Home & Garden

Christmas in the Living Room

Our living room and dining room are really all one room. I kept things simple in here this year since you can see both trees from this room.





I got a new rug this summer at HomeGoods. I originally got it for the family room but didn't like it in there.
When I moved it in here, I loved it! The rug that was in here is in the master bedroom now and I'll show it to you soon.
It's hard to show you a good picture as the rug is very muted. It has a silvery background and medium blue print. I like that it's so subtle and it's very soft. It's thin so I got a rug pad for underneath and now it's plushy. :)

I also got another fireplace screen. I moved the one that was in here to the family room and put the new one in here.
All of our evergreen is faux. My husband has severe allergies and real evergreen in the house makes him feel bad.

My little desk in the corner is the perfect spot to address Christmas cards.



I stashed all my Christmas wrapping paper in this corner to get it out of the way and then I liked it here!



I'll be back soon with our entry way! Have a wonderful week!

love and blessings~

"Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid."  Luke 2

I'm joining these linky parties:
betweennapsontheporch
thededicatedhouse
myuncommonsliceofsuburbia
stonegableblog
dwellings
Standard
Home & Garden

Christmas in the Living Room

Our living room and dining room are really all one room. I kept things simple in here this year since you can see both trees from this room.





I got a new rug this summer at HomeGoods. I originally got it for the family room but didn't like it in there.
When I moved it in here, I loved it! The rug that was in here is in the master bedroom now and I'll show it to you soon.
It's hard to show you a good picture as the rug is very muted. It has a silvery background and medium blue print. I like that it's so subtle and it's very soft. It's thin so I got a rug pad for underneath and now it's plushy. :)

I also got another fireplace screen. I moved the one that was in here to the family room and put the new one in here.
All of our evergreen is faux. My husband has severe allergies and real evergreen in the house makes him feel bad.

My little desk in the corner is the perfect spot to address Christmas cards.



I stashed all my Christmas wrapping paper in this corner to get it out of the way and then I liked it here!



I'll be back soon with our entry way! Have a wonderful week!

love and blessings~

"Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid."  Luke 2

I'm joining these linky parties:
betweennapsontheporch
thededicatedhouse
myuncommonsliceofsuburbia
stonegableblog
dwellings
Standard
Home & Garden

Christmas in the Living Room

Our living room and dining room are really all one room. I kept things simple in here this year since you can see both trees from this room.





I got a new rug this summer at HomeGoods. I originally got it for the family room but didn't like it in there.
When I moved it in here, I loved it! The rug that was in here is in the master bedroom now and I'll show it to you soon.
It's hard to show you a good picture as the rug is very muted. It has a silvery background and medium blue print. I like that it's so subtle and it's very soft. It's thin so I got a rug pad for underneath and now it's plushy. :)

I also got another fireplace screen. I moved the one that was in here to the family room and put the new one in here.
All of our evergreen is faux. My husband has severe allergies and real evergreen in the house makes him feel bad.

My little desk in the corner is the perfect spot to address Christmas cards.



I stashed all my Christmas wrapping paper in this corner to get it out of the way and then I liked it here!



I'll be back soon with our entry way! Have a wonderful week!

love and blessings~

"Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid."  Luke 2

I'm joining these linky parties:
betweennapsontheporch
thededicatedhouse
myuncommonsliceofsuburbia
stonegableblog
dwellings
Standard
Home & Garden

Joyeux Noel Bleu

It's the most wonderful time of the year! There's something so magical about Christmas decor! Our house goes from 'normal' to sparkling, with twinkle lights, blingy trees and piles of beautiful gifts!

I have had a Christmas Pinterest board for several years and when the holidays are nearing, I begin to look through it again for inspiration. Our house was all French Country reds and golds a few years ago and it was easy to decorate for Christmas.

When I redecorated a few years ago and went to blues, I gave away all my red things and began to figure how to do a 'Blue Christmas.'  So I thought it would be fun to share with you all the ways I have found to have a blue French Country Christmas.


Charles Faudree-Traditional Home
This beautiful room was featured in Traditional Home many years ago. I had the magazine and stared and stared at this photo. I love the mix of rustic, tapestries and fresh blue and white and the tree is filled with vintage ornaments, including some reds and golds. Mr. Faudree was probably the start of my love for French Country. I'm sure he was for many others, too!

