A LA CARTE

Monday, May 13, 2013

Saving The Orphans

Over 10 years ago I was at a flea market in Indiana

I found and purchased many great planters (one of my collections that I continue to love).

I passed this one booth a few times and kept eyeing this one item

This pepper shaker was all by itself and while I loved the colors and design I couldn't figure out why I would buy the pepper without the salt

But buy it I did!

A collection was born....collecting 'orphan' salt/pepper shakers

Since that first 'orphan' I've found many in flea markets, thrift shops and yard sale shopping

They come in all shapes and sizes

I never split a pair, if I like a set I buy that also...

but the orphans have a special place in my heart

As in most things we collect, something must speak to me before I bring it home, so not all orphans come home with me...but all of these have

Sometimes bringing home orphans results in a pair as was the case with these two.

Found years apart I love these Shawnee pieces!

Critters of all kinds are popular

More fun pieces and the 'beauties' as I call the 'pretty' shakers

Some of my favorites!

I will continue to adopt orphans as I see them and they call my name. It's one of my favorite collections. Not worth much dollar wise, but for a fun and happy collection....priceless!

Wishing you JOY,

Linda

I'm joining these fun parties this week

Your' Gonna Love It Tuesday

Tweak It Tuesday

Inspire Me Tuesday

Share Your Cup

Vintage Thingy Thursday

Saturday, May 11, 2013

If you are a Cat Mom like me, then you know how much they love to be a part of everything you do! When I'm working on a new tablescape, I often do it in stages, take a break and then look at it again to see if I like it or do I need to 'tweak' it some more. Sometimes 'someone' just wants to help!

Or just take a nap!

Thanks Charlie!

I want to send warm Mother's Day wishes to all the Mom's out there!

A Big Hug to my Mom in Texas and

Hugs to my daughter Sara who is such a great Mom to my sweet Grandson!

Wishing you all JOY,

Linda

Linking to

A Favorite Thing

Seasonal Sundays

Sunny Simple Sunday

Cheers 2 You!

Oh The Places I've Been....

NAPA VALLEY WINERIES~DAY TWO~2011

Day two we decided to try some of the wineries on the Silverado Trail.

Our first stop was a small family owned winery

Steltzner Vineyards

We were the only one's there and had a great host who explained a lot about the wines. They are known for their reds and they were pretty good

Again we used a 2 for 1 tasting coupon

This was the drive up to our next tasting at

Hagafen Cellars

This was the most fun I had at a tasting!

The hosts were friendly and fun and the wines were very good!

A very cute little tasting room...

I found another white wine I love!

I can order on line and I just might!

I had just tried a very nice red

We were laughing that Ash's hair was the same color as the grapes!
It was bright and sunny as you can see!

The view as we left this really great winery

We had a free wine tasting coupon here. I would recommend this as a stop for anyone going to Napa Valley

Next stop was

Black Stallion Winery

I enjoyed this winery for the great exhibit they had of the different grapes used in wine making

These signs were in front of each row of the grape varieties

Chardonnay....the heat had made these a little beyond their prime

Beautiful Zinfandel

A lovely deep purple grape

Sauvignon Blanc

These looked very ripe!

Riesling is my favorite wine

Lovely sweet grapes

Here I am eating one of these yummy grapes

We had a great time! The tasting was nice but I was not in love with any of their wines.
Our last stop of the day was
Ceja Vineyards
We went to their tasting room in downtown Napa

(photo from their web site)
We had a lot of fun tasting their wines and found a few we really enjoyed. I liked their Rose and so did Ashleigh. We finished off with a taste of their amazing Cabernet Chocolate Sauce

Tasting NotesRich and seductive, this liqueur was made from our Cabernet Sauvignon and creamy Dutch Chocolate. Pour it over ice cream or use like a desert sauce. Or just eat it off a spoon. Dribble over ripe bananas or big juicy strawberries. Or how about a dollop in your morning coffee? Either way you decide to use this sexy potion you're bound to have a great time!

Production NotesMade by Anette's Chocolate Factory located in Napa.It was very sweet and amazing and I can just taste it on icecream! Oh my!So ended our wonderful time in Napa Valley!
Cheers,Linda

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Thrifty Things Friday #108

I love thrifting and finding treasures to share here on my blog. I once hosted Junkin Finds, a linky party, but when my Grandson was born I felt like I couldn't give the party the attention it needed. My wonderful friend Diann at The Thrifty Groove took over the party and changed the name to Thrifty Things Friday! It's been a fun party for over two years now and as often happens, life changes. Diann and her husband Troy have a business DTL, Herbs and as the business has grown their commitments have also. This is their busy time of year and while Diann can get a post done, visiting all of the participants has become hard.

Enter me!! Diann has asked me to Co-Host the party with her and I've accepted! I am so excited about joining in with her on this! The party will continue to post on The Thrifty Groove, but I will be visiting all of you! So I invite you to join Diann and I each Friday and share you thrifty finds, crafts, ideas and any tips you have to save money in these challenging times!

Can't wait to see you there!

Linda

Fiesta Challenge

I love to tablescape and sometimes I like to set 'challenges' for myself just to make it a little more interesting. This year for Cinco De Mayo I challenged myself to only use Fiesta ware dishes and new decorations. All my Fiesta is thrifted and so not much matches, but that's the fun of it!

I used another 60's vintage Mexican serape my Mom used as a tablecloth, this one is in muted colors so it went well with the variety of Fiesta ware I have.

Each place setting started with a woven charger, a yellow napkin with a bronze napkin ring and the bronze handled flatware

Then I mixed each place setting using a dinner plate, salad plate, bread plate and small bowl in various colors

I have some older pieces and lots more from the 70's! The pink and blue especially!

I used two different glasses from thrift shops. This wine glass and a blue water glass! I mixed it up again as I didn't have 4 of the same glass.

Here is the blue glass

We have had so much rain I'm afraid my photos are fairly dark. Still I wanted to share this with you this week!

The centerpiece was a pink platter, yellow bowl and blue planter with a faux plant! I found this funny little guy with his sombrero at the thrift and so he joined the table this year!