IMAGINATION IDEATION - silver trays

SILVER TRAYS

I love silver trays!!! Whether flea market find or grandma's silver; sparkling or tarnished; flat or fancy, I love it all!! Hanging a collection of trays makes for a fun and unique display. You can mix and match your display with beautiful plates or pictures.


Silver trays are useful in every room. Here is a lovely display for your bathroom. You could also use these same items at your desk for your pens and pencils.

You can use your tray to display a special collection. To catch your keys and wallet or to display your jewelery.


I have a small tray by my kitchen sink to keep my dish soap and hand soap neat and tidy. This tray would also look beautiful with two cut glass dishes with candles to create a little sparkle.
Another super idea is to paint the flat part of the tray with chalkboard paint and make your own custom sign!


Janis makes the most wonderful creations out of reclaimed silver pieces. Here she has made a clock from a silver tray, added a few stenciled numbers and is displaying it on an easel. You can also see in this photo her one-of-a-kind night lights created from reclaimed silver teapots. To see more of Janis's creations visit http://www.janisgurney.blogspot.com/


An easy project with big impact! This display certainly makes you feel that you are in a beach side cottage. Use your tray as a starting point to create a seasonal display for your dining or coffee table.

A silver tray can be added to any style decor and be used all year round. Look how beautiful this display looks with the Holiday balls and chandelier crystals. Halloween is around the corner, take out your old silver tray and make an arrangement with white pumpkins and candles!! Or, if you are more traditional, try some black urns, a black cast iron crow and some mini orange pumpkins! Have fun!

2009 GOOD TIMES CRUISE IN

The Langley Good Times Cruise In is one of the largest mixed car shows in Canada and one of the top 10 in North America.

This show happens every year on the second weekend in September. This big classic car show draws in excess of 100,000 people to Langley City!

I think this would be a great opportunity to pull out the old tent and set up a display! The cars are the draw for the day but a girl can try!!

Look at this great little space we set up outside the store in the courtyard area. We did a farmhouse/lake house theme to be attractive to both the male and female visitors of the day!

Loads of vintage charm!

This jelly cupboard is great green colour and would definitely add character to any space.

This little dresser would be perfect for a boys room. We also featured local artist Ilona Fekete with her traditional folk art paintings. Her work is both colourful and fun!

I love to mix colour! The little "laptop" size fir desk is stained in a cranberry colour and looks wonderful with this robins egg blue painted oak chair! It was a beautiful sunny day and in the end it was worth the effort! After all, nothing works unless you do! Thanks for visiting!

IMAGINATION IDEATION ~ old windows

REUSING OLD WINDOWS

Can you not just picture this reclaimed window hanging in a cottage bathroom?? Adding the towel bar to the bottom is such a great idea! You could also add hooks along the bottom and use it for towels or jewelery!!

Here is a reclaimed lead glass window that I use to help separate the two areas in the store. You could also use this idea if you have a pass through in your home or if you have high ceilings and you want to separate two areas in the same space. I have also seen many windows hung together to create a divider/privacy wall in a garden.
Reclaimed and Restyled, I used this window as a table top on an old singer sewing machine base. Put this table out on the patio for plants or cocktails!

Like old doors, windows can be used to build new pieces of furniture. These two windows are now the doors for this custom wall cabinet. Another idea is to hang your found window over your kitchen island as a pot rack, or over your craft table to hang drying flowers or wet artwork.

Windows come in all shapes, sizes and colour and can be used in so many different ways. No matter what your decor, an old window can be revitalized to compliment any style. This one is full of country charm!

Don't overlook the windows without the glass, just look at this organized creation! Chalkboard and bulletin board in one. Great for the craft room, kids room or mudroom!

Be creative and have fun with your ideas! You can display postcards, special quotes, photos or artwork. Use the window frame to frame a poster, a vintage quilt or a painting. Adding mirror into the frame is another popular idea.

Just look how this project shows off family photos!

Indoors or out, an old window is a great addition to any home. Last year we built this pergola in the back yard and hung these lead glass windows for interest. If you look closely, I also have windows hanging on my fence, just to add colour and texture!

So, the next time you see this...don't drive by! This is your opportunity to exercise your creativity in environmentally friendly decorating!

To view some of my customers window creations click http://www.thepassionatehome.com/ and view the "Shared Ideas" page!

IMAGINATION IDEATION - old doors

REPURPOSED OLD DOOR

This old door was a great find! After some serious cleaning, I painted the bottom with chalkboard paint and added the stenciled numbers. This door would look great in an entry to a mud room or pantry. (Old screen doors are great for the pantry too!) You could also just lean it against the wall, add a few hooks and it would be the perfect spot for the dog leash and your favorite straw hat!

