Cell phone camera tells history...

Today is E.S.T.I.M.A.T.E day...woooo hoooo!
It is pouring rain....like by the bucket!
A good day to stay in and practice taking photo's.....
with my cell phone.
It actually is a better camera than my point and shoot.
This is when the great photographers may
want to turn away and save themselves!
hee hee

For fun...I went around and took some pictures of my
decor.  This is one of the old books on our 115 year
old piano...The piano actually came over in a
COVERED WAGON!
My husbands great grandmother ordered
it from a catalog in the 1890's.
Can you imagine the stories it could tell!!
We don't know how to play the piano, but having it in our
home reminds us of Gramma
Brask *LOVE*

This is one of two bookshelves that flank the fireplace. I
would like to do something special to the backs
of these shelves like beaded board or music sheets. Any other ideas?
 I have my grandma's eyeglasses, my grampa's
Bible, and my husbands grandpa's clock on display.
PaPa Brask collected clocks and often repaired them. I love all
the old clock keys we have that were his too.
When he passed away, each of the great grandchildren
received a special clock.
 Every time it *gongs* it fills
our home with a peaceful presence. When I hear
my husband wind it up, I know he is thinking
of his grandpa. He was an amazing man!

This is a picture of my grandparents when they were first married!
They lived in Centerton, Arkansas on a farm. I
LOVE my grandpa's overalls. He had them on all the time!
Some of my best memories are of feeding calves, riding ponies,
fishing for catfish in his ponds, and finding
kittens under their house when I was a little girl.

This is a cool doorknob my husband found for me at
 Goodwill, ha ha...for just two BUCKS!
 I love it when you find that someone totally
made a pricing error!  I also love that HE was so excited to show
me what he found:)  The Black book is another of
my grandpa's Bibles. It has his dirt finger prints on the pages! I picture him
in the barn, taking a break from milking the cows by hand,
and grabbing his Bible for a quick reflection.

Old books...LOVE old books!  The concrete bird used to be on a
very old birdbath that came with our Whidbey Island house. One
morning when I looked out,  it was in a million pieces in the yard.
I think a racoon jumped on it or something. Anyhow, under all
the broken pieces I found the unscathed bird. I liked it the best anyways!

Just practicing with fading and stuff...nothin special here.

This is the other shelf in the living room. The black clock
belonged to my great grandparents in Arkansas. Sadly,
this one doesn't work...and has crayon marks on the clock
face from either my sister or I. I find that
somewhat enduring, actually. Anyhow, there
are some photo's of our parents and my niece & doggy,
and daughter.  The old finials are from the ugly
fence posts at this house. I kicked out the posts...and
displayed the finials. I was so excited too, crazy
what a weathered finial would cost in a decorating magazine.
And I enjoyed kicking the rotted posts down too:)

What do YOU have in your home that reminds you of where you came from??

Have A Happy Saturday Friends!!

I hope you have warm sunshine and chirpy birds singing at YOUR house!

(and to my mother and father in law...

ALOHA...enjoy your day on the beach! We are soooo glad you

are safe after the Tsunami scare xoxoxo)

Estimate!!!

Happy Friday!

I am so excited...We are getting an

estimate to have a concrete driveway put in!!

It would be soooo nice to have a dry place

to park!  AND to  not track mud into the

house.  That one little thing will make a

HUGE difference for us:)

BEFORE we moved in! The "lean to" is gone and it looks alot
better..but there is still ALOT to be done.
Ah, yes, the adventures of an 80 year old house!!
yes, that is dirt and grass in front of the door...

THEN, we can put in a new garage door

so the leaves and rain won't blow under

the door and all over the garage.  

Please cross your fingers that it wont cost

an arm and a leg so we can get er done!!

I will let you know how it goes....

Gotta go daydream about a new driveway and

Garage Door. And I dream big!!

Weird??? 

this one is very comparable to the size of our garage and door,
Love the hardware and windows.

Ok, so my house doesnt look ANYTHING like this beauty...but
I like the beaded board look of the door. Maybe if
I get this door, my house will magically be this gorgeous!!

I Love the blue with the crisp white. I think we are repainting our house all white.
and then adding color through shutters and lighting, etc. Oh, it would be so
fun to have a little hiding spot in the eves. I wonder what the view is
from up there?

I love the punch of red! Maybe this combo would be more fun!! hmmmm

I think this will be the most accurate for us. See that concrete driveway?
Im giddy just thinking about the difference that will make!!

*Im a wishin, and a dreamin...and hoping*

Happy Friday, and have a WONDERFUL

weekend!!

**Jodi**

Interior Redesign!

Good Morning!

I have added a tab to the blog!

I love helping people use what they have

to create a warm and inviting home...staged for

the way THEY LIVE!

Many people wonder what is involved in a 

Interior Re-design!

The first thing that I suggest is for the client to look through

magazines, blogs, and decorating websites

 to get a feel for a look they love.

In most cases, their home is already a reflection of that, but may

need a little "tweaking".

Next, the client will need to identify the room (or rooms) that

aren't working for them. Sometimes that means completely

changing the purpose of a room! For example, changing a formal

living room into a large dining area, and the dining area into a office

or home school space, etc.  Its YOUR house and prime real estate!

Use it the way YOU need to use it...and lets make it pretty!

Next, with or without the homeowner present, we will box up and

pull items out of the room and then reintroduce the pieces that work

for that space. I will ask you to pull out collections or special items from

storage that have special meaning to you, and then we will incorporate them

into the design. By editing the unnecessary, and creating functional vignettes,

you will feel like you moved into a new home! I also love to re-purpose items

you already have. We will borrow things from other rooms to complete the

look! I will suggest other changes to be made at your leisure.  Such

as painting, furniture choices, etc.

Still not sure what an Interior Re-design is?

Give me a call, or email me and we can talk!

Live where you love, Love where you live!

xoxox

*Jodi*

Friendship...the greatest Find!

On Saturday I stopped by my

booth to add some more STUFF! (I forgot

to take pictures! but will today)

and as I was bent over to pick up something

I felt a little

*pinch*

on my backside.  Thinking it was

my husband returning after a walk through

town....I giggled.

But then I realized it wasnt my husband at all...

It was one of my besties from Oak Harbor!

Sheila and her husband, Jody, (I know, same
name...cool, right!) are part

of the reason I am doing what I do.

They have been antiquing and selling for many, many

years. They have recently set up

two new booths and you can find more information

about them here.

And on their  Shabby Stuff facebook page! If you are ever

on Camano Island, you definately

need to check them out!

Jody is also very talented at landscaping his yard in 

the vintage style they adore.

Here are a few photo's of their yard in summer!

It will make you long for flip flops and a tall beverage...

And...of course, what is a friendship post without a picture

of some of those friends!!!

Thank you Sheila and Jody for getting up early,

taking the ferry, and driving another hour

to support my new venture! I REALLY appreciate it!

Love you much!

Friendships are so awesome!

Whether short or long term,

close by or far away,

EACH and every one touches our life in its own way!

I have made some friends online too.  Sherrie
of A Vintage Affair not only shares a love of
finding antiques, but is also located in the same
Antique Mall as me.  Im so happy she found a wreath
in my booth...and it looks beautiful over her bed!
Check out Sherrie's blog to see her other loves!
It's so fun to

find others with the same interests and their own personal stories

of why they, too, enjoy blogging! Some have been
doing it for a VERY long time. I have to
wonder if they run out of things to share.

It is a special community that I am looking forward to being

a part of.

Have a wonderful Monday... I hope you find time to
 share it with someone special!
Im going to go enjoy a coffee & conversation
in Poulsbo with another dear friend!

I am so blessed
xoxox
Jodi

Brain "gas"

Is there a blog sensor?

Like, could I say "Brain Fart"?

I guess I just did.

Well, I have one...

and I get them often!

Sooo...let me just say "Excuse Me"

OK, moving on.

I have spent the last couple days putting my house

back into some order. Really, that means I just shoved

all my projects into closets and drawers so that Mr. Fresh

doesn't feel like he is living in JoAnn Fabrics or something.

You know its chaotic when Smokey the cat gets down on 

the floor and does that low, crouching (something is going

to kill me) scoot and *JUMPS* at

the slightest movement in the room.  I guess you could

say that he was a "Scaredee Cat" ha ha

As soon as I put everything "away", he came in

and happily curled up on the back of the leather

chair....and stayed there for hours!

We all like some order in our life.

