Pink Saturday August 28th, 2010 Miracle Makeover Party and Pink Depression Glass.

 Happy Pink Saturday!!!    I am so happy that you popped in!!!  My Pink post follows this anouncement:

This weekend I am joining Beverly at     http://howsweetthesound.typepad.com/my_weblog/
and Kelee at        http://www.katillacshack.com/
for the much anticipated Pink Saturday and Miracle Makeover Party Video Reveal.


    This amazing true life story is about a young woman named Colette Gautier who was diagnosed with breast cancer and was given only a  5-15% chance for survival from this horrible disease.  She is a single mom living in a small rental house and is facing the hardship and trials of chemotherapy. She was going to have to endure the side effects of the cancer-killing drugs while languishing in a dreary dilapidated old bedroom with only austere, depressing outdated wallcoverings, curtains and furnishings.  Thanks to the brilliant design ideas of Kelee Katillac and funds provided by Guideposts at    http://www.guideposts.org/
Colette's bedroom has received an awe inspiring, restful and whole "body-mind-spirit" magical healing transformation. Please go now and view the transformation video at
http://www.katillacshack.com/
You will laugh, you will cry, you will PRAISE GOD and all of his wonderful MIRACLE WORKERS  and your life will be transformed knowing that MIRACLES DO HAPPEN!!
Please remember to leave a comment on Kelee's blog, . Each comment will generate a $1.00 donation from "Design Gives Back" to go towards ANOTHER Miracle Makeover. You will also be entered into a draw for a possibility to win one of the following prizes listed at the bottom.
You may earn up to $5.00 in donations by leaving comments at these four other partner site links:

www.facebook.com/guideposts


Spiritual Sunday @ BloggerSpirit


Country Wings in Phoenix Blog


Pink Saturday @ How Sweet the Sound



-GIVEAWAYS TO WIN:
NEW Janome Sewing Machine


Erin Houghton Roses Painting


Guideposts Magazine Subscriptions


Penny Carlson Mosaic Cross
 
                                                           My Pink Post..............
                                                       August 27th 1983-2010
                                              Happy 27th Anniversary to Timothy and Me!!

                                         I was going to scan pics of our wedding but our scanner has given                                                     up the ghost.  BAD SCANNER!!!
                                   Instead I am featuring more pics of my depression glass collection.

I have had these pieces for more than twenty years.  I rearranged my display on the porch buffet and used pedestal cake plates to elevate the collection.

(You can right click to enlarge the picture and then zoom-in for a closer look on all my pictures)

Everything sparkled with a rosy hue when the afternoon sun shone in through the windows.

I picked up this collection of sherbet dishes and underplates just a few weeks ago. The glass is very delicate and etched with a cornflower and leaves. One sherbet design is more elaborate than the other and the glass is a tiny bit thicker and darker.

This is a small bit of the green depression glass.

The buffet and glass by canlde light.

I wish you could drop in to see it in person!!

Hubby and I are taking off for the day and have made reservations at our favorite restaurant in Belleville, Ontario. It is called "L'Auberge du France" and serve excellent French cuisine. I am looking forward to escargot and lamb, lots of garlic and their wonderful rose wine!!!

Happy Pink Saturday my Lovelies!!

Warm hugs, Laura

 

Teacup Tuesday August 24, 2010.

Happy Teacup Tuesday!

 Once again, I am joining Martha at
  http://www.marthasfavorites.com/
 and Terri at
 http://artfulaffirmations.blogspot.com/
  for their weekly show of teacups.
 I am also joining Wanda Lee for 'Tuesday And Wednesday Teatime In Blogland'! at
  http://theplumedpen.blogspot.com/
and Pam at Teapots and Tea Things Tuesday
http://silkenpurse.blogspot.com/

Today has been a bit of a dreary day with the skies being overcast and the occasional spattering of rain. I decided to spend some time in my bedroom (the MASTER bedroom! LOL!) and tidy, vacuum, dust and polish furniture.

With that out of the way, I made myself a small pot of tea and sat down to enjoy it and pen a short note to a new friend.

