Where Bloggers Create 2012

It's time for

Where Bloggers Create 2012!!

Woohooooo!!

We have decided to keep it real this year and show you The Good, The Bad & The Junky in the beautiful mess we claim as our studio!

Everything in here has been either gifted, thrifted or repurposed and there's still alot we'd like like to do but here it is in all it's glory......and we think it's pretty fabulous...or as my friend Sarah says, it's JUNKTASTIC!!

(Btw.....still working off my iphone and I really should have taken these pics during the daylight so lets just pretend these are beautiful, professional quality photographs like everyone else's...ok?!)

 Beautiful Virgin Mary watches over our little space from atop the "paper cabinet". She rests in a sweet vintage train case and is surrounded by an antique church lamp that belonged to my (jenny) grandmama, shed antlers and yellow roses.......we love roses!

If you were to enter the studio through the sliding glass door in my kitchen, which is usually the way we enter, the first thing you will see is this little armoire and the elyptical.....not so attractive, i know, but essential.

The armoire was originally bought for my youngest son's bedroom when he was born as there was no closet in his room at the time. He of course outgrew it, and since then it's been used to hold a tv, stereo equipment, board games and now serves as our "anything paper" cabinet. The drawers mostly hold fabric scraps and lace.

Just to the left is Lindsey's sweet little desk. The drawers are still out because they need another coat of paint......I told yall we were keepin' it real people!

Check out that chair though! My husband snagged it at a garage sale years ago. Great condition and super cute except for the filthy white seat. My mom recovered it for us in this funky zebra stripe and Lindsey repainted it a few days ago in one of our favorite shades......it's way more turquoise than it shows in the photo.

Now, as you turn into the room you almost hit your head on this stack of old frames that we've hung on the old lantern fixture....this sunroom was originally an open patio and this exterior light is a remnant from those days......when we find the perfect vintage sconce to replace it, it's coming down!

Just past the frames is our "shipping station / photo staging area". This antique sideboard houses all of our shipping and packaging supplies. When we need to take a few quick jewelry photos, eveything gets put away and we have a nice space for photographs. I bought this cabinet years ago as a store was going out of business. The owner told me it had once been used as a theater prop for a local college. It's beautiful but SO dark....I plan to remedy that with a fresh coat of paint ASAP!!

Hanging above is my latest Fabulously Funky Find!!

Gaudy, vintage velvet peacocks......what more could a girl ask for??!!  Although these beautiful  birds are quite the trend at the moment, I've actually been obsessed with them since childhood. My grandparents raised them most of my life and we spent countless hours out in the yard calling, feeding and  just watching these majestic creatures. Needless to say, they are very special to my family. I would have paid a pretty penny for this piece but when the dealer said "gimme $8 and take that gaudy thing" I jumped on it!!

Moving right along......

My favorite coffee drinking and blog browsing spot. "Slipcovered" in a funky old avocado green chenille bedspread. The gypsy ottoman was a gift from my mom.

The workhorse of the studio.....my big old

HUGE desk/work station!

 The photos do not show it's true size.......it is absolutely massive and was a freebie! It sat in an old house on the property where my mom and stepdad's business is located for atleast 20 years. Judging by the papers inside, it once belonged in a hotel in New Orleans.....how it ended up in East Texas though, I have no idea.

I'd love to paint it too but haven't yet decided on a color. Will probably keep the top original though because it's already a little rough and beat up and that suits me just fine.....jewelry and metal working tools can do a real number on a desk.

A closer look shows the assortment of projects we are designing at the moment, pendants and belt buckles mostly.

The organizers along the back were purchased at walmart and are perfect for beads, findings and other small treasures. An old tin ceiling tile stands in as a magnetic memo board.

These sweet little molds are the best thing we've ever found for organizing our many vintage brooches, earrings and other small rhinestone pieces. We use a seperate mold for each color and it works quite nicely.

Just past the desk is my favorite antique dress form and the most amazing stained glass door. This is another photo area and I try alot of my designs out her as well. The large oak tv cabinet houses more tools, picture frames and misc. junk.

