This year, I decided to keep my fall mantel decorating neutral and to combine elements from nature like pine cones, oak leaves, grape vine and white pumpkins (both real and faux) with spray painted metallic pumpkins for accents.
Showing posts with label Pinecone. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pinecone. Show all posts
French Country Fall Mantel: Neutrals, Naturals and Metallics
This year, I decided to keep my fall mantel decorating neutral and to combine elements from nature like pine cones, oak leaves, grape vine and white pumpkins (both real and faux) with spray painted metallic pumpkins for accents.
How to Bleach Pinecones
Have I mentioned that I've developed a wonderful relationship with household bleach since I moved into the farmhouse this summer?
I have....bleach and I are now best friends.
Inside The French Farmhouse: Fall Decorating with Pumpkins, Pinecones and Bittersweet
Fall decorating continues this week at The French Farmhouse. I used a few more faux mushrooms (left over from my rustic fall grapevine mushroom wreath HERE to fill my vintage wood dough trough along with natural elements like moss and pine cones that I gathered from beneath one of the trees in my front yard.
Rustic Natural Fall Grapevine Wreath: Mushrooms, Pinecones and Moss
Since it is officially "Autumn" and I've finally located the boxes with the decorating supplies in the attic, this week I made time to do a little Fall decorating.
Woodland Winter Mantel..and NFL Fooball
Sometimes, decorating for Christmas in a house full of men has it's challenges...like when they question why I'm doing it at all. Especially when I'm doing it on Sunday afternoon...in the middle of a football game.
The groaning and complaints about ladders blocking the television and vacuuming drowning out the sound got me thinking....
I have come to the conclusion that my decorating for Christmas is the holiday equivalent of a Sunday afternoon of NFL Football. Yep. They're the same.
More holidays!
The holiday decorating continues!
I'll post more tomorrow.
Good night!
xo,
S
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| Dining room side Board. re-purposing pine cones from Thanksgiving and burlap from exterior Autumn wreaths. |
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| My sons' "sleigh", the birch logs from Thanksgiving. Vintage Santa, skates and lantern - in the corner of the dining room. |
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| Silver punch bowl with pine cone wreath and pine cones |
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| Thanksgiving centerpiece "reworked" for Christmas using mixed Christmas greens, red berries (fake), pine cones, vintage red lantern, cardinals and a plaid bow. |
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| Kitchen table - I made the black and white table cloth out of flannel, edged in red. Good Will Candlestick holders, vintage boot with pine cones, a "vintage" glitter snowflake and faux greens. |
Good night!
xo,
S
Behind the scenes - Thanksgiving Tablescape.
As promised, here are the details of the table scape posted yesterday:
Table Cloth: two 9x12 PAINTER's DROP CLOTHS (yep, that's right, folded them in half, put them on the table) - they came from our local paint store and cost $9 each.
Table Runner: Men's suiting fabric, hounds tooth wool. Closeout at Joann's $3.99 used my Merry Moolah coupon for $5 off my purchase of $25.00 so the table runner and a ball of jute were FREE
Had enough left over to make a runner for the sideboard and wrap 14 votive cups for individual centerpieces at each place.
Wood Chargers: These were a challenge at first but I found out that anyone with a steady hand and a chainsaw can make them. Traci at Whimsy in Morris has a guy who will do it. I found a really nice man named Tim who owns a mill in Yorkville that will do it and I found out that I can actually do it as well.
Vintage Brown and White Transfer ware Dinner Plates: Borrowed from my friend, Ann at Nellie's. They were PERFECT...and although priceless, they were FREE to borrow.
Small Bread Plates: Purchased at the Goodwill on a Tuesday during customer appreciation and got a 20% off scratch off. They cost 35 cents each. Total $4.90
Candlesticks, teapot, candles, silverware, glassware, votive holders, napkins: From my collection.
Centerpiece: Old, wooden shipping crate gifted to me by the same friend (Ann) who loaned me the dishes. She waxed it brown, I added 4 men's belts from Goodwill ($0.99 each), dried hydrangea and dried flowers from my yard, a couple of nests that I had on hand, some lotus pods, pine cones and dried artichokes (also on hand) I purchased greens, tallow berries, 3 "quails" and 5 magnificent turquoise hydrangea. Total investment for an incredible centerpiece that I'm going to redo slightly for Christmas as well as the 14 individual place setting pieces: about $40.
