~heavenly ruffles~

Hello everyone!!

Holy smokes!

It's been waaaaaaaaaaay toooooooo loooooong

since I've blogged!

I have been soooooo busy in my little

Ticking and Toile Linen Shoppe

that I've just not had any extra time.....

I used to be a blogger with an Etsy store,

and now clearly it's the other way around!

I used to be decorator (completely unprofessional of course)

who did projects & such and surfed craigslist

for the latest amazing deal~

~read a good laugh w/ crazy craigslist antics here~

now I'm searching linen shops looking for

the best linen I can find.....and washing & drying

voluminous piles of fabric...

(all the while trying not to catch

our house on fire by the sheer volume of

lint that finds it way through out our 

dryer!!)

so a little rearranging (of my life that is)

has taken place over the past couple years.....

it's been a huge blessing & I really do love it!!

I don't know what it is about beautiful linen but it just stirs my soul......and it really brings me a lot of joy to

hear back from happy customers!! :)

I originally worked alone (oh man....not fun! my 

own little sweat shop!!)

and about 1 1/2 years ago I started working with

another gal who can sew up a storm!  

together we create amazing linens

 so many of my customers are just fabulous!

Sweet women who are just darling to work with.....

one such customer/blogger/Michigan BFF/

 & overall amazing human being is

Laurie @ Heaven's Walk

always dreaming up something beautiful

for me to create & oftentimes sends me

some secret stash of super cool fabric to work with!!

so her latest idea was this tiered ruffled bedskirt....

cut from a couple duvet covers she had stashed away! :)

I just love the way it turned out!

so dreamy & perfect in her totally 2die4 Michigan

farmhouse!

I keep threatening to move in.....don't care what 

bedroom she gives me....any will work! hehehe! :)

If you by chance don't know Laurie

please zip right over there & say hi!

she is totally awesome!

she'll make you die laughing one day &

the next tear up while reading a sweet &

sentimental story....

Hope you all are doing great &

enjoying every minute of your summer.....

xoxoxoxoxo,

Shellagh

~chippy coffee table love~

Hello everyone!!

I found the c.u.t.e.s.t. little coffee table

last week......

thought I better show ya!

of course ~ there's nothing without a story, right??

well ~ I found this little cutie at a newer antique

store up the road from me (yay new store!)

fell in love....but thought ~ hmmmm maybe

a little too spendy...?  and then saw another

comparable (so I tried to convince myself of)

table HALF the price and thought ok...I'll get this

one instead.....

brought it home ~ had "nice neighbor man" cut

off the legs cuz Mr. T & T was out that night....

{that's right ~ I could not wait....}

{oh ~ explanation perhaps....BOTH were table height ~

not coffee table height}

so after nice neighbor man cut off the legs

I plopped in the living room & thought

good!  I like it! 

{but secretly thought uh-oh do I like it??}

{had talk with myself ~ of course you do...it's cute & fine...no reason

not to like it....}

after all Mr. T & T liked it, kids liked it,

friend or 2 liked it.....

{now I'm starting to think chair escapade all over again....}

but....uhhhh... I wasn't lovin it...nope not right...

gotta buy the other one...oh crap....

so took the first table up to a bedroom...

thought "looks great!"

and

back to the antique store I went.....

and shelled out some more cash for dearly

beloved....

and thennnnnnn......

showed Mr. T & T....

and we "discussed the legs would need to be shortened"

and thennnnnnn.....

I left to go grocery shopping (or some such a thing)

and thennnnnn....

 as I was pulling up to the house

I saw my dear husband proudly

finishing

up the leg cutting off task....

~gasp~

~cold sweat~

~heart palipatations~

Oh you all know what I'm talking about, right???

holy !#*%+$ 

he did it without me!!!!

how short did he cut them??

oh my...yikes...!!!

seriously, I was in a full on panic...

I mean ~ really~ WHAT are you thinking

exactly surprising me like that dear honey???

