A Look At Home

This week, two incidents have given me pause to examine some feelings. First, I have reconnected with some old friends from Grenada over the past few months and have enjoyed exchanging pictures of days gone by with them. Second, I received a decorating book that I ordered with the recommendation of another blogger. I knew I was wrong when I ordered the darn thing...too many pages were filled with things I could never have. I once had a pastor who said he threw away all the catalogs that came to his house. That they just set in motion a yearning for more and more things. How true.

As I mentally put the book aside, (still in my pajamas) I grabbed my camera and out the door I went.
I quietly absorbed the country stillness, the birds at the feeder, the gentleness of the breeze. I photographed "our land" from different angles.

This photo is the road "home". Every time I turn onto it, I feel a peace come over me. It's not grand...just a country road, but it signals that I can leave turmoil behind, if only for a while.

 

When I sit on my back porch, these pastures are my breathing space. Nothing fancy, just a few horses and some donkeys, a few rolling hills. But when I hear the hooves beat, and see them gallop toward their feeding area at dusk, it just can't be beat.

 

I enjoy sitting on my back porch when it rains and watching my rain chain flow.

 

 My birds that come to my feeders never disappoint me.

 

...and those that choose to nest with us every year are like loyal friends.

My friends are a lot like my favorite birds...there's the chickadee who always flits around, is friendly, kind,  shares with others and ALWAYS gives me birdseed as one of my Christmas presents! There are two cardinal friends. They are loyal, always present, and bring beauty and calm whenever they are around. Then there's my mockingbird. She is not afraid to tell me the unvarnished truth...she frequently states, "Stop the Madness!" and pulls me back when I overdo (..she also eats Mexican with me because my husband won't!) Now that's true friendship. My bluebird friend and I can be away from each other for many weeks, but when we get together, we pick right back up where we left off.

 

Below is my feeble attempt at gardening. I bought the tomato plant that was the largest and already had a tomato on it....lol.  My flowers really show off sometime and wither hideously other times. But I don't give up...every year I make space for some sunny little faces that give me immense pleasure when they decide to cooperate!

 

My point in this diatribe is that I really cherish my family, friends (both old and new)  and surroundings. I am satisfied..(if I had a workroom and a dining room, I'd be 100% satisfied). I don't love "things" like I used to. Instead, I love people and places that give me fond memories. I would rather somebody else be pleased or delighted than experience those feelings myself. No, I am trying to send out a "humble pie" vibe. It's just the plain truth.

I don't have to have a showroom house, inside or out. I used to think I did but not anymore. I consciously choose a home with integrity...furnishings with comfort...objects that have sweet memories and people with character and loyalty over showroom any day!

Blessings to each of you,

Angela

September 1st...It's Fall To Me! Fall Tour

Living room gets a hint of fall.

Whether a rebellious red leaf who falls early has been spotted or September the first arrives, I declare it Fall!! And you know what that means!! Time for Fall tips and tours. Viewing other people's houses and their Autumn decor always sets me on fire to get mine done, too. After several months away from the blog, I decided that September 1 would be my target date to get back in the saddle and "giddy up" by crackie, I'm here. Only my dining and living areas are decorated. Didn't want to freak out all the neighbors quite yet!



After removing the leaf from my oval table, I "lost" a chair (until Thanksgiving) and am enjoying the coziness of the round set up. I also added drapery panels and "lost" the toile swags for a little update.

THIS IS THE BEFORE THE FALL UPDATE.

The picture below is the AFTER...just a few adjustments here and there. I did, however, break my cardinal rule of Fall decorating...by bringing out the pumpkins BEFORE October...it's usually fall leaves until the end of September..but, oh, well...  

This centerpiece is a McCarty Cotton Row vase with assorted feathers and berries.
I also added placemats...am having horrible computer issues and can't seem
to load the whole dining room shot...ugh.

Small sideboard got the look, too!
Those lampshades are one of my best finds EVER!
When lit, the black velvet leaves show through the front silk panels...
$2.50 each at Ross.

A recently purchased iron birdcage has many possibilities
for the upcoming seasons. Right now it's a candle holder.

Friendly Village china prepares for the upcoming fall
and winter months.

The coffee bar which houses not only all my
coffee supplies, but also part of my nesting
hen collection only got a few berry sprays.

