Shabby Chic Mannequin

I have the cutest busty mannequin in my Shabby Chic at Cadwell's flea market booth!

I shop tag sales and resale shops for my clothes and I love to share them with my vintage girly!

She is looking oh so fabulous with her handmade lace rosettes!

 I made homemade chocolate cupcakes with homemade frosting and rasberry swirl! 

 I have been following a whole foods diet and after eating just one of my yummy treats, that was enough!

I also made this cute little banner for my booth, I cheated and used a bed skirt (so I didn't have to sew)

   then added the pretty pink ribbons and ties!

I pictured it on my mantel, but it is a bit large...still pretty and Shabby!

~giggles~

 As always I am a hopeless romantic and the pink and white bloom forever in my heart! 

Have a beautiful and blessed weekend!

I will be partying with 

My Romantic Home 

and 

Pink Saturday!

Big Squishy hugs,

xo

Olivia

Growing a lace garden

Today in my garden I grew lace creations!

Dainty lace curled around roses,

decorating hangers,

embellished lampshades, 

lighting the path for romance and beauty!

I have been blessed to be feeling better, so I decided to do what I love!

I pray I can continue to create.

 Oh the soft loveliness of lace and roses!

All prettied up and ready for my flea market booths!

I will be partying with the darlings over at

White Wednesday!

xo

Olivia

French Artist Jean-Gabriel Domergue

Domergue

 Lately, I have been immersed in poetry, music and art! 

Below is a rambling I pinned yesterday...ENJOY!

 

 In my dreams

we dance,

whirl and spin.

Softly taking my arm

in and out

moving freely,

lightly,

rain falls 

in our path 

it kicks under our feet

we drink

cooling

loving

as we move

slipping over the water.

How you hold me,

gathering

loosely

pressing your face to mine, 

your hands are strong

and when you let me go, 

it is never for long.

Always loving,

Always coming back for me...

~ Olivia

Degas

Domergue

Domergue

Imagine my excitement when I stumbled upon this French painter! 

Ooohhh la la! Beautiful colors and glamour!

Biography of Jean-Gabriel Domergue~Domergue was born in Bordeaux and studied at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts. In 1911, he was a winner of the Prix de Rome.^[2] From the 1920s onward he concentrated on portraits, and claimed to be "the inventor of the pin-up".^{[citation needed]} He also designed clothes for the couturier Paul Poiret. From 1955 until 1962 he was the curator of the Musée Jacquemart-André, organising exhibitions of the works of Van Gogh, Toulouse-Lautrec, Goya and others.

Domergue was appointed a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur.

He died 16 November 1962 on a Paris sidewalk.^[2]

I am enchanted by the colors and beauty of his work! 

Have a lovely weekend and much love to all of those devoted fathers!

I will be joining 

My Romantic Home

 and 

Pink Saturday

xoxo

Olivia

My Shabby Chic Booth

Hello my lovelies! 

Here in small town USA , summer is here and 

our tourist season is in full swing!

 The owners of our flea market built this super duper cool 

arbor out of old ladders and added the neat signs and garden boxes to each side!

 I added and old door with a hook to the corner of my big booth!

Mirrors, old windows, ball jars and frames have 

been flying out of my booth like hot cakes!

I love vintage glamour!

I hope you all are enjoying your summer!

I will be joining 

White Wednesday!

PS~ I adore all of your comments, I do my best to visit back, but due to some health issues I am not always able to sit at my computer for long periods.

Big squishy hugs,

xoxo

Olivia

Shabby Vintage Window

Hello lovelies! 

Summer is here and I am a busy mommy with my wee ones!

My flea market booths are also very busy.

I had an old window in my booth that would not sell ( I only had $5 on it) but it did have a chip in the glass.

With a pretty patina, I could not let this little gem go to waste...so home it came with me for some TLC!

My faux mantel has a couple of electrical outlets that I like to keep hidden and this pretty vintage window fit perfectly!

Yummy chippiness and soft shabby fabric...ooohhh la la!

I am off to do some junkin!

If you have a chance stop by and say hi to one of my favorite bloggers...

Shabby Chic Sandy at For the love of White!

She is a super talented lady with a heart of gold!

I will be partying with 

My Romantic Home

and 

Pink Saturday!

xo

Olivia

Find your Passion...

