Patriotic Summer Decor

Patriotic Summer Decor

Red, white, and blue can carry you Memorial Day through Labor Day.

One of the reasons I love decorating for the summer is I know that once I have my home all decorated I can leave it up for a long time. If you break out all of your red, white, and blue patriotic decor in May for Memorial Day, you can have your home decorated for flag day in June, Fourth of July, and all the way until Labor Day in September.
I have one storage bin with some Fourth of July and patriotic decorations. I will also “shop” my home for some other red, white, or blue items. I also like to include seashells, because they remind me of summer. I like to think of seashells as a neutral color. I even use them to check off the “white” if I am missing that in a red, white, and blue vignette.
Layer china patterns for a patriotic look. How cute are these Allerton’s Blue Willow individual butter pat dishes?
I like to use red Coca-Cola crates, vintage Pyrex bowls, books, and napkins for “red”. Blue canning jars, picture frames, and Blue Willow china are perfect for “blue”. White seashells, milk glass dishes, and anything silver will make your “white”.
Use seashells you picked up on the beach for filler.

Another tip I have is one that I use for every holiday. Shop the after-holiday clearance sale. I’ve had this bunting and these “fans” for a couple of years in my storage bin. I found them on clearance at Target a few years back.
Everyday items grouped together in red, white, and blue combinations suddenly turn into patriotic decor. I used a Blue Willow teapot, a red transferware platter, and some red & white flowers to make this grouping.
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Summer makes me so happy! I hope you find joy in this season as well.

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Entertaining with Milk Glass

Fact: My favorite color is white. Don’t get all technical on me and say that white isn’t actually a color. If you go into your local paint store and ask for white paint, you’ll get it. Why do I like white? It’s clean. It’s not complicated. After a full day of reviewing paint chips and fabric patterns, white is a peaceful spot for my eyes to rest.

Fact: There are no walls in my house that are truly white. I like to accessorize with white. White pillows, white throws, white candles. It works, no matter what your paint color is.

Fact: I also love white milk glass. (We’ve covered that, haven’t we?) If you aren’t familiar with milk glass, it was very popular in the mid 1900s. Dozen of manufacturers created products such as dishes, vases, figurines, lamps, and so on. Some of the more successful companies to create milk glass included: Hazel Atlas, Federal, Indiana Glass, Fire King, Anchor Hocking, and Pyrex.

Recently milk glass has gained popularity in entertaining decor. The simple, white, and often delicate appeal of milk glass provides a restful background for flowers and foods. Milk glass provides a non-competitive background on tablescapes, allowing the food and flowers to be the real starts of the show.

A bridal luncheon uses milk glass to create a bridge between vintage and modern touches.

 Using milk glass creates a unique look.

A lovely milk glass cake stand, a milk glass pitcher, and milk glass vases unify this tablescape.

Sometimes simple is better.

Milk glass can be found in many places. Antique stores, Etsy, your mom’s or grandma’s kitchen. If you need a large number of milk glass pieces for your special affair, here’s a tip: Don’t worry about finding identical pieces. As long as they are all the same color, once you add your flowers or food, it will all become a “set.”

For more ideas on milk glass, please visit the websites listed at the bottom in the photo credits. If you are local and are looking for milk glass, stop on by my booth at Countryside Antiques in Braselton.

I’d love to hear your milk glass stories!
XOXO,
Abby

Photo credits:

http://blog.hwtm.com/2011/07/stunning-vintage-modern-bridal-shower-pt-1/
http://nuumummy.wordpress.com/2012/02/08/my-vintage-tea-party-baby-shower/
http://www.stylemepretty.com/gallery/picture/464669
http://www.weddingchicks.com/2012/07/30/will-you-be-my-bridesmaid-ideas/
http://blog.amyatlas.com/2012/03/pink-gold-guest-dessert-feature-2/
http://media-cache-ec7.pinterest.com/originals/f4/3a/53/f43a530a20243253a84223ff5e620481.jpg
http://madisonhousedesigns.com/archives/631

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Right Place, Right Time

I had every intention of working out today. I really did. But this whole “running a business” thing keeps interrupting my play time. It is really more than a Monday through Friday, 9 to 5 thing. It’s actually a lifestyle, a mindset. It doesn’t really “turn off” on Friday at 5 p.m. Don’t get me wrong. I LOVE IT!!!! I’m just trying hard here to rationalize why I didn’t exercise today.

So today I had to drive across town to pick up something for a custom order that I am working on. I decided at the last minute to stop by a certain place to look for “treasures.” On one hand, this place has never produced anything good for me before. On the other hand, YOU JUST NEVER KNOW.

I didn’t bother to get a shopping cart on my way in. After all, I didn’t expect anything good. I looked around without really looking. And then, it hit me.

Let’s pause there for a moment, shall we? If you’ve ever “treasure hunted,” as I like to call it, then you know exactly what I’m talking about. You look. And you look. And then the next day, you look some more. And then some time in the distant future something good appears before you. It feels like it literally hits you in the face, screaming, “Hey! You! Over here!”

