CSN Product Review by Yours Truly!

I'm so excited. I have been contacted by CSN Stores to do a product review.  They are giving me $25 to use towards any of their products and I then will write a review of that product and post it on Henrietta's House!  CSN Stores has over 200 online stores where you can find everything from stylish handbags, a corner TV stand, or great cookware!

So many things to pick from!!  I have a few things in mind. I really want to try and make a chocolate souffle.  I had one at Morton's Steakhouse when I was in Denver for a business trip.  Wow.  That's all I can say.  So now I must try to recreate that heaven in a ramekin!

And I'm absolutely in love with this Howard Elliot Rhapsody mirror.  I really do need a mirror for above the fireplace. CSN has over 3,000 mirrors to pick from!!  I can narrow my search results by entering parameters such as size, brand, review by other consumers, and more!

And of course, since we do Happy Hour around here every week, I may have to get some barware.  Check out these double old fashioned glasses.  I am missing these from my own barware collection. 

Another really great feature the CSN site has notifies you when an item that is out of stock is available again.  This is extremely handy!!

I'm planning on narrowing down my selection by Saturday morning and placing my order.  Check back to read my review!

New Game Table...from the 1950s

A couple months ago I showed you the buried treasure I bought from my friend's mom.  After some major elbow grease - cleaning the Naugahyde seats and polishing the chrome - my 1950s dinette is finally in the house.  It is perfect in our basement as our game table!  We tried it out tonight with a puzzle, a penguin puzzle, of course!

Check out the before and after pics!

Before

After

One of (many) things I love about this dinette are the seats - what you can't see.  Underneath the seats, there are original instructions on how to remove the seats, clean them, or order new.  Love that!!

I am also waiting on the rug to arrive that I ordered tonight.

A Little Elbow Grease Makes for a Nice Collection

While rummaging through mom and dad's basement I came across a box of old bottles.  Mom said there were bottles from Grandma and some from a neighbor who found them in a creek bed.  After cleaning them up and removing the poor critters that met an unfortunate death in a few of them, they looked pretty good.

There were a few in there that caught my eye. There are three clear bottles from the Redfield Carbonating Co, which is exciting since Redfield, SD, is Henrietta's home town.  Another pretty green bottle is Lemon-Lime B-1, from the Fort Dodge Bottling Works, Fort Dodge, IA.  The copyright date on the bottle is 1940.

They make a great collection on top of the fridge!

Henrietta's Afghan

My Great-Grandma Henrietta loved to sew and quilt.  I think every woman from that generation did.  My Great-Grandma Nora loved to crochet.  Part of that love of sewing is giving away what you've so lovingly created to someone you care about.  That's what passing things down to the next generation is all about - preserving history and giving.  So that's what my Great-Grandmas did. 

Grandma Henrietta made an afghan for every one of her grandkids, mom being one of them.  And now she has done what so many women have done before her, she passed it down to someone she loves - my daughter!

It is a beautiful purple color, which could not have made my daughter happier!  Now to plan a new decor scheme around this wonderful piece of art!

Designer Doghouses

It was raining here yesterday and my precious pooch did everything she could to keep from going outside - hiding under our bed, running from us, then eventually, after we got her outside, looking so sad and pathetic standing out there, that we had to bring her right in.  That got me thinking that if she had to stay outside, she would need some digs worthy of her diva lifestyle. 

Here are some pics from All About Dog Houses.  I know my Daisy would feel right at home in one of these!

Buried Treasure

A couple days ago a good friend of mine asked if I would be interested in some old furniture her mother had.  Her mom is thinking about downsizing so she was going to get rid of some stuff.  I love looking through other people's old stuff!  So I said sure.  And these little lovelies were in her basement.

Finding old furniture that I love is like finding buried treasure.  Sitting in someone's basement just waiting to be discovered.  Here are the red metal porch chairs and table on my porch.  They are perfect for watching my daughter ride her bike or reading a magazine.

She also had a vintage dinette from the 50s or 60s.  The chairs have the prettiest gray-green color.

The vintage dinette will be our new kitchen table (I think!).  I'm going to repaint our living room and dining room this week.  I'm jumping on the bandwagon and going with a nice light flannel gray.  Gray is all the rage right now.  Plus House Beautiful had a spread on west-facing rooms and what colors to use.  So I have the exact paint I want to use in mind.  My light yellow paint we have now turns into a "hot dog stand" yellow when the sun starts to set.  So we are going with gray.  So....more to come on the dinette once it makes it's way into our house.

