WHAT'S THE PURPOSE?

Purpose is the reason for which anything is done, created, or exists...so I guess everything has a purpose (except maybe mosquitoes and gnats...

Have you ever stopped to wonder why God made those aggravating things?)  

But I think it’s fun to take something and use it for a purpose other than what it was intended.  Not only can it be fun, but it can also help our environment.  Remember the 3 R’s (no, not those 3 R’s...readin’, writin’, and ‘rithmetic)...   

Pinterest is filled with ideas for repurposing, but I thought I’d share a few of my own.  I’ve shared this one before, but it’s one of my absolute favorites...

My husband made it for me from an old frame by inserting something called hardware cloth (although I don’t understand why it’s called cloth when it’s some type of metal!)  It’s great for organizing some of my many earrings.  He also made this one for holding necklaces using S hooks...these have both saved me lots of time and aggravation!

Although I have a huge jewelry box (which is actually a repurposed wooden tool box with drawers gifted to me by my husband...and I love it), it just isn’t big enough to hold all my jewelry so I improvised with these 2 ideas...

I was cleaning out a cabinet one day and found this condiment holder and a silver tray that I never used.  LIGHT BULB MOMENT!!!  I store rings in the condiment thingie along with a few bracelets hanging in the middle, and the tray holds some of my too many bracelets.  (The tray looks tarnished in this picture but actually it's pretty & shiny:) 

I also use these pieces of glassware to hold makeup brushes and (more) jewelry in the bathroom.  The vase on the left actually belonged to my husband’s sweet-as-sugar grandmother.  The other two pieces were picked up at thrift stores.

I love to repurpose the clear 3-wick candle jars from Bath & Body Works.  They are so pretty and can be used for many different things...

Pinterest Photo

You can even turn an empty soup can into something lovely and useful...as well as pretty bottles (after you’ve enjoyed the wine:)...

Pinterest

Pinterest

I do have to say I’m not into things like using empty egg cartons to sort my jewelry or covering empty shoeboxes with paper to use for storage.  I like my "cuteness" factor!

Here are some other repurposed items from Pinterest (where else???)...

Old chairs can be repurposed into many different items for your home.

This is neat...a bar made from an old door and some shelving.

How cute is this...an ottoman made from an old tire.

These 2 are mine...

Old chair ($5.00 at auction) turned into a planter.

Teacher gift...clean paint cans can be purchased at places like Lowe’s or Home Depot.

PS:  Does anybody know what these are used for?  I found them among some old craft supplies at our church.  There were quite a few of them, and I would love to know their purpose. 

PSS:  Did you know the lid from a Parmesan Cheese shaker fits almost every Mason jar?  So many uses!!!  You are welcome.

Do you repurpose anything in particular?  Spill the beans!  I need new projects!!!

Blogger, why are you boxing in all my words in white???  Please leave me alone!!!

 

PORCHES ARE PLEASING

When I was a little girl, my family lived in a (rented) house with a large front porch.  Oh, how I loved that porch!  It was a sort of sanctuary for me…a place to daydream, a place to sit and talk with friends, a place to catch a cool breeze on a hot summer’s day.  

And, of course, that porch (like so many other southern porches) had a swing.  I wonder how many times I pushed myself in that swing, sometimes going so high I thought my feet could almost touch the ceiling.  One of my childhood dreams was to one day own my own home with a large front porch and there would definitely be a swing and….that dream came true.

This is my swing….

And here are some others I really like…(pictures found here & there online)

This one is made from an old headboard

Love the blue color

And this one was made from a door…very creative

Surely this is the kind of swing God has in heaven😊

But there’s more to a porch than a swing…wicker furniture, flowers, hanging ferns, pillows, candles, an American flag hanging from a column, or whatever else you might fancy.  I don’t like for a porch to look cluttered but I do like it to have lots of character.

               #1

There is just something about a porch that screams SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY!  Pull up a rocking chair or glide to and fro in the swing drinking a glass of sweet iced tea, add to that a funeral fan to keep away the gnats or to create a cool breeze, and you can solve the world’s problems (well, maybe a few of them). 

