Monday, July 5, 2010

"Down Small Bedroom Porch" ....

Good morning, summer sisters!

As a child, did you ever get the chance to sleep on the back porch during the hot summer months?

I remember doing that like it was yesterday...

I grew up in a house that had small screened-in back porch off the hallway on the second story where all of our bedrooms were. Even back then it shabbily chic with a half wall of painted white wood, old screens, and a gray metal floor.  
Something we would probably all give our eye teeth for nowadays.

My brother and I used to love sleeping out there on cots pretending we were in a tree house.  We'd watch the lightening bugs flickering out on the yard below us and go to sleep to the sound of an owl softly hooting in a tree nearby.

Whoever owned these vintage shutters had a bedroom on a porch, too.


They were one of my great finds during Heaven's Walk antique market field trip. I instantly fell for the soft gray color and after lusting after them a mere 5 minutes, knew that I had to take them home with me.
As I was cleaning them up with my trusty Murphy's Oil Soap, I noticed the writing...


Writing that looked to come from an aged hand...many years ago.

"How sweet", I thought.  
An image of an old beach house with a sleeping porch popped into my mind. Of nights spent in an old brass bed under homemade quilts, reaching for slumber to the sound of ocean waves on the shore...

I kept the writing.  
To me, it just added to the mystery of who might have owned these faded gray shutters with the perfect vintage patina.

Maybe an elderly couple having to put their beloved beach home up for sale after a lifetime of caring for it...
Maybe an old woman who lost the love of her life and had to leave the beach for a home closer to her children...
I wish I could let whoever it was who owned them know that they were being loved and cared for once again.

Now the next question was where to put them.

The first place I leaned them, surprisingly, was the place they were meant to be.



When I backed up to the doorway of the living room, I sighed.  
Really.
Seriously.   
Does it get any better than this?

The shutters looked beautiful behind the sofa which cradled the French body pillow made of my new latest love....vintage French ticking.


A plump, soft, cushy, down-filled pillow made from time-worn French ticking lovingly gathered at a flea market somewhere in the world by Dani and Eric at Patine in California (patinedecor.com or Euro-Linens.com)


They offer eco-friendly decor, re-manufacturing and restoring vintage linens and textiles - and do a beautiful job. You can tell they love what they do, and treat their customers like family. And their merchandise?
Oh, how I could go on and on about the beautiful vintage items they carry.
They even enclosed a sachet filled with lavender with the pillow which smelled heavenly.
(Thanks again, Dani and Eric! xoxo) 

On my perfect-paint hunt to find a match for my small wicker stool beneath the end table,
I lugged a shutter to the paint store (that's normal for us decor-obsessed chics, right?) and perused the chips for an hour, taking the shutter and chips in and out of the store numerous times so I could see the colors in natural light before deciding.
You should've seen the side-glances I was getting from customers...
I don't know if they were envious of my perfect shutters, or thought that I had lost my marbles.
 

That sweet little stool now sports a coat of Benjamin Moore "Coventry Gray".

So, my poor, wary and confused hubby has found me  
(more than once -- actually uncountable times)
standing at the doorway to our living room and gazing....just gazing....like I'm in some moronic state of undeniable bliss.

I am.

Happily blissful.


Oh, and before I go, I must send my thanks and a big {hug} to Maria at dreamywhites.blogspot.com and to Sarah at abeachcottage.com for their inspiration for this room. I would still be floundering about in a world of "what can I do with this room?" if it weren't for them. Through their suggestions and photos, I found my vision.


{Hugs} to you all!

(Oh!  And I'm joining Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Metamorphosis Monday!  See you there!)

~ laurie






9 comments:

  1. When I read your blog and look at your place I always feel that I have found another "old soul" like myself. I love the shutters and I am glad that you kept the writing on them. I, too, have that eerie sense of standing in someone else's shoes for a moment in time and placing items (in my mind) where I think they might have been in a past lifetime.

    And, as far as the paint matching & trips in and out of Home Depot with object in hand? Yup! people think you are nuts-been there, done that, got the stares to prove it. lol

    I hope you have a peaceful, wonderful day in your beautiful home. xxoo Diana

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  2. Dear Laurie~~This is complete serenity. I remember standing in your doorway staring like a moron with you at those shutters and the pillow. sigh....
    so beautiful. It just doesn't get any better than this.
    Love ya toots,
    Debbie@houseatthelake

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  3. Ok, everyone....I'm a rookie at this Metamorphosis Monday event with Susan at "Between Naps on the Porch"...so I forgot to add it into my blog post today! Sorry, Susan! :) But anyway, this is my first time participating, so please bear with me and forgive any kindergarten goof-ups I make. lol! Be sure to check out Susan's site for a whole bunch of really neat shared thoughts and creative ideas for morphing your home!

    xoxo laurie@heavenswalk

    PS Oh, and thanks, Debbie!! Hope I did it right!

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  4. What a beautiful blog and a beautiful home ! I'm so glad you joined Met Monday !!!!!

    gena
    www.thehouseonlavenderhill.blogspot.com

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  5. Dear Laurie,
    Stopping by from Between Naps on the Porch Met Monday to say hello...your post is lovely.

    The more I see soft greys used in decorating I think it is so pleasant and becoming!

    God bless and may you have a sweet week.
    Hope you'll stop by homehaven and say hello,
    d

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  6. I have to start out with my laugh out loud moment...I have just posted a post from Mommy Piggy Tales, where we are posting our life from birth to age 18...one of the things I mentioned was sleeping on my grandmother's screened in porch...one of my fondest memories.
    I love the shutters! Beautiful...I love the story also,
    Enjoyed...thanks for stopping by my blog today,
    Janette

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  7. At my last house I had a porch upstairs on the front of the house. Our home was in a very secluded spot on an acre of land. I put an old iron bed out there, with a quilt I had made my husband for our wedding (20 years ago at the time). I put one of those sheer nets over the bed as the porch had a ceiling so it lent itself perfectly to this. At one time or another everyone in our family and many a guest, slept in that special, cozy, spot. It was my favorite part of living in that house. I loved your post as it brought back lots of great memories. Thanks!

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  8. Thank you so much for the award, Laurie. So glad I was able to stop by and check out your lovely blog as well. I'll try and list the 7 things when i get a chance and will be sure to send out a thank you in my next post.

    I am drooling over these shutters with that awesome gray color and they look like they were ment to be in your living room along with that awesome pillow.

    Take care and stay cool. It's supposed to be 97 here today, but I'm not complaining because it's been so cool and rainy.

    Kathleen

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  9. Laurie ~ just visiting from That Village House... I do love the gray color for the shutters! Isn't it awesome when you don't even have to touch what you find antiquing! The shutters look real cute next to your window... you could even mount them on the wall for another look. Cute stuff... and by the way...the salsa looks yummy and your portable sink is fantastic!!

    lindsay
    thatvillagehouse.blogspot.com

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Bless you and thank you for visiting! I read each of your comments and treasure them all. So, please make sure your settings will accept emails, or leave your email address so that I can reply! ♥ Laurie