My Favorite "French" Find

Do you have a favorite find? Is there a treasure in your home that you would never part with? My favorite find is this lovely French style cabinet and matching sofa. There is also a small table that goes with it that is not pictured. I had mismatched pieces in my front room for a long time and was waiting for just the right thing to come along. Patience is definitely a virtue and not one of my strongest points, but I was determined to find exactly the right furniture for my room. One weekend about three or four years ago, I went to an auction at one of my favorite auction houses. This auction happened to be on site at the home of a doctor who was in the process of liquidating his entire estate. They had some of the most amazing furniture including this stunning three piece set.

There were alot of people at this auction and I never thought that I would actually win this furniture, but I hung in there. When I want something, I go for it, within limits and I had a limit in mind. The sofa was put up first and it was kind of disheartening that they were going to break up the set and sell it in pieces. Sometimes that's a good thing, sometimes it's not so good! It can go either way. So I set my sights on the sofa first and won it for $150! Yes, amazing, and it is in exceptional condition. After winning the sofa I knew I had to get the cabinet! This cabinet is so gorgeous with carvings, soft pastel carved roses, curved glass, rope trim on the inside edges and a drawer in the bottom that looks invisible when it is closed. I think that I paid $275.00 for the cabinet! I saw one that was a similar style, but not nearly as nice, in an antique mall and they wanted $1,200 for it! I definitely got a bargain! The last piece was the small matching table and it sold for $20! So for under $500 I got the entire set! I have never been more thrilled to win something at an auction and believe me, I have purchased a lot of auction goodies over the years. I enjoy this furniture every time I look at it. It's just so pretty and just the style I was looking for. And the price, it couldn't be any better. I guess it pays to wait! ~Stacy~ xo

In Love With Jacarandas

With it being spring and planting season, I am completely inspired by the breathtaking beauty of all the flowering trees on the market today. I am looking for a pretty tree for my front yard and looking at all the trees out there brought a special memory back to me of a wonderful place with the most spectacular flowering trees that I have ever seen. One of the most beautiful places that I have ever visited is Grafton, NSW, Australia, where they have the Jacaranda Festival every year during the end of October and the first week of November. These gorgeous trees grow in subtropic and tropical climates and are originally from Brazil. They now grow in several tropical climes in the world including Africa and Australia.

I have been fortunate enough to visit Australia numerous times and attending the Jacaranda Festival in Grafton was a fabulous time that I will never forget. The entire small city of Grafton is surrounded in a sea of purple for weeks and when the blossoms start to fall an entire carpet of beautiful blooms surround your feet in a haze of lavender.

I only wish that living in Utah could afford me the pleasure of planting these striking trees in my yard. So many lovely things exist in other parts of the world that we can only visit from time to time or see in photographs, books or on television. I only know that if they could be planted here, my back yard would covered in purple from head to toe. ~Stacy~ *Photos Courtesy of Grafton Jacaranda Festival, Grafton, NSW, Australia*

This N That...

This has been a busy week, although I don't really know what I've been doing! What I do know is that I haven't been blogging! On Tuesday I blogged just before heading out to the Celtic Woman concert here in Salt Lake City. I have to tell you that it was absolutely amazing! I would definitely go and see these lovely ladies again. They put on an incredible performance that was not a disappointment in any way. In fact it far exceeded my expectations. Boy, can they ever sing and perform and the blonde violin player is really incredible. She literally ran up and down the stage doing high Irish kicks on and off the platform during most of the numbers and this was while playing her violin. Crazy! She reminded us of a whimsical Tinkerbell! The concert was almost three hours long too so it was really worth it.

Today I spent all day out in the front yard. It is the first time I've been out weeding, etc. since winter! It has been so cold here, but today it was beautiful. I cleaned off my statues, filled up my birdbaths, brought out the wicker chairs onto the porch, decorated my front window with my swags of tulle and flower garlands...all sorts of fun things! I just love getting ready for summer!

This week I hope to clean out my office and give it a bit of a makeover. I actually want to paint it, but I have a huge rack of shelving on one wall that houses all of my merchandise for sale and to paint would mean taking everything off four large shelves, unscrewing all of the metal from the walls...just the thought of it makes me shudder! But, I hate the color of green I painted my office about five or six years ago and I really want to change it. It is hideous, I have no idea what I was thinking when I painted it. Do you ever do that? (*_*) We'll see how it turns out!

The beautiful picture on this post is of my Mom's flowering almond bush. My niece took it last year, she's quite the budding photographer. Until next time, enjoy! ~Stacy~

Celtic Woman ~ Isle Of Hope Tour

Have you ever watched these lovely ladies on PBS? I love the "Celtic Woman" programs and watch them whenever they are on tv. Their voices are like angels and the girl who plays the violin is absolutely amazing! The beat of the Irish music is so intoxicating and energetic! I am so excited to be going to their concert tonight at the E-Center here in Salt Lake City! I booked the tickets months ago and almost forgot about it, but now it's here and it's going to be a fun time. I'm going with my sis-in-law and her daughter, my brother-in-law and my Mom-in-law. Lots of "in-laws" tonight! I'll let you know how the show turns out, but for now, I'd better make tracks! ~Stacy~

Happy Mother's Day!

