owl really

Thirty Before 30: Decorating the Living Room Wall

2012-05-30T06:00:00.000-05:00

My birthday was so great - I am so thankful for all the amazing people in our lives! I will write more soon about it - stay tuned!

Meanwhile, do you remember when I posted a hilarious photo of a flower drawing Andy hung on the wall? I had hammered SO many nails in the wall and hung a lot of frames filled with various things but then took them down once we were married and he moved in because the arrangement felt VERY girly. I took down his flower drawing and hung it on our fridge which left the wall above our couch empty for months and months and months.

Recently, I decided to no longer use nails and instead use 3m Command Strips. I love these things! They are so versatile and work SO well.

It took me awhile to figure out the configuration I wanted and which prints/drawings/print-outs/etc to hang. I went with the below arrangement which is all subject to change since it's so easy to swap out with the strips! (No, I'm not getting paid to promote them, I just love them!)

PS, it's really hard to take photos of frames with glass! How do people do that? Is there a trick I'm missing? Do professionals remove the glass for photo shoots?

The arrangement is a little small for the wall but it works for now. (It might also be too high, or that might be an optical illusion.) Someday, I'd love to get larger artwork or something but for now, this is what we have - a mixture of original art from an estate sale, old family photos of my mom and her cousins, a cute globe postcard from "France" in Epcot, my Rebekka Seale sparrow print, a few ACEOS from etsy, and the birdcage print is an old school flashcard.

Someday I really want a new couch - a more streamlined, mid-century couch. I got this one on Craigslist years ago when my style was very shabby chic/pottery barn-esque and unfortunately I haven't been able to find an appropriate couch and then we got Lucy and want to wait to make sure she wouldn't tear a new couch up.

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Honeymoon Roadtrip Video

2012-05-29T06:00:00.000-05:00

I have officially run out of time to complete my thirty before 30 list! Although, we are celebrating my birthday on Friday so does that buy me a little more time? :)

I did get a lot done and like I mentioned in the last post about this, it has definitely encouraged me to live life more intentionally. I am in a major creative streak right now which is SO fun and unpredictable.

I finally finished editing together the little video clips from our honeymoon roadtrip last year. We drove to Chattanooga to visit Rock City, the Tennessee Aquarium, and the Chattanooga Choo Choo. The next day, we took a ride on a historic train then headed to Atlanta for the Coke museum, dinner at Houston's, Ikea, and a private tour of CNN thanks to someone I met through work. Most of the video comes from Rock City because it was so gorgeous and the aquarium because some of the critters were so intriguing!

Here is my simple little video!

I have a few more thirty before 30 updates that I will post later!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Corner of our world: Vintage chair

2012-05-25T07:18:00.001-05:00

Just a little corner of our room - I finally cleaned all the laundry off this chair and mopped the floors so it was time to take a new photo of this little corner. :)

Got the chair a few years ago at the Goodwill Outlet for $4! Amazing. The yellow pillow is from Urban Outfitters (a wedding gift from our friends Will & Cali), the curtains are actually tablecloths from Target.com, and the black pillow is handmade by me. The nightstand is from when I was on A&E's design show "Find and Design" yeaaaaars ago and it supposedly came from the flea market, but you never know with a reality/tv design show!

(I've probably never mentioned the show here before - when I first bought my house, my roommate and I were on the show and they re-did the extra bedroom into a "shabby chic party pad." The only thing that remains in that room from that design is the light fixture! My style has completely changed and the room is now Andy's office!)

In other chair news, if you live in the Nashville area, check out this chair that I am selling. If you're interested, please email me!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Bloggers at the Dress Barn!

2012-05-24T06:00:00.000-05:00

Recently, Lisa from My Pretty Baby Cried She Was a Bird emailed a few of us local vintage bloggers because she had been invited to a bloggers' night out at our brand new Dress Barn. None of us really knew what to expect, but we were super excited for the opportunity to all meet! I had met Rae, Rae had met Eartha, and Rae and Lisa had seen each other at estate sales but never met. It was so, so fun to all hang out!

The Dress Barn ladies were super sweet and the new store at Opry Mills (our outlet mall that just re-opened after the flood of May 2010) is beautiful! We had a lot of fun hanging out in the dressing room!

Dressing room shot! Me, Rae, Eartha, and Lisa.

With their purchases! Eartha bought a really cute handbag, Rae got an awesome tiki-style dress, and both Lisa and I picked up some new shades.

Here's Rae with her fun new dress!

We also got to meet Adrienne of What Lola Wants! It was so fun to hang out and be girly!

Lisa recapped our time together here and is giving away a $25 gift card to Dress Barn! Eartha, Rae and Adrienne also wrote about our blogger meet-up!

Have you had a chance to meet any of your blog friends? It's a blast!!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

What has been keeping me busy?

2012-05-23T06:00:00.000-05:00

Oh, lots of things!

I have been loving plants and flowers lately and so I've been working more with them. Lucy (by way of her grandma Young) gave me a cute dog planter for mother's day and I got free* marigolds at Wal-mart the very next day, so I planted those.

So cute, huh? The dog looks pretty similar to Lucy and the head and tail bob, which is pretty darn cute. I put it out on our deck, which gets full sun, so the poor marigolds haven't been very happy, unfortunately!

Those aren't the only flowers I've been working with, though!

