VINTAGE COCA COLA SANTA CLAUS

 Who knew this would become the thing many of you asked about?  Several emailed us and/or commented asking about our Santa.  Here are some up pictures and details about the history of them: 

These didn't come together.

The Santa belonged to my Grandparents.  Grandma always put it under the tree as a decoration and as a little kid, I was enthralled by it.  Some years later, they added Rudolph because they just looked like they belonged together.  When they moved to a new house in the 70's and were downsizing, they passed Santa and Rudolph along to my parents who did the same thing with our tree.  It was always under or beside the tree as part of the decorations.  When my parents passed, I had to make sure to take care of Santa and friend and now they sit around to watch over our Christmas.

Not sure who they will get passed to for another generation to enjoy but we'll figure that out someday.

The Santa was made by The Ruston Company and still has the original tag.  Grandma said she got it in the late 1950's.  It's older than both of us!

Check out his boots.  They are stitched leather, still shiny after more than 60 years!

Because this was sponsored by or maybe even sold by (not sure) Coca Cola, he is holding a coke bottle.  This has been so well taken care of all these years, this is still the original bottle that it came with.  It even still has the metal cap on it.  No liquid coke in it of course, it was made in a solid color to look like it was full but just so cool and vintage.

Look at this face!

It looks like the image of Santa that we all know and love.  The detail is so nice.  While the body is stuffed fabric and the lower part of his beard is fur, the face and hands are rubber and still in great shape with no cracking.  He (and Rudolph) get carefully wrapped up each season and are packed into their own storage box...ready for next year.

Now we don't know what they do in their off season, but they are back in time for Christmas every year.

CHRISTMAS DECORATING 2022 PART 2

Here is some more of our decorating for this year.

The wreath on our front door.  Made for us by a coworker a few years ago and we love it.

We love poinsettias but of course, can't have live ones with a kitty so we use artificial ones.  This one we put in a vase we have out the rest of the year.  We put it on top of these tin containers we have to just add height and keep some Christmas theme going.  It's always nice to keep some containers on hand because not only do they add Christmas decor, they serve as a container for treats if we need them!

This is our dining table.  We have these glass containers on the table year round.  Sometimes, we have candles in them, other times citrus or other fruits, but at Christmas, we do this.  We put glass ornaments, red, silver, and gold, in them.  It is so pretty because the shiny metallic captures all the light in the room and makes them sparkle.  This year, we added this runner  embroidered with silver thread snowflakes.

This artificial plant is normally in the corner where the tree is now, so we have to move it.  This is by the front door and we just stick a big red bow on it and it's the first thing you see.

For those asking, here is Hobart's stocking hanging from a cabinet knob.

Shhh, don't tell him but he has some new toys in there, including a fun new laser toy, and some snacks. We have catnip up high in a cabinet so he doesn't "seek it out".  Because he's been a good boy.

This is our bar/storage cabinet in the living room.  We love these artificial poinsettias, found them downstairs a few years ago.  They are made of a velvet fabric and look so real.  Last but not least is our favorite thing to put out, our vintage Coca-Cola Santa and Rudolph.  The Santa has been in my family for years.

One more post with some more things, hope you enjoy our little tour of Christmas!

RETRO METAL SIGNS

Went to Michael's on a whim back a couple months ago on the way to the farm and forgot to share this.  They had a section of "Winter Decor" on clearance for 80% (yes, 80%) off.

I bought a few.  

Metal groceries sign

This one is neat.  It's a large metal sign, probably about 3 feet long, with a really cool design as you can see in the picture below:

It's deep, and the letters are raised.  Looks very retro, like something salvaged from an old store.

It was $36 originally, making the final price $7.20!

Metal signs

Then they had these.  They are also metal signs, but these are smaller and flatter.  They are still metal though with raised embossed style letters made to look like large versions of labels you might find on cabinets or closets.

Originally $12 each, making final price $2.40!

OK, so now comes the "where do we put all of these" question?  Of course, as most of you have read, we're in the process of deciding what to do with the house.  Most likely all new.  It will definitely be fun to decorate "again" when that time comes.  

Still, we think it would be fun to figure out how these could be used.  We realize they could just be put on any wall anywhere because they are decorative and that's what they are for, but it seems like they should have a "purpose" in their placement.  

Grocery over a pantry?  Fresh Daily in a future chicken coop or where 2nd Man bakes bread?  Mercantile?  I have no idea.  Dry goods?  Pantry

Do you have suggestions? 

