We're friends, right..

So, can I be honest with you?

It's hard to describe, but 2019 has been an off year for me.  It was way too busy and with too many projects that required too much time on the road, loss of a most treasured loved one, and now it's gone.  As I reached the end of it and began looking back, I came to find much of it is a blur.  

  

It's been a thrilling year having our new grandson with us, he is so precious, and I couldn't love him more!  The interior cabin renovation is finally done, yay!  But it's been an exceptionally busy year and I found myself absolutely exhausted at the end of it.  Then there was Thanksgiving which was late, and Christmas which was early and three birthdays to celebrate, and New Year's Day...and I was hosting it all.  My mind and body were too full of tired and exhaustion to be motivated or creative or to enjoy the process of getting all these things pulled together...I was stuck.

Are you ever like that?

Fall Home Tour 2017

Possibly I should change the title of this post to "Ready for Fall."  You may remember I've been shopping for our cabin fixer-upper.  For the past year I've been acquiring furniture, bedding, kitchen supplies, and so forth, so we will be ready to move in when all the work is finished.  With that, our house is filled to the brim.  The living room is full, the downstairs guest room is full and things are spilling over into great room...it looks like a hoarder lives here!  Even so, I've decorated for fall and the main rooms we live in are ready for the season...so come on in!

Casting Soft Shadows ~ My New Score!

There is nothing quite like the flicker of a candle to warm a room.  I have a thing for lanterns, especially those made of punched tin.  The colonial style goes well in my home and the soft shadows cast in the evening is beautiful.

Quilly?

You already know this about me, but in case you forgot, I am drawn to 18th and 19th century primitive and colonial style furnishings.  Much of it I can't afford, but I'm drawn to it nonetheless.  The fabrics, hooked rugs, metals fashioned by blacksmiths, artwork and furnishing from this time period are all quality made, most by hand and all with attention to detail.  They are well worn and by this time they have a history all their own.  Some of the primitives are just that...primitive...but the maker used the best materials he had and fashioned them by hand. There were Dutch, English, and many other influences during this time and each came with their own bit of sophistication, even in the most primitive of pieces.

From the paint colors, the textiles, furniture and lighting, right down to the crock on the chest, to me this room is perfect.  It is warm, inviting, classic, most likely there is an heirloom or two, and all of it has been collected over time.  Usually in homes like this there are many collections.  Collections of china, pottery, trinkets of this sort or that, and possibly the hunter has a catch or two mounted on the wall. 

Sprucing Up Something New for the Mantel

For a while now I've been searching for something different to use as decoration on our fireplace mantel.  And there she was.  Off in a corner of my favorite antique shop was an old fireplace cover with three deer and an egg and dart border.  She was covered in dirt and grime.

Once home I brought her out back to the water spigot where I hosed her down and gave her a good washing with dish soap and a soft bristled brush.  That made a huge difference but she still needed a little something to brighten her up a bit.  Here is the before...

Valentine's Day in the Great Room and a Giveaway!

Update:  The winner the LoveFeast HeartGram is Vel of Life and Home at 2102.

Thanks so much to all who entered!

I've been getting the house pulled back together and thought I would go ahead and get ready for Valentine's Day seeing that it's just around the corner.

I found the cutest little ornaments last year and used them on this DIY Valentine's tree, you can see it here.  Anyway, I wanted to use them again this year so I pulled them out and did a little fluffing in the great room.

I filled a glass hurricane with some of the ornaments and placed a velvet heart on the lid to a silver dish with a skeleton key to finish it off.  After all, our sweeties hold the key to our hearts, so it seemed fitting.

Christmas in the Great Room

It is always such fun decorating for Christmas.

Since before Thanksgiving and all the way through New Year's Day our calendar is full!   Much more so than any other year I can remember.  The week following Thanksgiving I had less than a week to get the house decorated and a menu planned and prepared for the first Christmas party to be hosted here, so I scaled back the decorating.

With all these events to host and attend, my focus has shifted from decorating ,taking pictures for blogging and the usual holiday activities to preparing for more gatherings with special friends and family.

Though this involves a lot of extra planning, cleaning and cooking, I am enjoying it so much!  More focus on others and spending quality time with them is truly making this an extra special Christmas season.

The great room is simple and fun this year.

With snowmen, snow birds, lots of berries and cute little hats too...come on in!

Fall Home Tour 2015

Welcome to my Fall Home Tour!

As one of 28 bloggers sharing their homes decorated for fall, I'd like to give a big thank you to Brenda at COZY LITTLE HOUSE for hosting and inviting me to be among these sweet and talented bloggers.

If you are new here, welcome to my home!

We live in North Carolina in a southern colonial.  Built in the early 70's, we knew when we bought this home that it was in need of a little care.  As we move along with remodeling, we try to incorporate touches of days gone by with a little farmhouse style to each project.  Our first projects were the FRONT PORCH and ENTRY DOORS.  

We love our porches here in the South and there's nothing better than rocking with a hot cup of coffee in the morning or sipping sweet iced tea in the afternoon.

