This is what I call ....

hitting the "FRIEND LOTTERY".  SO ~ I have these friends that are truly talented and I joke with them that "Man, the day I met you, I hit the friend lottery" .... I say it half in jest, all in seriousness because they truly are some of the nicest, sweetest, would do anything for me friends!  My non-blogging friend, Stacey, has been designing floral arrangements for years and years.  She can take a bunch of flowers from Publix and transform them into an arrangement that looks like you paid $100 for at the florist.   During my 'kitchen remodel' (which is still NOT QUITE DONE), we ended up painting the kitchen and family room - had to because the kitchen and family room are all one very large area.  I kept staring at the beautiful wall sconces that I got from Rachel during one of those Southern Living at Home crazy sales.  I paid NOTHING for them and I am ashamed to say that I filled them with $10 worth of "crap" from Joann's ... even Stacey said she would have liked to 'borrowed' them and fixed them for me, but I digress.  

SO - I emailed Stacey when Shannon (another non-blogging friend) was tiling my backsplash and told her that I certainly didn't want her to feel left out of the 2008 GREAT KITCHEN MAKEOVER and would she mind throwing together a floral arrangement for my wall sconces.  She said ABSOLUTELY!!  SO .... Monday she got all the materials and TODAY, here they are:

OH .... MYYYYYYYYYYY  (I just FREAKING noticed the footballs at the top - are you KIDDING ME!?!?! -- hmph, those WILL be moved).   Aren't they beautiful (and what is up with my camera?)

A close up -- those are REAL feathers too -- REAL pricey too, but that's ok ...totally worth it and a request (I only requested feathers and hydrangeas).

I think they turned out beautiful!   I am SO excited and wonder when Chad will notice!   These put me SO in the mood for fall!