Pink Cups and Boiled Lollies

Today I decided to make a little arrangement on my kitchen counter. My Aunt had given me this pretty little cake plate for Christmas- Mr FH thought it was a doll's plate!! I sat a few pretty pink bits and pieces on a cake stand, added a sugar heart and a little pink bag with a bottle of boiled lollies in it (this was a wedding favour but way too pretty to eat!). Simple, quick and easy - my type of arrangement.

Suzy

I'm joining TabletopTuesday@AStrollThrusLife
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TeaCupTuesday@ArtfulAffirmations
PinkSaturday@HowSweettheSound
MosaicMonday@LittleRedHouse

Book Makeover

Wow, I have been busy!!! The weather has been just so hot here it is unbelievable. I think we have had about 10 days of over 34o temperatures - I think that is over the 100 mark for those not in Australia! Too hot anyway, so I've had to resort to a little fiddling in my craft room with the airconditioner on full!

I have been culling out old decorating books and have been ripping out pages of pictures and ideas I like and just ended up with a stack of loose papers when I saw Brenda's (CozyLittleCottage) wonderful inspiration books so I thought I'd have a try.

I started off with a book just like this but with a purple cover so that really set the colour scheme for me.

At $1.95 each I thought these books were great value. I tried (really I did!) to use all my stock paper and letters but I may have bought just one packet of letters.

This is my book with my initials on the front. When DNo 1 and SNo1's girlfriend saw this they just loved it so I have made them one each also one for DNo 2! I'm not sure which one to give each of them so I think I might wrap them then let them choose.

The girls are all keen cooks so I thought they could use them to paste in recipes they have collected. Me, I'm past getting excited about cooking so ideas for the farm house and the beach house will fill mine.

The green covered book I am going to cover ready for my photography class which I hope starts this week.

Happy Monday,

Suzy

PS I still have my pile of loose pages to paste in!!

I'm joining MetamorphosisMonday@BetweenNapsonthePorch

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AFewofmyFavoriteThings@BargainHuntingandChattingwithLaurie

Birthday Flowers

I had a birthday last week and SNo1 and his gorgeous girlfriend gave me these beautiful flowers. They quite often buy flowers for me which I think is just beautiful. The gorgeous perfume bottles were a present from my mum - I think they will look lovely on the bathroom bench at the beach house. This is probably the start of another collection!

Aren't these buds just beautiful....

I was supposed to be starting my photography course tomorrow night but it has been posponed until next Wednesday night so that is very disappointing. I'll just have to keep practicing for another week!

Suzy

I'm joining OutdoorWednesday@ASouthernDaydreamer

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Redecorating at the gift shop.

I've been having fun redecorating at my sister's gift shop. She is away at a gift fair in Sydney buying stock so I have been busy changing all the displays at the shop. It is just so much fun - not like work at all!

I love this green table. My dear old dad made that little picket fence for me many years ago and it sits in front of the fireplace in my loungeroom. I love taking props in with me when I go to work there - it just adds a different look with some of the stock that has been there for a while.

Luscious green and cream. We  have some new china in store as well. It is that gorgeous beige and white striped  soup mug and lots of other cookware to match. It is made by Robert Gordon. Very different to the Robert Gordon china I have which you can see here.

Gorgeous cookboooks are always a favourite.

Can't you just imagine having lunch at this wonderful table on the cover of this cookbook. It would be just fabulous.

Pitchers in various sizes look cute hanging from the picket fence.

Another table I changed was this pretty red and white one. I have red and white in my beach house and it just looks so fresh.

The old cupboard in the background was one I painted many years ago. I think it could do with a facelift and a change of colour soon. Finding time is the hard part!!

Gorgeous teapots and milk jugs and creamers to match!

 

This lovely salad bowl is lined with bamboo. I couldn't help myself so I bought one of these!! I have just noticed the teatowel hanging on the chair with the rooster standing on it's head. Oops, sorry!

