Sunday, September 30, 2012

Fall Buffet

It's beginning to feel like Fall ... yay!  How about where you are?
 
Don't you just love being able to create seasonal vignettes out of things that you already have on hand?  That's exactly how I created our Fall buffet:

 
To give our lamp a little bit of Fall, I framed a leaf in a frame I already had (from Dollar Tree) and rested it on the lamp's ledge:
 
 
A beautiful handcrafted velvet pumpkin (that I won last year from my sweet and talented blogging friend, Lu) rests alongside of a lantern filled with leaves, burlap and candle:
 
 
A simple bowl filled with leaves, pinecones, pumpkins, guords and, of course, a starfish.  I found the fun subway art on Pinterest (click here for source) ... and simply printed it off and *lazily* mounted it to the back of a leftover piece of beadboard since I didn't have a large enough frame on hand:

 
Fall florals fill a pitcher I also had on hand:

 
I love the ambiance that the lit branches and candles add in the evening:


And, while I love battery operated candles, there's nothing like *true* candlelight, is there?
 

 
The best part of our Fall buffet?  The total cost to create it was $0.00!
 
 
Well, I'm off to slip into some super cute elastic waistband pants and overindulge on chicken chili and football.  Have a great day, everyone ... thanks for stopping by,
 
Becca

Friday, September 21, 2012

Breakfast Area Gets A New Look

TGIF, everyone ... hope you all have fun plans for the weekend!
 
Recently, we finished a mini-facelift to our breakfast area (you're shocked, I'm sure).  My goal?  To create more of a "French Country" feel.
 
So, here is what our breakfast area looked like this time last year:


Annnd, here it is today!  First, our walls were painted Manchester Tan.  Then, we added a new farmhouse table ... beautiful French Country chairs that I painted (AS Pure White) and stained the seats (Walnut).  We also lowered the chandelier.  A new rug was in order, too.  I love the one that Karianne (from her fabulous blog, Thistlewood Farm) has in her kitchen, and she was kind enough to share where she bought it (Home Decorators) ... thanks again, Karianne! 



I later decided to add "Bessie Mae" (from our dining room) on top of the new rug.

 
We also added microfiber parsons chairs to the heads of the table for added interest, along with French down pillows (from Home Goods).  Annnd, I simply couldn't resist the beautiful fabric that you now see framing the windows.  Afterall, it *does* tie in nicely with the chairs and pillows ... right, right??
 
 
We also had fun with the dry bar, too, by adding beadboard to the backsplash:



A few Fall embellishments were in order, too:


 
 
We're really enjoying the new look!  Eventually, we plan on adding two more French Country chairs OR a bench ... decisions, decisions! 
 

As always, thanks so much for stopping by ... have a great weekend!

I'm linking up with:

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia/Tuesday's Treasures
Coastal Charm/Nifty Thrifty Tuesday
A Stroll Thru Life/Tabletop Tuesday
Savvy Southern Style/WUW
Kristen's Creations/Share Your Creations
French Country Cottage/Feathered Nest Friday
At the Picket Fence/Inspiration Friday
2805/Potpourri Party
Thrifty Decor Chick/Before and After Party
No Minimalist Here/Open House Party

 
Becca


Thursday, September 13, 2012

Fun with Chairs

I just wanted to share a couple of changes going on around our crazy home!
 
Not too long ago, I shared a picture of two beautiful French Country chairs that I was thrilled to finally find!  I got them at a very reasonable price because they weren't stained or painted ... that was going to be *my* job (eek)!
 
 
Sooo, I removed the seats, got out my AS Pure White and clear wax and went to town painting, distressing (just a tad) and waxing.  I then stained the seats with two coats of American Walnut and then added two coats of polycrylic (so that they match our new table that I look forward to showing you).  Here's what they look like today (and, something tells me that I'll be adding a coat of a different paint color on top sometime):
 
 
The other little change is going on in our dining room.  You may remember that I shared this fun, French script fabric with you all:
 
 
Our six dining chairs have since been recovered (thanks to my sweet neighbor, Christy), and now, they look like this:
 
 
LOVE! 
 