Just past the tv cabinet is our growing collection of vintage oil paintings. These are mostly from the 60s and 70s  and we think they're just funky cool. Some day we will probably think of something fun to do with them but for now they make a fun "gallery".

Rounding the corner, you'll notice one more antique dress form. This lady lost her cotton cover some time ago and her foam is a little "revealing" so she now rocks a black lace corsett.....still a little revealing but cute and fun......we <3 FUN!!!

And now our other favorite part of the room.....we fight over nap time rights to our gypsyfied daybed!!

It all began when I found this Super Fab tufted velvet headboard at a resale shop in our town. It didn't fit our bed and of course my boys didn't want it but I just KNEW there was something I could do with it I couldn't pass it by. Well, one ugly extra loveseat, three white sheets, a bedskirt from GW and a load of throw pillows later, we have the cutest, most comfortable day bed around!!

Just look at that perfect tufting.......it was love at first sight :)

Our little sewing corner. My great grandmother's sewing machine, in it's original cabinet sits in the garage awaiting a cleaning and makeover. When we get around to that, it will replace this folding table which we currently use. The orange velvet chair is from the 70s and is so stinkin' comfortable.

Well, that's it for now!

I hope you enjoyed this little tour of where we spend most of our days at Faith & Pearl. Once again, I apologize for the low quality of the photos. Will keep yall updated as we make changes and complete a few projects we still want to do.

Thanx SO much for stopping by!!

Wishing you all a blessed and safe weekend

xoxo

lindsey & jenny

aka

faith & pearl

also sharing at

Wow Us Wednesday @ Savvy Southern Style

Welcome Lindsey!!

I'm SO stinkin excited to share this with yall!

You may have noticed a few changes to the blog, online store, facebook page etc already but I wanted to make an official announcement......

The newest member of Faith & Pearl......Lindsey!

She has recently come on board and will be handling most of the online sales and web design. Doing a little F&P modeling and bringing fresh ideas to the table.

I love this girl!! We've been as close as sisters for years and we're both so happy to be working and taking this journey together.

Thanx so much for stopping by today!
Hope to see ya down the road!!

xoxo
lindsey and jenny
aka
Faith & Pearl

 

A Sweet Custom Design

Good Morning friends

Today I'm sharing a necklace that I designed for my dear friend and fellow Girls Gone Junkin buddy, Brenda. In the middle of a normal conversation at Canton last month she casually said "i have an old religious piece that I want you to look at. Maybe you can make a necklace out of it for me"......ok

So the next day she brings in this sweet little burlap bag and I'm expecting to find a small religious medal, maybe a cross.....no, what lay inside was this beautiful, delicate,  hand embroidered antique masterpiece. It's a rather large piece with a felt backing and a ribbon loop to hang it. Brenda had already hand sewn the loop down to the backing to make a smaller loop and strung it on leather cording. 

Her only instructions were, "I want it to lay about right here (pointing to her chest) and just do your thing. You know my style and I trust you."

This is Brenda. She is a true hippie chick gypsyfied cowgirl. One of the sweetest souls you'll ever meet, clothing designer extroidinaire and absolutely precious. I love her and her style.

She takes risks and wears what she likes, and doesn't worry what other people think. I SO admire that!!

This is what I put together for her. She was so happy with the way it turned out and it looked absolutely stunning on her.

Working on this piece also reminded me how much I enjoy wire wrapping, which I haven't done as much of lately, and natural semiprecious stones.

I've already designed and completed a few new pieces that also incorporate antique hardware and I can't wait to share them with yall!

(I would have more photos to share with you but Blogger is not cooperating. Is anybody else having trouble loading photos?? Ugh)

I hope you all had a Happy and Blessed 4th of July yesterday. I did a little clean up and painting in my studio to get ready for the Where Bloggers Create linky party next weekend and then we went swimming and cooked out at my moms......I'm still full from dinner!! :)

xoxo

jenny

Fabulous Finds

Actually, LAST weekends fabulous finds....yea, it seems I'm always running a little behind lately...

Aaaaaanyway.......my BFF Liz and I  spent last friday rummaging through other people's junk...a few garage sales, an estate sale, a couple of antique stores and several resale shops. And we had a BLAST!

This was my haul. And get this.....i spent less than $100 on all of it!! AND fit it all into my Camry, better know as Ruby :)

Some things I am keeping......others will be going to our booth in Canton next weekend. And a few I haven't quite decided yet.

Keeping for sure: white wire planter (this was actually my grandmothers and I picked it up at my mom's on the way home), bent willow piece inside planter, vintage bread box, wine barrel table (hubby removed the not so cute particle board table top and now it's perfect!), bolt of striped fabric and rusty old piece of fence.

Selling for sure: Sweetheart chair (oh how I adore this piece but I really don't have a place for it in my house and I do need to make some money this month! haha), white lamp shades (found two white lamps that fit them perfectly later in the week), brown ruffled lampshade and lamp (painted the old rusty brass in the same color as the trim detail on the shade and it is precious!) and two frames

Undecided: tall gooooorgeous mirror and  vintage canisters

There's a funny story to go with the bread box. I have been wanting one for a while. Liz and a few of my other junkin buddies have even been looking for me. Well, we were in the cutest shabby chic style antique store and all of a sudden there it was......AND right next to it was a cool old wooden crate stamped "Liverpool" (now to understand this you must know that Liz has always loved all things British. Her and her husband are both huge fans of their soccer team. Plus, he proposed to her in Liverpool. So of course she went nuts over this little crate) Ok....now for the funny part....we both turned around and spied them at the exact same time and squeeled like schoolgirls. THEN we both noticed what the other one was squeeling about and started giggling and squeeling even more and almost jumping up and down. The shop owner came running out from the back because she thought something had happened or someone was hurt and there we were laughing and hugging. The look on her face was priceless!!

I believe the mirror is going to have to stay.....I mean seriously, how can i get rid of this original chippy, crusty paint and detail?? Yep, it's staying!! :)

Well, It's time to throw on the swimsuit (and coverup) and head to Mimi's house for a little poolside fun with the family! My sister and her family are in town for the weekend so we get to play catch up.

Have a safe and happy Memorial Day Weekend!

Don't forget to thank a veteran and pray for those who are serving our country now!!

xoxo

jenny

American Pickers

No, not the television series where the two guys drive cross country pickin up super cool junk and antiques........just me and my lil guy pickin some delicious fresh fruits and veggies!

He's the best helper in the world so we have been out in the orchard most afternoons picking sweet juicy plums....I should probably make jelly with them but they're just SO good on their own. What we don't eat, we give away to grandmas and our  wonderful neighbor. The corn actually came from his field. He plants two HUGE gardens every year. Not because he loves fresh vegetables (doesn't eat them at all) but because he loves to drive a tractor and work the land. So he grows acres of sweet corn, peas, tomatos, watermelons, potatoes, peppers....you name it, he grows it......and he gives it away to eveybody on our little county road! Needless to say, Mr. Metcalf is an AWESOME neighbor!!

I should really do a post on him. Truly a unique man. But for now, here's a few shots around my garden.

One of my favorite plants in our yard is our Texas Lilac. While it's not a true Lilac, its flowers resemble one. And since lilacs don't stand up well to our Texas heat,  this tougher, drought tolerant plant is our version. Bees and butterflies love it and to me, it's just so beautiful.

Aaaah....daylillies....one of my favorite flowers. It's getting a little hotter every day here and these guys are lovin it! I can't imagine summer without daylillies. I am blessed to have many of them passed down from my mom and grandmother, as well as the lady we bought our house from last year. She loves them too and there are hundreds of them in my yard!

I can never remember the name of this plant (maybe one of yall can help me out) but I absolutely love it. So light and airy. It meanders around the other flowers and fills in without being invasive. Love!

