welcome Open Sky Project

   By now I hope you’ve noticed the countdown clock in the sidebar. It’s over there, you’ll need to scroll down a bit.

 

 I’m  SO excited to announce the opening of my very own shop at Open Sky!

Are you familiar to the concept of Open Sky?

  It’s a whole new way to shop!

So, let me ask you, what’s missing from the every day shopping experience? 

hhhmmm………It’s the  connection between people. With Open Sky you buy products from someone you know and trust. Hopefully that’s me. I’m sure you’ll agree, that’s a great way to  shop! I’ll have products in my shop that I personally choose and recommend or have actually used myself. And I would never steer you wrong. NEVER EVER!

Open Sky was established in 2009 and is already a thriving community of online shop keepers that hand pick all of the wares in their personal shops from a list of thousands of products. All products are guaranteed and have a 365 day return policy because you are their trusted consumer. 

Open Sky has been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and was featured on Good Morning America, in a segment about making money from a home based business.

What a great way to conduct a business.

With Open Sky everyone benefits!

It’s a win-win-win situation.

♥Sellers make money by selling things they love.

♥Suppliers partner with bloggers to reach targeted audiences and increase sales.

♥Consumers have confidence knowing they are buying from a friend who personally endorses every product for sale in their shop!

I can’t wait to start, so please come back on for the grand opening on August 10 to see what I have to offer YOU.  AND,  here’s a big sincere Thank You for your support!

 

Debbie (((xx)))

If you are you interested in owning your own shop at Open Sky, check it out HERE. And please say I sent you! Thank you!

Interested in increasing sale by supplying Open Sky with your products, Click HERE.

 

 

Your refrigerator’s water supply needs you.

 

Why is the fridge pulled out?

Why is there a pan sitting on the floor?

Check the water supply to your refrigerator to prevent this from happening.

There was a malfunction of sorts in the basement, gulp! The small filter to the fridge went wonky and pressure caused the line to disconnect at the back of the fridge! Water all over the place and who knows how long it was leaking! My biggest fear is damage to the hardwood. Everything was soaked and there’s some buckling of the floor against the wall, but I’m hoping that the floor doesn’t need replaced. The hardwood runs from the front door through the dining room, kitchen, hallway and powder room. Some of the dining room floor was wet too! The whole floor would have to be replaced! What a nightmare, I’d hate for it to looked pieced together!

The rest of the damage was in this part of the basement with the drywall being soaked and some wetness on the rug at the door.

Water was dripping from the ceiling, ran down the walls and onto these shelves. Everything on the shelves was soaked! What a way to wake up.

 

Our old oriental rug got soaked to the gills. Ever try to carry a soaked rug? It must have weighed 500 lbs.

My bucket of tools filled with water!

This container held gloves I use for painting.

My craft paints are floating.

The patio is a drying rack for sopping towels and miscellaneous junk.

Just for fun, adding to Outdoor Wednesday at A Southern Daydreamer.

The insurance sent out Service Master and now the biggest dehumidifiers I have ever seen and various industrial fans are humming away….sounds like a jet plane about ready for takeoff.

SO, how’s your day?

^Debbie

 

Thrifty Collecting, Jadite

I saw on tv where a woman bought an art print for 25¢ at an estate sale and later sold it for $62,000. Can you believe it? Seriously!  Stuff like that never happens to me, NEVV-EEEER EVER. But I did score this Jadite  {Jadeite} milk pitcher for 75¢ and with a little research found out it’s worth 80 bucks.
Not bad, but it’s not 62 grand. $62,000!
My confession.
I’m a collector.
Many times I felt in need of a 12 step program but Jadite is one of my true weaknesses.
At one time I kept it the kitchen cabinet and actually used it. {GASP}.  I happen to think it’s perfect for serving breakfast and even makes breakfast taste better. French toast or pancakes with blueberries or beautiful yellow yolks of my favorite eggs over easy, look so mouth wateringly good on these delicate green plates. It’s all about color. They say you eat with your eyes first.
I’ll admit to owning over 100 pieces…….several batter bowls, mixing bowls, swirl plates and D handled mugs, vases, platters ……… Charm, Jane Ray, Shell, Alice, I didn’t care what pattern, I bought it, but only if it was cheap.
   Rare pieces like these aren’t in my possession. Yet.
I never ran across any for sale…..cheap.


I own no C handled mugs,
but have many D handled ones, like these.
My collection was wrapped up in paper and carefully packed away in boxes and now lives in the basement. There’s just not enough space in the kitchen.
Are you a frugal collector too?  Plenty of people  are avid collectors and routinely scout out antique stores and auctions. They research and learn all they can about what they’re collecting and know which pieces are the rarest. That’s not me, I’m a hit or miss collector.
I read that Pioneer Woman loves Jadite and has a nice collection. So if she likes it as much as I do, that’s reason enough to keep on collecting Jadite. Right?
What’s your weakness?



Added to Southern Hospitality, Rhoda's thrifty treasures,
Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm
^Debbie

A girl’s gotta have some bling!

Today I’m sharing the free and  half price goodies from my Premier Designs girl party on the patio. (previous post)        This one’s called chocolate kiss. 

Allegro.

This one is Safari. Don’t they have neat names?