The teacup I am using was given to me by my beautiful Momma, Nancy. She died from lung cancer just a little over three years ago now on June 2nd, 2007.  I miss her so much every day ( wiping tears away) but I am so lucky that I have so many mementos of her surrounding me.

Here is a small French Ivory frame with a picture of her. "Hello Momma".

The cup and saucer were made by Royal Albert and the pattern is "Serena". I think it is from the 1950s. When I was growing up Mom would often make us a cup of tea in the afternoon and I would always use this cup and saucer. I loved the allover pink roses and little blue flowers.

It is just an exquiste set!

While I wait for the tea to steep a bit more, I look at some more treasures on my writing desk. Here is a picture of Timothy and me on our wedding day, August 27th, 1983. It was soo hot that day, almost 100 degrees in the church, sweat was pouring off of Reverand Buchanan's forehead.  Timothy's, too, I might add!!! LOL!!

Tim gave me the Willow Tree "Together" figurine a couple of years ago for our 25th Anniversary. I love it!

On the left is a vintage silver bachelor tea set that I bought at a thrift store a few years ago. I normally have it polished and sparkly, but I thought I would leave it for a change. It is the perfect size for "just a spot of tea"! The cottage white box on the right is something I put together the spring that Mom was ill. I found the old wooden box in the drive house at Mom and Dad's. It had a half-hazard green paint covering it and was full of old nails. The appliques were rescued by Mom for me from my old piano. My brother, Gord, had been keeping the piano and using it for a number of years. It was a glorious mahogany upright grand piano manufactured by the Martin-Orme Company. One night when Gord let his dog, Teddy, out for his evening walk, out went Teddy and in came a skunk!! The "blasted" animal proceeded to spray just about everything in Gord's kitchen, but the piano sustained the most damage. The skunk did make his exit, finally. Poor Gord and his family had a terrible time and spent weeks trying to get the smell out of everything. The piano had to be put onto the porch where it got drenched during a storm. The beautiful appliques peeled back and the veneer lifted. The poor thing was a goner. BUT, Momma used a paring knife and lifted all the appliques and gave them to me one day a few months after the skunk happening. I saved them until I knew where I wanted them. I glued them to the old wooden box and painted it a creamy white. Mom used it at her bedside when she was ill. She kept her nail file, glasses, mints and other little necessaries close by. I now use it for my collection of greeting cards and writing paper.

I think the tea is ready. I use a bit of sugar and milk! The sugar shell has a square scoop. It belonged to Laura Mulligan, my maternal grandmothers best friend. She is one of the women I am named after. (I am also named after my Father's mother; she was a Laura, too.)

While I was polishing the wood on my desk, I moved everything onto our bed. Of course, when you move things around, you can get distracted (I always do!). I started looking through the cards in the white box. I rediscovered some lovely vintage get well cards I had. So...lightbulb moment!!!.....I thought I would send a note to a new friend.....her pup, actually!!! Can you see who it is addressed to?? 

Now can you see??? 

I'll pop it into the mail tomorrow (Tuesday) morning.

Thank you for visiting me on this lovely day.

God bless!

Love and warm hugs, Laura

Pink Depression Glass and Other Goodies!

  Good morning my fellow bloggers. Happy Pink Saturday to you. This fabulous weekly celebration is hosted by lovely Beverly over at How Sweet The Sound
( http://howsweetthesound.typepad.com/my_weblog/pink-saturday/) .
Thank you Beverly! You have brought so many wonderful new friends into my life!
   I was blog surfing a couple of days ago (it is my new quiet time hobby!) I came across Roselle's blog
http://roselle-seasiderosecreations.blogspot.com/2010/08/pink-saturday-depression-glass.html


She was featuring some gorgeous pink depression sherbets that she had found thrifting. Check them out they are beautiful!! Her post inspired me to show you some of my pink depression glass, too.




