A thank you gift and a giveaway…

I received this beautiful fruit bouquet from my friend Karen. If you haven’t ever heard of Edible Arrangements…check them out. Of course I immediately gravitated towards the chocolate covered banana.

If you missed my giveaway announcement click here to check it out.

Check out my Thrifty Shopping articles on examiner.com.

• Inspirational decorating with thrifty finds
• Repurposing floral frogs
• Affordable watercolor art and frames
• Classic black and white purses
• 10 Chalkboard paint ideas
• Five Free Cell Phone Features
• Organizing with jars – Part I
• Organizing with jars – Part II
• Organizing with jars – Part III
• Dishes add color and whimsy to the garden
• Wallpaper Art
• Transforming a Goodwill table
• Repurposing flashcards
• Top 10 ideas for recycling greeting cards
• Hoops and fabric equal art
• Decorating with drop cloth curtains
• 10 uses for orphan sheets
• Organizing with Gladware
• Round robin clothing exchange and more

Thanks for stopping by Cottage Lifestyle and examiner.com.
Renee

Swirls of blue…

A gift from my friend Kate. She knows how I love my blues. It is so beautiful I want to display it.

Any suggestions?

Check out my Thrifty Shopping articles on examiner.com.

• Inspirational decorating with thrifty finds
• Repurposing floral frogs
• Affordable watercolor art and frames
• Classic black and white purses
• 10 Chalkboard paint ideas
• Five Free Cell Phone Features
• Organizing with jars – Part I
• Organizing with jars – Part II
• Organizing with jars – Part III
• Dishes add color and whimsy to the garden
• Wallpaper Art
• Transforming a Goodwill table
• Repurposing flashcards
• Top 10 ideas for recycling greeting cards
• Hoops and fabric equal art
• Decorating with drop cloth curtains
• 10 uses for orphan sheets
• Organizing with Gladware
• Round robin clothing exchange and more

Thanks for stopping by Cottage Lifestyle and examiner.com.
Renee

Eat good food & share…

My friends Bill and Linda bought me this trivet aka art. After being on the road for business and dealing with incredibly dreary weather here…I finally made time to cook, bake and share.

Check out my Thrifty Shopping articles on examiner.com.

• Inspirational decorating with thrifty finds
• Repurposing floral frogs
• Affordable watercolor art and frames
• Classic black and white purses
• 10 Chalkboard paint ideas
• Five Free Cell Phone Features
• Organizing with jars – Part I
• Organizing with jars – Part II
• Organizing with jars – Part III
• Dishes add color and whimsy to the garden
• Wallpaper Art
• Transforming a Goodwill table
• Repurposing flashcards
• Top 10 ideas for recycling greeting cards
• Hoops and fabric equal art
• Decorating with drop cloth curtains
• 10 uses for orphan sheets
• Organizing with Gladware
• Round robin clothing exchange and more

Thanks for stopping by Cottage Lifestyle and examiner.com.
Renee

A Thank You Gift from Maine…

My neighbors Bill and Linda brought me a picture perfect thank you gift, Alphabetown Cards. I have always dreamed of making my own…maybe now I will be motivated to do so. I love that on the back of the card it tells you where the letter was photographed in Maine.

Check out my Thrifty Shopping articles on examiner.com.

• Inspirational decorating with thrifty finds NEW
• Repurposing floral frogs
• Affordable watercolor art and frames
• Classic black and white purses
• 10 Chalkboard paint ideas
• Five Free Cell Phone Features
• Organizing with jars – Part I
• Organizing with jars – Part II
• Organizing with jars – Part III
• Dishes add color and whimsy to the garden
• Wallpaper Art
• Transforming a Goodwill table
• Repurposing flashcards
• Top 10 ideas for recycling greeting cards
• Hoops and fabric equal art
• Decorating with drop cloth curtains
• 10 uses for orphan sheets
• Organizing with Gladware
• Round robin clothing exchange and more

Thanks for stopping by Cottage Lifestyle and examiner.com.
Renee

Second Life…

My friend Lisa gave me this quilted teddy bear. I love when a quilt is repurposed. I thought s/he would look cozy in the ‘red room’. Thanks Lisa!

Check out my Thrifty Shopping articles on examiner.com.

• Classic black and white purses
• 10 Chalkboard paint ideas
• Five Free Cell Phone Features
• Organizing with jars – Part I
• Organizing with jars – Part II
• Organizing with jars – Part III
• Dishes add color and whimsy to the garden
• Wallpaper Art
• Transforming a Goodwill table
• Repurposing flashcards
• Top 10 ideas for recycling greeting cards
• Hoops and fabric equal art
• Decorating with drop cloth curtains
• 10 uses for orphan sheets
• Organizing with Gladware
• Round robin clothing exchange and more

Thanks for stopping by Cottage Lifestyle and examiner.com.
Renee

Little Mermaid…

The mermaid is a gift from my neighbors Bill and Linda. I am working on finding just the right place for her…a place where I will see her all the time. Right now she is hanging on the pantry doors in the kitchen. I call them pantry doors, but there isn’t food behind the doors…just my washer and dryer.

