Project - to repurpose my salvation army finds in time for Christmas

I will be hosting Christmas this year. It has been a busy few weeks since the end of October and I have still got a lot of catching up to do in other areas.
My siblings and I take it in turn to host the various holidays through the year so that the bulk of the work does not fall on any one family for all holidays or the same holiday every year but more importantly so that every family gets to enjoy the preparation.

Typically I do a buffet style lunch for Christmas when there is a larger group and everyone is free to sit in the family room, living room or at the kitchen table. This year I have decided to do a sit-down meal - 8 adults at the dining room table and 5 kids at the kitchen table. The food will be laid out on the kitchen island.

 My dining room colors have changed and therefore I have to keep that in mind when setting up the dining table. I do not have time to go shopping for decorative items for the table and neither do I want to spend money unnecessarily. I paid a visit to a local Salvation Army last week in order to look for some glassware I could repurpose.

It is amazing what one can find in any local consignment or thrift store. This is what I came away with.

The glass with the 'X' is my own glass of water which I had forgotten was on the table at the time.

These candleholders have some scratches but could easily be repainted to look as good as new.

 

 

I love the shape and the height of these 6" juice (?) glasses (on the right). The single piece on the left is probably a vase.

 

 

These 7" beer glasses were also in perfect condition.

Apparently, if an item is on the shelves for more than 2 weeks at the Salvation Army the price is reduced by 50%. Perhaps this holds true for other such stores. I spent just over $20 for thirteen pieces.

These came in at half the sticker price. Note the date the items went on the shelves is also stamped.

One of my favorite items which is perfect to have out on display with some candy at the time of year is this crystal dish with lid.

 

I am considering spray painting the beer and juice glasses to use as bud vases along the dining table. I have been scouring Pinterest for inspiration although I have some idea what I want to do.

 

This mini project has to be quick and relatively easy - just 2 weeks to Christmas! And I have to find a non-rainy, non-windy day to spray paint!

 

If you require any help with Interior Decorating please click on the tab at the top of my page marked 'Services' or click here for further details.

 

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I am back, and my dining room curtains

I am glad to be back.

 

My dining room curtains went up a few weeks ago. I have bought a new camera and have been learning to take better pictures and experiment with settings on Picasa so you will see some pictures looking a little different in this post.

 

 

I used the same bronze finish curtain rod I had in the dining room before. I had considered changing the finish but for now it will do.

 

If you recall, I had purchased the curtains on my trip to India in August. I bought four.

 

 

They were about 4" too short in length which I only discovered on my return. I had measured one curtain while in the store and had expected them all to be the same size. Anyway, I shopped online for some beaded trim which would work well with the curtains and came across this Isabella crystal fringe on Warehouse Fabrics Inc.

 

 

 

These curtains, unfortunately, have a noticeable difference in their lengths if you look close enough at the top gold border. This picture shows you two curtains and a difference in the height of the borders.

At the base, though, it is less noticeable. It gives a sense of movement.

I love the overall luminous and flowy feel the curtains lend to the room. This is exactly what I had in mind when I chose them. They also balance the darker stenciled walls. I also like that the patterned border hits just below the chair rail.

 

I had the curtain rod installed so that the beaded trim just skims the floor.

 

Thank you to those of you who emailed me when out of concern I had not posted in a while.

It was a bizarre November starting with the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy and so many problems of different sorts being encountered by many, many people in the Northeast. We were among the more fortunate with just a loss of power for four nights. We had extended family who had no power for up to 10 days  - from 11 to 18 people - staying over and some over just for meals. Subsequently other events occurred which kept me from posting. Many have suffered unimaginable losses and we continue to keep them in our thoughts as we try to get back to some routine.

 

If you require any help with Interior Decorating please click on the tab at the top of my page marked 'Services' or click here for further details.

 

I would love for you to leave a comment. Thank you for stopping by; please do check back often.

 

Easy Halloween Wreath

I decided to make a wreath for Halloween for the front door instead of

hanging the usual Fall wreath. This one took me about 15 minutes to complete.

 

 

 

 

I had to run to JoAnn's for some other items and grabbed whatever I could find for the wreath. I had a coupon and some things were on sale.

 

I bought a 12" Styrofoam wreath ($3.49)....

 

 

 

 

...netting ribbon in this honeycomb-like pattern. I liked the orange coloration ($1.99 each 12ft. roll; I  bought 2 just in case; I could return one if unused),...

 

 

 

 

 

...and this mask ($3.99).

 

 

 

The great thing about using a Styrofoam wreath is no glue or other adhesive was necessary for this part. I have a ton of these pins at home.

 

 

 

 

With the pins in hand I wrapped the ribbon around the wreath. One pin held the beginning of the ribbon in place on the inside where it will not be seen.

