He Flew on Over ...

While I love birds, I've never been one to incorporate "coastal" birds into our decor.  That was ... until I spotted this tall, handsome fella at HomeGoods last week:  

I let him fly all over the house, landing here and there until he found just the right spot to plant himself!

I wonder if it was the crisp, white coral (from Pottery Barn) that enticed him?

Or, maybe it was the picture of the ship floating along that seemed familiar:

Maaaaybee, it was this tall wheat grass as it's a good place to hide:

Whatever the reason, this little family is enjoying his company:

He's a fun, new addition to the "coastal-themed" vignette on the accent chest in our sitting room, for sure:

Annnnd, speaking of additions to our sitting room ... these beautiful chairs from World Market have joined the gang, too!

As has more bling!

Will share completed pics soon ...

Thanks for stopping by, friends!

Do You Have Rules ...

Greetings, friends!

By now, I hope all of you are starting to see true signs of Spring!  We've been enjoying a bit warmer weather (except for today), and I think hope *pray* the pollen is just about gone!  And, while I should be playing outside ... I find myself INside, *tinkering* with another little vignette ... this time, on our sofa table.

Let me just say that I truly admire all of you who can crank up the tunes and throw a vignette together without a care in the world!  My crazy mind doesn't usually allow that to happen because of my *OCD self-inflicted decorating rules!*

You see ... when I start on a vignette, usually I have to start with the center of my vignette and work my way out because, if I don't, *bad* things will happen!  Because of that rule, this little guy got to stay: 

To balance the height and colors of the ship, I then brought in a lantern from the porch:

And, because a large meteor would strike if I didn't add another coastal element to tie in with the ship, I then placed a battery operated candle inside the lantern and wrapped it with nautical rope (that they now sell at Michael's ... perfect length, too)!

Then, to keep with the feeling of Spring, I added not one, but TWO of my IKEA faux plants side by side ... while they're both in cute urns from Michael's, I placed one on top of a candle holder to give it a bit of height over its twin:

That's when I reminded myself of my *self-inflicted decorating rule* number 10,289 ... that if I have something on one side, I HAVE to have something similar, if not the same, on the other side because, if I don't, I won't be able to sleep!  Thankfully, I had another plant from IKEA on hand ... I placed this one on a little dessert stand:

And, then as a finishing touch (you know, because I *have* to have a finishing touch), I added this little sign in front of the boat:

All together, it looks like this:

And, as I look at it, I realize that the lantern needs to be higher to balance better with the lamp ... seeee ... here comes the OCD again!

Once I fix that AND find a perfectly narrow basket or trunk to go under the table, I'll be done ... for the moment, anyway:

ONE of these days, I'm going to throw caution to the wind and not care about symmetry, balance OR my decorating rules!  Wanna take a bet how long that will last?  LOL

Partying over here ... come play:

A Stroll Thru Life/Inspire Me Tuesday
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia/Tuesday's Treasures
Savvy Southern Style/WUW

DIY by Design/Swing into Spring

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Time for a Small Change ...

Greetings, friends.  

So, tell me ... when you're ready to create a new vignette, where do you go for inspiration?  Do you go visit your favorite blogs ... logon to Pinterest ... pick up your favorite magazine and thumb through the pages ... or, just play, play, play until you get it semi-right?  If you're like me, you'll probably say "all of the above!"  

Such is the case with the new, simple vignette I created on the counter in our kitchen.  If you've logged on to Pinterest even just *one* time, you've probably seen this absolutely amazing image from Heather Bullard's fabulous kitchen (source: http://heatherbullard.com/2012/03/kitchen-corner-shelf/):

I love everything about it ... the brightness ... pops of color AND the fact that there are already a few common elements between hers and mine, such as the bead board backsplash and white, wooden shelves.  I love the vignette she created in her beautiful woven basket ... I knew I wanted to do something similar:

I started with a pretty woven basket I had on hand (from Home Goods):

And, while I wish I had Heather's awesome collection of bread and cutting boards to layer in the back, um, I don't.  So, the ones I had on hand will have to do ... for now, anyway:  

I then added a couple of coffee cups with a pretty beaded detail ...

along with a few matching dishes, including these pretty bowls (all from Tuesday Morning).  And, like in my inspiration picture, I just *had* to add a few  lemons and limes for the perfect pop of color (although, mine are fake ... surprise, surprise, right?):

I also moved the pitcher filled with utensils on over from beside the stove:

And, here's what it all looks like:

And, as a side note ... once I finished my little vignette, I decided to bring out three extra glass canisters I wasn't using ... love how it all complements each other:

Until the "next" vignette starts to unfold ...

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by,

Just Messing Around ...

TGIF, friends !!

While I *should* be working on a list of productive things that I've been putting off long enough ... like, painting my son's bathroom ... working on his playroom ... cleaning the layers of pollen off of our porch ... and, cleaning out my closet, somehow, I find myself creating new vignettes around the house today.

A new *pinterest-inspired* vignette in the kitchen:

Garden balls on candlesticks, anyone?

I will never make "bean soup," however, I'll be the first to buy a bag of it to add color to my kitchen.  Yes, I have issues!

IKEA x 3:

Annnd, a new roo admiring fancy, faux apples.

I know I'm not alone in choosing to do things that I *want* to do over things I *need* to do today!

I hope you all have a wonderful *non-productive* day ... like me!  LOL

It's a Spring Thing (I Think)!

Greetings, friends!

Welcome to our "Spring" breakfast area (even though it's in the brisk 40's outside ... blech), where I've made a few, fun changes!

While "Miss Bessie" (the cowhide rug) decided she'd had enough of the wear and tear on her while resting under the table and moved on over to our quieter sitting room, I think the most noticeable change is the addition of a new farmhouse bench! 

I've become a big fan of buying furniture "au naturale" and then painting it to match our decor.  Once my sweet hubs put the bench together, I gave the legs and frame two coats of Annie Sloane's "Pure White," layer of clear wax and then stained the top Minwax Dark Walnut and Red Oak.  I love how it adds to the French Country feel in here!

I'm not *quite* done with it though ... I'll soon be adding a cushion to the top covered in this pretty, checked fabric: 

I think (**hope**) the fabric it will tie in nicely with the panels, bamboo shades and parsons chairs.

Back on the table, I added a simple Spring vignette:

I started with one of my favorite wire trays from Pottery Barn ...

added another one of our cute bunnies from Pier One (that I gave a little burlap collar):

along with a glass apothecary filled with a few delicious *faux* green apples (yum), and ...

of course, added a vase full of *faux* fragrant tulips (thank you, Big Lots)! 

Annnd, well, *what* Spring vignette is complete without a stack of dishes,  colorful napkin and pile o' spoons ... as if we're about to enjoy a fabulous cold treat on a warm, Spring day!  (But, because Mother Nature has declared it still Winter here, that cold treat will have to wait!)  Boooo.

I also added a bit of bling to our chandie, since I don't need it anymore in the sitting room (can't wait to share what I did in there):

The bling chain is from Pottery Barn, and these lengthy *pretties* are actually Christmas ornaments that I simply hung from each arm:

And, there ya' have it ... our Spring breakfast room trapped in Winter!  If you are one of the fortunate ones to actually be warmer Spring temps, would you *please* send them our way?  Thank you!

And, as always, thanks for stopping by!

I'm linking up with:

Savvy Southern Style/WUW