Pink Saturday. A bit of this and that.

We're having the most  peculiar weather here in the Central Valley. A few days ago it was warm enough for shorts and sandals and today the rain's come back again. Rain this late in May has a completely different smell than the rain we get in January. It's warmer, earthier and tinged with the fragrance of flowers. A perfect day to put on a pair of pink floral Wellies and finding a spring puddle to splash around in.

I have a tall ice cream sundae glass for holding loose change that collects at the bottom of my purse. I try to keep mostly dimes and nickels and an occasional quarter or two. Every now and then I take a handful out, put them in my pocket and head over to my favorite Thrift Store to see what fun thing I can add to my craft stash.

I think there's something deliciously innocent about shopping with a few dimes in your pocket. It's like being a kid again. Which little treasure is worthy of your hard earned allowance?

Today I'm looking for something to add to my Mad Tea Party props. Most of what I'm using will be from my collection of odds and ends but I can't resist picking up a handful of silly things when I have extra change from my Sundae Silliness Fund.

Would you like to know what treasure I found today?

Come back on June 26 for the Mad Tea Party and see!

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Make sure to visit Beverly at How Sweet the Sound

for more wonderful pinks!

thrifting, creating and what inspires

I'm not really a pink person.

At least that's what I would have said if you asked me a few months ago. I've always loved autumn colors. Pumpkin, spice, paprika, espresso, rust. Autumn is my favorite season. I'm the Queen  of Halloween.

But every spring I find myself drawn just a little to the color pink. It starts to tease me. The flowers, pastels, Easter colors filling the racks at the stores. I think of Paris in spring and in my mind it's pink. I usually use it sparingly in my decorating. Maybe pick up an accessory or two.

This year I've decided to embrace pink and it's here to stay.

I've been soaking it up everyway I can. I realize it's what's been inspiring me all along. That along with blogging which has been just mah-velous (thank you Beverly and Pink Saturday). And of course there's my favorite magazine, Where Women Create, the one that really started it all. I was constantly drawn to lots of   pink filled feminine creative spaces. I loved pink when I was young and the last time I was crafting and selling, most of my creations were some shade of pink.

So tops on my list of what inspires would be.....PINK!

Feeling a little pink overload? I'll get back to this in a bit.

This weekend I went to a local Antique Fair. It was raining alot so most of the vendors cleared out early. I picked up a few things I couldn't resist.

This book of vintage sheet music from 1939 for $3

Vintage postcards and a sweet blue tea towel with crocheted trim....

and just as the vendor was about to pack it up this charming little vintage enamel pin for $2.50! Sometimes it pays to get there at the last minute.

I attatched the pin to this metal frame I found at the thrift shop for 99 cents a year ago. It was in a not so vintage shade of silver so I painted it antique white and used it to hang my favorite necklaces and earrings in the bedroom. I've decided to move it out to my craft corner so I just painted it this bright shade of aqua the other day. I love it with all the pinks and it goes very well with this delicious find....

A vintage framed print from the Mother Goose nursery rhyme The Queen of Hearts. This was a thrift shop splurge which to me is anything over $10. But I love the frame and her sweet little pink dress and tights and shoes. I'm sure it was meant for a little girl's room but it's perfect for MY little girl room..my craft corner!

I decided the Queen of Hearts needed a friend. She looked a bit lonely all alone up there on my wall. So I dug up an old wooden frame I've painted at least a dozen times and painted it again.

I started tearing up pieces of tissue and paper.

Dabbing pink here, blue there and lots of white which covers up boo boos that you can't erase because the real world doesn't work like Photoshop and sometimes I wish it would.

I was inspired by my favorite Russian ballerina, Anna Pavlova (the image here is the same one you see on my banner) and by Vanessa Valencia from A Fanciful Twist whose artwork and blog I adore.

 Miss Pavlova will join the Queen of Hearts on my wall where I can look and smile at them and be inspired while I play with more paper, glitter and glue.

Is this post getting too long?

Everything came together you see. The vintage sheet music. Anna Pavlova. The old paper doilies from the thrift shop. The pink German wired ribbon and the paper coffee filters I dyed last Easter.

I crafted this little vintage inspired paper posy holder. To hold a Mother's Day card, sweet paper roses or bits of old lace. I'm making a few for a small craft fair I'm doing in a few weeks and I'll also be listing them in my Etsy shop soon.

And now I must stop with my rambling. I see outside the weather is beautiful in that cloudy sunny way that I love. We had lots of rain the last 2 days. I must get cat food for Luna and people food for Mr Petunia and my Boy Wizard and cook it all up later and watch my recorded Dancing with the Stars from last night. Because it's a guilty pleasure I share with my mama (go Evan!)...but don't tell anyone I said so.

tea and azaleas

Once in a while I get a day I like to call my perfect weather day. A mix of sun and clouds with a cool crisp breeze. I'm more of a cool rather than warm weather person. Probably because we get long unbearable 100+ days as early as May going all the way into September. I think a little cloud cover makes all the colors pop and there's just something magical to me about sunlight peeking behind gray skies. Having spent the last couple of days preoccupied with cars needing repair and getting my son ready for a regional science fair I finally allowed myself a little time to play.

It started with an innocent cupcake. I had planned to share just a few pictures of my cupcake and a handful of pink things. Well once I realized the weather was MY perfect weather I couldn't resist.

I found a trail of bright pink azaleas so I ran in and grabbed my sparkly pink slides (fabulous thrift shop find for $2.98) and matching bright azalea tights.

It was such a lovely, lovely day I brought my cupcake outside and indulged in a garden tea.

I picked up this vintage cotton canvas rose covered shower curtain about 17 years ago! I love using it as a table cover. Aren't the azaleas yummy?

To see my cupcake and the rest of my Tea and Azalea frolic  just click here. Turn your volume on if you'd like to hear the music too. Make sure to stop over at our hostess Beverly's place for more pink.

Happy Pink!

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And the gift tag giveaway winner is.....

#10 Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage!! Congratulations!!

Everyone who left a comment was entered,
excluding myself and any double posts  for a total number of 27 entries.

thrifty thursday trip

I recently came across a site where the author blogged about her weekly thrift shop excursions. I loved the idea. I already visit my local thrift shop on a regular basis and now I can look forward to sharing my visits here.

Love the color and texture of this pink berry spray but decided to leave it for someone else.

This pretty cameo caught my eye. The clerk told me the price was five fifty. I thought that was a fair price so I asked her to hold it while I kept browsing.

A minute later another clerk came to me and said 'You know that's $550.00!' I almost fell over! I didn't know anything in that shop cost over $50. Needless to say it was just a bit over my budget. At least they were nice enough to let me take a picture.

After an hour or so I brought home a few little treasures. Each one was just under two dollars. I've wanted to read The Wednesday Letters for a while and the last time I was here I actually read the first few chapters.

My favorite find. Finally a tiara of my own. Maybe not to wear to Target (although I just might every now and then). Something about tiaras puts a smile on my face. I love the texture and patina on this one so I naturally couldn't resit using this pic for another new banner. I already found the perfect spot for it in my little craft corner.