Midnight Sun

There is the loveliest Swedish antique shop just north of Chicago called Midnight Sun. I have yet to leave this shop without being inspired to paint everything I own light blue, white or grey.

Cutest Bike Ever

Madsen Cycles

I saw on facebook that my pal Jennifer McGlon had posted a picture of what may be the cutest bicycle I have ever seen! I would ride this down the middle of our farmer's market and have the vendors toss their produce right into the big tub.

Check out more cute bikes at Madsen Cycles.com

Fill 'er Up

The lovely people behind the upcoming publication Flea Market Style Magazine are having a wonderful giveaway on their blog! This stylishly lined shopping cart is up for grabs, and I know I wouldn't mind replacing my rusty rickity cart with a new sleeker model. I'm thinking carts for clunkers.

The Art of Victorian Photocollage

Playing with Pictures: The Art of Victorian Photocollage (Art Institute of Chicago)- Elizabeth Siege

The Marvelous Album of Madame B: Being the Handiwork of a Victorian Lady of Considerable Talent- Elizabeth Siege

The Art of Victorian Photocollage

The Art Institute of Chicago
October 10, 2009- January 3, 2010

The Art Institute of Chicago will be opening the most wonderful exhibit on the Victorian art of photocollage. Victorian women in the 1850s and1860s began experimenting with collage for their scrapbooks and photo albums. " The compositions they made with photographs and watercolors are whimsical and fantastical, combining human heads and animal bodies, placing people into imaginary landscapes, and morphing faces into common household objects. "

Flea Market Family Jewels

I always have a million projects going on, and one of the most enjoyable this summer has been making charm bracelets using flea market finds. The bracelet on the top is made using all sorts of odd bits of broken jewelry, found pieces, and anything I can get a jump ring through . The colorful charm bracelet on the bottom is made from metal charms I found in a bin at the flea market. The charms were reproduced in the 1980's from the original Cracker Jack prize molds from the early 1900's.

Joyeux Anniversaire

Salade Niçoise

French Onion Soup

Boeuf Bourguignon

Chocolate Mousse

Today would have been my Father, George Summerfield's 71st Birthday. He died when Lulu was just a baby in 1996, so she doesn't remember him and Deke was born in 1998. It is important to me that my children know about there Grandfather, so I honor his Birthday every year by making his favorite food and listening to his favorite music. Lucky for us, he was a huge Francophile so I will make a French feast!

Why Do Pianos Beach Themselves?

Florentijn Hofman, Dutch Artist
Signpost 5
The Island Schiermonnikoog 2006
Three grand pianos each 8 x 6 x 5 meters
Wood and nails

I love this sculpture of three grand pianos washed up on the shore of a Dutch island in the Wadden Sea.

Piano Adoption

I love a great bargain and I especially love free stuff! I have noticed many classified ads for free pianos over the years and Craigslist always seems to have a number of free pianos at any given time. I stumbled across PianoAdoption.com, it is a free site where you can find a home for your unused piano or get a free piano.



There is a very cool musician named Neko Case, who began collecting free pianos from Craiglist. She filled her Vermont barn with the free pianos and recorded her album using her thrifty piano orchestra.

Aw Shucks

I would like to thank two of my dearest blogging friends for their recognition and kind words!

This pretty award comes from Joan Babb at the lovely blog Anything Goes Here. Joan is a flea market vendor with a gift for finding the most wonderful vintage treasures. Joan also has the most stylish booth imaginable and a home to match!



The very talented collage artist Marsha Jorgensen/Tumble Fish Studios
gave me this wonderful award. Marsha exploded onto the collage world about one year ago, and has since been published in many lovely magazines, and has built a tremendous loyal following.

Please visit all of my friends listed in my sidebar under "Cool Places". They are all more than deserving of recognition and awards, and I pass these awards on to them.

Joe "40,000" Murphy

I first discovered the beautiful art of Joe "40,000" Murphy in one of my favorite books, Create And Be Recognized, Photography On The Edge, by John Turner and Deborah Klochko.
Joseph (Cerny) Murphy worked as an usher in Chicago for fifty years and had his photograph taken with just about every celebrity , athlete and politician . He altered the images with pen, gold star stickers and ephemera and displayed them in his Chicago garage.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Murphy got his nickname when he was asked to estimate the crowds "during Chicago's bleak baseball days of the 1920s, he would say there were 40,000 ...(pause)... empty seats."

For more information about Joe "40,000" Murphy (1897-1979), check out Interesting Ideas, it is chalk full of cool information about Joe and other outsider artists.

Architectural Artifacts (Paradise)

Beautiful Colors
Industrial springs, $2.00

"Cici n'est pas une pipe"
Giant pipe from a tobacco shop

Stuart Grannen, Owner and nice guy!

Architectural Artifacts, Inc.

Imagine 80,000 square feet of the coolest, most beautiful one of a kind treasures, inside the most aesthetically pleasing space. Two of my dearest friends treated me to a wonderful day of treasure hunting and lunch, and I discovered my new favorite place in the world! Stuart Grannen was ahead of his time when he started his business, Architectural Artifacts over twenty years ago. This enormous shop is brimming with architecturally significant pieces that have been rescued from the wrecking ball, signs, furniture and funky things you will feel compelled to take home. I can't wait to return to my new favorite place.

d. Sharp is cool

d. Sharp's Etsy Shop

I love d. Sharp's wonderful paper creations!

"d.Sharp is an artist, wife and mother with a weakness for flea markets, chubby babies and good chocolate. She loves to roll up her sleeves and make things, and each item in her line of paper tiaras, candy containers, cake toppers and gifts are handmade in her studio a few steps from her back door." I pinched this quote from her blog, don't you want her to be your new crafting and flea marketing BFF?

Please check out d. Sharp's blog and shop

Happy Days Are Here Again!

Ki Nassauer and Matthew Mead
are launching a new magazine in the Spring of 2010!
They have signed on our very talented blogging pals
Linda MacDonald/Restyled Home and Heather Bullard.
Flea Market Style will obviously be my new favorite magazine! I would like to applaud them for making this courageous move when so many lovely magazines have recently ceased publishing.

Coolest Shops In NYC

The Strand

They aren't kidding when they say they have over 18 miles of books. Our purchases from this fabulous shop almost forced us to buy another suitcase. I found Ki Nassauer's book Junk Beautiful : Room by Room Makeovers with Junkmarket Style.

Pearl River Mart

This is our first stop when we are in NYC. The beautiful tins of teas are under $3.00, so I have to stock up!

UNIQLO

Lulu bought her back-to-school clothes at this uber cool (and affordable) Japanese clothing store. Their only U.S. shop is located in Soho near Dean and Deluca.

M&J Trimming

This shop is a bit overwhelming with floor to ceiling drawers loaded with trims.

Toy Tokyo

The coolest shop in NYC, worth the trip to the East Village!

ABC Carpet and Home

The most beautiful store I have ever shopped in! We didn't have time to visit their outlet store in the Bronx, the second most beautiful shop in the world.

Tinsel Trading

The perfect spot for vintage buttons, trims, ephemera and ribbon.