I love looking at what others have done, not so I can simply copy their ideas, but so it can be an inspirational jumping point to get creative juices flowing for my own projects.

As you take in ideas from so many people and places, you might hear different voices saying things like… you can’t do it that way, you should always do it this way, you need to go buy these items, or you can’t use those colors together, etc. I think we have to be very careful as we take in SO MANY ideas, that we try to stay true to the style that is uniquely us. If we don’t, we all start looking the same … and what a boring world that is!

I always tell my children… in life, we need to eat the fish & spit out the bones. What do I mean by that? Simply, as we take in ideas, keep the bits we love & let go of the bits that don’t belong. It’s nearly never a whole image that inspires me the most, but rather the little bits here and there that become the best Pinterest ideas for me. They may even be things that others don’t even notice! Perhaps it’s a little item on a bookshelf, a pattern on a piece of cloth, or a particular plant in a whole garden bed of flowers.

The most important thing when creating your home & space is to surround yourself with things that you and your family love, and a space that feels like it gives you a hug every time you walk into it!

The post Pinterest Ideas For Your Home And Garden appeared first on A Storybook Life.

Bird prints, vintage Audubon prints & botanical prints are some of my favorite things!

The sad thing is, vintage prints, especially bird & botanical prints, are sometimes very difficult to find.

I’ve been keeping my eyes open while treasure hunting through the different shops in our area hoping to find something … anything! On a recent trip to one of my favorite little shops not far from our village, I was going through a pile of linens, when all of the sudden, my eye caught what looked like a pile of vintage prints. Could it be? I quickly put down the linens, and made my way passed the baskets, plates & other goodies, so I could take a closer look.

To my surprise & utter joy, it was a beautiful pile of vintage prints taken from a Birds of America book. The book is a collection of prints by naturalist and painter John James Audubon. It was first published as a series in sections between 1827 and 1838, and has been in publication since. I recently saw the book brand new in the bargain section of Barnes & Noble for $18, but it’s so much more fun to find some vintage versions with a bit of character.

I thumbed through the pile, picking the birds that I love most & those that I might see at our own feeders in the cottage garden. I also picked birds that had some blue in them, since I would be using them to decorate the dining room, & it is currently dressed in blue & white for the new season.

Having my prints in hand, I was excited to come home & begin the gallery wall project.

The first thing I did, was to lay them all out on the harvest table, to see how I wanted them to look on the wall.

I had a piece of reclaimed barn wood in the basement, & my husband cut it into three pieces for me.

On both ends of each piece of wood, we screwed a black screw to make it less noticeable.

I took a piece of garden twin, & tied it to each screw. I made sure to get it as tight as possible, and to leave a piece hanging for some extra character.

After we had each of the three pieces strung, we measured how far apart we wanted them, and used screws to hang each of them on the wall.

Then I hung each vintage bird print on the twin with a black mini clothes pin, being careful to space them evenly.

Here are some close ups of the individual bird prints.

Indigo Bunting

Blue Bird

Florida Jay

White Throated Sparrow

House Wren (I liked the blue berries in this one )

Warbler & Blue Birds

Western Corvids

Blue Jay

You could make a gallery wall out of anything that you would like!

You could use:
Pictures of Family
Pages of a Vintage Book
Print Pictures From Online
Love Letters
Sheet Music
Artwork From The Kids
Christmas Cards
Vintage Postcards
You could also add little bits of nature – like bird feathers, pine cones, dried flowers, or leaves

The possibilities are endless … but they are all sure to be beautiful!!!

Here it is all finished!

Creatively Yours,
Pearl

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A New Day Lies Before Us

“The future lies before you
Like a field of driven snow.
Be careful how you tread it
For every step will show.”

We have before us … a new year, a new season, and a new day filled with new hours.

My mother has always taught us from her life & favorite scripture:

“So teach us to number our days,
that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”
Psalm 90:12

And it is so true!

We each have the opportunity to invest ourselves more in the lives of others, so that
we will leave this year so much richer that when we started it!

How will our lives will interact with others?
Have we loved?
Have we really lived?
Have we mattered?

The wonderful news is, as long as we have breath, we can decide to live a life walking
with God, with purpose, and full of love for others.

Please never take for granted the life you have!

I encourage you to …

Put your life in God’s hands.

Show kindness more than you ever thought you could.

Enjoy the little things about each day – the sunrise & sunset, the stars, and a simple smile.

Love others like you’ve never loved.

And live each day to the fullest!

Let’s walk purposefully in 2016, because others will be following in our steps!

* I took this picture from the mountain above our little village.

The post Happy New Year – Welcome 2016 appeared first on A Storybook Life.

