Open House Party



    Welcome to the Open House party! 

    Go to the bottom of this post to join the party.  Today we are touring the beautiful home of Debbie @ Confessions Of A Plate Addict.

    Debbie's blog was one of the first ones I found when I started blogging.  How could I not fall in love with a blog that featured Quimper, blue and white and fabulous French design?  It is no coincidence that Debbie loves decorating with France in mind.  She is a retired French teacher and moved to France until the birth of her first grandson brought her home.

    Debbie and her ten year old grandson just recently returned from a trip to France.  Check out her blog to see all the wonderful pictures of Paris.

    Enjoy the tour of this lovely home.












    .  You must drop by and see more of this wonderful home and Debbie's amazing  Quimper collection.
    Thanks Debbie for opening up your home for our tour.


    On to the party.






     
    Thanks for visiting
    xo,
    Sherry

New (old) French Vanity



    Hi everyone!  I hope you are having a great week.

    Last Saturday Steve and I drove four hours round trip for me to bid on a wonderful French vanity. I saw this vanity Thursday evening in an email I receive weekly from a local auction. This particular auction was being held in a very rural part of Virginia and they were selling lots of farm equipment and tools from an estate. 

    The home was a lovely antebellum style built in 1880 and had the most gorgeous pine floors and woodwork.  There was little furniture left to be auctioned since the owner had moved to Virginia Beach after her husband passed away three years ago.  

    That was okay with me because I had my eye on one piece... one piece only!   I was determined that this fabulous antique French vanity was meant to be mine. I forewarned my husband that he may want to walk away when the vanity came up for auction because I was determined not to leave without it at any cost!


    You see, I have wanted a vanity for several years but never found one that I fell in love with...until last week. Luckily, I have a wonderful husband that knows when I set my mind to something it very rarely changes and didn't even blink when I said I wanted to drive four hours to attend an auction.  

    The first hour and a half they auctioned off artwork, decorative items and some antique furniture. I was hoping that not many antique dealers would drive the distance for the auction. There were quite a few people but many of them appeared to be farmers there to bid on the equipment which was exactly what I had hoped for.  The furniture was going so cheap!  One beautiful French armoire went for $50, a gorgeous brass bed sold for $80 and a huge antique bookcase went for $40. 

    Finally the vanity came up for bids and I only had one person bidding against me.  I was able to buy this beautiful piece for.....




    $65.00  Yippee!

    She will be getting a new paint job because the finish is not in the best condition.  The light spot on the top is actually a shadow.  I already have the plastic down and the weights are holding it in place.  I knew those hand weights would come in handy for something!  They sure haven't been used around here for exercise.

    We left as soon as I won the vanity. We stopped for lunch then hit a couple of antique malls in the area before heading home.

    You may remember our bed.

    See the caning and the curves?  I think the vanity will be perfect in our bedroom.  So what is your favorite auction purchase?

    On another note.

    I was recently introduced to a great new hand sanitizer.  Prefense sanitizes skin and nails on contact and offers protection from germs for up to 10 hand washings. I have very dry skin and I love that Prefense has no alcohol to dry out my hands further. The product actually contains a silica complex of organic botanicals to prevent drying and redness.  I must say my hands felt very smooth for hours after using Prefense.  It seems every time we fly or go on an extended trip I catch some type of bug.  I will definitely be taking this product with me on our upcoming trip.

    The Open House party will be up and ready for you to link to Wednesday evening.  See you there.
    xo,
    Sherry

    I am partying this week with:
    Savvy Southern Style 
    Blue Creek Home 
    Common Ground 
    French Country Cottage 
    At The Picket Fence 
    Coastal Charm 





    Disclosure:  I was given a bottle of Prefense for my personal use and  to write a product review.  I received no monetary compensation and the review is based solely on my honest opinion of the product. 

What A Party and Winners!


    Thank you to everyone that participated in  the Blog Party.  What a turnout with 1166 links!

    I am surprised we didn't crash Linky's system.



    I am always in awe of the talent and creativity I see from other bloggers.  I loved seeing all your post and thank you for inspiring me every single day.

