Hospitality, Friendship, Encouragement

Monday, January 18, 2010

I Had An Idea For Decorating My Shelf...

Welcome those of you visiting from





Mantle Party Every Friday
and
The Inspired Room!

Enjoy your visit and come by anytime!



I have this large shelf that hangs on a vast wall space over the stairway that leads to the basement. My husband built it for me years ago. This wall is in our kitchen and since our kitchen and living room are open to each other - well, it is a focal point in our living space. It had been
basically the same until this past Christmas when I took everything off of it and put my Nativity set on it. I added hay, borrowed from our horses, and those little mini lights on a brown cord. It was very simple but lovely.

I really wanted to do something different now that I have put my Nativity away for the year. But what to do? I got some new pieces of white pottery for Christmas - a lovely pitcher and a soup tureen. I use my things in my every day life, so I wanted them to be accessible. They are pretty things and I like seeing them. Solution? Put them on my shelf! I gathered all the white pottery that would work on a shelf, and then since I don't have that many, I decided to add red accents. Oh, and then I wanted to put my birdcage back on the shelf - problem was it was a pale green color. Solution? Spray paint it black! Then Emily decided to do a heart fraktur to add for Valentine's Day and voila! I like it.

I am loving the birdcage now that it is black!

The big white pitcher is a gift from Emily and the soup tureen from my mom and dad for Christmas, and the little pitchers are from Goodwill - one is a Wedgwood and the other is Johnson Brothers.

The small red transferware plates are Old British Castles from Johnson Brothers that I found at Marshall's. The larger plate is the same pattern, but it is part of the dinnerware Emily is collecting in her hope chest. She is graciously allowing me to use it!

The tealight holder is a gift from Melissa, the redwork stitchery is a gift from my talented sister in law Miss Paula and the heart fraktur from my sweet Emily. The little white teapot and cup is a one serving tea set that had been my grandmother's.


I needed to run some errands on Saturday as well as work on my shelf, so we made a stop by the Goodwill store, to look for more white pottery.

I found this fun metal wall hanging. I love tea and red so it is a perfect addition to my kitchen. I hung it right above the counter space where I keep my teas! It was priced at .97 cents!

This sweet little white ironstone pitcher was .97 cents, as well! We always check out the furniture area...you never know when you will find a nice bookcase or table etc...guess what we found? A fun and funky little children's chair! It is funky simply because of the fabric - it is colonial scenes and has pops of orange and red! We use red alot as an accent color in our house so we thought it was a perfect fit! I ran into a friend will looking at it. She owns a shop in our area called Lulu and Tutz's and I love to go in there - pretty and vintage style. I showed her the chair and she loved it too - she suggested some red polka dot pillows to accent it! Guess how much it cost? $10!

This chair is in perfect condition. It almost looks unused! The kids all love it - Emily wants it really bad - she keep offering to buy it from me!

We have our living room arranged for conversation! This little chair is the perfect addition!

This little guy thinks it is great! With all the kids in our family and those that are often here with their families, I think it is about time that we had a chair that is just their size! And fun too! What do you think?

22 comments:

  1. I love your decorating style! The shelf looks so nice, and I really like the red and white colors.

    And I love that your daughter has a hope chest! You rarely (ok *I* rarely) hear about those anymore and it's so nice!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Mrs. Rabe I continue to be amazed at the similar tastes and values we have! I LOVE red and use it as an accent in my kitchen too! And you already know I love tea, tea cups and tea pots! I think your shelf is so lovely and the collection of things on it fully represents the things and people you love so dearly! Plus, the chair you found is such a great idea and so colorful! Beautifully done!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. oh..I just love what you did with your shelf...you pulled things together, beautifully...real *eye candy*...love when we women do all this fun stuff...and visiting others like you is a real treat..
    Deby

    ReplyDelete
  4. Fun stuff!

    Spray paint and a can of stain are a decorator's best friends. Quick change can go so far!

    Love the little chair and that Rachel wants to buy it and own it herself.

    Cute!

    By the way...I am celebrating a certain political event! How awesome this day is in history!