You know I love blue and white and it's so fresh and lovely in the winter with Christmas greenery. And I love paper whites and white amaryllis. My mom used to force them at the holidays and I always thought they were so wonderful and smelled so good.

I forced some paper whites several years ago and was so proud when I had a beautiful bunch growing. Then my guys started pursing up their faces whenever they walked past them and asking, "What stinks?!" Ha! So I haven't gotten any since then. Fortunately, the amaryllis don't smell.
House Trends Magazine
 This blue and white breakfast room is so pretty with the yellow toile walls and the red ribbons.
Charles Faudree
This entry has red mixed with blue and white all year round. This another picture that I have loved over the years. I may have to add some red to my home again in the future - at least at the holidays.
Traditional Home
 Isn't this topiary wonderful?! It looks like gold pears. I love this!
Traditional Home
It goes so beautifully with the blue and white toile. And I love the mix of fabrics on the chairs!
My French Country Home
 Sharon Santoni's blog and home is always so beautiful and inspirational!

Traditional Home
This room was also featured in Traditional Home. Even though this chair is actually purple, it initially looked blue to me, and I immediately started shopping for deep blue chairs! So beautiful!


These two dining rooms are so similar and both are so beautifully filled with fresh greenery and over the top bling! The gold ribbons are beautiful!
Amy Chalmers
 Amy Chalmers does blue so beautifully!  I love her blog Maison Decor and find lots of ideas there!
Veranda

Ballard


Traditional Home
I included photo credit everywhere I could find it. Please let me know if you know where a picture came from that I did not credit. I'll be back this week with more of our rooms all decorated for Christmas.

I hope you'll have a beautiful, blue Christmas~but only in your decor!

love and blessings~
 "So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn." Luke 2

Standard
Home & Garden

Joyeux Noel Bleu

It's the most wonderful time of the year! There's something so magical about Christmas decor! Our house goes from 'normal' to sparkling, with twinkle lights, blingy trees and piles of beautiful gifts!

I have had a Christmas Pinterest board for several years and when the holidays are nearing, I begin to look through it again for inspiration. Our house was all French Country reds and golds a few years ago and it was easy to decorate for Christmas.

When I redecorated a few years ago and went to blues, I gave away all my red things and began to figure how to do a 'Blue Christmas.'  So I thought it would be fun to share with you all the ways I have found to have a blue French Country Christmas.


Charles Faudree-Traditional Home
This beautiful room was featured in Traditional Home many years ago. I had the magazine and stared and stared at this photo. I love the mix of rustic, tapestries and fresh blue and white and the tree is filled with vintage ornaments, including some reds and golds. Mr. Faudree was probably the start of my love for French Country. I'm sure he was for many others, too!

You know I love blue and white and it's so fresh and lovely in the winter with Christmas greenery. And I love paper whites and white amaryllis. My mom used to force them at the holidays and I always thought they were so wonderful and smelled so good.

I forced some paper whites several years ago and was so proud when I had a beautiful bunch growing. Then my guys started pursing up their faces whenever they walked past them and asking, "What stinks?!" Ha! So I haven't gotten any since then. Fortunately, the amaryllis don't smell.
House Trends Magazine
 This blue and white breakfast room is so pretty with the yellow toile walls and the red ribbons.
Charles Faudree
This entry has red mixed with blue and white all year round. This another picture that I have loved over the years. I may have to add some red to my home again in the future - at least at the holidays.
Traditional Home
 Isn't this topiary wonderful?! It looks like gold pears. I love this!
Traditional Home
It goes so beautifully with the blue and white toile. And I love the mix of fabrics on the chairs!
My French Country Home
 Sharon Santoni's blog and home is always so beautiful and inspirational!

Traditional Home
This room was also featured in Traditional Home. Even though this chair is actually purple, it initially looked blue to me, and I immediately started shopping for deep blue chairs! So beautiful!


These two dining rooms are so similar and both are so beautifully filled with fresh greenery and over the top bling! The gold ribbons are beautiful!
Amy Chalmers
 Amy Chalmers does blue so beautifully!  I love her blog Maison Decor and find lots of ideas there!
Veranda

Ballard


Traditional Home
I included photo credit everywhere I could find it. Please let me know if you know where a picture came from that I did not credit. I'll be back this week with more of our rooms all decorated for Christmas.