It all started way back at the dawn of around 1973.  I was 13 and was working for my Dad in the retail store of Maple Dale Cheese Factory near Plainfield Ontario. It was my first job and I was making 50 cents an hour bagging cheese curd......stuffing one pound of fresh, salty, warm, curd into a plastic bag!!  OMG!!!!   I still love the stuff!!! (and yes, I could eat as much as I wanted while working!). Anyway, this job allowed me to have some money in my pocket. My Mom had started a `Hope Chest` for me when I was about six, so I started adding to it.
  My first piece of pink depression glass cost me 25 cents. It is an hexagonal platter. I purchased it at Peggy`s Store in Thomasburg where I grew up. (It is a small hamlet in Eastern Ontario). You can see the platter resting in front of Momma`s rose platter. Just a few years ago (thanks to Ebay!) I learned that it was made by the Lancaster Glass Company in  the 1930`s. I was drawn to the ``pink diamonds`` in the centre of the platter and the ornate handles. It is still very precious to me.

The week after I bought the platter, my Dad brought home the creamer and sugar for me. (You know, I had forgotten that, until I began to write this post!!) He bought it from Peggy`s Store as well.  They have the same etched flower and leaf pattern as the platter.

As you can see, those three pieces, began my almost forty year collection of pink and then green depression glass.

My collection has grown! To go with the glass, I started collecting pink rose dishes!

And pink rose jugs and pitchers!

And any lovely thing that was PINK!!  The candle sticks or bud vases below are 1980`s Fitz and Floyd which I paid 50 cents for last year. You can see more of my Myott rose trellis dishes, too.

My cravings for pink things has encouraged my creative side to ``pinkify`` many vintage items including this plaster plaque. (it was once brown and gold)

So, the collection of pink things craze continues. These are some of my plates and crocheted pot holders which are on my kitchen wall above the big bay window.  You can see that it is still dark out. I HAD to get up at 5:30 this morning to take pics and write and post this!!  Pink Saturday has become a big part of my life!!  LOL!!  I love sharing my ``Pinks`` with you and I love, love, love visiting everyone`s blogs to see ``what ch`all got`` that is PINK!!

Well, it`s 7:15 am now and the sky is overcast. I am still working out in the garage cleaning and organizing it. Hubby moved more than half of the furnture and boxes of ``stuff`` out onto the lawn yesterday. It spent the night there!! So today, before it rains!!, he is going to move most of it back in, but it will be more organized this time. I will post about this huge chore early next week. I`m thinking of having a huge yard sale on Labour Day Weekend.  I gotta get rid of some stuff!!!!

Happy Saturday Everyone!!!

I hope you have an exquisite weekend!

Love and warm hugs, Laura

P.S. I think I need to git me a bag of warm, fresh, salty curd today!!

Teacup Tuesday August 17 2010.

Happy Teacup Tuesday!

Once again, I am joining Martha at

http://www.marthasfavorites.com/  

and Terri at

http://artfulaffirmations.blogspot.com/

for their weekly show of teacups.

I am also joining Wanda Lee for 'Tuesday And Wednesday Teatime In Blogland'! at

http://theplumedpen.blogspot.com/

for the first time.

This is a demitasse tea/cocoa cup and saucer made by Nippon. It is very delicate, thin and light weight.

It has an ornate handle, moriage, gilding and handpainted roses.

The roses are deep rose and pink in colour with green leaves.

The gilding is scrolly and frilly and makes it look like a party dress!!

I do not know whether it is old or reproduction, but it has the feel as if it is old.

I love the delicate roses.

My daughter, Alyx, gave me this next cup and saucer last year for Christmas.

It is quite beautiful as well. The main colour is a warm and sunny yellow, accented with the white bone china showing through and highlighted with more frilly, scrolly gilding.

In the centre of the teacup and the saucer is a gorgeous pink rose and rosebud.

This set is made by Royal Grafton from England. I do not know how old it is.

The cup has one plain gold band encircling the middle and the pedestal is painted gold.

Hmmm....just looking at this cup and saucer makes me crave a cup of hot tea even though it is nearly 30 degrees outside!!!

I hope you have enjoyed viewing these two teacups today.

I am heading back out to continue the purge from the garage!! Hubby and son will be moving furniture out so I can see what there is, what will go to the dump, what will stay and what will go to thrift stores. I'll post about this project later this week.

Warm hugs, Laura

Shabby Vintage Plaque.

Good Monday Everyone!

While I was blog-surfing last week I found a blogger who had a vintage plaque like one I had. I told her that I would post pics of my plaque. Her name is Tammy. This is her blog   http://prettypinkcherub.blogspot.com/.

