BREAKFAST ROOM FINISHED aka GETTING READY FOR SPRING AND EASTER

I STILL SAY:

I've been cleaning and re-arranging things in my tiny breakfast room and it feels so good to get some organization in there. And, a little less DUST. Remember, I live in WEST TEXAS where the sand and dust blow...A LOT.

This little bell is actually in my kitchen but I wanted to share the memory of it with you...DAD owned a small cafe back when I was just a little girl. In fact, over the years, he had several little cafes. Short order type cafes.....burgers, chili, chicken fried steak....This little bell is the one that announced the latest order had been filled and was ready to be served. The little black bell sat on DAD'S counter for many years and now it sits on MY counter! AND.....it makes me smile.

OK, back to the BREAKFAST ROOM......I do tend to get sidetracked sometimes....This fabulous rooster tray was given to me by my sweetest Daughter*In*Law and it looks like it was just made for my Country French breakfast room. I just love it, Kathy! You so know the things I love.......and, I love YOU!
All the knick-knacks are washed, dried and the spaces beneath them are dust free....for the time being!!

Most of you know I love BLACK AND WHITE, with a passion! And, now those white cabinets are cleaned out and hold a LOT less junk than before. I can actually locate the phone book in 2 seconds FLAT !

OK...that last cabinet down there MAY still hold a little JUNK but if I throw it away, you KNOW what the next day's question out of Sweet Hubby's mouth is...."What did YOU do with so-'n-so??" Soooo, we have to have a place to hold all that kind of stuff! Right?

I love my little metal, cheap-o rack here. SOMEDAY......I would like to find a prettier one to fill this little space but, for now, this is just dandy. I just read on a blog somewhere that "it doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful"....and so what if this little beauty came from the DOLLAR STORE? I love it after I painted it ........BLACK!!

All of those jars and things are all wiped off and clean of dust for right now. I think I just heard the weatherman say a WHOPPER of a sand storm is in the forecast for tomorrow........GRRRRR.......it figures!! OH, WELL...

Oh, I do love this little chandelier. I got this baby FREE....it cost nothing, nota, zip! A friend that had a junke shop went out of business and he let me have this pretty, metal, rusted chandy and I was so thrilled. I cleaned it up, spray painted it BLACK and had the little black and creme toile shades made for it (a wonderful lady on Ebay). Another sweet friend let me have the crystal, vintage prisms that are hanging from it. I cleaned it all good with a SWIFFER...aren't they fabulous? I love them dearly! All the prisms were washed and how they sparkle and catch the light now.

At this point I want to address the mirrored wall....

My son put these mirrored tiles up for me back in the 70's. The little room was so tiny, only the 2 windows and DARK. Once the mirrors went up, I gained 2 more windows, the room grew to twice the size and light flooded in. For the life of me, I can not give them up. I know they are sooo DATED, but, big, large pieces of mirror are so expensive and not on my priority list right now nor in my budget. I just CAN'T give these little mirrors up......Maybe someday....I just can't even imagine life without my mirrors............................. and, remember...my SON'S hand touched each of these little tiles...how do you give something like that up?? I mean...REALLY!!

Can you see how the mirrors shine?? I cleaned them really good until they sparkle. There's just something special about clean mirrors and clean windows...... even when you KNOW how dirty your walk-in closet is!!

I moved the black hutch with the blue dishes in it that occupied this space for over 30 years (and I was dang tired of it in the SAME PLACE) to my living room and moved this hand painted, Country French piece into this spot. And this baby holds LOTS and LOTS of glasses, plates, all kinds of things that we don't use so often. Oh, and a felt lined silverware drawer there in the middle. I had just odds and ends in the cabinet before the BIG SWITCH but now that it is all organized with things it was meant to store, I have a lot more room in my storage pieces in the dining room now. THE dining room is next on my list of fluffing....later in the week!! or month......ANYWAY, I am glad I moved this piece to the breakfast room....

I LOVE IT !!!! The black hutch looks great in the living room now and I'll show it to you a little later.....

This view is looking from my living room. There's a breakfast bar with 3 stools to the left that you can't really see. The little bistro table is perfect for a couple. I still need to add toppers to my two windows ( and truthfully, I DID NOT clean the windows...just have to wait until all these sand storms are over with) but I'm not sure just what I want to put. Nothing fluffy or fancy or too much. Maybe large, squares of fabric, across a rod...like place mats, or napkins. And, with the black and white checks and toiles, I am thinking I need something else on the windows. Red? Red check, maybe. Have you seen Tina's at CHERRY HILL COTTAGE kitchen? OOOOOO, so cute and she has red and white check squares on her windows....only thing, her kitchen IS red and white! Cute, cute, cute. If you've not seen it, please go over and check it out. Oh, and I just bought the magazine her home is featured in today. SO PRETTY ! She says her red and white checks on her windows are napkins from WALMART. How adorable they look.

Hey, I just had a thought. With the red, white and black of my kitchen and breakfast area, how would big checks of yellow and white look? Or yellow toile? Or bold, big checks of black and white? Yeah.....BLACK AND WHITE sounds good to me.....

I love WIMSEY and I do have a lot of it in my house. Like my big, antique sign hanging here....The other side says "VERANDA". My favorite sign....off Ebay. So cheap.....Amazing.

If things start looking too serious around my house...too stiff.... I go find something "loose" to add smiles..........

And, I am smiling right now because my breakfast room is clean and sparkly and organized. Oh, how I wish I could wiggle my nose and the rest of this cottage would catch up to the breakfast room.!! *sigh......

SUNSHINY DAY TO YOU!