Collecting White Ironstone

It always starts out small and then the next 

thing you know you have a collection.

 These are the pieces I found on my latest

 day thrifting. The big platter in the back was

featured in my previous post HERE.

Once in a while I get lucky and find a vintage 

piece of real ironstone. This 12" platter

was only $1.00

The hallmark on the back enabled

me to easily look it up on ebay. I could sell

it and it would pay for my entire dish 

purchases that day. 

I'll post the rest of the "stuff" later.

This large white turkey platter will make a
 nice appearance in November. I like to
change the things I lean against the black tile
 behind the cooktop with the seasons.
  This 18" platter was $3.00.

These are some of my past thrifting purchases.

I buy white mugs for 25¢. I have a basketful
 now, plenty for a party or to craft paint.

Teapots for $1-$2

Found this Pottery Barn teapot and

 2 matching mugs.

2 sets of white pumpkin S&P for 50¢.

It's all gathered in my vintage china cabinet. 

It was also a thrift store find.

You can see more about the cabinet HERE,

and see what's in the drawers HERE.

Cheers!

Links: Between Naps On The Porch,
Facebook, Share Your Style,
My Repurposed Life,
French Country Cottage,
The Charm Of Home,

Using A Thrift Store White Platter

I know that I just posted my

 breakfast table centerpiece last week,

but I made a few small changes. I found 

this large 21" white platter at the thrift 

store on Friday. So naturally I had to play

use it as soon as I got it home and cleaned.

For only $3.00 it has so many possibilities.
It won't spend much time inside a cabinet.  

When I'm not using it for food or a tea tray
I can display it against the back of the
cooktop to brighten-up that black tile and be
there ready to grab whenever I need it. 

This is always my favorite way to use 

a platter, a tray, a basket, or a box.

 It's a breakfast table centerpiece when I

 use it to gather a few other pieces.

 Like my orchid!

 I found this little creamer for 25¢. 

 Here's a little tip: When I use glass 

chargers, I use one of these pretty hand

 crocheted dish cloths between the plate 

and charger. That way the plate nestles 

in nicely and there is no clanging.

Don't like wobbly plates-on-plates. 

It's also a nice way to keep hot plates

 warm longer. I find these little cloths 

at craft fairs or sometimes thrifting. 

They work well because they are thinner 

than pot holders and soft.

Always enjoy time playing with dishes.

Cheers!

See the other pieces of white ironstone
I got HERE.

Links: Between Naps On nThe Porch,

Facebook,Coastal Charm, Dwellings,

Confessions of a Plate Addict,

Cozy Little House, Savvy Southern Style,
French Country Cottage,

Spring Breakfast Table

Spring means my orchids are blooming

again. I brought this beauty inside.

I'm using my fence pickets again

for the table runner.

The breakfast table centerpiece

has a bit of a cottage look.

My new find is this teapot. I tried to 

resist it in a North Carolina resale shop. 

It was $12.00. Can't pass up a cute teapot,

especially one in blue and white with a 

china handle.  

 I've had this orchid for years and it 

keeps getting prettier. It blooms for

months every spring.  

I also added a small rosemary plant that

I potted in my chippy clay pot.

 That's it for this weeks table.

Cheers!

Links: Facebook,
Between Naps On The Porch,
My Romantic Home, Common Ground,
French Country Cottage,
The Charm Of Home, 

Bunny Pancakes

Yes we did! We made Bunny Pancakes!

 These are too cute and too fun to make!

Spoon the pancake batter onto to griddle in
( your favorite recipe or mine)

 the sizes needed; small, medium and larger 

circles for the head, body and feet. 

Oblong shape for the ears.  Assemble adding

 banana slices for the paws and mini 

chocolate chips for the toes. Make a tail

 with a dollop of whipped cream. 

Then fuzz it up with coconut if you have it.

Cheers!

links: Facebook, A Stroll Thru Life,
Cozy Little House, Coastal Charm, 

Between Naps On The Porch,
Designs By Gollum,
French Country Cottage,

17 Coffee Table Styling Ideas

The coffee table in the family room gets 

rearranged, restyled and tweeked a lot!

Here's what I have now...transitioning

to Spring. I like to change the vignettes on

the coffee table with the 

seasons and holidays. 

Here's one for Easter.

This was Valentine's Day.
The heart breadboard DIY is HERE.

 Blue and white for Winter.

The wood tray DIY is HERE.

You'll see that I used this tray a lot!

Moving into Spring.

Another bread board DIY.

Time to add a Spring bunny.

 Blue and white for Summer

Baskets and beans for Fall.

Red for February.

 Summer shells

Fall colors

A Summer look. 

This post also has one of my most

viewed recipes...LEMON BROWNIES, 

I call LEMONIES. 

 Another Easter-Spring vignette.

 Cool blues for Summer.

The button band around the plant

is cut from am old denim shirt I had

cut up for a rag wreath. 

Beginning of Fall.

The DIY for this custom wine barrel

tray is HERE. 

Another version of early Fall.

 Summer rattan and shells.

I'm going to play around with my 'stuff'
and see what new I can come up with today.

Cheers!

links: Between Naps on The Porch, Coastal Charm,
A Stroll Thru Life

6 Tips To Alphabetize and Organize Your Pinterest Boards

It's so much easier to find a board I'm looking 

for now that I've alphabetized my 185 boards.

1. ALPHABETIZE: Go to your Pinterest site. Take your mouse and move your cursor over any board you want to move. The hand icon will appear. Left click on it and hold it down while you drag it to the spot you want. If you have lots of boards to scroll past, it will be easier if you scroll up through your boards with your right hand until you find the spot you want to drop it. Then drag the board using your left hand to that spot. It will shift the boards on each side out of the way. Unclick the mouse and release the board. I had to try this a few times to get the hang of it.

2. SUBDIVIDE BOARDS:  Once you have too many pins in one board  it's time to create sub categories. Keep the first word consistent.  My Christmas board was filled beyond capacity. I couldn't find anything. Now I have Christmas-Crafts, Christmas-Ornaments, Christmas-Decor, etc. I did the same with recipes. Subdivide!

3. COVER PHOTO: Use a good cover photo. Again, it's easier to find my "Hearts" board because there's a big heart cover photo. Change your cover photo using the edit board's icon.

4. DELETE DUPES: Pinterest now lets you know if you've already pinned something, but
if you've been pinning since the beginning, you'll need to weed out the duplicate pins.

5. MOVE PINS IN WRONG CATEGORY: Hit the edit icon in the pin to move it where it belongs. I find strays all the time. It's a pinning in a hurry thing.

6. DELETE PINS & BOARDS: Yes, some gotta go! Change the title of the boards that are not working for you too. This is an ongoing process. A little at a time.

You can follow my boards HERE or click on the Pinterest widget on the right.

Happy Pinning!

Links: Facebook,
Between Naps On The Porch