Trendy Red and White?

It seems that every single magazine

that I've looked at in the past month

had Christmas displays of red and white only.

I like the look but find it impossible to

stick with a limited color scheme.

So I dug through my ornaments and sorted out

all the mostly red and /or white ones.

and came up with just enough

for the small tree we put up this year.

Then I discovered these oh so trendy, new, red and white gingham, stuffed stars and hearts with white embroidered snowflakes . I'm so glad there were a few empty spots that needed filled! 

Of course you all know

so head on over to Sue's

for a  very merry Rednesday!

The Magic Quilt

I want to share this love filled quilt before Valentine's Day slips away. I kept meaning to post it on Rednesday but didn't get around to photographing in time. My daughter won it in a raffle last year at a Valentine's dance. It's a lap quilt made and donated by the Gateway Quilter's club of Merced.

There is a Nick Jr. preschool show called "Little Bill" based on Bill Cosby's childhood. Little Bill received a magic quilt from his grandmother. Each block had things to make him happy. It had been passed through the family to help chase away monsters and bad dreams at bedtime. As soon as my daughter got this she dubbed it her magic quilt. Whenever she is afraid or upset at night she sleeps with it. It works like a charm, just like the little poem says it will!

Rednesday ~ Fall Frenzy Give~away

Are you one of those people who is totally organized? You've got all your Christmas gifts bought and wrapped by July. You know exactly how many candies you gave to trick-or treaters last year and you never have to give them old Tic-Tacs and stray pieces of gum. Your turkey is thawed before you start stuffing it. I've never been organized. I've tried. We trip over self-help books and the latest-greatest organizing tools and bins everyday but we still can't find two socks that match. The holiday season strikes fear into my heart.

Fall is a crazy time of year anyway. We have 7 family members with birthdays in September and October. Lots of fall sports and activities for all of us. How 'bout those Broncos, Hubby? Mix in blogging this year...I never expected to spend this much time "playing with my friends"! And then there's those special projects like what the wind brought yesterday. My poor little fence!

With all this going on I lose track and before you know it Thanksgiving will be here! Every year I plan to get an early start and do all those fun things like bake cookies with the kids... we get it done but it usually involves the little dough boy and some canned frosting.

So if you are super organized or not, I thought a little package of holiday prep would be a fun way to celebrate reaching 100 followers at about the same time I reached my 100th post. Thank you to all my followers and everyone who leaves such sweet comments. I had no idea when I started blogging last spring how many good friends I would make.

If you win you will receive this Christmas Cookies magazine, full of great ideas!

A 5qt. mixing bowl and really nice big wooden spoon.

And yes, the bowl is by Paula!

You'll need to measure so you'll get a set of Paula's red rooster measuring spoons and cups!

A cute little sign so you won't forget any ingredients.

For the decorator in all of us, two adorable paint can tins to fill with cookies.

And finally, this pretty perpetual calendar to help you keep track as the days fly by! It has a pretty little red ribbon.

Oh my gosh! Here it is REDnesday and I forgot to mention all the Reds! I hope you noticed them! LOL!

Hows that for some RED love!

The Fall Frenzy Give~away is open until

Tuesday, November 3, 2009 at 8p.m. Pacific time.

Winner will be randomly selected from.. a red bowl.

If you want to enter this give~away leave a comment on this post and tell me "I love red".

I will announce the winner on my Nov. 4th, 2009 REDnesday post.

I'd like to send a big THANK YOU to Sue at It's A Very Cherry World for hosting REDnesday every week. Please click over to see all the other red pretties!

A Bit of Red and a Makeover

So friends, it's not what you were expecting is it? I hope you enjoy my new blog design. Before I tell you how this came to be I thought I'd share a bit of RED, you know, just to keep you from going into shock at my drastic change!

This is a fan found in our attic. We think it belonged to Hubby's grandmother. It could have come from her mother or grandmother too. Not sure how old it is but it is certainly beautiful with it's pink and red flowers.

It wouldn't stay open by itself but you can see some of the outside detail.

I have always been quite nostalgic and digging around in our attic has given me a new appreciation for vintage style. It has started creeping into our home as we display some of our new found attic treasures. Even so it's not the direction I was planning on going when I contacted Debbie of CGT Designs. She follows my blog and had an idea what I liked. We talked about bright colors, french country, red and roosters. I also wanted a labrador retriever worked in there so she sent me a great link for art. Well, I didn't fine the right dog but I spent all night immersed in vintage artwork.

I fell in love with the little dark haired girl in the green hat. If you're wondering why, check out the head of hair behind the basketball on my left sidebar! So off I went in a whole new direction.

I'm pretty sure Debbi was quite surprised with the art I sent her for inspiration. But she didn't skip a beat and went right to work designing my new background, header and tabs for my sidebars. We had so much fun working together! We are both on the West Coast so we could email each other and get responses quickly as we blogged each evening.

Debbi has several blogs as she is talented in several areas! You may know her from Marionberry Cottage or All in my Cottage. Cindy at The Vintage Vignette did a feature on her that was just wonderful. You can click here to read it and check out Cindy's great vintage style too.

