A unique shop where you can find decor for your home at a reasonable price. We scour auctions and flee markets to find beautiful pieces and give them a fresh new purpose.

Thursday, July 2, 2009

A Beautiful Day*

Memories of a beautiful day. Our Son's wedding.


June 13, 2009. It's not just another day. The big event was about to take place. After weeks of planning and working around the clock getting ready for this event, I jumped out of bed that morning full of excitement. Today is the day our baby who is now 23 was getting married. Doug was about to get married to Jessie Steadman. My emotions where everywhere. Excitement, panic, sadness, happy, and so much to do before the magic hour of 4:00. You see, the wedding was about to take place at our home. In the meadow down by the creek. The flowers were planted, the grass was mowed to perfection and and the natural setting was perfect. We worked hard along with the brides family to make it a very special setting for a very special couple. The Bride's mom was the florist and she out did her self for her daughters special day. She does it as a business and she is the best in my opinion. I have never seen so many flowers. Everything was so beautiful. The forecast called for 20% chance of a shower. No worry there. the sun was shining brightly and everything was coming together as planned. But around 1:00, it started to rain and rain and rain. Panic started to set in. Oh Dear, Now What!!! 45 min later and 2 inches of rain, we most certainly needed to move swiftly. We now had mud, water puddles and a flood under the tent where the reception was to take place. The place became alive like a hive of bees. Brooms being used to sweep out the water under the tent, wood chips were laid in strategic areas. Some of the flowers were laid over due to the wind and it seemed like a bad dream. ok, but the wedding must go on and it did. I had to quickly make a decision weather I was going to let this ruin my day. It's times like this where I am reminded to "Sweat The Small Stuff In Life" And that is what I did. All the hard work that we did leading up to this hour seemed somewhat spoiled. But you know what? Even though every little detail was not perfect in my opinion and believe me, things like that do bother me but I had to let it go. Two hours later the first guest started to arrive. Makeup, hair-do's, and the finishing touches on The bride were complete. The sun was shining and it turned out to be a beautiful afternoon and evening. By now I was relaxed and enjoying the moment.
Watching Jessie walk down the aisle with her dad by her side was a special moment I will always tuck away in a special place in my heart. My tears were flowing and the moment was full of emotions. I knew by the look on Doug's face at that moment that it was the moment he dreamed of for so long. Jessie was a beautiful bride. And Doug, well I must say, he looked quite handsome!!
My tears were tears of happiness for both of them but also tears of the reality that now I no longer was going to be the # 1 lady in Doug's life. As a mom we nurture and care for our kids like no one else can. But there comes a time when we need to let go and encourage them to fly on there own. I don't know about the rest of you mom's out there but that is not easy for me to do. Could anyone else love, nurture and take care of Doug like I do? Yes, I believe that Jessie, his new bride will be able to pick up the baton where I left off and run with it. It's a tall order she has to fill but I have all the confidence in the world that she will do it well. You see, I have grown to love Jessie like my own daughter. I will never take the place of her mom and I would never want to but I feel such love for her and that makes all this so easy to let go. Jessie is not only beautiful, but she is sensitive to others, she knows how to love, she knows how to laugh and have a good time. She is a wonderful cook and she will make her home full of warmth and beauty because of her inner beauty. Love You Jessie!!! Doug will make a wonderful husband. He loves adventure, dreams big, and loves life. He will make her laugh and he knows how to make life not so serious. He will nurture and cherish Jessie like no one else. Doug has always treated me (his Mom) with highest respect and showed his love for me. He learned this by watching his dad. And now it will be easy for him to love and Cherish his new bride. Love you Doug!!
It's now 2 weeks since the wedding took place and I am enjoying the memories and the pictures. I hope you enjoy them as well.

Click on the link below to view a slide show of the wedding
The Pics

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

A Favorite!

Who out there in the blog world likes
IKEA?!
We'll, we sure do!!! In fact we were just there the other week...& this is one of our favorite set-ups in the store. Chic, eh? I love the black toile wall paper, the lite wood stained shelves and the red chest of drawers (not shown on the pic)...it gives it just the right POP!!!
Another one of my DREAMS!
--Cottonwood Daughter, Sonj

Monday, June 15, 2009

A Sneak Peak.....


....we had a wedding over the weekend...a very special wedding..you see our "little" brother married his sweetheart Jessie on Saturday...it was a beautiful day...but more on that later!
New items come in daily for Ele Ela and here are a few of our favorites!

Men's American Eagle shirt
cute yellow girls jumper
oh so cute Gap girls dress
(thank you Rachel)

So stay tuned...our mom...wants to give a detailed account of the wedding with lot's and lot's of pic's...

Friday, June 12, 2009

Open the Door....

is what we hear most often as soon as the weather warms up...my mom likes to remind us of this when we are here....and she is right it is lovely to have it open on these warm spring, almost summer days!!!

Do you like to decorate with flags...do you have one outside your house perhaps on your front porch...I love flags, if I had a big old front porch I would hang one on it but I don't although my hubby and I have one hung on our garage...

anyway...i just love what they symbolize...our country....our freedoms...

this one is cute...it's a wooden one!

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Our Newest Addition...too cute!!!

this is our newest addition to Cottonwood...Gloria has the cutest and I do mean cutest items in her little booth....

I would say she has more of a cottage, shabby-chic look...

this is her little entrance...i love the little curtain !!!

she has a ton of vintage jewelry all displayed so nicely in this fabulous black hutch!
Lot's of eye-candy!!!

Monday, June 8, 2009

eating

ok....so literally just a stone's throw away is turkey hill and well that can be a good thing but also a very bad thing....because when we are bored we eat...
Sonj...really, really, loves these tornado thingers...is that a word?...the girls at turkey hill know her so well...she comes up to the checkout and they ring her up for 2 without asking....
on the other hand...i picked up 2 watermelons today...on sale...at Weis...for 2.99 and brought one in with me...well we ate half and have some leftovers but...by the end of the day that may be gone as well...
ummmm....first cherries of the season.........LOVE THEM!!!!!
now come on Sonj...dessert yet....how is she so skinny!!!!!!!!!

Thursday, May 21, 2009

It's that time AGAIN!!!!!

Our Spring
PaRKinG LOt SaLE

is on it's way...

This SATURDAY
MAY 23
8am - 4pm


For those of you who have never dragged yourselves all the way down here to little ole' Cochranville, PA...now's the TIME! We have more vendors then ever this year...
SALE * SALE * SALE * SALE * SALE * SALE * SALE
Lot's of great deals to choose from!
So come early and "get while the gettin's HOT"!
It's worth the trip!

*we even have FOOD*

Friday, May 8, 2009

What can you do with an old window???

So customers ask us a lot "What can be done with old windows or doors?"...perhaps they see our HUGE pile of windows and doors in our courtyard...well here are a few options!!!
Build a greenhouse...very creative!
Make it a miniature one!!
Turn it into a window box

Another greenhouse
Very cool pot rack!!
Hang several together to make a wall....we've also seen this as a divider inside a house!!!
The front doors are actually old windows attached to a box the homeowner made...and you have a very cute cupboard!
Another idea for a divider...

So there you have it...you don't have to be super handy just creative, think outside the box or if you have a super-handy "fellow" in your life...enlist him!!!

We found all these super creative idea's all over the net...we apologize for not knowing exactly where they came from..we do not take credit for making anything in these pictures!!!!

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

More Eye Candy

Here we are another rainy, dreary day at The Cottonwood House...actually, looking like it may be raining all week....so since we are still missing our pics take a look at what we found to brighten your day!!Couldn't you just sit here all day and smell the flowers...???

Ahhh.........(contented sigh!)

Table for one!!
Just set yourself down and have a glass of lemonade!!!

all pics Country Living

Have a Fabulous Day!!!

Monday, May 4, 2009

Where Have We Been!?!?

First we want to give our most sincere apologies!!!! We have been slacking in the posts!!! But, we have been having some technical difficulties...in other words...A computer crash....ugh!!! To top it all off we have lost all pic's and have yet to find them so in the meantime we would love to give you some totally fabulous eye candy.....