VINTAGE STYLE METAL SIGNS AND THE WEEKEND SO FAR

So I went to the store recently looking for deals.

They had a stack of those old style metal signs, replicas of those that used to hang on barns and gas stations etc.  New of course but made to look rusted and distressed and "vintage".  

I looked through the stack and thought to myself "well if they have any that make sense to have, then I'll get them".

Behold!

Jeep metal sign

2nd Man and I both drive a Jeep.  His is the fourth he has had and mine is the first and I love it too.

Having a vintage "JEEP" sign makes perfect sense! 

John Deere metal sign

And then, um, well, hello?!?!?  For those who follow the blog know that I love my Zen Machine, which of course is a John Deere X320 riding lawn tractor.

I guess you could say it was a "sign", LOL!

I'm not sure where these will go.  They are large, about 3 feet across.  They might be cool on the porch but I think the John Deere would be neat in the mower shed.  Of course now I think we need some more.  Coca-cola perhaps?

It's been a good weekend so far, clear, warm, and just beautiful.  More of an update tomorrow! 

FUZZY FAUX COWHIDE BLANKETS

Just had to share these wonderful blankets that we found at the store recently.

These are the fuzzy "faux" fur kind of blankets that are super soft and velvety.  

Faux cowhide fuzzy blanket

The part we loved most about them of course is that they are faux cowhide print!  I know, buying blankets in Summer seems counterintuitive, but they were on sale BECAUSE it was Summer.  

We found them at a local Marshall's Homegoods store, $10 each on clearance.  They're a nice size too (50x70) but unfortunately, they only had two and we thought four would be a nice number to have.  

So I looked online and...

...found these (eBay)!  

Two black and white ones!  Seems only right that the 'herd' on our farm includes at least a couple different breeds, right? LOL!

We got them for ourselves of course but also for future company. We were thinking how fun they would be for future chilly nights on the porch. So we folded them and stored them in a plastic zippered bag and then put that bag in the cedar chest in the guest room. They'll be safe in there for sure.

Now we just need it to get chilly.  

Ha, that isn't happening ANYTIME soon...

SEEING STARS

Look what we have...

OK, so as most of you know, our house in town is on the market and we currently have an offer pending.  While it was showing, i.e. "open houses", realtor's often suggest you do stuff to "add interest" to bare spots.  Well, we have this large, tall, privacy fence in the backyard.  Our realtor said to get some things that could be focal points on it since the fence is the first thing you see from the back door when going outside.  She suggested some sort of metal artwork for the space.  This might not have been what she had in mind but...

I was at the store one day a few weeks back and saw these...

STARS!!!

Stars we can use at the farm! 

You know me, they were on clearance as the store closed out the garden section to get ready for Christmas.

This wasn't their final position on the fence, I just took them down and put them all together in one spot for the photo.  The large bronze colored ones are THREE FEET across from point to point!  The two smaller white ones are half that size.

Barn Star (what it will look like when painted and hung)

Soon when we have to take them down to move out, the stars are going to the farm.  We're going to paint them using an exterior white of course, and figure that we'll put two large ones on the barn...one on each end.  The two smaller ones will go on each end of the mower shed.  That will leave us with one unused large star...we're thinking somewhere on the house to tie it all together.  

We can't wait!

When life asks you to buy lemons, squeeze them and make lemonade 
(my adaptation of the old phrase for this situation, LOL!).

WHAT TO DO WITH CHINESE FORTUNES

OK, so for the last almost 16 years, I've saved, for some odd and sentimental reason, every fortune that 2nd Man and I have ever received from our fortune cookies.  Hey, what can I say, we enjoy Chinese food!

For awhile, I just dropped them into a small box we had, but after a couple of years, they started to overflow.  So then I started taking them, folded slightly...

...and dropping them through the top of this retro vase with a flower frog wire mesh top.

Then I just take the jar, shake it a few times so that they fall down into it and...

Jar of fortune cookie fortunes

Voila!  15+ years later and we have this jar full of fortunes!

Hmm...I wonder how many missed winning lotto numbers are in there?

I figure it will make a great crafty project someday, but of course, I don't know what we'll do.  I guess I'll figure out something in time, not that I need to do it now.  I just thought it would be fun to blog about.  

