Can you believe that there are only 9 days left to January? I’m embarrassed to say I haven’t properly stored away some of the Christmas items, but have an end of the month deadline to do so. It is hard, however, not to think ahead to February.
There is an abundance of Valentine craft paper leftover from all the years of making craft projects with the children. In an effort to use some of it up, I made this very simple Valentine garland.
The heart-shaped cut out is from Michaels, but you could easily make a heart pattern, trace it and cut it out. Would also be fun to do different sizes.
Line up the hearts in the patterns you like. I used Baker’s twine because of the red/white color, but any string will do.
Glue one heart to the twine and then press the other heart on top. I placed the string to the upper part of the heart, which allows the hearts to hang without flipping.
Decide the distance between hearts and repeat the process.
Let the hearts dry and flatten out any glue bumps.
Hang wherever you need some Valentine cheer!
A quick and easy DIY to make your February sweeter!
A Few of my Favorite Things
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Do you have a favorite item or part of your home that brings a smile to your face or a boost to your spirit? These are the things that if you had to move, you would definitely take them with you.
I suppose organizing guru, Marie Kondo would say these items “spark joy”. In the quiet mornings, when I walk around the house with my cup of coffee, I feel so grateful to be in a place I love. Here are a few of my favorite possessions.
The chair above is a grand, old chair. It was covered in some ghastly burgundy material and I am so happy with the lighter, playful fabric chosen for the back. The seat is a neutral linen. Both fabrics highlight the carved detail of the frame. This is the type of chair that when you sit in it, you feel like royalty.
My tulipieries. I first spotted these during a trip to Amsterdam and have always wanted a pair. I purchased them last year from The Enchanted Home and love to fill them with a variety of flowers. They ooze happiness!
The Wedgwood Wild Strawberry tea set was discovered during a shopping trip to Harrods in London many years ago. I remember having sticker shock because I thought the price was in euros vs. the British pound. But I was at the register and wasn’t about to put them back, so I swallowed hard and probably hid the receipt from my husband! Definitely one of those well-worthwhile purchases.
The pastry rack that sits on the kitchen island is the perfect size to break up the expanse of the countertop. Each season I decorate it and it feels unique and rather French. Don’t recall where I got it, but it’s a keeper.
Our duvet cover is Shore Rose by Taylor Linens. Each night when I tuck myself into bed, just looking at this sweet fabric makes me happy. It’s soothing and peaceful.
I found this ornate carving of Mary and baby Jesus in an antique store in northern Arizona. I have never seen one with an oval glass dome on an oval wooden base. I change out the flowers surrounding the statue with the season. It’s hard to get a good picture of the details due to the reflection in the glass, but it’s a beautiful piece and one that I cherish.
My first oil painting. I finally had it framed and it sits on a small easel on the living room sofa table. It was intimidating to take an oil class at the Scottsdale Artist School with master painters, but I like the results.
Our dining room chandelier was brought with us from our last home. Illuminated once by candlelight, we had it wired for today’s use. This would definitely come with us to a new house. It is elegant but not too gaudy.
The antique sofa that sits in our master bedroom was a purchase from the Brimfield Antique Show. Covered in French grain sacks, it was in our barn for years as I pondered what to do with it. Finally, a friend suggested a large houndstooth fabric and voila! It took the upholsterer several months to do it, but I love how it turned out.
Lastly, during a trip to Paris with my dear friend, Susan, I purchased several glass Christmas ornaments. I keep them in a footed trifle bowl on a living room end table all year round. They are so pretty and I can clearly remember that cold day in November when I purchased them and carefully carried them back to the States.
There are so many things I love here at our home, but these items speak to me daily. This year I would like to go room to room and get rid of those things that are just filling space, but do not fill my soul. What do you have in your everyday life that makes your heart happy?
Happy Tuesday, my dear friends!
Simplifying Christmas
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My Christmas painting from 2017
I don’t know about you, but I am STILL cleaning up after Thanksgiving. It was a wonderful day, especially with the weather being moody and overcast.
If you are looking for a cocktail (or can be made without alcohol) for Christmas, this one is certainly the right color! I am not a fan of anything too sweet, and these Cranberry Bourbon Sours were tart and refreshing. Click here for the recipe from Half Baked Harvest. We made a pitcher of them this week which was perfect for drop-in guests.
One of our family holiday traditions is collectively selecting a cake from Tessa Huff’s book Layered and then baking it. The Bittersweet Chocolate Orange Spice Cake was not as labor intensive as some of the other cakes we’ve made, but the flavors were rich and perfect for the season. Sprinkled with salt and decorated with kumquats from our tree, made this 3 layer cake even more attractive.
Now we are onto Christmas. Can you believe it is 25 days away? I woke up in the middle of the night a bit worried about getting everything accomplished-our Christmas card, my annual Christmas painting, decorating the house, entertaining~~the thought of it all swirling around in my head. I came to the conclusion at some early hour in the morning that maybe this is the year to just simplify it all.
I know many bloggers have had Christmas up since Halloween, but I am a bit of a traditionalist and remember the days when the Christmas season officially began the day after Thanksgiving.
The downside to waiting is the rush to get it all done. However, I am now debating whether I truly need to build the glitter village and the unpack the numerous snow globes.
Perhaps this is the year to just decorate with fresh greens and a few traditional items like our Christmas art. I am spending this weekend getting the house back in order and then re-thinking a new way to decorate for Christmas. Maybe less is more?
However, it ALL does comes together somehow and that is the magic of the holidays. The goal is to welcome it with a jolly spirit and not sweat the small stuff. Remember to do things that “spark joy”
Wishing you a wonderful weekend. I hope your Thanksgiving was filled with family and love.
My Recent Paintings
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I know it is the day before Thanksgiving and I am sure you are busy with recipes, family, friends, guests and just about everything.
So today’s post will be a quick one, completely unrelated to Thanksgiving.
I am wrapping up another painting class session with the amazing teacher/artist Joann Augur. The class is once a week for 3 hours; classes run for 6 weeks.
The focus has been on values, which I really struggle with. Value is the lightness or darkness of color or hue. If a painting doesn’t have value, it tends to be flat, lifeless and uninteresting. Creating dark areas of contrast is my challenge~~my darks are never dark enough.
So this is a great class for me to take. The good news is that if I don’t like what I have painted, I can paint over it. None of these paintings are finished, but I imagine I will try to do so at some point in the future, as they don’t fall under my “absolutely ghastly” category.
We are 5 weeks into this painting period and I believe I missed one = 4 paintings focusing on value. If you have an interest in taking up painting, I encourage you to do so. It has only been a few years for me, and I know I have a lot to learn, but it forces me outside of my comfort zone.
Thank you for taking the time to read my blog post today. I am grateful to you for all the support, ideas, and comments that help me be better at this blogging life.
Wishing you and yours a happy, blessed Thanksgiving.
The Table is Set!
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I didn’t intend for the Thanksgiving centerpiece to match the artwork in the dining room but it happily does! Every few months I’ve been hanging different art, trying to find just the right piece.
It’s easy to decorate the same way year after year and there’s comfort in that. But how do I use what I have and put a different spin on it? The crosshatched mercury candleholders in a coppery tone from West Elm was the first step of the inspiration. They were on sale for $5.00 each.
A few years ago, I started using plants as the majority staple in my centerpieces, adding a small amount of cut flowers. Planting them in the yard later is a way of re-purposing and seemed more economical. We are so fortunate to have a fabulous nursery (Whitfill Nursery) right around the corner from our home.
Whitfill has the most beautiful Cinnamon Petunias with lovely rusty, coral flowers. Succulents are a mystery to me, but the green and bronze hues are so perfect with my candle holders. The plant list includes: White Ornamental cabbage, Red Bor Kale; the succulents are Graptoeria Fredives and Vera Higgins Graptosedum.
I am a bit of a garden geek and Whitfill Nursery is one of my happy places. Where else can you go look at a huge variety of plants, see peacocks and goats, interact with a welcoming and helpful staff on a gorgeous sunny day?
The cut flowers are alstroemeria and roses from Safeway.
I transplanted all the plants out of their plastic containers into plain white bowls (Emma pattern from Pottery Barn). Flowers are placed at various heights in small glass vases and tucked into the plants.
Again, my Windsor Ware plates are just perfect for this time of year. I chose to use a darker wood charger, softened with pale pink wine glasses. White and orange pumpkins were added to play down the white bowls.
I had some leftover seeded eucalyptus which I randomly stuffed into the edges.
It’s nice to have the table set and ready to go. Today we will do all the food shopping and pick up the turkey. I expect the stores to be a bit of a madhouse in the midst of the holiday rush. The next few days will include many hours in the kitchen~~a joyful time indeed!
Is your table set? Have you done all your shopping? Or better yet, are you going elsewhere for Thanksgiving dinner?
Happy Tuesday, my dear friends.
Bedroom Remodel Reveal
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My son’s bedroom re-do has taken longer than I would have liked. Am I completely finished? No, but I am close. There are window treatments to complete and of course, sorting through years of his belongings. I want to accomplish that with him, because I would probably keep all the grammar and high school projects just for the glorious trip down memory lane.
Here is the bedroom before. The last time we did anything to his room was on his 14th birthday. It was time to get rid of the whimsical child’s room and do something more suitable for a teenager. His colors at the time were mostly red, blue and brown. Benjamin now lives in Washington, DC so his room hasn’t really been touched in quite a long time.
As you may recall, this was my inspiration for the remodel. You can read the entire blog post here.
Here is the bedroom after (and nearly done)! We moved the bed to the opposite wall to get the wonderful views out the 2 northern windows, and the view to the outside terrace.
Using leftover Blue Radish linen fabric, I slipcovered the bench under the black writing desk that I moved from the family room. The desk now gets such better light from the western window.
I kept the small dresser with the hand painted fish as our son LOVED having fish when he was younger. Plus the scale and color goes nicely with the rug and rest of the room.
A guest basket is filled with waters and snacks for his week long stay with us. In keeping with the blue/nautical theme, a limited edition print by Jan Balet from is hung above the dresser.
On the desk is an antique letter “from a Nobleman to a School Master” dated May 10, 1740 about a man sending his “Boy of Genius” off to get a liberal education. I love the lettering, the grace and tone ~~so civilized.
A fresh bouquet of flowers perks up the room.
I started a custom painting for the area above his bed, however, it’s not finished so we hung a limited edition nautical lithograph from the British maritime artist, John Stobart. If you want to read the blog post on the making of the pillow shams, click here.
We still need to go through items on his shelves, but I tried to organize it the best you can with items from a boy’s life.
Happy Saturday, my friends. The best part of this bedroom is that my son is home and filling the room with his presence. I hope you enjoyed the fresh and updated changes! Below is a list of resources.