When we got married, I bartered with my hairstylist, Lauren. She did my hair and I pledged to day-of-coordinate her wedding in the future. She got married in April in a private ceremony and planned a super cute and intimate reception Sunday night at The Boundry in Nashville. My major duty was picking up the geraniums and cutting them and arranging them in tiny vases then transporting them to the venue. Lauren had everything under control and the reception was so relaxed and the Boundry staff were so amazing that I barely had any other responsibilities! I wish I could have done more for Lauren and Alex but they are definitely laid back and have the right attitude toward weddings and marriage!

Here are the beautiful geraniums I got to play with!

And a photo of the cute vases, a blurry pic of one of my little arrangements, and another show of the whole bunch of them. It was nice to play florist in my kitchen for a little while!

The reception was a great success! Lauren and Alex are about to move to California (agh!) and I am really going to miss her friendship and talent with my unruly hair!!

These are just a few of the things I've been working on... stay tuned for more!

*Free marigolds - ha! Funny story and also the biggest waste of 10 minutes of my life! I was checking out and was asked if I wanted to donate to Vandy Childrens' Hospital. I said sure and the cashier told me that for donating, I got a free plant. She told me to show my receipt to the person outside and they would give me my free plant. I walked outside (mind you, this whole time I am pushing a cart full of stuff) and there was no one out there. There was, however, an employee corralling carts inside. I asked him if he knew who to ask about the free plants and he had no idea what I was talking about. (red flag #1!) He said to ask in customer service, so I pushed my cart back inside and stood in line at customer service. There was only one person behind the counter and the line was growing longer and longer. When it was finally my turn, she (surprise!) had no idea what I was talking about.

I suddenly felt like everyone thought I was trying to scam them into giving me a free plan. Just at that moment, an older British lady started asking a greeter about her free "plahnt." She said "The cashier told me I get a free plahnt!" So, I officially knew that I was not alone and was not pulling a scam. The customer service rep started calling people and trying to figure out what was going on, but in a tone that definitely still conveyed that she didn't really believe us.

A manager finally came around and told us that the free plants were the hanging baskets in the black pots. The British lady and I were like "Wow, a hanging basket? That's awesome!" (She probably said "brilliant" and not awesome.) We both hauled our carts back outside and the hanging baskets were $16 each. Neither of us felt very ethical taking a $16 plant for a $1 donation, so back inside we went to clarify. The manager said, "The $1 hanging baskets," and we assured him there were no $1 hanging baskets.

So, skeptical customer service rep came outside with us and led us to the little trays of flowers and said "These." They were neither $1 nor hanging, which is why we originally passed them up. I was so done with the whole ordeal that I just grabbed the first ones I saw, which happened to be these very cute french marigolds that are now, unfortunately, dying.

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Brownie Love

2012-05-22T06:00:00.000-05:00

When we were home for Mother's Day, my mom gave me my grandmother's brownie camera. I love it! I see them at sales every now and then but haven't seen one with the flash... I think the flash adds so much personality!

It has found a really cute home in our house, but I haven't had a chance to take photos yet. I have to re-hang some artwork and grab some extra accessories and then I will be ready to reveal!

I have been really bad about blogging regularly - life has been pretty busy and isn't calming down anytime soon!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Unconventional Shopping :)

2012-05-18T06:00:00.000-05:00

You know I love a good deal and I love how easy it can be to find amazing deals online!

Van from ThriftCore has space in her local antique mall, but she also sells via her blog and Facebook! It's fun to follow her feed and see what she has for sale every day!

A few weeks ago, she posted a light that I thought would make a great gift for Andy! I like to buy gifts in advance but the problem is that I am my mother's child and I can NOT hold onto a gift once I have it... I have to give it right away!

So, the light came and I excitedly opened the box and presented Andy with the bubble-wrapped package and gave him what I intended to be his birthday present approximately 2.5 months early. :)

It's so cool! He hung it up in his office right away. It lights up and looks great!

And I loved the note and drawing she included in the package!

Be sure to check out ThriftCore for lots of tips on thrifting, antique booths, and fun DIYs!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Updates and Celebrations!

2012-05-15T06:00:00.000-05:00

I have been so behind on blogging! We have been so, so busy. Here are some recaps and updates from the past few weeks!

First, the kitchen is coming along- I still need to take final "after" photos but here is a sneak peek:

I am loving the new color and the nice, flat walls! And I love our new microwave cart!

Andy and I celebrated our first anniversary but I never had a chance to share what he got me! Following the first anniversary "paper" tradition, Andy had one of our favorite wedding photos printed on a puzzle!! How great is that??

Here we are the night that we had a few friends over to watch Empire Strikes Back (I had never seen it!)

And here's me with sweet Lucy:

And here are the cookies that me, Sylvia, and her daughter Emmy decorated for Star Wars day... can you tell who they are?? I had no idea how to decorate them since I am definitely not a Star Wars aficionado!

This weekend, Andy and I went to Louisville to celebrate mother's day with my mom. We visited one of my favorite places, Churchill Downs:

It has been a very fun few weeks! May won't be slowing down as my 30th birthday is in exactly 2 weeks! AHHH!!!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

2012-05-11T06:00:00.000-05:00

This is so fun - Whimseybox invited me to be their first featured user! I went pretty cheesy with my answers, but what can I say? I'm pretty cheesy!! :)

I hope you have an amazing weekend!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Thirty Before 30 Update #4

2012-05-10T06:00:00.000-05:00

With less than 3 weeks until my 30th birthday, I am checking in on my Thirty Before 30 list! Somehow, when I originally created this list, I mis-numbered items and therefore there are not actually 30 items - woops!

