Heavenly finds

I have spent time this weekend doing some treasure hunting as well as remembering that Memorial Day is for our military, past, present and future.  Here is what I found:

This little sweetie was right there at the entrance to My Sister's Attic waiting for me to grab him up and take him home!  I think the "tray" is for candles, but a plant, small books, rosary, small jar filled with shells, etc. would look even better than a candle!  Just too stinkin' cute!

I also found these three concrete decorative crosses at My Sister's Attic as well.  Love those because they look old and crusty.  They are older because the hangers on the back are rusted.  I have also coffee dyed another old book which you can see beside the little angel.  See my blog of May 22 here to see how to coffee dye these bundles.  Easy peasy!!

Designer book bundles

You see them everywhere.  You see them in catalogs like Pottery Barn and Ballard Designs.  You frequently see them in magazines like Romantic Homes and Country Living.  Well, I found out how to make these bundles and it's really easy!!  More on that in a minute.

 First, pick up some old books at your local thrift store.  The older the better.  Old Readers' Digest books are great for this.  Just look for older ones.  They take the coffee stain well.

Remove the covers and break the book into sections.  Then dip all edges but the spine in some strong instant coffee.  Set outside to dry.

You can see they look old and stained.  Then I bound them up with jute.

This picture makes them look lighter than they really are.  They are wonderfully stained and great decorator pieces.  Most will be for sale in my booth at Merchant Square.

For more complete instructions, please visit Karen Valentine's blog, My Desert Cottage here.  That's where I found the instructions for doing this.  Quick, fun, and decorative!  Thanks, Karen!