I will admit to being a jewelry snob in the past. If it wasn’t the real thing I was NOT interested at all.  But every time I wear this jewelry I get tons of compliments. I’m hooked on it and since so many friends are having parties, I’ll probably get more! If you like jewelry you should check out Premier designs.

Are you a jewelry purist? Only the real thing for you? It’s ok if you are….    I was too. 

 

 

If things seem wonky on my blog it’s because I’m trying a new blogger template, but it’s not so friendly with Live Writer, which I love. I’m hoping to get a blog makeover soon.

Have a great day!

^Debbie

 

Girl party on the patio

Recently I hosted a  jewelry party on the patio.  I invited a few girlfriends over to a Premier Designs party. It turned out to be a perfect evening for outdoor entertaining.
Snacks are expected. So what do you serve a bunch of women on a warm evening? Some snacks that aren’t too heavy, because no one is going to do more than nibble, but you want to have a nice colorful selection and a great cool drink.
Since it was a Premier Designs party, I dubbed the drink a ‘P D tini.’  Non alcoholic. Blue elixir, fizz, over ice, garnished with cherry and lime.
This simple drink was such a hit. I think because of the way it was presented, it was festive and fun. The chalkboard was just a piece of old paneling sprayed with chalkboard paint. (Edited to add this post to the Chalkboard party at Beth's blog, The Stories of A to Z. She's a talented PA gal who has a fun and fabulous blog! Having a portable chalkboard like this one has so many uses, everyone should have their own. Think yardsales, picnics, cookouts, lemonade stands and lots more!)
                                                              
To make it mysterious, I didn’t share the ingredients until the end of the party.
Blue elixir=white grape juice and food coloring.
Fizz=ginger ale.
Simple as can be!











My large white pitchers handled this job prettily! The chalkboard labels came from etsy and I can think of hundreds of ways to use them!
I served 2 cheeses, and green and purple grapes on a double white pedestal,  strawberries and fruit dip (recipe follows) on a big white platter and for something crunchy, I mixed pretzel sticks and goldfish crackers and served them in a large round lidded, clear glass canister. It was a pretty spread but I was too busy to get any pictures so these pictures are a mini re-creation!
 
Something sweet, inspired by Paula Deen was frozen margarita dessert. I skipped the tequila.
 
(Take from Paula Deen’s best Desserts magazine.)
 
Here’s my fruit dip recipe.
Mix up equal parts of softened cream cheese, marshmallow creme and cool whip. That’s it! Have you ever made this? It is some seriously good stuff. It's fluffy, heavenly, yummy!

Mary Kay, Tastefully Simple, Pampered chef, Longaberger, Arbonne, Southern Living at Home…I think these are still around. Are you into home parties, like 31 Purses, Miche Bags or tupperware? Is tupperware still sold at home parties? I’m going to a Miche bags party on Saturday and am looking forward to some girl time.
Home parties, love em or leave em…I’m somewhere in the middle. The only other home party I hosted was Mary Kay, how about you?
I’ll be showing you all my goodies on Thursday! Come on back to see all the bling!



Another chalkboard project HERE.
^Debbie

Thrifty finds

Yardsales are dwindling with the weather being so hot, but I’M STILL always on the lookout for treasures.

This fiberglass urn came from the thrift shop and the cool turquoise burlap was only $2.50 for about 4 yards. I’m not sure what I’ll do with it, but it’s the perfect color for the patio.
 

As you can see I’m still buying white pottery! Yes, I need to control myself when it comes to white pottery, it’s a weakness, so……… yet another tureen, but it was only $3.50. The heavy vintage vase holding the plant was $1.00, the taller one was $5. I think it's Hull or McCoy.

This one has a tiny crack on the rim so I asked the owner if she’d take less $ and she reluctantly agreed. I love the creamy color of the older pieces.

Little birdies and sweet black and white salt and peppers shakers were 50¢ each. The red framed chalkboard was only $1.25 at the thrift store! It needs a little more chalkboard paint, but the frame is worth at least that much.

The pyrex set of bowls are in perfect condition and were  $12.00.

So that’s it, for now. Can’t wait to see what you found too over at Rhoda’s, Southern Hospitality, thrifty finds.

Debbie (((xx)))

GiveAwAys and LinkUpS this week

Holiday with Matthew Mead is hosting a giveaway for a gift certificate from Shey{B}, the camera strap girl. Wouldn’t one of these be beautiful with my new camera?


 
She’s already pretty, but would be totally hip with a cool new strap cover.  Hope I win!


 If you love dresses, Anhestry is having a Not So Shabby giveaway on her blog. Seriously, you could win this dress! So check it out.

















Southern Inspiration is hosting a giveaway from Twice as Nice Lettering. AND, there will be 5 winners. 
 

Nicole Braden is giving away a set of Pottery Barn cookie cuttters on her blog.

  It’s a cloche party again over at A Stroll Thru Life. I didn’t link up but there’s tons of gorgeous eye candy to see.

You can link up your favorite salad over at the Salad Party at Beneath My Heart. I linked up my salad dressing recipe.
.

This week the challenge at the CSI project is furniture makeovers. There are always lots of creative projects over there and you’re sure to be inspired.

And check out the schedule of upcoming projects….mod podge, road kill rescues, kids crafts and spray paint projects to name a few.
I know we all have a spray paint project to share!
I was cruising around the blogosphere and thought I’d share my finds with you. Have a great day and good luck on the giveaways.

Debbie (((xx)))