Who Knows? SHEknows!

I am pleased to share with you an article on the SHEknows.ca website, 

a DIY resource for a largely Canadian readership. 

Writer Jessica Padykula contacted me a few months ago, and asked me to contribute

some of my creative ideas 

for decorating with pumpkins AND decorating pumpkins... 

I was happy to oblige!

Click to read 5 Creative Ways to Decorate with Pumpkins

Thank you, Jessica, for creating a great story with my content,
and for sending your readers here to my blog. Welcome, girls!

I invite you to peruse the tabs up above and the links on my sidebar,
which will take you to the most popular posts and projects that I've shared here,
as well as to creative decorating ideas for every season of the year!

I've shared even MORE content on my Pinterest boards and Facebook Page -
come on over!

Here at HOMEWARDfound Decor, it's ALL about using what you have on hand ;)
[You'll find more about that philosophy, and me, on my 'Start Here' page]

Creating Vintage Charm Autumn!

The Autumn 2013 Issue of Creating Vintage Charm Magazine is here!

I am honored to be a regular contributor to this lovely publication, 

produced by a gracious and creative spirit, Sonia Cardona Crouse.

There is beautiful inspiration in each seasonal issue,
with ideas and projects from many incredibly talented designers, decorators, and photographers
... and autumn is packed FULL!

My contribution this season is a soft, warm, natural-themed tablescape,

perfect for any autumn day - and especially Thanksgiving.

[and yes, that's a peek of one of my Original Sweet Sweater Pumpkins from the issue!]

I'll share more images of my story after the magazine has been out for awhile...
for now, here's a beautiful slideshow preview of this issue that Sonia put together:

 visit the Creating Vintage Charm facebook page!

Glamping with Style!

let me tell you about the time I turned a 20' X 20' party tent into a Glamping Tent!

Inspired by bedouin tents and high-end resort cabanas, I pulled simple elements together

and designed a temporary living space that ended up being a true show-stopper.
My late husband and I actually LIVED in this tent for four days,
at the Battle Ground, Washington BarnHouse vintage marketplace event in 2009!
[The other vendors at the show were the ones who dubbed it 'the Taj Ma Tent']

 The floorplan:

The bedchamber is on the top right.
The kitchen area is on the lower right.
The rest is lounge space!

The elements:

Canvas drop cloths, white netting curtains, and white vinyl tarps became walls and floors.

Lightweight / collapsible furnishings are plastic chairs, blow-up beds, and an old door + some sawhorses as a kitchen counter.
Candle lanterns, tap lights, and one killer chandelier provided light in the evenings.
A small metal Oriental coal heater held sections of a firelog to warm up our toes each morning.
A collapsible gas barbecue allowed us to cook our hosts a pretty nice meal, too!

The design:

[btw, those netting curtains looked really stunning when they were hanging loose... as shown below.

But it was so windy, they had to stay tied or they ended up a tangled mess.]

The BEST and most unexpected detail was the giant chandelier hanging from the apex of the tent!

And yes, it DID light up - thanks to a car battery temporary power supply.

During the two days that the BarnHouse Marketplace vintage event was open to the public, 

the meadows were filled with cars and other campers, and thousands of attendees & shoppers.
Many of them thought that the Taj Ma Tent had been created as a resting area for them!
Since we were off in our booth selling our wares, we didn't mind sharing.

Professional photographer Robin Laws took the preceding three photos of the Taj Ma Tent.
The last one appeared on the title page of her article about the BarnHouse event

in the Winter, 2010 issue of Somerset Life Magazine.

Now, it WAS a lot of work setting that baby up. And tearing her down.
But it was fun!

I'm sharing it with you because I think this idea is something anyone can do.
OK, maybe not as overboard as a 20X20... but what about using a 10X10 popup as your base?
Set up your own cabana in your backyard for summer entertaining and relaxing,

or get brave and actually take it to a campground or beach!

I used a 10X10 popup as the base for our tent for two years, and decorated it in a similar fashion...

