Yep. I am a proud, card-carrying member of the DDD club. My friend
Sue Kirby and I have never actually junked
together (running willy-nilly through trade shows in search of cool stuff ot use in our seminar displays doesn't quite qualify), but stories of our individual adventures are
eerily similar. We've compared notes and swapped anecdotes on stage and on the phone, both openly and covertly admired each other's finds, and encouraged legions of others to join us in our constant pursuit of the treasure that is another man's (or woman's) trash. I still think we need to form our own sisterhood and have covert midnight dumpster raids, but we're just too darned
busy.
One of the goodies I flaunt at Sue is the darling chair shown above. I've used it in
many ways in on-stage display setups in my seminars over the years, and Sue keeps threatening to steal it from me! The funny part is, when I move this chair in my home or even just catch a glance of it, I think of Sue!
I wonder how she'd feel to know that a piece of bonafide garbage reminds me of her? (She'd probably love it!)
The folding wood lawn chair has two loose lower rungs and a seat that isn't very strong - so it's not used to sit on. Last week, I sat it in our entry and perched one of my straw summer hats on it (sort of a silent barrier to prevent anyone who comes in from sitting on it). I took photos and then....well, you know how that goes. Today, I got a message on my phone from Sue, and I remembered this post. (
Can I also just say that she is one of those friends who calls out of the blue after two months or so, and the first thing she does is say something completely profound that relates to EXACTLY what it is I am involved in/dealing with/getting over at any given moment? I don't know how she does that. ESP? Divine Providence? Hidden Cameras?! It always encourages me, even if it does freak me out a bit...)
Anyway, the story of this darling chair is that many years back when I was working as a staff visual stylist at a garden & home center, my cohort Karen and I went to take a cart full of trash to the waste bin. You had to go up a ramp to dump stuff in, and when I did, I looked down into the dumpster - and
there she was. Just sitting there, in her vintage white glory, on top of a pile of discarded dead plants and packing plastic. Looking for all the world like she was thinking (
if chairs could think....) '
How in the hell
did I end up here?'. There's an allegory there, trust me, but I'm not feeling particularly introspective right now so I'll let it go.
ANYway, I know my eyes popped out of my head because Karen suddenly got a worried look on her face and asked me what was wrong..... and without an answer, I jumped INTO the dumpster to retrieve my treasure. I held it up triumphantly over my head and said '
Can you BELIEVE that someone would throw this OUT?!'. I don't think I've ever seen Karen laugh that hard, before or since. I truly revealed myself as a bonafide wacko that day, and the term
'talkin' trash' took on a whole new meaning in our conversations!
In any case, my darling chair went home with me, got a bath, and has been cheering up my home, client displays, and presentation stages for many years now. Plus providing some fun memories every time I look at her. I'm not sure if chairs purchased at discount superstores can offer that much value...which is why I shop at '
back alley boutiques' - aka dumpsters. ;0)
Friends, what is
your best thrifted or junked find?!
Wendy at Farmhouse Accessories is featuring a bunch of people on her blog this week, whilst she is enjoying her vacation, and today she's talkin' about me and Retreat! She's 'introducing' me to her friends and I am so grateful that she is! It's always such fun to meet new people and share more blogs... just what we need, huh? MORE inspiring blogs to browse when we are supposed to be working! LOL
Perhaps you have a little sweetheart like Seanna above, who'd just love her own Sea Queen (or Princess, as the case may be) Crown....or maybe you have a friend you could give it to! Visit Wendy's blog to enter the giveaway!
Today is my sweet Anni's Birthday! The baby of the family is 23.... now how did that happen?
I know, I've been 'absent' from the Bloggiverse for almost a week. But I'm not sorry! I took a sort of self-imposed sabbatical from technology - blogging, emailing, even phone calls - for the duration of our trip down to the BarnHouse show. As a matter of fact, the only tech-ie thing I had around me at all was my camera. (As did everyone ELSE there! Too much to miss!)
