And last, but not least! I presented you with the longest blog post of all time, and took you on a tour of all of the “house fluffing” I’ve been doing since the new year.
One of my favorite things to do is throw parties. Big, small; reason or no reason…I love it! I’m working on planning a few right now. We’ll be throwing a Superbowl party this Sunday, and I have a couple of wedding related parties I’m working on for my sister in the coming months. Whether you’re throwing one or several, you have to stay organized.
To get my creative juices flowing, I usually create a Pinterest board for the party I’m working on. I love using the new secret boards for this, so that all of the details can be more of a surprise to your guests.
I’m a list maker. I’m even better at making lists if it is on cute stationary. I’ve created a few {free!} printables to assist you in your party planning and list making.
Just click on the links below to access the PDF files and then print as many as you need!
Happy Tuesday to you all! Thank you so much for your sweet comments and e-mails yesterday. They really touched my heart. <3
Every new year, I start doing a lot of what I call “house fluffing”. I add accessories here and there, rotate a few things, declutter, and whatever else it takes to make the house feel fresh. I shop my house for accessories I’ve forgotten about or haven’t had out in a while, and then use any Christmas money to add a few new pieces.
I also finally framed and hung the awesome print I scored at Hatch Show Print on our Tennessee vacation. I had this gold frame laying around for years, just waiting for the right thing to frame. I love how it makes the print stand out and coordinates so well with the plates and other elements in our kitchen. Not to mention, it features my first love…..coffee.
I’ve also been adding a lot of lighter blues and turquoise around the house. Some people think blue is a melancholy color, but I beg to differ. I think it adds a punch or bright and cheery to your space. I’m happy to cool things down a bit after decorating with warmer colors for fall and Christmas.
Along with the new black and gold touches in the kitchen, I added a few small blue items. On the kitchen table, I placed the adorable blue, chalkboard vase from Target. As you can see, it’s ready to go for Valentine’s day as well. I love having fresh flowers around the house. When I’m at the grocery store, I’ll often grab a $4 bouquet and break it up to scatter in different areas of the house.
On the window sill above the kitchen sink, I put a few blooms in a milk glass creamer next to a blue dressing container that I bought about a year ago at an antique store. It’s nice to have something lovely to look at while washing the dishes {Ok…on the rare occasion that I’m washing dishes. I have an amazing hubby who does that for me every night. What a hunk, right??}.
This canister that I’m using for the coffee also came from Target in the same section that I found the vase. I’m loving their current seasonal line! So many fun, bright, happy colors! The turquoise metal “H” is from Hobby Lobby. They have 2 sizes and 2 or 3 color options in these metal letters. Mine ran at about $3-4 with my 40% off coupon. It can also be hung on the wall.
Along with blues and golds, I’ve been adding a few live plants here and there. They definitely make the house feel fresh and cheery, and having plants inside has health benefits, too! I have more of a black thumb than a green thumb, so I stick to what I’m less likely to kill : succulents and various types of ivy. Seriously, the less it needs to be watered the better. I stuck a “Mother-in-law’s tongue” on the hearth of our fireplace. {Side note: Is that not the worst name for a plant ever?}. These do very well indoors and do not need much watering {Bonus!}.
I’m loving this extra pop of green with the light blue pot. If you decide to grab one for your home, just make sure there is proper drainage in the container.
Pillows are another great way to introduce a new color. This blue chevron pillow was a steal from Hobby Lobby. I recently found “the great wall of pillow covers” aisle. Each cover was $6.99 before applying the coupon discount. You can also see one of the new end tables. These coordinate so much better with our new entertainment center, and I love the darker wood. The blue quatrefoil pillow was a Target find last year, and is no longer available.
In our guest room, I added an arrangement using vintage globes, vintage Nancy Drew books, and another plant. The framed drawing was done by my husband in {I believe} high school. His mom was sweet to send it our way. Most of the art work hanging on our walls was done by him.
You’ll find another ivy and a touch of blue in our master bath window. No space escaped without being properly fluffed.