Pitcher and bowls got the treatment with bittersweet vine and leaves.





My "collections" lend themselves to the fall months.
Pine needle  and woven baskets.

Tiny pine needle baskets.

Redware collection...love the colors.


Below is my salt glaze pottery collection.



Buckrun Pottery houses Cream Brulee candle and is surrounded by
little nutmeg McCarty birds.

 At the risk of losing every picture I post...I am going to add a few more with NO comments. Each time I comment, I lose the picture above and below. I have been at this for about 4 hours over the last 2 days.
Computer issues drive me around the bend! My apologies!



Will try one more time...Buckrun pottery bowl and McCarty bunny on coffee table.



Bittersweet vines and branches are such a reminder of fall.




I LOVE this table that I got on an online yardsale.




Pottery Barn basket (that I got on sale)..with fabric pumpkins that I made years ago.

 This has been such a trial...I have no idea what's wrong with Blogger (or it could be the blogger..me)!
I wanted to show you what I have done...not to brag...not to say..."Look at what I did!" but to encourage you to enjoy the moment...to not worry if it's too early to decorate...to not listen to the "it's not time to decorate" naysayers. I love every season. I enjoy letting my home reflect that. Most of my decor has been
gathered over time or made by me. (For the first 25 years of marriage EVERYTHING was made by me.)

 As I age, I find special joy in savoring the little moments life offers. Fall is one of those moments. Just as your children won't stay little forever...neither will you be able to recapture "the moment".

Part I: Virtual Christmas Tour

It's that time of year! You are cordially invited to my virtual Christmas Open House! (Not that you don't know how, but I thought I'd throw out a few decorating pointers as we tour...)

Decorating your home for the holidays can be exhausting... because our house is small and there's not lots of storage, I've stored all the decorations in the attic in marked storage containers. The day before I begin the task at hand, the "hubster" cleans off the carport area, brings out several folding tables, and then hauls all 12 or 14 boxes down the stairs. We set the boxes on the tables and I begin the "sort". I keep all boxes on the carport except THE ribbon box. This keeps the house relatively straight as I progress from room to room.

I know that this will horrify some of you, but I change my decorations yearly. As much as I love some of my things, sometimes it's just nice to play outside the sand pile and do it up differently. I do NOT use every decoration every year. (12-14 boxes? Are you kidding?)

This year, my woodland themed animals wandered into the living room rather than hanging out in the dining room. With that change, came some color changes...even though I am a traditional green and red girl through and through, this year, I used turquoise in the living room area.

My foyer is Annie Sloan duckegg blue, so this color selection blended nicely.

I love birds and through the years I've collected bird ornaments, many, many nests (many) and bottle brush ornaments. I have a special place in my heart for the little owl fellow below. I buy most of my Christmas items AFTER Christmas..love those sales!



Pictured below is just one of many (nests)...
you know the old legend...
If you have a nest in your Christmas tree,
you will have good fortune in the new year.
Well, I'm not superstitious, but it never hurts to
have a few nests in the old tree.

 

I bring in a huge box of ribbon. I have kept every scrap of ribbon I've ever used at Christmas through the years. Speaking of bang for your buck...that's wired ribbon. And at 50-75% off....it's a steal. And yes,

I untie each bow every year, wrap the ribbon and put each type ribbon in a zip loc bag.

I work out of the ribbon box every day that I decorate...did I mention that while my house is small, decorating it is a labor of love and takes as long as the White House to decorate?

I know, I know...when are we going to lose the brass fireplace screen?

Well, let me tell you a little secret, while I love birds, I have a horror of them swooping down my chimney. So the answer is...never.

(Something to do with seeing Hitchcock's The Birds when I was younger.)

My garland is laced with mushroom hummingbirds, blue birds, nests and a butterfly.

The Peter's pottery vase was an anniversary present and holds feathers, seed pods and glittered curly twirly things...the "hubster" is a glitter hater. Can you imagine?

I made and beaded the crazy quilt stockings several years ago.

My sister gave me brush deer...ever one to help me along with the "annual theme".

Also, notice the large containers of Christmas ornaments. Speaking of a thrifty way to decorate!

They add pops of color everywhere. You will see them throughout the house.

