The new homestead!

 It is finally ours..yippee. Here are some pictures of our new homestead.

our beautiful new kitchen

looking from the dining area back towards the kitchen

Master bedroom. has a small french door, but on either side those windows have small plantation shutters on them..so cute. door leads out to huge screened in patio area.

this is actually a large dining area but we are going to convert it to a large craft/sewing room as there is plenty of room just off the kitchen to the right for our dining table and chairs and not to mention the big bar area as well. So this big room will be used as a family crafting station area with nice organized shelves and fun decor.

this is a formal dining room to the left of the kitchen separated by a pocket door. It is large enough to be used for my husband's studio area/business.

Last but not least...the big yard which is 1.29 of an acre.

Ch..Ch...Ch..Changes are in the air...yeehaw!!

Oh my goodness gracious me! Life has been busy and this  little blogette of mine has suffered a wee bit with well... umm a bit of neglect I see, but hey... that doesn't mean that I've given up on her yet folks...it simply means that I've been busy living life and exploring, and learning a bit about my new town and even making friends!

I met this sweet gal recently and she is a real dear. (http://www.verbenanestedtreasures.blogspot.com/)

And I'm in the throes of getting ready to move again...yes! its true...after 18 months (11 months to sell our place in N. Florida, then 7 months of looking here) we have finally found a new home! We close on it this coming Friday!! Yippee- Ki- YAY!!! And Friday intends to be a super busy day too, with yet another garage sale...yes...I'm a bit of a glutton for punishment I suppose, but I wound up finding a heap more things in all of the boxes we had packed up...that we can stand to live without in a new home, plus my/our tastes have changed quite a bit over the years...time for a totally fresh start.


And my dear hubby let me order some of these beautiful heirloom roses for our soon to be new home. These are my Christmas gift from him.:0)

Bougainville Heirloom Rose

I can't wait to plant the sweet climbing roses called Bougainville against the fence on either side of our driveway to our new homestead.

Blush Hip Heirloom Rose

Great Maiden's Blush Heirloom Rose

And I'll find a nice place to plant these pretty gals too called "Blush Hip" and "Great Maiden's Blush."


I'm so excited to be getting ready to finally be in a new home. We'll have an acre and 1/4 to roam around on...and to create beautiful gardens in. 

The home has plenty of room and a terrific layout that suits our needs, and a beautiful large kitchen as well. (You can't see it in the photo but there is crown molding across the top of the counters and a ledge for displaying items/opposite side of kitchen includes a built in computer desk area and the fridge and a large pantry. This part that you see also includes a large bar area further to the right. Granite counter tops. My vintage 50's chicken decor will look cute in here...smiles. Oh..and see that window?? There is a granite ledge on the outside for serving directly from the kitchen out onto the large screened in patio area...fun! fun!)


Well, that's what's been going on in my little corner of the world. And yes, I'll share more photos later.

Have a great week. Thanks for visiting.
 ~The Garden Goose!~

A little reminder...

Today's Little Message:

Enjoy the Beauty in Your Corner of the World!

Ever feel this way?

(yes, this darling little guy will soon be added to
my fun collections of vintage items)

