Sweet Salvage ~ Sixer Upper ~ Part I

It was the 6th Birthday Celebration of SWEET SALVAGE and the 60th Birthday Celebration for myself so the "Sixer Upper" Themed Event was just Perfect for the important 6's being Celebrated!!!  I actually had a Mission Statement for this Show, which had nothing at all to do with my Birthday, The Man actually Needed and asked me to find an Antique Bookshelf for our Boudoir to hold his Novel Collection.  I almost went off Track when I spied my Friend Cyndie's Bunny which would have blown the Bookshelf Budget... so Cute!  But I Resisted, had I come Home without a Bookshelf and told The Man, Sorry, no Bookshelf, but look, see... Bunny... well, you know... *LMAO*

I won't get totally ahead of myself just yet, but suffice to say I did find some inexpensive Taxidermy Scores to soothe the longing of having to Pass on Spendy Bunny and actually stay on Task to also Score said Antique Bookshelf!  Anyone else with ADHD can totally relate to how easily we get off Track and off Task when anything catches our Eye or distracts our full Attention from a Mission Statement!  *LOL*   Getting Older doesn't help, now I'm just a 60 year old who is Hyper and has a short Attention Span!  *Smiles*

And because I had something Specific and larger in Mind to Find, I did the Marathon Scouting around the entire Event before I even took many pixs!  And there is was, the Ideal Barrister Antique Bookshelf from London, England!  And well within Budget, in fact, it was such a Deal and such a Rare combination of Barrister Cases, well, my Heart was all aflutter!  Now, I know this was for The Man {for now}, but should he ever totally lose Interest in his Novel Collection {which happens}, well, this will also make an Ideal Cabinet Of Curiosities Cabinet as well for Moi!   So a total Win-Win, right?  *Bwahahahaha!!!*

Okay, so here's the total Reveal... top Cabinet is very high so can Display larger Books {or Objects of Curiosity}... middle Cabinet has eight Drawers which can hold Documents and more Books {or Art Supplies and Ephemera}... bottom Cabinet has glass and has four Shelves for more Books {or Smaller Objects of Curiosity}.   Since it comes apart in three separate pieces it was easier for The Young Prince to bring into the House and schlep all the way to our Bedroom... which was handy since I have no Adult Studmuffin Males available when I buy anything too large or heavy on The Fly!  *Ha ha ha*

And I was seeking a small inexpensive Santos Style Crown and I know I can always Source some at The Sweet... so I perused Crown Heaven before the most desirable ones got snatched up by other eager Crown Hunters.   I spied just the Ideal one, can you tell which it will be my Friends?   Let us see how well you know what my Eyes are drawn to shall we?  *Winks*

If you guessed this one you would be right, so after I'd procured The Bookcase, to ensure that my Mission Statement was complete... anything else I could Find at a Bargain would be Gravy for my Birthday excursion.   Little Crown started my Cache in the back room that would build up.

Next came this Guy, a large Snapping Turtle, which was half the price I'd paid for my other Taxidermy Turtle {even after Negotiating my Best Deal with a Vendor at our Antique Mall} and joined him in the Cabinets Of Curiosities!   This one has a totally different kind of Shell and Coloration so they're probably different Species... I'm always Jazzed to Find new Taxidermy Specimens at a Bargain to add to our Oddities plus Weird and Wonderful  Collections!

Inexpensive Taxidermy was actually abounding at this Show so I had many to choose from... tho' all of the Hens were the least expensive... I opted to spend a little more and buy me some Exotic Rooster Specimens!   There are some breeds of Birds that are hilariously Naturally Pimped out by The Creator and just make me Smile every time I see them... now I have two of these breeds of Rooster... drum roll please before they make their debut!

Meet my Favorite One {but don't tell the Other One... Winks}... isn't his expression and Crazy Hair just hilarious?!?  He almost looks like he's got Dreads and I've Nicknamed him Rasta Rooster!  *LMAO*   Okay, I cannot look at him without Smiling or even Laughing out loud, which I always Need... and he was such a Deal, that for that much Instantaneous Joy when I Need it, well, he was a Super Bargain Find!

