Hanging antique plates in the dining room

I finally hung plates over the buffet mirror in the dining room.  For the past few months I have been traipsing around antique and thrift stores trying to find something to hang.  At first I wanted all white, but I think these will do nicely.  

All three are about the same size.  

I like how they look.  Gives the room an English Cottage feel.  Just what I was going for.  

Enjoy your day!  

Flea market shopping, antiquing and vintage consignments

In the heart of North Carolina is the town of Asheboro.  A town worth spending the day in... browsing antique shops, looking for treasures in the vintage and consignment shops and enjoying a bit of lunch and a cup of coffee.  

The town murals are interesting and fun, painted by one of the local artists.  

Up and down main street you can find all kinds of shops.  

And all kinds of treasures!  

I found a few of my own treasures, one being, the old bankers lamp, or desk lamp with the green shade.  I have been looking for one of these for quite some time.  A real bargain at $15.  

I am always on the look-out for shops like these!  I love finding small towns filled with lots of wonderful old treasures.  

Are you a flea market and antique shopper?  

Hope all of you enjoy your day.

Breakfast with the chickens

Scavenging through antique shops some time ago (actually in Columbia, Pennsylvania on one of our trips back home), I found these cute little chicken egg cups.  Made of ceramic  in the year 1950.  They were signed on the bottom and only $10 for the two of them.  

The colors, I thought, were so pretty.  And since soft boiled eggs are a favorite of ours in the morning, these little guys were meant to come home with me.    

Have a happy day!  

Antiques and junk and my finished painting

One of my favorite things to do is shop at antique shops, flea markets, junk stores, and consignment shops.  Not far from our house is a small country town that is filled with all of these kinds of shops.  Talk about a fun day....!

This is an old Homer Laughlin china plate I found for $6.00.  The color is a creamy, almost sepia tone color, which I love.  I am planning on hanging plates like this above the buffet mirror in the dining room.     

 As you can see I don't have any hanging yet.  

I also found a galvanized watering can.  You can always use one of these in the garden, right?  Only $12.00.  

It amazes me how much stuff you can find and how many ideas you can get from exploring shops like this.  

On the way home Galen and I saw a rainbow!  We were heading straight for it.  Can you see it?  What a beautiful sight.  

  

Oh, and I finished my garden potting table painting, finally.  It's already hanging on the wall.

Enjoy your day!

Moving furniture and redecorating

 January seems to bring on the "need for change" here at Mourning Dove Cottage and every year around this time I find myself cleaning, organizing, and redecorating the house.

One simple change I made was add a tablecloth to the breakfast nook which now makes it feel more cozy. 

The bookcase that was once in the dining room was moved to the living room and is now by the front window with a lamp that I like to keep turned on low all day long.  A pretty antique lamp should be enjoyed, don't you think, and I like the warm glow it brings to the room.  The bookcase fits perfectly under the window and is filled with books along side the breakfront that is also filled with books.  So many books.....

The sideboard server now replaces the bookcase in the dining room corner. 

 I brought an old pine trunk from the bedroom and put it behind the sofa where the sideboard once was.    I'm not sure this will stay here, but for now that's where it is.

 So the moving of furniture might or might not continue, but I must thank hubby for all his help the past few days, and for putting up with my great ideas.  Change is good, I tell him. 

More "tweaking" to do and the decorating continues.

Have a great weekend everyone!

French table linen

I'm back! It was nice to have a bit of time off.

I spent a few days at the beach with my sister and even though the weather was cold, that didn't stop us from antiquing and thrifting. I found this lovely French tablecloth for only $8.00,

and napkins $2.00 each,

at this wonderful little thrift shop (below),

and it was packed with all kinds of goodies. I brought quite a few things home with me. This shop was in Carolina Beach, but we stayed at Shell Island in Wrightsville Beach, NC.

Aside from the shopping we also enjoyed

the ocean, the sunrise and sunsets,

and just hanging out and having fun.

And one of my most favorite things was watching the pelicans fly past our balcony early in the morning.

I'll be around to visit all of you soon.

I missed you!

Antiquing in Selma, NC

Selma, North Carolina is a small town that's filled with antique shops and interesting and fun things to do (click on the link above and see what I mean). My sister and I and my daughter's mother-in-law spent the day there earlier this week to celebrate my daughter's mother-in-law's birthday. The three of us always take each other out on our birthdays.





Antique shops line both sides of the streets in Selma.




This shop on Railroad Street is one of my favorite places. "Railroad Street Antiques and Collectibles". Very inviting with the flower box out front overflowing with ivy. (my sister below)





This shop below was on Raiford Street. I forget the name but there were so many wonderful things inside. I wish I would have taken more photos, but I was too busy looking.

We stopped at The Cakery for lunch. Not only did they serve cake, but yummy sandwiches and homemade soups.

We had Three Tier Strawberry Cake and coffee outside in the warm sunshine.

me and my daughter's mother-in-law

I must show you one of the things I bought (below). I fell in love with this teeny weeny tea cup with a parrot on the handle ~ $3.00.

And this wire vase made me smile. "Dance among the Flowers" ~ had to have it. $8.00.

I also bought the paperweight on the first photo.

Ok, getting back to Selma....we stopped here to take photos and have a sip of coffee. Isn't it pretty? Love the birdhouse and old wrought iron fence.

This was the last place of the day.

We spent SO much time in here. The three of us were the very last ones to leave. They didn't mind a bit they said! And they even helped us carry all our things to the car.

We ended the day with a very nice dinner nearby.

What a lovely day!