So you don't like themes?

Let me explain. Sometimes they are overdone and I don't like that either.

But themed decorating, if it's used correctly, can be a wonderful "jumping off" point when you are having decorator's block.

So don't frown so when I mention the "T" word!

I am not a purist in the purest sense of the word.

This vignette has absolutely nothing to do with woodland animals,

but every woodland needs a gnome with red underwear.

This was my mother's secretary and some years I gussie her up and some years I don't do as much.

This year I just added a chickadee tassel, some greenery, and a checked bow.

The mercury glass heart says "Faith" and I think that's a guiding principle..so Faith it is!

Here we go again...when are we going to let go of the oak entertainment center?

It's too great for storage...again, never.

It houses my redware plate collection, my salt glaze pottery, books and on the top in the middle is the "hubster's" grandmother's dough bowl...no, it stays.

I have a thing for Mackenzie Childs...however, due to champagne taste and a beer budget...this bird box

(on deep sale) is the only thing in the whole catalog I could afford...but look at that detail!

She sits by my chair in the living room..oh, the stories she can tell about the rich and the famous.

More of those ornaments!

Because this is such an involved process, I decided to invite you back tomorrow for the dining room and kitchen tour. I think you've really had quite enough of me tonight..

We will tour and talk about editing tomorrow.

Thanks for coming along...

BTW: pardon the autumn blog header...it was the tour or the header...I went with the tour!

"Twittering and Fluttering"

I found two new blogs today and they both use lots of birds' nests! Well, that attracted me right off...they had the cutest ideas...who are they? Well, one is Liberty Biberty and the other is Treasures From the Heart Gifts. I liked their "stuff" so much that I pinned several things on my Pinterest boards! I've really had a great time on Pinterest...I hope you are using it. It's just the greatest virtual bulletin board I've ever seen.

With all the "twitter" about birds' nests, I decided to "tweak my leaf pictures from yesterday...see below AND photo some of my bird nest collection. Some nests are purchased, some are my own creation...if I were a bird, I'd use mine because they are crocheted from the softest prettiest yarns. They even have built in feathers and moss! (You do know that if you have a nest in your Christmas tree, that good fortune follows you all year, don't you?) Wonder what happened to my good fortune? We had two flat tires on the same day, my brakes went out and my dishwasher said Adios, and the knee catastophe... all in the space of a month.

Some of my bird related items....old bird pencil box. Wonder who the sweet little chickadee was who used this box to hold all her pencils and treasures?

Nest watercolor I picked up at the Flea Market, Peter's bluebird and straw and pine cone nest.

Living room arrangement of dried florals and a small feather nest in right bottom corner.

Small signed, handcarved and painted Chickadee that I also got at the FM. (I am like a bird detective.) The next three pics are my crocheted nests. I sell these at Christmas. Each has added feathers, moss and a small egg.




I love the look of the golden eggs in the nest in the compote...some people may be getting the idea that I have bird fever...or are some kind of loon...that's bird humor.



Entertainment center nests...hummm, this is sort of boring. I promise, just a few more...

White porcelain birdie I picked up at an Estate sale...ok, I'm stopping. This has made me question my sanity...no wonder people think I'm always "fluttering" as the hubster calls it...I need to re-evaluate. But before I do...I changed out the pictures in the guest bath...remember this mini makeover? Well, those leaf pictures looked sort of out of place and since I had two from the previous "red" bohemian look...I began to "think"...uh, oh.

Once before the boho look, they were oriental prints from Kirkland's. I took out the pics and cut up a beautiful placemat and framed the pieces for the red guest bath. Now, what could I do with them? Tear them apart again..cover the mats with tissue, Mod Podge, paint on white swirls, spray paint the frames Hammered Brown, copy some free bird related (yikes!) prints from The Graphics Fairy and whala...

Now, I'm not bragging, but I think they are just plain pretty.

They look much better than those leaf prints...so if anyone thinks I'm a little over the top with my collection of birds...then the look below is what you will get from yours truly...that's one mad chick!!

Come by and party with us At The Picket Fence

and The Shabby Chic Cottage

and at I Believe In Love click here

and Frugal Friday at Shabby Nest.

and Funky Junk Interiors.

Hope all your collections get you all in a flutter,