When a dream finally came true......

Today Steven signed the contract for the new house we bought. It means we are officially going to move to a new house by the end of this year.

I never imagined that my life could turn out to be just like wanted to be. When I was single living a lone in Manhattan New York  and was in school 11 years a go {yes I went back to school at later age} I dreamt about marrying someone from New York and have a small house with a small garden and a studio or a working space of my own. When I married Steven 8 years a go; one of those dreams came true but I have not had a garden and a working space of my own. And never had I see it coming, right after I met Steven I suddenly got ill and hospitalized for 2 months in which I had gone under 3 times open heart surgeries.  Never had I imagined it happened to me. Well, it happened on June 2004. It was a long time a go but it sure feels like yesterday.

Looking back, I feel the luckiest person a live. Not only I was saved from the devastated illness that I suffered (thanks to those doctors and their team here in Long Island Jewish Hospital) but  I married to a man exactly like  I used to dream about. Each time I think about this, tears start to pool in my eyes. God must love me very much for He gave me exactly what I asked for.  Thinking back, it was like I meant to be here in New York with Steven and his family but more than that I have amazing doctors who loves me very much. These doctors treat me like a good friend, give me a special care and attention. I am so blessed and so grateful to have such kind people around me. I am an Indonesian woman. I do not have family here; but I must admit that the most kindest people and who helped me immensely  are the people from New York. They are Steven my husband and his family, doctors and their  nurses and Steven's friends whom now are my friends.  I feel blessed, grateful and happy to be here. Sometimes when I am thinking back again and again; I think my sudden illness brought me here permanently . Had I not gotten ill; probably things will be different. Or I can not imagine what would have happened to me had I not lived in New York at the time. I could be in my country or anywhere for that matter. And this kind of treatment or surgery is not available at the time and until now in my country; Indonesia. 

Well, I do believe if you want something so very much and you work for it; it will be coming true. I do not mean by "work" like really work hard to get it. I think it has something to do with your attitude and energy  shows that you want it with great honesty. Because everything from the beginning to the end is about being 'honest' and with pure 'good intention'. And therefor leads to happiness. I am not saying we, Steven and I are always happy. We have our moments, but whose not! I can feel that this positive energy is still brewing for other things that I want to happen in life might happen again, one day!

I  am thinking about writing my autobiography, because there is something inspiring about it. It is always in the back of my mind. Perhaps one day.

Do you believe in positive energy? Do you have similar story where something spiritually had happened to you in real life just like you want it to be?

 

Happy Thursday Everyone! Thank you so much for stopping by!

 MONDAY

Pursuit of Functional Home by Judy
Twelve O Eight {Inspiration Monday} by Tanya
Lines Across {Monday Funday} by Rachel
Sumo's Sweet Stuff by Sumo
It's So Very Cheri {It's Party Time}
Creative Mondays by Claire
The Dedicated House {Make It Pretty Monday} by Kathryn
Home Coming {The DIY'ers}

TUESDAY
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia by Kristin
The Blackberry Vine {Tuesday To Do Party)
Lady Bug Blessings {Handmade Tuesday} by Kristen
Not Just A Housewife {Show Me What Ya Got} by Stacy
Cup Cakes And Crinoline {Project Inspired} by Mary Beth 
A stroll Thru Life {Inspire Me Tuesday} by Marty

WEDNESDAY
The Blissful Bee {Work It Wednesday} by Amy
The NY Melrose Family {Whimsy Wednesday}
Savvy Southern Style {Wow Us Wednesday} by Kim
Raegun Ramblings

The Trendy Tree House {Create and Share} by Tara
Clean And Scentsible {Inspiration Exchange} by Jenn
Green Willow Pond {What We Accomplished Wednesday} by Deborah

The 36th Avenue {The 36th Party} by Desiree
The Diary of a Real Housewife {The Blogger's Diagest} by Jennie

The Pleated Poppy {What I Wore Wednesday} by Lindsey 

THURSDAY
52 Mantels {Thursday Are Your Days} by Emily
The Charm of Home {Home Sweet Home} by Shery
 Creating an Artful Home by Jen
French Country Cottage {Feathered Nest Friday} by Courtney
My Romantic Home {Show and Tell Friday) by Cindy
Chic on a Shoe String Decorating {Flaunt It Friday} by Kate
One Artsy Mama {Shine on Friday} by Amy
The Grant Life {The Life of the Party} by Kelley
Saving 4 Six (Welcome To Think Tank Thursday) by Carrie 
Made to be a Momma {Homemade by You} by Katie 
The Shabby Creek Cottage {Transformation Thursday} by Gina
A Glimpse Inside by Allison

