Florida

Here's a few more pictures from our week...I've taken hundreds, so it was hard to pick just a few.

Gorgeous sunset.

We drove on a scenic highway through some seaside small towns....the houses were so beautiful!

Went to the Gulfarium....these are pictures from the dolphin show.  Those are some smart animals!

Mark and Jess went deep sea fishing -- then we took their catch to a local restaurant and got it cooked up.  Good job boys!

Fireworks pictures from the balcony of our condo -- we had the perfect seats!

Some pictures with my honey -- we have had so much fun!  Tomorrow is our last full day here and we will spend it on the beach....then we'll head home on Saturday.  :(

Pictures

We are in Florida, and loving it!  Here's some pics from our first day here:

We went to dinner at a place called The Lucky Snapper.  It was sooo yummy!

This was the view of the marina from our table at the restaurant.

This was the view from the balcony when I woke up this morning. :)

Went to the beach today...toes in the sand!

Beautiful blue sky....

My snorkeling man....this is his first time at the beach!!

Jenn and I soaking up the sun in the water.

More to come!

Vintage Market

A friend and I visited a lovely little place called "Vintage Market" today.  Have you been there?  It's fantastic.  If you are at Zona Rosa anytime soon, you should definitely go.

When you walk in the door, your eyes just don't know where to look first - which I love!  You can leisurely stroll through the booths, and admire the charming mix of old and new.  I have always been drawn to vintage finds -- I think it comes from trips to antique stores with my mom at an early age.  Checking out old dishes, linens, jewelry, and anything else that looks well-loved.  While I am excited about the NEW furniture that will be arriving at my house come Monday morning, I plan to mix in lots of vintage finds, too.  Because, well, I just can't resist the stuff.

Check out my finds (and please excuse the picture quality....my camera fund is slowly but surely growing).

First:  a wicker candle holder with glass insert.  I have been looking at similar styles at various different stores, but didn't want to spend the money.  I decided for $8 I couldn't pass this one up -- has a "beachy" feel, doesn't it?

Second:  antique iron candle holder that has been spray-painted this great greenish-turquoise color.  Yum.  I'll probably display this on my built-in shelves.  I want to only put things that I love on those shelves...and I definitely love this.

Third:  small antique glass knobs....I'll be using these as pulls on the cabinets that hubby builds.  Much more character than some out-of-the-bin pulls from local hardware store.  And, only $2 a piece!

Fourth:  salvaged artitectural pieces.  About 6 inches wide...$5 a piece.  Not sure what I'll do with these yet, but couldn't leave them behind.  They were under some linens in a basket...it was like discovering lost treasure!  Oh, the thrill of the hunt...

Fifth:  wire basket.  I love the look of these wire baskets.  Pottery Barn is selling them right now for $34 (ridiculous!)  This baby was six bucks.

Fifth (final and favorite!): sweet little ceramic bird!  I have a recent obsession with all things "bird", so when I saw this darling fellow sitting on a shelf, I couldn't grab it fast enough.  Then, when I anxiously turned it over to see the price ($4), I snatched it up and whispered you are coming home with me! 

I am so happy with my latest finds, and just can't wait for the whole room to come together.  I think my husband is having some doubt about my design choices, but I just assure him "It will all come together."  Right??  Have you ever seen something at a store and you just had to have it right.that.second?  I seem to be having that problem a lot lately.... but I totally believe in surrounding yourself with things you love.  Makes for a happy and inspired home!

Thanks for looking!  Check out the Shabby Nest for other great project, thrift finds, and inspiration:

Inspiration

The living room re-design continues....walls are painted.  We'll buy trim later in the week and paint and install that.  We'll probably have to wait on the built-ins until after our vacation.  Couch and love seat arrive next week, and our sofa table came today from JCPenny.  It was super easy to put together (four screws!), and in fact didn't even come with directions!  Thankfully we are not completely incompetent when it comes to furniture assembly. 

On a trip to Home Goods this weekend, I found some accessories!  How 'bout these babies?

*sigh*  Aren't they great?

I also found a great area rug -- which I am not allowed to unroll and take a picture of.  Ever-practical husband says "Why would we unroll it when the store took the time to pack it up nice and neat?  We'll get it out when the room is ready for it."  (Insert me pouting....)  Oh well, I will post a picture of it soon enough.  Also found a charming lantern, and some starfish!  They will look GREAT when the "room is ready". :)

Here are some of my inspiration rooms:

I love the natural materials (like the wicker) and also the splashes of color (who doesn't love turquoise and red?)

I love the striped chair and the coffee table in this picture.  I'm still on the hunt for a coffee table -- I want to find something that I can "revamp".

There are lots of things I like about this room:  the jars and shells, stacks of books, hanging lanterns, and charming ladder. 

I hope to create a "gallery wall" kind of like this one....maybe....for some reason it is quite intimidating to me.  I'll be on the hunt for sales on picture frames...I like the combination of black and white frames and mats here.

Am hoping to do some sewing this week -- stay tuned!

 

Summer is here!

It's been awhile!  Things were a little crazy trying to tie things  up for the end of the school year...and now my class load for the summer has picked up with trying to finish my Masters degree.  However, project list for the summer is made, and I am hoping to start checking things off very soon....here's what I have going on for the summer:

1.  Living Room Makeover

Mark and I sold our old furniture, cleared the room, and began making repairs to the walls.  We have repainted the ceiling, and will begin painting the walls in the next couple of days.  Furniture has been ordered and will arrive in a couple of weeks.  Here's the state of my living room right now:

This wall will be the home to my new, custom built (by handy husband), built in shelves!  Yay!  The theme for the room is beach cottage.  *Hopefully* my vision comes together.  If you've walked through Pottery Barn lately, you know the look I am going for.  Of course, I can't afford Pottery Barn, so I have to get the look for less.  For example:

This is the table from Pottery Barn that I fell in love with.  Alas, I could not afford to pay $249 for each end table.  So....I found this baby on JC Penny's website:

(Sorry, picture quality from their website is not good!)  Anyway, I think it looks *just* like the PB table, but only costs....wait for it....$99!!!!  Score!

Stay tuned for more living room updates -- I'll let you know how it's coming along, and share any other bargains, crafts, or do-it-yourself projects.

2.  We leave for vacation in 2 weeks!  Heading to Destin, Florida to stay in a condo on the beach.  I've been to the beach once, and Mark has never been, so we are VERY VERY excited about our getaway.  Fingers crossed that we won't have any oil spill snafus...so far the oil has not reached Destin...

3.  Tutoring -- I'll be tutoring 3 darling children this summer.  All extra money from that is going into the "new camera" fund.  I have my eye on the Canon Rebel.....

4.  Crafting!  I hope with all of the other things going on that I still have time to do some crafting and creating.  I know I'll be sewing some things for the living room, but I'm also hoping to try some new things as well.  Going to a crop tomorrow night (Scrap Mania @ Archivers) with Jenn, so will be catching up on my scrapbook.

5.  Relaxing??!?!  Will there be time for this??  Hoping to spend some time at the pool with these little cuties...

Do you have a to-do list for the summer??  Or is that just a teacher thing.... gotta enjoy these 10 weeks (that I know will fly by)!