Flowering Love

I can't believe how our garden has filled in over the past

eighteen months.

The backyard was nothing but neglected sod.

Not one single living, flowering thing.

Not one.

No shade trees,

no fruit trees,

no roses,

nothing.

 

 

 

The previous tenants lived

here for 5 years with just that

shoddy sod.

 

 

 

Being the Country Girl I am,

I believe in leaving things in better shape

than when I got them.

 

We built the arbor and garden area,

which will remain went we leave.

 

... and, we added alot of landscaping.

ALOT!

 

Even though it's not "our house",

it is our home until we  move

into "OUR home".

 



 

I have to keep my hands in my pockets at times

because I want to keep planting, but

I know it won't be long till it's time to pack,

so I restrain myself.

And that is so hard to do!

 

All of the plants will remain here

other than my potted plants

and one English Rose.

 

Hopefully the owners and next tenants

will appreciate our

Labor of Love.

 

xo, Amber



Delicious Sights!

This past Saturday,

a few of us gals gathered together

to take a Southern trip

to the beach...

 

Vignettes

was hosting a fabulous

Soiree!

 

Less talk, more pictures...

 

for real?!

LOVE me the burlap!!

COOKIES!!! And, they were soooo good!

 

 

It was Dazzling!

Very Frou, Frou.

Very black and white.

Very beautiful!

 

If by chance you head on down to

Ocean Beach,

stop by, you'll be glad you did.

 

4828 Newport Avenue

San Diego, CA 92107

www.vignettesantiques.com

 

Tell them

Black Rooster Cottage

sent you!

 

Happy Monday,

ladies and gents.

 

xo, Amber



Farm Love

Although we don't reside on a farm.... yet,

it doesn't stop me from giving our

home a farm feel on the inside.

 

 

 

I love the old weather worn look

of wood and the cozy hues of brown.

 

Although Black Rooster Cottage (the business)

is predominately Black,

I use Burlap to my advantage to incorporate

the Farmhouse feel.

 

I love the contrast.

 

 

 

My $5 desk... the top was given to me from a very
sweet friend (it was a coffee table) and we bought
a beat up table at an Estate Sale for $5 (for the legs).
My new wonderful workstation in the front living room.
I love having the window there.

 

I love the mixed wood color. I lightly sanded the top just
to remove any loose pieces and splinters.
Now, I just need to wax.
I love the faded charm.

 

 

LOVE this dresser which was a Goodwill find.
At $60, it was a steal. Some wood glue and
some elbow grease is all she needed.
The previous owners even put the original
pulls in the drawer. The ones shown here
are not them. The others are so ornate.
On the to-do list.

 

 

Wishing you a fabulous weekend of

 Treasure Hunting!!

 

I'm headed to Vignettes tomorrow

with the girls!

Photos to come next week!

 

xo, Amber



Chocolate Anyone?

Just whipped up a new batch of pastries at the

Black Rooster Cottage kitchen!

{FYI~ these are faux, my real cupcakes and treats never look like these! ;)}

 

 

Some are going to Granny's

and some are to be saved for

Glitterfest, October 13th.

 

I'll be playing with more designs

and making bigger cakes, too.

 

 

It's amazing what you can find

at the hardware store for baking!

 

Happy mid-week...

 

xo, Amber

 

 

Vintage Living

Ah, the warm weather....

We long for it when it's cold,

and curse it when it's blazing.

I'm a sorta "Fall" girl but I have to

trudge through the sweaty heat to get there.

 

One thing I do love about it,

hanging laundry!

 

 

 

Being the *green* {old fashioned} girl I am,

I try to refrain from running lots of appliances

during the day and all at once.

So, if the AC is on,

the clothes go out on the line.

{even if it's against HOA rules... phooey!}

 

I don't hang chonies.

Only jeans and linens.

HA!

But my favorite part about it is,

my beloved

Vintage clothing cart!

 

 

 

 

 

I'm sure the structure is Vintage but

the liner is new.

 

I purchased her from

Blossoms Vintage Chic

a couple of years ago

and would never dream of

parting with her!

 

I just have to keep her hidden because the boys

have this constant urge to try and climb

in and push each other around.

At 40+ pounds...

that ain't gonna happen!

 

Happy Weekend!

 

xo, Amber

 

p.s. I am so honored to be one of several beautiful blogs

featured on

Romantic Homes

new website!!

 

Thank you RH for making a small girl feel so big!

 



The Leap

 

 

 

There's a private lake outside of town that we like

to take the kids to.

It's in a gated community so we have to sneak in.

We really like it there and have decided

that once there are enough nuts squirreled away,

a house there will become home for us.

 

This last time that we headed up the highway,

a couple of things surprised us

and it was the coolest ever...

 

 

There was a horse rearing on a hilltop that took me (all of us)

by surprise.

 

Then we passed this... (I've posted this before)

 

 

Then, this....

 

 

We had to turn around because on the way out,

I didn't expect this!

The camera was not expecting it either!

 

Out in Wine Country, there's a ranch

that has a horse and rider jumping

the huge bush into the property.

I am not kidding when I say this thing is like 12 feet tall,

if not taller!

It makes me smile every single time I pass it.

 

The artist has a gallery at another lake closer to town.

His work is beautiful.

It is so detailed, which is mind boggling since

it's all iron and metal.

 

I laid the law down with the Mr. ...

When we have our home

(The real Black Rooster Cottage),

guess what I'm having made?

 

Cockle Doodle Dooooooo!!

 

See ya soon...

 

xo, Amber

 

 

Wipe Out!

It's the day after the most beautiful show ever.

The weather was a tad warm but we survived!

 

The shows theme was Rustic Romance.

This equated in my head... iron and burlap.

 

We did and it went!

 

 

 

 

 

These photos were taken mid Friday morning so

 the table and hutch show lighter than when we started.

By the end of Saturday, all the goodies had new homes.

So very grateful.

So very happy.

So very excited to meet so many of my online friends,

in person.

 

Thank you!

 

Now, to start working on the next one...

 

Home for the Holidays

 

November 30 and December 1

 

Wishing you a restful day!

 

Off to Granny's I go...

 

xo, Amber