'Tis The Season!!!

It's my favorite time of the year and I'm excited to say that all the decorating is done. I know that I usually say less is better, but that is not my approach at Christmas. I fill every nook and cranny with decorations collected over my lifetime. Here's a little sample of what my home looks like this year:

Let's start with the tree. This year it's all white and gold with a "found in nature" theme. Simple and beautiful. There is a white burlap tree skirt, cotton boles, pine cones, icy branches, and snowflakes of different sizes and textures.

Santa is everywhere. My favorite old ones are in a vignette on the bar.

My "Nana" tree has a place of honor on a table in the playroom. Every ornament and the tree skirt were hand made by my grandmother, Nana.

Garland adorns bannisters, light fixtures, and the mantle and Christmas pillows are scattered in every room.

I have dozens of beautiful glass ornaments that I decided not to put on the tree this year. I wanted to still have them out, so I put them in 3 bell jars on a table and it's my new favorite thing. Even though you can't see each ornament, the overall look is wonderful.

The bookcase has been transformed by the snow village.

And most importantly of all, the nativity scenes remind me why we really celebrate this time of the year.

Merry Christmas!

I'll keep you posted...

Lynn

Outdoor Dining Room Finale! well, almost...

It's done! The table base was delivered Sunday and the top installed today and it's beautiful. Thanks Jay for the awesome welding job! Here's what's been done since my last post:

I made mirrors for the back wall to reflect the trees and sky and look like windows (more on that in a future post). I bought the big rust colored pillows and the seat cushions and made the print fabric pillows. I brought in a cute antique wooden bakers rack that I stole back from my mom (thanks Mom!) that holds blankets and miscellaneous barbecue tools, and hung a heater for those few chilly nights we have here. That's about it. I didn't want to buy any chairs until the table was finished because I'm not sure what I want and I thought having the table would help me to decide. The hunt for those will begin tomorrow. Overall, I couldn't be happier!

Check out this before and after:

I love looking at the before and after of the back of the house! We haven't missed the closets a bit and now we have this beautiful dining room. The table will seat 12 comfortably and we could probably squeeze in 14 if needed. Our first party is this weekend and I can't wait!

I'll keep you posted... 

Lynn

More Fall Decor

Now that it's November, I'm adding a little more fall to my house.

The grapevine I put on the light in September gets some berries.

The grapevine I put on the light in September gets some berries.

These long,rust velvet slipcovers replace the short, light green linen. If you're as lucky as I am, your awesome sister will iron them for you. Thanks Terri!

The cornucopia center piece comes next, and the dining room is finished!

The natural linen slipcovers are removed and are replaced with dark brown, and darker pillows are added. 

Even the kitchen counters get a touch of fall with gourds in cake domes.

Now I realize that not everyone can change out slipcovers on their furniture. The only reason I can is that the company I ordered from sent me the wrong color the first time. Because of their great customer service, they replaced them with the right color and had me keep the first set. The only problem was the the color was wrong--really wrong. After sitting unused in a closet for 6 months, I had the brilliant idea to dye them. Off they went to Oregon and when I got them back, they were the perfect shade of chocolate brown for fall/winter. If you don't have slipcovers, don't worry about it. The change of pillows is all you really need. 

I'll keep you posted...

Lynn