I’ve saved my favorite blue addition for last. After having our Fall Subway Art, and then a Christmas print hanging in the entry way, I decided I didn’t want to have a naked wall. I found this amazing print from Fancy That Design House & Co on Etsy. You must check out her shop! Not only is Stephanie’s work beautiful, but the customer service is top notch. I asked her if she would be able to make a larger print for me, and not only did she respond quickly with a “yes”, but I received the print on Monday that I ordered on the Friday before.
Now, this is what you see upon entering and leaving our home. Much better than a naked wall, don’t you think? It’s such a perfect reminder of how we should all be acting inside and outside of the home.
If you made it to this point of the post, you deserve an award. Longest post ever? Probably. Since I can’t reach through the screen and give you a real prize, go out and get yourself a coffee or an ice cream – you deserve it!
All kidding aside, I really do appreciate all of you who stop by to read every day, the ones who pin my projects, recommend my blog to their friends, etc. I kinda can’t believe anyone reads this besides my own family. Thank you!
What kinds of “house fluffing” have you been doing? Are there any new colors you’re introducing into your home?
You may have noticed how quiet things have been on the blog. My sweet grandma went home to be with Jesus last week after a short, but tough battle with leukemia. I took a few days off from blogging to be with family as we grieved and said goodbye. I will miss her, but I am comforted in knowing that she is no longer in pain and is spending eternity with our Father in heaven. I have her to blame for my love of decorating! She was absolutely talented in that area, and passed on her love to us. Thanks for your understanding. I’m happy to be back to blogging this week!
When I showed you my Christmas table back in December, you also witnessed the clash of the scrolly metals. Let me take you back a bit to explain. Before we moved into our home, our dear family friend, who happens to be an extremely talented interior designer, came over to help us pick out a few paint colors for our living room and kitchen. We have vaulted ceilings in the living room, so she suggested hanging out curtains high to accentuate that feature {I highly recommend hanging your drapes high whenever you can! It makes your room feel bigger and more grand!}. Our living room and kitchen are open to each other, so we did the same at the bay window in our kitchen. Our friend’s advice was to hang something above the middle window so that our high hanging curtains made sense. Out of lack of a better idea, we hung some scrolly iron work. I quickly fell out of love {not really my taste}, especially after we hung our beautiful chandelier from Pottery Barn.
Enter : the clash of the scrolly metals. One of them had to go, and it wasn’t going to be my beloved light fixture. However, it stayed this way for um….cough…two years. Have I ever told you I’m a slow mover? That’s probably why we’ve lived in our house for 3 + years and have yet to replace our 20 year old carpet. But I digress….
I found these fun plates on clearance a few months ago at Target. They were part of The Shops collection, by Patch NYC. I, along with the rest of the world, am currently obsessed with woodland creatures. These were the perfect mod addition to mix in with some of the more rustic, vintage, and farmhousey elements in our kitchen. I’m definitely a fan of mixing different styles.
I picked up a few plate hangers from Hobby Lobby and went to town hanging these fellas a couple of weekends ago.
I like how both the chandelier and the plates hold the essence of nature, but in completely different ways. One holding a more vintage, rustic vibe and the other more mod.
I have been adding a lot of gold touches to the house lately, like my rescued office chair. The black and gold combo makes my heart race! You’ll have to stay tuned to see the other color I’ve been adding a lot of lately.
Good morning, y’all! And happy MLK day! I have the easiest Valentine craft to share with you all today. I mean EA-SY. Even those of you who don’t deem yourselves the crafty type can do this with no problem.
All you need is a package of some paper, heart-shaped doilies and some twine. I used my red baker’s twine from Pick Your Plum.
All you need to do is string the twine through the doilies. I told you it’s easy! {You can ignore the red paint on my fingers. I was a crafting fool this past weekend}. Less than $2, less than 5 minutes…you can’t go wrong here!
I hung my first garland on the mirror in my entry way. I’ll probably make a few more to string here and there to add happy Love day touches throughout the house.
I love these little doilies. They remind me of homemade valentines that we would make in elementary school. It’s the symbol of a simpler time. Construction paper, glue sticks, and paper doilies. Those were good days!