Also, lots of my priorities shifted over the year and it's interesting to see that! The items that are in red are the ones that are no longer an option or priority.

You'll also notice the theme of "I need to blog about it!" below. I guess I better start taking photos so I can blog about these projects before May 29!

House:

1. Buy a new couch - This has moved to a lower priority until Lucy is out of her puppy stage, although she has not tried to destroy our current couch yet, so maybe she would be okay with a new one... but, better safe than sorry.
2. Get the attic (craft space & guest room) organized - The attic gets organized, then gets trashed again, then gets organized. It is almost always "in progress" but it is fairly organized, I just need to put things away! And then I'll take photos and blog about it!
3. Change up dining room wall decor - I have done 2 of the 3 walls and I still don't know what to do where the mirror and sconces are. It's a little fancy for my current taste but the mirror was a gift so I don't want to get rid of it or anything... still figuring this out.
4. ~~Redecorate above the couc~~h - I did it! I just need to blog about it!
5. ~~Get shelves for living room and redecorate the inside the door space~~ - I did it! And it looks GOOD! I just need to blog about it!! :)
6. ~~Hang the "Y"s I've been collecting~~ - Added the yellow Y to the kitchen and the cream one to the dining room. Just need to blog about it! :)
~~7. Get (and keep alive) more plants~~ - I love all my plants! I need to blog about them! :)
~~8. Go through my old CDs and figure out what to keep/import/sell/etc~~
~~9. Get a canvas print of the "Believe" sign at the church where we were married~~
10. Organize garage - We still really need to do this!

Life:

~~1. Get our wedding photo booth photos printed for our guestbook~~
~~2. Finish wedding thank you notes~~
3. Be more intentional in my friendships - this one is hard to quantify, so I'm leaving it up here as a reminder to initiate hanging out with friends!
4. (woops)
~~5. Get our wedding featured on a wedding blog~~ - Thank you Ashley's Bride Guide!
6. Make a meal plan/menu with Andy - After talking about it, we're not really going to do this.
7. Learn how to arrange flowers properly - I am hoping to get over to the big flower shop to pick out some individual flowers and try my hand at arranging. I have read books and blogs on arranging, now I just need to put what I've learned into practice!
8. (woops)
9. Edit a video of our honeymoon roadtrip - sheesh, I need to do this!
10. Watch all the seasons of Mad Men - We finished the first 4 seasons finally! Now we just need to catch up on Season 5 so far!
~~11. Take a trip with Andy~~ - Seattle!
~~12. See a play/musical~~ - We saw our friend Jason in The Complete Works of Shakespeare, we saw Mary Poppins on stage, and we saw an adaptation of CS Lewis' The Screwtape Letters!
13. Ride our bikes this fall and next spring - we have been really really bad about this!

Business:

1. Put an item on consignment in a local vintage shop - not going to do this now that I have a booth
~~2. Succeed with booth at TN Antique Mall~~ - The booth has gone really well and while April was a bad month, I think overall, my booth is doing well!
~~3. Go to an auction~~
4. ~~Make postcards for my business to leave at the booth~~
5. ~~Do a fabric bouquet tutorial on my blog~~
6. ~~Grow my blog to 75 followers and 75 subscribers~~ - Oh my goodness, you guys. Thank you so much for subscribing! I have 170 GFC followers and 255 Feedburner subscribers!!
7. Do another flea market (maybe even organize one?) - This one is also not going to happen since I don't have the inventory to set up at a flea market AND have my booth.

All in all, it was really nice to have a list to work through and goals to attain. I'm not sure if I'll do a list of "31 before 31" because these were all pretty mundane items...and I can't really think of what I want to accomplish in the next year.

I have big goals and dreams but I don't want to place time constraints on them and I also want to keep myself open to spontaneity and honestly, God's plan for me. I think this list helped me be more intentional in what I do and I think I would just like to live more intentionally, rather than by a list.

Are you working through a list of goals? I would love to read about it- leave a comment with your link if you're blogging about it!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Baking Powder Biscuits

2012-05-08T06:00:00.000-05:00

As a southern lady and wife, I feel like sometime in my life I need to perfect the art of biscuits and gravy. I am a hopeless, hopeless failure when it comes to gravy - I have tried a few times and watched women in my family make it, and I just can't get it. One time, I tried to make breakfast for dinner and made biscuits and gravy. Andy took one bite and immediately went to pick some dinner up for us. Eek!

In any case, I decided to try to make biscuits from scratch for the first time (but NOT gravy - I couldn't handle it if BOTH items failed!) and it worked! It actually worked!

I have limited baking supplies at home, so I had to find a recipe that called for ingredients I had on hand. I went with this Baking Powder Biscuits recipe from AllRecipes.com.

All you need is:

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shortening
1 egg
2/3 cup milk

*insert record screech here* Cream of tartar? What the heck is cream of tartar? I googled and discovered it activated baking powder in recipes... but this recipe didn't call for baking soda, it called for baking powder! Hmm. I googled some more and saw that it is basically an acidic ingredient and one can substitute vinegar or lemon juice for cream of tartar, so I pulled out my jug of vinegar and substituted away!

