trays to hang on the wall and use as magnetic memo or polaroid boards. It gives my walls some color, it's easy on my wallet and it gives me a reason to use some of my vintage button stash to make cute magnets!

Not only do I like regular framed art hanging on the walls, but I also love to hang beautiful old plates with pretty designs. It's a nice way to make the walls of your kitchen or dining room (or any room for that matter) a little more festive, and I don't think you can go wrong with the delicate beauty of old plates and serving trays!

From the top: three small vintage glass cloches from kissavintagedesign, fruitful display from fromgraytogold, frog for flowers by ellacinders, vintage pastel banded glass pitcher from sosovintage, beaded vintage drinking glasses from vintageinteriors, large round vintage light blue metal tray from modishvintage, pretty collection of small vintage plates from theprettynest.

Last, you can ask me any question you'd like, and I'll post the answers on Friday. And if you haven't signed up for the knick knack exchange or emailed me your address yet, please do, the partner info will be sent out on February 1st!

thrift store score

Maybe it's from living in a house filled with antiques as a child. Maybe it's from spending so much time with my mom at flea markets and antique shops when I was young. Or maybe it's because I've got an old soul. For some reason, I'm just not thrilled with the new things, but I swoon over those gems with chips, scratches, tarnishing, and little stories to tell of a previous life. If I'm not at home, you'll probably find me in one of three thrift or junk shops! I'm not finished photographing all of my finds, but here are a few!

From my first trip, I got a huge old brass frame with rosettes in the corners and filigree edges. Again, keeping with the "old is gold" theme, I won't put an ornament on my tree unless it's older than me! I got this box of glittered glass balls, and by the look of the box, I'd say they are from the 60's or 70's...$2! The pretty mirror with roses isn't super old, but I know it's lived a life by the age spots on the mirror and the faded look of the silver. I can't wait to hang it!

I fell in love with these aged aluminum tart molds! I put a little plant in one and I figure I'll use the other two for the intended purpose. $1 for the set.

My absolute favorite find from that trip is this little dreamboat of a tray! Oxidized and aged to perfection, It has the sweetest little bow attached to one end, and it'll be perfect in any room in my house! I'm not sure where or how I'll use it yet, but it makes a great magnetic memo board with the magnets I made to sell in my shop!