I hope everyone had a wonderful fourth of July! Mine looked promising...a block party, awesome food and good people. Before the burgers hit the grill, my dad was riding a bike around the circle, letting the neighborhood kids spray him with squirt guns. At one point during the fun, he had to slam on his brakes and went over the handlebars and face-first into the pavement. My mom stayed with my boys and I took my dad to the ER. He had a busted chin, a large gash in his hand and two severely broken fingers. Despite not being able to see my boys witness fireworks for the first time and not eating a hot dog until midnight, it was a nice time spent with a my dad and a way I could repay him for all of the times he sat by me when I was injured. He's a tough guy and has a great attitude (and is pretty stubborn), so he's already on the road to recovery.
So, I've had this bare wall just outside my kitchen that's been a revolving door of furniture, pictures and signs. It's an awkward space, because it's between cabinets and a window, so I've never known what to do with it.
I've had a tobacco basket in my stash that I decided to hold onto instead of sell, which is rare for me, but I just had a feeling I was going to use it somewhere in my house. This ended up being the perfect place for it.
I found it last Thanksgiving at an antique store in North Carolina for $25. I've always loved the texture and design of them, so I couldn't resist.
All I did was vacuum off the dust and cobwebs.
It even has some cool typography on the side.
Another thing I selfishly kept for myself was this over sized tool caddy I purchased from an antique shop in Pennsylvania for $40.
I filled it with platters, vintage cookbooks (that belonged to my grandmother) and a few other decorative kitchen items.
It was filthy, so I literally hosed it off. It looked almost black when I bought it, but the cleaning revealed a beautifully warm wood and a little bit of original red paint.
Some things just need to be kept.
