Thursday, September 27, 2012

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


Monday, September 24, 2012

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
 
Tell them
Black Rooster Cottage
sent you!
 
Happy Monday,
ladies and gents.
 
xo, Amber


Friday, September 21, 2012

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


Tuesday, September 18, 2012

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
 
 

Friday, September 14, 2012

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


Tuesday, September 11, 2012

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
 
 

Sunday, September 9, 2012

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