Tag Archives: decor

Soft Goods ~ The Fabric of Our Lives

One of my favorite key components of interior design is soft goods. This is due, I’m sure, to my love for fabric. Although I don’t love to sew, the enjoyment I get from shopping for and choosing just the right fabric and playing with patterns has compelled me to sew things like curtains and pillows when it’s time to change up my décor. I often can’t find what I’m looking for “off the rack” when it comes to these soft goods.

I have also done a small amount of reupholstering, only when it is a simple job like this chair.

An upholstered chair is just right in this space, softening the otherwise harshness of the brick and wood tones. Placing a pillow on a wooden chair would achieve similar results.

Frequently when a space feels like it’s cold or lacking interest, adding textiles and goods made from them is just what it needs to make it feel warm and cozy. Something as simple as a vintage umbrella or hat on a hook can do the trick.

I don’t know about you but all of the sudden I got an itch to go play at the fabric store…

Holiday Dressed Doors

I hope you all had a joyful Christmas celebrating the birth of our Savior. Ours was very different this year but keeping the focus on the true meaning gave us a reason to celebrate. I was looking through my photos of doors gone by and decided to show you what my Christmas door has looked like over the years.

2006, before we had new stucco put on the house. Gray door, gray stucco. I liked the weathered look but the insurance company did not (there were chunks of it missing, showing brick underneath, considered a hazard.)

2009, same stucco, different door color, different wreath.

2014, new stucco, teal door, tweaked wreath.

2016, black door, same wreath. I wanted to re-do the wreath with red, green and plaid so it would pop against the black door but didn’t get it done. There’s always next year if we have a black door wherever we end up. Or maybe…it will be…a red door? And that would be okay too.

The house hasn’t sold and we took it off the market over the holidays. We’ll relist it some time in the next few months. Here’s to finding the beauty in 2017.

A Little Christmas Tour

Here we are less than a week before Christmas. Not sure how we got here already. The sights and sounds are bringing me joy once again, even when my world is topsy turvy. I draw nearer to Christ and think more on the reason for the season. Just wanted to pop in and share a bit of Christmas cheer from my house to yours with a mini Christmas tour.

I made this plaid garland by tearing up one of my son’s old shirts.

Last year I showed you a different display on my buffet using these same black iron lantern frames and told you there was an interesting story behind them but I never told you what it was!

Well, a few years ago my husband was putting Christmas trees in the urns on the concrete columns that flank our front steps. He noticed the top of the column was crooked and straightened it. This led to him lifting it all the way off the column and looking down inside. Guess what he discovered? Yep, the black iron lantern frames, one placed inside each column. We had lived here for almost twenty years when he made the discovery. Of course we speculated that they must have been used there at one time, lighting the path. And I of course was thrilled to put them to an entirely new use as rustic indoor décor.

I tore one more strip from the old plaid shirt to give my woodland reindeer a scarf. Doesn’t he look dashing?

I took these two pictures last year and never posted them.

I would like to wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas filled with joy and good will. Gary and I are doing well and I will give an update very soon.

Rustic Twiggy Tablescape

With Thanksgiving upon us I would like to share a unique way to incorporate natural elements into your tablescape. There’s something romantic about bringing nature indoors. And the fact that it
costs next to nothing is a bonus.

I shared these pearly twiggy napkin rings a few years ago during my Girls Want Pearls series.

Very little is needed to make these:

Just gather some twigs and be sure to find some that are super skinny for threading pearls onto. If you can’t find any skinny enough, you can cheat and use brown wire for the ones that have pearls. Make five bundles of twigs and wrap with wire. Tie your twine around each bundle, spacing them approx. 1/2 inch apart. I found it easier to prepare the knots in advance and then slide the bundles in. Form the finished twine around a napkin and tie the ends together. Thread your pearls on and add a dot of glue if needed.

For your Christmas table you could mix in some sparkly beads in your color choice.

Add a natural-elements centerpiece, maybe vases full of twigs or a tray of hedge apples, pumpkins or artichokes for a cohesive look.

Happy decorating!
Happy Thanksgiving!

Our Historic Home for Sale

I’m back from Jeanne Oliver’s amazing retreat and back to real life. What an incredible time I had at the art retreat and I will share stories and photos in an upcoming post.

I mentioned previously that our beloved house is now on the market and I would like to share photos of it with you. I have shown some of them in older posts as we completed projects but I have never shown my entire house.

The Foyer

The Living Room

French Doors leading to the stairs

Sitting Room leading to the Master Suite

The Studio

Guest Bedroom

Guest Bedroom #2

Back downstairs now in The Kitchen

Breakfast Nook

The Dining Room

The Bathroom

Laundry Room right off the kitchen

Wine Cellar

2nd room in Wine Cellar

Back of House

We have poured our heart and soul into this home for the past 22 years. We took it from a house in very poor condition that nobody wanted and turned it into a home that we have loved and enjoyed raising a family in. Although it’s sad to leave, we have been house hunting and have found a few smaller homes we like, one of which I know we will enjoy making our own.

You can read more about the history of our house as well as see more photos of our
kitchen reveal and dining room reveal.

Thank you for stopping by!

This Christmas I Choose Joy

Hello Friends. I know I have been MIA and have not posted or visited other blogs for quite some time. My heart is heavy with some changes going on in my world. The changes are of a very personal nature and I’m not ready to divulge all the information. I would just ask that if you believe in the power of prayer, please keep my husband Gary in your prayers.

I took these pictures in November. One day I pulled in the driveway as he was leaf blowing. When he saw me he began to play the blower like a guitar. I couldn’t resist grabbing my camera and getting some shots of him. He humored me happily. That’s the kind of guy he is.

My comfort comes from the Lord and I choose joy during this holiday season. Here is a shot of the dining room buffet decorated for Christmas.

I used greenery that I cut from one of the trees on our property. The branches were covered in these cute mini pinecones.

There’s a very interesting story behind this pair of lanterns. I will share it in a future post.

I don’t know when I’ll post again, so for now I wish you a Merry Christmas
filled with joy, peace and wonder.

Tarnished Royalty

Design Your Life