Now that YOU are bored to snoring on your chair, 

I will leave you with some lovely pictures of 

kitchens! MINE is too ugly to share:)

Have a great weekend friends!

xoxox Jodi

Retro Renovations

Pink is a odd color for a kitchen, but wouldn't you smile every morning!
Its so happy.

I Heart Shabby Chic blog

I REALLY heart THIS kitchen!
I love the old table in the middle and the white flooring. *sigh*

Shabby Rose Chic blog

Oh, let the sunshine in! I'd love to be
writing from that table looking out to the garden!

Coastal Living

I love the simplicity of this space!

AND lastly......


How is it that when I googled kitchens....

This!!!!! came up????

yikes...

Stepping Stones

REMEMBER THIS?????

BEFORE...

SAME ANGLE...AFTER 

It's still a little sparse, and I need a sisal rug, but oh, SO much brighter!
(Still using the cell phone camera, sorry!)

The book shelf is temporary. The owner let me use it until I bring in a great display piece.
Im hoping to find a large lighted frenchy buffet that I can paint. Do you  remember
when you could find one CHEAP? Not anymore people,
even the ugly ones are $200 at St. Vincents Thrift store.
I can't wait for the weather to warm up so we can hit those GARAGE sales!!!

Booth Before.....

Same Angle...AFTER!

I have some picnic baskets for that upper shelf, a full size metal bed and
beautiful french desk & chair coming later this week.

This is the other side of booth. I covered the lattice with more old doors and beaded board.
(See the empty spot on the shelf? I SOLD my first thing while setting up!)

While setting up yesterday I met a very nice lady.
We chatted for quite awhile!
While listening, it occurred to me that so many of us have the same fears.
The fear of TRUSTING in the ability to share our gifts, talents and passions.
Fear of following our desires.
Not the immoral ones, of course! Don't go there!
But the desire to be who we know we were created to be,
our very own gift. No two people are alike.
Some of us wait so long for fear of failing,
 and sometimes it just takes time and life experience for us
to narrow down what that passion is.

About a month ago I told my daughter
"Im afraid to start this, WHAT IF I fail?" and she said
"Mom, dont think of the past experiences as failures, but stepping stones to the future!"
That changed my mind set. She is SO right.
Each experience, good and bad...
prepare us for the next opportunity!
There is no failure. Its a time to redirect, to learn and to grow!
So, for the other gals out there that feel a calling,
Dont be afraid!
Put on your hiking shoes and start stepping on those stones.

And to the sweet lady I met yesterday, Thank you for
being my very first SALE!

Happy Wednesday friends!

xoxoxo
*Jodi*

Marching forward!

HAPPY MARCH 1st!!!!

As I opened up my day planner today to read my

 "to do" list

the following quote was printed in the corner of the book...

"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! 

Live the life you've imagined." 

-Henry David Thoreau

Perfect timing!!!

See, last night I went to bed a little discouraged 

thinking about

everything that I had envisioned for my new retail space!

I worked on it yesterday for awhile, and it looked so

NAKED...NOT what I know it WILL be.

For the record...this is what it looked

like BEFORE I took it over....

Now, its been emptied,

the purple is GONE, replaced by old doors,

beaded board, and fresh paint.

*pictures soon!!!*

Anyhow......

A good nights rest is a miracle for the spirit and body.

When I woke up this morning and read that quote

I was once again reminded of why I am doing this.

Its just what I love to do. Make pretty spaces!

Re-invent, Re-purpose and SHARE!

Soon I will fill up the truck (in the pouring rain)

and go ENJOY the process.  Just BE in the moment.

Its a little weird

rearranging, changing my mind, arranging again

 with people watching.  

Before moving to Kitsap County, I worked as a

 Home Staging Consultant

with my friend Leslie.

Together, we had so much fun bouncing ideas off each other.

 ( I miss you Leslie!!!)

In the car arriving at our first job...sooo much fun!

This time its ALL on me. Creating a place people want to 

come into and linger.  

So, I guess what Im saying is....if you go there today and

see a partially finished space please remember...

Its going to get better and better!!! 

Great things are coming!

Here is something to ponder...

At the bottom of my day planner was the following

tidbit...

"Did you know...An orange a day will keep wrinkles away!"

Off to eat a bucket of oranges! 

Have a wonderful Day!!!

xoxox 

*Jodi*