Here he was when we first Met... he seemed to be conveying, "Hey Girl... going my way?" {He said that in my Head in a deep Sexy Barry White kinda tone... so how could I resist, right?  I know, I have a very fertile Imagination and especially when I'm Justifying a Purchase and want a Good Back Story to go with it!!!!!  Bwahahahahahahahahaha!}

Now, The Other One cannot go around just being called The Other One, so lets see if you guys can Help me come up with an equally humorous Name for him as Rasta Rooster has Okay?  He's Cute in a kinda Grunge Rooster way, so I did initially think about calling him Cobain... he has fancy Feather Spats around his Ankles and a disheveled look about him that is just hilarious, like he's recovering from a Hangover or something, so he makes me Smile too so I hadda have him.  *LOL*

Here he is when we first Met, he's got a Funky Hairdo too and those Spats around the Ankles made me think perhaps Sir Duke might be a better Name... but I'm still terribly conflicted about his Name so perhaps some suggestions will get me decisive about it?   He's rather a Handsome Fellow with his Ombre tones of Feathers so I was extremely pleased to Score both of the Boys for far less than I've ever seen even just a single Specimen selling for elsewhere.

  

Here's another angle of him so you can capture his Personality before throwing a Name into the Hat.   For now he shall remain Nameless until something just Feels Right, since I do Plan to make some Scrabble Letter Name Plaques for each of them.   I can get started on Rasta Rooster's Plaque first.

Here are The Boys in their new Home atop The Man's Antique Barrister Bookcase, which he's now filled with his Novel Collection.  Right now he's fixated on W.E.B. Griffin Novels and wanting anything that Author wrote.  Even tho' he's still working upon his Reading Rehabilitation Skills, I'm Glad he's shown Interest in Reading again and is moving on to Chapter Books.   

If some of you don't already know, along with every other basic Skill like Breathing and Swallowing, The Man had to Learn to Read all over again after the Catastrophic Accident and Traumatic Brain Injury.  Princess T taught him to Read again, she was relentless and it helped with her own inability to Read.  

And so now, with the renewed Interest in building a Library of his current Favorite Author, it's Nice to go on The Thrill Of The Hunt with him to Find those in the Series he's lacking.  Sometimes he gets duplicates if he forgets his List, but then we Donate those to the VA Hospital's Free Library, where Veterans can take Home any Books they'd like while at the Hospital getting Treatment.  But, I digress... back to my Taxidermy Birds!  *Winks*

You know, their Ladies really were quite Lovely too and sitting on Nests, but I only had so much Budget... and room at the house for a Collection of Chickens!  *LOL*   So, alas The Boys had to leave their Ladies behind... sorry Girls!  Mebbe some other time...

I particularly liked this one and it was very hard to leave her behind being she was less than Forty bucks, which for Taxidermy is Cheap.   And she sure was Cute and I even liked her little Neck Wreath... so if she's still there later this Weekend, well, she might just have to join The Boys.   A Friend of mine wants to hit the Event this Weekend and so we'll probably make a return visit.

And I know I can hardly ever walk away with nothing... tho' I'm not quite Done yet showing you what I Scored on Opening day!   I just found such incredible Bargains at this Birthday Bash that I would have had Non-Buyer's Remorse had I walked away from too much!

Because Authentic Vintage Paper Mache' Asian Masks for a mere Fifteen Bucks... yeah, got this one, so hard to Resist not walking away with some of the other ones, which included some hilarious Animals!

Such as Monkeys and Pigs... these would have made great additions to the overall Theme of Crazy Carnivale meets Zen Meditation that I'm going for in The Meditation Room's Decor.   Which BTW, I pulled myself out of Procrastination Mode and got busy with it and Organized, Cleaned and Styled some more of Villa Boheme' and it Feels so freakin' GOOD...that why do I wait so long!?!?!??!

Well, Yes, it did light a fire under my ass to know we're having Company this Weekend and I didn't want the Home to be a Wreck... and once I got started, well, I built up some incredible momentum!   Cleaning turned into Organizing which then turned into Styling and Decorating... and before you knew it the entire Downstairs was being Transformed!!!

It Energized me a LOT to get our Home back in Order and out of Chaos... now if only I can Motivate The Force to work on their rooms... I'll be Golden!   Hey, if you're gonna Dream, well, Dream BIG I always say!  *Bwahahahahaha!*  Princess T came thru the door after School sighing heavily when she saw I'd been in a Cleaning and Decorating Frenzy... she knew what that meant!  *LOL*

She knew that once Gramma had gotten unstuck out of Procrastination Mode, then I'd soon be wanting the Entire Home in Order... including that Disaster of a Room, since hers is by far the Worst!   Honestly, I didn't think anyone could outdo her Older Brother in slovenly behavior, I was Wrong!  But hers is more Surprising to me since she's The Stylist... and the Fashionista... and OCD about Organizing, Tidying and Cleaning anything that ISN'T HER ROOM!  Honest to God, The Dollar Store Loves her, she's Free Volunteer Labor when she Shops there and tidies up all their isles... but her Room... Forget About It!  {Said in my best Wiseguy Impersonation!!!}