    The giveaway winners have been chosen and you can find the complete list at

    My giveaway was for a beautiful French script pillow slip donated by  Gathered Comforts.  I hope you will visit these two very talented ladies and their  Etsy shop.


    The winner of the pillow slip is one of the sweetest ladies in blogland. 

    Congrats to Chari at Happy To Design !

     Chari, please email me your address and we will get the pillow slip in the mail.

    A very  BIG THANK YOU to Vanessa and Heather of  At The Picket Fence  for all the work they put into the party that made it such a huge success.  

    The Open House party is back on schedule and it will ready for you to link up starting Wednesday Evening.
    I hope to see you there.


    xoxo,
    Sherry

Summer Entertaining Blog Party

    12 Blogs
    6 Days
    1 HUGE party!

     
    Hi everyone and welcome to the Summer Block Blog Party sponsored by At The Picket Fence! The link to join the party is at the bottom of this post. I look forward to seeing your Summer entertaining ideas.


    I had planned to have my party on the deck today but with the temperature at 94 degrees I thought we would all be more comfortable inside.  I have the air conditioner turned down low, that's Jimmy Buffet playing in the background and the food is almost ready. 

    I found these cute lobster place mats a couple of years ago in Destin, Fl and I thought they would be great to use today. 

    I didn't have lobster themed napkins so I  painted my own with a fabric pen. I also made the little place cards and added them to glass ball holders that remind me of fishing floats. 


    Would you like a glass of lemonade?

    I'll be having a Virgin Mary if you would like to join me.

    For those of you that like beer we have some chilling in the bucket.





     Herman (the lobster) has been through a lot with us...including surviving two hurricanes!  I couldn't leave him at the beach when we moved so now he resides in my pantry.  Even though I don't have the heart to cook Herman (plus he would be a little rubbery)  I have made something yummy for you.

    Shrimp Salad - perfect dinner for those hot days of Summer.
    The only thing better would be homemade lemon ice cream.

    I'll be back later with recipes.

    Now,  Lets get this party started!
    Here's how it works.

    Link up your Summer Entertaining post(s) below and your links will appear on all twelve blogs that are hosting the party as their posts go public! That means your posts will appear simultaneously on all of our blogs once you have linked them up here and will be there throughout the party! You are welcome to share  as many posts as you like related to Summer Entertaining below.   



    There are 13 Giveaways going on with the Blog Party. Winners will be selected from all those that link to the party.  Please join the ladies above to participate in their parties and enter their giveaways. 

     My GIVEAWAY is for this fabulous French Script pillow donated by Gathered Comforts.  I hope you will visit their Etsy shop to see all the wonderful pillows they have for sale.


    Thank you to all the sponsors that donated items for the party.





    Link up below any post, past or present, related to Summer Entertaining

    Be sure to link back to your original post and not just your url (main blog address)

    Please post the Blogger Block Party button (code located above and in sidebar) in your post so others can join in in the fun! (Mandatory).

    We love it when you party with our other guests! Please take a moment and visit some of the other posts and leave some comment love! This is what makes a party so much fun!

    We'd love it if you'd share the Blogger Block Party on your Facebook Pages and Twitter (use #BloggerBlockParty in your tweet) (Not mandatory but we'd appreciate it!)

    That's it...so get to linking up and partying with us at the Blogger Block Party!!

    Go all the way to the bottom of the post to link up.



    xo,
    Sherry

Decorating With Seashells


    When Summer approaches I love to pull out my shell collection and start decorating.  I found this metal bucket at a garage sale for $1.00 and knew immediately what I would use it for.  The bucket had a
    shiny white finish and a few scratches so I gave it a coat of leftover white paint. On Microsoft Word I found a font I liked and printed out the word Seashells and then copied it to the bucket using carbon paper. The shell stencil is one I have had for years.

    Since I already had all the paint and supplies this quick and easy project cost me just $1.00!



    The shell canvas was created for me by Easy Canvas Prints  from a free graphic
    found at the Graphics Fairy.


