Wednesday, April 25

Upcycled porch post and floor boards harvest table...

Bobby and I just finished this table today... it is made from two porch posts and some fun old blue floor boards... It turned out great~

Monday, March 26

A few of the newest things I'm excited about...

I love how this little chair turned out.  The background of the floral print is a soft aqua and is simply yummy.  The piping is done in a wonderful little green check.  Too cute!

BEFORE...

and AFTER!  So comfy, too!

His and hers night clothes...

Pink ruffly floor length dress!



Friday, February 3

New arrivals at Polly Ann's...

We've been working hard in our workshop to clear out some of the projects so we can move in a storage shed full of fresh stuff to work on... here are some of the results...


sweet little red shelf... just the right size


This blue cabinet was a built in kitchen cupboard out of a sweet little cottage in Cedar Rapids.  It originally had a base cabinet that it was free mounted above, but we made it into a little more of a free-standing variety with space underneath for pet bowl and storage.  Wainscotting on the back and some sweet oilcloth on the shelves... the outside needs a coat of paint...


Another quick, sweet little shelf.  This one with a new back.  It's a great size and a great look in a soft aqua...


I absolutely love how this turned out... Bobby put a new top on it as it was just an opening and wainscotting in the back.  I white washed the outside and made a quick set of cafe curtains with tie backs to spruce it up...


I filled it up with dolls and sweetness and it's sitting atop a french candy makers table with a glass top... I made a matching scarf... Love the little doll dresser on top...


Here's the 6 footer.  I love how the legs turned out... such character.  This is the last one he will be making for a few weeks.  We have another project coming to the workshop.  If you have been thinking about one of his tables, get your order in NOW as he is just about out of materials...


This is a sweet little bench that Bobby refurbished for me.  Where we found it, there was another board sitting close by... one leg was totally rotted off, so we used the other board to make a new one.  He also had to replace the support board in the back... it looks great... a fun primitive piece...


This is one of the projects going on in the workshop now... I plan to white-wash it and recover it.  My fabric stash has too many fantastic choices, so I haven't yet decided which way to go... any suggestions???


This pink paint I found at the hardware store in the "Miss-Mix" pile.  It's REALLY bright pink, but both of my daughters had a minor panic attack when they saw it.  I asked if that was good or bad and they both said "good"... would be great in a "tweener" room or for that girly girl out on her own for the first time... 


All I have to figure out now, is how to get the space under the dropfront to quit sticking to itself and peeling... as soon as I get it right, it, too will make it upstairs to the shop...
always interesting...


Polly Ann's... because there's no place like home...

Friday, January 27

The putzing paid off at Polly Ann's...

The front room at Polly Ann's after three days of putzing...
I adore the color pink and am thoroughly in love with the combination of pink and green. Aqua is hangin' in there tight, too... 





Centerpiece is Bobby's wonderful 8 foot long harvest table with two wonderful cement urns and the trees I got from Hill's Bank (the best bank around) for our store's 20th anniversary...


This sweet little corner is brought to you by the color "PINK"...
Wicker table with glass tops and layered cloths, 4 wicker chairs, a sweet little fireplace built by Bobby, a window project copied yesterday from pinterest, hankies, red glass, Haviland China, pink paper doilies and pink flashed beer mugs.  Oh, yea... and don't forget the sweet little Typhoon pink pitcher on the center of the glass shelf for the window...


More pink on this unique fringed table that was once the center of attention at home wakes... you guessed it... it's a coffin table, thus no finish on the top and someone upholstered it along the line.... a great server!


Close up of the project from pinterest... 
check out my pinterest page!


Mirror, mirror on the walll... Love the soft yellow wingback I did in a Ralph Lauren fabric with a red and white mini check for trim.  Isn't the mantle Bobby built wonderful?


Did I mention I LOVE pink and green together?  This display of roses plates and accessories makes me so very happy...


Pink and green Haviland and other European pretty dishes... and one of my favorite saying plates... "My favorite place is in your hug..."


 A sweet colonial maiden on a really big plate with perfect fading around the edges...
Georgian Eggshell dishes by Homer Laughlin...


Polly Ann's... because there's no place like home...

Monday, January 23

A new slogan...

Polly Ann's... because there's no place like home...
this is my new slogan for Polly Ann's... my 20 year old antique store... I'd love to know what you think!



So... this is the house that our house is designed after! It was Country Living's House of the Year in 1992... Someday ours will look more like this, but for now, we are on the 13 year plan and aren't finished yet. Our siding is vinyl and is a creamy color. Someday my door will be either magenta or red (haven't decided yet) and we will have close to the same design on our porch. I've got the stonework half finished (it's been that way since Bob's mom got sick in 2004). My goal is to get the porch and door done this summer. Wish me luck... So many projects, so little time!!!

Thursday, January 19

Anamosa Antique Show Bound... This Sunday, January 22nd



I've been framing prints like crazy and trying to put together a fun, feminine, romantic array of goodies for the show this Sunday. Bob made me the awesome display shelf from a couple of ladders and some salvaged wood. He'll have one of his salvaged materials harvest tables there, a 7 footer with walnut legs, and he made me three trenchers/troughs for the middle of a table. He's getting into this creative stuff, and I think he even actually likes it. That makes me happy.

Hope to see you there!!!

Friday, January 6

Another custom harvest table of vintage materials... made by Bob :0)

My honey's latest custom harvest table. Another beauty! He's got two more orders in the works and then we have to sit down and evaluate how much of our wood stash we have left... she's a dwindling fast.
The tops and skirts of these tables are made from old floor boards out of a house in Lisbon, Iowa. I wish there had been more! The legs are old table legs that we have been stashing for years. We're getting low on those, too... time to go a hunting again ... my very favorite part of this business...

This one is just over 6 feet long... a very popular size. Doesn't he do nice work? :0)

Monday, December 26

Finally a new and perfect home for this beautiful set at Hope's Bridal Boutique!

I've been wondering what this custom sofa and chair were waiting for... the perfect home! Their new owners at Hope's Bridal have finally come to find them. I can't think of a more perfect place for this girly, comfy set. The thought of mothers, grandmothers, aunts, sisters and best friends awaiting the big reveal while sitting upon these beauties makes me enormously happy.


The best part? Now I get to play, play, play house again in the front room at the shop. I believe the plan will include a wonderful pair of burgundy floral chairs and a deep aqua blue velvet sofa that has been hanging around in my front room at home. It will be so much fun to set it up and decorate with all the wonderful treasures I can choose from at Polly Ann's. Something fresh and new will be there after the first of the year... you should come and see!

Tuesday, December 13

Pine Harvest Table ... all old materials

This is the beauty that Bob just put the last coat of polyurethane on tonight... it's almost 3 foot wide and is 8 foot long. Oak legs from an old table, long dismantled, and floor boards from a house that was over 100 years old. So solid and such wonderful character in those floor boards. I can't wait to get it in the shop and play with it! Oh what fun!!!
Unless, of course, it sells before I get it in there! That would be just fine, too :0)
He can build to suit your measurements. We have several sets of legs to choose from. The floor boards will go quickly, and when they are gone, they're gone. We're always scouting for more materials, but it's always hard to find...