I hope you'll have a beautiful, blue Christmas~but only in your decor!

love and blessings~
 "So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn." Luke 2

Standard
Home & Garden

Joyeux Noel Bleu

It's the most wonderful time of the year! There's something so magical about Christmas decor! Our house goes from 'normal' to sparkling, with twinkle lights, blingy trees and piles of beautiful gifts!

I have had a Christmas Pinterest board for several years and when the holidays are nearing, I begin to look through it again for inspiration. Our house was all French Country reds and golds a few years ago and it was easy to decorate for Christmas.

When I redecorated a few years ago and went to blues, I gave away all my red things and began to figure how to do a 'Blue Christmas.'  So I thought it would be fun to share with you all the ways I have found to have a blue French Country Christmas.


Charles Faudree-Traditional Home
This beautiful room was featured in Traditional Home many years ago. I had the magazine and stared and stared at this photo. I love the mix of rustic, tapestries and fresh blue and white and the tree is filled with vintage ornaments, including some reds and golds. Mr. Faudree was probably the start of my love for French Country. I'm sure he was for many others, too!

You know I love blue and white and it's so fresh and lovely in the winter with Christmas greenery. And I love paper whites and white amaryllis. My mom used to force them at the holidays and I always thought they were so wonderful and smelled so good.

I forced some paper whites several years ago and was so proud when I had a beautiful bunch growing. Then my guys started pursing up their faces whenever they walked past them and asking, "What stinks?!" Ha! So I haven't gotten any since then. Fortunately, the amaryllis don't smell.
House Trends Magazine
 This blue and white breakfast room is so pretty with the yellow toile walls and the red ribbons.
Charles Faudree
This entry has red mixed with blue and white all year round. This another picture that I have loved over the years. I may have to add some red to my home again in the future - at least at the holidays.
Traditional Home
 Isn't this topiary wonderful?! It looks like gold pears. I love this!
Traditional Home
It goes so beautifully with the blue and white toile. And I love the mix of fabrics on the chairs!
My French Country Home
 Sharon Santoni's blog and home is always so beautiful and inspirational!

Traditional Home
This room was also featured in Traditional Home. Even though this chair is actually purple, it initially looked blue to me, and I immediately started shopping for deep blue chairs! So beautiful!


These two dining rooms are so similar and both are so beautifully filled with fresh greenery and over the top bling! The gold ribbons are beautiful!
Amy Chalmers
 Amy Chalmers does blue so beautifully!  I love her blog Maison Decor and find lots of ideas there!
Veranda

Ballard


Traditional Home
I included photo credit everywhere I could find it. Please let me know if you know where a picture came from that I did not credit. I'll be back this week with more of our rooms all decorated for Christmas.

I hope you'll have a beautiful, blue Christmas~but only in your decor!

love and blessings~
 "So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn." Luke 2

Standard
Home & Garden, Tips & How To

Our Photo Shoot with Romantic Homes~Entry

Hi everyone! I hope you're having a wonderful day!

Well, our photo shoot is over.  And after working so hard to get everything ready for the last two months, I have crashed!

What an adventure! It would be one thing to have one or two rooms ready to photograph but having eight rooms ready really wiped me out! My husband claims I collapsed on the kitchen counter as soon as the photographer left. He might be right.

I know HE was the one who drove an hour to Grand Rapids to pick up our son at the airport while I took a nap!

Anyway, our photographer was Kristen Wheeler at khphotographics and she was so enjoyable! She's originally from Michigan and now lives with her husband close to New Orleans. She came alone and stayed almost three hours. She used one lense and got overall shots of each room. Then changed lenses and got close-ups of details.

She also did a live video connecting to all the people at Romantic Homes! That was cool. If you're on Facebook you can watch it on my page. Otherwise, here's the link.

So in the next several posts, I'll try to show you our house as it was staged for the photo shoot.

In our entry, I bought two sweetheart roses for my little wheelbarrow. I just placed the plastic pots in the wheelbarrow and covered them with foliage.  This picture was taken before I staged the French shopping cart.

I got a new camera and I love that it takes a wider shot. Here you can see the entry as it goes into the rest of the house. You're looking straight down a hall and into the kitchen. You can also see how our stairs go up.