Ever feel like you are constantly being pulled in quite a few directions? Yeah..life gets busy sometimes... and sometimes all's we can do is play catch up for a little bit.
 I've been busy adjusting to a new town. Trying to find a house to buy. Meeting new friends, and..today I learned how to crochet! Yesterday I planted 10 new iris varieties I had received into a large galvanized tub, can't wait to see them all bloom next year.(hopefully in a new yard and not still sitting in a galvanized tub)
 I wound up burning my arm pretty badly this evening on the stove while taking dinner out of the oven..ouch! I have a big 3-4 inch burn that is about 2 inches wide on my arm now. I laid my arm right on the oven door while taking some mozarella sticks out of the oven..needless to say when I jumped back from the pain the pan went tipping over and I lost half of the mozarella sticks down the oven door and on to the floor...but..at least I didn't burn myself any worse than I did and I hope it doesn't leave any kind of scar. Thank goodness for aloe vera gel.
I've been slowly adding new seed varieties to my etsy seed shop too. I also joined a plant and seed swap group online and have managed to swap a few times with some nice folks for some pretty neat flower seeds for my personal private stash and for gardens at a new home.
I've also been keeping busy home schooling 2 young children.
Also keeping busy with the Small Town Living website and at last count I have 11 books to get reviewed... and soon! yikes.
 So..yeah..I feel kind of like the above picture..but in a good way. I like being busy. I like meeting new folks, and I absolutely am so thrilled with myself that I have learned a new skill.
 If anything I'll now be able to create my own crocheted dishcloths. You can't beat a crocheted cotton dishcloth for durability. I have several of them in my kitchen that other folks have made for me and I'll always choose those over a plain wash cloth to wash dishes with any day.
Oh..and another thing...I've started collecting orchid plants..ever so slowly adding to a collection of them but I now have 6 orchids in my collection. Woohoo! I keep them on a sunny windowsill and they take very little care. Right now I have a lady slipper orchid in bloom. I'll slowly start adding to them as I can.
 oh..and one of the plant swaps that I'm expecting next week is for cuttings of a plant called adenium. (Desert Rose)
 The lady that is sending those had like 15 different types that she had taken cuttings from. I can't wait to grow them and then eventually see the blooms.
Well I think that about sums up some of what I've been up to lately.
 Thanks so much for stopping by.
  ~The Garden Goose!~

Fun Finds and Pretty Flowers

Treated myself to a couple of early birthday presents a couple of days ago. (shhh..my birthday isn't for another 16 days though, but a gal just has to do what a gal has to do when she finds some awesome items at a great deal that will look gorgeous in a new home..that is once she gets the new home...smiles)
  So, I snagged these beautiful items at a local consignment shop that has become my new haunt.
Now living in what is deemed as a retirement type area...there are always "new" items coming through the doors of this consignment shop that I like to frequent. Items that are from estate sales or from homes being redecorated, etc.  making it easy to find high end, quality items and antiques for a song.
 Yay! I love a bargain don't you?

 So without further ado meet my new finds. This is an antique pine tea cart painted in a creamy butter yellow color. After I cleaned it with Dawn dish detergent to remove the layer of nicotine and grime it had on it it looked even more lovely than these photos show.

Then I found this beautiful large lady lamp. This lamp and matching table with cherubs on it stands taller than my ten year old son. It is rather large, but an elegant piece that will be placed in the master bedroom of a new home in which I intend to have William Bougeureau type art work in for a nice romantic look.

And then last but not least, I spotted this lovely lady Slipper Orchid plant at a local hardware store's nursery and my sweet husband went back and bought it for me last night. (love that man!) The flower on this orchid is absolutely stunning. I love it. Another orchid for my fast growing collection! Yay!

Also..this Surprise Lily popped up in a pot that I had over at my mom in laws "holding garden" a place where I have some of my plants awaiting a new home. The surprise lily bulbs were given to me several years ago from a gal in Indiana. They had never bloomed until this year. This is the first flower to show itself.Gorgeous! 

 I cannot wait until I have my own yard again and home to grow lovely items like this and to find a permanent place to put my fun finds like the lamp and tea cart in.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed your visit.

