Inspiration...

We love a good tutorial...

An easy to follow, well written, with tons of pictures tutorial.
Many times, we find ourselves reading project tutorials that we know we will never attempt. Why?
Because good tutorials are like those mandatory Philosophy classes we took in high school: we don't use them every day, but from time to time, they pop up in our heads and make us think...

Jumping from blog to blog...to blog..................to more blogs
we found this cool tutorial by the girls at
Alchemy Junk

Very cool wood clock with the best vintage look ever...
at a fraction of the price of those in fancy catalogs!

These talented girls show it all HERE...
You should visit them, even if you don't need a clock, because their step by step directions to their fantastic paint job will inspire you to paint something...we promise!

Thank you Alchemy Junk for sharing your tips!

To shop or not to shop....

I'm not a shopper. No, not me.

So when something jumps at me from one of Michael's shelves right before a friend's birthday, I'm happy.

And when that little something is a white and cute crown candle holder, I'm very happy!

And when that cute little crown costs me only $3.50 including the candle...
Oh boy, I'm really, really happy!!!

So happy, that I buy 2.
One for my friend Norma, "The Peruvian Princess", as she calls herself
and the other one for Clara, the "Queen of white"!

Now I have a question:
When you buy something for someone you love and you spend a lot less than you first expected, do you buy something else to compensate or do you stay with your choice not worrying about the price?


Notice that we are talking about spending LESS than expected...
If you would like to participate in our "very serious and scientific study" you can do it so by voting below...

poll by twiigs.com

Have fun!

Door Sweet Home

The old door made it out of the truck and into the garage for a quick and fun makeover right on time for another White Wednesday.

Its white old paint was the perfect background for a bold and graphic statement...can you tell that we are really in love with big black lettering later?

We made our own stencil by simply using regular paper, the computer and the printer.
Once we decided the how and the where...

we painted...
and this is what we got:

Some distressing later...
(A coat of aqua paint peeked through... Bingo!!)

a couple of metal brackets, a piece of wood cut to size...

and voilá!

The perfect accent for a hallway or an entryway.
Taking almost no space at all, (only about 12" deep), our door provides enough room for a lamp,the keys, the purse. ...

It also reminds you that you are where you're supposed to be....HOME!

Also linked to:
Transformation Thursday
The DIY Showoff

Less is more...

That we have always loved antiques and chippy paint, is nothing new.

For years we have admired, and still do!, rooms like these...
full of architectural pieces, collections and white goodness....

warmed up with the coziness that only wood grain can give...

Customers always asked: Do you keep a lot of what you buy?
I didn't keep a lot but I sure kept enough!

But lately, in my own life, I have been in a less-is-more frame of mind.


I've been un-cluttering spaces, specially the garage.
Projects collected over time are being finished and moved to the Country Roads space.
Fabric, trims, vintage jewelry are finally being used...I had a tendency of buying it and saving it for something better, some project that some day I'll tackle...(well, those days are finally here!)

I have been extremely selective in what I buy with intentions of resale:

If something is brought in, it has to be in the way out in less than 2 days.
Paint, repair, re do in less than 2 days or it's not coming in!
Since I implemented this rule, only 3 pieces made it to the back of my truck:
2 of them have already sold,

the third piece, the old door is being done today since I'm feeling 100 times better!

The less is more rule applies also to my home decor.
No, I'm not going for this...

But lately, I have been very inspired by rooms like this:
Simpler, cleaner spaces

Less cluttered but with the same warmth.

My love affair with vintage still the same.
Crackled paint still makes my heart skip a beat and my collections still make me happy, but I don't think I need to own more.

I never thought I will get to this point, but:
My relationship with the white goodness is, from now on, strictly business!


Picture credits:
www.countryliving.com
www.apartmenttherapy.com

Sunday

After two other days of constant rain, the sun is finally out.

My cold decided to give me some energy back...thank you very much!
and Formal was a wonderful night ...

This week is going to be great...
I can already feel it!!

"It's so hard when I have to, and so easy when I want to"
~Annie Gottlier~