  

I've even got loads of Cute Art to hang on her Walls... but now she's become Obsessed about not having tiny pinprick holes in her Walls, says she can't stand it!!!   AS IF not being able to see her Floor or Bed is NO BIG DEAL and she can stand THAT... but a few freakin' pinprick holes in the Wall to hang a few Paintings, she can't Deal with!?!?!?!?!??!?!   Are you kidding me... Nope, she's not... dead Serious she is!!!  I'll have to just clear the Bed myself to have room to stand on it to hang said Art above it while she's in School and she can just Deal with THAT!   Since I've had to Deal with being unable to walk on her floor or enter her Closet for what seems like an Eternity to me now!  *LOL*

She's got her work cut out for her Resisting my request for a Clean Room tho', she's got a Birthday coming up next Month, so I have leverage.  *Winks*  She might be able to Deal with no Computer Time Earned for not Cleaning said Room... but she has a laundry list of what she thinks she Wants for her Birthday... and I Want a Clean Bedroom up there... so Touche'!!!  Yeah, Game On... no Eleven year old turning Twelve is a Match for my devious Nature!  I've had Sixty Years of Practice now!!!   *Evil Cackle!*

And if I'm going to the Show again with some Friends, I'm Wondering if we all can ditch our Kids and Grandkids or if we'll have an entourage in tow this Weekend???!??   True, I had half the day on my Birthday and my Girl's Day Out on Opening Day Thursday to myself, but it wasn't quite ENOUGH!  I mean, I could get used to that!!! *Winks*

Because yeah, my Birthday turned out Nice, I met up with a Co-Worker Friend and his Wife for Breakfast on my Birthday at Lo-Lo's Chicken and Waffles.  Which is one of my Fav Downtown Breakfast and Lunch Joints EVER and has the best Ambiance in a converted turn of the Century Industrial Building in South Central Phoenix.

Oh yeah, the Catfish Beignets, Spicy Corn Fritters, Fried Green Beans and Fried Green Tomato Samplers are to Die For and the Mustard Sauce is my Fav for dipping and the Spicy Slaw... Nom-Nom!   So anyway, Yes, Birthday Celebration went very well and was quite Laid Back just as I wanted for it to be!

 

And I FINALLY got some Dried Artichoke Blossoms while at the Event, since I had been unable to grow any of my own since I couldn't Find Seeds to plant some in my Veggie Garden anywhere!   Where do you get Artichoke Plants I Wonder?   No Nurseries had them and noplace selling Vegetable Seeds had them... I Scoured the entire Valley to no avail!   They grow well in Arizona too... so I simply must find a Source to either get young Plants or Seed eventually!

The last item I procured was this Book, OLD HOME LOVE, and it's chock full of Inspirational Images of Old Homes and those that Love them and Style impeccably!!!

I wanted to buy this one too, IN THE MOOD FOR COLOUR, but someone beat me too it, see what looks like a Yellow Bookmark, Nope, it's a SOLD Tag... dammit!   I went to every Barnes & Noble to find a copy to no avail... so will probably have to Order it Online instead.

Now there was a tonnage of great Finds, so even if a thing or two does get away... well, you're bound to Find something else to make your Heart Sing and your Spirit Soar my Friends!   The Event will be going on thru Sunday!!!

And I freely Confess that if Money were no object, well, I could have spent much more... but Budget keeps me accountable and discerning and so that's not such a Bad thing really, otherwise Villa Boheme' could be bursting at the seams!  *Winks*   And a whole lotta stuff would have to fly out of here with my five-to-one Rule in effect, wouldn't it?  *Smiles*   As it was, I loaded up three Banana Boxes full of 'Inventory' to hit the Showrooms to comply with my five-to-one Rule when I brought all the new goodies from the Show Home with me!

And my Sweet Friend Kenny is Invited back to Villa Boheme' for Dinner... and perhaps he'll convince me to let go of a little more of the larger pieces that I can't schlep to the Showroom or the Booth since I don't have the Muscle nor the adequate Space... but he does in his Warehouse Space, which is Awesome!  Just look at this piece he Sourced from Back East that had been Custom Made for the Original Owner at the turn of the Century!