Then shortly before Kristen arrived, I took these flowers out of water, wrapped them in craft paper, and put them in my basket.
We played around with this a little bit, staging it in front of the dresser. I think I might have liked just the white flowers better, even though I chose the bright pink, but Kristen really liked the pop of color. The photos are planned for a Spring issue so the colors are appropriate. An umbrella, a rain coat and a loaf of French bread complete the vignette.



I haven't shown you the other end of the room for a while. The clock used to be on this wall. It's now in the living room. (see the last post) And these pictures used to be above the piano.
You can also see my door painted here.

Our baker's rack is still in the other corner.

I'm sorry I didn't get pictures of the whole room. I was just taking pictures while I waited for Kirsten to get here. And if you saw my instagram today you know there's a bike in here waiting for the upcoming birthday party now! And lots of shoes. ;)

We were blessed with beautiful weather! This was the view out our patio door at the end of the room.
As you can see, we haven't had a chance to do anything to our cabana yet. We're still going to try. I'll show you pictures of our whole deck very soon.

Here's sweet Kristen working hard.

I'm at home waiting for our new shower door to be delivered and tomorrow our new slipper tub will arrive. Our son will be here until Tuesday, and on Wednesday the demo on our master bathroom starts!

(Don't tell my family but I was happy to be the one to stay home today and wait for the shower door! Ha!)

I'll try to be back as soon as I can and share the rest of the rooms with you!

love and blessings~
"Behold, I will set your stones in turquoise, and your foundations I will lay in sapphires. I will make your summits of rubies and your gates of crystal, and your entire wall of precious stones."


Standard
Home & Garden, Tips & How To

Our Photo Shoot with Romantic Homes~Entry

Hi everyone! I hope you're having a wonderful day!

Well, our photo shoot is over.  And after working so hard to get everything ready for the last two months, I have crashed!

What an adventure! It would be one thing to have one or two rooms ready to photograph but having eight rooms ready really wiped me out! My husband claims I collapsed on the kitchen counter as soon as the photographer left. He might be right.

I know HE was the one who drove an hour to Grand Rapids to pick up our son at the airport while I took a nap!

Anyway, our photographer was Kristen Wheeler at khphotographics and she was so enjoyable! She's originally from Michigan and now lives with her husband close to New Orleans. She came alone and stayed almost three hours. She used one lense and got overall shots of each room. Then changed lenses and got close-ups of details.

She also did a live video connecting to all the people at Romantic Homes! That was cool. If you're on Facebook you can watch it on my page. Otherwise, here's the link.

So in the next several posts, I'll try to show you our house as it was staged for the photo shoot.

In our entry, I bought two sweetheart roses for my little wheelbarrow. I just placed the plastic pots in the wheelbarrow and covered them with foliage.  This picture was taken before I staged the French shopping cart.

I got a new camera and I love that it takes a wider shot. Here you can see the entry as it goes into the rest of the house. You're looking straight down a hall and into the kitchen. You can also see how our stairs go up.


Then shortly before Kristen arrived, I took these flowers out of water, wrapped them in craft paper, and put them in my basket.
We played around with this a little bit, staging it in front of the dresser. I think I might have liked just the white flowers better, even though I chose the bright pink, but Kristen really liked the pop of color. The photos are planned for a Spring issue so the colors are appropriate. An umbrella, a rain coat and a loaf of French bread complete the vignette.



I haven't shown you the other end of the room for a while. The clock used to be on this wall. It's now in the living room. (see the last post) And these pictures used to be above the piano.
You can also see my door painted here.

Our baker's rack is still in the other corner.

I'm sorry I didn't get pictures of the whole room. I was just taking pictures while I waited for Kirsten to get here. And if you saw my instagram today you know there's a bike in here waiting for the upcoming birthday party now! And lots of shoes. ;)

We were blessed with beautiful weather! This was the view out our patio door at the end of the room.
As you can see, we haven't had a chance to do anything to our cabana yet. We're still going to try. I'll show you pictures of our whole deck very soon.

Here's sweet Kristen working hard.

I'm at home waiting for our new shower door to be delivered and tomorrow our new slipper tub will arrive. Our son will be here until Tuesday, and on Wednesday the demo on our master bathroom starts!

(Don't tell my family but I was happy to be the one to stay home today and wait for the shower door! Ha!)

I'll try to be back as soon as I can and share the rest of the rooms with you!

love and blessings~
"Behold, I will set your stones in turquoise, and your foundations I will lay in sapphires. I will make your summits of rubies and your gates of crystal, and your entire wall of precious stones."