It was easy - you just mix the dry ingredients, cut in the shortening, then beat the milk and egg together and add it in. Roll it out, cut out your biscuits, then bake for 10-12 minutes at 450 degrees and voila! Homemade biscuits!

You'll notice that my biscuits are 2 different shades. I baked a 2nd batch while we ate the first batch and I forgot to set the timer so they turned out pretty dark - but I taste-tested one and it was actually pretty good! It kinda tasted like a cracker biscuit, if you can imagine that! I like crackers, so I thought it was ok, but you'll probably want to keep a better eye on your biscuits while they bake!

Enjoy!!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Thrift Report: Estate Scores!

2012-05-07T06:00:00.000-05:00

Rae texted me Thursday to let me know that there was an amazing estate sale happening a little bit outside of town. I wasn't sure if I would have time to go, but luckily, I was able to go - about an hour before the sale closed and amazingly, there was still a GREAT selection!

I picked up some fun potholders and a cute pink & white accordion pleated pillow that will all go to the booth. But, two of my favorite finds were a Viewmaster Projector and a white task lamp. The projector was the first item I discovered - apparently, there were a ton of viewmaster slides but a local news anchor bought them just a few hours before me! I'm so glad she didn't see the projector! I LOVE IT. It works and is so, so cute. And the white lamp is in great condition and it also works! I picked up a bag of little figurines that included 2 fawns and a little squirrel that will all go in terrariums or in potted plants. Love this stuff!

They also had a ton of vintage Christmas. I got a LOT - a box full of vintage ornaments and then 2 fun retro Santas.

I am so, so glad I stopped. I also bought some faux bois metal shelves that I'm not quite sure what I'll do with yet!

Funnily enough, I ran into Rae when I was leaving! She has stopped by everyday and said on the first day, it was unbelievable how much great stuff there was. I'm sad that I couldn't make it then, but very happy with my finds!!

What did YOU find this weekend???

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Worn out AKA Kitchen Updates

2012-05-03T06:00:00.000-05:00

I hate to miss a Joey's Mom post today, but it's just been one of those weeks!

Actually, make that 2 weeks!

Last Sunday and Monday, we emptied out our kitchen in preparation for a few updates. We had some broken tiles that we needed replaced and the kitchen walls were textured plaster that was just so, so ugly and I was so, so over them. The kitchen is the one room in the house that I have never done anything to! I just put up with it because it was small and tricky and I thought I might just have to live with it.

Well, we don't want to stay in this house forever, so I figured I should start getting small projects done here and there so that it's not a huge ordeal when we put the house up someday.

The guy who is doing the work does it on the side, so we're at the mercy of his life and schedule... and therefore we're into week 2 of not having a proper kitchen and not being able to use the dining room and also having our microwave cart sit in front of our front door.

Not ideal, especially for someone who is an OCD cleaner. On Saturday, I felt so incredibly restless because I couldn't clean the kitchen and dining room!

Here are photos - BEWARE - what you see might shock you. :) (I'm so tired I didn't even edit them - I normally don't post anything without tweaking, but like I said, it's been one of those weeks!)

Our messy kitchen before:

Very, very messy... woops! You wouldn't know that I'm OCD about cleaning, would you??

Check out this texture:

The result of moving everything out of the kitchen:

Oh boy.

The window that I so foolishly decided to strip 60 years of paint accumulation off of... big project, big mistake.

The kitchen in progress:

It will hopefully be done tonight. Hopefully. We've heard that before, unfortunately. I'm trying to be positive but my patience is a little worn from the past few weeks of craziness!

I can't wait for it to be finished and to get our kitchen shiny and streamlined and THEN show you photos!! Stay tuned!!!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Why do we love buying vintage?

2012-05-02T06:00:00.000-05:00

Why do we love buying vintage? Since last July, I have been interviewing fellow vintage-lovers about their favorite second hand score. There have been so many amazing responses - I have posted the most recent answers below, but you can see the entire Favorite Finds series here if you are new around Owl Really! Click the responder's name to visit their Favorite Finds post and learn more about them!

As always, if you'd like to contribute to Favorite Finds, please e-mail me!

Beth:

I love buying vintage/secondhand for various reasons. The first
reason is I love the thrill of the hunt! To find a vintage treasure
among 'junk' is such a thrill to me. The second reason is it's unique!
If your house is full of vintage or second hand items, there is always
a story attached to that item and most likely no one else will have
something like it. Lastly, it's affordable! I can go shopping much
more often if I purchase items at $5 rather than than $50 items.

Emily:

When it comes to decorating and design, I tend to lean towards a very
modern style. However, this style on its own can seem very cold and
uninviting (see: unhappyhipsters.com!).

Adding vintage pieces to a modern room adds warmth and interest, and
dispels the clinical feel that modern design can so easily slide into.
In addition, I think it is easier to establish your own unique
decorating sense by using vintage pieces, rather than having your style
dictated by the stores you shop in. And let's be honest... I love having
pieces in my home that are different from what everyone else has!

Emerald:

I love buying secondhand/vintage/thrifted clothing because it makes the
most sense. First of all, fashion is always recycled in some way, so
why spend ridiculous amounts of money. I like to buy what I want to
wear and not because a department store is telling me what to buy. You
also are way less likely to be seen wearing the exact same thing as
someone else!

