Salad's, Sandal's and Sista's

It's Girls Night Out time again!!!!!

Dust off those sandals, bring a small salad to share and join me poolside for good conversation with all my favorite sista's. I'll have ice tea and dessert!

This was my invitation for my Summer bash for some of my great friends. We women always need a reason for a party! Fun was had by all last night and here are some things I did for the party. Thought you might want to take a peek so you could get some ideas for your next party.

You guys remember me posting about how I won a gift basket at the "Chari-tea". Well, in that gift basket was a gift certificate for a floral arrangement from "Rembrandt Floral Couture" here in Colleyville. I decided to use it for my party. Thank you Rick Wilson for helping me with this beautiful arrangement. I walked in the florist with exactly what I wanted in mind. I had a vase, pieces of driftwood and some sand that I wanted to use. This is what we came up with. I really wanted the flowers to be the focal point in the center of the table where all the salads were going to be. Putting flowers in a tall vase gives you this grandeur. I'll be ordering my flowers from Rembrandt from now on!! Inside the vase, I put a small note that said

"Happy Summer Sista's"

Rembrandt Floral Couture

5616 Colleyville Blvd.

Colleyville, TX 76034

http://www.rembrandtfloral.com/

817-281-7221

Ice tea and margarita's were served.

I always label my drinks so guests know what it is. This enables you, the host to enjoy the party without answering questions all night.

I made cake balls for all to enjoy. Simple and easy and they look like you slaved for hours. Just place them in pretty cupcake paper and place on a silver tray. It's all about the presentation!

I rolled the napkins up with the fork and tied them with raffia. Not a new idea but adds a lot to the presentation.

The great thing about my arrangement is that Rick created it it so after my party I could display it somewhere else without having it in such a big vase. It's now on my dining room table. Also, everyone bringing a salad really took the pressure off of me. I was able to enjoy the party without preparing food all night. The combination of all the salads was absolutely yummy! I think sometimes we are hesitant to have a party in our home because we feel like we are responsible to prepare it all. I think my friends would say that they don't mind bringing items. We have to make getting together easy on each other or it's never done!

Happy Summer Sista's!

Priceless Mother's Day

What a fabulous mother's day treat I had. The day started with my girls singing "Happy Mother's Day to You" walking into my room with their wrapped treasures. The best part is that their daddy went to see his mom and they did this all on their own. I knew that they had been up to something because there was all kinds of secrecy going on and the garage had been off limits.

My oldest daughter made me a beautiful pot. She said she wanted it to look "distressed" because she know that's what I like. I loved that she knew my taste. I've got it on my bookshelf in my office and am very proud! Treasured gift!

My youngest daughter made me a wooden carved bowl. She spent hours in the garage with her daddy - cut the wood herself, used a chisel to carve it, sanded the edges and then stained it to my liking. I love it. She told me it was for next to the kitchen sink for my rings. She noticed that I always took my rings off to wash dishes and she decided that would be a good gift for me. Priceless!

These are my favorite kind of gifts. Made from the heart with lots of thought and love. The best part of these gifts is that my husband was involved behind the scenes guiding them patiently as they created their ideal gift for me. The time that he spends with them is a wonderful gift to me. No store bought gift could replace this gift.

The first 10 minutes of the day was all I needed for mother's day. Of course, I was spoiled rotten. We spent the day at my sister's and her husband cooked us steak and crab. I had never tasted crab claws and they are my new favorite thing. My sister warned me and she was right!! The men treated us like royalty. Lots of fun to celebrate with my mom and sister. Again, another great gift from the heart. A gift of service to us all! No restaurant can match up to that kind of service!

I love being a mother, not only on Mother's Day but every day!

Updated Brassy

Found a set of the above shelves/sconces at a thrift store and thought the color was hideous but thought they had style. The brassy finish almost blinded me and reflected in my rear view mirror as I drove home. However, a little paint can change it up totally. I dry brushed the with black, copper, antique gold and a touch of silver. They will make great wall side tables for next to a bed (especially if there isn't much room for furniture). Would look fabulous above an entry table with some beautiful pottery placed on top of them. Placed above a fireplace mantel flanked on the each side of an admired painting.
Example of the finish up close - the photo doesn't do it justice, as usual.
About a year ago I found these concrete square blocks that when put together make a great architectural floral design. They were all beat up and needed some lovin'. They didn't look terrible before and if you were putting them in a home with a "shabby chic" design, they would work well because of their distressed and worn look. However, adding some color and depth makes the grouping look more alive and fresh. I enjoyed bringing this flower to life as I painted it.

BEFORE

AFTER

It's still a little wet here and I'm going to add a matte glaze to it to add some more brown and to take away the shine. Adding a little black to it makes the flower pop. I'm going to hang it up outside underneath my covered patio unless some else is interested in purchasing it as

a mother's day gift!

$150

I've got a few more projects I'm working on right now and will post them as I complete them. I'm in the middle of a couple client kitchen updates so I'll post pictures of that when I'm finished too!

Happy treasure hunting!

Ruth