I, of course, tried to keep myself under control

while I carried it inside ~ all the while in full on

freak out mode...

while Mr. T & T stood there thinking

wow ~ she thinks I'm incompetent...

{of course not dearest!! it's just that these matters

have to be handled WITH me supervising & basically

totally controlling the situation....I mean what's so bad

about that??? ;) }

well......

he did it perfectly!!!!

~phew~

so what do you think??

you like??

I am seriously loving it <3

xoxo,

Shellagh



bottles and blooms

Hello everyone!!!

Hope you're all doing well ~ with all

the crazy storms & heat!

We've had very mild weather here....

rain rain rain until just a few days ago,

but we've barely hit over 70.  Weird!

I was playing around with my camera again....:)



so you might have to endure

approximately 56 pictures

of my roses....

these are my David Austin roses...they smell so

amazing....and the color is the sweetest of

pale pinks...can't remember their name off the

top of my head...

the only thing I don't love about them is their

flimsy stems....because of it they don't do well

cut {what the heck huh??!!} but they look nice cut

short in tiny vases....

I love the old blue bottles....

I have just a few ~ but I'm seriously in love

with them.....

while we are looking at the pictures ~ I figured I

could give you an update on my body...

heehee  {cuz this you simply must know!! right??! ;) }

K ~ I have worked out 6 days a week for the last 12 weeks!

c.r.a.z.y.!!

3 days of weights, 3 days of cardio

well I do 30 minutes of cardio on my weight days

too so technically 6 days of cardio....

well ~ have I gotten anywhere?? you ask??

have I lost at least a pound you wonder??

do I hear 2 pounds perhaps??? ;)

well ~ yes!! 

 I've actually only lost 7

{whoopdee doodle doo...you might be thinking...}

but I've lost inches!  don't know how many

{cuz I wasn't feeling like measuring every square inch

of myself prior to this journey....}

but I did measure my waist...

which is now 3 inches smaller.....

and my clothes are definitely looser!

and Mr. T & T tells me every single day

how much different I look!

{course the natural female in me is thinking.....wow sorry I was

so hard on the eyes before dear....lol! }

I can tell too, but..... want more fat gone...

so I am continuing on.....I am loving building muscle...

don't want those jiggly wobbly grandma arms....

do want strong biceps, delts & triceps...

don't want my butt dragging on the ground...

do want a firm & shapely derriere....

{if possible....you see....;)}

don't want flabby saggy legs...

do want some serious definition....

{we'll keep our fingers crossed on that one with my 40+ legs...}

are you bored to death yet?? ;)

ok ~ I'll tell ya more in another 12 weeks! haha!

back to decorating then....

I got this cute little pale aqua table last week from

Kathleen at Faded Charm....

it's just the perfect amount of color.....

I have it behind my loveseat to put "stuff" on...;)

it's the perfect chippiness as well...

here's a little teensy peek...

I would show you a room shot but half

the slipcover is in the wash.....

but do you love the little legs??

and it folds up.........cute!

what's new in your life???

working on stuff??

projects??

body projects??

do tell!! :)

xoxoxo,

Shellagh

~ruffle heaven at Heaven's Walk~

Hello everyone!

Happy Wednesday!! :)

We are expecting 80 degrees today &

tomorrow ~ before it gets back to rain....

but I'll take it! 

a little sun is better than all rain....

I thought I would show you some ruffly

yummi-ness we've been working on lately

in the Linen Shoppe.....

this beautiful ruffled throw was custom

made for my sweet friend Laurie

from Heaven's Walk

in case you don't know her ~

let me just tell ya....she is just fabulous!

her vintage Michigan farmhouse is 2die4!! amazing!!

here's a little sneak peek at her cute as can

be bathroom.....oh how I covet thee....;)

I tell her {every other day or so} that I'm moving

into her guest room.....

don't cha think???

so perfect, ya? 

she is always creating.....

everything she touches is just darling....

like these french baskets...

started out rather plain & simple, but

one afternoon with Laurie

and presto-chango ....

frenchy perfection!

she's a decorator, gardener, flea marketer, shoppe

keeper and just a beautiful person....

inside & out!

her blog is so fun....and totally inspiring....

grab a cup of tea & prepare for a lovely visit here

~*~

so a little more on the ruffly throw......I found this

totally yummy silver-ish pale blue-ish

linen &  f.e.l.l.  i.n.  l.o.v.e.......