This is Lake Delta, a beautiful lake not far from our village.
 

I want to share one of my favorite writings with you today. It’s a short letter
that Fra Giovanni wrote to his friend in 1513. It’s called – “Take Peace”

I salute you. I am your friend and my love for you goes deep.

There is nothing I can give you which you have not got. But there is much,
very much, that while I cannot give it, you can take.

No heaven can come to us unless our hearts find rest in today. Take heaven!

No peace lies in the future which is not hidden in this present little instance.
Take peace!

The gloom of the world is but a shadow. Behind it, yet within our reach, is joy.
Take joy!

Life is so full of meaning and purpose, so full of beauty . . . that you will
find earth but cloaks your heaven.

Courage then to claim it, that is all! . . . And so I greet you, with profound
esteem and with the prayer that for you, now and forever, the day breaks and
the shadows flee away.

May your table be surrounded with love & laughter this Thanksgiving, and may your heart
be filled with thankfulness, as you’re reminded of the many blessings that God has
brought to your home.

Pearl

The post Happy Thanksgiving appeared first on A Storybook Life.

I absolutely love the beautiful surroundings that God has blessed us with, and as each season
unfolds, I try to bring as much of that beauty inside as possible for our family to enjoy. With
the rich bounty that Autumn brings to the woodland, finding little treasures to feather our nest
for the long winter ahead, is both an easy, and a favorite thing of mine (I have many ;)!

Every year different things catch my eye, and this year, one of those things was our hydrangeas!
They did amazingly well over the summer, and bringing them inside allows us to enjoy them for the
rest of the year as well!

I’m also in love with the fact, that our oak trees seemed to produce an overabundance of acorns
this year! I’ve tucked them here and there all over the place, & I think our squirrels would
definitely approve. Next week, I’ll turn them into Christmas decorations, so we can continue
to enjoy them.

I like to hang a hops wreath each year, and this year, a local farmer friend made me a larger
one to hang hang over the mantel. I love the delicateness and soft shades of green in the
beautiful hops flowers … hops wreaths are one of my favorite things.

I hope you had all the shades of white & green at the farm stand this year like we did! They
were amazing! Just look at that chunky green beauty on the mantel! When I saw it, I knew it had
to have a place of honor among the hydrangeas.

I started with a green and white table runner, then a piece of burlap, topped with some dried
gourds that I’ve had for a few years now, assorted pumpkins and gourds, acorns here & there,
and some beautiful strands of bittersweet. Did I mention that bittersweet is one of my favorite
things?

I found this darling little french bakers rack in a little antique shop not far from the
village. The shop keeper hated to part with it, and told me how it was one of their favorite
things in the shop… now it’s one of my favorites as well. It’s fun to go through my
cupboards, and pull out different things to display on it. Vintage yellow ware bowls,
hand carved butter bowls, quilts, linens, and dried flowers all speak of the season with
their beautiful deep shades of autumn colors.

The use of deep blue & orange is new for me this year ~ and I love it! I was surprised at
how the dried hydrangea blossoms kept their deep blue color. And those orange Chinese
lanterns give the arrangement such an unexpected pop of color!

This year, I decided to use a lot of green & copper on the open shelves & buffet table that
my husband made for our dining room. See my cuckoo clocks? The one on the far right is the
first clock that I took completely apart & fixed. Here’s another recent cuckoo clock I repaired.
I’ve repaired 3 so far, and have 3 more in various stages of repair.
I love cuckoo clocks… they’re a favorite!

The light green of this beautiful gourd, next to the deep green of the vintage yellow ware
bowl is a beautiful combination. I’m hoping this little gourd dries nicely, so I can use
it again next year

And… oh those greens in the hydrangeas! They look so pretty against the matte black finish
of the vintage bread bucket we found at the antique show this year. They add such life to our home!

While it’s true that I love all of the things our home is made up of, my favorite
things are not “things” at all! My favorites are the people that fill our home, the
family & friends that God has so graciously blessed us with.
 

Pearl

The post Dining Room Decorated For Autumn appeared first on A Storybook Life.

Wait a minute… is there really a perfect way to cook a turkey? What you need to find out is, what is the
perfect way for you & your family

If the thought of …
Juicy dark meat, as well as juicy white meat
All the skin being crispy, instead of half of the bird having soggy skin
Quick cooking times
Delicious juices to make gravy
Having a platter filled with beautiful slices of meat
And my personal favorite… not having to spend half the day picking a carcass clean to get the meat

Then you’ll love this cooking method!

It’s called “Spatchcocking” your turkey.