                    #2

Porches can be a place for entertaining, a place for quiet reflection, the perfect place for devouring the latest best seller, or another opportunity for creating seasonal décor. 

                     #3

A porch is a place for daydreaming, for sharing secrets with a friend, for shelling peas fresh from the garden, or just a place to sit and wave at neighbors as they ride by. 

                      #4

                                #5

In the South a front porch is sometimes referred to as a veranda.  I love that word…has a romantic ring to it.  Through the years many Southern mansions (see Charleston and Savannah) have sported a veranda filled with columns and even gingerbread trim, but historians tell us that actually porches can be traced back to overhanging rocks of prehistoric times.  Doubt cavemen and women sipped on some sweet iced tea though as they relaxed on their rock porch!

                       #6

Generations ago in the deep South (my beloved home), people would often paint the ceilings of their porches/verandas a particular blue/green color referred to as Haint Blue.  Tradition said that it kept the “haints” (demons, evil spirits, etc.) away.  My porch ceiling isn't blue, but we don't have any haints (at least I haven't seen any.)  Today some people believe that a blue ceiling keeps wasps and other insects away…not sure about that.

                    #7

             #8

My children and grandchildren have always loved our porch about as much as I do.  Just the other day my granddaughter was out there in the swing reading her latest HARRY POTTER novel.  Just the sight of her brought back memories of my childhood when I would swing back & forth, back & forth, dreaming of the day I would grow up, have a family, and see my children & grandchildren swinging on my front porch, back & forth, back & forth, dreaming dreams of their own.

Front Porch on our Farmhouse style home

And Side Porch (where everybody comes)

Which of these (#) is your favorite porch?

When out of sorts with life or self,
A porch is hard to beat.
As long as you've a comfy chair
And space to stretch your feet.
---Chuck Toll

IT’S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE…SPRING!

Spring has sprung in south GA…although the weather is still a little chilly on some days (like today).  I have a love/hate relationship with spring!!!  I love the loveliness of spring with all the flowers & budding trees, but oh how I HATE THE POLLEN!!!

 Plus, I know that our spring quickly turns into a very hot summer…and I hate HOT!!! 

Spring also brings with it a LOT of projects.  So here are some of the ones I’ve been tackling recently.  The yard still has a way to go…pine straw for the flower beds is next on the list.  Probably ought to transplant some more HOSTAs but OH MY GOSH…that’s a very difficult & tiring job!!!  Here are a few photos showing what I’ve been up to….

 LOTS OF PAINTING!  I love birdcages & metal pieces for our yard and porch.  Also included were 2 glass-topped tables and 2 chairs for the deck.  Thank goodness for SPRAY PAINT, but it’s still not my favorite thing to do!

Another “un”-favorite is CLEANING!  Between the winter weather and the spring pollen, there’s a lot of scrubbing going on☹

LOTS OF PLANTING GOING ON!😊  I love Gerber Daisies! 

The HOSTAs are beginning to wake up and reach for the sun.  I really need to transplant some, but it is definitely one of the most difficult of garden chores…in my opinion!  I like to put hostas in pots…I’ve had luck with that so far.

We have a large wrap-around porch on 3 sides of our house plus a medium-sized deck.  I love to DECORATE them both.  Got 2 cute bird pillows from Wal-Mart the other day…$5 each.  Got the 2 beautiful pillows on our swing last year from Dollar General…$6 each.  (I love a bargain!)

RED is definitely the color I go with for our deck.  The kitchen color scheme is yellow with red & blue accents, and we have large windows that look right onto the deck and the backyard pond.

 Love my Chicken Planter:) 

And, of course, a little EASTER decorating! 

As the cooler weather goes by the wayside, and the days of spring encourage us more and more outside (once the pollen has gone!), hopefully my yard will show the results of all my hard work.  (Photos from previous years!)

So…what have you been doing to WELCOME SPRING in your neck of the woods?

HAPPY  SPRING !