Monday's Blog Sale & Twice Remembered Facebook & Shop Info

Finally it's the weekend! I hope you all have some wonderful things planned - even if it's just a bit of rest and relaxation! Has fall truly arrived for you yet? We are still hitting record temperature highs here in middle Tennessee. It will be 92 today! No matter...it's fall as far as I'm concerned. We couldn't resist making stew and yeast rolls here this week. Maybe fall will soon pick up on our subtle hints!


As for me this weekend, I'll be working on Blog Sale items for my sale that starts here on Monday, September 27th. I will be linking up to Deborah's {at The Fairfield House} blog sale link party, so be sure to check out her site for even more blog sales next week - or even better, join up yourself by having a blog sale, too!


I can't believe how much I have collected since my last blog sale. I didn't take photos of the packaged up goodies from the last one, but here is one from the sale I held in 2008. {The Nester would just die - I've heard she hates dealing with packing and shipping... *wink*} I kind of do, too, but since my shop is opening in November - FINALLY! - I figured I better get use to it.


These are just a few sneak peek photos of some of the things that will be in my Blog Sale on Monday. Again...how did this happen?!





Because of my love of "junk" and decor, I've decided that my Twice Remembered Cottage shop will include farmhouse/cottage style treasures, things that may be worn, rustic, romantic, simple, white {and other classic colors that can fit into any decor}. This will be in addition to handcrafted items such as my faux treats, painted signs, and eventually, miniature farmhouse/cottage creations. I truly believe in doing what you love and my love just happens to be farmhouse / cottage style decor and making pretty things.


All the items in my new shop will all be along the same style and feel, but occasionally, I will {and do} run across things that are sweet and cottage-y but won't fit the style of the shop. In order to keep it from looking like a decorator's buffet bar, I'll maintain a page set up here on my blog for such treasures. For example, I won't put pink in my shop. There's nothing wrong with pink, of course, but most of the items in the shop will pretty much match my own personal style preferences...things that you might find at Twice Remembered. If I would use an item for my own home, I'll put it in the shop - or at least I'll really, really, really try to part with it. But I do have an appreciation for pretty and vintage things in general, no matter the color, so that is why I'd like to still make such items available through my blog. In fact many of the items you see above are of the kinds of things I'd list on a separate page of my blog.


If you would be interested in receiving updates when new things are listed - and notifications of new posts and goings on here at Twice Remembered along with other inspiring ideas, please join me on my new Facebook page - The Twice Remembered Cottage. I had one a while back but found that I needed to cut out some "social media" so that I could focus on getting to this point right here. I'm a simple girl, and too much at once makes me want to suck my thumb and take a nap.



I hope this day finds you doing well and I look forward to seeing you again this Monday, September 27 @ 8 am Central time at my blog sale. I have a busy weekend ahead of me but right now? I think I'm going to go heat up some stew...and I might even drop some more hints to Fall by putting on some socks and a sweater. Hmmph!

Dollhouse Cottage Kitchen Snapshots

I was going to write about something entirely different today {a few Goodwill finds to share or our living room beadboard progress} but as I was going through my photos, I found a couple of shots of my dollhouse cottage kitchen remodel so far.  I've finally collected all of the "remodeling" supplies needed to finish it - all of the tiny crown moulding and window trim and beadboard and baseboards...and the lower kitchen cupboards should arrive today.  I have the uppers already, but the lowers will need to be put together, painted, and installed before the beadboard goes up. Wow, just like remodeling a real house! Oh, and my painted tin ceiling is installed along with the kitchen electric wiring, but I haven't taken photos of that yet. Just a few snapshots...

It's really a fascinating circle to run with. Their talent and creativity leave me in constant awe to say the least!

Right after I started my dollhouse blog Little Rosey Posey, a miniaturist and a sweet Twice Remembered reader, Tallulah of Tullulah~Belle Originals sent me the adorable little flower arrangement in a tiny teapot you see there on the table. She makes these and is soooo talented! I will take some better, close-up photos of the flowers when I'm closer to being finished with the kitchen {again, these were just random snapshots} but aren't they just precious! Thanks again, Tallulah!

The cake was my second attempt at making anything miniature. {I apologize for the crooked photo...the floors really are level!} The first thing I made were donuts, well before I bought the old farmhouse dollhouse to remodel. I'll always have fond memories of making these little things with my youngest daughter.

Can't wait to make more little sweets! I still have this Storybook Cottage to build when more of the farmhouse is completed. It will be my miniature patisserie.

I love how the "old" plank floor turned out. These planks had to be painted and distressed individually and then glued down one by one once they were dry.  I tried gluing them first and then painting them all at once after they dried, but they all curled up on me when the paint was wet! I had to rip them up and start over, but it was well worth it. A lesson learned!

I bought the vintage style table set at Hobby Lobby. It had been on the shelf for several weeks because a table leg was broken along with a couple of chair legs.  So I asked the manager if I could have a discount and he gave the set to me for just $10! I superglued it all back together and painted it. I still have to distress the edges of three of the four chairs. It's a bit challenging to work with such small pieces. One little oops and you've practically sanded a table leg right off!