And just look at my Sweet Friend Aliyah Modeling one of my Friend Cyndie's Meerschaum Antique Reliquary Necklaces of Jesus.  She's going to be getting one soon, perhaps a little smaller than this one since she's such a tiny little Sprite of a Girl that the mid-sized Meerschaum Reliquary would be more proportionate for her.

The Boutique section always Tempts ALL of us... so hard to walk away and not get a lil somethin-somethin!!!   But I Resisted, you'd be very Proud of me!!!

Even tho' it WAS my Birthday and I REALLY Wanted NEEDED this Sacred Heart Antique Reliquary Necklace... Swooning and so difficult to leave behind... but had I gotten this then The Man wouldn't have gotten his Bookshelf... so... *Le Sigh*...

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Blessings from the Arizona Desert... Dawn... The Bohemian 

Two Days

Two more days until my Milestone Birthday, I'm looking forward to it, and plan to spend a couple days doing something random and spontaneous that is 'Me Time' exclusively on the day and the day after.   It will take two days to make an actual single Celebration day, since each day of coarse will be interrupted by taking The G-Kid Force to and from School.  Why couldn't School wait to begin at the end of August!?  The Young Prince actually has his first day of School ON my Birthday!  *Le Sigh*

I received a Surprise Birthday gift from two Sweet Friends from our Antique Mall, a Lovely Denim Jacket altered with Vintage Lace, just My Style!   I received a Surprise call from a long time Friend I haven't heard from in years.  She has recently Retired and Moved, now having time to reconnect and for Socializing.  We both agreed Careers can be so demanding and consuming, also that a Major Move and Selling a Home is, well, in a word... Exhausting! 

 With Retirement usually comes such Freedom, so she is going to Travel and later on find a new Property to buy that will be the Forever Home.  I am very Happy for her, she's worked very hard for many years and deserves the best Life has to offer.  We met during our initial Corporate Lives in Banking Careers many Moons ago, working for the same large Bank and commuting via City Bus together.  It seems almost like a Lifetime ago now... since we were the ages then that some of our Grandchildren are right now!

Ironically our Corporate Lives continued along similar Paths after the Banking Careers ... hers into a Law Enforcement Career and mine into a Career at the DA's Office.  Our Children grew up together and some of our Grands are the same ages.  So there is a lot of History there, History you just can't replicate when you meet New Friends at this advanced Season of Life.  So it will be nice to reconnect again and catch up from where we left off... when we've gone off the grid of each other's lives.

We have always had many parallels in our Lives actually, so it's effortless to pick up where we left off every time we have had a very long absence of contact and a disconnect.  She's very much like a Little Sister to me and our Children grew up more like Cousins than just Friends.  We discussed how many Inner Circle people we once knew have either Moved away or Passed away, the Circle is shrinking rapidly. You get a sense of your own Mortality from the sobering Reality that Tomorrow is Promised to no-one and some are no longer around to even Enjoy Today now with us!

I have always Believed that people come into and out of our Lives for reasons and for Seasons, there is an ebb and flow to it.  Which never ceases to Amaze me in the Wonderful Rhythm and Syncronicity of it all.  I'm Wondering now what other Birthday Surprises are in store for my 60th Birthday?  I'm not much of a Planner of what I actually DO for Recreation or Socially and therefore I prefer it to unfold as it will.   I'm more of a Planner when it comes to the daily grind of Life and Financial matters or obligations, that's enough Planning and Conforming for me!   For 'My Free Time', since it's Rare, I prefer to be a Free Spirit and spontaneous!  *LOL*

Now, you already know I got my Vintage MP Bag as my main pressy for The Birthday... but I did 'Score' some incidentals as well that aren't necessarily Birthday specific, but just Cool.   This very Old armless full Female Mannequin wearing a Hand-Made Tutu Top of Paper Roses and Accordion Tutu Skirt I only paid Sixty Bucks for... how appropriate since I'm turning 60 huh?!  *Smiles*  I'd gauge her Age to be from the Forties or perhaps earlier.  She's as heavy as a Boat Anchor so schlepping her Upstairs to the Art Studio was like carrying a Real Adult Person!