Standard
Home & Garden, Tips & How To

Ticking and Toile and a Photo Shoot with Romantic Homes!

Hi Friends!

Sorry to be gone for SO long! There's honestly been so much going on and I just haven't taken the time to blog it. I will try to catch up!

Staci Dumoski, the editor of Romantic Homes magazine, contacted me a couple of months ago and asked if I would be interested in them sending a photographer to our house for a photo shoot. When I quit screaming, I sent back a very dignified, "Yes! Of course!" Ha!

Now I don't know about you but when you think pictures of your home might be in a magazine, you begin to look around with a very critical eye. Staci told me they planned on photographing our entry, living room, dining room, family room, guest room, master bedroom and possibly the kitchen. (I don't think I've ever had all those rooms looking perfect at the same before!)

About that same time, I spotted a fabric that I loved and that always starts the redecorating process.

So we started by finishing the beams in our living room. (See how we built them here.) We had made the one closest to the dining room and I was hoping for another one by the fireplace. My husband has been so sweet! We now have two beams!
Staci requested that the ottoman be back in the living room and the two chairs be in front of the fireplace. That left a bare wall so we moved our grandfather clock into the room and I love it there! It has been in the entry but now it's found a new home. Thanks, Staci!

I made several pillows with the new blue toile and recovered the back of the blue chair (again!) You can see how I do that here.


I love this fabric! The pattern is stitched on ~ not printed. I got both the fabric and the tassel fringe at warehousefabrics.

I also made a couple of pillows out of a blue and white ticking that I got at warehousefabrics.

This little ottoman that's been in the entry got recovered with the new toile fabric too.




For those of you who have been following along, I got all my doors and frames painted. They flow well with the beams and faux rustic wood.  I love the way our new beam looks as you enter the room.
I finally figured out what to do with my little blue and white stand. I got all three of these pieces; the stand, the bowl and the topiary frame, at HomeGoods. This is my new favorite thing! Wait. Maybe my beams are my new favorite thing...or the toile...
Our photo shoot is Tuesday. I'll take lots of pictures of the photographer taking lots of pictures and post them.  I'll also be posting them on instagram.

My son arrives from Boston the evening of the photo shoot and is staying with us for a week. During that week, we'll be celebrating two of our grandchildren's birthdays! Rhynn will be four and Lucas will be one! There's a BIG party in the works! :)

Then before our son leaves, the contractors will be arriving to start the demo on our master bathroom!

So my brain is in a bit of a whirl and I'm a little tired. I'll be cleaning madly tomorrow and running around picking up fresh flowers and a few other little things for the photo shoot.

I'll be back soon to show you the new slipcovers and seat covers I made out of the same ticking and toile in the dining room and the other changes I made for Romantic Homes.

Thanks to the thoughtful ladies that sent me emails and messages checking on me during my absence. You made me feel so loved! I am so blessed.

Love and blessings~

"Behold, I will set your stones in turquoise, and your foundations I will lay in sapphires. I will make your summits of rubies and your gates of crystal, and your entire wall of precious stones."


Standard
Home & Garden, Tips & How To

Ticking and Toile and a Photo Shoot with Romantic Homes!

Hi Friends!

Sorry to be gone for SO long! There's honestly been so much going on and I just haven't taken the time to blog it. I will try to catch up!

Staci Dumoski, the editor of Romantic Homes magazine, contacted me a couple of months ago and asked if I would be interested in them sending a photographer to our house for a photo shoot. When I quit screaming, I sent back a very dignified, "Yes! Of course!" Ha!

Now I don't know about you but when you think pictures of your home might be in a magazine, you begin to look around with a very critical eye. Staci told me they planned on photographing our entry, living room, dining room, family room, guest room, master bedroom and possibly the kitchen. (I don't think I've ever had all those rooms looking perfect at the same before!)

About that same time, I spotted a fabric that I loved and that always starts the redecorating process.

So we started by finishing the beams in our living room. (See how we built them here.) We had made the one closest to the dining room and I was hoping for another one by the fireplace. My husband has been so sweet! We now have two beams!
Staci requested that the ottoman be back in the living room and the two chairs be in front of the fireplace. That left a bare wall so we moved our grandfather clock into the room and I love it there! It has been in the entry but now it's found a new home. Thanks, Staci!

