happy belated 4th of july

sorry for the break in the action but i have been away on a fourth of july vaca!!!

pack up the flea mobile aka the silver flea (pet names my hubby has for my car)

for a fabulous trip to the cottage with the fam!!!

this is a painting of the cottage that i had made when i was younger

i think my rendering was pretty accurate

god bless america!! aren't these great! i picked them up at the springfield flea market. they were cigar box liners. i thought the colors were great and loved the subject matter... so i bought the whole lot.

my family & i always celebrate the forth of july at our little cottage in western new york where my father grew up. (now this isn't the house my father grew up in...that was up the road & was slightly larger and was some what insulated)


but never fear garage sale girly was still on the case...on the morning of the 4th we all attended the famous dart field flea market. don't know if you can see the helicopter parked at the end of the row...it was pretty packed!


searching for treasures...i even caught my mom getting into the action

haha! don't you love this little cowboy? if you press his belt he drops his drawers. (i know i totally should have bought it) you never know what you will find!

i picked up this little dairy box. i was told by a few of my family members the these little boxes sat outside your front door for your milk man to put the milk delivery into...hmmmmm

i thought it would make a really cool storage box in my living room!

i found this really great mirror w/ shelf


ohhhh...and i also picked up this awesome selection of holiday greeting cards

please forgive me if i romanticise the cottage & the lake but come on it really is BEAUTIFUL!!!

a few fireworks and a great bonfire to celebrate the 4th

and don't forget to light the flares all around the lake at 10

NO CHEATING!

this little number is something i framed up for the cottage. it is an illustration and poem from a children's book about the 4th that i felt suited our shabby chic vintage decor

"pride of place"

talk about retaining original details...how about these fuse boxes

now here is a picture of my dream kitchen shiny red ikea cabinets (i think they have a bit of a vintage vibe)...i might have been slightly inspired by the white metal cabinets at the cottage

they might not be shiny but they are vintage cool!


WALLPAPER!!!!!


yes it looks a little rough around the edges (just like the cottage) but this claw foot tub keeps us clean.

i love the door knob to the bathroom...a little bit of bling. the chic part of shabby

speaking of bling...my lil sister got engaged while we were up at the lake.

...i wonder if her fiance was inspired by the door knob at the cottage when he purchased the ring for her

i am one of the luckiest people in the world because i get to go there and spend time with my family...

i miss it already

and my mom making me breakfast

i know. i am spoiled