Suzy

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                                                        TeaTimeTuesday@RoseChintzCottage

                                                           TeaCupTuesday@ArtfulAffirmations

Copy Cat Challenge

Today I'm taking part in a copy cat challenge. Susan@BetweenNapsonthe Porch doesn't know but I have challenged myself to set a table like hers from last week. I can see some similarities but lets face it, none of us can do a table like Susan!!

I don't have a beautiful wicker table like Susan but I covered a small table with this lovely old white cotton tablecloth. I found it in our old farmhouse a couple of years ago and it took me days of soaking to get it nice and white. My intention was to make some cookies to place on the plates but time was limited so I had these red love heart chocolates ready for Valentine's Day so I used them instead.  My red stemware isn't quite like Susans but I still love it. My red and white transferware has come from various junk shop excursions.  To make my 'icecream sundae' like Susan I just filled a milkshake glass with Jaffas and topped them with some scrunched up tissue paper and a straw.

Hope you like my red and white copy cat table!!

Suzy

I'm joining Susan@BetweenNapsonthePorch

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HomeSweetHome@TheCharmofHome

Happy Valentine's Day!

We don't celebrate Valentine's Day so much here at the farm house. I guess we are a little old to get right into the swing of things but Mr FH did pick me a little flower from the garden this morning and put it in a vase in the kitchen for me. If I use my imagination I guess I could say it looks just like these little beauties (I do have a very good imagination!). Aren't they just so pretty?

I thought you might like to join me for a cup of tea as it's time to be part of the weekly tea parties. Would you like Earl Grey?

Maybe white tea or a refreshing cup of green tea?

The leaf inside the teacup predicts a beautiful day.......what a lovely way to start the day. 

If you would rather a cup of Chai Tea I have that as well.

I'm sure I could tempt you with a piece of homemade apple pie - can't you just smell it baking in the oven.

When I turned over the calendar at the start of February I just fell in love with this gorgeous picture. So I thought I would share it with you all.

Happy Tea Tuesday,

Suzy

I'm joining TableTop Tuesday@AStrollThruLife

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Romance on the Porch

I had a little bit of spare time yesterday so decided to put together a table for Valentine's Day. Even though Valentine's is usually red I had picked up this pretty bunch of pink roses from the supermarket on Saturday for $5 so pink it was going to be!! I had been cleaning the windows in the sunroom so thought the table might look nice in front of the window between the chairs. Please ignore the dry garden you can see in the background but that's what happens when there is no water to spare!! So happy it rained last week! 

 

I once again was drawn to add green to my pink table. These little boxes hold chocolates - just right for Valentine's Day!

A small candle in a little urn takes centre stage - the table is small so there was no room for a large centrepiece.

I had bought these gorgeous napkin rings at Freedom (a homeware store here in Australia) while I was on holidays. They have a really big ring on them so I had to use a pink napkin inside the white one.

I used these cute depression glass bowls to serve the fruit in. These salad plates are from my large selection of pink floral china. I have two of this particular pattern.

Pink roses are my favourite. They have a few little 'imperfections' on their petals but hey don't we all???

A pretty pink box for this place setting. These boxes were favours from a wedding quite a few years ago and I just can't bring myself to throw them out.

 

This is my favourite pink bubbly!!! I love it!!! I tried using some of my old silver items without cleaning them and I'm not sure if that's the way I can go - I do love nice sparkling silverware!

A bird's eye view!! I used a couple of pieces of pale pink chiffon as tablecloths. I love the softness of the chiffon.

I seem to have a bit of reflection here on these plates but hopefully that will soon be a thing of the past as today I enrolled in a digital phoptgraphy course! I can't wait. LOL

I painted these old porch chairs a couple of years ago. I bought them from a secondhand store a long time ago when we enclosed our back porch. I was thinking about them the other day and realised the cushions have had five different coloured covers over the years. Talk about recycling!! PS And I have made them all myself! 

We have had a terrible couple of weeks in Australia - first floods then last week a cyclone all in the eastern states and yesterday here in Western Australia a terrible bushfire which has burnt 64 homes to the ground. I don't know how anyone could get over that dreadful trauma. My heart goes out to them.

Suzy

I'm joining TablescapeThursday@BetweenNapsonthePorch

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