Jasmine.....oh the fragrance from this one will melt your soul.....this must be exactly what heaven smells like :)

Beautiful golden tomato blossoms. This shot was taken by my Brady (in first photo with me) in his Nana's garden. It's so neat to see the world from a little guys perspective. I didn't even see these tiny blooms but the were eye level for him. And what a great moment he captured! The light is gorgeous!

Well thats it! Thanx for stopping by :)

Join me for Feathered Nest Friday over at French Country Cottage!!

and

Saturday Night Special at Funky Junk Interiors

Wishing you all a blessed Memorial Day Weekend!

xoxo

jenny

It's Almost Here!

Summer time

Summer time

Sum-Sum-Summertime!!

It's the last week of school for my boys and that means no more homework (i don't know about the rest of you moms but this alone is enough for me!) and no more crazy mornings. 

 It means more sleeping in, a week at the beach (aaaaahhhh.....yes!) , playing, hanging out at Mimi's pool, fishing, going to the lake with Nan and Pa, and just spending more family time together.

This is one of my favorite photos ever, taken on the beach in San Diego last summer while visiting my baby sister and her family. That's my beautiful niece Lyllian with the boys and their boards. I really wish the quality was better but it was just a quick snap with my phone (later edited in picmonkey)......and when I say "quick", I mean Quick! Yall know how hard it is to get kids to stand still and pose on a normal day, much less when there's miles of sand and surf stretched out before them!!

We will be beachin' it in down south this year though! Woohoo!! California was so beautiful but I'm a Texas girl and I like my beaches WARM.....the Pacific is just too cold for me!!

Wishing yall a wonderful summer of precious memories.........if we can make it One More Week! :)

BTW.....I've been busy working on our kitchen/dining room makeover. Pics coming soon!!

xoxo

jenny

What Makes A Garden Shed A Shed?

Happy Wednesday!

I hope and pray all your kiddos are having a wonderful first week back to school.

When I asked my boys how it went yesterday the six year old said "It was awesome". The 12 year old said "It was cool. I finally got to see my friends." The 16 year old said "was alright". So I asked him a few more questions, trying to have somewhat of a conversation, but all I got were a few grunts and "i dunno, i guess".......teenage boys.......gotta love em :)

A few days ago I showed yall some pics of my garden shed at the new house. If you missed it, HERE it is.
And since the only project I'm currently working on is packing up everything we own...... not a whole lot to blog about there.....And because I'm SOOOO excited about our new house, I've been sharing a few pics from my "Ideas" folder with yall.

If you like kitchens or the color red, check THIS one out!

So, here's my question. What makes a garden shed a "shed"??
The term is pretty vague and encompasses everything from a giant rubbermaid storage bin to an elaborately constructed victorian mini mansion. It seems that as long as it's located in the garden or backyard, it can be considered a "garden shed".

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Loooooove......oh this sweet little shed just speaks my language so well. I've always had a thing for antique blue houses. The simple shape is very similar to mine and the finials on the roof are such a cute cute accent.
Plus, the vegetable gardens on each side of the walk are to-die-for!

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Rustic stone and cedar shakes.....so charming. I like the way this one is tucked back into the trees and bordered by the clipped boxwoods.

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Another blue one :)

Same shed, different view. Oh this one is sooo sweet.

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This tiny little shed is so precious. It looks to be made completely from vintage items and may in fact be. Almost reminds me of an old telephone booth. Love!

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Too cool!! Cabin chic at it's finest!!

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Yes! This is the ceiling in a garden shed. It is fabulous!!

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Who needs a house when you have this??!! Gorgeous design. Perfectly in scale. Beautiful colors. Surrounded by beautiful gardens.......I'm ready to move in :)

A girl can dream, right?

Well I hope you enjoyed this little garden shed open house of sorts!

Thanks for stopping by!!

This week I'm sharing with

Wow Us Wednesday @ Savvy Southern Style

Feathered Nest Friday @ French Country Cottage

Open House Party @ Old Sutton Place