Prayer Rug & Paisley Love

Last Sunday, Michelle and I met up once again for a day of treasure hunting under a hot and sunny August sky.

Allegan Antique Market never fails to delight my senses and stretch my imagination to it's limits. With blog inspiration bouncing around in our heads, and hands itching to nab some good deals, we set off down the numerous rows of vendors.

Michelle was searching for beachy decor for her darling cottage by the lake,

 and I had my shabby chic-bohemian radar set on high.

It wasn't long before we were making a trip back to our cars to unload our weary arms.

Wait....just wait....til you see what I brought home.

I think this was my favorite trip so far this year because of what ended up in the back my SUV. Treasures that my heart has been aching for...waiting for...searching for.

This was my first purchase of the day.

Yeah...I know you're drooling.

I was, too.

It didn't take me but 2 minutes to decide to dance away with this little French beauty.

She was neat as a pin, clean as a whistle, and I didn't have to touch her with a paint brush at all.

Total perfection.

The finish was just perfect and the shabby chic fabric pristine.

I love the mix of feminine with the rustic plank-top desk in my office.

This is where I do all of my paperwork

while gazing out the window into the rose filled flowerbed surrounding the new

white arbor. 

Glass lamp:  Meijer's

Ok, I see you're drooling again.

I assume it's over my new vintage Turkish prayer rug?

Oh, yeahhhh, baby......

I saw this gorgeous thing crumpled up on an old church pew. 

I almost walked by it.

Horrors!

But I noticed it out of the corner of my eye and once again,

poor Michelle was nearly toppled as I dodged around her and flung myself through a group of hot, sweaty people to get to it.

"How much?", I breathlessly asked.

"Forty", said he.

WHAT??!!

I had just reluctantly passed up another prayer rug up from a different vendor who was asking three times that much!

Currency flew in the air like autumn leaves as I pulled out my cash to pay the man before he realized what he had actually said.  I didn't even try to chew him down, afraid that he'd change his mind.

He watched me warily as with heart pounding, I thrust my money at him,
heard the Hallelujah chorus in my head,
and grinned stupidly at him like The Joker.

I wanted to wrap myself up in it and dance my way back to the car yelling,
"Look what I found!  Look what I found!!"
But I knew that Michelle would probably desert me for someone who wasn't quite as dingy.

Be still my beating heart.....  :)

Gorgeous deep blues and pinks, and beautifully faded and worn in all the right places.

This beautiful addition to our old farmhouse was even more special when I showed it to The Husband.

He stood there, mouth agape.

He said, "You've GOT to be kidding....."

My heart sank.  Oh no....I thought for sure that he would love the deep, rich colors or just poo-poo it as another one of my fanatical purchases.

"What's wrong...?", I asked tentatively.

He answered by telling me, "You're not going to believe this, but we used to have a rug just like this in the farmhouse I grew up in. I would pull it over next to the floor register on cold winter days and play on it with my metal trucks."

 I could see his eyes were almost on the verge of filling with tears as he continued to stare at the rug ~ sweet memories swirling in his mind.
My heart melted and I smiled.

Hours later, I actually found him sitting on it giving Maizie a tummy rub...

Oh, how I love that man.

♥

The framed oil paintings you see on the shelf above Maizie's crate
were painted by my mom and dad decades ago.
Dad painted the one on the left.  Mom's is on the right.
Mom loved Dad's sweet lilacs so much that she wanted to try her own hand at it,
so Dad coached her while she painted her own version.
I can still remember them sitting at the kitchen table working on it together.  :)

Large wooden rosary:  me

I draped a vintage lace netting curtain that I discovered at a favorite vendor's booth

over the French door.

It's a sheerer version of what I previously had there.

Another sweet treasure was this canvas rose painting.

I adored the simplicity and the colors.

It's resting against a vintage mirror (I brought home last month from the antique market)
on top of the bookcases in my office.

Yes, that's the same chandy from last month's antique market sitting there on the bookcase.

I hadn't quite decided where to hang it yet, so i plunked it up there so I could wax the floors one day.  Loved it so much up there, that's where she's staying for now.

I did purchase another larger chandy for the center of the living room which I'll show you later.
Yep....two chandies in two months.
Call me obsessed.

My last purchase of the day was this large piece of cotton/linen paisley fabric.

Light and airy and very bohemian.

Do you notice the color that's softly floating back into Heaven's Walk?

Maybe it's the autumnal feeling evenings, or maybe it's the fact that some of our maple trees are turning color and dropping their leaves already,

but I'm embracing the deep, rich warmth these colors are adding to this old farmhouse.

I love the contrast of creamy white and silvery blue linen,

and the deep pinks and purples of my weekly dose of fresh roses

against the darker accents.

I threw the faded paisley fabric over the tri-fold screen in the corner of the living room.

Now, the hunt begins for more prayer rugs.
I want to see them scattered all over these glorious old wood floors
here at Heaven's Walk ~

and now I know The Husband would love to see that, too.  :)

Ruffled linen throw and pillow slip: Ticking & Toile

[If any of you see any for a decent price, would you let me know?]

~  Blessings ~

Linking the the parties on the lower right of my sidebar!