Here’s a full video to teach you these “secret” methods

Enjoy your feast… and the compliments on the juicy meat… and all the extra free time you’ll have!!

The post How To Cook a Perfect Turkey appeared first on A Storybook Life.

While walking through the forest yesterday, I was reminded again of the seasons of our lives.
It seems like every time I take a walk, I’m reminded of yet another life lesson. And because
I’m in another new season of my own, the change in seasons seems to be speaking the loudest
lessons right now.

When I came upon the acorns scattered here & there on the forest floor, it took me back to
one of my favorite memories as a little girl (I have many )

One of my fond memories as a little girl, was playing in the grass & coming across the
tiny little treasures left by the mighty oaks that lined our schoolyard. I had pockets
full of the tiny beauties.

Now, years later, I am thankful that someone took the time so many years before, to plant
those gorgeous trees, so that I could have the adventures that I did beneath them.

Every little acorn has such potential. Inside is everything needed to produce a
mighty oak tree. All it needs is the right conditions to begin growing.

With Autumn being upon us, we see such changes everywhere we look. Leaves are bursting
with color, there’s a chill in the air, animals are putting away food for the colder days
ahead, & wood piles are being stacked to warm families everywhere. The trees are also
preparing… by giving their fruit in season, to produce a harvest for generations to
come.

Perhaps you find yourself in a new season as well. Maybe you don’t have a clear vision
on what is yet to come, and feel like you’re not growing & changing as fast as you’d
like. Don’t forget…

“Within a tiny acorn, a mighty oak is waiting! Great things always start small, so
embrace beginnings & take joy in the journey.”

Take Joy,
Pearl Sanborn

The post Acorns to Oaks – Take Joy in The Journey appeared first on A Storybook Life.

Enjoy every moment of this gorgeous season!

“I’m so glad I live in a world with Octobers”
Anne of Green Gables

The post Anne of Green Gables appeared first on A Storybook Life.

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I often dream about a little cottage tucked in the woods, filled with all sorts of tools and everything that a woodworker / clock maker would need to create the most enchanting little creations. There’s lots of clocks ticking, and wood carvings in different stages of being finished. Then, as I see the hands hard at work in my minds eye, I move up to see their face… whoops it’s me

Wouldn’t that just be the sweetest!

This little cuckoo clock is a 5 leaf, 1 day, musical clock made in the black forest of Germany. It was such a great deal, & needed very little work, so I couldn’t resist.

I’m not much for the bright colors, so as you can see here, we needed to do something about that.

Whenever you move a cuckoo clock, be sure to put a wire through the links of the chains closest to the holes. This keeps them from falling off of the gears.

I’m thankful that all of the parts were included with this one. That almost never happens in places like this.

Don’t you just love these dancing couples! Not only are they beautifully dressed for a night out on the town, but they give us a show with the music every hour.

You can see that the top left clip that attaches the carvings needs to be fixed.

Instead of re-staining the piece, I decided to use a watered down black paint. That way, a bit of the color can still shine through, while darkening everything quite a bit.

Then I carefully removed the ever so tiny nails from the face of the clock, and propped it up with some folded newspaper to keep the paint from getting on it. (wow – those are the tiniest nails I’ve ever seen!)

Here’s a better view of the chains & the wire protecting them from falling off of the gears.

You can already see a huge difference in color!

I’m holding the carvings up to see how the colors are coming, and to be sure that I got the clock face back on straight.

It’s starting to really come together now!

Now, it’s finally finished & ready to go! I love the dark color against the robin’s egg blue walls.

Now for the final test… removing the wire, pulling the chains, setting the time, and swinging the pendulum … and … it works!!!

I am so thrilled to have another clock in my little collection … I wonder what will be next

Here’s how cuckoo clocks are made in the Black Forest in Germany

The post Cuckoo Clock appeared first on A Storybook Life.

{Surprise}

It’s amazing what surprises you’ll see when you’re looking for them!

Needing a little break from work, I decided to take a walk down one of our woodland paths. I always expect to find some little treasure, so I keep my eyes open for them. I was inspecting the progress of the lilies of the valley in front of an old stone wall, when right there in front of me, my eyes caught this gorgeous green & purple “Jack in the pulpit”! I’ve never seen them in our forest before, and I was definitely not expecting to find one so beautiful!

Native Americans gathered the fleshy taproots, dried them to eliminate the poisonous qualities, & then used them as a vegetable. I’m not big on poison, so I think I’ll just stick to enjoying their beauty

I plan to keep my eyes open for the seed pods in the fall, so I can plant them & expect to see many more covering our woodland floor!

Take a few minutes for yourself today… you never know what surprises await!

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