Lindsay:

I love the idea that an item was previously loved. It has a story, it
has already lived another life before it even makes it to your home. I
prefer to be surrounded by things that have a history, there is a
certain romance to it.

Lisa:

Style, girl! It's all about the equal amounts swagger and elegance of
clothes from an earlier era. And quantity and quality over new-ness is
another interest. I could have one department store dress, that someone
else could well be wearing on the same night at the same event, for
$28, on sale, and it would be a "deal". Four sixties' dresses,
hand-hunted from the wilds of Goodwill, practically if not actually
one-of-a-kind, for the same amount, makes them a "steal". We love
steals! And it's not that I don't ever buy new, but the thrill of not
knowing what you're going to find at the thrift store or the flea
market has just about ruined me on actual retail stores. I can express
my taste and aesthetic without breaking my budget.

Lori:

I love the idea that the item has history and a story. I also feel like
most secondhand items are higher quality than modern day items - I love
solid wood furniture and that is hard to find at affordable prices if it
is new. Also I'm so lucky because my husband loves to restore
secondhand items so I have that luxury to get to buy things and he'll
make them new for us.

Kirsty:

I love buying vintage and secondhand (and also handmade) because it all
has a story, it's well built and you are helping the environment too.

Danavee:

I think it runs in my blood. I must have inherited that gene, as my
grandparents dealt in antiques when I was young. My parents decorated
with vintage and antique everything. I would go to my grandpa's shop or
basement and nose around in all his old stuff, and I caught the bug! I
was purchasing vintage lamps and trunks before I even moved out of my
parent's house! There's something about having a piece that no one
else has. The curiosity about where it came from. The history that
comes with it. And then there's the thrill of the hunt. I'll never
get tired of hunting for treasures!

So, what do you say? Why do YOU love buying vintage? Let us know in the comments!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Parsimonia: Now and Then

2012-05-01T06:00:00.000-05:00

I love following Beth's blog, Parsimonia {Secondhand with Style} and keeping up with all her amazing vintage finds. She has introduced a really fun new series on her blog called Now & Then in which she shows vintage and current-day packaging of household items. It's so fun to look at the old packaging and see how design has changed. Of course, I always prefer the vintage designs! :)

See an example below and click through to see her post about it!

Check it out and tell her I sent you!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Ramsign Winner

2012-04-30T20:53:00.000-05:00

Thanks to everyone who entered to win from Ramsign! Our lucky winner was commenter #68, Desiree.

Congratulations, Desiree! I will pass your information on to my Ramsign rep and they will contact you to fulfill your prize!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

One year!

2012-04-30T07:48:00.001-05:00

Today is our first anniversary and I can hardly believe it's been a year! It has flown!

To celebrate, we went to see The Screwtape Letters on stage Friday night and it was incredible!

There's a cool backstory to The Screwtape Letters for us- years ago, I was thrifting in Pennsylvania while on a break during a work trip. I saw an old copy of the book and had heard of it, but had never read it. I felt compelled to buy it and just had this overwhelming sense that I would someday give it to my husband.

Fast forward to dating Andy, and we were browsing a huge used bookstore. We happened to be standing in front of a C.S. Lewis section, which reminded me of my old copy of Screwtape Letters. I asked Andy what was his favorite book and he pointed right at Screwtape Letters on the shelf. I smiled and told him, "I think you're stuck with me."

I didn't tell him the whole story until I gave him the book on our wedding day. And then the play perfectly timed with our anniversary. It just feels like a little wink from God to say "Hey guys, I had this from the beginning."

We went to dinner last night to continue celebrating and tonight we will just relax at home with our little puppy Lucy (who is growing and growing!).

I am so thankful for this past year and I'm so looking forward to many, many, many more!

If you are new around here and haven't read/seen our wedding post, you can read all about it here!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Friday Fun: A Kiss That Breaks Up Rock

2012-04-27T06:00:00.000-05:00

I can't resist anything Rock Hudson and Doris Day related, so I was delighted to see these cute photographs in Life Magazine from February 16, 1962. These outtakes from their shoot for the film Lover Come Back show the onscreen couple cracking up during a kissing scene.

There are lots of other shots of Rock and a little write-up about him. It's a fun little glimpse into how celebrities were written about in the 60s and a nice overview of Rock Hudson. Swoon!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Joey's Mom: Lois

2012-04-26T06:00:00.000-05:00

Joey's Mom introduces us to a wide cast of characters in her photographs and stories on Flickr. Some pop up in one photograph and others prove their lasting legacy through multiple photos over the years.

What I love about Joey's Mom's friendship with Lois is that it was borne out of something dark and scary, but grew into such sweet friendship, the kind of friendship that says, "You're having a baby? I will have one too!" Such dedication and loyalty is hard to come by.

A friend for life

Lois appeared in my life through misfortune. Hers. For me, meeting Lois was a lucky break.

"Why don't you ask Mrs. M. out to lunch soon?" my employer asked when Lois left after her medical appointment. "She's a nice woman and is quite ill. She's going to need surgery, but I can't schedule it yet. She has problems at home too. She needs cheering up."

I noticed she trembled alarmingly when filling out forms and she seemed extremely nervous.

