Great pictures!!! Your little juvenile male looks just like my dominate one here in PA with the little red gorget clearly visible. Thanks for sharing these pics. I am still unsuccessful in getting the birds to not fly off when I get the camera out. They are fine with me but they are afraid of the camera. Charlotte

Lucky gal, Of course, the whole thing was a joke (except for the part about me feeling so frustrated because I wasn't coming across any good buys). I got the idea for the stick-ons from others on this forum. I think the first time I saw them, someone had used them on taper candles. The only time I've used them as a serious decorating element is for individual votives. . The flowers and hearts in the original post are little sponge rubbery things they sell at Michael's. I have a bunch of them for art projects with the grandkids. They have paper on the back that you peel off to reveal a sticky surface. The shamrock was stuck on with some rubbery stuff that is used to hold down plates so they won't fall during an earthquake. I lost the original wrapper long ago, but remember finding the stuff at Lowe's. Used the same stuff on the paper ghosts and trees. The stuff rubs right off when you're finished with it.

I think everyone who's seen Jay's (mushcreek) powder room is jealous!! Haha! Or the rest of his house, for that matter. I think about that peninsula all the time. I have a tiny powder room, a wee bit smaller than Jay's, and I'm not too proud to admit I'm stealing a lot of his ideas, haha, including the plate rail and the barn door! bluesanne, SCORE on the claw foot tub! :-). I've found, in life, that persistence gets people farther than intelligence, looks, social standing, etc. Good on you!! :-) I too have "claw foot tub envy," haha! Funny thing is, from ages 1-13, I grew up in a house with a huge claw foot tub. That thing was so deep! I hated it, lol! I was embarrassed by it--oy, kids! All my friends had "normal" tubs AND showers. We didn't have a shower. LOL When I think of what that tub would sell for today... Bluesanne, wow, so fortunate you're still able to use the tub!!! :-) Bluesanne, how interesting! I've never heard of competitive horse carriage driving! That is fascinating! (Score on the cones, btw. I'm kind of addicted to the dollar store, lol.) My pastor is competitive in dressage, which I wasn't very familiar with. Everyone in our church knows not to try the church first if we want to talk to her, you just head out to the horse barn. (Although she's almost always reachable on her cell.) btw Bluesanne, you mentioned northwest--where are you? I'm in eastern Washington. Chris (Shades), I can't imagine anyone hating you! But sometimes friendships really grow from relationships that began with a misunderstanding. I'm so sorry that Joe can't get outside for a chat for more than a few moments. My claw foot envy is actually ridiculous considering I can't use a tub anymore due to the arthritis. But my daughter Joy loves them too. She takes a bath every night, almost never showers. So when I get to the bathroom remodel, I would like to put in a cool claw foot for her and a walk-in shower for moi. Being in a 37 yr old manufactured home, obviously I will have to reinforce the floor in there big time to support the weight of a claw foot. Steph, wow, how cool your ex happened to see that tub being removed from the building and got it for $50!! Jay, it's no secret I'm in love with your house!! Lol! I love, love, love all the antique and reclaimed materials you've used! I'm really going to try to use as many used, reclaimed, thrown away, donated, however you want to phrase it, materials for my house project. Not just to save money, which is definitely a big consideration, but because I think we throw so much good stuff into our landfills, and I want to do my part by not adding to the pile. You have shown that a variety of "finds" can go together in a house in a tasteful, nay stunning way! In fact, I'd go so far as to say, had you just bought brand new and prefabricated everything, your home would not have nearly the charm and beauty it has now. I know for a fact your house could be in a magazine spread, and I'll be first in line to buy that issue! Which brings me to...STRINGWEAVER!!! We've been missing you!! So so happy to "see" you! :-) And I agree 100% with you--one of the many advantages of a smaller home is that you can potentially put nicer, higher quality materials into it. Small is beautiful! :-) PLUS...less to clean! :-) Stringweaver, thanks for sharing your story about the hardiplank! Between your and Jay's hardiplank scores, I'm starting to think my dream of hardiplank siding might come true!! :-) Steph, how are you these (hot) days? And Jed? And...doggie (can't remember doggie's name, sorry!) I think of you often, hoping you're OK and making progress on your home. :-)

“I don't know how good the prices are because it's hard to find a comparison.” I’ve made some comparisons and HomeGoods’ prices can be very good. For example, a tablecloth I bought there once was $12.99. When I looked online the price range for the exact same one was $30-$45. Good prices on dishware and cookware, too. I’ve picked up Le Creuset Dutch ovens for drastically lower prices. I also once found two Le Creuset pie plates in their clearance aisle for $3 each. It can be hit or miss but great when there are hits. Luckily, our HG is a mile from home so I’m always checking.