Santas Under Glass

One of the best things about all the red in our kitchen

is how festive it looks at Christmas time!

I love our red Bella coffee maker,

the buffalo check candle is from Marshalls,

+ I used to sell Hoosier glass jars like this in my old store.

Our kitchen window sill is quite deep,

so I have lots of fun displaying my collectibles on it.

Right now it’s filled with my Santas,

+ this year I opted to display them under glass cloches.

Only one is a genuine cloche, though,

while the others are various repurposed glass containers.

My cast iron Santa from the Sundance catalog

is under a glass globe from an old industrial light fixture.

This small hand-carved Santa

is from a fellow vendor at one of my mid-90’s markets.

His cloche is actually a small glass item

for which I paid $3 just the other day, at a local antique shop*.

We’re not sure what it was originally, but it’s the perfect small size!

* I found a box of 12 red Shiny Brite ornaments

at the same store + on the same day.

My blue + gray salt-glaze pottery Santa

is from Rowe Pottery Works in Cambridge, Wisconsin.

I used to carry their wares in my old store, too.

Look closely at his cloche —

it is actually a small glass measuring beaker that I found at Walmart.

I think it looks vintage + industrial, don’t you?

A similar set of beakers is available online from Walmart.

I call this Hallmark ornament the Paula Deen’s husband Santa.

Seriously.  Separated at birth, or what?

Do you recognize his cloche?

It is a preserves jar from the French company, Bonne Maman.

Notice that Santa’s standing on the darling red check jar lid!

We love the cherry preserves at our house.

And finally, we have the only real cloche of my collection.

I bought it years ago at the late, great Smith + Hawken store.

I’m guessing that Santa probably came from my old shop, too.

Doesn’t the tall, slender beaker look great, with the sun shining through it?

Meanwhile, that’s about it for my Santas collection.

In the olden days, I had dozens more of them,

but sold or gave away most when I entered my less-is-more phase.

Let’s take a quick look at some other (mostly red) things in our kitchen.

 We can discuss said red accents at a later date.

Stay tuned.

 

Vintage-Style Trailer Happiness

So.  This past Sunday, we went to the Greater Chicago RV Show,

where I found the awesome vintage-style trailer of my dreams.

More on that in a minute, but may I ask, first:

Does the same designer work for 99% of the RV companies??

Exhibit A:

Does this mean that 99% of RV enthusiasts love this look??

Exhibit B:

And another query, When would we ever see something that I like??

(I mean no disrespect for these trailers; they’re just not up my alley.)

+ + + + +

Say no more.

The Vintage Cruiser by Gulf Steam

I KNOW!!!  Isn’t it great???

Natch, I want the red + white, but it’s available in aqua, too:

Before we go inside, I must share another query, re: trailer interiors:

Are 99% of them are designed by the same person??

Do 99% of RV enthusiasts love all that beige??

Exhibit C:

So much beige, + always with the generic hotel print fabric.

I would have to do some reupholstering before we ever leave town!

Sad!

Exhibit D:

(Again, no disrespect intended; I love things that are different from the norm.

If you read my blog, perhaps you feel the same way!)

+ + + + +

Viva la difference, though — inside my vintage dream:

We could move right in without me sewing a single stitch!

Not sad!

+ + + + +

The Gulf Stream Vintage Cruiser is also available in this fun “woody” version,

which looks very cool + campy, which is a thing now:

 Inside, though, is what really rules — it’s KNOTTY PINE, people!

Just like inside your grandparents’ vintage lake cottage!

+ + + + +

The dinette + counter tops are really sweet + not the standard-issue faux granite.

I’m pretty sure they are solid surface material (a.k.a. Corian):

+ + + + +

Now feast your eyes on the (yelling like Oprah) RED REFRIGERATOR!!

Please.  I’ve only  wanted a red Smeg refrigerator forever.

($2 grand, BTW)

+ + + + +

So.  I suppose it’s high time to reveal the floor plan that we’ll get.

It’s their smallest — #17RWD — which weighs 2,825 pounds:

I would rather have a sitting area than a relatively huge bedroom,

so my plans are to do away with that bed

+ replace it with this navy blue Novogratz futon from Wal-Mart.

People.  It’s $339, + in person, it’s cool!