I made several pillows with the new blue toile and recovered the back of the blue chair (again!) You can see how I do that here.


I love this fabric! The pattern is stitched on ~ not printed. I got both the fabric and the tassel fringe at warehousefabrics.

I also made a couple of pillows out of a blue and white ticking that I got at warehousefabrics.

This little ottoman that's been in the entry got recovered with the new toile fabric too.




For those of you who have been following along, I got all my doors and frames painted. They flow well with the beams and faux rustic wood.  I love the way our new beam looks as you enter the room.
I finally figured out what to do with my little blue and white stand. I got all three of these pieces; the stand, the bowl and the topiary frame, at HomeGoods. This is my new favorite thing! Wait. Maybe my beams are my new favorite thing...or the toile...
Our photo shoot is Tuesday. I'll take lots of pictures of the photographer taking lots of pictures and post them.  I'll also be posting them on instagram.

My son arrives from Boston the evening of the photo shoot and is staying with us for a week. During that week, we'll be celebrating two of our grandchildren's birthdays! Rhynn will be four and Lucas will be one! There's a BIG party in the works! :)

Then before our son leaves, the contractors will be arriving to start the demo on our master bathroom!

So my brain is in a bit of a whirl and I'm a little tired. I'll be cleaning madly tomorrow and running around picking up fresh flowers and a few other little things for the photo shoot.

I'll be back soon to show you the new slipcovers and seat covers I made out of the same ticking and toile in the dining room and the other changes I made for Romantic Homes.

Thanks to the thoughtful ladies that sent me emails and messages checking on me during my absence. You made me feel so loved! I am so blessed.

Love and blessings~

"Behold, I will set your stones in turquoise, and your foundations I will lay in sapphires. I will make your summits of rubies and your gates of crystal, and your entire wall of precious stones."


Standard
Home & Garden, Tips & How To

A Romantic French Kitchen

We put all new cabinet fronts on our kitchen almost two years ago. It was a major change and since our kitchen is open to our living room, dining area and family room, it has made such a big difference.

I started out a little too farmhouse but eventually found my way back to French Country. I've been adding a little romance to our kitchen lately with blue and white and some other accessories.

This framed canvas of roses is one of my favorite things.

It's been in our master bedroom but it was on the wall where our barn door opens so I've moved it to the kitchen.  An ivy planted in a little blue and white watering can and a small urn complete the vignette.
Our back splash is bead board. I hung a little frieze of angels above the stove that I've had forever.

I edited my Ode de Charles Faudree a bit by taking away a few plates and adding another corbel. (I thought it all looked really straight but I don't think it does in this picture!)
I also recently painted this small section of our island again. If you remember, it was Seal Brown by SW. Now it's SW Rain which is one of the colors I've used on our family room shutters. With our shutters in the dining room and living room being brown, I decided now I wanted this to be blue. lol Someone suggested this when I was trying to decide what color to paint this. Thank you!

My husband told my daughter, "When I left the house this morning some things were brown and some things were blue. When I came home, the things that were brown are now blue and vice versa." Poor man!

You can see from these pictures why I would want our kitchen to be a little more formal than most kitchens. We can see it from every room.
I'm on the hunt for some new bar stools. I've never loved these but I also need three now for our three grand children. They come over often for lunch during the week and our youngest little guy (10 mos) needs a bar stool now. :)  Fitting three in here might be a little close but I'm going to try it.

I keep thinking that I'd like to have different hardware on this blue section just to dress it up a bit and also make it feel like a separate cabinet. Maybe I'll see if I can find some the next time I go to Grand Rapids HobbyLobby.


I had done an antiquing glaze to our cabinets a while back. It added some nice depth from far away but up close, it just looked dirty to me. So I also gave our doors a fresh coat of SW Sand.
It feels so much fresher to me now and I love a kitchen that feels really clean.