I can hear these old doors crying out for attention! I once took a 15 panel door like the one in this photo, added mirrors into each square and stained the door a rich walnut. It looked beautiful! We hung it horizontally in a clients hallway...very nice!

I kept this old crackled door for some time before I decided what to do with it. We attached some barn wood shelves with decorative banister posts, attached an old rake and tin ceiling tiles to make this creative herb door for the garden or sunroom.



Old doors can also be used as functional and stylish furniture pieces. In my den at home, we took two old white and chippy doors and added 4 x 4 posts, painted black, as legs and made one really long desk. We used a small two drawer filling cabinet in between, to divide a his and her space! We topped each door with a piece of glass and we were ready to go!





Here is another great example of repurposing old doors into unique furniture! Just leaning three doors against the wall is a super easy decorating project with huge impact!





You can also have fun with a five panel door and hang it horizontally behind your bed to create a custom headboard.



Another great example of reclaiming and restyling is this coffee table. Doors come in all sorts of shapes and sizes!




What about building these bookcases out of old doors!! A great way to recycle and reuse! The ideas are endless...





You could build a whole room using reclaimed doors and windows! Who wouldn't love this space?? I know I would!! You could use your old doors as a gateway to your secret garden or to your secret garden room!

'IMAGINATION IDEATION' ~ vintage suitcases

VINTAGE SUITCASES

Vintage suitcases are so functional and can easily be added to any decor. Just look at this collection above and how it adds texture and shape to the space. The first thing I think about when I see a vintage suitcase is STORAGE! They are just perfect to store your winter mitts and hats, magazines, scrap booking supplies, toys...just about anything! Some suitcases will fit nicely under your bed or you can stack them to make a table in your bedroom or family room! Even if you have just one, stand it on it's end and use it beside a chair! If you have a few, stack them on top of an armoire for a pretty display! You can have fun collecting and display them in a tower! All these ideas are great for your home or cottage!



Here is a very unique idea that one of my customers came up with; She purchased this small black suitcase from The Passionate Home and started by repapering the inside.

What a difference! She did an amazing job! Nice and clean and ready to go!

Here is a photo of that same suitcase in its new home! She also purchased a set of black iron brackets and this old industrial metal chair from The Passionate Home and she created this very fun corner! The suitcase is used as a telephone table to write notes and messages while on the phone. The suitcase allows her to keep her pens and paper out of site and it keeps the area neat and tidy! I just love the pay phone! Great job! Vintage suitcases have history and character, they can bring back memories and help make new ones. Maybe you have your Grandmothers suitcase just waiting to be appreciated and put back into action!

Have a CREATIVE week!

your weekly "IMAGINATION IDEATION"

ANTIQUE CHINESE WATER BUCKET

My passion is to share with you fresh and creative ideas on how to use found objects, everyday items and treasured finds in your decor! To some people a simple object is nothing but a simple object; to others it represents limitless possibilities!

My weekly PASSION PLAN is to post about one item from my store, "The Passionate Home", and give you countless ideas and uses for that item.

The goal is to inspire that "Ah ha" moment in you life.

~ To get you excited and passionate about your home
~ To save you money on decorating

~ To help you create a home that is unique to you and shines with your own personality!

Welcome to our first weekly

"IMAGINATION IDEATION"

IDEATION - (idea generation) the process of creating new ideas

This is an original Antique Chinese Water Bucket which measures 12.75" in height and 13" round. It is the perfect addition in a spa inspired bathroom. Fill it with your extra rolls of toilet paper or store rolled up fluffy white towels. Use this bucket by your fireplace to display your firewood or fill with greenery and pinecones during the winter months. This bucket is great for magazines or newspapers in any room. And if you have small children, the Chinese Bucket makes a beautiful and functional storage place for small toys! How about by your back door for umbrellas? In the kitchen for onions? It makes for a beautiful planter or fill it up with ice to keep your beer and wine chilled! How would you use this Antique Chinese Water Bucket in your home? Feel free you comment and share your ideas!

BEFORE AND AFTER

Just thought I would show you our latest "before and after" project done for one of our VIP customers! These two chairs were brought into The Passionate Home in need of a makeover.

The customer wanted to add these chairs to her garden sun room and choose fabric that was bold and bright and that would work with every season. We then found a paint colour to match the creamy background of her fabric. Once the old fabric and foam was removed, we applied a few coats of the cream paint. The chairs were re-upholstered with piping, new foam and extra padding. I think they look amazing! Does this motivate you to start your own furniture make over?? Have a great day!