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"Where better to care for the soul than in the details of our daily lives?....The soul has an absolute, unforgiving need for regular excursions into enchantment. It requires them like the body needs food and the mind needs thought... An enchanted world is one that speaks to the soul, to the mysterious depths of the heart and imagination where we find value, love and union with the world around us. As mystics of many religions have taught, that sense of rapturous union can give a sense of fulfillment that makes life purposeful and vibrant." ~ Thomas Moore.

Monday, December 30, 2013

Being Highly Sensitive and Shabby Thrift Finds

Hello Ladies,


Recently I spoke a tiny little bit about being a HSP from an article by Monica of The White Bench.
and her latest post speaks about the word ''moving'' and what it has meant to her and how much it has affected her life. I am suspecting I need to get things moving here too. I think I need to move away, to a place that is not drowning in man made technologies and invisible energy and microwaves...these make me literally sick. They make alot of people sick, only most people are not aware of it and many simply don't want to know it. They prefer their cell phones, no matter the cost to themselves or to others. I happen to be ultra highly sensitive I just found out, and causes me to live with chronic pain and I need to get away if I'm to live without pain. To where?

Dont' want to think anymore about it.


So here I will make a post about the thrill of finding things you love but cannot afford, in thrift stores, and when this happens in more than one store! on the same day lol....its a good day! lol

I have no intentions of buying anything more for this house as I am done for the year here, I have everything I need and no space to store extras. But I am looking for a silver candelabra for a table like the one I missed in the thrift store one day because I didn't have enough $ on me, but it was beautiful and I still look from time to time.
I thought to go look in the local thrift store which is literally 4 minutes away and see if they have one, this store is huge. They did not have a silver candelabra but I did find lots of shabby chic type items all over the store! I did not get them I don't have room here, but there was lots of things for a Shabby Chic style, including one lovely palest pink wooden carved candle holder that kinda hurt to leave it there, but no room.
They had so many things that day I could have outfitted an entire home with shabby things in that one day!
If I had a store I'd be in that thrift store every morning for gems to resell.
But I did pick up a tray for the housemate and found a nice birthday gift for him too for April! and I don't have to sweat over it when the time comes because he is difficult to please.

They also had alot of blue and whites which I love too.....I only got one pot.











Then I stopped over at the Goodwill to drop off some items and some bags and paper they use to wrap things, and when I turned around I saw the prettiest dishes. I'd been looking for some pretty dishes for the past year but they never have any so I gave it up. But today they had at least 2 full sets in this one store. I bought 2 plates of each 50 cents each and then I looked down and saw beautiful bowls and more hand painted plates....oh my god! the prices were all cheap enough and so I bought them.
These pics do not do them justice really, and I didn't take pics of them all since I had to do it outside where the light was brighter to get the true colors, and the mosquitoes were eating me alive.... but here are some....this one is my favorite, the pink is beautiful and it has a pearl finish.










 



 





 Another beauty















these are delicately pretty, I bought 2 of each of the dinner size and 2 smaller ones








these have the perfect aqua blue color which is hard to see in here, but I love it, I got 2 large and 2 small.








another beauty





Wow, what nice things to find in 2 stores!.....I felt lucky, so I decided to drive to another thrift store for plates, I still had a few dollars.

I walked in and my eyes landed on a pure white soft cotton blouse with lace trim and pearl buttons in my size....I usually don't buy clothes but I couldn't leave this there. I wash linens and rinse them in salted water to remove the energies I still sense and feel from previous owners. I learned to do this from difficult experience. I wash everything from thrift stores with sea salt or smudge them with sage.
And as I was online waiting I looked around and thought why don't I just check the bedding for the Shabby Chic linens I have never found yet. I didn't expect anything but as I walked my eyes saw fabric with roses and I loved it, I thought hummm this looks very shabby chic, and dont you know? the label said Simply Shabby Chic! omg! I have never found SSC anything no matter how long I've been looking and after seeing so many shabby items earlier now I find some linens. I most certainly was lucky that day!!
And right next to this SSC tablecloth it turns out to be, in a pattern very very close the RoseBlossum pattern I was particularly in love with ! how cool is that? ..... I find another beautiful rose pattern in blues and it too looks quite SSC, and I picked it up and there is the label SSC.....







I buy them quick, and here I took a picture of them still in the bag and the light is bad, sorry, but there it is.














and next to that yet another one, not SSC but one can not tell the difference really.....and this one is a queen size, my size, bed skirt....... I prefer to use it as a tablecloth base with a plain flax linen on top.































 Here is the round on the table. I haven't had floral prints in so many years, but I like it alot. This pattern is Rose Blush and many are sold on ebay. The pattern I love alot is RoseBlossom but its a Rachel Ashwell couture item. $$$$
 






It was a great thrift day, even getting John a birthday present.

But  lol  I wondered what Target actually had in Simply Shabby chic since I hadn't been in there in a year and I was close by so I decided to just go in and look. Just look.
I went in straight to the linen dept to see what they had.
:D:D:D

But the duvet set.....the one I wanted was there, The Essex with the stripes on the reverse side. There was only one in my size, and was so close again to that pattern of rose I loved....and , and......well.....I hid it behind some sheet sets, hoping it would be there when I could get it.
I really needed a sheet set as I don't own a single one, I use only a flat sheet for a fitted and a comforter, so I did need a sheet set. I saw the prettiest sets ever. I stared at them, and stared......I sighed alot, walked away, then walked back....was I really that in love? Yes. My mind scrambling for what to do.
I had some ''forbidden'' cash in my bag, for emergencies only, strictly speaking, and well, with the fever I had in the moment with Gotta-Have-It-itis, this was an emergency of sorts. I picked up the sheet set I wanted and held it close......yes, definitely love, and definitely the cure for my current ''itis''.