Since that tiny kitchen desperately needs more counter space,

the bed’s going away will also allow us to have a rolling cart/island

between the TV mount + shirt closet.

Perhaps something like this one,

one that G.O. made for our biz, RedBird Vintage Home:

+ + + + +

My dream trailer’s bathroom has a separate sink, toilet + shower.

Exhibit E:

Most small trailers sport something called a Wet Bath.

Exhibit F:

That looks as if a simple shower

would require some serious gymnastics or yoga skills!

Scary!

+ + + + +

Stay tuned for more of my trailer musings,

as I’m suffering from quite the case of wanderlust.

+ + + + +

If you’d like your own small trailer, may I suggest looking here?

+ + + + +

If you, too, would love to buy your own Vintage Cruiser,

check out Gulf Stream’s website!

My Love For A Classic Rug

Yesterday I blogged about our new curtains that I sewed:

Love them!  Don’t love hemming them!

Anyway, as I mentioned, I am officially in NESTING mode,

which means I long to make a huge pot of chili + re-do the living room.

Time for a new rug!

My beloved kilim rug has been retired,

after 10+ years of total grooviness . . .

. . . + here ’tis its replacement — a denim rag rug from Land of Nod!

http://www.landofnod.com/true-blue-rag-rug/f1794

People — less than $300 for an 8 x 10 rug!

Say no more!

But wait.  Needle scratch, even.

Isn’t a rag rug something that I would have had in the 90’s?

Um, excuse me?  Granny!

Further more, doesn’t G.O. hate rag rugs?

Please. I don’t think that it’s hopelessly outdated.

No way! — it’s more of a timeless classic!

Like jeans — they never go out of style + they go with everything!

Check it out!

The Land of Nod rug is chunkier (+ softer) than those of years gone by,

which adds a lot of texture to our room.

At this point, I am fretting over how monochromatic my room is.

Gray, blue, gray, blue.

Time to add some of my other favorite color, red!

RED!?  HA!  I think I’ve got it covered!

How about you?

What classics do you still have in your decor?

ALMOST SIDING COLOR TIME!

For those keeping score at home,

we are now in Year 2 of our Dutch colonial project.

There has been a flurry of activity inside, involving a lot of drywall.

While that’s a lot of hard work + great progress,

sadly, it’s just not that photogenic.

* * *
Recently, our attention has turned to our exterior, at long last.

Here’s what she looks like now:

We just got a bid on wrapping + siding the house,

+ I couldn’t be more pleased.

* * *

This means that I’ve been pondering exterior colors,

which is pretty much fun on a stick!

I love Dutch colonials with light first stories + dark uppers, like here:

Houzz

and here:

 

I am really drawn to white with gray.

This isn’t a Dutch colonial, but it’s the same idea, + I love it.

* * *

Meanwhile, even though I’m 95% sure I want white with gray,

once in a while I entertain the idea of something else, like this:

Country Living magazine

I love red houses!

But I dunno . . . red’s a major commitment I don’t think I can make.

I fear that our Dutch colonial’s barn-like shape with RED would be a cliché.

* * *

Maybe it’s because it’s finally spring here,

+ this year, I’m seeing pastel colors just about everywhere . . .

. . . + I’ve always loved pale yellow houses, like here:

Country Living magazine

How could you not be in a good mood, as cheerful as this is?

Same here:

Houzz

It certainly looks great paired with white!

I love the white vertical siding + dovecote (faux birdhouse in the gable)!

Oh, well, I don’t have to decide TO-day, but soon.

Stay tuned!

 

 

FALL MAKEOVER FOR OUR LIVING ROOM

News you might use: It’s the first day of Fall.

Our furnace is roaring.

I’m sporting flannel PJ bottoms, thick socks, a thermal top + a sweatshirt.

Meaning: I need to consume chili, anything pumpkin flavored

+ caramel apples by the dozens.

Plus I’ve got the nesting instinct like crazy

+ have been giddily adding an Autumnal vibe to our interiors.

Yesterday I blogged about our dining room re-do:

https://redbirdv.wordpress.com/2013/09/21/our-dining-room-gets-its-fall-on/

Today, it’s all about our living room,

which opens to the dining room through this graceful arch:

I love area rugs!
The kilim in the foreground
is from JC Penney, circa ’07.

