What to do, what to do...

This is just the coolest chest ever...I love the weathered patina, not quite sure what the patina is, but I love it. The dilemma arises when I can't make up my mind whether to paint or not to paint...if I paint this piece I'll paint it pure white and the natural crazing in the old varnish will naturally crack, showing an age to the newly painted piece. But the naturalness of the piece would look awesome against the backdrop of lots of white frames and odds n ends pieces of white.

And you thought CEO's of huge corporations had to make tough choices...huh...this could make or break the piece(in my world anyway). The chances of it selling white are good...the chances of it selling black are good, but the chance of it selling natural, well, that's another story.

Not many are prone to a piece with a rough unrefined surface, however, I do see it a lot in the decorating magazines these days. It gives the look of raw wood, kind of a woodland or driftwood feel, not stealing the show from everything else in the room, yet maintaining it's focal status right along with the rest...oh the decision...

But then there's the frames...to paint or not to paint...

Guess you'll have to stay tuned, cause these pieces is going to Palo...I have a perfect spot picked out...did I mention I love my job...

Drowning in Shadow...

Will we ever see the sun again...it started last week, rain, rain and more rain...deluge after deluge. If this keeps up, there will be blight on tomatoes and strawberries will be tasteless, bloated with too much rain and not enough sun, this is what happened in our gardens last summer...argh...


I'm wandering the halls of the chateau, going through blogger's blight...when overload takes over and the house is fulled with sunless corners...you scan for a reason...well shopping usually works, but then it's the end of the month, when finances are REALLY low, so you start scanning for treasure close to home...NOT!!!


I'll silently(yeah right)await the perfect moment when all is bright and coffers are filled with the nectar of shopping harvest...and I can once again shop till I drop...which means...I forgot to take pictures of all the new stuff I got the other day...so tomorrow again thee must wait, till this errant blogger waves the wand and all is delighted once again...

But where's the damn sun anyway!!!

What...

The heathen and I did our usual road trip yesterday, looking for shadows and good junkin'...camera always at the ready I glanced over at Scratch, who'd just emerged from head hanging out the window and just had that look of 'WHAT', as I laughed out loud at her face...what a dog, she never fails to bring a smile to my face.

A little out of focus. but when she's like two inches away and I'm driving, perfection is just a bit of luck at this point, but I couldn't resist...

It was raining, so I couldn't take shots of this wonderful mirrored chest of drawers and all the great frames...but that sounds like a post for tomorrow...the sun is coming out, so I hope things dry out for a while...

My friend Lori is finally getting into the blog scene, she is a very talented person and loves to play with glass and concrete, she surprised me one day with this cute lil' yard ornament which rests next to Scratchy's water bowl outside warning people(squirrels) of ownership.

Lori cuts all of her glass and pokes them into the cutest molds or a mosaic on a bowling ball...she's just getting started as she recently retired...so look out world...we have another artist on the loose...lock up your bowling balls...you can find Lori on her new blog...Altered Glass.

New Necklaces...and Nature...

'Dream Fairy'...that's what I'm all about...if you don't have a dream, then you have no foundation and foundations are what dreams are made of. I may be a hopeless romantic and a tireless slave to my world, but the rewards are many. I follow many a quest to get where I'm going and the trip is usually one helluva ride...right Lorie...the voyage of an artist is never ending, the wheels never stop...praise the Goddess...



A close up of this delicate creature and her mantra...DREAM...if you can't have a dream, then what's it all about...this is one of my fave charms, she encompasses so many things and her choice of gems is tireless.


Then there's 'Madam Butterfly', also one of my favorite operas. The delicate prismed beads evoke the pastels of her wings(note even their shadow is colored) and the recycled 'beer bottle' tube beads answer the call to reuse what we have, nothing to the landfill. The quest for zero waste is truly a challenge and such beauty is to be found in all things recycled...why wouldn't you...


I love the delicate features and the lil' pink pendant...it's all about Nature...right...for me anyway...both sets have earrings to match at $18.99 and necklace at $49.00...email me for availability.

White...

I rarely do a post on Sunday because of Shadow Shot, but my friend Lorie sent me an article and I had to share it with you...

When I first strolled through the streets of Palo, I was struck by something...something tugged at my heartstrings, the thought of opening another shop was the farthest thing from my mind, at that time...but I thought of Lorie, my old partner in crime. Both of us had put the thought out of our minds, but Palo kept nagging at me...so I called Lorie and said you have to see this town.