 ~The Garden Goose~

Ballerina Mobile

Super Easy Child’s Room Mobile Decoration

August 26, 2010

By Tina Wilson

To make the mobile:
10 fluffy chenille stems
organza type wired edge ribbon in colors of choice (I chose pale blue and pink)
bead garland or other glittery type garland (I used about 24 inches of a tiny plastic flower garland in silver color)
small fabric quilted heart (or other embellishment of your choice that has a little “weight” to it/this will help to allow your mobile to hang better)
fabric ribbon (I used a harlequin print pink and brown colored ribbon)
6 small plastic ballerina cupcake toppers (available from:www.layercakeshop.com) (I used 3 of each pink and blue)
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To create this simple child’s room decor you do not need glue or sewing skills. You just simply need to know how to create a bow and to twist wire, and to tie knots.
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Take 3 of the chenille stems and create a circle. Twist the ends of each chenille stems together.
Take 6 chenille stems and place them evenly around the circle. At these evenly spaced points twist the chenille stems around your circle. 3 small twists will secure. Now point these 6 chenille stems upward into a “tent” shape. Gather them all together in a point.
Fold the sharp edges over. Take your last chenille stem and form into a hook shape on one end. Use the excess to wrap around your 6 gathered stems. Wrap tightly.
Create a large decorative bow from your fabric ribbon(not the organza type, but the thicker solid ribbon) Before tying the bow to the top of your mobile slide a few strands of decorative glittered garland in between the bow(about 12 inch length/2 strands). Finish attaching to the top near the hook by making a knot. Your  glittery garland will be secured by the knot you tie.
From the hook area also tie a long piece of organza ribbon(about 18 inches long) hanging down from the center of the mobile(tie in a knot). This will be what you attach the fabric heart or other center embellishment with.
Attach the heart or other center embellishment to the length of ribbon that hangs from the center of your mobile. Tie with a knot. Right at this knot, attach a pretty ribbon bow. Again secure by knotting the bow onto the ribbon hanging down.
Cut 6 lengths of organza wired ribbon (about 10 inches long) Tie ribbon in a knot around the waist of each of the ballerina figures.
Attach  the ballerinas to the mobile by tying with knots at evenly spaced intervals around the chenille ring.
Where each ballerina’s holding ribbon is attached to the chenille ring tie little blue organza wired bows . Trim bow ends.
———————
***This can be changed to be used for a boy’s room by using green or blue chenille stems or another favorite color chenille stem and using such items as tiny plastic dinosaurs or other fun plastic figures. Be creative and have fun! No limit to the types of little plastic items you can use to create a fun mobile.
*** As with any item that has small parts keep away from small children. Not recommended for a baby or children who have a tendency to put items in their mouths.***

Visiting ! Carnaval! display in Ocala, FL

Today I convinced my mother in law and my oldest daughter to join me for a visit to ! Carnaval! an exhibit organized by the Museum of International Folk Art and toured by NEH on the Road. This display was being shown at the Webber Center  Gallery in Ocala, Florida from June 17th-August 11th. After it leaves Ocala, FL it will then be displayed in Indianapolis. So to get a chance to see it was a privilege…I feel anyhow.

New Orleans,USA Mardi Gras mask

A mask from Mexico

Anyhow, I managed to get some really nice photos of the masks from around the world that depict how the pre-Lenten Mardi-Gras type festivals  are  celebrated. Yes! they allowed photos! I was so excited.

I hope you enjoy them.

A simple Italian mask

The masks are from Spain, Italy, Portugal, Trinidad and Tobago, Mexico, USA, and Switzerland, and a few other places that unfortunately I forgot. Anyhow, my favorite masks were the fancy jeweled one from Spain (green feathers and jewels), and the bird man from Spain(black plague dr’s mask) and the mask that looks like the phantom of the opera, as well as the green lady from Switzerland(green hair), and the metal sculpted one from Mexico (dragon eyes and snake heads).

An elaborately jeweled mask from Spain

Carnival, Carnevale, Fassnacht, Entroido- the annual pre-Lenten festival most people in the United States know as “Mardi Gras” is celebrated throughout Europe and the Americas.

This mask depicts a dr's mask from the time of the Black Plague. Mask from Italy

a Mask from Italy

Many of today’s Carnival activities are not necessarily religious, but the “feast before famine” excess is still deeply rooted in its litugurical origins.

Different cultures have different words for “Carnival” or the pre-Lenten festivities.

Tlaxcala, Mexico mask

detail on Tlaxcala, Mexico mask

A mask from Mexico

Italians refer to it as “Carnevale” meaning “flesh farewell”, and the Spanish and Portugese refer to it as “Carnaval”, and the English call it “Carnival”… The Swiss-German peoples refer to it as “Fasnacht” or Night before fasting, and the French  call it “Mardi Gras” or “Fat Tuesday”.

Mask from Switzerland/Fasnacht celebration

Elaborate details on mask from Spain

No matter how the different cultures celebrate this event, one thing was for certain…the masks were all elaborate and colorful and unique. “Carnival” is all about turning the regular order upside down. What better way of doing so than donning a mask and parading through the streets as someone else?

Spanish masks