The walls were canvas drop cloths, and a few shutter panels to let fresh air in. 

The door was mesh curtains. The floor was vinyl and canvas tarps.

Furnishings were a blow up bed, a few crates to hold stuff, and plastic lounge chairs.
No chandelier.
Much simpler. Much faster. But people still took a lot of photos!

Just goes to show that you can scale an idea up or down and make it work for your needs.
Now go be creative and get Glamping!!!

Find Robin Laws Photography here

Sadly, the BarnHouse Marketplace event is no longer in business.

Charming Embellished Umbrellas

I am so pleased to share that the May Issue of Creating Vintage Charm Magazine 
features one of my own spring / summer decor ideas:
Embellished Umbrellas

 Creating Vintage Charm is a PRINT publication
that inspires and shares your excitement in creating and crafting,
by featuring your handmade and repurposed creations and ideas, 
beautiful and colorful images, 
featured artists, studios, shops, blogs, galleries, 
tutorials and tips and more...

The umbrellas shown in the magazine and here in these photos
have been embellished with 'everyday' items to create beautiful effects:

 * The umbrella on the right is a 4' white nylon beach umbrella,

covered with a large white crochet lace tablecloth.

The lace creates beautiful patterns in the shadows beneath the umbrella!

* The umbrella on the left is a 6' diameter white canvas market umbrella, 

adorned with a white satin & tulle bridal petticoat!
The fullness of the tulle layers create a gorgeous ruffle all the way around!

These were the perfect toppers for a refreshment table at the Spring vintage show I hosted on my farm.

At another vintage show, I sold ribbon parasols...

I had a half-dozen regular umbrellas, and just ripped the nylon covers right off of them.
Then I used vintage seam binding, ribbon, and torn silk strips to create a new kind of cover
by tying the strips together in all kinds of patterns and configurations.
[They took FOREVER to make!]

They were very summer-y and fun, and though they wouldn't protect you from rain or sun,

they certainly added feminine charm to the setting.

although....
I also used one in the rafters of my barn store one fall, 
and it looked decidedly spooky: 

Prettily embellished umbrellas are a perfect idea for photo props, 

and as event decor for garden parties and bridal & baby showers!

shared online:

Cupcakes & Crinoline | Project Inspire{d}

Be a Good Egg!

so many fabulous egg-related decor ideas are floating around the internets right now:

literally hundreds of ideas for coloring Easter eggs and making patterned Easter eggs 

and ideas for making wreaths and topiaries from plastic Easter eggs. 

LOVE the creativity i see out there!

but.... what if you don't celebrate Easter? 

or what if you just want a more subdued palette?

you're in luck! 

(and good company, to be honest... pastel eggs are NOT my thing. 

the closest i got to them was when i brought home 

two dozen brightly-colored 'Cascarones' from a visit to Texas one spring.)

so today, i offer up some inspiration 

for creating spring decor with un-decorated eggs!

some are real, and some aren't.... use papier mache', clay, wood, or ceramic eggs.

first up, an ostrich egg (HUGE) embellished with a strip of vintage sheet music.

[the title 'Song of the Bird' was a perfect fit!]

i nestled the finished egg into a handmade birdsnest, 

then sat the nest on a 'pedestal' of an upside-down milk glass lamp shade (with the narrow end up).

here's a photo of the same egg standing UP in the nest, without the glass base:

another idea is to create a small vignette inside a glass jar...

and this works perfectly when you are using real (blown) eggs, because they are protected.

[note: do not - under any circumstances - 

forget to blow the eggs, and then seal them in a jar. 

BAAAAAAAD side effects :( ]

a little nest of grass is placed in the jar and an egg nestled into it.

a scrap of vintage sheet music or a poem with a Spring theme might be inserted as a 'backdrop',

and a strip with an appropriately 'Spring-y' title is glued onto the jar as a label.

i also covered the jar tops with a scrap of burlap, tied with twine.