Her reaction was the same as mine...love at first sight! We knew the town was recovering from near devastation from the flood of '08, but the will of the people to pull their town back was obvious all around...good ol' heartland mindset, strong-willed and determined...we both agreed, this would be our next venture.

Yes, we are doing this lil' building...as we sat in the truck conjuring our next move, a name has always been the first thing to get set, as we build on those bones. I suggested to Lorie that we name the shop 'White', because of all the thousands of pieces of furniture we've painted white over the years...she loved it...so it was set, 'White' was born that very moment in time.

What called us to this town, to this shop, to this name...there were other forces taking place that we were totally unaware of...as I read the article Lorie sent me the night before, chills rolled over my psyche...during the flood, the people of Palo were asked to hang white rags on their doors, or their fences or where ever to let the rescuers know that the families had been relocated and were safe...

Now, I don't know about you, but to me this is a sign...a sign of a strong-willed community, neighbor helping neighbor, rebuilding and starting anew...my kinda place...it all made perfect sense from that point on, as Lorie and I take that plunge again for something we love...JUNKIN!

But it's about helping friends and about family...you can't get much more American then that...right!


So please read the article below, but grab a box of Kleenex, trust me on that one...you will totally see where we're coming from AND be ready for another blog to drool over. As Spring blossoms, so will we and Palo will rise again!

http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jun/17/nation/na-flood17

Shadow Shot Sunday...Taken Back...

Diamonds in the rough
craftsmanship altered
demise of an era
I have shared my core
you have played with fashion
time has altered beauty
and time has altered function, yet...
demand outweighs logic
I've grown weary
in your waste
in your haste
you must have it all
you burden my soul...
do you not sleep
do your factories not take solace
are you aware of my pain
are you aware of my sorrow
are you aware...
do not take me a fool
I've taken many aback
I've brought many into shadow
I've absorbed many tears
you've turned cheek
and have stolen
all that was beauty
all that was pure
my Sister is here
her name is Time
and we gather together
and meld into history
another lifestyle
another chapter
another page
in the shadow of time
I take you home.

S.Wilson



Shadow Shot Sunday, a gathering of friends...please join and be happy
and take a moment to listen to this fabulous piece by Hans Zimmer from The DeVinci Code...it will stir your soul!

Walk into your imagination...

Set yourself free with inspiration all 'round, how fun can decorating be...

many doors will open when your heart guides your path...

patina runs wild and textures rule, as you test your waters and color palettes...

many an accent piece will stumble 'cross your path...

all you have to do is take the risk...

never throw anything away without full scrutiny...

look for the beauty hidden away...

you'll be amazed at what becomes of your world, as it sparkles and shines of your eclectic tastes...

visit Rubideau Antiques in Palo, Iowa...you'll be glad you did...

and by the way, there are still some sweet buildings available for rent if you should dare follow your dream...we did...

Trash, Sweet Trash...

Would you not save these pieces from the landfill...

A lovely desk/vanity and a grand buffet...that's what I thought. When a friend called the other day to say that the hospital bought her Father's home and it was being demolished, but there were a few old pieces in the basement that no one wanted and they needed to be saved...and of course, painted black.


So me and Scratch headed right over to investigate...visions of recycling danced through our heads, as we loaded a truck full of treasures, all scheduled for demolition...you would save them too right...


What a wonderful old table and cream colored chair, the slant top box that now harbors my seeds and gloves and whatever...and a basket filled to the brim with old metal Folgers and Hill's coffee tins...I also grabbed an old portable typewriter that will help me with my projects...

Yes, all treasures indeed and I'm sure y'all would rush over too...and the price was right...FREE!!!

Earth Day...to honor a planet and it's beauty...

To honor a planet
is to some a thing of respect,
to others...
whatever...
but how can you not see beauty
in every cloud,
in every leaf,
in every blade of grass...
this sanctuary of the soil.
We are only caregivers
in the slum of our own demise.
What if she was stolen away...
drowned in chaos,
buried in grief,
lost to a civilization...
she will take it back
it may take her a spell,
but all we have forgotten
will come anew,
as we have turned to dust,
she wears a glorious new cloak
and a breath of fresh airs...
at last,
peace!

New pieces of color to honor the Earth and the sky.
A blue rose reflects the sky.

And a green sumac leaf,
the Earth.

How lucky we are to have been...PEACE
and Earth Day dreamin'...

What if...

What if an antique shop suddenly appeared in this quaint lil' building...


with summer gardens flourishing outside the door, spilling over into the veranda where hollyhocks and morning glories covered old gates...lawn chairs and garden ornaments peeked 'round every corner...what if...

