FRENCH BOTTLE DRYER OBSESSION

It has been ages since I last posted on my blog and I really miss posting and visiting others on a regular basis. It so happens that I have been having a lot of pain and discomfort in my hands for several years and it has become more intense and debilitating in recent months. I have been severely limited in my ability to do many of the things I like most to do. Being one who puts off going to see a doctor until it can no longer avoided, I kept hoping things would get better and things only got worse. I finally broke down and went to see the doctor who had performed carpal tunnel surgery on one of my hands years ago. I was thinking (hoping) he would probably tell me a there was a quick fix for whatever was ailing me. It was a real let down to hear that I have arthritis in both hands and in one hand there is no cartilage  between the thumb and index finger at all. In his words, "bone is literally touching bone in the joint." Any surgery to try and correct the problem would be very involved and would take many months of recovery, so I quickly opted out of that--at least for now.

This means I will not be able to do many of the things I dearly love to do and that is very depressing, so I will not dwell on the subject more in this post.

As I have stated in previous posts, I adore French design elements and, most especially, Country French design. One of the things I have fallen in love with is the French bottle dryer and have been yearning to have one of my own. I have been able to find a few images and ideas on Pinterest for using them in design and decor. This is one image of a French bottler dryer/dryer rack. Here is another and another here. The French bottle drying rack or bottle dryer can be used in many ways. It can be decorative or utilitarian, as in this photo posted on Pinterest.

I have been hoping to find one of these beauties somewhere and at a price I could afford. Well, it just so happens that on Easter this year, our family went to celebrate at Cracker Barrel Old Country Store and Restaurant. If you have never been to one, you might want to check it out here. Our family loves to eat at Cracker Barrel, and we almost always check out the store to see what is new and, even better, what things are on clearance. Well, to my amazement, there was a French bottle drying rack sitting right smack dab in the middle of the clearance merchandise. One of my daughters saw me admiring it, knowing how much I wanted one. She sneakily sent her son, my grandson, back into the store after we sat down to eat to purchase it for me. To say I was thrilled would be understating.

I love the bottles that the syrup comes to your table in at Cracker Barrel. Over the past several years I have been collecting little bottles. I had initially collected them to put little samples of homemade wine and continued to save them on a pretty regular basis. They are so cute and have endless possibilities!

The bottles came immediately came to mind to use on the rack. I did not have quite enough to fill it, so I have been collecting more and asked family members to do the same. About a month ago, I finally acquired enough to fill the rack. Today, I got around to snapping a few photos of the rack with the little bottles hanging on it. If you like French Country decor, you would probably like having one in your home. I hope you will enjoy the following pictures!

My French Bottle Drying Rack

My French Bottle Drying Rack

My French Bottle Drying Rack'

My French Bottle Drying Rack

Do you like French bottle drying racks? I adore mine and am planning on using it for a very long time!