antiquing finds.

I love finding one of a kind pieces to put into my living space, even more so now since we've bought a house. I especially love to find rustic pieces. I'm inspired by looks of old, southern, farmhouse charm. And the best part is it's actually pretty simple to find those pieces and put them into your home! You can spot awesome finds at the antique store. All you have to do is look.

Sometimes when you go into an antique store it can be overwhelming. There are things everywhere! But the more you look, the more you'll find. Here are some pieces I've found the past few months.

I love old windows. And the best part is, about 99% of the time you can find them antiquing. They add character to a room and make a great focal point above a bed.

I found these old books at one of my favorite shops, Savvy Shopper (go find them on Facebook!). I made these bottles by covering them with jute. They make a great mantel decoration!

This artwork I also found at Savvy Shopper.  It's a set of four prints and each one says something different. What I loved about these are how old they look, plus I had my eye on them for months!

I just found this yesterday and looooved it. My mom and I went antiquing in North Augusta and found an awesome booth with this shelf.  The detail was so unique-you just don't find these things everywhere.

So, if you're looking for one-of-a-kind pieces check out your local antique stores. Chances are you'll find some great things and pay a lot less than something mass produced. Or, find something you like, and try and recreate it yourself!

Back Home

Yesterday morning we made the long trek back home. What an incredible trip we had! It was such a blessing to see another part of the world and we're both very thankful we had the opportunity.  I absolutely loved every part of the trip, but Scotland definitely has a piece of my heart.

Our travels yesterday involved an 8 1/2 hour flight back to Charlotte (where I got to watch The Hunger Games-yes!) and a delayed/bumpy/no AC flight from Charlotte back to Augusta.  Needless to say, it felt good to be back, safely, on land. This week also happens to be the week my workplace is closed for vacation. So it's kind of an added bonus (except for the lack of paycheck) that I have this week off too. I did catch a cold at the tail end of our trip, so this week shall consist of getting well (my apologies to those on the flight yesterday while I coughed up a lung). And hopefully finishing up some odds and ends that comes with moving into a new house!

London

We have arrived on the last leg of our trip-London! Our flight left Inverness (super early) Thursday morning. Let me backtrack a bit and say that my husband is a huge tennis fan. And it's been a goal of his to see-in person-all four tennis majors. He's checked off the Australian Open, the French Open, and now Wimbledon! Each morning, extra tickets are released for sale for the next day's matches. So Wednesday morning he got online, and we got tickets! So we landed in London, dropped off our luggage at the hotel, and went to Wimbledon. So blessed that it worked out! Here are a few highlights from the day. Bonus: great weather for tennis!

Today was our day to see the sights. It started off a bit windy/
cloudy/drizzly, but then the sun came out.

We ended the day seeing the Crown jewels at the Tower of London. Let me just say-whoa. But no pictures were permitted. But there was definitely a lot of sparkle going on in that (huge) vault.

 Tomorrow is our last day on this wonderful blessing of a vacation. We (and by 'we' I mean 'I') will do some shopping :) Then we may try and squeeze a couple of other sites in. Until next time!

Inverness

Oh my goodness. Monday morning we got up early to catch the train to Inverness, Scotland. And let me just say, I'm in love with this city and with the Highlands. The whole country is absolutely stunning. But being in the Highlands is just awesome. If you're a fan of the Outlander series, you'll understand why. After picking up our rental car and driving to our B&B we set out to explore.

Walking along the Ness Bank.

This morning, we headed to Culloden battlefield. It was so cool to see what I've read about in person. The Battle at Culloden was the final (and extremely bloody) battle of the Jacobite Rising in 1745 and basically the end of Scottish clans. It was definitely a little eerie walking around that field.

Culloden Battlefield

Left: Clan Fraser stone on Culloden Battlefield.    Right: Clava Cairns-split stone!

 

I couldn't visit the Highlands without seeing some standing stones! This is for you Outlander fans :) And if you haven't read this books-I highly recommend them. They'll suck you in and then you'll want to visit Scotland :)

Tomorrow we're off to hunt down the Loch Ness monster!

summer vacation part one...

...Edinburgh! After a looong long long day of travel yesterday and connecting multiple flights, we made it to Edinburgh, Scotland this afternoon! Now, we'll see more of Scotland in the next few days (posts to follow) but our first leg of the trip was spending the day in this city. But let me just say-this country is beautiful. Dan and I got to our hotel around 2:15 and went to explore. We went to the Edinburgh Castle and I was blown away.

You walk inside of this place and then it's like you're inside a mini village. Lots to see and the views were breathtaking. Sidenote to any Harry Potter fans-some of the side roads in this city reminded us so much of Hogsmeade!

Apparently, the castle has something to do with the Olympics, hence the bleachers.

We have tons of pictures that we'll be posting later, but I just wanted to give y'all an update! Now it's time to rest up for part two of Scotland tomorrow. We're hopping on the train and heading to the Highlands for three days-Inverness here we come!

weekend visitors

This weekend Dan and I had some visitors! His parents and his brother and his wife drove down from Lilburn to come visit us in our new home. We had such a great time! My mother-in-law has such a green thumb and brought us some plants for our yard. They look awesome!

My sister-in-law and I made a trip to an antique store I'm obsessed with. It's called Savvy Shopper, and if you live in Augusta and love rustic/shabby chic/refurbished furniture, this is the place for you. Here's my newest find.

Put together with this precious find my mom found at yet another antique store (can you tell I love antiques?) it looks pretty darn good if I do say so myself!

I'm trying to think of what I can put in this little shelf. Flowers? Cookbooks? I'll have to give it some thought.

Until next time!

our first home!

Last Friday my husband and I closed on our very first home! We started the house hunt a few weeks ago. We had an awesome realtor, and after a couple of unaccepted offers on other homes, we finally found the house we loved-and our offer was accepted! The next few weeks involved lots of paperwork and setting a closing date...and then the closing date changed! But the Lord was there every step of the way. Friday we signed (a lot) on the dotted line and now we're homeowners! There are a few rooms we wanted painted, so my mom and I got to work completing the master bedroom. Then my mom (bless her!) painted our dining room for us. We're getting closer and closer to having everything (almost) set up. Tonight we're on the hunt for some sofas. Hopefully we'll be successful. I'll be posting some pictures of the house soon so stay tuned!