Thank you so much Debbi for all your help and guidance through this process. You are so talented and I couldn't be happier with the final product. I just sit here looking at it, smiling...



Hope it makes you smile too!

Dawn

REDnesday ~ Tables from The Green Pea Boutique

Don't you just love a pop of red?

I found two great red end tables at The Green Pea when I made a short trip out of town to meet some new friends. You can read about these sweet ladies here and get links to their blogs. They are also listed under California Friends on my right side bar. Sandi has a lot of wonderful red pieces in her boutique. I actually found 3 tables I loved but only two could fit in my living room.

I knew they would be perfect in my room and make a great REDnesday post so I'm linking up with Sue at It's a Very Cherry World. You can get there by clicking on her button on my right sidebar. Please go by and visit her cherried-out blog and see what the other participants are up to. I took a sneak peek and found some beautiful cranes posted by Cindy at Applestone Cottage. Oh! Wait, don't go yet! You have to see my tables first!

I was looking for pieces with storage and some character. I never dreamed I'd find them in RED!
Yay, the work is already done. One less project for me to procrastinate about!

I'm sure you've seen this type of magazine table before but probably not in RED. Don't you think the red just gives it a fresh new cottage feel?

I've always loved this little fall birdhouse store because of all the colors, especially the red.

The table holds some magazines, decorating books, and books on local history. The box peeking out under the yellow napkin holds coasters. I was so excited when I found it because the fabric covering it is a petite print of my valance fabric. The box was holding candles that had such a strong scent they made me sneeze. I had to toss the candles, spray it with Fabreeze and leave it outside for a week before I could bring it in.

I love the table next to this red lamp shade but the shade is a little short for the lamp. It's all a work in progress!

Here's my valance that inspired the color scheme for this room. I absolutely fell in love with the big red/pink roses and the red pomegranates.

Here's my second red table. Notice the big empty space on the right? Hubby's recliner goes there. It didn't make the cut. In fact, I pushed it way far away so it couldn't possibly be in the shot! Even Hubby has mentioned it's about time for a new one so you know it's bad! My little rocker/recliner is the perfect spot for reading or pulling out my notebook and pen from the little drawer and making a Honey Do List.

I just love this table! It's so chunky and sturdy with just enough detail to tickle my fancy!

It's hard to get through one of my posts with out a little Lab Love! At least this one doesn't shed or track in mud. OR KNOCK THINGS OFF THE TABLE TRYING TO GET TO THE WINDOW TO SEE WHO JUST PULLED UP! Sorry, Sunny is still trying to get used to the new furniture arrangement! The little lab looks cute on the placemat but it's real purpose is to have a special place for Hubby's Pepsi when he gets home from work. On that note I better put his chair back...


Happy REDnesday! Thanks for staying through it all!

P.S. Sorry for reposting, again! I just had to add a little personal note.

Mom, this music is for you ~ Red River Valley! I'll sleep peacefully tonight remembering all the times you sang the four of us to sleep with it! Love you and Dad!

Dawn

REDnesday ~ Egg Cups to Match My Vintage Apron!

I was so tickled to find these egg cups at Strawberry Saturday.

They go so well with my vintage apron.

Had to rearrange my vintage corner to find a place for them.

It's amazing how well they go together.

Considering they were made about 60 years apart!

They even go well with the button at the top of this post! If you'd like to see more fabulous red things click on it to be whisked away to It's a Very Cherry World! Happy REDnesday!
Dawn

Wordless Wed.~ Bummer! ~ and REDnesday!

Dixie in French Lique, Texas is taking a break so it's blogger's choice for Wordless Wednesday. Today my choice is

"Bummer!"

Please visit Heather as she guest hosts "Wordless Wednesday" and Sue Loves Cherries at My Secret Garden for "REDnesday" as I'm joining in the fun at both today.

Rooster on a Stick

I found this rooster at Raley's supermarket of all places. Yes, I'll admit to being an impulse shopper. I have to be because I always forget my list!

This base has sat on this corner of the porch for as long as my hubby can remember. His grandpa was an architectural scavenger long before "dumpster diving" became cool. And look, it has real patina! We have some other great pieces I'll show on a later post. What? Oh, the stick.

Here it is. The cats and wind kept knocking my new friend off his perch. I got lucky and found that the new rooster had a hole in the bottom. The base had one as well and often held small American Flags. I purchased a small dowel that fits into both holes.

Now he proudly welcomes all my visitors in true Charles Faudree style. Mr. Faudree's book "French Country Signature" is one of my favorites. His country cabin,"The Roost" is one of the places featured. I adore the iron dog drinking fountain, in this same red color, that welcomes his visitors... and their yellow labs.;)

Mr. Faudree says, " It is important to decorate a front porch, a porte chochere, or even a back entry to set the tone for the rest of the home." I know my blogging friends already know all that. I just like the way he talks about decorating!

My husband almost died yesterday when he caught me taking a picture of our front porch. I'm afraid it's been a bit neglected lately. There are grape vines and rose bushes creeping through the railing, over the rocking chair and within a foot or two of the front door. I told him he better get busy with the yard work because I need some "after" photos...

Dawn