Check out my Thrifty Shopping articles on examiner.com.

• Organizing with jars – Part I
• Organizing with jars – Part II
• Organizing with jars – Part III
• Dishes add color and whimsy to the garden
• Wallpaper Art
• Transforming a Goodwill table
• Repurposing flashcards
• Top 10 ideas for recycling greeting cards
• Hoops and fabric equal art
• Decorating with drop cloth curtains
• 10 uses for orphan sheets
• Organizing with Gladware
• Round robin clothing exchange and more

Fellow Minnesotans...

Don't miss the occasional sales in Buffalo, MN this weekend - June 4 - 6, 2009! Round up your friend and hit the road! Contact the stores for hours.

Three Sisters Collectible: 18 Central Avenue, 763-682-4701
Second-Hand Rose: 609 Soo Lane, 763-684-0124
Sweet Salvage: 705 2nd Avenue NE, 612-850-9768
Barn Chix in the City: 18 First Avenue NE, 763-245-1927
This and That Now and Then: 605 Soo Lane, 613-581-8010
The Porch and Atelier: 32 1/2 Central Avenue, 763-684-1254.

Thanks for stopping by Cottage Lifestyle and examiner.com.
Renee

IT'S HERE...

Yes, it arrived yesterday. Don't you just love it when you get an actual package or letter in the mail especially given the electronic age we are living. My gift (Cath Kidston shower gel, soap, hand cream and lip salve) from Sarah at A Beach Cottage had arrived. If you haven't ever visited Sarah's blog...head there now.

Beautifully wrapped just as you knew it would be. And to make the wrapping very special there were two shells...from the beaches of Australia. I love shells and collect them so they will be right at home with my other shells.

Don't you think these two shells look like angel wings?

Even the inside of the wrapping paper was colorful.

And of course, she had to tease me by having a second set of wrapping and ribbons. This is my first experience with Cath Kidston products but I am guessing that the wrapping paper below is Cath Kidston.

THANKS SARAH, IT WAS EXTREMELY GENEROUS OF YOU TO HOST A GIVEAWAY AND TO SEND SUCH A LOVELY GIFT TO THE USA.

Thanks for stopping by...

Renee @ Cottage Lifestyle

Remembering Friends and the 70s...

Yes, these fabrics are from the 70s. My friend Elizabeth made this quilt square in 1976 with the intention of making a quilt. For whatever reason she never made the quilt. Elizabeth died of cancer in 2000 and as she was going through her belongings she came across the square and sent it to me as a keepsake. Elizabeth and I became friends when I lived in the Bay Area and made several trips to Italy together. Whenever I would visit the Bay Area I loved staying at Elizabeth's home in Sausilito...fabulous view of San Francisco. We would make pasta, drink wine and gab about what the future held.

In May, 1999 we were in Italy and she was telling me she didn't feel well...the doctors were telling her it was menopause. When we got back from the trip she went to doctor after doctor until finally in September someone realized she had uterine cancer. They did surgery and she went through chemo but she lost her battle in August, 2000.

I kept the quilt square in my quilting basket until last year when I brought it out and wash it to get rid of the yellowing. I realized at that point that the colors in the quilt square are in my porch and throughout my house, and when I look at it I re-live the 70s. I have decided to frame it along with the handwritten note that came with it and her last email (the note and email won't show as they will be placed behind the quilt square). Now I am on the hunt for a frame that will work best given its dimensions. The picture above gives a true representation of the colors versus the picture below.

FLOWER POWER!

Thanks for stopping by...
Renee @ Cottage Lifestyle

Laughter...

It's Monday...time for an item that makes me smile. My friend Shelley gave me the laughter jar and it makes me smile and think of Shelley every time I look at it.

Thanks for stopping by...
Renee @ Cottage Lifestyle

Friendship...

Many years ago (15+) my friend Sherry wrote this note and framed it for my home. It has always been in my living room and I read it every time I dust it...love it.

I liked it so much that I made a version for my guests.

Sherry is a talented writer. She wrote about a crazy trip we took to Yosemite with our WOAA (Women of Action and Adventure) friends. The story was published in a book called It's a Chick Thing (pages 168 and 169).

Thanks for stopping by...

Renee @ Cottage Lifestyle

Lovely gift...

My friend Kathy gave me these trivets. When she went home for the holidays her mother asked if she would like to have them. Kathy thought me and my love of blue and white. The other night Kathy, and my friends Bob and Peg came over for lemon salmon fettuccine (I love making pasta from scratch) and to play Wii. I had set the table with blue placemats, napkins, plates and glasses, and the trivets were a perfect match.

I not only like that the trivets are blue and white but they are solid...no air holes. A few years back I put a hot dish on a trivet with holes on my beautiful wood table and the heat/steam from the dish left a 'water' mark on my table. I tried mayonaise, furniture oil, colored furniture polish, etc. but wasn't ever able to get the mark out.