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11.28.2016

Easy Christmas Wreath Makeover

christmas decor
Welcoming people to our homes is important every day - especially during the Holiday season.
A wreath for the door or front porch is something that we almost all include in our decor... 

Like you, I gaze longingly at the beautiful wreaths and garlands 
displayed at elegant home decor shops and garden centers
And THEN I look at the price tags... not happenin', folks!!

Fortunately, those inspiring creations can lead the way to making what we already have BETTER!
I'm always up for taking something old and making it look new
(okay, well, not always - sometimes I take new things and make them look old!)
...and the wreath that my Mom has been using for about 20 years now was due for an update.

continue reading for my secrets...

11.25.2016

My BEST Christmas Tree Lighting Tip!

When it comes to lighting the Christmas tree at home, I'm a purist...
I like white lights: Mini, C7, C9, bubble, whatever kind I use, they are white.
Maybe you like multicolor - or ONE color! Whatever your preference is, 
I have a tip for you when it comes to lighting the tree
(and how many of you are tackling THAT job this weekend?!)
that is guaranteed to up the sparkle factor!

continue reading to see what my ONE STEP TRICK is!

11.22.2016

which wine???

Years ago, I had the pleasure of working in the wine industry in the Pacific Northwest, 
where I learned more than I ever thought possible about the fruit of the vine....
Still, when I am stymied on a food and wine pairing,
I call on one of my friends to help me out with advice I can trust:
Scott Carlson is an experienced, knowledgeable wine & beer specialist for BevMo Stores
and he's been sharing some great information about wine pairings for years.

  I've rounded up some of Scott's best points on the subject
of pairing wines with Thanksgiving Dinner,
and added in a few of my own comments and recommendations
to help you select several wines for your upcoming holiday meal... enjoy!

<< click on 'continue reading' for Scott's recommendations!

11.19.2016

Farm Table Makeover

I've had the same dining room table for 30 years.
Yep, you read that right!

30 years ago, in the fall of 1986 after my youngest daughter was born,
my husband undertook the largest furniture project he had done at that point
and built me a pine 'Shaker style' 7 foot by 4 foot dining table... and two long benches.
It was my Christmas present that year, and I loved it. 
I have loved it ever since, and I always will....

continue reading to see the 'before and after' transformation!

11.17.2016

100 Thanksgiving Table Decor Ideas


My Vintage White Thanksgiving tablescape is included in this seasonal collection of 
'100 Inspiring Thanksgiving Table Decor Ideas' on TinyPrints.com
and I'm honored to have been included!
View my original post with tons of pretty & easy tabletop ideas
View the entire Tiny Prints blog post 
________________________________

PS: a requested correction to the caption on my image on the Tiny Prints post has not been made,
so I'll include more information about it here for those visiting for the first time:

My tablescape shown in their post includes a pumpkin as a centerpiece,
but it is not 'wrapped in lace', as TP identified it.
It is one of my own Original creations, a soft-sculpture pumpkin known as
Sweet Sweater Pumpkins, made from sweaters.
The one in the photo has been embellished with a fascinator hat  with a lace veil.

If you'd like to make your own versions of my design,
you can find my Sweet Sweater Pumpkin tutorial here.





11.16.2016

4 NEW Thanksgiving Tablescapes

My friends, the Holiday season is HERE!
Let's get inspired to try new things, shall we?!

A year ago, I purchased a beautiful vintage tea set with a fall floral motif,
and had planned to create a new tablescape post with it. Well, that didn't happen!

THIS year, I hauled it out and got to work creating that long-overdue table setting,
and along the way, I came up with three MORE ideas to share with you.
Every last one of these ideas is SIMPLIFIED, because we're ALL busy enough right now!
I just used stuff I already had here at the house - 
I seriously didn't even buy flowers or real pumpkins or anything -
and let it play out in true 'homewardFOUNDdecor' style
'cause that's how I roll...

Click through for four inspiring new themes...

11.09.2016

A Faux Awning Window Valance


In the process of 'making do' with many items we already had on hand to decorate the new house,
Mom and I decided that the orange & white chevron-stripe cotton fabric
would look pretty happy over our kitchen window.

In the old house, there were two floor-length curtain panels of this fabric at the wine bar...
aaaaaaaaand I JUST realized that I never took a photo of that. 
Trust me, it looked great! 

Although we knew what fabric would be on this window,
we really weren't sure what the valance would look like.
Until we went to Hawaii last June...
we walked into a DARLING little shop in Kapaa, Kauai, called Serendipity
(sorry, they have no social media or web presence to link to)
and spied a set of sweet, rustic, rusty BUT lightweight metal brackets on a table.
I held them up, flipped them over, 
and thought "we could use them to hold the curtain rod over the sink!'

...so that's exactly what we did:
This photo shows the brackets holding the lower of two curtain rods -
simply a cheap white metal tension rod, extended to fit the width we needed.
It rests on the top scrolled 'arm' of the metal bracket.
Up above, the higher of two curtain rods is set just below ceiling height.
With high ceilings, there was ample room to raise the fabric panel above the cabinet tops, 
which keeps the eye travelling upward instead of  stopping even with the cabinets.
The rod at the top is a standard cheap white metal rod with curved ends that mount to the wall.
We had both rods, but they only run about $5 each new.

The fabric panel was shortened by half, and we used the existing top casing 
to hang the panel from the top rod.
While I could have sewn a new casing into the new bottom edge, I didn't.
I used masking tape to tape the bottom edge of the fabric to the tension rod
(all the way across)
and then I rolled the fabric up twice to completely cover the rod and the tape.
 The bracket holds the lower tension rod out about 10" from the wall,
and the top rod is only 2" from the wall - 
so the effect is of a fabric awning over the window and the wood blinds.

It's a lot more interesting than just a plan fabric valance panel hanging straight down!

The fabric can be very easily removed for washing, or to change it up.
We even have a piece of muslin painter's cloth sized and ready for use here
in case we decide to go with a more neutral palette one day!
.
I hope this inspires you to think of things differently - like your window treatments.  
My first choice for this window was actually a vintage metal outdoor awning!
If I ever find a white one that will fit, I'll do it!

Don't just hang a panel or a valance if you have a chance to do something fun instead:
I've used picket fences as awnings and valances

old screens as awnings,

I've hung baby clothes on a clothesline as a valance... 

 See? You can use ANYTHING! Come on and get creative!!!

11.01.2016

Fall Into the Holidays...

Thanksgiving before Christmas, right?

well...... for some people, that only applies to the calendar!
There are some pretty strong opinions about whether or not to decorate for Christmas BEFORE Thanksgiving... 
almost as strong as opinions about the upcoming election!

As for me, I don't 'do' my house for Christmas until after Thanksgiving.
[ I also don't shop on Black Friday. I decorate! ]
I know, it's so subversive.... 


continue reading to see how I incorporate BOTH holidays in my decor!