Enjoy!!!
We loved this pic right away because we had...I say had..this picture hanging here for awhile but of course it is now gone......
Loving the chandelier...yellow wall...blue cupboard...very cheery!
Cute room for a girl, notice the upholstered bed something we would like to try sometime!
Doesn't this look "dreamy" notice the suitcases for a nightstand...you betcha we've got plenty of those!
Of course what would Cottonwood be without some totally cute chippy painted furniture! We have one very similar...Right Now!!!
"To Die For "Mirror and chandelier...yup...we have one! Chandelier that is!!!
This is Sondra's "dream" bedroom...she took one look at it and said, "I can do that" of course you would need the main feature, the brick wall...which she does not have!!!
Pillars...Pillars...Pillars...For Sale here at The Cottonwood House
We love the colors of this room and pillows and fabric we have plenty of!

All pics by Country Living


Monday, April 6, 2009

What a crew!!!

Today is a rainy, dreary day here at Cottonwood! And, we are dreaming of the sunny south. Here is our crew on our recent trip to Florida...!!!



We thought we'd show you a few of our latest finds...a SWEET little chair!!


White wrought iron bench and don't miss the cute little waste paper basket...


This white dresser is equally cute....I guess we have a white theme today!

So spring is officially here, although you wouldn't know it by looking outside.

We have some fabulous spring items coming in this week...unfortunately we have no pictures, YET!!!


Thank you to our "friends" who left us sweet comments on our last post...I am looking at all your suggestions and will post my latest creation soon!!! We are celebrating a birthday tonight so stay tuned!!!

And Terri, thanks for the ice-cream cake idea we may use it for a special person in our family who will remain nameless at this point!!!

Don't forget if you are local to join us for our
Grand Opening of Ele Ela!!

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Anybody out there?




Ok these are very random, we know, but we need your help. I need new cake idea's. My Eli is turning 4 and well, with 3 boy's in my clan I am running out of GREAT cake idea's. I think I have done everything...tractors, and more tractors, dinosaurs, trains, planes and automobiles...just kidding no planes or automobiles...but seriously I need your help...what should I do?

So in an effort to see if anybody really reads this silly blog, we are asking for your help. Leave us a comment about a new cake and it will put a smile on our faces! :-)
We know our posts can be somewhat scattered and random...chalk that up to blogger being so finicky and lack of time, and really no good reason, but if we know you are reading, well then, we will do better!
Oh yeah...I am NOT the world's best cake decorator, not even pretty good, but my little men appreciate my effort, so...............KEEP IT SIMPLE! Shout out to Dad, (keep it simple, stupid!)
By the way, Sonj, is right beside me adding her 2 cents and grammar etiquette. So if there are spelling or grammar errors, it is HER fault!!!
***Sonj here...just thought I'd let ya'll know that half the stuff I say, she (carm) doesn't listen to anyways!
***I am the BIG sister, Sonj!
Enough. Anyways, PLEASE leave us a comment, it will make our day!!!

Monday, March 30, 2009

I'm dreaming of....

SUMMER!!!
For crying out loud can it just be warm and stay warm...I mean come on, we have tornadoes and hail...a sure thing in the spring and summer but now it's FREEZING!!
Alright, alright just ignore my blabbering...

Ok so here it is.....

YOU ARE INVITED

to our

"Grand Opening of Ele Ele"

Tea and Fashion Show


Where: Ele Ela (located inside The Cottonwood House)

When: Thursday Night April 16, 6:30-9:00

What: A tea-party and Fashion show

Why: why not!?

Do you need a night out with the girls? Perhaps a cute new shirt or shoes? Do you like yummy

desserts? Well then join us for our Grand Opening of Ele Ela here at The Cottonwood House for all this and more....more you ask? Yes, we will be running some great sales on many, many items throughout Cottonwood as well!

Space is limited so sign-up is necessary!

Cost is $11.95 per person but bring a friend and receive half off their ticket (what a deal!)

For more information or to register please give us a ring at 610.593.0981

For our friends who do not live close by, we are so sorry you cannot attend but we will post our pic's later!!!!

Hope to see ya soon!!!

PS You all know how much I despise modeling so hopefully I (carm) will not have to display some of our fabulous outfits but, no worries, we have several other very enthusiastic friends!
PSS I don't know why I look mad...I'm not...oh well!

Monday, March 23, 2009

A peek in our closet!







Well we are back from sunny and warm Florida, and home to not so warm temps..ugh! But, spring is here officially on the calander and we can't wait!

Until then we put together a few outfits to check out!


We are getting new things all the time in all sizes even maternity!




Cute gap pink dress














Old Navy Maternity denim jacket and Gap maternity shirt