And finally, our space inside the barn.... we were so honored to have had Joe & Jermonne decide to put us in the main location. I hope our results did justice to their vision for the show. I'll be sharing more photos of our one of a kind furnishings & decor items this week, on our Retreat blog.
For now, I have things to catch up with, two articles to write, another show to book on our schedule, our store displays to design, and hundreds of photos to edit & emails to wade through! See you soon!
Can you see grammy in the background, trying to keep up with speedster Troy?!!! We crossed this bridge over and over and over.... it's at the Lavender Hills Farm lavender farm not too far from us. They had a festival this weekend so we wanted to visit and check it out. And, since it's located just a few blocks from where Mommie works, we met her there to give the little guy back after he spent Friday night with us. (He was an angel, as usual!)
Today is my beautiful daughter Bethany's birthday, and her hubby has semi-secret plans to take her out for a night on the town to celebrate. You know what that means, right? Yep. Mr. Troy is comin' to Grammy & Grampy's house again! YAY!
Yep. I am a proud, card-carrying member of the DDD club. My friend Sue Kirby and I have never actually junked together (running willy-nilly through trade shows in search of cool stuff ot use in our seminar displays doesn't quite qualify), but stories of our individual adventures are eerily similar. We've compared notes and swapped anecdotes on stage and on the phone, both openly and covertly admired each other's finds, and encouraged legions of others to join us in our constant pursuit of the treasure that is another man's (or woman's) trash. I still think we need to form our own sisterhood and have covert midnight dumpster raids, but we're just too darned busy.
The folding wood lawn chair has two loose lower rungs and a seat that isn't very strong - so it's not used to sit on. Last week, I sat it in our entry and perched one of my straw summer hats on it (sort of a silent barrier to prevent anyone who comes in from sitting on it). I took photos and then....well, you know how that goes. Today, I got a message on my phone from Sue, and I remembered this post. (Can I also just say that she is one of those friends who calls out of the blue after two months or so, and the first thing she does is say something completely profound that relates to EXACTLY what it is I am involved in/dealing with/getting over at any given moment? I don't know how she does that. ESP? Divine Providence? Hidden Cameras?! It always encourages me, even if it does freak me out a bit...)
Let the drum rolls, trumpet trills, and musical fanfares commence... It's time to announce the WINNERS of my Third Bloggiversary Giveaway Drawing!
And so without further ado, I offer my hearty congratulations and a bow of genuflection to their Royal highnesses, the WINNERS:
You know it's summer at my house when the seashells go on display. I've collected them for years, from all over the place, and love finding new ways to show them off during the warm months of summer. I fill glass vases with them, as above...
I've nestled pillar candles down into glass vases filled with shells, and lined them up on a simple muslin runner on my dining table
In the center of all of those vases is this BIG glass dome. It fits over a round platter that I have, making it a perfect place to display special things all year long. Right now, it showcases a 'Found Treasures' NeSt I made last Labor Day, when Bob & I stayed at Cama Beach.
Another big dome with pedestal and several smaller domes gather on the buffet (um, yes.... she's back in the dining room. I sold my black buffet at Farm Chicks, and when we came home I decided that Miss Phoebe Buffet really looks better here than in my room....). The bowls under the domes hold assorted shells that I gather on our beach walks. 
I didn't gather these starfish on a beach walk, but they do look lovely with the oyster shells that I found recently on our shores. Bob says if I collect only five shells a day on our walk, by September the beach will be bare! Now that we live here at the beach, I think I may just leave the shells out all year. I could even do an all-white Christmas tree with seashells!
My summer decorating is completed with the placement of one very special item: This photo of my kids, circa 1994. We had just moved to Washington State, and discovered Mukilteo Beach. Our family made a habit of visiting it often (it was about 45 minutes from home) and one day, a huge log had washed up onto the beach. The kids all started climbing on it, and this photo op presented itself. It is my absolute favorite photo of my four children.