Perfectly Coutured {Three-fer Thursday} by Bethany

FRIDAY
Dear Creatives {Inspiration Spotlight} by Theresa
If It's Not Baroque {Week End Creativity Round Up} by Lauren
The Dedicated House {Anything Blue Friday} by Kathryn 
A night Owl {Create and Inspire} by Kimberly
Craftberry Bush  {The Inspiration Gallery} by Lucy
Happy Hour Project {Happy Hour Friday} by Adrienne
Diana Rambles {Pin Me Linky Party} by Diana
Truly Lovely {Fancy This Friday} by Kassy and Kayli
Finding Fabulous {Frugalicious Friday} 
504 Main {Tickled Pink} by Holly 
A Stylish Interior (Stylish Friday Finds} by Karen 
Little Inspiration {Create & Inspire} by Kimberly and Angie

The Mrs and The Momma {The Best of Friday} by Kristen

SATURDAY

Suburbs Mama {Suburbs Mama Sunday} by Rita
Nifty Thrifty Things {Nifty Thrifty Sunday} by Vanessa
Flamingo Toes {Think Pink Sunday} by Bev
Pink When {DIY Sunday Showcase} by Jennifer
I Heart Nap Time {Sundae Scoop}
Twigg Studios  {Sunday Show Off} by Aimee
Crafts A la Mode 

Vintage Plates and Cups for Home Office Desk {DIY}

Hello,

I have been away from the computer and home for 24 hours. Steven and I stayed in a hotel in Manhattan for a night. I am sorry if I have not replied any email and comments on my blog posts since last Sunday. Anyway, we are home now.

~~~oo00oo~~~

I have been wanting to post this stack up vintage plates and cups to put your craft supply. And I am having difficulties to find a name for it. A long time a go I  envision of having this {let's call it a cake stand for now since you know; I love vintage cake stand very much!} to display on my home office desk if I ever have a study or working room one day. And to put craft supply or anything pretty on it. A big inspiration board hung on top of the desk would complete the whole look of this desk that I always dream about. Through these images I tried to create a mini desk with it's stationery and the stack up vintage plates and cups for you  visually. 

Right now I can only have this in my head; hoping one day it will come into a realization.

 When saw this at Marshall for the first time; immediately  thought this is a paper weight but the cashier said it is a garden decoration. It is very heavy.  Still I can not see it as garden decoration. And now it is going to be a paper weight on my desk. I think it is so adorable as paper weight and with no 3 embossed on it. Don't you think! And with it's price of USD 4.50; it is hard to pass by.

Thank you so much for stopping by!

~~~oo00oo~~~

Linked to;
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Savvy Southern Style  
Hickory Trail

Vintage Finds Tuesday

Hello,

I am back in Florida again. This is the last time we are here in Delray, Florida until end of the year when it gets cold again in New York. 

I am very sorry for I have not posted anything lately. The reason being was because I find it hard to focus when you are about and go on a travelling. Having two places has been fun for us but I also must think about stuff that I need to take with me back and forth. Especially stuff I need for my blog posts like props, etc. 

Anyway, I am super excited about what I am going to show you in the next day or two. This is a quick post about my vintage finds today. As usual; when I visit Delray I always go on a vintage shopping spree. They are super cheap here and I never get empty handed because I always find something interesting either for my own personal use or props for my blog posts. 

Here they are!

{i am experimenting with blog post picture lay out. here i put a quote about 'tea'. i thought it would be interesting to look at rather than just putting pictures of bunch of china alone.} 

I shot the flowers outside the entrance condo just now. And the rain just stopped when I stepped out side to take these pictures. You can still see the water droplets on the petals flowers.

Happy Tuesday Everyone.

Thank you so much for stopping by!

Linked to;
Savvy Southern Style

Saturday Afternoon Tea

Yesterday I was looking for a cherry blossoms flowers in my area  but I could not find any. So instead I found these little flowers called 'Wax Flowers' written on the label. These flowers has woodsy aroma with a hint of bouquet perfume.

I love how it looks when gathered them together and just throw them in a big vase. I like the casual arrangement look as if they were picked from your own backyard. The small flowers looks so delicate and pretty. It got it's name  from the fact that the petals has a waxy feel to it. {More about it here}

Today is Saturday and is a beautiful day; the weather is starting to get a little warmer. I just did a spring cleaning in our rooms. Things got out of hand sometimes and need to be discarded. After that I made myself a cup of tea and the thought of taking pictures of the flowers came into mind, so I did that.

Here are the pretty 'Wax Flowers.'

I bought way too many  of these flowers so you may see them in my next posts as right now every corner of my house decorated with these little flowers.

