Our New Addition!

Mother and Daddy built this little house and we love living here. It's just the two of us and our dogs so it really is big enough however there has been no storage whatsoever. Tiny closets, no attic space, and so consequently everything goes under the bed. Until  now! We have enclosed the back porch and made a new utility/storage area with an extra small kitchen area! I am so happy with it! It's where I did all the canning for The CARE Cannery and I could look out at my foster babies while working. It's a sweet little space and I have enjoyed making it "mine".
Our brother Sam drew the plans and Greg Coulston did the work and helped re design a couple of things that made it even better. Sam and Greg are brilliant! This small area is currently my favorite place to be. Greg used old barn wood and planks that blended perfectly, plus he built in a great cabinet [above] for my constant collections of whatever and kept the original ceilings and beams intact.

My dear friend Kim rubbed down the top of an old red cabinet to get the desired finish as a topper for the reclaimed wood piece. The huge jar was once used for pickles and performs well with branches, berries, and hydrangeas. Grandmother's wooden bowl filled with mock oranges and a large dried sunflower head propped up against the turquoise pitcher complete the still life.

The new addition feels like it has always been here.

Ready for The CARE Cannery Tasting Event!

Well, the last time I blogged I was preparing for the CARE Cannery's First Annual Tasting Event. That's correct, I have now said the word "annual" which means we will be doing it again next year, folks! I am happy to report it was a huge success! I think we had 12 little jars left out of close to 450 and I am already searching for new canning recipes. The best seller hands down was the Salsa, probably the Black Bean and Corn. 2nd Winner was Pepper Jelly. But it all sold and I haven't received any bad reviews Yet. I also managed to be decorated for Fall although Barbara came and got the house cleaned for me! I'm not nearly as inclined to clean as I am to decorate! I love hydrangeas when they first start drying that fabulous apple green color and I added a little green paint to keep them from turning totally brown..

This is an old wooden bucket I purchased at an antique store years ago. Greenery, shed antlers, and Indian Corn were the finishing touches. [And there's Mother's little shovel by the front door ready and willing to help me plant fall bulbs which will be arriving soon.]

I made this Fall wreath a couple of years ago or so  and haven't done a thing to it since. I still love it just the way it is. I made several special orders this year for various customers and each one was different and bright and made me wonder if I wanted to "update". Then I would look at this one and think not! I'm a big fan of natural floral's, nests, and white pumpkins so for now this suits me perfectly. I coordinated the lamp posts using more green hydrangeas and burlap ribbon, although I did use some real orange pumpkins at the base for a "punch".