For those of you who may be new to my site, my dollhouse blog is used to tell a fictional story centering around the house and it's remodel, but I'll be updating it again soon with basically this same entry so my fellow dollhouse peeps can get a little sneak peek today, too. It's really a fascinating circle to run with - miniaturists. Their talent and creativity leave me in constant awe to say the least!  If you get a chance, make sure you check out my dollhouse blog blogroll so that you can be inspired as I am. Maybe you'll end up with a dollhouse to remodel, too! {Just what we all need, right? Another project!}

Oh, and for what it's worth, here is a shot of what the little kitchen looked like before I started.  Quite scary, eh?

And just a couple of final thoughts: I've pulled out all of my blog sale items for next week. How in the world did I collect so much stuff since the last sale?! I will be posting random cellphone photos on Twitter in the next day or so just so you can see a few of the things I'll be listing. My mom's yard sale was postponed, so I have a little extra time now. ;)

Thank you so much to those that gave me their input on the Cricut machine in my last post. I'm looking forward to having one even more now!

Until next time!

A Link Party and Blog Sale Info

I was just thinking... I really need to get rid of some of my stuff. I wanted to join Deborah at the Fairfield House back in August when she had her blogwide yard sale, but it corresponded to "back to school" time here and my plate ran over. I am faced now with an attic full of stuff and a strong desire to own one of those super-cool-neato-fabulous-groovy Cricut machines. I've admired them for quite a while, and if any of you have one or know anything about them, please let me know! I don't know what model, etc., to get but I would love to have one with all the bells and whistles.... because bells and whistles are so much fun! So I've decided to have a blog sale to go towards buying one of these curious contraptions. Makes perfect sense to me!

I will be going out of town this upcoming week to help my mom with her own yard sale {if you live in Smith County, Tn and have a

I am faced now with an attic full of stuff!

transitional style of decorating, you'll want to come! The sale starts on Thursday but I won't be there until Friday and will not be selling my own things.} She's simplifying and downsizing and only selling home decor and furniture. My mom is why I have such a love for home decor to begin with! I digress...

After I return, I will have my blog sale, but I wanted to give everyone a heads up. I'll let you know the exact day before I post my items. I'll pull out and photograph my items this week before my mom's sale so that all I'll have to do when I get back is post my listings. Sound like a plan?

While I'm up to my ears in *stuff* this week, please feel free to share something nifty with me below. It's kind of like a potluck dinner... add what you like and think others would enjoy, too! From projects to thrifty finds to recipes to tutorials to favorite posts or blogs - just post them below! A link back to this post would be greatly appreciated!

Have a beautiful day!


P.S Join us on Twitter and follow as we post photos of the beadboard we're adding to the living room today. Clearing furniture out of the room now - fun!

Perfect Cozy Reading Chairs from Goodwill

Last Sunday afternoon, I had a bit of a Goodwill craving {do you get those, too?} but I was so tuckered from all the weekend's activities, I wasn't sure if I was up to going. Hubs finally talked me into it and when I got there, of course, I pepped up a bit in anticipation of what I might find. We went in a door that I don't normally go through, the one closest to the home decor but furthest from the furniture. I did find a couple of home decor items and was quite pleased with my finds but as we were leaving to checkout out, I turned the corner and there, staring at me longingly, were two beautiful, perfect, cozy, comfy reading chairs...



Not a blemish, not a spot, not a rip, no odors, no tired cushions, wonderfully neutral and only....



$49 each! Not bad for a couple of American Signature reading chairs, eh?!



I love the legs. Just the right height for me to see my hiding dust bunnies! When we replace our {now 10 year old Broyhill) sofa, it will definitely have legs similar to these. Goodness- what the children can cram under our low to the ground sofa now!



I want to buy or have made for our new-to-us chairs some pretty French down-filled pillows because they feel a bit naked right now. *sigh* The perfect chairs for cuddling up with some Jane Austen or...Diary of a Wimpy Kid, depending on who sits in them. ;) That will teach me to never even think about passing up a trip to Goodwill!



This weekend hubs will be working on adding more beadboard to the living room. You can see in the photo below that we left off in the foyer area. Our goal is to do the wall behind the chairs and the wall behind the sofa. The fireplace wall will have to wait because we will be rebuilding the mantel to make it look similar to the farmhouse style mantel we built in the dining room. It's kind of big project and we aren't ready to go ripping down the old fireplace just yet! This weekend we will also be adding some finishing trim to the beadboard in the kitchen, everything but the shoe moulding. Inching our way closer to the completion of that space, thank goodness!



Do you have any favorite Goodwill/thrift store finds? I'd love to hear about them!