Back to the story: So I’m looking, but not really looking. Just going through the motions so that I can get on with my errand. When what to my wondering eyes should appear?

Three Pyrex Cinderella bowls. My pulse quickens. In “the wild” (not at an antique store, Etsy, or EBay), it’s not common to come across one, let alone three. My eyes are wild; I can feel it. I’m looking around at all the unsuspecting customers, laughing maniacally in my head. “Haha, haha! You have no clue!”, I’m thinking. I grab them and move on.

Next aisle. Disbelief. There before me are THREE more vintage pyrex casserole bowls WITH lids. They look unused. My face is burning hot now. It’s red. Is this happening?!

But now a little bit of panic is setting in. Remember, I didn’t bother to get a shopping cart. I look around. Has anyone noticed me? Was the maniacal laughing actually with my out loud voice? I decide that I just can’t chance it. I have to make a break for the front of the store to retrieve a cart. Pyrex is heavy. It lasts for decades for a reason. Pyrex is bulky. I balance. I use every bit of strength I can, and I’m on the move. But first…a Fire King milk glass divided dish.

I don’t know how I did it. I don’t know if the adrenaline gave me an extra arm. But, somehow I managed to walk to the front of the store without dropping or breaking a piece. And now, for your viewing pleasure:

And THAT is why I love what I do!
XOXO,
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EVERYTHING is for sale. Except for that guy. Maybe.

We go to all kinds of places trying to find vintage and antique treasures. It’s fun. I am so happy to have a job that I truly love with a business partner that I love. Last week we went to two different estate sales. Estate sales are different from garage sales. An estate sale is when everything in the house, inside and out, is for sale. Usually, but not always, an estate sale is held after someone passes away.

There are different kinds of estate sales. The first is the company run estate sale. The family leaves the house and the company comes in and prices everything. They put up nicely printed, professional signs. They stay and handle the sale of everything in the house.

The other kind is the family run estate sale. The family prices everything thing in the house, and they stay at the house during the sale and do the actual selling.

We like both kinds. But we *love* a family run estate sale. The stuff is priced to sell. The family wants it gone so that they can move on. With both kinds of estate sales, the earlier you can get there, the better! If you see something that you want to buy, even if it’s nailed down, ask about it. Also remember to negotiate the price. And don’t be afraid to dig!

At the first sale (the company run sale) we picked up some awesome glassware, a Coca~Cola crate, suitcases, linens, an old stool, and a china cabinet. The china cabinet went straight into the “furniture hospital” for treatment.

Glassware hens, milk glass vase, linen table cloth, suitcase, cigar box, books

Pyrex, Jadeite, Thermos water jug

 At the second sale (the family run sale) we got there on day 2, late in the day. The lady told us that we had missed a lot of great antiques. (Don’t tell us that!!) But we still managed to fill up the bed of the truck with some treasures that we liked.

3 old chairs, an old stool, some window frames, and a license plate (not old)

Glassware by E.O. Brody Co. and a little jar. These were found in the back of a shed that had been added onto about 3 or 4 times. They were just laying in the dirt, waiting to be found!

A chifferobe, that also went into the furniture hospital.

Estate sale stories are a lot like fishing stories. There’s always a big one that got away!

XOXO,
Abby


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Finds of the day!

Lucky you! Two posts in one day. 🙂
Here are a few of my favorite finds from today:

First up are some vintage Pyrex “cinderella” bowls in the “Early American” pattern. Haven’t caught the Pyrex itch yet? These are one of the hottest items right now in the vintage and antique market. America is going crazy for these! Made in America, used in America, American tradition….we are longing for it.

Pyrex cinderella mixing bowls in the “Early American” pattern

Want to learn more about Pyrex, Fire King, and other glassware?

Follow Me on PinterestThere are whole websites dedicated to vintage Pyrex. Check out Pyrexlove.com. If you do a search on Pinterest for vintage Pyrex, glorious things will happen. Soon, you’ll find yourself appreciating Pyrex for what it is: Americana at its best.
Next up are some fantastic jars. I adore blue Ball “Perfect Mason” jars. But today I have some other special ones that I want to share with you instead.
Starting in the middle is an antique Ball freezer jar, with its original zinc lid. LOVE this guy. The other two I’m not 100% sure if I’m right about. (Please correct me below in the comments if I’m wrong.) The guy on the left is what I believe to be a vintage Parmesan cheese grater. You can’t tell from this picture, but his cap has measuring marks on it. The metal handle on the left turns and it rotates inside. The guy on the right is a Mason jar that I believe to be a pitting jar used for olives and cherries.
All of these finds today make me wonder…what everyday objects do we use now that will turn out to be collectibles in the future?
Come back tomorrow. I’ll be showing you how to re-purpose some antique Americana objects that I adore. You won’t believe how EASY this one is.
XOXO,
Abby

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