Punch!

 I love punch.

 It isn't served at events anymore like it was when I was growing up (and now we may feel differently about a community punch bowl altogether.) My grandmother had a frozen punch recipe that she was famous for - it had a steeped tea base with delicious fruit juices and she froze it and then whipped it with a hand mixer before serving. It was so refreshing and she often made it just for our family to enjoy during visits but it was definitely the highlight of all showers and wedding receptions. My mother would make punch for us to have in the Summer when a large group of friends would be in our yard playing in the playhouse or swinging. She used grape juice as a base and there were always maraschino cherries in it!! It was the punch of her childhood - my grandmother used to make a similar punch, when my mom was a child, in a large white enamel container and serve it to the children and anyone who stopped by.

I have very fond memories of happy times and delicious punch. I still have my punch bowl and silver punch ladle. I haven't used it in a long time but I'm hanging on to it. Maybe someday...

The other day I was scrolling through Flower Magazine's beautiful website and one of the editors, Amanda Smith Fowler, was sharing her Almond Punch recipe. The article said it was a family favorite for Easter! It sounded delicious and fun (you can top it off Ginger Ale or  Prosecco for the adults!)

(Do you see Cooper? He's trying to figure out how to get a cheese straw!!)

I really wanted to try it. As I don't have any events in the near future requiring the quantity that this punch bowl filling recipe would serve (see Amanda's family recipe here), I decided to try and reduce the recipe so we could enjoy it relaxing on the porch on a sunny Spring weekend - even if it's just us!!

Marcie's "Small Batch" Version of Almond Punch!

32 ounces of water

1 1/4 cup of sugar

12 ounces of pineapple juice

1/4 bottle of almond extract

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

2 ounces frozen lemonade, thawed slightly

ginger ale or prosecco

fruit garnish, if desired

Dissolve the sugar in warm water- be sure sugar is completely dissolved. Add the pineapple juice, lemonade, almond extract and vanilla extract to the sugar water mixture. Stir well. Pour mixture into a large freezer proof plastic container  Freeze. Pull container out, allow Almond Punch to become slushy and scoop into glasses - about halfway full. Top off each serving with ginger ale or prosecco. Garnish and enjoy. 

The Review: Reducing the recipe worked well. It's delicious, slushy and refreshing. It's delicious topped with Prosecco but it's very, very  yummy going the non-alcoholic route and using ginger ale. I tried it both ways :)

It's the perfect, refreshing Spring punch and would be equally delicious with brunch or in the afternoon with cheese straws and nibbles for Happy Hour!

Be sure to let me know if you make this punch!

Pineapple Tree

 Give me a small themed tree any time. 
I love them.

Don't get me wrong a big beautiful tree is eye catching but I love (and have) little trees 
(here, here and here for starters!) 
tucked all over the house during the holidays!

This little pineapple tree sitting on the sideboard in my kitchen makes me smile.

A few weeks ago I saw a sparkly pineapple ornament 
in a bin at a bargain store and bought it.

Then I saw another one somewhere else and picked it up. 

And then it was like "If You Give A Mouse A Cookie."

I had a couple of ornaments and  I wanted more. 
And a tree to hang them on.

And then I found that big sparkly one on top and knew I could cut the string off,
 drill a small hole in the bottom and, voila, a perfect pineapple tree topper!

Are you a one tree or multi tree kind of person?

The Elephant on the Porch and More!

I was scrambling to get my One Room Challenge post up on deadline 

so it was mostly pictures.

But I wanted to share a little bit about how I created what we think is a beautiful, relaxing spot without spending much at all.

It is an outdoor space and even though our porch is screened and under a roof 

the elements still take their toll.

This means that things do wear out or fade or suffer

 in our humid, damp weather most of the year.

I can't justify spending a lot, but it is our favorite room "in the house" so I want it to be comfortable for us and welcoming since we do the bulk of our entertaining here.

Almost everything on this porch

 was found at a thrift store, yard sale 

or online thrifting forum. 

I've already talked about the great deal I got on this large wicker chaise here.

I can never, ever leave an elephant garden stool behind. 

This one was at Goodwill a couple of months ago. It's large and had great detail. Sadly it had been broken. Someone had very carefully, practically seamlessly, glued the base back together but the glue had yellowed and they donated it. 

I grabbed it for less than $10.00 and brought it home. 

A coat of the BEST gold spray paint in the world (here,  here, here and you can't even find the cracks.)

The British say, "It has a wee blighty."

You can't even tell the poor boy had a blighty!

Trunks up!

Now for the big, fabulous bar cart!

If you are lounging around in that hanging bed you might need a refreshing drink!

I found this bar cart a few weeks ago in a non-profit thrift shop. 

I actually left it behind, thought about it for 20 minutes (what was wrong with me?) and then rushed back to get it. It is from a company in Bradenton Fl and I'm sure it spent many sunny days on someone's porch in South Florida.

Humble beginnings. 

We gave it a coat of fresh, glossy green and then added a ton of thrifted, vintage bar cart accessories. 

It will be so much fun to change it up for the seasons.

Literally everything here was thrifted and so inexpensive. 

 The straws are in a thrifted pineapple pitcher (99 cents at GW) and the gold straws came from the party section at Wal Mart. The gold polka dot tea towel is from the Target Dollar Spot. The silver pineapple snack trays are from the dollar store too!

 Tortoiseshell pitcher? Goodwill. Less than $5.00. 