Upcycle, Reuse, Repurpose - It All Works!

I got an email last week that reminded me how great second-hand furniture and other home decor can be. 

Hi Jenny,

New little gem we found this morning! Furniture sale @ behind burger king storage!

You can see in the picture the former, big box, particle board cabinet in the foreground next to the "new" solid wood piece!!  What great character and design.  I love it.

There are so many places to find other "little gems" just waiting for a new home!

• Habitat for Humanity ReStore outlets
• Public storage unit sales (advertised in newspaper)
• Goodwill (online too!)
• Salvation Army
• garage sales
• estate sales
• city junk week
• Ebay
• Etsy vintage
• Craigslist
• Host an upcycle party with friends (everyone brings a certain number of items - no junk - and you trade)

Check them out this weekend.  I know I will...

Tree Stump Side Table

Last year a pretty nasty storm blew through our little town.  Trees were down all over, especially at Mom's.  But she turned that problem into something useful and beautiful - a tree stump side table!

And it was so easy.  After the trees were cut up to make hauling them easy, Mom got an idea.  She had seen the side tables in a magazine and they were pretty pricey.  So she decided to make her own.

She chiseled the bark off the stumps and hauled them to the garage. 

You have to be patient with this project.  Mom let her stumps dry out in her garage for a year.  Yes, a year.  Since they will be sealed, you need to make sure they are completely dried out. 

After they were dry, she sanded the top and made sure it was level and smooth. 

She varnished it and when it was dry, glued a piece of felt on the bottom and trimmed it to the shape of the stump so her floor would be protected.  And now she has a beautiful, natural, and inexpensive side table!!

Make your own stump side table and send me some pics.  I want to try some color-tinted stain for something different.  What about white wash or a dark espresso stain?  The sky's the limit - when it's storming!

And don't forget to visit Between Naps on the Porch to see lots and lots of other amazing projects!!

Summer's Bounty Tablescape

It's mid-July and the hard work done in our garden is starting to pay off.  And just in time for Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch.  Thursday is special because it is Susan's 100th Tablescape Thursday.  Congratulations, Susan!  Her table looks beautiful. 

And here is my summer's bounty tablescape!!

I have always loved vegetable-themed dishes and have been collecting them for years.  I'm so happy to share them!

All of the vegetables, except the carrots, are from our garden, picked today!!

I hope you enjoyed my tablescape!!

More A-door-ation for Details

My obsession with doorknobs continues today.  To follow up on my earlier post, we went to City Museum in St. Louis this weekend and saw their "museum within a museum," Architecture Hall.  The exhibit is called "Elmslie and Sullivan."

I loved it!  There were stained glass pieces, terra cotta ornament and, of course, antique doorknobs.  Here are more of those lovely works of art.

I found a great site for antique doorknob enthusiasts and also some dealers that sell the hardware.


Antique Doorknob Collectors of America

The Old House Parts Company

Historic Houseparts

Look in the Attic and Company

Antique Hardware and More


The hard part will be deciding on which style to try and incorporate into our house and, more difficultly, our style.  Definitely not anything too traditional.  We like lots of color and whimsy.

Included in the exhibit were stained glass pieces.  You may not know this but I make stained glass artwork.  It has been awhile since I did a project (stained glass is not the most kid-friendly hobby!).  I do have something in the works for Halloween, though.  And our trip to this museum has inspired me to get going on it!!

Enjoy this beautiful stained glass!

Old World Details

I'm posting on the run.  I couldn't wait to show you these beautiful door knobs, made at a time when hand-crafted details and old world workmanship was the norm.  I love these doorknobs.  If you read my earlier post, Building Character, I want to start replacing the sad "builder's special" non-details.  That's what I call all of the cheap fixtures used in our home.  Love the neighborhood, dislike the finishes!  So when I saw these yesterday, I fell in love.  Someone poured their heart into these, you can just tell.  And I would love to have these on our doors.

I have many more pictures of this type of wonderful detail work to share soon!!  If you have lovely doorknobs in your home, please email me.  I would love to post them with the ones I saw yesterday.