Tuesday, July 30, 2013

How to dry herbs in the microwave....

Drying herbs in the microwave is quick and simple! 

 I wash and dry my herbs and take the leaves of the stems.  I separate the herbs and dry them in the microwave on paper plates for one minute, then I toss them about and microwave for one more minute!


They should be "crispy dry":


The Christmas Tree Shoppe has these cute little spice jars, with a chalkboard label:


I mixed up my herbs and place them in these jars:


Adding a little bow to the knob with the chalk attached makes for a cute little gift!

I will be bringing this to a friend who is inviting me over to her home for lunch!

Joining Tutorial Tuesday at Hope Studios and Wow Us Wednesday @ Savvy Southern Style

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Saturday, July 27, 2013

The Barn in Cazenovia

Once a month The Barn is open to the public.  This huge barn is located on a country road in Cazenovia, NY


My girlfriends and I decided to take the trek and see what The Barn was all about.


It's a huge barn, not pretentious at all, so we were imagining lots of old stuff spewed about, cobwebs draping over old rusty items, mice scurrying about!


What a pleasant surprise we found as we entered The Barn!


The space is divided into "rooms" with antiques, vintage accessories and reclaimed furniture...


....well lit....


....beautiful furniture and accent pieces...


...treasures in every corner...


...beds, dining tables, unique pieces of furniture...


...tables set with china...


...prints, photos and wall hangings...


...refinished, recycled and reinvented pieces...


...architectural design pieces...


....tables galore...


...and a special area with some of my favorite old MacKenzie-Child pieces...


...and a lovely 3 tiered tin serving piece that I just adored!
 I just might have to save up for this and hope that it will be there next month!

Fingers crossed!

A trip to the village of Caz followed and then we went out to dinner - a fun way to spend a Friday night with girlfriends!



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Friday, July 26, 2013

The Local Auction in E. Syracuse, NY

 There is a local auction held on Tuesday nights in E Syracuse. 


 You can go into the auction hall during the day and preview the items that will be up for bid and you can even reserve a seat.


There have been times that Stickley Furniture has sold for under $50 and the other night a knife sold for over $400!  The excitement is that each night is so unpredictable!


It"s a fun night out with girlfriends and always surprising!  We meet for a quick dinner and then grab our "reserved seats"

Yvonne and Janine always find great treasures!


Debbie says "Joni, stop bidding against me":


I bought this old lamp base and hung my lantern from it - it was only $2:


The other night I bought an old mirror at the auction. 

I "shabbied" it up a bit with some white and gold paint....


....and gave it some "roughly painted" black stripes:


I love to rescue old pieces and I certainly think I have brought this one "back to life"!


It's looking for a new home - So, it is off to Shabby Chic Boutique!



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Monday, July 22, 2013

A Busy Sunday With the Girls....13th Annual Mackenzie-Childs Barn Sale

The MacKenzie-Childs Barn sale was a fun time, as always.  I just love the view of Cayuga Lake from the property:


My favorite purchase of the day was this:


After we loaded our treasures in our cars it was time for lunch...


...right down the road at the Aurora Inn, also overlooking Cayuga Lake:


Janine, Cathy and I enjoyed berry and spinach salad and chicken cucumber salad on croissants:




Our next stop was the Lockwood Lavender Farm in Skaneateles, overlooking Skaneateles Lake:


They have a quaint gift shop, selling soaps, lotions, oils and lavender fudge sauce!  


We sampled ice cold lavender lemonade!


The lavender was in full bloom:



Hand painted lavender welcomed us:


Here we are again in the flower garden!


They were making lavender oil on the grounds:


This is the drying room, where the lavender is hung upside to dry:



We also spent time in the little shops in Skaneateles - The Paris Flea, my favorite shop, is moving to Fayetteville!  YAY!  
On the way home we stopped by Karen's Image Boutique in Marcellus (which used to be called "The Dump"), and had makeovers - she has the BEST Lipstick in her boutique!

It was a fun-filled day - the very best kind!



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