And so far no one has noticed - we drank that wine the night before the photo shoot :)

The pineapples were all thrifted

 and the big pineapple canister also got a coat of my favorite gold spray paint.

No monkeys left behind either!

The brass tray cost less than $5.00 and is holding leopard napkins from the dollar store.

The mantel was salvaged. Read that story here.

Everything on this mantel is thrifted. 

The bamboo mirror was $6.96 and it's plastic!! It's definitely vintage - you can tell it has some age from the back but it looks great and you have to get close to tell it's not real bamboo!

Plastic bamboo is perfect on a porch.

Lamp and lampshade - GW on separate trips. Under $10.00 for both.

Seascape? Yep, Goodwill for $4.94. We love it. The gold frame is thrifted and the contemporary black and white art is just something I painted quickly to work with the black and white from the zebra rug.

The big yellow vase was a quick buy at GW a few weeks ago because the background of the wicker chaise is a nice soft, creamy yellow and I thought this would be fun and a nice modern addition to the mantel or bar cart.

So, see, you can find a lot of great items for not a lot of money. A little paint , fabric or freshening up will do the trick. And a lot of items don't need a thing done to them- they were just donated because people got tired of them. 

This is the ultimate recycling.

And because I don't have a big investment in my decor I don't feel bad if I want to pass something on and change things up. I can resell some items but I often just text pics to friends, someone is usually willing to come pick it up and it gets a new home!

I'll try to share more details about the other thrift finds on our porch in future posts.
And you can always see what I'm finding if you follow along on Instagram!

I hope you have some thrifting luck soon!

Pineapple Vase!

The gold pineapple vase in my One Room Challenge reveal last week 

is an amazing high/low find 

and would make a great little gift for someone or yourself.

 (That's how I got mine!! Wink, wink!)

It was $9.99 at Wal- Mart!! Yes, you read that right!

I couldn't find it online but it's still in the stores in my area. 

It's in the section with candles and silk flowers, etc.

It would look so cute with greenery or eucalyptus leaves in it for the holidays! 

Here is the $149.00 version:

Yes, you read that correctly also!

Pier One has the exact same gold pineapple vase online as mine for $19.99 

if it isn't on the shelves at your Wal-Mart. 

Still a good price!

Wal-Mart also has  a white one online for under $15.00.

Add some flowers or greenery 

and you have a great hostess gift that will be used year 'round, I'm sure!

And pineapples are the symbol for hospitality!

*I'm not compensated in any way by Wal Mart or Pier One Imports, but wouldn't that be nice ?

I'm just sharing a great find.

Come On In!! Fall 2017 ORC - Inspirations

I found the most amazing mirror a couple of months ago and it has been propped 

while I decided where it was going. 

It WAS the find of a lifetime!

BUT due to the fact it weighs a zillion pounds  

I have to be sure exactly where it is going to stay long term. 

That's a lot of pressure because I move stuff around ALL the time.

And the amazing mirror is white - original finish.

And my walls are white - staying white.

So, I'm wondering how that will look in my latest ORC.

I personally  love white on white but I need to be sure 

because no moving this behemoth around willy nilly. 

#cuehusbandgrumbling

So I went looking for some white mirror on white wall inspiration...

desiretoinspire.net

alllisonelebash.com

allisonelebash.com

allisonelebash.com

Obviously, Allison Elebash and I are on the same page.

Ballard Designs

And this image from local designer Mandy Rye of Waiting on Martha 

is a longtime favorite of mine.

So, I'm inspired - white mirror on white wall it is.

And one more time - since I left it out of Week 1 and had to cram it in to a Bamboo Friday post - here is my Inspiration Board. It's a bit bare but it IS the starting point:

Be sure to follow my progress in real time  on Instagram 

(or see what I'm doing while procrastinating on my ORC!)

But anyway, follow along on my Instagram here 

and see what everyone else who has taken on the ORC F2017 is up to here.

Finders, Keepers, Elizabeth and Payne

If you follow along here or on Instagram then you know that 
Mollie and I love to go out "finding" 

(thrift stores, estate sales, yard sales, online, in person, the trash... you name it!)

    

We have had some great luck!

 

 

We have found some awesome items.

And for the most part we have been "Finders, Keepers!"

We want to keep going out there and finding.

But we feel that we might be on the verge of moving from "Finders, Keepers"
to being featured on an episode of "Hoarders." 

So we are (slowly, very slowly) in the process of starting to sell our great finds and our chinoiserie artwork.

We have leased a spot of our very own at Westside Market in Atlanta!!
(We might be a little excited!!!)

Please continue to follow my personal feed 
and add @elizabethandpayne to your daily scroll as well.

We know all about branding yourself and not starting a new venture until you have business cards and everything is ready to go with a seamless launch 
BUT that's not how we are rolling. 

(Life is a bit nuts right now).

We have a business plan: Find amazing stuff and sell it for a great price. 
Be nice and fun and ask people to bear with us while we get it together!!

If you are local please pop in and visit our space
 and all the other great vendors at Westside Market!

We started "moving in" to our spot on July 1st! . So many goodies for sale:

(More to come - just getting started!)

Please follow along and we'll have a great time while we figure some of the details out!

( We hope to be able to ship to those of you who aren't local at some point in the near future!
And if anyone has shipping carrier advice, please share. 
We don't want shipping to cost anyone anymore than it has to!)

We have some great items ready to post on @elizabethandpayne so please keep an eye out. 

We will give you a heads up on @madebymolliesmom and @elizabethandpayne 

Now we are "Finders. Sharers!"