Thursday, July 31, 2014

The Girl From Away.

Well this is rare! No posts all week and I throw in one on a Thursday night. Full of surprises!
 
I actually have quite a few little projects around the house to share with you but it seems they are all at that "almost finished" stage. Maybe I'll have a whole boatload of stuff to wow you with in the coming weeks? We will have to see!
 

This week, I finally visited the studio-shop The Girl From Away, in North Milton PEI. I had been dying to get there and was thrilled to chat with the owner, Nadyne (the girl from away). She is every bit as charming as I had imagined she'd be. So how does the The Girl From Away end up opening a shop in PEI? She wrote a very moving post over on her blog about how her move from Montreal to PEI came to be.
 
 
The studio-shop itself is an old shingled schoolhouse, weathered oh-so perfectly. It's worth the visit just to get in the doors to see the bright red and white interior, furnished with old benches, school desks and vintage lighting and maps.
 

Nadyne made or designed most of the items in the shop but also sells the wares of some talented friends from Montreal and some new friends here on the island. There are many graphic art prints, canvas bags, kids toys and clothing.
 
 
I
Of course, I couldn't leave without picking up a few things. A very special friend just had a baby girl so I picked up a couple little things for her and of course, I couldn't leave without my own The Girl From Away shirt!
 

 
I know I'm not actually "from away" but the shirts were so cute that it almost made me wish I was.
 
Almost. But not quite.
 
I love being an island girl. So much so, that when Nadyne spoke about here experience here, referring to the beautiful landscape and kindness and generosity of the people, I found myself bursting with pride for this tiny slice of paradise I get to call home.
 
 
 
 
Overall, I think the shop and its shopkeeper are pretty darn neat.
 
What's the next adventure for The Girl From Away this fall when it's time to close up shop? You should really go check out the shop, then you can ask her yourself!
 
;)

 

Friday, July 25, 2014

Giveaway Winner!


Did I tell you all that I tried on wedding dresses at BHLDN while in New York City? It was so much fun! Totally random, I know, but I was flipping through photos and came across this one from the store. Anthropologie displays are always so beautiful and these flowers were no exception.

I didn't buy one but I found a couple a really liked! But for the real reason you are here... who won the Canon Powershot S200 from Staples Canada?

I used a random number generator and the lucky winner is Interior Groupie who shared this adorable photo of her little guy on Instagram using the hashtag #30SummerDays.


Thanks to all who entered and for those who left sweet comments about the bunk room!

Enjoy the weekend!

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Bunk Room Update and a Giveaway!

Isn't summer grand? The weather has been fantastic so far and I feel so fortunate to be off to enjoy it all. It does to by much too quickly though! I always think that I should have all kinds of time to get projects checked off my list and to share them here but everything seems to take forever to get finished up. Always the way!

Case in point, the bunk room. Slowly but surely, it is coming together. It was a totally hideous room but now I really love it in there. It feels so clean and bright which was exactly what we were going for.

The walls were all painted Benjamin Moore's Chantilly Lace, as was the trim. Steph built the bunk beds and the ladder. They are my favorite part of the room. We ordered wool blankets from MacAusland's Woolen Mills, here in PEI, but they've had some machinery issues so we are still waiting for those to be finished. Once we have the beds all set up, I'll tell you a little more about the bunks and ladder.



The window trim was in pretty bad shape. I had replaced the window when I moved in and the frame around the inside of the window was in desperate need of some repair. A lot of caulking and plaster and it almost ready to be painted. Once that is finished, I can put up the roman shade that I had made for the room.


I did hang up a few things on the wall but things are going to kept fairly simple. I like the
tone on tone of the white frames against the white walls. The roman shade and pillows will provide the contrast.


In one corner, we were able to fit an old Ikea armoire that I'd had for years. I painted it the same white as the walls and I'm using it as a linen closet (something this old house lacks). I picked up the two grey felt baskets at Walmart for a bit more storage on top.


We also cut an Ikea floating shelf and fit it in between the walls over the cabinet. It's a little hard to see it against the white walls in the photo but soon I'll get it styled up with a few books and odds and ends to brighten up that corner.


 

Now for the GIVEAWAY!!!

All the photos in this post, as well as the photos from my Instagram account for the month of June, were taken with my handy Canon Powershot S200. It was generously provided to me by Staples Canada for the #30SummerDays challenge. It takes great photos and the best part is that it's WiFi enabled, which makes photo sharing a breeze!

To win your very own, here's what you have to do:
  • Tweet or Instagram a photo with the #30SummerDays hashtag
  • Come back here and leave me a comment, letting me know you did!
That's it! Easy peasy!

Contest closes on Friday, July, 25th at 12:00 AST. Good Luck! ** open to Canadian residents only**

Monday, July 14, 2014

Summer Love.


Well that was quite the blogging break! School ended and the first two weeks of summer vacations flew by. I worked on the provincial marking board for a couple of days with some fellow teachers and then headed off to New York City on a girl's trip. What a great way to kick off summer.. such a great time!

Our NYC whole group.
 
Selfies on the bus with my sisters.
 
Since we've been home, the weather has been fantastic and I've been trying to maximize my time enjoying the beauty that PEI has to offer. I'm always astounded by how beautiful it is at this time of year. We are so lucky to call it home.
 
 
I hit the beach three days in a row so I suppose shouldn't complain that it's going to rain all week. It will be a chance to get the house tidied up and some little projects finished up.
 
We've had some deck stain issues that we have yet to resolve. I'll be back this week with more on that. I decided to go on flower overload in the back yard as a distraction from the peeling floor boards! I'm not sure it's working but regardless, I'm officially in love with begonias this year.
 


 
 I hope you are all enjoying summer where you are. I plan to get back into the blogging groove this week so I hope you'll stop in again!