We met at Hattem's for lunch, a popular restaurant on, or just off from Grand Rapids' South Division Avenue in 1949. The waitress asked "Cocktail? Tuesday special for 49 cents!" We sipped Manhattans while awaiting our food. It would become a hallowed ritual to meet on Tuesdays for lunch and have a Manhattan, whether on South Division Avenue or Hattem's successor on the eastern fringe of the city in later years. Or in other cities and days as our lives changed over the years. What was most constant over time was our friendship.

Conversation came easily from our first meeting, though neither of us is a chatterbox. We discussed anything we chose without fear. Soon we were meeting in each others' apartments on weekends or evenings to exchange hair coloring or perms. Clothing purchases were never final until the other had approved. We traded recipes. She read her correspondence to me and we discussed personal matters freely. Our harmless crushes; hers on a handsome Resident at the hospital who paid her special attention, mine on a photographer I knew. We were privy to each others' secrets and nothing went further than our lips.

I visited her in Butterworth Hospital after she had her toxic thyroid gland removed. I wore a royal blue velvet car coat. When Lois admired it I said casually "Yeah, it's very comfortable; I've had it forever." She asked me why it had a white label stapled to the hem in the back. Blushing, caught in in my lie, we both laughed loudly, she as loudly as her stitches allowed.

I'm wondering now if the pearl choker she's wearing in this beach photo covers her surgical scar.

Dr. Pott's diagnosis and surgery brought calm and health to Lois. I showed her the work ritual on my job; soon she filled in for me when I vacationed or was ill, with the doctor's complete approval. Liking to have some money of her own, she began selling Avon products and confided funny or sweet stories of her customers to me. When I entertained, she would suggest she personally go over my apartment that afternoon while I was at work. She wasn't above wielding a dust-cloth or Windex bottle if needed.

Me too!

I told Lois first about my coming motherhood. In a rare and touching act of friendship she announced, "If you're going to have a baby, then I will too!" And she said she would give me a baby shower.

By the time of the shower she was able to announce her own due-date, three months after mine. How about that?!

Ottawa Beach family outing

It was inevitable that our families would enter our world. As I explained before, many Grand Rapids residents streamed to Holland's Ottawa Beach on weekends.

I soon introduced Lois to the smorgasbord of enjoyable summer activities in Chicago too, just a few hours' ride away on the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad.

Hubby slows down

Lois' husband, Jim, was more of a power-boat guy, but here he enjoyed an
afternoon on the sand with us.

Beaches By The Mile

Lois and I decided on a late summer vacation together before our heavier responsibilities set in. We hopped a morning Chesapeake and Ohio train from Grand Rapids to Chicago, arriving early enough to get settled in at the New Lawrence Hotel on the near north side, where we had stayed before. We had dinner in a neighborhood deli, then saw a play -- unmemorable, apparently!

In the morning we headed for the nearest beach, where I took this photo of Lois. We never tired of being in the sun, and neither of us worried about our skin. We hadn't heard of sunblock, although some people smoothed on Coppertone or other oils said to enhance their suntans. We didn't.

The Chicago beaches were lovely and uncrowded in the 1950s, as my photo of Lois depicts. They stretched for miles along Lake Michigan, almost continuously, for close to 30 miles. City-owned and maintained, with parking and restrooms, each had its own character. One is near the Lincoln Park Zoo, one near the Adler Planetarium, another is near the Shedd Aquarium. I heard that one has a dog park now, and that smoking isn't allowed anywhere. That would have given Lois pause, with her ever-ready pack of Marlboros. We frittered away the day there happily, sharing stories and soaking up the sun. She gave me advice on baby formulas, told me how to sterilize bottles and shared some exercises to restore the body post-birth.

The next day, feeling a little guilty about our prior frivolity, we headed for the Art Institute. Nearby shopping in the Loop beckoned next. Since Marshall Field's had everything, we went there, heading to the top floor where we looked over the atrium railing at the shoppers on on street level. In the Walnut Room, we ordered one chicken potpie and one Marshall Field's sandwich, trading tastes back and forth. I doubt that Macy's continued that menu option after the buyout in 2005!

After lunch we set out with purses in hand, sans plastic (how did we ever manage?), and, following a long-time Loop tradition, agreed to meet "under the clock" should we lose one another. The massive and ornate timepiece mounted on the building's State and Washington corner is more than a clock to Chicagoans.

Weighing the baby

Lois came through with her promise, and Mike was born three months after Joey, in early 1954.

Here, she visits Dr. Pott’s office for a baby checkup and weighing. I trotted upstairs to my apartment to get Joey from Bernadette, his sitter, and snapped this photo. I think Joey would have broken the new-baby scale by that time. Little Mike soon outstripped Joey in size though. Their lives took different routes, as Mike became interested in extreme sports. Joey was bookish and thoughtful.

Departures

It was lunchtime, so we asked Dr. Pott to take our photos with the babies in Mrs. Pott's garden outside.

I did some Internet sleuthing and learned that Lois' “baby," Mike, had died suddenly, only 49 years after this photo was taken, in apparent good health, of a massive heart attack. His adored mother was already gone, and his father died shortly after.

The good daughter

Lois enlisted her little daughter's help in serving the desserts. Here she takes the coffee pot to the living room. Cheryl later became a teacher, and retired recently as high school principal.

While teaching, Cheryl became a specialist in smoking cessation and prevention. She traveled from school to school, her primary target from the beginning actually being her mother, a lifetime smoker who could, and did, do anything in the world for her family except stop smoking.