I find love and passion in my husband, children, painting, poetry, gardening and the simplicity of everyday life.

I believe you can fall deeply in love 

with your life right where you are at.

Find your passion!

Photos~courtesy of GKR Photography

 I love this quote, it is directed at "romantic love", but I believe you can be passionate in many areas of your life!

"Love is passion, obsession, someone you can't live without. 

I say, fall head over heels. 

Find someone you can love like crazy and who will love you the same way back. 

How do you find him? 

Well, you forget your head, and you listen to your heart. 

And I'm not hearing any heart. 

Cause the truth is, honey, there's no sense living your life without this. 

To make the journey and not fall deeply in love, well, you haven't lived a life at all. 

But you have to try, cause if you haven't tried, you haven't lived. "

~William Parrish~ Meet Joe Black 

 Fall deeply in love with your,

life right where it is at.

Don't be afraid

Jump in feet first!

and if life tries to kick you down...

KICK BACK!

Photo courtesy of Wheelchair Kamikaze

 Find your passion! 

I will be joining

 My Romantic Home

and

Pink Saturday

My darling friend Lorena has a new blog!

Shabby Sweets

Please stop by and say hi!

 Big squishy hugs,

Olivia

Shabby Rose Mosiacs

Hello lovelies!

Recently, I tried my hand at 

working on a couple of mosiac projects.

I used some pretty vintage rose plates.

I used an old patio table that had a badly painted top

BEFORE

I used plates that I already had.

Some were already chipped and some were just "cheap" and had not sold in my flea market booth.

I used an old towel and hammer to break up my plates.

(Don't forget safety googles) 

Then I arranged them in a pretty pattern.

 After I arranged them, I glued every single piece in.

Next, I grouted the whole table.

After grouting, I started wiping the excess off the plate pieces.

This is the tricky part for me, my table dried quickly so, 

I used sandpaper to get the pieces that were already dry but still had excess grout.

This is my first attempt at a large piece.

Although not perfect, I am pleased that I pushed myself to finish!

My first finished piece was a vintage sewing drawer.

I have always wanted to try mosiacs, but I was afraid it was going to be really hard.

 Mosiacs are "work", but turned out to be easier than I expected!

I'm pretty happy with my budding projects...maybe, just maybe, I will attempt some more!

Have a beautiful and blessed week!

Partying with 

White Wedenesday

and 

Show off your Cottage

xo

Olivia

How to create a Secret Garden

Hello lovelies!

This is my darling baby girl creating in her Secret Garden.

My backyard has an interesting landscape, full of cedar trees, lava rock and some flat spots.

It is not in my tiny budget to pour massive amounts of dirt to flatten it out and plant grass.

Long ago, I decided to create with what I had.

I made this tiny spot for my wee one nestled underneath a shady tree.

Materials to create a Secret Garden:
Imagination
Inexpensive table and chair

Pretty Statue
Pickle Jar to fill with fresh or faux flowers
Pea Gravel
Mulch
A Shady Tree
Books and drawing supplies
 

Now, turn on your imagination and find a little relaxing safe spot in your back yard.
Gather your secret garden supplies and your little one if you have one to help with this project.
I found the little girl statue in my neighbors junk pile.

She was broken and Mr. Romantic laughed at me.

I glued her back together with E-6000 glue and stuffed her full of flowers that I could not kill.

I found pea gravel in the abandoned lot across from us and used a bit of mulch to make it pretty.

A pickle jar is a suitable vase for an outside Secret Garden.

Stuff it full of seasonal blooms from your garden or faux flowers.

 Let your little one help you choose where everything should go.
Let them know that this is their secret garden to create in.

Tag sales, thrift stores and junk piles are the perfect place to find goodies for your Secret Garden.
I found the little table on the back dock for free at my favorite resale shop.
An old shabby pillowcase makes it magical.
We also have fairies that visit our secret garden, but you have to use your imagination to see them.
My darling baby girl is graduating from pre-school this year.
It tugs at my heart that there will be a day when a Secret Garden will fade and big girl things will be more interesting....

Happy Mother's Day to all of my beautiful friends!

I will be sharing this with
My Romantic Home
and
Pink Saturday

Big Squishy Hugs,
xo
Olivia