Either that, or someday, long after we're gone, someone will stumble across it in a thrift store and wonder what the heck someone was thinking, LOL!  Hey maybe it will inspire a mystery novel!

Do any of you have any silly things you collect that you hope to one day do something with?

QUILTED STUFFED ANIMALS

Quilted stuffed animals

These are a couple of stuffed bears that my Mom found once upon a time.  They aren't family heirlooms or anything like that, I think she found one at a tag sale and another at a thrift store, but we like them.  They are on the guest room bed at the farm, which contains a lot of my Mom's favorite pieces of furniture and her favorite colors, pink and yellow.  We were going to get a few pillows but...

Farmhouse guest room bed

...every time we look at them on the bed, it makes us think that they seem kind of lonely.  So, we'd like to add a few more.  I'm sure I could find some on eBay or Etsy but I'm not sure what they call these?  They are handmade of course and made using scraps of fabric just like you would find on a quilt.  Does anyone know what they are called, in general, so that I could find more online?

THE SILVER COFFEE TABLE TRAY

Remember the SILVER TRAY I found at the thrift store and cleaned up?

I got a lot of suggestions on what to put on it and while I still haven't entirely figured it out, I did take these metal tins that were elsewhere in the house, put the two of them together and placed them on the tray.  I think they look nice on there.  They really match the style of the tray, almost the same design and they are even a similar color (though these round tins are not silver or silver plate, LOL).  I'm not sure what to put in them, but as many of you know, in a small house, any storage space is good storage space.  I'm sure we'll figure out something fun to use them for (suggestions always accepted).

As for the little vintage ceramic bunny, she just seemed at home there, at least for now and since we have wild bunnies living around the farm property, it somehow seems appropriate.  So until, or even if, I find something else, little "sunny bunny" can live her life happily on the tray.


Now this old thrift store find is in use once again.  I always wonder about something like this that I find and reuse...the journey it took to get to our coffee table in a little farmhouse outside of Houston.  

VINTAGE BALL MASON CANNING JAR, THRIFT STORE FIND

Vintage Ball Mason Jar

Picked this up at a thrift store about a week ago.  It's a vintage "Ball" canning jar, the bigger, large sized one.  It has the old type metal lid that has discolored with age and has that bluish green tint to the glass.  I put it on the NEW DESK but I'm not sure what to put in it? It's too big for paperclips or something like that.  I like it on the desk though, it's something people see when they first walk in. Is there something I could collect on the property that I could keep in there? Any ideas?

MILEAGE TREE POST

I think this is such a cute idea, and we are totally going to use this at the farm.  There are a couple of trees on the property that have died in the drought this summer and I was going to have to cut them down at some point anyway.  It always makes me sad to lose a tree, but looking at this, I think it would be a PERFECT use for one of those trees.

We think it would be neat to have one right off the front porch, near the PARTY TREE so that it would be a great conversation piece when company comes over to visit.

I love the flowers around this one and the brightly colored signs.  Not sure I'd do the birdhouse at the top, I might have a different idea for that.

This could be a project I start on soon.  I can only hope it looks half as good as this one does.  Now I'll just need to figure out what cities/towns/countries to point to!  There is great potential for being goofy and silly in choosing them.  It should be fun!

MASON JAR UTENSIL HOLDERS



Mason jars as utensil holders



Easy, simple way to store utensils and give them that "farmhouse flair".  It would be a great solution for those with limited drawer space.  Another good use for something like this is during a dinner party, you can put these out for your guests to use in a sort of buffet line.  Or easily take them outside for alfresco dining.

Cool idea that we will DEFINITELY use at the farm.

CLAY POT WREATH - FARM COOLNESS



Clay pot wreath

We have no DIY on how to do this, but I'm sure it's out there on the Internet.  I'm posting it because it's just kind of cool looking!  It's a wreath that's made using small, terracotta clay pots.  This would be an awesome garden decor on a fence or gate.

Or perhaps for the front of my recent potting shed makeover.

Enjoy!

PORCH DECORATING WITH FURNITURE

I found this picture online and we really like the use of furniture on this porch.  We'll have a couple of rockers of course, and probably a table or two, but what really stood out was the cabinet.  

I like the idea of repurposing a piece of furniture that might normally be inside, and using it outside to store things in.  I have no idea what they use this one for, but I can imagine all sorts of things that you might want handy on the porch.  Our porch is deep enough that I am pretty sure it will safe from the weather.  Not sure I'd pick this color but I could see red or white.

