Patina White

honey...where do you want the cabbage?

hey everyone! i have to chuckle @ the post title. because i can still hear the innocent inquiry my hubby directed at me a few weeks ago. an outing to the greenhouse yielded some fabulous foliage to do a little fall decorating with. the name of said specimens...kale...but i must say they do bear a strong resemblance to cabbage!

besides that little snafu...i absolutely love that my other half knows exactly what i mean when i say i am cold & need my eiderdown...he faithfully will fetch it from the closet. or that we can pass a cool old farmhouse w/ period details to which he exclaims "look @ the corbels on that place"! and of course when i say i want an apple...thus begins a city wide search for honeycrisp, jazz or my new favorite sweet tango...cause no ordinary red apple will do!  

that being said...those "cabbage" worked their way into my harvest decorating recently. so i thought i would share a little "corner of my world". harvest style! here is our window box {below} that i transitioned from summer flowers to fall delights...

and my fall touches here and there wouldn't be complete without a cluster of corn stalks highlighting an urn of off-beat colored pumpkins. {below}

now is the time to be a baby. baby boo that is! i love these little white wonders...they are sitting atop little clay pots in an old tool tray {below}.

more of the cabbage..um kale...line the steps of our porch {below}. with a fun little {pump}kin #1 sign tucked in the gathering.

our harvest home {below}...the colors are already amazing in our neck of the woods. autumn is such a beautiful time of year up north here in minnesota!

a sampling of the colorful maple leaves {below} i plucked out of our backyard....

i love the flesh hue of this pumpkin {below}...accented with the bumpy texture of the white gourds. the 75 sign is actually an old auction paddle. might come in handy if anyone thinks of being naughty around here.

this guy is just haning out amongst colorful vines...

another pumpkin full of texture rests on a rusty urn {below}...it evokes the feeling of being @ the circus as it looks like it's covered in peanuts! now all i need is some popcorn! and maybe my very own elephant!

so there you have it! the beautiful weather we have seen recently has been such a pleasure to work & play in. with that note of work i best be scooting back to it! because i will soon be transitioning the harvest home to the holiday home with the onset of my annual studio event! 

i hope i have inspired your day with a taste of our minnesota fall @ it's finest!

happy harvest to you!

 

oh deer!

hello & happy monday everyone! i have mentioned before the "love/hate" relationship that still stands with myself + our neighborhood deer. for instance...love that one eve this summer i spotted them playing in our front yard. a quick grab of the camera provided this shot {below}.

since i was in such a hurry...my hand wasn't steady on the shot and they were not sticking around for another photo op. but i think you can see a bit what's going on. it was a mama deer and her yearling touching noses while the newest member...her fawn...was right in the middle of the action. very sweet!

but with the sweet comes the sour. that would be waking up on many occasions to discover my lovely plants had become a midnight snack to said family. not that i hate the deer. can't hardly blame them for dining on the nicest plants i have. i sure wouldn't go for the wilted spinach on the salad bar either. 

all this brings me to my love of deer antlers. i have collected bleached out, weathered specimens for years. and when i happened on a mount @ the local antique store...it didn't take me long to pounce. now this is the before {below}. not bad...but not quite my style. 

so what would make it my style? well that would be something organic. and pretty. while maintaining a rustic charm. so out came my jar of hundreds and hundreds of tiny pearl seashells {below}.

off came the green velvet covering...hello to the blank slate. and goodbye to the oak backing. welcome weathered chunk of wood. with that...and countless hours {plus more than i care count hot glue burns later} i ended up with what i think fits the above criteria. a fine looking mount that will proudly hold some of my favorite baubles. {below}

hard to pick out in the photos...but the antlers actually have some hints of pink on them. which happen to compliment the pearly hue of the shells. not sure who requested the pink wash on them but i am definitely a fan.

i doubt that the taxidermist down the road will be knocking down my door for me to embellish any mounts soon...but i will have my jar of shells ready! and a box of band-aids just incase!

always appreciate you taking the time to visit my little corner of the web. 

please stop again & often!

 

junk buddy

hey everyone! it would seem there are alot of kindred spirits out there! passionate "collectors" i have had the pleasure of meeting lately. this story is about a recent favorite fella by the name of "woody".

flashback to shady hollow this past summer. a kind gal, jill to be exact, shared stories of a friend of hers that i must meet. a guy who has lots of "junk". i need no more convincing. where can i meet him and when?? well lo & behold woody happened to be @ the market the same day and flashed me a business card. though i was told he is some what of a local legend and would have no problem tracking him down. 

flash-forward a couple weeks ago. a preliminary visit to woody while out & about on the motorcycles proved that yes indeed this fella had a plethora of good junk waiting for a new home. i had hardly hopped off the bike to greet him when he handed me a small baggie of tokens just for visiting! i felt like i was in hawaii accepting the welcome in junk in lieu of a lei!

a wonderful heart shaped rock in said baggie took on a new role recently as chunky necklace. i ♥ junk! {below}

well i could see a day spent @ this treasure trove would require the big guns...so i made arrangements to stop another day with the appropriate vehicle in tow. so i did...and returned to the "shady deal"...{the name woody dubbed his once fish camp}...that he now calls home. 

the shady deal houses an array of buildings covered in wonderful old metals {below}. worry not woody...i won't be taking the shirt off your back...or the roof of your "shack"! 

