Summer Cottage Hearts

The cold winds have returned, but I still believe Summer is on its way, don't you?

My latest hearts are all about summer cottages at the beach, at the lake, in the mountains, wherever warm summer breezes waft through pretty white curtains and Mr Mockingbird sings happily in the ugly locust tree.

Soon. Sooner than we think. Hot summer days....cool starry nights.

so.
just Imagine this:
The crash of waves, the briny scent of salt-laden air. Maybe---some fuzzy bumblebees? And yes, a butterfly or two, the little powdery blue kind. And lavender, so blue, so perfect, its distinctive perfume wafting down the salt meadows below the lighthouse on Cape Cod, across the endless fields in Provence.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Long endless evenings, picnics under the stars...

 

 

Summer....

if only in my imagination! And yours.

love

lizzy

gone to the beach

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

hearts are listed now in my etsy shop Come by for a visit!

Thrifting

Hello, everyone! Is the current thaw making lots of MUD at your house? My shiny clean stairs and entry hall are already smudgy, big sigh.

Anyway! The best cure for winter doldrums is retail therapy---a day of thrifting with a best friend.

We went to all our usual spots, plus a new shop I found during my seemingly endless rounds of recent medical appointments.
Such a pretty shop! More of an antiques shop than my usual junking/ thrift spots. Note the perfectly robin's egg blue little table in the window. Oooh.

Very fun holiday things. All holidays...wonderful Valentines from many eras including the delicate honeycomb paper kinds.

Some Easter, some Halloween. And lots and lots of pretty pink Christmas ornies!

I wanted them all. Note the pink polka dots one! And soft pale pink handpainted floral just above it, on the right.

Some wonderful jewelry, like a charm bracelet with a minuscule jewelled perfume flask. And this rare watermelon Depression Glass, just 4 pieces. I have a friend who inherited a set from her grandmother, I have never seen it to actually buy.

We peeked into another pretty shop nearby. Nope, too lah di dah! (Isn't that sad! Next time we'll go in.) And on to a favorite vintage clothing shop. Here is her fun St Patrick's Day window display. I loved all her shamrock china.

 

And the little china girl, like an all white Hummel...holding  a bunch of daffodils, with her pet goose by her side. Adorable.

 

 

My friend always finds treasures here. Besides clothing there is a wall of smalls.

B found a set of 8 English bone china coasters with botanical paintings of tiny spring flowers on the insides. She has nice wood furniture and can actually use these pretties for her spring holiday dinners, soon.
Sweet spring egg cups, below. Hard to resist.

Not that we'd buy---or wear!---but this shop specializes in vintage millinery.

 

I just swoon over the hats. Bonnie and Clyde? Gatsby? So pretty...

Then on to the big junky thrift shop, my personal fave. I passed up this pretty Staffordshire plate...

And actually I bought nothing! This beautiful curtain panel is a previous find, the type of thing I look for , either for collector friends/ clients or if damaged to use for my white lavender hearts and pillows.

B got a new-with-tags! cashmere sweater! And a wonderful ceramic pumpkin. Which just goes to show that one should buy ''finds'' no matter what the season. Christmas in March? Maybe I need to go back to the first store for some Valentines? Or pink Christmas balls?

We had planned to try a new Irish pub for dinner. They have a fireplace! And it is right on the beach. But no parking on a Friday night. Typical. So we did our favorite Thai restaurant instead. They now have a liquor license but I am not sure that's a good thing. Saki-kiwi martini, anyone? LOL, we stuck to tried and true food instead:
crispy, delicious spring rolls

pad thai

mee krob

Yum!
Have a great week!

love

lizzy

gone to the beach

above, horrid huge sand movers' tire tracks damaging my beach!

So freakin' stupid!

Happens every March.

                                                                  * * * * *

                  web food pix.

The restaurant was too dark for my camera.

Spring Cleaning and a Walk on the Beach

Hello, everyone! Hello, March!

some of my Shaker box collection: Blues

 

We only got a dusting of snow this time, the storm missed us. But brrr, it is very cold. And the late winter sun, happy as I am to see it!--is relentless, highlighting every nook and cranny. And each crevice is just filled with sand. It creeps in on our shoes, sneaks in through the old wooden window frames. Marches right in through the front door, oh so bold!

So I began my spring cleaning a few weeks early.

LOL, I flipped up the living room rug and I swear there were sand dunes forming under there. I got out the heavy duty antique TriStar ''motel special'' vacuum cleaner and sucked all the sand away.

Then I washed everything, floors and walls, baseboards, windowsills included. With Clorox [sorry, Mel]. Scrubbed the bathrooms' tiled walls and floors.

I couldn't wash the window frames or screens because it is too cold, but I did sweep and wash the doors' lintels. Then I washed the white slipcovers.  [uh oh].

Just one sofa's covers. IKEA cotton covers.

Man, did they shrink!
I estimate the main cover is at least 12" shorter than it was!
I had to cut the cover to get it back on. And I'll have to replace it soon. I am just glad I didn't wash the other sofa's covers, or the big chair's. But washable slipcovers aren't much good of you can't, uh, wash them. (I even put them back on damp, no dryer time. But---no.] To give IKEA its due, these were ordered online through an outlet, not purchased at the store. Because unlike the rest of the world IKEA does not have a web catalog. [so no returns/ complaints possible.]

I needed a walk afterwards to clear the cobwebs out of my head!

It is cold but here is no wind. You know the summer saying, It's not the heat it's the humidity? Well, here the winter corollary is, It's not the cold, it's the wind! So a calm, still, sunny day with temps in the teens is just delightful. Mmm. Breath of fresh air. Just what I needed.

My little world is sparkling indoors and out. Do you spring clean? Or are you like my mom, whose house was kept so impeccably that there was no need?

love

lizzy 

gone to the beach...