I might just have to hit up some yard sales and thrift stores once we get our porch redone and the exterior painted.  

Just thought I'd share!

PAINTED MASON JARS

Did you know you can paint mason jars?

I had no idea!

White spray paint can create this:

Photo Courtesy of: designerinterior.net

Or yellow spray paint creates this: 

courtesy of: http://www.joyshope.com/

Or you can mix it up like these:

Courtesy of: http://thecsiproject.com/

I just LOVE this idea.  Apparently, from the various websites I could find, the best and easiest way is to paint them on the outside, using a few light coats of a good, quality spray paint.


My favorite all around spray paint is: Rust-Oleum Painters Touch Ultra Cover
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO

The white reminds me of milk glass (we have a rather large collection) and looks so pretty with a candle in it.  These would all make nice vases as well. 

Hmm, maybe even for pens on a desk, or tools in a kitchen too!  I don't think I would drink out of these.  They are however painted on the outside, and if you kept the top portion, where your mouth would go, as clear, unpainted glass, it might be OK but still, better for use as other things.


I like their use as accessories, candle holders, vases, etc.

Good luck and enjoy!

THE BEAUTY OF FLOWERS IN A WINDOW BOX

As we sit here waiting for more substantial things to happen at the farm
(i.e. plumbing and painting), I try to plan for other things to do later so that I can already have it figured out.

One thing I've always wanted, ever since my Grandmother had one (exactly one!) at her house when I was growing up, is a window box.  In the city, it really wouldn't look right, it's just not a style that fits in with the design of our house or the colors of the paint.

However, at the farm, that's a totally different story.  The picture above shows just one side, with three windows just crying out for window boxes, overflowing with gorgeous flowers.

So, I present below, some of my favorites found during my "online" travels:

This is a very pretty, and simple design.  Of course, it's on a white window trim/red house, which you all know was the finalist in color choice for our farmhouse.  I like how this looks like it's always been there.  Very nice.

Another one that looks like it's always been there, or is at least supposed to be there.  The detail on the corbels (supports) is really nice as well.

Very pretty and simple design.  Sometimes minimal is best.

The corbels on this really stand out.  They almost add another architectural element to the whole thing. 

These boxes don't seem to have any support, they are just attached, or supported, directly to the house.  I like that.

Beautiful flowers in this one.  And a nice compromise on the detail, the supports are small but still noticeable. 

I think this is actually one of my favorites, a window "box" that is not actually a box but a support for clay pots that hang through it.  I REALLY like this look.  I think this might just be the method I use.  It would be so easy to water, to switch out plants when necessary and move around from window to window.

Now, one thing to remember about window boxes...when you water them, the water will drain out the bottom.  You don't want to put a window box in a spot where the draining water might go somewhere you don't want.  For example, we have 4 windows on the front of our farmhouse, but they are all on the porch.  Not only would they not get much sun on the deep porch, but the watering could present a problem to the the porch floor.

Now the sides and the back, that's a different story.  There are 2 windows in the guest room, 4 in the master bedroom, 1 in the entryway, and 5 in the dining room.  Of course, I'm not sure I'll put them on all the windows, but I do know that there will be some window boxes in our near future!

MASON JAR LUMINARIAS / LUMINARIES

Not too long ago, I posted this link about using galvanized buckets as luminaries, and I thought it was such a neat idea for the farm.

Well, as I was doing some more online research, thanks to my friend who mentioned the baby food jar candles, and stumbled across this idea:

Mason Jar candles

It's the same principle, just using Mason Jars instead of the buckets.

In the photo above, they are filled with sand, and then candles of different sizes are stuck in the sand.

Simple as that.  I like that you can use jars of different sizes, for a casual look.

Then, I found this photo at an HGTV slide show on their website.  It utilizes the same idea,

and this time they have the same size jars and candles.

Mason Jar luminarias

Apparently, in this one, they used Epsom Salts as the "sand", and it gives it a nice, clean look, almost like snow in the bottom of the jar.

Since they are clear and you can see what's inside, you could literally use anything in the bottom.

We have some large hurricane jar type vases/holders on our dining room table, and I've used everything in them from sand, to salt, to coffee beans, I even used inexpensive aquarium gravel

(from the local pet store) in different colors.

I think we'll definitely have to have a supply of Mason Jars and candles ready for when we need them.