Bringing In a Little History

Every space needs a little history, whether it's an old quilt thrown over a sofa or an old chair that you got from your grandma's house. I was blessed enough to find a little history at my parents' house in this piece...


After my great grandmother (my mom's dad's mom) passed several years ago, my mom was able to bring this cabinet home. I never thought much about it; especially, since she used it to store books that I would never read; but, I always thought it was kinda cool that a part of my great grandmother was now a part of our house.


Then, a couple months after my mom passed last year, I asked my dad if I could have it to put in my own home. He, of course, had no objections, so into the backseat of my car it went. It was only after Mr. Marcus got it into the house did I see how bad of shape it was in.


The top and front have been beat up, scratched up and worn out.


And the back was completely none-existent.


There was also quite a bit of evidence of a few repair attempts.


And after a little more inspecting, I came across some pretty interesting stuff...


and thanks to the all-mighty GOOGLE, I found out that this little cabinet used to be an old broadcast radio that probably used to look like this:



And what's even more interesting is that these radios are dated from the years 1928-1933! Of course mine had been gutted of all its electrical innards, so it's probably not worth much. But I'm beyond excited to know that I have such a historical piece that was passed down from my great grandmother to my mother and now to me.


Knowing me, you already know that I had a good use in mind for this beauty. The wall space in between our dining room and living room was crying out for some function. And what better function to have than an at home bar!?! Now, by no means are the Mr. and I some undercover alcoholics. Three of the four bottles of alcohol on the bar have been with us almost as long as we've been married (almost six months!!!), so you know we're not throwing 'em back every day. But when the mood strikes, it's great to have the party juice on hand!


The white tray that I found at Target corrals everything, helping it all appear nice and neat. My TJ Maxx faux orchid brings height to the arrangement and the little bottles of mixers add to the blue scheme that's happening along that entire wall. Everytime I pass by it, I smile. It's the little things like a make-shift bar that makes my heart sing.



Now, my conundrum is...what do I do about the cabinet? It's in need of a lot of love considering how much damage it has. I know that I need to put a back on it, but beyond that, I'm torn. I'm afraid that if I sand it down in attempts to restore it, I could potentially ruin it's original look. I've considered painting it, but I love that fact that it has the same look as it did when it sat in both my great grandmother's and mother's homes. And to tell you the truth, the longer it sits here, the scratches and dings seem to disappear (to me, at least).


What do you guys think? Should I leave it alone? Should I restore it? Or should I make it my own and paint it a color of my liking? I'd really like to know what you think.

Spring Fever!

With the weather warming up these past couple days, I've already got my spring wardrobe on the brain. I've been looking for a couple new pieces to add to my closet, so I had to show you guys what's caught my attention lately.


Now, if you think you know me, you should know that I love me some navy blue. And stripes. And navy blue and white stripes are my favorite. This little tank would get a lot of wear this spring. I'd pair it with just about anything...cropped khakis, a pleated skirt, some colorful skinnies...the possibilities are endless.


I hate to admit that I have failed to own a tank top that's not a solid color. Actually, it's kinda sad. This cutie would definitely usher me into spring.


Coral, anybody???


Coral & stripes, anybody??? 'Nough said.


I think I've tried on 20 pairs of "boyfriend" style jeans, and have yet to find a pair that actually fit like "boyfriend" jeans! I've had my eyes on the pair above for a couple months now, so I'm hoping they don't let me down once I get my hands on 'em.


I think I'm the last female of this generation to go the entire past 12 months without a pair of colorful skinny jeans. I really don't know what my problem is. Maybe it's the fact that I've lived no less than 1.5 hours away from a store that would actually sell them.


Last, but certainly not least, is this beauty! I swear, if it wasn't sold out right now, you guys would be looking at a pic of me wearing it already! The colors are perfect. The light weight material makes it great for those warmer days. And the hem line is at that perfect yes-I'm-somebody's-mother-but-I-still-got-it length!

I'm officially accepting donations for the Cohesive Randomness Spring Fever Fund to go towards some of the items you've seen here. I promise you its a great cause! Lol. Are any of you gearing up for spring? What are you hoping to add to your wardrobe? Have you had a certain color on the brain lately? Tell me about it; I'm hoping I'm not the only one.

Xoxo,
Coco

Poota Man!

He's seldom mentioned here on CR, but in reality, he's the center of our lives. Plus these pics were too cute to pass up.









His 3'3" frame is getting too big for us to swaddle and hold as we did just 3 years ago; but no matter how long his legs get or how big his head swells, he'll always be my baby boy.

Mama loves you, Poota Man.