Summer Fresh Decorating Ideas

 Photo by Debra Shenkle

The scent of Lavender has begun to aromatically fill the air as its beautiful spikes are  now exploding into blooming radiance. Synominous with Lavender is summer. And with summer just a few weeks, away a lighter and more carefree home decor comes to mind. Transforming those darker winter and spring color tones within our homes can be as simple as just replacing  a darker colored bed comforter into a lighter colored one such as a cream or ecru comforter. You will be amazed at how just lightening the colors in your bedroom will give you a fresh summer lift.

Adding a new eagle-shaped decorative fan with see-through design may add some much needed interest to a family room or to a restful screened in porch area, as well.

Don't forget to spruce up your garden area too. One way to enhance the beauty of your patio area is by adding  flowering plants to your exterior decor.  Another way to add interest to your outside garden space is by adding  garden  angel on knee with trumpet medium statues. Birdhouses and birdbaths also add much interest to your outside spaces.

Sprucing up that deck furniture by adding new bright colored cushions can also add interest and flare to your deck or patio.

Yes, by making a few small inexpensive changes to your interior and exterior decor you  can really brighten up your summer!

A Great Junk Day Find!

 One day several years ago while as I was driving down a street in a small Iowa town, I spotted this old antique farm table sitting beside the curb surrounded by mountains of other items in a huge pile. The owner of the table and other items was busy in his garage nearby gathering up even more items to add to the pile.

   

  At this time please keep in mind that this old farm table was painted with silver paint and was anything less than attractive. The older generation of farmers used to paint tables, benches, etc. with silver paint to protect them from the elements when they were used out-of-doors. I'm not sure how long or why the owner of table had it, beings he was an attorney, probably never a farmer and lived in the beautiful house near the curbside. However, possibly it had been used in his lavishly beautiful garage that sits next to his beautiful house.

At any rate, I stopped to visit with the attorney to ask him if he was throwing the table away and if so, may I have it. He said I could have it and anything else in the pile that I wanted. My friend who was traveling with me thought the table to also be a pile of junk, but agreed to help me lift it into the pickup truck bed and haul it home.

   Once I got the farm table home after hauling it for 5 hours to the town I live in, I set it set in my garage for sometime trying to decide what I could do with it to repurpose it. Finally, one summer day I decided to slap some leftover paint on it one coat at a time with different colors.  Then, the final coat I brushed on was an exterior white, so it would continue to be protected from the outside elements if I decided to just leave it outside on my patio.

One day I mentioned to my son that I was thinking of shortening the legs to make a coffee type table out of it, but it was just a passing thought at the time. To my surprise when I had returned from a short out-of-town trip........my son had sawn off the legs of the table so he could  use it  as a game table when entertaining his friends! Since this isn't in my son's character to take it upon himself to alter my furniture without permission first,  I was somewhat shocked to find my table reduced to size. I was happy, though, that he did get all four of the legs cut to the same height and it looked really kinda cute and unique.

I had so many compliments on the table that I eventually set it in my livingroom where it resides today.Everyone loves it just the way it is now. Since, I am redoing my livingroom this summer, I'm not sure whether the table will be staying in this spot or if I will move it to the patio with my adirondack chairs, which also need some tender loving paint or whatever.

Incidently,  the friend who helped me lift the junk table into the truck and haul it home, suddently realized after it was repurposed, that maybe it wasn't junk after all....it may look really  great in his livingroom.(lol)

Anyway, the moral of this story is...."One Mans Junk is Another WoMan's Treasure" :)

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If you enjoy puppies and dogs you may want to check out my other blog: http://www.debsdogblogg.blogspot.com/

You may also enjoy this fun newborn puppy video from our second litter of German Shepherd puppies born in November 2008. Loved raising puppies, but am out of it now.  Since spring is puppy time, I thought you all may enjoy this cute video....