 

 

 

 

As I wrapped the ribbon around, I overlapped it marginally to create a pattern. I had hoped for a stronger color throughout. It still looked good. Every few inches I used another pin to hold the ribbon in place.

 

 

 

 

Notice the pattern.

(I should have done this over newspaper as I had a lot of glitter from the ribbon on the table).

  

 



 

 

Fortunately I had the second roll of the ribbon because one roll did not cover the entire wreath. Perhaps it would have had I not overlapped it to create a pattern.

 

 

 

The part where I planned to place the mask would have less of the ribbon. I determined placement of the mask. The kids and I had decided the wreath would look more interesting if the mask was placed to one side.

 

 

 



 

Second roll in hand I started wrapping again. This time, I decided to double over alternate wraps to create a stronger color and a pattern slightly different from the first.

 

 

 

 

New pattern and again, double-checking placement of the mask.



 

 

 

I used a glue gun to affix the mask to the wreath.

 

 

 

Some ribbon was left over and I used that to hang the wreath on the door on the knocker.

 

 

 

 

We also decided to keep the black ribbons on the mask for added effect.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Like I said, this project took about 15 minutes to complete up to the time I left the hot glue to dry. The wreath is a little skewed to the right because of the weight of the mask but that is fine.

 

Linking to Savvy Southern Style

If you require any help with Interior Decorating please click on the tab at the top of my page marked 'Services' or click here for further details.

 

I would love for you to leave a comment. Thank you for stopping by; please do check back often.

 

A Fall Weekend

We spent a couple of nights at a bed-and-breakfast in The Berkshires, western Massachusetts, last weekend, just a couple of hours drive north. Monday was Columbus Day which meant no work and no school for some and therefore a long weekend for us.

 

I have always wanted to do a trip such as this to enjoy the stunning colors of the fall foliage when they are at their peak.

 

As it turned out, it was a little early for that but we enjoyed some "leaf peeping" and breathtaking scenery.

 

 

 

 We hiked through woods,...

 

and visited this spectacular waterfall.

 

 

 We spent a day and a half enjoying the countryside and were lucky with the weather, for the most part.

 

 

Apple-picking was on our list of activities for this trip. Although the farm we visited had lost 50% of its crop due to frost we were able to pick the apples from these large crates. These are the jonagold variety which we opted for...there were several others.

 

The farm had other items for sale. 

Garden plants, potted plants and some garden decor like this,..

 

 



 

many, many pumpkins, of course..

 

 

..and this little guy.

 

 

 

We also enjoyed some delicious warm apple cider; definitely a must on a trip like this.

 

On the way back home, we had to drop off our 14-year-old daughter at a birthday party and my 11-year-old and I were invited to join the guests on their visit to Horseman's Hollow at Philipsburg Manor in Sleepy Hollow, NY. This is one of the Hudson Valley's scary Halloween events and part of the tale of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.

 

 

 

 

I screamed at every frightening encounter. It was fun!

 

If you require any help with Interior Decorating please click on the tab at the top of my page marked 'Services' or click here for further details.

 

I would love for you to leave a comment. Thank you for stopping by; please do check back often.

 

Positioning the living room rug & dining room curtains update

The chevron knot rug is heavenly. And I say that because the texture feels just wonderful!



 

I wanted to lighten things up in the living room and downplay the formality of the space with the more traditional and a few global pieces of furniture. My living room truly is an eclectic playground of colors and styles.

 

The living room is 22' x 14'. The previous rug had been removed a few months ago while I searched for something different. The rug arrived. I had a number of pieces of furniture to move to make way for it and I did it by myself.

 

 

But first, the rug pad had to be place in the exact position I wanted. Then I had the rug (still rolled up) all ready to position when I realized it needed to be moved width-wise on the rug pad. I had to haul it gradually; it was very heavy. Then I opened it up, straightening the rug pad as I went along.

It is not an easy task if you take it on all by yourself after moving furniture aside. But like I had said before, I was not waiting for help.

 

 

 Rug pad and rug need to be perfectly aligned before the unravelling or else...

 

 

 

Quite frustrating! I nudged the rug over from the opposite side, straightening it even more as I went along. Made of wool and cotton, it had some give to it and so I then gradually pulled/stretched it at the end.

 

 

 

Not an easy feat but well worth the effort.
And then all the furniture was moved back in.


In the meantime, the dining room curtains have had the beaded trim added to the bottom to increase the length. I picked them up last week and they are look great. They currently lie on my dining table.

I have to reinstall the rod and get these curtains up next.

Enjoy your weekend! We hope to enjoy some fun fall activities; perhaps some apple-picking.
 

If you require any help with Interior Decorating please click on the tab at the top of my page marked 'Services' or click here for further details.

 

I would love for you to leave a comment. Thank you for stopping by; please do check back often.