I can't wait to share more with you all ... thanks so much for stopping by!
 
Becca

Thursday, September 6, 2012

And, We're Off ...

Okay, soooo .... a show of hands please as to how many of you are staring at your empty mantels right this very moment, with that *glazed over* look in your eye, agonizing over how you're going to decorate it for Fall this year? 
 
Well, that was me last week ... actually, even as I took these pictures.  Second guessing ... moving leaf no. 14 to the right just a tad ... tilting one pumpkin just 1/8" more to the left ... you know how it goes!
 
This is where it stands for now ... I thought I'd share before I change it all over again.
 
 
This year, I really wanted to add lots of pops of vibrant orange:
 
 
Michael's had just what I was looking for as far as simple, yet colorful branches.  Thankfully, they finally went on sale (40% off).  And, as a side note ... for those of you with smart phones ... did you know that there is an app for Michael's?  You simply load the app and whenever you're at Michael's, open the app, select coupon, and the clerk will scan the barcode appearing on your screen.  It's awesome and saves you from having to look out for coupons in your mail or newspaper or hoping that one of the staff members will be kind enough to give you one!
 
 
Baby pumpkins, acorns, leaves and pinecones are having fun all mixed together in this glass apothecary (all of which I had on hand):
 
 
I grabbed up this simple platter at Wal-Mart ... love their Better Homes and Gardens seasonal pieces!
 
 
Making a return appearance for the 3rd year in a row is the garland I made out of wooden craft beads ... I just couldn't leave it in the storage box until next year:
 
 
One of our colorful pumpkins sits comfortably on a "bed" of burlap, tucked in an urn I had on hand, as well:
 
 
The one thing that I did splurge on was this pretty Fall artwork that I stumbled up at Tuesday Morning.  It was just what I was looking for to serve as a focal point.
 

 
Annnnd, down below, I found this sweet ladderback chair at a local consignment shop for $10(!), and I didn't even have to paint it.  Will I sit on it?  Um, probably not because the chair will crumble beneath me, BUT, it serves as the perfect spot to rest a couple of seasonal pillows, pumpkin and throw:
 
 
Speaking of pumpkins, I knew I wanted to add a few more in a basket to the hearth, but, nothing I had on hand was large enough.  Of course, Home Goods came to the rescue ... isn't this a fun, metal basket?  Love the vintage feel and burlap liner!
 
 
And, there you have it.  I do love our little Fall mantel for now ... especially the ambiance the lights give off in the evening:
 
 
I can't wait to see everyone else's mantels!

I'm off to party with:

2805/Potpourri Friday
At the Picket Fence/Inspiration Friday
French Country Cottage/Feathered Nest Friday
From My Front Porch to Yours/Treasure Hunt Thursday
Kristen's Creations/Share your Creations
Funky Junk Interiors/SNS
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia/Tuesday's Treasures
Savvy Southern Style/WUW
Stone Gable Cottage/Tutorials, Tips and Tidbits
52 Mantels/Thursdays Are Your Days
Centsational Girl/Autumn Mantels Link Party
Fox Hollow Cottage/Octoberfest Mantel Party
 
Thanks for stopping by,
 
Becca

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Snippets of Fall

Well, it's official ... summer went by *way* too quickly!  I hope you all had a wonderful Labor Day weekend.  A big group of about 35 of us went camping ... and, by camping, I mean either in RVs, Campers or, in our case, an air conditioned cabin.  We had such a great time!
 
Now that September is here, Fall decorating is in full swing ... bright shades of orange are taking over!

 
with peeks of white pumpkins here and there ...
 

and of course, a few feathers ...

 
I've done something different with my annual Fall family tree!


Whimsical subway art peeking through ...


All the while remembering what the season (and every day) is about:

 
I'll be back to share more as soon as the tweaking is done ... look forward to seeing your touches of Fall!
 
Thanks for stopping by,
 
Becca