The Vendor I got her from at our Antique Mall is liquidating and moving to Canada very soon to accept a new Job, so needs to dispose of almost everything she owns.   Since this had originally been almost $300 I just couldn't Resist when she dropped down to just a mere $60.   The Grands think she's Creepy as Hell so I stood her in a Corner of the Art Studio Loft looking in the direction of their Rooms... perhaps it will prompt them to get busy cleaning those Spaces up?!   Once the Rooms are in Order then I'll move Creepy Sentinel Mannequin Woman!  *Bwahahahahahahaha!!!*

Don't Judge, you haven't seen their Rooms!  *Shuddering!*  Can you only Imagine how many Hours of Hand-Work it took to Create the Hundreds of Paper Roses and Accordion Skirt made from Vintage Music Ephemera that are glued onto her Fabric Body Suit!?!   I actually prefer how Aged the actual Mannequin is and the Patina of her surface, Evidence of her advanced Age and showing History of a Back Story, whatever that may be, I can only Imagine and Wonder!?!

So then I'm at a Retail Chain Store and they had the most Amazing Hippie Style Dream Catchers... CHEAP!   My Cashier was Admiring my Purchase and said she always has thought about Creating some like these, I says, why bother when they're this CHEAP!?!  *LOL*   She would probably get an Employee Discount too... and Honestly, I couldn't even Create these as Cheaply as I bought them for, so Color me Rainbow Happy!

They will eventually go into The Meditation Room Upstairs, whenever I get around to actually Styling that Room rather than having it be a catch-all!   I Plan to hang all three of them I bought over the Gypsy Curtains I Plan to Create from gossamer Vintage Sari Materials I have stashed away over the years.   The Curtains will go up across the French Doors leading to The Balcony Of Death in what is now the Juliet Room, but will one day Transform into The Meditation Room.   For the sole sake of Photographing all three Dream Catchers I just hung them up on one of my Cabinets Of Curiosities.   This one had the Colorful Feathers with Black Suede Leather and had more of a Native American fusion of Funky Boho Vibe.

The other two have more of an East Indian fusion of Funky Boho Vibe with the Pom-Poms and Sari Wrap Hoop.   There were only three Styles and I bought one of each, they're quite large so will look Perfect as I want to eventually Style them across the French Doors with the Gypsy Curtain backdrop.  When the French Doors are open to the Balcony and the Breeze hits the gossamer Gypsy Curtains they should billow nicely and cause the Dream Catchers to sway in a hypnotic way.

This will all take Time of coarse and with Autumn fast approaching I can hardly wait to get busy getting Villa Boheme' in Order!!!   I had stalled over Summer since it's been so freakin' Hot and Humid, not to mention my Apathy, which has been Epic this year.   It was somewhat of a kick in the arse towards the right direction for The Young Prince's Paternal side of the Family and the Old Friend who recently reconnected with me to all say they'd like to come over and see our New Home!   Yikes, I'm not giving Tours with it looking like this, Heaven Forbid, the Shame of it!  *Bwahahahahahaha!!!*

Okay, so even tho' Lifelong Friends and Family take you as you are and know that I'm no Domestic Goddess by any measure, I still want the First Impression of our New Home to be something I could be Proud of showing off!   The distraction of a Messy Home is something that makes me just want to cringe, since even I get disturbed by Chaos or Clutter in a Living or Working Space and tend to focus on The Mess instead of everything Positive about a location!

Actually The Young Prince's Dad just finalized paperwork on their New Home so are in the Process of Moving and Packing so their Apartment is a Mess.  The Lifelong Friend has temporarily moved into her Adult Daughter's Home so said their Living Spaces are in Chaos and Cluttered too since they combined households just last Month after her Home Sold.   So I know they can relate to my dilemma of having too much to do and also trying to get a Home completely Moved into and Orderly.   You just don't realize how long it can take and how much it takes out of you!

So, I should probably just Relax, do whatever I can do before any of them comes over for the visits and apologize for the rest that I don't get around to!  *Winks*    And also allow the Milestone Birthday to unfold as it will and Enjoy the Ride of it as it plays out... because I'm really looking forward to my Sixties, it's such a Liberating Season of Life to be entering and I'm Excited about it.  And now I'll end Today's Post since I have a certain tenacious someone whose been hovering since she came Home from School, looking over my shoulder anxiously awaiting whenever I get off the Computer so she can get online!  

And saying, Gramma, shouldn't you be starting Dinner or somethin'?!!?!  Hummnnn, can you only Guess who that certain someone could be?!?  *Winks*  And I'm Guessing that as well as being impatient to play Mine Craft or watch an LPS, Shopkins or Monster High U-Tube Video of other Kids playing with their Toy Collections, she's also ravenously Hungry, hence the mention of Dinner?!??!  *Bwahahahahaha!!!* 

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Blessings from the Arizona Desert... Dawn... The Bohemian