Just a little note to wish my Mom and all Mothers out there a very Happy Mother's Day! I hope you are doing something special today with your loved ones! It is a pretty low key day today here in Utah. It's sunny and warm with a slight breeze, the lawn has been freshly mowed and it looks like a wonderful week coming up.

This week I will be listing some lovely new treasures in Vintage Finds and on Tuesday night I am very excited to be attending the "Celtic Woman" concert here in Salt Lake City at the E-Center. I have looked forward to seeing these lovely ladies for a long time...I can't wait!

I hope you like the new look of my blog. I had Michelle of Shabby Creations do a little redo for me and I love how it turned out. She did such a better job than I ever could have. What a talented lady she is! Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead! ~Stacy~ xo

Paris Rags Grand Opening Celebration!

Do you love romantic clothing and accessories? I know I do, but there seems to be a lack of beautiful clothing out there with the kind of style many of us love...romantic lace, french style and a touch of bohemian whimsy. I am very excited to announce the Grand Opening of Kimberly Ryan's new web site Paris Rags on May 15th!

Many of you may know Kim from Ebay for her absolutely beautiful rose paintings and other vintage accessories featuring her gorgeous artwork! Kim is truly multi-talented and has branched out in a new direction creating a lovely line of romantic clothing and accessories. She is an incredible seamstress as you can see below. Some of the pieces in her new line will include blouses, purses, french style cuffs and much more!

Kim will be celebrating her Grand Opening on the 15th with a fabulous giveaway! An original Marie Antoinette style french cuff will be given away so be sure to stop in and visit her site! All you have to do is leave a comment on her blog. Also, for all you bloggers out there, if you add the giveaway banner to your blog, you will receive a $10.00 gift certificate to Paris Rags! Feel free to grab the giveaway banner at the top of this post and let Kim know that you will be posting it on your blog! I hope everyone visits Kim at http://www.parisrags.com/ and http://www.parisrags.blogspot.com/. Her clothing treasures are sure to become extra special pieces in your wardrobe! ~Stacy~

Wasn't That Party Fun!

I can't tell you how much I enjoyed Joy's (Cupid's Charm) Beautiful Blogging Party on May 1st! There were so many beautiful blogs to visit and this coming week I am still going to be visiting many of them on the list. I tried to make the rounds to each and every blog on the "party list" and I think I made it to them all, but this coming week I really want to spend some time getting to know all of the participants. There were so many blogs to visit that it was really hard to delve into each and every one with the depth that I would have liked to. I want to thank you all for the overwhelming response to my blog and for all of your lovely comments. I know that I made new friends along the way!

I'm sure that I speak for everyone involved when I say a heartfelt thank you to Joy for making this such a special event and for bringing so many inspirational women together! ~Stacy~

Welcome To The Party!!!

Hello and a very special welcome to you today! I'm so glad you stopped by! I'm just delighted to be participating in the Beautiful Blogging Party hosted by Joy of Cupid's Charm. About 80 bloggers are participating in this fun event so be sure to visit Joy's blog at http://cupidscharm.blogspot.com/. You will be able to access all of the Beautiful Blogging Party participants blogs and get inspirational creative ideas about the addictive art of blogging and meet lots of wonderful new gals as well!

I have been blogging now for about four years and while I have not completely delved into it with the intensity that some of you bloggers out there have, I enjoy it immensely! From the moment I started my blog, I had the idea firmly planted in my mind that I wanted blogging to be something that I totally enjoy doing and not something that I feel like I have to do. There is nothing worse than feeling like you "have" to post something just because you haven't done so in awhile. Chances are if you have nothing to say or share, you probably shouldn't make something up just for the sake of posting. So I post when I want and when I can and resign myself to the fact that when I do post, hopefully it will be something that everyone will enjoy! A few reasons I enjoy blogging are....

to share something pretty...

to showcase cute projects using salvaged treasures...

to share home decorating with other romantics...

to feature a pretty find and so much more!

For me, blogging is all about expressing yourself and sharing your creative ideas, thoughts and inspiration with others. I love visiting blogland and seeing what all of you are doing from day to day. There is so much enthusiam everywhere! Whether it is seeing how salvaged treasures are being turned into heirlooms or how a pretty charm necklace is made, the passion and creativity of like-minded romantics the country over is amazing! Meeting new people and making new friendships is also another reason why I love blogging so much! When you blog, you have a whole network of best friends sharing with you, supporting you and rooting for you in your corner and vice versa. There is nothing better than the friendship of kindred spirits ~ you know, the kind of person who really "gets you"! That is what blogging is all about!

A nice little bit of icing on the cake for me is that I am absolutely thrilled to be featured in the Summer 2009 issue of Artful Blogging Magazine. What a nice treat and a real honor to be included in such a wonderful, creative magazine with so many wonderful women. Thank you Artful Blogging!

So drop me a comment or an email and let's get to know each other! I can't wait to meet you! ~Stacy~ xo