Nobody loves this time of year more than I do . . .

. . . so, of course, I have a huge Rubbermaid tub o’ Fall + Halloween stuff,

somewhere down in our basement, a.k.a. ‘cellar hide-a-way’.

That just seems like a lot of work, though,

dragging all that up here + then putting it away later.

Plus, I can’t find it.

YESH, a huge, honking Rubbermaid storage container — LOST.

Think about that for a minute + try to envision such jam-packed squalor!

* * * *

Okay, now — quickly! — let’s think about something else, like pumpkins!

Much better!

So I’m just adding the feel of Fall,

using stuff I already have + maybe a spare pumpkin or two.

Luckily for me, all my reds + Beeswaxes (a.k.a. gold) work like magic.

All my yellow ware bowls
come in the perfect Fall shades!

I recently spent a happy a.m.,

rounding up all the yellow ware from my vast collection

+ distributing it throughout our living room.

* * * *

Meanwhile, I think there’s something about the patina of beat-up wood

that calls out: ‘FALL!’

We bought this table + used it for dining in the 80’s . . .

. . . after which its legs were chopped off,

making it the perfect, rustic coffee table.

That awesome wooden paddle is new to me —

I got it for a steal ($10!) at FourSided in Chicago this summer!

Foursided
on Clark Street in Andersonville

And raise your hand if you love striped Dash + Albert rugs as much as I do!

http://www.dashandalbert.com/

I bought this one, in the coveted ‘Kay colors’ of navy + Beeswax,

 way back in 2007 in Savannah (I love you!) Georgia:

That wooden box had been organizing my sewing supplies,

but I like it better out here, holding our remotes + ‘what-have-you’.

This awesome repro vintage basket’s warm color + texture
adds ‘Fall’, too!
I love its wire handles.

I mentioned previously that I thought my massive amount of red stuff

is a natural for this Autumnal atmosphere I’m craving.

Let’s have a look-see at some of it, shall we?  What do you think?

I wrote about this typewriter table re-do way back in February,

when I first started blogging!

https://redbirdv.wordpress.com/2013/02/28/typewriter-table-project/

Who doesn’t love
the Swiss Army blanket?

I made a pair of red ikat dot printed pillows
for our couch.

G.O. repurposed an old wooden surveyor’s tripod into that cool floor lamp.

Don’t you love that red striped lampshade from Pottery Barn, too?

Just yesterday
I whined about whether or not
this Cardinals pillow was ‘wrong’!

And now this!?
A STEELY DAN PILLOW!!??
Yes, I repurposed a tote into a pillow!

‘The Dan’ + Kay out cruising

Some times it’s just FUN, being me!

I love a house where you can walk in + TELL by the ‘stuff’ who lives there!

Speaking of which . . .

. . . one side of this vintage sign says ‘St. Louis’
+ the other reads ‘Rockford’
(Illinois) near where I used to live!

Which brings us to these — the ultimate in Cardinals memorabilia.

Frankly, I don’t really care if they’re ‘wrong’!

Seats from the most recent past Busch Stadium
(1966 – 2005)

And if that’s not enough good times,

 when one is me, one really has a lot of fun

with my + my beau’s initials, like here:

Typography. Vintage style. The color red.
All check check check!
When I saw these coasters
in the Sundance catalog,
I ordered an OK immediately!

Get it?

‘Ole’ or ‘O’ — G.O.’s nickname + K for Kay!?

HA! He’s not amused — AGAIN!?

Sadly, G.O. doesn’t really grasp the concept, or won’t,

but that’s okay — I have enough fun with it for the 2 of us!

I nearly swooned when I spied this vintage fruit crate
with the OK in the ‘Kay colors’ of red + navy!

Oopsie — on the glare at the window,

but please do notice those awesome Pottery Barn sconces I scored on eBay.

They were a splurge, I love them, + they’ll go with us to our new house!

So will this, my beloved vintage postal sorter:

As with my dining room art ledges of yesterday’s post,

these cubbies are jammed with my beloved stuff.

Note, please, all the yellow ware bowls that were previously in our kitchen.

I think I’m going to edit everything just a tad,

after which I’ll snap yet more photos + blog about it all.

Stay tuned!