I'll be back soon with more changes. Have a wonderful day!

love and blessings~
"Behold, I will set your stones in turquoise, and your foundations I will lay in sapphires. I will make your summits of rubies and your gates of crystal, and your entire wall of precious stones."
Isaiah 54:11,12

Cabinet color: SW Sand in Satin and SW Rain in Satin

I'm joining these parties:

thoughts-of-home-on-thursday
addisonmeadowslane
creative-circle-week-61
frenchcountrycottage
impartinggrace
handmade-hangout-97
foodie-friday-and-everything-else
home/sweet-inspiration-link-party-2
myuncommonsliceofsuburbia
stonegableblog
betweennapsontheporch
astrollthrulife
savvysouthernstyle
diybydesign
Standard
Home & Garden, Tips & How To

A Romantic French Kitchen

We put all new cabinet fronts on our kitchen almost two years ago. It was a major change and since our kitchen is open to our living room, dining area and family room, it has made such a big difference.

I started out a little too farmhouse but eventually found my way back to French Country. I've been adding a little romance to our kitchen lately with blue and white and some other accessories.

This framed canvas of roses is one of my favorite things.

It's been in our master bedroom but it was on the wall where our barn door opens so I've moved it to the kitchen.  An ivy planted in a little blue and white watering can and a small urn complete the vignette.
Our back splash is bead board. I hung a little frieze of angels above the stove that I've had forever.

I edited my Ode de Charles Faudree a bit by taking away a few plates and adding another corbel. (I thought it all looked really straight but I don't think it does in this picture!)
I also recently painted this small section of our island again. If you remember, it was Seal Brown by SW. Now it's SW Rain which is one of the colors I've used on our family room shutters. With our shutters in the dining room and living room being brown, I decided now I wanted this to be blue. lol Someone suggested this when I was trying to decide what color to paint this. Thank you!

My husband told my daughter, "When I left the house this morning some things were brown and some things were blue. When I came home, the things that were brown are now blue and vice versa." Poor man!

You can see from these pictures why I would want our kitchen to be a little more formal than most kitchens. We can see it from every room.
I'm on the hunt for some new bar stools. I've never loved these but I also need three now for our three grand children. They come over often for lunch during the week and our youngest little guy (10 mos) needs a bar stool now. :)  Fitting three in here might be a little close but I'm going to try it.

I keep thinking that I'd like to have different hardware on this blue section just to dress it up a bit and also make it feel like a separate cabinet. Maybe I'll see if I can find some the next time I go to Grand Rapids HobbyLobby.


I had done an antiquing glaze to our cabinets a while back. It added some nice depth from far away but up close, it just looked dirty to me. So I also gave our doors a fresh coat of SW Sand.
It feels so much fresher to me now and I love a kitchen that feels really clean.

I'll be back soon with more changes. Have a wonderful day!

love and blessings~
"Behold, I will set your stones in turquoise, and your foundations I will lay in sapphires. I will make your summits of rubies and your gates of crystal, and your entire wall of precious stones."
Isaiah 54:11,12

Cabinet color: SW Sand in Satin and SW Rain in Satin

I'm joining these parties:

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addisonmeadowslane
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frenchcountrycottage
impartinggrace
handmade-hangout-97
foodie-friday-and-everything-else
home/sweet-inspiration-link-party-2
myuncommonsliceofsuburbia
stonegableblog
betweennapsontheporch
astrollthrulife
savvysouthernstyle
diybydesign
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Home & Garden, Tips & How To

New Dining Room Chairs

There's something so romantic to me about big solid dining room tables. I always imagine families and friends gathered there for hours, after the children have run off to play, enjoying wine by candlelight and sharing stories and laughter. Our family is in the growing stage; husbands, grandchildren, girl friends, etc. When we're all together for holidays and family dinners, there's twelve of us now.

Our upholstered dining room chairs are one of the few things we purchased new. We bought six of them a few years ago and within no time, we didn't have enough. So when I spotted these six cane-back chairs on Craig's list for $125, I was thrilled. And it doesn't hurt that they are very French Country.

They echo the lines of our china cabinet and even the mirror that I recently put across the room, which I will share soon.

The lovely couple that was selling them live about an hour away and when I showed up at their house, they were so kind. The husband insisted on putting every chair in the back of my vehicle for me and the sweet wife and I shared our faith in Christ.

She told me that the chairs had belonged to her mother and were about sixty years old.  They are so well made and sturdy and were in almost perfect condition. I was so happy that when I brought them home that the height and scale of these chairs worked so well with our existing chairs.

I painted them with chalk paint. I have two paint colors that I mixed several months ago for our furniture. After I mixed them to get the color I want, I took them to Lowe's and had them match them. I add chalk paint additive to them that I purchased through Amazon. It's a lot cheaper this way and means I have chalk paint in whatever color I want, when I want it.