Fall Flowers and Foxes in the Great Room

There is still a bit of time before it's officially fall.

And even though stores are already full of fall and Christmas decor,

I've been holding on to summer with all my might!

BUT

the

cooler

temps

these past few days were all it took!

I got the itch and added some fall flowers and foxes in the great room!

Little to No Cost Spring Decorating ~ A Southern Magnolia and Clematis Centerpiece

I've been wanting to change the centerpiece in the keeping room
and with the white clematis in bloom and plenty of southern magnolia leaves to gather,

my plan was to bring some outdoors in for this centerpiece.

There was one little problem, rain!

It's been raining and raining and according to the weather forecast it's going to continue through Friday.  I didn't want to wait that long, so with an umbrella in one hand and my pruners in the other, I headed outside.

Colonial Farmhouse Style in the Great Room

We are just home from touring southern plantations and I am appreciating simplicity.

The historic homes on the tour had so much character and charm.

They were not museums, people still live in most of them.
Many are descendants of the original owners.

The homes were full of antiques and pieces that make a statement, some of great value and some not.
Each piece as though it was carefully chosen and thoughtfully placed, having a purpose.

Simplicity, stately but restrained.
Nice furnishings but not cluttered.
Useful pieces with a purpose.
Utilitarian pieces made by local craftsman.

Endearing.
Each home, though different, captured a bit of my heart.
I found myself wishing the walls could talk.  How I would love to know more of the "life" lived there and the history of the furnishings, who crafted it and how did it came to be in this home?

These homes were inspiring, and the good news is...
you don't have to live on a southern plantation,
in France,
or on a farm,
to add any style you like to your home!

As we renovate our southern colonial, more historic touches and farmhouse style are added,  it takes a while but we keep plugging along.

I've been doing some spring cleaning and made some simple changes in the great room.

Decorating with Collections ~ One Thing Leads to Another

It is true.
We decorate our homes with pieces that speak to us.

It was a bit of a surprise, discovering a collection of pups while straightening up some cupboards.
A fun surprise while doing early spring cleaning,
finding one here and another there,
to realize I had a collection of pups of many different types and styles.

Pieces found over time,
not intentional,
they had spoken to me and is how this collection came to be.

With my new found collection, I decided to use some of them.

The Staffordshire pitcher was added to the table by the couch here.

One thing always leads to another.
I brought this pothos plant in from the kitchen, moving it to the marble top table in the great room.
I love the vivid green in this blue and white transferware pitcher,
something bright and cheerful on these dreary days of winter.

Staffordshire Pup Pitcher ~ Changes in the Great Room

I've been straightening up some cupboards, early spring cleaning I guess you could say.
That's when I realized a number of pups that I have collected over time,
so I decided to change things up in the great room.

One of the pups I came across was this Staffordshire pitcher

and that's when all the changes started.

Decorating the Fireplace Mantel & Hearth

The fireplace is even more of a focal point this time of year
as we light the fire for added warmth on these cold days of winter.

I've been wanting to do something different on the fireplace in the great room
and found it easier to begin with a clean slate,
so I cleared everything off.

A Little Life

The other day while at Lowe's,
I noticed a cart full of miniature house plants.

The first to catch my eye were the orchids, I had never seen any so tiny.

The blooms no bigger than a quarter.

There were several different shapes of flower,

each a different color,

but it was the white one that really got my attention.

Though I've never had much luck with orchids,

these were so dainty that I decided to give it another try
and thinking it would be nice to add a little life to the great room during these cold and dreary days of winter, I brought home a variegated Pothos and Peace Lily too.

Primitive Equestrian

I'm drawn to the primitive decor style of the 18th and 19th centuries,
but the rooms can become a bit drab, which I love but don't necessarily want to live in.

While the white vintage and primitive decor style many use to decorate with today is lovely,
I do love color.
To stay true to the furnishings I love,
I temper myself by keeping some things on the lighter side,
so the walls in the great room are painted a gray-white.


I love horses too.
And though we live on old farmland,
our neighbors have horses, goats, and chickens,
and my sister raises Friesians on her farm,
it's been a long time since I've owned a horse.

Oh So Southern

The antique marble table sat bare and as I began dressing it

the

southern

touches

were

there.

Farmhouse Touches in the Great Room

 It was a whirlwind as we moved back in the house,
and with little thought we quickly placed things here and there.
We were just happy to be back home and in the nick of time to do a little decorating for Christmas.

With all the decorations packed away,
I am eager to do some fluffing and have started in the great room.




Itching to use these old farmhouse shutters, I pulled them down from the barn shed out back.  They still had the tag on them from years ago when they were priced for sale in my shop.

Christmas Touches in the Great Room

I wanted to show you the great room all decked out for Christmas!

This room has Mr. Hearts favorite decorations,

can you guess what they are?

Here's How I Did It...

As promised when sharing about Hiding the Black Box and looking for a cost effective solution,

here's how I used a vintage picture to hide the TV and fireplace.

Turning the black boxes from this...

To this ...