i have to admit. woody is a man w/ fine taste in junk...explaining that many of the items collected were done so in the thought of getting to them someday. well we all know that a person can sometimes take on more than they can chew so now was the time to let someone else {me} get their "mouthful".

my hubby laughed while voicing in another 30 years i would be passing on the torch. meaning. that i already have my hands full of projects. but i am always open to a piece of junk needing a new home. case in point. an old playground critter...this lil' shark's {below} coy smile is priceless. i think he will make a grand decoration for a lucky lake goer. 

nope...haven't lost my marbles {yet}. well that remains open to discussion. but i did manage to sweet talk woody out a handful of his collection {below}. we will see how they are reinvented. i believe @ this point i may have been trying hubby's patience w/ my trance like state of staring into vessels of the round lovelies. 

what appears to be an carnival sign {below} was sporting some fun colors + graphically was fantastic! batter up!

and the man of the hour. my friend woody and i {below}. we even have the same taste in apparel each of us sporting our camo pants! 

i must say i really enjoyed my time spent catting around the property. stalking out the next "victim". and there are more buildings {below} to be explored @ another time. there's some more of that fine looking metal!

well i have to to thank miss jill for making the connection. and to woody for opening his doors to a fellow junk buddy. i can hardly wait to return and see what other treasures await. and maybe i can even dig once again in the colorful bowl of marbles. and see if i can locate any of those i may have "lost"!

until the next adventure...

what i wore...the key is 2 love

hello hello show & tell! it's due time i revisited some of my favorite segments...so i thought today would be fun to do a little dog & pony show of {what i wore}! 

you might recall a few posts back my mention of hubby's & my "sweet 16"...celebrating our anniversary of wedding vows. and we couldn't have made it this far without remembering that the key is 2 love...so on our date night out i wore a special artisan necklace highlighting those wise words.

have a peek {below} and find more details below the "below"!

so...starting top left and working clockwise...you will see the cluster of necklaces w/ the feature being the shadowbox key pendant. it is highlighted w/ a sepia tattoo inspired heart + the versatile "thing for rings".

a classic black tee + weathered blue jeans were the basics that allowed the accessories to take center stage.

moving on...don't miss my handbag. because until a month or so ago i wasn't even aware that my favorite boot company on the planet...old gringo...made purses!  and you can see i didn't waste any time adopting this beauty to keep company w/ my collection of cowgirl boots. 

my belt & shoes...or should i say skyscrapers...don't exactly "match" in color but compliment each other nonetheless with similar antique brass studs. the belt was a thrift store find...the black sandals were a end of the year bargain and are by lucky brand. 

so there you have my "the key is 2 love..." ensemble to celebrate our special day. and if you think that some of the baubles i highlighted might be the key you are looking for...you are in luck as i will have a limited number to share @ my holiday event in november. but the purse is staying with me! 

thanks for peeking...make it a great day!

when a window closes...

hey everyone! happy monday! i have been M.I.J this past week! MISSING IN JUNK that is! packing up junk...meeting new friends in junk...planning junk runs...and just a whole lotta of other "junk" going on! all good junk i might add! more on that down the road!

but before i ramble on too much and forget the task @ hand...i would like to send out a great big...

...to everyone who ventured out to shady hollow for our last big farewell to summer! i have never seen a crowd like it! and judging by the backed up highway + overflow parking in the golf course {i am still watching for angry golfers} i'd say it was a jammed packed day of fun for all! 

and with that last weekend....i shut up my cottage...closing all the windows {below} and called it a season!

now i know the saying goes that when a door closes...a window opens. but i was inspired by a vintage bank teller sign to mix it up. so this time around....a window closes...

which could only mean that a door will open. and in this case that door happens to be that of my studio! so onto the next chapter in the book of patinaWHITE. and that chapter is my must see holiday event i hold once a year from our country home.

please give a click on the photo {below} if you'd like to be whisked away to a page that will fill you in on all the good details about that!

so back to the junk i go! there are many things to do between now and then! be sure to pop by my little corner of show & tell to see what's going on! you all know i love to tell ya all about it!

have a happy day!

feelin' a little snarky

hey everyone! ok folks! one last weekend ahead of me @ my summer home...shady hollow flea market! and as i run around collecting & creating some goodies to haul out there...i sense a theme in some of the wares...they are "snarky". yep. it's a word. {according to the urban dictionary and who's gonna argue with that?} here is the meaning.

snarky - A witty mannerism, personality, or behavior that is a combination of sarcasm and cynicism. Usually accepted as a complimentary term. 

i'd like to think of following a wee bit silly than cynical. you be the judge...

flashback a year. a most patient customer thought a wooden token would make a quirky necklace. i agreed...she made the comment of taking my time. well boy did i ever! but i finally did get AROUND TO IT! {below}

ok. if these vintage pins don't match the above definition of snarky...i don't know what will! i happened on a plethora of these hilarious buttons! this is just a tip of the iceberg. you'll have to come to my november event to see the rest! stocking stuffers anyone?

few things stand between me & my morning cup of cappuccino. so when i saw these mugs i had to have them for patinaWHITE. they are sure to get the point across to others who dare to cross our caffeine addicted paths. 

you might remember these letter snippets from a few posts back. well here they are firmly grounded to reclaimed lumber to showcase them. the little rooster was feeling a little "cocky" so he took up residence next to the sassy sign.

well...with that i must return to my continuous hunt and gather for the next {3} big days. hope you can pop by...

enjoy your holiday weekend!