    Of course I had to add a couple more pictures of seashells and my vintage glass fishing floats.



    Most of my shells have been bought at garage sales, junk shops or just picked up for free at the beach.  The shell above was my latest garage sale purchase at fifty cents and the glass floats were $1.00 each.

    I hope to see you back here for the Summer Blog Party starting Wednesday evening.  I will be hosting Summer Entertaining so get those tablescapes, recipes and fun entertaining ideas ready to link up.

    There will also be a giveaway for this fabulous French Script Pillow donated by Gathered Comforts.


    Don't forget to join the other ladies this week for some great Summer ideas and giveaways and please stop by At The Picket Fence  and thank Vanessa and Heather for all their hard work puttng this party together. 


    I'll be partying this week with all the ladies above.

    xoxo,
    Sherry



Killer Stuff

    Killer Stuff And Tons Of Money
    Seeking History and Hidden Gems in Flea-Market America

    
    Recently I was asked by TLC Books Tours to participate in a virtual tour and review the book Killer Stuff and Tons Of Money.  Growing up in the antique business, and being a dealer myself,  this book was right up my alley.



    The author, Maureen Stanton, shadows Curt Avery who is a self-taught  historian and antique dealer,  as he travels to auctions and flea markets seeking the next treasure.  Curt shares his love of the American past and educates the readers on purchasing antiques and collectibles.  Many times while reading the book his observations had me laughing and so many of the funny stories he tells I could easily relate too.

    I loved this book and I will be passing it on to my dad who taught me so much about the antique business.   It is the perfect Summer read for those of you that love antiquing, flea markets or collecting.

    Thanks for visiting and have a great weekend.

    xo,
    Sherry

A Win And A Party


    I was the lucky winner of  Carolina Country Living  recent giveaway.  If you are not familiar with Erin's blog you are missing out.  Not only is she one of the sweetest ladies but also a great DIY gal. 

    Here are my wins.


    A beautiful book by Cabbages and Roses, cute cherry bag,  little bird , blue and white transferware saucer and a divine candle that she made.  Thank you so much Erin...I love all my new goodies!

    I goofed!
    The  Open House  party yesterday featured the fabulous home of Richard of  My Old Historic House.  I told you his home is featured in the July issue of Victorian Homes when it actually is in the June issue and is on the stands now. 

    There is still plenty of time to join this weeks  Open House  party.  I hope to see you there.
    xo,
    Sherry

Open House Party


    Hi everyone and welcome to another Open House party!  You will find the link to join the party at the bottom of this post.

    Today I have a special treat for you antique lovers and collectors.  Richard at My Old Historic House  has renovated the gorgeous 1845 historic Elgin/Cottrell home to it's original Victorian splendour.  When Richard purchased the home in 2006 it was not even livable but he transformed it into a beautiful home for himself and Ms. Sissy Dog.  Richard also opens the home for tours and rents it for special occasions.

    Richard is an antique dealer and has some of the most amazing collections you will ever see and he is extremely knowledgeable about each and every piece.  His collection of Meissen, Dresden and Staffordshire make my heart beat faster.  His collection of Staffordshire dogs...oh my!

    This historic home was featured in the July, 2011 issue of Victorian Homes magazine.  So if you want to see more of this stunning home you can visit  My Old Historic House or pickup a copy of the magazine.

    Enjoy the Tour.


















    Can't you see why Victorian Homes did a twelve page spread on this beautiful home?  Richard, thank you for allowing us into your wonderful home!  If you ever decide to sell the Staffordshire Dogs I get first dibs.
    (I can see my husband sweating right now)

    On to the party.





     
     
     
    Thanks for joining the party!  Next weeks party will be replaced with .. 
     

    I am hosting "Summer Entertaining" on 6/23/11 so get your tablescapes, recipes and any entertaining  ideas ready to link up.  You can get more info about the week long blog party at At The Picket Fence.  I will also be having a giveaway during the party for this wonderful French Script pillow graciously donated by 
    Gathered Comforts.  
     

    Hope to see you there!
    xo,
    Sherry

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