[i use pickle or olive jars from thrift stores. 

they come in medium and large sizes, are wider than mason jars, and have no embossing on the sides to blur the contents]

this LARGE handmade nest sits atop an aged garden urn.

[i used ivy and hops vines from the yard to make it]

moss from a corner of the yard fills the center of the nest,  providing a soft resting place for a few eggs.

a glass garden cloche finishes off the look perfectly.

[you could also tuck in some gardener's gloves, hand tools, and some bulbs 

for a perfect Spring gift!]

then again, you don't really have to have a nest...

a simple egg presentation:
a glass salt cellar or napkin ring can hold an egg,

and a clear stemless wineglass as a 'dome' will finish it off with style.

if you write each guests' name on the egg, these are perfect place cards!
_________________________________

those last two shots are a bit of a sneak-peek - 

they are part of a garden-theme project and photoshoot last winter in Seattle

that i'll be sharing here on the HOMEWARDfound blog later this week.

i am delighted that photos from that shoot are featured

in the Spring issue of Creating Vintage Charm magazine!

decorating by the book!

have you ever considered BOOKS to be a decorative element?

for an inexpensive way to bring color into your decor each season, 

try looking at what's on your bookshelves.

the shelves shown above show a few books chosen by color for the display:

  green and yellow covers coordinate with a few simple accessories

to express the seasonal freshness of Spring,

while everything else on the shelves is white and neutral.

[no, i didn't get rid of all of my other books! i just left them in my office!]

another easy way to use books in your decor is to choose them by subject for a display:

the stack shown in these photos includes books about the garden and flowers

[with a few decor books thrown in for good measure - and because they were green!]

adding them to a tabletop vignette of items from the garden

tells a story and brings Springtime inside...

having a book displayed open to a beautiful photo or poem 

never fails to make you stop and look, too!

here are a few more ideas for decorating with books this Spring:

* grab books cheap and do a good deed by shopping at your local library bookstore!

[your purchases of books for 50 cents to $5 helps provide library services]

* do you already have a bunch of books, but the covers aren't pretty enough to feature?
cover them up! grab scrapbook paper, gift wrap paper, or even fabric, 

and create 'envelope'-style book covers.
[we all did this back in junior high with grocery bags, remember?!]

* if you want to get really crazy, PAINT 'EM!

a wash of thin paint on a canvas book cover can change the look completely.
OBVIOUSLY I am not suggesting you do this to VALUABLE or RARE books!
we all have books we bought long ago and just don't use anymore...

this is a way to turn unused items into decorative elements.
[and if you paint carefully, the book itself is still readable]

* you can also use a wash of paint to create a faux 'aged' effect
using my tutorial here

* create 'pedestals' using books by stacking them up and tying together with twine or ribbon.

then display a special item on top of each stack... 

* and finally, use your bookshelves as display opportunities!

check out this post for tips on how to arrange accessories and books

for balance and visual impact 

Last Minute Spring Tablescape

have you ever thought you really had a handle on things, 
were totally prepared and ready for something...

and then all of a sudden you realize there is something very VERY wrong?

 i once FORGOT all about the table decor for a family Easter dinner.

Easter Sunday arrived and the food was in full-swing prep mode. all was well in the kitchen.

and then, i walked into the dining room - and stopped dead in my tracks. 

THE TABLE WAS EMPTY!
i had no decor. no nuthin'. and the family was coming in an hour!

i have no defense. i was just busy, and forgot all about it.

 so after i started breathing again.....

i kicked into 'search and recover' mode.

whatever decor i was going to use had to be toddler-grandson proof. 

he was 16 months old and in that stage of climbing, 
pulling on tablecloths, and grabbing at everything. 

[it's ok, i didn't mind that he did - 

it's kind of a boy's job to investigate everything at that age!]

i just wanted to eliminate the chance of damage to him - or anything else.

 in the days leading up to that, i had been cleaning out my office

and came across a page that i had saved from a Martha Stewart Living Magazine  
ages before. like.... YEARS before.

i still don't know why it was sitting on the top of a wire filing basket that week, but it was.

and on Easter Sunday, an hour before guests arrived, Deb had a flash of inspiration:

 photograph from Martha Stewart Living Magazine 200?

that photo ^ from Martha's mag saved my hide.

this 'last minute idea' meant that i grabbed some packing tape and scissors, and 

i wrapped the tabletop with white wrapping paper!

 [nothing was hanging over the edges for lil' man to pull on]

if you  want to do this but don't have white wrapping paper,

TURN YOUR WRAPPING PAPER OVER!

almost all of them are white on the back side. 
[no one will know that rudolph or birthday balloons 
are on the side of the paper that faces the table]

i used green felt pens to draw charger and flatware outlines at each place setting, 

along with a drawn-on placecard.

[this is not detailed fine art here, like Martha's -

it's a fast solution half an hour before everyone arrived!]

i popped 3 dozen yellow daffodils (from my birthday the week before)

into 3 cylinder vases wrapped with antique velvet ribbon

and ran them down the center of the table, along with some tea lights in clear glass cups.
[WELL out of a little somebody's reach!]
 

 the china has a light sage green border that matched the linen napkins

and it was a perfect way to add color to the crisp white table setting. 

 the whole look is very simple, contemporary, and un-fussy

and i did it all in thirty minutes!

and incidentally, the photo of that 'last minute' table that you see at the top of this post
is one of my all-time favorite shots of my spring decor!
sometimes the easiest solutions really do make the most impact

for me the important part wasn't the decor, though...
the BEST part was this lil' guy peeking through the daffies at me:

shared online:

Saturday Night Special #178 | Funky Junk Interiors

robin's glorious 'nest' for sale!

 

i am going to suggest that you don't read this post on your iPhone or iPad...

it simply won't do the photos justice!

today i am thrilled to share some incredible photos of a beautiful location

AND news of a FABULOUS GIVEAWAY!
[keep reading, that's below]

my friend Anne Lorys was invited to photograph

the Bandera, Texas home of fashion designer Robin Brown of Magnolia Pearl. 

Robin and her husband John have moved to Fredericksburg, Texas

and are now selling their 38-acre Bandera ranch.

and oh my heavens, 

this is NOT what most people think of when they hear 'Texas ranch'! 
[JR Ewing would not fit in here!]

this is VINTAGE STYLE taken to glorious excess

Robin's inimitable style is apparent in every detail of the multiple buildings on the property,

in the whimsical, delightful touches and vintage materials.

It's 'artsy', no doubt about it... just like Robin and her fanciful fashion line.

photos courtesy of & copyright Anne Lorys Photography

...and that's just the kitchen/dining area/living room 
of ONE of the multiple buildings on the property!

 [there are so many amazing DIY ideas in there using salvaged & FOUND materials, 

i can't breathe just lookin' at it....]

the ranch has been published in many magazines, both in print and online, 

and was the subject of a book by Hearst Publishing and Country Living Magazine.

photos courtesy Magnolia Pearl

Robin, being a sweet, kind, generous, creative, playful person,
decided to thank everyone for sharing the news of her ranch being for sale, and
is giving away TWO full Magnolia Pearl outfits!

enter the giveaway, 
and you could win one of these darling prairie-style ensembles:

to see MORE stunning photos and read ALL of the details 
about Robin & John's property  for sale
AND to enter the giveaway,

please visit Anne's blog post HERE
 

i am not including the 'pin it' button on this post because the photos aren't mine.

they belong to my friend, photographer Anne Lorys,

and to the very talented fashion designer Robin Brown of Magnolia Pearl.
i linked them here from Anne's blog, but ask that 

if you want to pin them, please go to Anne's blog post and pin from there
so that they source correctly. Thank you...

 
for more decorating ideas for every season,

  visit the HOMEWARDfound blog 

and these social networking sites: