Hydrangea Love

I think that one of my favorite flowers has to be

the hydrangea.Unfortunately I have a brown thumb
when it comes to growing them.
I've tried three times.
Three times I have failed. I am working up the courage to try again this summer.
But I haven't let my failure of growing the real thing
stop me from surrounding myself
with the much easier variety to care for. . .
the faux hydrangea---easy to care for, widely available.I've even bought them from the dollar store. Dollar store hydrangea's displayed en mass on my front door.

What flower draws your attention, be it real or faux?

If you haven't had a chance to vote for Joys of Home at
JDR 2010 Industry Blogger Awards
I would really appreciate it if you would
please take a moment to click on this link and vote.
Voting ends Thursday and JofH has slipped in the polls.
Thank you so much for your support!!!

A Little Nesting

This is the view outside my window this morning. Yes, old man winter has returned.

Fortunately before his arrival we had a few warm days which I tried to take full advantage of by bringing in a few signs of spring.

In my flower bed are two old cement urns that once belonged to my in-laws. I love to change these urns with the seasons. Recently I found two unusual wreaths at the thrift store for a dollar each. I placed them a top each urn and, luckily enough, pots from the nursery fit snug inside the center.

I like the way they resemble birds nests.
I planted pansies nestled amongst spanish moss.
And to finish out the display and give it height, I added
beautiful red branches a dear neighbor clipped for me.Nests, pansies and branches---the perfect spring combination!

I am excited to announce
that this little blog has been
nominated for the JDR Industry Blogger Awards!!!

I feel very humbled and honored
to be listed among a group of talented bloggers.
The winner receives $500.
Wow, I know a few projects I could finish with that kind of money!

I would truly appreciate it if you would go to jacksondesignandremodeling.com/blog/
to vote for Joys of Home.
Thank you!!!

A Drawer Full and a Heap Too

It's the middle of January which means it's time for a winter inversion where I live. The skies are gray, the sun is covered by smog and the snow is old and crusty. This kind of weather can really get you down. So to help cure the mid-winter blues (or should it be mid-winter grays?) I picked up this little plant on my last trip to the grocery store. It's so cute and petite and is the perfect reminder that spring will soon be here.Instead of just plopping it in a pot, I dug out these little wooden boxes that I found at the thrift store a while back. I pulled out some old architectural pieces too. I gave them all a fresh coat of black paint (I know! I'm becoming very predictable!) After sanding everything, I added some wooden knobs so the boxes looked more like little drawers. Now the plant has a cute place to live as it sits in my kitchen window waiting for spring to arrive. (picture could not be taken of plant in windowsill due to the glare from the smog and snow)

I am continually humbled by your kindness!!! As if it isn't enough that you take the time to read my little blog, you have showered me with awards too! Thank you!!! I feel sooooo spoiled! I mean, look at this heap!
Holly gave me this
This one is from BrendaKara gave me this oneI got this one from Pam at Frippery This one is from Kasey
Please take the time to visit all of these incredible ladies. I promise you'll have a lot of fun!

TA DA DA DAaaAaa!!!

I've been doing some changing and rearranging.

I moved the old cedar chest
from in front of the couch to behind.That way it hides the cord mess and
helps protect the couch from the sun
that streams through the windows.Moving the chest also makes room for
my newest project.I added a bit of aging with stain
to honor the pieces that make up this project.
Both the door and the balusters are
over one hundred years old.In my opinion, it's the bumps and scrapes
that you get in life that give you true character.
So, as a reminder,
I like to highlight those in my furniture pieces. It's also in the small details where true beauty is found.I think this one is a real beauty.Many of you want to know where I find my old doors.
I find them at thrift stores, on the roadside, and
at businesses that sell new doors
and haul off the old ones.

I want to give a special thanks to Sandy for this award:

and Wendy for this one:

Have a delightful weekend everyone!

Hooray for Me!

Hooray for me!

I won Dave Ramsey's book
that Christian gave away at her blog.
Thanks again Christian!
I also received a cute tag from JuJu.
Isn't it wonderful? She created it herself.

Now, you all know how weird I can be about tags and awards. But, I thought this one would be great for EVERYONE to do. So I'm passing this along to everyone who is willing to try. I think it is hard for women to compliment themselves. Well, I suppose some women find it easy, but I'm not one of them.
So here it goes:
1-I love that I'm able to make people smile and laugh.
2-I love that I know how to do a little bit of a lot of things (painting, gardening, decorating, designing, building, crafting, thrifting, etc.)
3-I love that I can find beauty in almost anything.

Now it's your turn! What do you love about yourself?

Oh before you go, Kasey and Blessed Mama gave me this:

I'm supposed to list 6 things I love. I thought it would be fun to show you six things around my house that I love. But before I do, please know that I have my priorities straight. First and foremost, I love my Father in Heaven and my Savior Jesus Christ. I love my husband and my family. I love my friends, in real life and blog world.
Now on to the materialistic things that I love.

I love chocolate!
What girl doesn't?
My favorite candy bar is Snickers Almond.
I love picture frames.
I'm not sure if it's because they're made from wood,
Or if it's just the beauty in the simplicity.
I love a good quote!
When I was a teenager, I spent a summer
handwriting a book of my favorite quotes.
Now I just clip them on a rack in my bathroom.
I LOVE blogging!!!
I cannot express to you the MANY ways
blogging has blessed my life.
Please know, though, that if you have ever
left me a comment or even just lurked
on my blog, I count you as a blessing!!!
I love decorating magazines, catalogs,
blogs, websites, t.v. shows, etc.I love being able to take someone's trash
and make it into a treasure.Did you notice that those last two photos
were actually sneak peeks of my week long project?
I'll show you the final reveal tomorrow.
(Now I just need to clean the paint off my kitchen floor)

A Great Combination

I bought an almost new lamp, complete with the shade, at the thrift store for $6. It had an antique brass finish. Of course I bought it knowing that I'd give it a spray paint makeover. I'm sorry to say that I didn't take a "before" picture. I actually never thought that I'd do a post on it. I didn't want to bore you with another post of "Look at my thrift find that I painted black." (YAAAAWN!)

In fact, after I painted the lamp black that's how I felt---bored! I almost regretted spray painting it. (GASP!!!)

Well, I came up with a solution. I took out my antique brass metallic spray paint. Noooo, I didn't spray it back to it's original finish.

I lightly sprayed it, keeping the can about two to three feet away from the lamp. That way only the flecks of metallic landed on the lamp. The color didn't change, it's still black but has a more professional finish.Now when the sun hits it, or the light is on, it shimmers. It has a warmth and sheen that it didn't have before. Black with metallic flecks---a great combination!

I need to thank my friends at Creations From My Heart and Sanctuary Arts for the Home for this wonderful award:

I would love to pass this along to
each and every one of you!
Please go visit these very talented ladies who gave it.
And while you're visiting, visit Annie.
She made a really cute version of
the dollar store frame project.

Intervention Interruption

We interrupt this intervention for an important announcement.

You are all cordially invited to attend a
Spray Outside the Black Box Party
to be held on Monday August 25th.

I'm going to try my hand at that Mr. Linky thing, (wish me luck) so get your projects ready! Just post your pictures on your blogs and then get ready to link to the rest of us addicts. And for those of you that have just begun your addiction to black spray paint, we'll allow you to show off your very best black painted project, because you know that we all have a secret stash of black spray paint just waiting to be used when this week is over---some of you may actually be using it right now. Caught ya!
Let's all give Cherry a big thank you for coming up with such a great party theme, "Thanks Cherry!"

Now, I hope you won't be disappointed that I'm not going to show you a spray paint project today. I thought it was time to relax a bit so I'm inviting you into my living room.

Not to long ago you stood here in my foyer.

This is my living room. It's long and narrow, measuring 22 feet by 14 feet.
Most rooms that size would be easy to decorate but this one is a bit tricky because three of the four walls have large openings or windows.
The foyer wall has a 7 foot opening (half the wall).The dining wall has an almost 12 foot opening
(more than half the wall). And the outside wall has 13 feet of huge windows,
plus a few more smaller windows.

This is my summer furniture arrangement. It's a bit unusual, but I like it.
My oldest son said that it's arranged like
we live on a sit-com set,
with the audience sitting outside the windows.
Don't you love family critics?

But this is why I have those big windows
as a design focal point. Look at the view.

This is the view up the street. Yes, those are mountains.

I don't even want window treatments.
I love the custom mouldings that my husband and I did.There's a rope light tucked up inside.
It gives off such a soft light.

I call this my fairy window.
I had to talk my contractor into putting it in.
I love the way the light bounces around in this room.It's my favorite room in the house.

Oh, and a special thank you to Debbie at
Ribbonwood Cottage for giving me this award: