Feelin' Groovy

Slow down, you move too fast.
You got to make the morning last.
Just kicking down the cobble stones.
Looking for fun and feelin' groovy.

(Simon & Garfunkel: 
The 59th Street Bridge Song)

I made a resolution to not buy any more old junk

for our daughters, but when one of them asked me

to look for a particular item, I considered it

a challenge I couldn't pass up!

Google Images

 Our daughter Julie is looking for retro art for their daughter's nursery.

 The paintings above are works by the artist Maio (Margaret Toti Thomis Maio).

 She painted numerous "big eye" pieces popular in the 1960's, which we baby boomers

 remember oh so well.  She even designed a series of paint-by-number kits

so budding young artists could create their own masterpieces.

The Mod Squad

Another example of Big Eye art circa 1965.

Artist unknown.

Since we're talking about "big eyes" of the 1960's,

 I had to include a photo of the most famous big-eyed model of the era.

  Twiggy. 

These photos still look trendy almost 50 years later!!!

Cool Accessories

I am going to miss telephones!

iPhones cannot compete with the retro charm

of this old blue desktop model of mine.

I've got plans of my own for the phone,

 but it fit in so well with the 60's theme. 

  Ringgggg.

Do you remember when shopping baskets looked like this?

I bought this basket a few years ago, and it's been patiently waiting for a purpose.

Diapers?  Stuffed animals?  Storybooks?

Flower power!

The vintage sheets were just a few dollars each at the thrift store. 

Score!

Since I was shopping for Maggie's nursery,

 the retro top spun the right vibe

ringing up at only $2.00!

 A sweet little bluebird.

This portrait by Maio is entitled

No. 635 Serenade in Blue.

It was hanging up near the ceiling at a local antique shop with no price tag.

  The surrounding pictures were priced anywhere from $60 on up, so I was

pleasantly surprised when the dealer was asking only $15.  It's in perfect

condition and still in the original frame.  It won't put Maggie through

college if she sells it, but it will add a pop of color to her walls.

 I took these photos in the same corner that's home to my toy barn.

 The barn is back in place, but I can now see how easily the white painted room
 can be changed from a farmhouse bedroom to a retro-modern room

in just the blink of an eye!

Be sure to keep your big eyes open for
far out treasures hiding in plain sight! 

Badada  da da   da da......feelin' groovy!
Vickie

*I'm joining the party at:

Cozy Little House Tweak it Tuesday

Common Ground Be Inspired Friday

One Step at a Time

It's been exactly 2 years, 3 weeks, and 4 days since 

I made the fateful decision to tear apart the bedroom formerly

known as the Sweet Sixteen room.

I've finally got one corner of the room finished!

It may not look like much
 until you see where it all began.

This is how the room looked
 when we moved into our house 8 1/2 years ago.

You can see the rest of the loveliness here.

We installed plantation shutters, but everything else came out. 

 Wallpaper.  Gone.  The cracked plaster walls were not unexpected,

 since just about every wall and ceiling in the house was in the same

miserable condition as documented here.  We pulled out the carpeting
 and have since had all the floors upstairs refinished.

 The dated lace valances?  Out the window!

We've repaired the walls and ceiling (the BIG hold-up) and everything got a coat, 

well actually four coats of fresh white paint.  You know, the 

paint-with-primer-that-promises-to-cover-in-one-coat?

Yeah, that's the stuff.

I simply painted the dresser with the same creamy white
latex semi-gloss paint used on the wood trim in the room.

There was plenty of texture under the paint from many coats of shellac,

so I rubbed on a light coat of Johnson Paste Wax mixed with burnt umber oil paint

 to add a slightly aged look to the dresser and highlight the details.
(Instructions can be found here.)

The lamp and old tin are pieces I've picked

up for the room over the past 2 years.

I bought 2 old farm prints for the room, 

and I think this one will remain in its current position.

If not, something's got to be hung in its place to cover

the 3 new holes in the wall if I decide to moove it elsewhere!

Since our grandchildren will sleep in this room, it seemed like

the perfect place to park this old barn.  I added wood knobs

so little hands can easily open the doors.

I brought this chippy stool into the room so the

short people can reach the barn.

What's inside the barn?

The farm animals are quite captivated with the 

couple dancing before them.

Left, two, three.  Right, two, three.

They're concentrating so hard on the steps they've learned!

As in many older homes, the room lists slightly to the left,
so I had to level out the dresser to keep them from
dancing out of my viewfinder.

Just like the happy? couple dancing in the barn,

I'm slowly finishing this room....

One step at a time.

 Coming soon (I hope), corner number two.

Thanks for stopping by This Old House.

Vickie

*I'm joining the parties at:
Common Ground Be Inspired Friday
The Country Farm Home Country Whites Weekend
Cozy Little House Tweak it Tuesday
The Farmhouse Porch Cowgirl Up

Hey girl.

If you haven't heard about the Hey Girl Valentine Party

going on over at Bliss Ranch, you better get yourself on over

and join the fun!

Since I need the voice of reason to prime the last

two dining room chairs, I'm not going to link his likeness to the party.

  Below is a picture of Santa.  
Let me clarify that for you.  Santa. 

Hmmmm....something about those eyes.

Well, a few of my goofy friends wanted to jump on the bandwagon,

or in this case the bed, so I let them join the party, too.

You've heard it from the experts!
There.  Is.  Nothing.  Wrong.  With.  Me.

Don't be shy, join the party!
(You have until February 13th to link up your "Hey Girl" photo.)

Just havin' a little fun up here on da Range!
Vickie

Reflections

One must take into consideration what will be
reflected when deciding where to hang a mirror.
hehe

When I hung my trumeau mirror, I was none too happy

with the part of my anatomy I viewed each time I passed by.

So I raised the mirror up another 6 inches which left

a big gap between the mirror and my telephone table.

I filled the space with a thrifted shelf that I painted to match the mirror.

  For now I've got a vintage art deco perfume atomizer

 and some faux tea roses sitting on the shelf.

Flowers and perfume for Valentine's Day.
And 3 extra holes in the wall behind the mirror.

I originally painted the mirror to lean on the fireplace mantel,

but it looked too busy.  I scouted around the house to find

something to fill the space between the windows, and decided on

an oval etched glass mirror which was hanging in the basement.

I didn't want to pound any more holes in my newly painted walls just yet,

so I leaned the mirror against the wall to reflect the chandelier.

I especially like how it doubles the light at night

when the chandelier is lit.

I filled the mantel with things I had around the house.

The tulips are from Michael's, and the mercury glass canister is a recent gift,

but I've had the February Lefton angel and percolator coffee pot for years.

I really didn't spend much time on the mantel

because I've been much too busy painting everything in sight!

I painted several colors of white on our dining room chairs,

and I think the third color's a keeper.  I used washable 

latex semi-gloss because I know little fingers, and big ones too,

will surely leave food fingerprints.

This thing is a work in progress.

It started out looking like this:

Apparently the manufacturer underestimated

how hot pressurized steam can get, and the whole

rad cover became warped from the extreme heat.

I took the front section apart and cut perforated metal to fit

the two openings and then gave everything a few coats of paint.

It's still rather unattractive, so I searched online for

photos of more appealing designs.

Now this is more like it, but way out of my price range!

And a bit too fancy pants for our dining room.

 I'm going to see if I can find an applique that's a little simpler 

than this one to spice up my rad cover.

That's what's going on downstairs.  I've also made some

progress upstairs in the guest bedroom, so stay tuned for

updates.  Hopefully sooner than later.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Vickie

* I'm joining the parties at:

Common Ground Be Inspired Friday

Funky Junk Interiors Saturday Nite Special

The Red Shoes

Just like Karen in Hans Christian Andersen's
The Red Shoes,

I looked high and low for vintage red shoes,

but they were nowhere to be found in the kingdom.

I bought these shoes at Junk Bonanza and loved the style,

but the worn white just wasn't cutting it.

So...

I painted them!

Two coats of Delta Ceramcoat Tompte Red (acrylic craft paint) and a finish coat of mink oil,

 and I've got the red shoes I've been searching for.

The jar of candy is safe from moi.
  It's not chocolate.

The shoes are sitting on top of my secretary which was

also fitted with some new old shoes of its own.

I took these original wood casters off when we had new

carpet installed at 2506.  That was 23 years ago and a different

house, so it was high time to restore this piece to its original state.

However.  I would not recommend emptying everything

out and tipping the piece on its back when you're home alone.

 Just sayin'.   :)

Elsewhere in the room,  red leather 

decorates my dry sink, too.

My Baba brought this photo album home from one of her trips
 to her father's homeland of Yugoslavia, as it was known
 in the 1970's when she traveled there.

Here's the inscription inside, and other than Mary,

my Baba's name, I have no idea what it says.

I do have an elderly neighbor who grew up with my Baba, so

I better get myself over to her house and have her decipher this,

or we'll never know what it says!

And lastly, after losing my one day off this week,

I prescribed myself a little retail therapy
to ease the pain.

20 minutes of driving each way on my lunch hour

left me only 20 minutes of shopping at Annabella's,

but look what I found..........

It was only 20 dollars!!!

Well worth the quick trip.

Keep warm and stay healthy!

Vickie

*I'm joining the parties at:

Cozy Little House Tweak it Tuesday

Funky Junk Interiors Saturday Nite Special