Welcome to the Dining Room

The Dining Room. Sometimes these rooms aren't used much. In my house we are in it often. When you come in my house, you have to pass through it to get to the rest of the house. We celebrate holidays and special occasions in here. Otherwise we do homework and projects in here. It's a versatile room! I also store all my treasured china and glassware. My hutch is stuffed full and I always seem to be able to squeeze in one more precious piece.
The chandelier I LOVE. It's designed by Tracy Porter. She has some amazing decorating books - also a website http://www.tracyporter.com/ if you are interested in checking her out! A really neat designer - both of home AND fashion.

I did something this week that freaked out my husband...I painted my dining room table! It was damaged on the top so I thought why not paint it? First I painted it white, which turned out to be too stark. Then I painted it beige. It's a fun change, I think.

There is a Scottie to greet you in my dining room... don't worry he won't bite!

This is the staircase off the dining room...thought I'd share it, too. The mirror was found in an old barn in Wisconsin and my sweet husband brought it home for me!

A little table in my dining room to display stuff on...found it at a garage sale last summer.

This shows my new addition I found at Homegoods today - I've been looking for a "vintagey" looking sign for my house and I loved the colors in this one. Just had to buy it!!!

My flash made the colors look funny but it is really pretty!

A corner shelf dresses up this area above the wine cellar.

Here's my dining room table again. My husband thinks I'm nuts.

Top of my hutch...

And that's the lastest tour of my dining room! Now I'm off to ask my husband for help in hanging a little chandelier light fixture over my kitchen sink. Wish me luck!

Travel to Africa ~ Via Cairo

The Great Pyramids, Felucca rides on the Nile River, The Valley of the Kings, Karnack Temple, Mosques, King Tut, El Corniche, "Enshal-La," Camels, Donkeys, Pharoahs, History. What can these things only mean? EGYPT !!!





In 1995 my husband and I moved to Cairo, Egypt. He wanted to work overseas...they gave him a few options, and we ended up there. He wanted to see the world, and oh yeah, get out of debt. "They'll pay for our housing, car, it's cheap to live there, etc." So I was talked into it. I didn't have to work.

While we were there (for over two years) we traveled. We did a safari in Kenya. This giraffe sculpture was one of our souvenirs. It's hand carved out of a large log. The ears are sharp! Just ask my daughter who got her leg caught on one, ripped her jeans and required six sutures. She had to tell the ER folks, "I cut my leg on a giraffe sculpture!" I'm sure a first for them. Ha Ha

This wood trunk is from Egypt. I bought it in the Khan-El Khallilli bazaar. It's inlaid wood. The knobs have fallen off. One of these days I'll find a replacemment. It's HEAVY.

Another "Khan" find. Depending on how the light shines on it, King Tut looks at you differently. It's painted on papyrus.

No stay in Egypt cannot be complete without Egyptian perfume and perfume bottles. They have every size and kind. The brass thing is an old mascara applicator from the 1800's. They have a lot of brass and silver there.

Inlaid mother-of-pearl and wood boxes. There's a LOT of that there, too.

My friend called me one day and said a friend of hers was taking a truck to Alexandria and bringing back baker's racks. "$150 each" So I got one. The thing weighs a TON and was shipped across the Atantic Ocean when we moved back. Only one glass shelf had to be replaced. Some of my friends had marble shelves made for theirs.

This is mud pottery. I have a few of these, too. I did have alabaster, too, but my vase broke.

Although this is a German clock, I found this in the Khan market while in Egypt. It has a beautiful chime and is from the 1800's. Maybe the English brought it with them when they occupied Egypt.

Blown glass. They have a lot of this there, too. This is my set. You can watch the artesians making it in their shops. They blow it with their mouths!

Tapesties, rugs, lace...all available there. My husband went to Syria for a week and brought this back for me. It's made in Iran. I also have a Persian rug from Syria. I often get asked, "What was it like there?" Answer: Very different! Some good, some bad. The Egyptians are a friendly people. They are proud of their history and the awesome things they have from their ancestors! However it is very poor there. It is sad to see how most of the world lives. While we have so much in the US and forget so easily how much of the world struggles. It was dusty and dirty there! The weather was beautiful. I met so many great people. Lots of good times. Fun travels. I missed my family and friends back home, though. I am grateful for American grocery stores! My time there was something I will never forget and it opened my eyes to how big the world is and how much of it I still need to see and learn about. Hope you enjoyed my little tour of Egypt!

A Few New Things In My Kitchen

Thought I'd share some new things in my kitchen. First, I decided to bring this shelf up from my basement and use it to display/store things.

Cookbooks, tins, candles, rolling pins...

This box is on my counter... love the old vintage soda bottle boxes. I still kick myself for not grabbing a bunch marked "free" not that long ago - unfortunately I was walking with a baby stoller and couldn't carry them!

I bought this shelf at my favorite antique store "Little Ladies" in Norwood Park, Chicago. It was an ugly/dusty brown. I painted it and now have a fun display for some of my kitchen goodies. I got the idea from Tina at Cherry Hill Cottage. (I tried to get this to link but it wouldn't work - it kept putting blogger.com first... anyone know how to fix that? I am horrible with computers!)

I have more to share! I've been painting and rearranging like a madwoman! Unfortunately I have a bunch of laundry to do, first! Thanks for visiting! Hugs~ Ann