I was so excited that Laurie wanted to use

it for her throw....

didn't it turn out so cute??

and it looks so darling in Laurie's home....

Shabby Chic Ruffled Linen Throw

she was e.v.e.r. so kind and took

pictures for me since the 25 pictures I took

of it prior to shipping it to her

came out blurry.....

but only

e.v.e.r.y.  s.i.n.g.l.e.  o.n.e.

{note to self....use auto focus on new camera cuz 

apparently your 40-something year old eyes 

well...shall we say...suck? sorry mom....she hates that word.....;) }

we also made her some euro shams

...more ruffly yummi-ness....

Perfectly Shabby Chic Ruffled Euro Sham

same great linen ~ just another color....

these are made in off-white....

they are beautiful on her sofa....

click here to visit Laurie & her beautiful home......

& be prepared to fall in love! 

both are available in 

the Ticking and Toile Linen Shoppe

if you'd like to come take a look ;)

Hope you are all doing fantastic!

xoxo,

Shellagh

~chippy white in the garden~

Hello everyone!!!

where in the world have I been, huh?

I tell ya.....I don't know!

everywhere, no-where, running in circles,

birthday parties, end of school parties

work, working out, working in the yard

etc...etc...etc....:)

I have seriously missed you all!!!

but my little blog vacation is over & I will

try to be more diligent :)

I had some fun the other day snapping pictures

in the garden.....

when my mom passed away almost 13 years ago,

this chippy white garden chair was one of the things I was able to bring home with me....

I just LOVE it......there's also a matching loveseat

and even though they are rickety & tattered....

they remind me of her & I will keep them forever! :)

there were many summer evenings spent with

her, sitting on these very chairs, out on her deck....

enjoying her beautiful yard & garden....

 we had some incredible rain storms here

in the last 8 months  couple weeks

{shocking I know, eh? ;) hee hee} 

so before they even bloomed....my peonies were 

literally laying on the ground....

even with the stakes & supports.....

so what to do other than cut them all!?

and enjoy.....!

oh how I love peonies.....they are just the best....

wish I had a whole garden full....

really wish they bloomed longer & more often...

once a month would be perfect!

the lovely purple behind the chair is

Walker's Low Catmint....

..... it is c.r.a.z.y.....seriously...grows like crazy!

evidently some Catmint is quite invasive, 

but this type is not supposed to be.....

we shall see....this is only it's 2nd year

and it is quite h.u.g.e. 

but I am loving it ~ it really adds to the whole

cottage feel in my garden...

I have Knock Out Roses behind the Catmint...

and they always bloom like crazy as well!

apparently, all the plants have been enjoying

the extremely wet spring...winter...fall...we've had!;)

I've really been enjoying the 50mm lens I bought 

with my camera....

it's the lens that blurs out the background while

keeping the focal point in focus....

well worth the $ money spent.....

I think we are almost caught up on the all weeding

in the garden ~ finally!!

Mr. T & T weeded for me for 4 1/2 hours Saturday, 

while I was working in the Linen Shoppe!

What a sweetie ~ :)

and his rear end is quite sore from all the 'stiffed legged,'

'non-bending' weeding he was doing.....

he said he didn't want to get his pants dirty ~ 

so the 'stiffed legged' 'non-bending' weeding 

 process was invented, that just so happens to

directly target the hamstrings & gluteus maximus

heehee!

I shouldn't laugh....everytime he stands up... or walks

up or down the stairs.....

cuz that just wouldn't be nice....;)

but it is kinda funny....:)

hope you all have a fantastic week!!!

xoxoxo,

Shellagh