Thank you so much for stopping by, and have a lovely week-end Everyone!

Link to;
Savvy Southern Style

To a Son + Vintage China

Yet, love, mere love, is beautiful indeed

And worthy of acceptation. Fire is bright,

Let temple burn, or flax. An equal light

Leaps in the flame from cedar-plank or weed.

And love is fire. And when i say at need

I love thee...mark!...I love thee - in thy sight

I stand transfigured, glorified aright,

With conscience of the new rays that proceed

Out of my face toward thine. There's nothing low

In love, when love the lowest; meanest creatures

Who love God,  God accepts while loving so.

And what I feel, across the inferior features

Of what I am, doth flash itself, and show

How that great work of Love enhances Nature's.

Elizabeth Barrett Browning

I have been thinking about my son a lot lately. I dreamt about him when he was a little boy for two nights in a row. I am thinking about him as a little boy as if he is sitting  next to me and staring at me with his big brown eyes curiously just like when I used to read a story book to him all the time. His giggling and  laughing when we played with his toys together echoed through the room and still fresh in my mind until now. I remembered just like it was  happenning last hight when I hugged him many nights in bed as he was afraid to go to sleep a lone in his room.

Now I am thinking; 

what is he doing?

Is he with his friends?

A lone?

Sleeping?

Eating?

Oh, how I miss him!

I tried very hard to take him a way from my mind. Then I remembered the vintage china that I started to collect during a recovery from surgeries and 2 months hospitalized about 8 years a go. My sudden instinct told me that I need to do something fun with it immediately.

The color and the pattern of these china are beautiful. And there is something enchanting about aged china that I just could not resist on collecting them.  I am hoping that one day I would pass them down to my daughter in-law and hope that she will appreciate these vintage china as much as I do.

 The poem above  copied from a small book that I have been owning for quite sometime. It is called "The Illustrated Poets - Elizabeth Barrett Browning".