I first put a coat of the darker shade on them and then brushed the lighter shade over that here and there, to get an uneven finish.  Then I lightly sanded them and added a coat of chalk paint wax that I purchased at Lowe's.  I recovered the chair pads in drop cloths, since we have little grandchildren.

I'm using our old dining room chairs at the head and foot of the table and now there's room for all six of the new chairs on the sides. I usually have slipcovers on these chairs but I took them off for these photos. I'm thinking about making some new ones.

I put the rest of our old chairs around the game table in the basement and it's easy to bring up any extras when we need them for big dinners.

My husband built our dining room table a few years ago. To our family, it's a treasure. He signed the bottom and dated it. Someday, I imagine it will be a family heirloom.

I got these two ginger jars at HomeGoods a few weeks ago.

I just never seem to get tired of blue and white.

You may have noticed that the shutters and wood finish seem lighter. They are! And I've got lots more changes coming up! Don't ya just love paint!

love and blessings~
"Behold, I will set your stones in turquoise, and your foundations I will lay in sapphires. I will make your summits of rubies and your gates of crystal, and your entire wall of precious stones."
Isaiah 54:11,12

Sources:
New dining room chairs - second hand
Dining room table - my husband made it
Dining room chairs at head and foot - Ebay
China cabinet - second hand
Blue and white - HomeGoods and HobbyLobby
Large white vase - Joss&Main
French sign - Joss&Main
Standard
Home & Garden, Tips & How To

New Dining Room Chairs

There's something so romantic to me about big solid dining room tables. I always imagine families and friends gathered there for hours, after the children have run off to play, enjoying wine by candlelight and sharing stories and laughter. Our family is in the growing stage; husbands, grandchildren, girl friends, etc. When we're all together for holidays and family dinners, there's twelve of us now.

Our upholstered dining room chairs are one of the few things we purchased new. We bought six of them a few years ago and within no time, we didn't have enough. So when I spotted these six cane-back chairs on Craig's list for $125, I was thrilled. And it doesn't hurt that they are very French Country.

They echo the lines of our china cabinet and even the mirror that I recently put across the room, which I will share soon.

The lovely couple that was selling them live about an hour away and when I showed up at their house, they were so kind. The husband insisted on putting every chair in the back of my vehicle for me and the sweet wife and I shared our faith in Christ.

She told me that the chairs had belonged to her mother and were about sixty years old.  They are so well made and sturdy and were in almost perfect condition. I was so happy that when I brought them home that the height and scale of these chairs worked so well with our existing chairs.

I painted them with chalk paint. I have two paint colors that I mixed several months ago for our furniture. After I mixed them to get the color I want, I took them to Lowe's and had them match them. I add chalk paint additive to them that I purchased through Amazon. It's a lot cheaper this way and means I have chalk paint in whatever color I want, when I want it.

I first put a coat of the darker shade on them and then brushed the lighter shade over that here and there, to get an uneven finish.  Then I lightly sanded them and added a coat of chalk paint wax that I purchased at Lowe's.  I recovered the chair pads in drop cloths, since we have little grandchildren.

I'm using our old dining room chairs at the head and foot of the table and now there's room for all six of the new chairs on the sides. I usually have slipcovers on these chairs but I took them off for these photos. I'm thinking about making some new ones.

I put the rest of our old chairs around the game table in the basement and it's easy to bring up any extras when we need them for big dinners.

My husband built our dining room table a few years ago. To our family, it's a treasure. He signed the bottom and dated it. Someday, I imagine it will be a family heirloom.

I got these two ginger jars at HomeGoods a few weeks ago.

I just never seem to get tired of blue and white.

You may have noticed that the shutters and wood finish seem lighter. They are! And I've got lots more changes coming up! Don't ya just love paint!

love and blessings~
"Behold, I will set your stones in turquoise, and your foundations I will lay in sapphires. I will make your summits of rubies and your gates of crystal, and your entire wall of precious stones."
Isaiah 54:11,12

Sources:
New dining room chairs - second hand
Dining room table - my husband made it
Dining room chairs at head and foot - Ebay
China cabinet - second hand
Blue and white - HomeGoods and HobbyLobby
Large white vase - Joss&Main
French sign - Joss&Main
Standard