Jute Tied Napkins with Leaves: Punched out the leaves at Archivers. Bought 3 sheets of card stock, used their die cut machine at no charge: Cost $1.50.
Total investment? $68.50 and while that is a significant amount of money, the dropcloths, plates and table runner are all reusable and I was able to set a table that made an impression that will last a lifetime for my family and friends.
I spent today cutting down the last of the garden and raking the last of the leaves (16 barrels and bags full...it took me all day!) Tomorrow, I'm planting tulips for next spring. Then, it's on to Christmas Decorating!
P.S. Yes, we removed the centerpiece during dinner. It's probably taller than the "ideal" would be but it is PERFECT for me!
Have a wonderful weekend.
xo,
S
Table Cloth: two 9x12 PAINTER's DROP CLOTHS (yep, that's right, folded them in half, put them on the table) - they came from our local paint store and cost $9 each.
Table Runner: Men's suiting fabric, hounds tooth wool. Closeout at Joann's $3.99 used my Merry Moolah coupon for $5 off my purchase of $25.00 so the table runner and a ball of jute were FREE
Had enough left over to make a runner for the sideboard and wrap 14 votive cups for individual centerpieces at each place.
Wood Chargers: These were a challenge at first but I found out that anyone with a steady hand and a chainsaw can make them. Traci at Whimsy in Morris has a guy who will do it. I found a really nice man named Tim who owns a mill in Yorkville that will do it and I found out that I can actually do it as well.
Vintage Brown and White Transfer ware Dinner Plates: Borrowed from my friend, Ann at Nellie's. They were PERFECT...and although priceless, they were FREE to borrow.
Small Bread Plates: Purchased at the Goodwill on a Tuesday during customer appreciation and got a 20% off scratch off. They cost 35 cents each. Total $4.90
Candlesticks, teapot, candles, silverware, glassware, votive holders, napkins: From my collection.
Jute Tied Napkins with Leaves: Punched out the leaves at Archivers. Bought 3 sheets of card stock, used their die cut machine at no charge: Cost $1.50.
Total investment? $68.50 and while that is a significant amount of money, the dropcloths, plates and table runner are all reusable and I was able to set a table that made an impression that will last a lifetime for my family and friends.
I spent today cutting down the last of the garden and raking the last of the leaves (16 barrels and bags full...it took me all day!) Tomorrow, I'm planting tulips for next spring. Then, it's on to Christmas Decorating!
P.S. Yes, we removed the centerpiece during dinner. It's probably taller than the "ideal" would be but it is PERFECT for me!
Have a wonderful weekend.
xo,
S
Giving Thanks
It starts when we're young. Older adults shape our lives. They teach us about love...and gratitude. In some of my very earliest memories, I was taught to say "please" and "thank-you". It's a basic concept for most of us. Human decency, kindness, thoughtfulness. I like to think that I do a pretty good job, most of the time, remembering, to express my thanks.
It's beginning to look alot like HOLIDAYS!!!!!!
I'm picking up the wood "cookies" (slices of tree trunk to be used for chargers on my Thanksgiving table) today so I should have photos of the table to share tomorrow. If not, I'm in serious trouble because Thanksgiving is 48 hours away. In the meantime, here are pix of my family room mantel and the materials and first part of the staircase.
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| Base lighted garland from Costco 10 years ago. Hhomemade pine cone wreath, reused burlap bows from front door autumn wreaths. Black Metal lanterns close-out from TJ Maxx 8 years ago. Added "frosted garland. |
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| Same base, Costco garland as is in the family room (10 years old, still works!). Added a few larger pine cones: some painted and some "flocked". |
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| Plaid ribbon 50% off at Joann's. Styrofoam balls wrapped with men's plaid shirts (Salvation Army/Goodwill) or fabric. Dollar Store bells. burlap, plastic ornaments 90% off at Kmart last year, Red "velvet" ribbon (you can find it at Hobby Lobby or Joann's but mine came from a hardware store called Wannemakers). |
Happy Tuesday!
xo,
S
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