What if it was filled to the brim with antiques and notions...candles and soaps...jewelry and dried flowers of every sort, twig furniture and concrete statues and white painted frames and furniture...what if...

If two crazy girls decided to open a shop...just weekends to start...but a place to get away for the weekend and play in their workshop making toys for all the good little girls and boys that would come for a visit...or just to listen to French bistro music and enjoy the aroma of sweet spring scents wafting through the warm summer air or perhaps enjoy a spot of tea from the tea room next door...what if...


What if another entrepreneur decided to fill the lil' shop next door with wonderful gifts of antiquity and such...lending a hand to a towns revival...what if...

Then a destination spot would be developed with friends coming from near and far, to shop and to visit or to just get away for the day...what if...

Would you come...

To Save a City...the man cave...

'Can I check your tires ma'am...'. a step back in time the minute you walk in through the door of this old 'filling station'...remember when they called them that...you are instantly transformed when the smells of old oil and car parts wafts through your senses...oh my God..it smells like my Dad's basement and my Grandpa's machine shed at the cottage...how cool is this...


This is Bill and Kathy, the crazy pair of down home folk that are trying to save a community single handed. Buying and restoring many an old building in their lil' burg, these two can be seen happily wondering the streets, visiting from shop to shop...there are no strangers in their little world. Bill loves to restore old structures, so the floods last year have been a setback, but undaunted he plods on doing what one does to save the history of a wonderful old city.


This is the level the Cedar River rose to in the ol' garage...I lived through the flood of '93, having 18 inches of water in my yard all summer, 6 inches from spilling into my home. You don't know the sorrow and pain of flood till you've lived it. What it does to your trees and flowers, starved without oxygen for so long, the effects are long term indeed...the sounds of heavy rains still bothers me today.

remember the old candy bar dispensers...yup, they still have the original bars in them, how cool is that...

sunglasses anyone...and spark plugs and car parts...

Fix yer' flat fer a dollar...

Bill also restores old vehicles in his spare time...this go getter is a hoot, as is Kathy, who has the cutest shop ever, but that's a whole other post, as this master gardener prepares her gardens for the spring season.

signs and more signs...

What Bill has achieved in this mechanics wonderland, will boggle your mind...a man possessed in the play land of boys and their toys...ahhhh, I love the smell of gasoline in the morning...kudos kids...this is what makes America great...hard working down home folks, with a pride in the community and the neighbors around them...can't wait to come back and visit...see ya soon!

Shadow Shot Sunday...Ahhhh...

There you are
my old silent friend...
I feel this newness about me...
a new cloak of being,
of happiness again fulfilled,
color bursting,
fragrant,
nourishing...
as plum blossoms
open passage
to my Springtime holiday,
this yellow tuxedoed doorman
welcomes each guest
with a hummmm
and the buzzzzz,
welcome traveler...
all 'round this place
is a stirring
a newness,
in every shadow a season of birth.
Bring on the beauteous
nature of things
in my world of red buds
and purple mists...
grow grasses grow...
I relish your flourish and
the sweet scent of your seed...
'Tis Spring at the chateau of my heart,
the chorals are being sung
as I welcome and breathe in
each new day
each new hour
each moment,
as all stirs anew...
Spring
you are among the living...
oh glorious sun you are king for a day...
ahhhhh
welcome to my all...


Yup, you guessed it Shadow Shot Sunday is upon up...go there, take a moment...you'll like what you see...it's Sunday down under...Australia!

OPEN HOUSE...Sisters' Garden

Cathie C...drool right along with me will ya...OH MY GOD...this is the perfect cupboard for my house...or Cathies'...very bordello like...too cool!!!

Pale blue cupboard, would you say robin's egg blue...

FABULOUS...old world iron column...did I say TO DIE FOR!!!

Oh yeah...is this not the coolest piece of architecture, it must be 15 foot long, tin and in perfect condition...sigh.. and that's a wicker pigeon carrier painted gold...how cool is that...

Tall white farm cupboard...who wouldn't love this in their kitchen...ahhh...storage...

iron mushrooms to be picked and placed in your own special place...too cute!

iron posies ready to be potted and planted in your favorite spot...

I must have this chair...I'm doing a green country theme on my front porch this year...better bring home my 'thinkin chair'...it hasn't sold, so that means it's mine right...

architectural...architectural...architectural...

Warm Earth tones, garden art and wonderful old lamp...

A baker's rack, totally folds down to a table...how cool is that...

Sorry, I don't do windows, especially this big...

A black beauty, always a wonder to behold...

A golden column and simple wood chest, treasures yes to behold, at Sisters' Garden...come visit won't you...