Treasure Hunt

I love going to thrift stores and estate sales to find things that were once cherished by it's owner, and then forgotten about in the attic accumulating dust over the years. In general when I go, I always find at least something that was worth me getting up at 7am. Since I go all the time, I decided that I should post all of my treasures found. I love the hunt to find something great that nobody would have looked at twice, and it makes me feel good to help my community whenever I can (and help save the environment). Almost all of my furniture is vintage or antique, all you need is patience, imagination, and elbow grease to turn something shabby into shabby chic. I've been asked by plenty pf people where I find my treasures, and I tell them the truth, however, it is my patience and persistence that allows me to find such great things, and also being able to look past the usual dingy shape of most things that I buy. So good luck to all of you treasure hunters out there! May you find the treasures that you seek!

I loved the faded pink exterior, fleur-de-lis and English crests of this jewelry box. And the inside is in great condition with the fleur-de-lis inside as well!

My sister has got me into old books. I like to stack them on top of one another and put little things on them. Silver oval box lined with red velvet, and a glass chalice that I will use for blooms such as hydrangeas.

Gorgeous 1920's photograph of an actress I do not know, the frame is also from that era. Two oil paintings of a Gentleman and a Lady. Lately I can't get enough of old photos and oil paintings, especially ones like these. I can imagine them in my dream home lining the hallways.

Two vintage aprons, I'm pretty sure they are from the 70's. My Grandmother used to wear aprons like these, and I can't wait to put these on while baking. I love how things like this can bring back memories.

White linen with cornflower blue flower design table cloth. Not sure which era? A picnic print table cloth as well, that I can imagine will come in handy for a summer picnic on the beach. A Hungarian wash basin, might use as a rustic fruit bowl, or possibly a planter. Humpty Dumpty from the 60's! And an old state farm road map, I liked the illustrations.

I loved this entry mirror with coat hooks and a random door knob on the side, very Alice in Wonderland. And there you have it! My treasures from this weekend.

Mally xo

Joyeux Anniversaire

Happy Birthday to Sara

My dear friend Sara had her birthday dinner celebration over last weekend, and I had to document the spectacular food and general loveliness. I really liked the contrast of Sara's and mine rings, hers a delicate butter rose handmade from resin, and mine handmade silver in Corsica.

I made these vanilla chocolate-flake cupcakes and tiered them on a cake plate from Anthropolgie. The recipe (from Martha Stewart) is fairly simple and it produces the most amazing cupcakes! They are so moist, and the flavor of vanilla intense but not overpowering, with bits of chocolate hitting your taste buds.

The table was beautiful with the flowers Sara's boyfriend had bought at Trader Joe's, and Sara putting them in glass jars, so simple and pretty. I bought the chalice tea lights at Anthro on sale to add some ambiance, and they went perfectly with the table.

I made these paper Dahlia's in cream and silver tissue paper, and hung them from the ceiling to give the living room some festivity. I made 4 and it took me much longer than I expected, about 20 minutes per Dahlia. But I guess that's what I get for assuming anything involving folding tissue paper into flowers would be fast and easy. Next time I attempt this I will do it the night before (not while mixing cupcake batter) and have more patience ( new year's resolution).

Just some of the foods we ate that night. Pretty little Quail eggs with salt and pepper. Burratta salad with nectarines and hazelnuts, the burratta was so creamy and the nectarines and hazelnuts went so perfectly with it. Oh! and did I mention that Sara paired each course with wine? Her wine knowledge is impressive, and she always knows which ones I'll love when we go wine shopping together.

I'm disappointed that I never got any decent shots of the girls outfits, we all looked great! All of the ones that the guys took just came out blurry or we were blinking. Some of my pictures are already blurry seeing as I've never really done the whole photography thing before. I'll get better over time, and next time I will make sure I get some decent photos of peoples outfits. Because after all, that is one of the main parts of this blog, but as most blogs start out a little rough around the edges, I'm giving myself some credit. As for these shots, Amanda liked my make-up which you can't see very well... Casey's braid was pretty, and I wish I knew how to do braids like that. I'm sort of a disgrace, I mean my mother is a stylist and I can't even do a french braid? humph! On a lighter note, Sara's cobalt suede booties were fabulous!

The night all around was so much fun. We ate, drank, laughed and danced until 2am, when the girls proceeded into the hot tub looking up at the stars and proclaiming how much their feet hurt, while the men were passed out inside. These are the memories I cherish and look back on and smile! What are your favorite memories with friends?

Bisous!

Mallory