Weekly Words to Live By

{A little info on the photo above: The Goodwill chalkboard that was once blue...I sprayed the whole thing with chalkboard paint. It's a great little place to display inspirational messages and a perfect size for our dining room mantel. I love the little birds at the top and the nest at the bottom! The little silver piece I picked up at the Nashville Flea market a couple of weeks ago, and the shadow box with the antiqued silverware I bought half off {for $12} at Hobby Lobby yesterday...I've had my eye on that piece for a while now! I'll have to do a separate post at some point on the map of France in the background. It's almost 160 years old and was a great Ebay find for less than $30! The straw hat, which you see in many of my posts, I got a while back at Goodwill. I collect vintage looking straw hats...they are a weakness!}

I'm joining Tracey @ Notes from a Cottage Industry for her Weekly Words to Live By and Cindy @ Cottage Instincts for Make it For Monday and Rhoda @ Southern Hospitality for Today's Thrifty Treasures

"How Do You Like Me Now?"

I have succumbed to my "what if" tendencies and painted {just one coat so far} our kitchen door that leads into my studio yet again. By now you know that this is my modus operandi. When I'm struggling with a decision - and especially when faced with two choices that are both my favorites,I choose one, but after a while I get curious about the other. How would it look? Would it have been better?

Remember, I had gone with a beautiful shade of blue called "Tranquility" {Valspar shade from Lowes}. I LOVE the color and plan on using it in accents and furniture pieces. But I decided that since I want to use it in accents and furniture pieces throughout the house, maybe having it on all the doors in our house is a bit overkill. Plus, as I've mentioned, this shade of blue seems to be too "pastel" for hubs.


So I painted the door a deep expresso brown - almost a black. {Edited to add that the paint color is called "Fired Earth" from Valspar at Lowes}. Like I said, this is just the first coat and it needs another, but I'm posting a couple of photos because I like the "old, worn" look of it already and plan to scruff it up after the second coat to make it look similar to this.



Another change: I repainted my kitchen a few weeks ago but decided not to use the color we painted the studio. What did I go with? Anthem White. The same color as our trim work. Can you tell the difference in the wall colors between the above and bottom photos? I just love the contrast now between the walls and the dark doors and red cabinets...so crisp and light feeling! It's hard to tell in the photo below because of the sun streaming in, but that little chair is painted "Tranquility" like the door use to be. Who knew dark brown, red, and blue could actually work together in peace, love, and harmony?!

Two major remodeling decisions have been made - and I'm sticking to them this time...I promise! 1)Twice Remembered's walls will be white and 2)The doors will be dark expresso brown.

For what it's worth, hubs did not want white walls. He LOVES the dark doors now, though. And he hasn't even noticed I repainted the kitchen. ;)

{Edit: I've opened up my Twitter account again...I'm thinking having just the one account will be easier to keep up with than Facebook and Twitter. You can follow me there for updates between blog posts. Thanks!}

{Participating in Metamorphosis Monday!}

Blog Love - Dreamy Whites

I want to know...How do I make my house look like Maria's? Maria of Dreamy Whites, that is. If you've never visited her beautiful blog before, now is the time to make yourself a cup of tea and settle into a cozy spot for a few hours of delightful reading and eye candy!



Sometimes my own house seems so dark and not very fresh, and I'm dying to make it look and feel radiantly bright without making it feel sterile. Maria has figured how to do that and I just love her style!



Ahhhh...there is that blue that I love so much. Lately I've been second guessing my decision to introduce this color to my own home, but when I see photos like this of Maria's blue cupboard, I fall in love with it all over again!


See her use of pink in the peonies and green in the chairs {and the green in the first bedroom photo}? Soft pops of color like this is what make her mostly white home work...


And oh my goodness! This is her daughter's bedroom! Can you believe she found those beds for just $100 for both of them together? My girls don't have headboards yet because I'm just waiting to find a pair of gorgeous beds like these!


A charming mantel vignette... I love how the flowers here look just like the flower pillows in the photo above.


And a different mantel vignette using more green. Her entire living room lives up to her blog name - DREAMY!


I've been worried about how softer colors might look with my red cabinets, but Maria successfully uses both colors in her home. Check out the red in the french linen table runner - and the red used in the toss pillows on the bed {again in the first photo}.





And another thing that I learned while reading Maria's blog? She lives in a newer triple wide modular home. That just goes to show you that you don't have to live in a hundred year old farm house to make it look like you do! So enjoy your visit with Maria at Dreamy Whites...I know I did!

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This Saturday I had the privilege of spending the afternoon with Layla of The Lettered Cottage and Rhoda of Southern Hospitality! We went junking at the the Nashville Flea Market and what fun! My camera battery died very early in the day and I didn't get tons of photos, but I'll share them with you soon. In the meantime, check out Layla's flea market post as well as and Rhoda's! {P.S. Wow, that peasant top and skirt I wore on Saturday added about 15 pounds! I hate how some outfits look better in the mirror than in reality, lol! Ah, but I think I would have worn a feedbag just to have an opportunity to hang out with those two creative gals!}