 I just peeked on her this morning and she has shabbied up a couple of chandeliers and a mirror. THEY ARE DROP DEAD GORGEOUS!!! Go and take a peek!!

So here are the pics.

You can click on the pic to have it enlarge and then you can click again on the pic and zoom in for a closer look and see.

I bought this at a local Salvation Army Store in July 2005. It still had the $3.00 price tag on the back!! Poor thing; it had been sitting beneath an end table in the livingroom. I had not taken an opportunity to hang it yet!

I have just hung it on the porch where the light is brightest right now. Do you see how the profile is 3-d?

Monsieur Gentleman has a chip to his curly locks, but Madame Lady is all there as is the rest of the plaque.

Aren't her gown and bonnet pretty? I just love the pink, green, off white colours.

                                                                           Here is another side-view.            I spent another two days cleaning out the garage   and mini barn. OMG what a chore! But I can see daylight now!! I'll post on that later this week. Do you feel autumn in the air?
                                    Warm hugs, Laura
                                                    

Saturday on my PINK PATIO!!!

Good evening Chickies!!! Are you ready for more PINK?!! Let's all give a resounding round of applause for Beverly over at How Sweet The Sound  ( http://howsweetthesound.typepad.com/my_weblog/pink-saturday/) for hosting this wonderful weekly festivity for all us Pinky Peeps!!.

I am sipping my glass (actually I think it is a water goblet!!) ; )  of White Merlot (which is actually pink in colour!!) while I write this entry. While I was doing grocery shopping this afternoon, I wondered as to what I would feature this week for Pink Saturday. I arrived home and the sun was shining on our back patio and "BOOM" it hit me........"the Patio is PINK!!!" So, I poured my self a glass of pink liquid, collected a couple of extra pink things and started my "photo shoot!".

The patio faces west so we enjoy the afternoon sun. This is where our barbeque is. Hubby is presently shucking corn to cook on the side burner. It isn't pink, but I just had to mention it 'cuz this is our first feed of corn-on-the-cob for this year! (Mmmm....can't wait!)

I purchased the two steel chairs at a country auction in 1998. There is a rocker as you see above and a matching non-rocking chair (shown in pics to come). They were off white when I purchased them (both for $12.00!) and have been Robin's Egg Blue and then "Laura's Cottage Pink" since 2009.  ( I took a plate with a pretty rose on it to have the pink colour copied for a gallon of paint, hence, "Laura's Cottage Pink"!!)

We make homemade wine at  Cucina Freeman in Belleville which is a local brew-your-own-joint.  The glass is a thirft store find....25 cents.....very heavy crystal....I love it!! The table is a 1950's-60's vanity minus the mirror. It was black when I bought it ($4.00) so decided to give it "the pink treatment".

Do you see the little birdhouse??   It is pink, too!

This is my favorite summer purse. It is from Danier leather. My son, Wes, bought it for me in 2008. Hint:  I clean it with Lysol Wipes and spray it with Tana Leather spray to keep it looking brand new. This is its third summer!! My daughter, Alyx, brought the Eiffel Tower keychain back from Paris for me last year.

This is the little matching change purse and my.....Pink....phone!

Would you like to sit a spell and join me with a glass of wine??

I made the cushions for the white wicker on the porch, but they work here just as well!! All of the fabric is recycled....even the zipper! The floral focal was a valance from my girlfriend Anne, the denim was a skirt, and the floral  backing was a curtain.

The flowers in the granite ware pitcher are "faux", but the pink wave petunias are for real!! The pot is painted the same "Laura's Cottage Pink".

Here is a better pic of that birdhouse.

A few years ago I decided that silk flowers were ok. Since then I have arranged large bouquets which I rotate between the seasons.  Hint: I store them in large clear recycle bags.  I just "lurve" the big pink peonies!!

Here is that glass of wine I promised you!!

I realized, when I was looking at the pesky weeds growing between the patio stones, that my toes are painted pink, too!!!

 Happy Pink Saturday Everyone!! Make sure to check as many participants as you can. You will find oh so many pink lovelies!!!

Warm hugs, Laura