I had a sheet set and a duvet set. I'm done! ''Run don't walk before you change your mind and go all sad again!''

I will not be buying anything for months now to make up for this....but my bedding feels soo sooo good.
The morning after I had washed them and dried them and put them all on my bed, I got up and opened the curtains the way I always do and when my eyes fell on the bed, this is what I saw....I promise I didn't touch anything as I abhor photo staging and I only move things like cords or crumbs for a picture, but it seems with SSC bedding you just cannot take a bad picture ! I loved my own bed and not someone else's.:D:D:D Thank you Rachel!

































I love Nature so much especially crystals......I light a candle in front of it so that it sparkles .....



















And then the next day
:D:D:D
yes, there's more....
my housemate offered to get a few of those things I told him about but mostly the candelabra I found for the fireplace because that fireplace is dark and vacant all year and I need to do something magical with it. I will take pics when I hook it up. He got one more blue and white little pot and a white metal sconce for my Garden Gate. Though there were so many nice things there, I just didn't need it.
But I always check for doilies and I saw this luscious soft sheer ivory colored dreaminess with slight ruffles on the edges and I touched it and it was the softest cotton ever and I scrambled to take it off the hanger and see what it was, curtain? tablecloth? and I saw a label....and don't you know??
yes....Simply Shabby Chic.....I couldn't believe it! I squealed and ran around the store looking for the housemate to show him this find which was not there the day before, and I was so excited and speaking in high tones but low voice so no one could think I found gold in the store and create a stampede....lol.....so I was a happy camper..... $7.99 and that day they were half price so for $4.00   :D:D:D
I put them up in the kitchen, they were 3 panels of soft sheer whites
I guess I had a really really good Shabby Chic Angel by my side finally, maybe my sad face looking at certain pictures, ok well not just looking, but staring.....oh ok oggling OK ? ! LOLOL....and not being able to get them some Shabby Angel helped me out quite nicely. I am ever so grateful.














but they're hanging in the kitchen. I didn't have curtains there I liked it open, but these are so sheer, its like having nothing, just some added softness and femininity 








the Blush Rose tablecloth.... and curtains

I added a crochet runner across the top I love their textures, crochets 
 


























and I think that's the end.....
thanks for visiting.




sharing this last post of this year with A Return to Loveliness

and with No Minimalist Here

and with The Charm of Home

and with My Romantic Home

and with Rooted In Thyme

and with Shabbilicious Friday

and with Lavender Garden Cottage Cottage Style Party



      

Monday, December 16, 2013

Lemon Snowdrop Cookies

Hello Ladies ....

*update: I found the link where I got this recipe from Yellow Bliss Road here

I just wanted to share that I made some ''cookies'' not because of anything in particular except that these were 5 ingredients and 15 minutes to make and they had cream cheese in it, so I HAD TO make them !
I'm not really a baker or flour product fanatic unless its croissants but these seemed too easy too pretty and I couldn't pass them up.

* I found the recipe blog hopping and don't remember where now, but these are popular Christmas cookies called Snowball Cookies. I never heard of them before but I'd seen them in pictures and thought they looked so very pretty! In Feminine Home Magazine, there is a picture of them in light pink and I really loved them and didn't know what they were and now I do, so I can make them in pale pink one day.

I imagine there are many ways to make this, like adding cinnamon....and I've seen them made with walnuts or other nuts, but the basic recipe that I used is:

One box of lemon cake mix
1/3 cup of oil
4 oz soft cream cheese
3 egg whites
1/2 cup powdered sugar and extra powdered sugar to dip the cookies into

Mix it well and then chill it for half an hour. It is a VERY STICKY DOUGH and I had a hard time with it. I had to flour my hands for each cookie but I learned that you can add 1/2 cup of flour or powdered sugar if it is too sticky and that should take care of it. I don't particularly like to get fussy with baking, but I do try recipes here and there. I once thought I could experiment with baking like I do with food and get really creative and do as I please.......Well that doesn't work in the world of baking and the precision of keeping to rules and recipes drives me nuts! And when things don't go smoothly like today even with a simple recipe I can't imagine how people love to bake, but this is something that is not my forte and that's ok lolol. Still they came out well. :D

After the dough is chilled, preheat oven to 350. I floured my hands and took about a tablespoon of dough and rolled it then roll it in the powdered sugar then place onto a parchment paper sheet. They were baked for 11 minutes, then as they are cooling I sifted more powdered sugar over them then added silver nonpareils in the center for extra prettiness. These are delicious and pretty. I may make them again.....if I have help....
After dusting them with the pretty white powder, I wondered how I could make them look even nicer and I had these things out....imagine a beautiful silver tray empty! but there it was, then the white plates, and put them together...I lit the candles and it looked really pretty! I love the silver candy so I put out lots for me :D







































Then I piled them up in the cloche. I'm going to pack some now for my neighbor. They will be happy. :D





 




















 











 John just came home and saw them and thought I bought them. lol....nope, I made them. He likes them and asked if I can made some more :D:D:D....yes, but not without help next time.

enjoy and happy eating!


sharing this post with Rooted In Thyme

and with FRENCH COUNTRY COTTAGE

and with My Romantic Home