In  my humble opinion; being sentimental, sensitive and vulnerable can be beautiful as portrayed in this story post.  I  do hope you will enjoy this post!

~~~~~~~~~~oo00oo~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you for stopping by!

Vintage Blue & White Cake Stand

Perhaps we are all familiar with these white and blue china and pottery that we have seen them in a beautiful interior magazine or in a museum. 

White and Blue ceramic was first produced in the Middle East during 9th century. Then China fully adapted the white and blue ceramic for many centuries during their Dinasties reign. More stories (here). Then during the 17th century European ceramic porcelain factory started to adapted this color and pattern called Chinoiserie. Meissen in Germany, Delft in Holland and England starting to copy this chinoiserie pattern and color.

Blue and white china and pottery are often and still produce and being displayed in a modern home interior and decor today. It is a classic ancient object, copy repeatedly that truly makes a today's interior beautiful and elegant.

Inspired by the collection from pinning boards I collected in Pinterest called 'Blue & White Love' (here),  I was intrigued to create a vintage white and blue cake stand.  I have drilled many vintage plates  to create one of a kind cake stand for sale in my Etsy store before. But never I imagined that these blue and white porcelain china was very hard to drill. I was determined to kept on drilling and extra careful so they will not break. I can only imagine the beauty of it when they stacked together as a cake stand kept me going on drilling. Literally when finished the palm of my right hand between the thumb and index finger were sore and red from holding the drilling machine too long.

Never the less I am so happy that I did not break any of them despite it seems forever just to drill a small hole to the other side of the plate.

Take a look at this cake stand. Don't you think it is beautiful ?

Source : Top left; Curiositaellya, top right; pinterest, bottom left; inspiracionline, bottom right; eucalypthomewares

Available at my Etsy store {here}

More of White and Blue ceramic, porcelain and pottery.

Source; la-belle-vie

Source; pinterest

Source; theswenglishhome

Source; pinterest

Source; dust jacket

Do you collect these lovely blue and white table ware china or pottery for display in your home? I do !

Thank you for stopping by !

The Power of Positive Thinking

Have you ever encountered a situation where thing is going down the hill and you feel bad and sad then you start saying to yourself; it will be working out just fine ? 

Well I have the same situation just a few days a go. Although this is not a huge problem but I believe in positive thinking and the power that comes within.

As we all know that I love making vintage cake stand and I am selling them through my Etsy store called MelatiRose. 

Last time I was in Florida for a month and there were lots of purchasing through my store in Etsy during that month coming to Christmas time. One in particular is from Paris who asked about the cost of shipping of one of the cake stand that she interested in purchasing. I literally took a few plates and brought them over to the post office near our home in Florida so that I can provide her with the shipping cost estimation. The actual cake stand was in New York. Long story short we went back and forth and she agreed to put the cake stand on hold. So I did just that. But when I arrived in New York ready to ship it she backed out and decided not to purchase the cake stand because at this point she afraid it will not be arriving on time for Christmas Eve. So that is fine with me. Little disappointed but that's okay !

Then about 5 days a go someone asked if she paid the cake stand {different one} now could she  gets it on time by Dec. 24th. I immediately check usps.com  on the internet and found out that it takes 1 week to get to her zip code and the next day was Saturday.  I told her if she paid now I will ship it tomorrow {which was Saturday} she will get it by Dec. 22. I did not hear from her. At this point I packaged the cake stand ready to go for shipment on Saturday morning. A day past by, 2 days past by. I did not hear from her. So I figured by this time there is no way she could get the cake stand on time unless she is willing to pay for an express overnight package which can cost a lot just for shipping. So another cake stand that did not sale !

3 days a go I opened my Etsy account found that similar plate bought and paid by another person along with 2 of my vintage earrings. Yes, that same cake stand. But saw a note  below the invoice saying that she is collecting vintage cobalt blue and gold accent china and asked if I can change the top smallest plate with the same color; cobalt blue with gold accent. And she added by saying that the cake stand is so pretty !

Now, this is the power of positive thinking comes in. When the first person did not reply I knew somebody else will eventually buy this cake stand. And I was thinking to change the listing by changing the smallest plate to the same cobalt blue with gold accent like the middle plate and the bottom plate so they will be all similar in cobalt blue with gold accent theme. I happened to buy vintage plates everywhere I go if I see something that I liked and something that I can add to my current for sale cake stands to make them prettier. Recently in Florida I bought cobalt blue with gold accent small plate ready to replace the current one. See things comes in full circle as I was about to change it this person could read my mind and asked for a similar one which I happened to have. Because sometimes this request can not be fulfilled simply because I do not have the item.

Immediately I said to her; of course I would be happy too because I was about to change it anyway without additional charge. Not only that she purchased the cake stand she also bought 2 pair of vintage earrings along with the cake stand. So it is a happy ending story for me.

 

You see, it's not always about the money but I am happy when someone appreciates my creation and my choice in making and choosing these one of a kind cake stands. I put a lot of time searching on the internet for these plates so that they will look good together. I have to be extra careful with price also. Because some of them are really pretty but they cost almost a USD 100.00 per plate. If it is too expensive no one will buy them. So I must find the pretty one that is affordable so that I can make an affordable price for people to purchase as well.

They said, it is a lot easier to make a business if you really love doing what you are doing. And I love pretty vintage plates. Not only that I love mix and match them very much ! I love the process of creating it and see them becoming into one pretty cake stand and finally sold to someone who really loves them. I love it !

So back to the topic of this post, in life, thing like this happened to me so many times. I feel blessed and grateful for what I have right now. Sometimes little thing like this makes life so meaningful and so much more beautiful. 

I believe what ever you do; if you do it with 'passion,'' patient', 'hard work' and 'believe'; success eventually will be coming to you. Life is a journey. Everything in your life comes down to these 5 words.

 

Do you see that I changed the smallest top plate to similar theme; cobalt blue rim with gold accent ? It looks so much more beautiful now ! I think she will like them. Now that the smallest plate has similar cobalt blue and gold theme I kind a love this cake stand myself. Hhhhmmmm...!!

Thank you so much for stopping by !

A Sweet Short Post From Overseas {Australia}

My long time friend 'Ine' lives in 3 continents; Asia, Australia and Europe. At the moment she is in Perth, Australia. I envy her life moving and living in each continent every couple of months or so. We communicate through Facebook and few days a go she posted these pictures {the one with  Lemon Tart and a cup of tea}. Ine is one of my blog followers. When saw these pictures in Facebook, I asked her if she would not mind for me to post these pictures in my blog. And I asked her if she could provide me with her lemon tree pictures that grows in her home garden in Perth, Australia. She agreed and later I received this lemon picture.

Like myself, Ine is a vintage china lover. The last time I saw Ine she came to New York accompanied her husband travelling  for business. She took the opportunity to visit me {here}. 

I can not help myself but to share some of Ine's vintage china collection and how it seems that she enjoyed the Lazy Ellya's Lemon Tart that she got the recipe from my blog {here}. She said she was trying to take the tart out of the store bought tin pie but it broke. I would not know the difference anyway ! Good job Ine !

Here are those pictures ! These pictures were taken by Ine. I then processed them in Photoshop to create a collage as seen here.

I do hope you enjoy this short post !

Thank you Ine, once more time, your vintage cups are beautiful !

Thank you for reading and have a lovely week-end !