During a visit to her Hospice room in Lois' last days, she seemed asleep. So I sat at the little table with her husband, who talked about his fast cars, speedboats, football prowess, etc., in such a loud voice it made me ill. I wanted desperately to tell him to SHUT UP. I didn't comment or ask questions, still he persisted in his flat, booming voice. I went to Lois' bedside`and put my hand on her forehead. That's when she opened her eyes and said to me soundlessly, "Help me."

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Favorite Finds: Beth's Typewriter

2012-04-25T06:00:00.000-05:00

Remember on Easter when I posted Beth's new Easter dress? I asked Beth if she had a Favorite Find to contribute and of course she had something awesome! See her favorite find below and be sure to read her amazing blog!

What is your favorite find and where did you find it?

My favorite find is a 1929 L.C. Smith & Corona typewriter. I found this beauty at the bottom of a huge bin at the Goodwill Outlet in Nashville, TN for $5.00!

What were your first thoughts when you saw it?

My first thought? 'This is perfect! Why is this treasure among mounds of Christmas wrapping paper and mismatched slippers?!?'

Do you use it? Did you have to do any cleaning/restoration?

I don't use it, although I wish I did! It needs a new ink ribbon which I hear I can purchase online and it should still work! It was pretty dusty so I gave it a good cleaning with a q-tip and a dusting rag.

Where does it "live" now in your house?

This gem lives in my dining room and sits upon our buffet. It's a nice talking point when guests come over.

Why do you love buying vintage/secondhand?

I love buying vintage/secondhand for various reasons. The first reason is I love the thrill of the hunt! To find a vintage treasure among 'junk' is such a thrill to me. The second reason is it's unique! If your house is full of vintage or second hand items, there is always a story attached to that item and most likely no one else will have something like it. Lastly, it's affordable! I can go shopping much more often if I purchase items at $5 rather than than $50 items.

So true, Beth! Thank you for sharing your typewriter with us!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Enter to win a sign from Ramsign!

2012-04-24T06:00:00.001-05:00

My mom has worked with Ramsign in the past and even gave us a beautiful Ramsign for our wedding!

I was delighted when they contacted me to host a giveaway. I was curious about the company since I had received a sign myself but didn't know much about them.

From their website:

Only Ramsign offers real old fashioned, hand stenciled signs, featuring original design, thick and glossy enamel, 30-year warranty, excellent service, free delivery, and money back guarantee.

After an order is received, a steel plate and stencils are cut by hand, according to the text and specifications of the sign. Two to four stencils are used in the production of each sign. Finally, the enameling process can begin. Enameling is a ceramic process, much like glazing ceramics. Initially, the primer is applied, followed by the base color of the sign (for example blue). Then, the text and any other colors are applied to the sign using the stencils. Excess enamel is brushed off by hand with a fine brush before the sign is burned. Between each enameling, the sign is burned in a ceramic furnace at 820 degrees Celsius, and the result is regularly checked for defects. To ensure an energy efficient production and a consistent quality, the signs are processed in batches throughout the entire production.

They really are gorgeous signs - your house will feel straight out of Europe once you attach a Ramsign house number to it! I love the great fonts and shapes of the signs. They remind me of Paris!

The winner can choose any house number sign (not name signs or address plaques) with 1-5 digits of any size and design.

Check out some of the designs below and browse the other designs at Ramsign.com!

HOW TO ENTER:
(if you don't follow these instructions I will have to delete your comment)

1. Required entry: just leave your email address to be entered!
2. Bonus entry: Subscribe to Owl Really and leave a comment saying you are a subscriber.
3. Bonus entry: Like Owl Really on Facebook and leave a comment saying you are a Facebook follower.
4. Bonus entry: Like Ramsign on Facebook and leave a comment saying you are a Facebook follower of them.

Make sure you leave a separate comment for each entry for a total of 4 possible entries/comments.

Comments will close next Monday, April 30 at noon at which point I will choose a winner at random!

Good luck!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Thrift Report: Picker Style

2012-04-23T06:00:00.000-05:00

Happy Monday! I think I might finally be somewhat recovered from the Doves. :) It was a very long day but it actually wrapped up about 2 hours earlier than it did last year! We got down to Atlanta right about 1 and loaded in all our gear. Our company recorded the pre-show, where they actually gave out the majority of the awards, and we will be broadcasting it tomorrow evening. You can tune into live.hearitfirst.com at 5:30 eastern to see our red carpet coverage, the pre-show, and my backstage interviews. Just be warned that I am a little goofy on camera. :)

On to my finds! I had been stalking some shelves on Craigslist and calling the guy to try to set up a time to come see them. We are having a little bit of work done on our kitchen starting tomorrow and I thought I found these awesome industrial-esque shelves that would look great and provide more storage. When I went to look at them, the address ended up being a huge warehouse FULL of stuff. As soon as I walked in, I suddenly felt like a picker! I was asking "Is this for sale? How much for this?"

I didn't end up liking the shelves (each shelf had pegs inserted into the end that rested on chrome bars... so the pegs stuck out on the side... not exactly the cool industrial, sleek vibe I was going for) but I found a pair of amazing 60s Broyhill armchairs. The owner of the warehouse, a really nice 90 year old man, told me they came out of a really rich person's house. After we talked for awhile, he slipped and said they came from his house. I jumped on the opportunity to ask him if he was a "secret millionaire" and the guy working for him in the warehouse winked at me.