    Becky K.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Love the shelf. I especially like the heart picture that Emily did, and the picture of the lady knitting.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I love all of the items on your shelf. The cage looks great in black, and the black, white and red look wonderful together. You should hook this post to Beth's Mantel Friday party. She doesn't require that it be a mantle, a shelf is fine. I think everyone would love it.
    You can find the link on the right side of my blog, up near the top.
    Blessings,
    Marcia

    ReplyDelete
  7. I love your shelf! It is decorated with so many wonderful things...such pretty colors! You have done a wonderful job!

    Barb ♥

    ReplyDelete
  8. Looking good...LOVE the WHITE tureen and RED transfer plates! Hope you have a FUN weekend!

    Blessings,
    Linda

    ReplyDelete
  9. Your shelf looks fantastic.
    My favorite color combo..red and white!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Your shelf looks fantastic! Thanks so much for linking up to the party so we can all enjoy it. I'd love it if you linked back to the party so others visiting can join in the fun.

    ReplyDelete
  11. The shelf totally works! And the black bird cage totally pops!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hello my friend...

    Well this is my very first visit to your delightful blog...I'm coming over from the mantel party! I'm so glad to have found you...I love your style!!! I think we must have very similar tastes...especially after seeing your fabulous red and white shelf! My dining room is red and I collect white ironstone and red transferware so seeing your beautifully decorated shelf was right up my alley! Hehe! What a beautiful vignette...of course I love the red and white! Love, love, LOVE your pretty white ironstone pitchers and new soup tureen!!! And...I love the red transferware plates...ahhh!!! Love your birdcage too...it certainly shows as the focal point in this vignette!!! Just beautiful, my friend!!! Ohh...and what a darling little chair you found...I love the fabric!!! Love, love, LOVE these little unique pieces...I bet it does make a lovely addition to your living room!!!

    Well my friend, I just wanted to let you know that I'm adding your delightful blog to my list of blog follows! I am looking forward to your upcoming posts and getting to know you! So very nice to meet you!!! And...thank you so much for sharing your beautiful shelf and fabulous vignette with us!!!

    Warmest winter wishes,
    Chari @Happy To Design

    ReplyDelete
  13. I love your shelf with all the white and red accents. Just beautiful!

    Blessings, Grace

    ReplyDelete
  14. Oh love your shelf and the new things you put on it. You have a really nice collection. Cool you could add the red stuff for the season. BTW your chair looks like mine. Well not the fabric but the chair itself. Is it baker? Mine was custom made about 17 years ago and is ready for a recover job. My cushions are filled with down. Are yours? I am about ready to attempt recovering it. I have a couple of easier chairs to practise on.
    I loved my visit and I am going to stay awhile and listen to your music while I clean my office area!
    Thanks for sharing and Have a Blessed Day,
    Sherry

    ReplyDelete
  15. Your shelf looks great! Isn't it amazing how changing the color of something can make it look so fresh in our eyes! I've done it myself and just fall in love with my stuff again.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I am loving your shelf! The vignette is so cute for Valentines day. I love what you did with your bird cage. I can't tell you how much I have wanted to collect those Johnson Bros. dishes and have never come across them!! Lucky you!!

    I love the childrens chair. They look like they are SO happy with it!! :-)

    xoxo
    Janie

    ReplyDelete
  17. Great idea!! The red is gorgeous!!

    You can see my mantel here...
    http://bethouaknight.blogspot.com/2010/01/pop-of-color.html

    ReplyDelete
  18. Red and white together, always a favorite combination. And I spotted some transferware too, and a birdcage! You have got everything I love up there!

    ReplyDelete
  19. The chair looks even cuter with your little guys lounging in it!!! Thanks for the "shout out"...you should know our doors closed in Aug....unfortunately, the Creamery needed our space for a business expansion, so we were OUT! I'm still trying to figure out what next. Would love a new location in the future..but the timing/economy is not on my side! So, we wait...you can keep updated on our blog! Have a great week over there!

    ReplyDelete

Welcome to Creekside Cottage - a place of Hospitality, Friendship and Encouragement!

Things I Like

  Brenda from It's A Beautiful Life blog did a post with this title and I enjoyed her list so I thought I'd do something similar. He...