Friday, July 5, 2013

A birthday, a box & a tree

Good afternoon dear friends & readers,

This past week I celebrated a birthday :-)


I had a lovely day & got some very lovely gifts from friends & family
I even received some gifts wrapped in vintage wallpaper which I was particularly taken with ...


this beautiful cushion was handmade by my friend Sally :-)

I absolutely adore it !!!

gorgeous felted pincushion made by my friend Elaine
Yes, I was spoilt I know . . . 
the cutest little miniature wheelbarrow planted AND with bulbs popping up :-)

Several years ago when I worked in the Gift Shop, a few doors down was the greatest 2nd hand shop called "Alans", & folk would come from all over as his prices were so reasonable.
Unfortunately he had the really bad habit of writing lots of prices on things with black vivid marking pen :-(
I would finish work at 1 pm on a Saturday & often pop down for a browse ... & inevitably something would come home with me!!

This wooden box was bought from Alans for $4.00
(he had written $4 on the lid but I forgot to take a picture first)


Recently my $4 box got a makeover ...






I waxed/painted the box, then I covered some cardboard with wadding + fabric & then double-sided taped it to the lid & base
(the reason I attached it this way was in case I decided to change the colour at any stage)

Then I applied some "rub ons" given to me for my birthday, plus added an old set of keys to the latch ...





I was quite chuffed with my $4 box & knew exactly what I planned to fill it with ...

Recently I had been slowly working away in the evenings on some of the delightful projects from this book



Very kindly gifted to me by Wendy from here


All filled with wadding plus a generous scoop of my lavender :-)   Smells divine!!



The projects are wonderful to make & very enjoyable - I plan to make lots more - thank you So Much Wendy for your very thoughtful & generous gift x0x


This past week has seen me trying to paint some of the fittings out of the Cottage but the weather has not been kind - this is what greeted the Mr the other night on his return home
(for the life of me, I dont know WHY he was not impressed???!!!)



(Anyone fancy Paint for dinner???!!!)

As well as the inside of the Cottage getting a revamp, the outside has been undergoing a change with the removal of the large Paulownia tree out front







All very scary stuff - luckily the men knew what they were doing as we didnt have the "fat fluffy" here to supervise them this time :-)

This is all that remains of the tree ...



I hope to use the slab of the trunk to display some things :-)

Lastly friends I had a quick visit to my friends Sallys last weekend & snapped a few pics - her place always inspires me immensely





Just gorgeous eye candy ...


Sallys new trolley in her kitchen

I will share some more next post if you promise to be very good :-)
Thanks so much for popping by & visiting me
Wishing you all a wonderful weekend - looks like a wet one here
Cheerio for now,
much love/hugs/friendship,
Julie x0x0x

9 comments:

  1. Lucky lucky gal! some lovely treasures. Sad that lovely tree had to go, not doubt the stump will be made over by you in some magical way.
    Cute wee cushions, one came to my house didn't it for my birthday? Your friends house is real eye candy.
    So what's wrong with paint for dinner? Really, some men are so fussy!

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  2. Happy, happy birthday dear friend! Yes, isn't wallpaper a grand idea...great for posting too. I look out for it in op shops etc. Only thing is sometimes it's a bit bouncy & the cellotape doesn't always stick. You are so good at up-cycles & makeovers! the box looks wonderful. Very sensible the double-sided tape. And I love the attached keys. Darling little wheelbarrow. I love old wheelbarrows don't you? I wonder what colour the pansies will be?
    Golly that'll make a big difference to your cottage having the tree removed. Do paulownias make good firewood?
    I have tried very hard to be good...does that count? Please do show us some more!
    Have a good weekend...hopefully returning the cottage to order & NOT painting that bedroom ceiling!
    Much love always Catherine x0x0x

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  3. Happy Belated Birthday Julie ... love all your birthday goodies and then there is the $4.00 wooden box, just love love what you have done with it and then there is the cushions!!! You are such an inspiration. Sounds as if you might be feeling a little better? Hugs

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  4. Oh I always love your posts Julie and looking at all your gorgeous treasures. A very happy belated birthday too. You definitely deserve to be spoilt. Hugs xx

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  5. What lovely things you received for your bday.
    I adore that wheelbarrow of plants just to cute!!!

    Okay I must say you have made a treasure chest of happy with that old box. how cute is that displaying your needleworks.

    Oh I laughed so hard with that fire picture. So the story of my life...no dinner but plenty of crafting in progress. LOL

    I hope it does warm up for you a bit so you can get back at your cottage. Your things are so lovely and I am sure customers are just wanting to get in.
    Have a great weekend
    Amy

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  6. Adored your box Julie, envy. Your little cushions are delightful and looked wonderful in the box. You are so clever at finding all these treasures. Looking forward to seeing the make over of the cottage. Hope with the Paulownia gone it's not too bare for you. Hugs Shirley

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  7. Happy belated birthday, you got some lovely things. I love seeing how you reuse old things and the box looks gorgeous now and works so well with all those beautiful hearts and cushions you made, just lovely!! Hugs Wendy

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  8. Hello Julie,

    Happy Birthday to you, you received some lovely gifts that were meant just for you.
    Gosh you will notice the difference with the tree gone. I remember seeing those at some of the gardens I have visited. Love what you did with the four dollar box, it looks so lovely with the lavender and hearts etc in it.
    Your friends pictures are divine too but I am a little worried that those little people may not have enough air under that cloche.

    Have a wonderful week Julie.
    Bev.

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  9. Golly gee how did I miss this post?! Hope you had a FABulous birthday! You received some lovely gifts :-) I like what you have done with the $4box - what a transformation... and the cushions in it - very cute. Your friends's house looks as much of a treasure trove as yours is!!

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Hello, & thank you for taking the time to comment on my posts - I read and appreciate each and every one of your comments :-)
I always prefer to reply to your comments by email unless you are a no-reply-blogger in which case I will reply to your comments in this section here. Thanks so much for stopping by to read & comment on my blog x0x