Turns out, the man was a longtime auctioneer and had accumulated 3 warehouses full of items and 20 semi trucks full, he said. My picker gears were turning and itching to see the rest of his stuff but he said he didn't have much furniture. I kept telling him I was interested in vintage and he said I could come look sometime, but he didn't seem to think he would have much else I would be interested in.

It was such a fun experience though, to walk around his warehouse and check everything out. He and the guy working for him were so nice. I bought the chair below from him and I love it, but I will be putting it in my booth... even though it coordinates with our curtains perfectly! We just don't have the room for it, unfortunately.

I also stopped by an "estate sale" - I hate when sales are advertised as estate sales and you can't actually go in the house. They were still pulling things out so I was concerned that I missed out on some things. Also, the prices were high, but I found a really cool cookie and pastry press that looks like it was never used and had all but one of the decorative discs included. It even has the original booklet with it!

Fun, huh?

Well, I was pretty concerned last week when I stopped by my booth and had only sold $15 worth of merchandise! I upped my efforts to let people know about the booth and new items and sold some more items and happily, I have made my rent and then a little more. Whew! What a relief. I really didn't want to owe money this month!

What have YOU found recently?? Have you ever had a "picking" experience where you got to shop by yourself direct from someone who had a TON of stuff? It was so fun!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Friday Fun: The Mary Tyler Moore Show

2012-04-20T06:00:00.001-05:00

How did I just figure this out?? The Mary Tyler Moore Show is on Hulu! I got hooked a few weekends ago when they showed the very first episode on the Hallmark channel. Unfortunately I couldn't sit and watch the marathon all day, but I happened across the series on Hulu and was delighted!

It's not as amazing as the Dick Van Dyke Show (my FAVORITE), but it is fun to watch! Hope you enjoy!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

The Red Carpet

2012-04-19T06:27:00.004-05:00

source

Andy and I both have red carpets in our future tonight - just in very different ways!

In about an hour I am driving down to Atlanta to cover the 43rd Annual Dove Awards for HearItFirst.com. We will be backstage and on the red carpet for a total of about 10 hours doing interviews with winners, presenters, and performers. It's going to be a little crazy. This coming Tuesday, you'll be able to watch the Dove Awards pre-show and our backstage interviews on live.hearitfirst.com. (If you've ever wondered I do "in real life" - this is it!)

And Andy will actually be ON the red carpet at the premiere of the Nashville Film Festival tonight. He is in the new documentary Hell or High Water: The Story of the Nashville Rollergirls and will be there to support the film and our friends. The rollergirls will be skating down the red carpet, how cool is that? Then, later, Andy and his friend Eric who were interviewed together in the doc will walk down the red carpet and see if anyone wants to talk to them, but probably not since the girls are the star of the film. :)

I hope you have a great day and we'll be back next week with a really great Joey's Mom post!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)

Favorite Finds: Danavee's Display Case

2012-04-18T06:00:00.001-05:00

Note: My mom alerted me yesterday that my blog was un-pin-able. I looked into it and found that some settings had changed with Flickr that blocked Flickr-hosted photos from being pinned for a week or two. If you had trouble, please note that it should be fixed now!

Today's Favorite Find comes from one of my very good blog friends! Danavee and I connected recently and have become fast friends! She has a booth at Relics in Springfield, MO and blogs at This Vintage Grove. She is super cute and I love her "What I Wore" posts!

Danavee shares her really awesome display case below!

What is your favorite find and where did you find it?

My favorite find is my display case. It was found at an antique shop not too far from town. It had been in an old country general store, used to display the wares of the shop. It had a great original patina and the original glass too.

What were your first thoughts when you saw it?

I loved it. I could picture a collection of same colored pottery inside. Lamps on top, with some sort of mirrors above it.

Did you know right away it was coming home with you?

Yes! It ended up being a Christmas present that wasn't a surprise!

Were you looking for a piece like it?

I was not looking for something like that at all, but it was too good to pass up. I loved the idea that it had been used as a display case in an old country store! I always wonder what it could have held.

Did you have to make room for it?

I am a master at cramming things in tight spaces, but I had to offset the dining room table a bit to get it on the wall I wanted it to be on.

What does it hold now?

I keep my Jadite (Fire King) collection housed inside, along with other minty green pieces and a few vintage tablecloths. I tried to keep the color scheme the same, so it wouldn't be too busy.

Why do you love buying vintage/secondhand?

I think it runs in my blood. I must have inherited that gene, as my grandparents dealt in antiques when I was young. My parents decorated with vintage and antique everything. I would go to my grandpa's shop or basement and nose around in all his old stuff, and I caught the bug! I was purchasing vintage lamps and trunks before I even moved out of my parent's house! There's something about having a piece that no one else has. The curiosity about where it came from. The history that comes with it. And then there's the thrill of the hunt. I'll never get tired of hunting for treasures!

Love it, Danavee!! Thank you for sharing!

I have been doing Favorite Finds consistently since July 27, 2011 (I think I've only missed 2 weeks so far!) and I'm running out of contributors! If YOU have a favorite find, email me! I would love to have contributions from readers. Thanks!

If you're new to Owl Really, welcome! Please check out my favorite posts and consider subscribing! :)