Fall...

Being in Maine and seeing lots of pumpkins and all the leaves turning to brilliant yellows, oranges, and reds has got me in the mood for Fall. We actually experienced "weather" in the form of thunderstorms, overcast skies and rain, and cooler temps, and on a couple of occasions, had to wear our warm jackets. It was absolutely wonderful!

So I started looking around for ideas and as usual, I always find myself at the BHG site, where they never disappoint.

I love the simplicity of this and the great contrast between the roses and the vase.

Another simple, yet stunning, way to use natural items found in the garden (or maybe the Farmer's Market if they are not in your garden). I love the glass dome.

Sometimes it's as easy as making (or purchasing) an autumn-colored table runner.

I'm a sucker for the pumpkins under glass... this time they are all white.

It's easy to tuck a few mini/small pumpkins here and there amongst your existing displays.

Although I love this idea and how it looks, I'm not sure I would advocate cutting a wonderful old globe in half. But, if a damaged one could be found, then I'm all for it! I think this would look great with flowers (white mums would look wonderful) or leaves too.

This is very nice too. Simple, easy and elegant, don't you think?

Sandbag bookend... who would have thought of this? It's clever and cute and for anyone with sewing skills and fabric, it would be a cinch to make.

Ok, this is very cute, and I love it, but it's definitely too much work for me. :)) I would love to see one of these in real life. Here's one already made a etsy.

Another glass dome idea... I think these are so interesting and elegant.

I'm loving this! Feathers, wheat, & nuts... how simple and yet, how stunning.

Great idea for the mantle. So simple, easy, and very lovely. It's not screaming "Fall" since the colors are more subdued.

That's it for now. Hope you've found some inspiration.

Take care,

More... but these have "treat" pockets!

Yep... there are more!

DH keeps coming into my sewing room to see my progress. He's my biggest fan, I think. The "treats" that you see in the photos are now gone... I practically had to hide them until I was done using them for props. :)) But I'm also glad they didn't go to waste and that I wasn't the one who had to eat them!

Happy Saturday!

Take care,

Memorial Day Decorating Ideas...

Memorial Day is going to be here before we know it. It's celebrated on Monday, the 28th this year. That's in only 18 days!!! I decided I had better get started looking for some easy, but fun, decorating, cooking, and quilting ideas and here is what I found.

I love this porch and wish I had one just like it. Oh wait...I do have a porch, not just like this one. but it's a porch. I actually have two porches (well, one's really a balcony) and a backyard patio. I could do this bunting from BHG and it would look wonderful. Pretty easy to do too. I doubt it would take very much time. I might actually get this done in time for the holiday (that would be a first) :) I like the little pup too!

This is also a wonderful and very patriotic idea (also from BHG) for Memorial Day and/or 4th of July decorating. That huge flag really makes a statement doesn't it? And, the quilted pillows and patchwork quilts just add the perfect finishing touch. 

These quilts are terrific to use for patriotic decorating, but they also work for any time. Very simple and easy to make, but stunning. There's no pattern on the BHG website, but I'm sure it would be very easy to find a pattern for a quilt like this. I love the way that red really pops against the blue walls.



Look at this! Here's another really cute and easy bunting idea from Tip Junkie! Visit the tutorial page!

Yum....these look so good, don't they? Tip Junkie has another cute and easy idea for picnics or parties. Patriotic Ice Cream Sandwich Pops...aren't they perfect?

Don't forget about my knitted socks giveaway. Go to this post to leave me a comment to have a chance at winning!



Take care,

Easter's just around the corner...

I started looking for some easy Easter decorating ideas since Easter is almost here. We do very simple decorating for any holidays, but I always love to look for great ideas anyway.

Better Homes & Gardens always has ideas that I love. They're simple and usually quite inexpensive but are really quite clever and always cute/pretty.

Since I collect vintage postcards this idea appeals to me.

Isn't this a clever idea? I wish I had an umbrella in that color. Actually, I have a plaid one (like the plaid in the photo above) that might look good. Of course, my front door is black so it might not look a lot like "Easter" but it would be fun to try.

I might have to do this too. It's simple and I love the idea of working with just one design element. Brussels sprouts not only taste good, they are beautiful to look at. Who doesn't love a topiary?



It's always fun to find a new way to display flowers and vegetables. I love the small carrots in this, aren't they cute?

Here's a cute egg idea using fabric strips. After reading the instructions, I think they seem pretty easy to do,

This cute idea came from Country Living. Easy to do and would work for many occasions. I think I would use pastel paper bags and yellow jelly beans.

Oh...I love this cake idea. Easy and so clever! If you have kids they could help with this. How fun!

Hope these few ideas get you started thinking about Easter, if you haven't already.

Take care,

Waterless Snow Globes...

I've been making a few of these (some for me and some for gifts) and they are quite addictive. I originally saw them in Anthropologie and since then I've seen them all over blogland. They are really very vintage looking, which I think is much of their appeal.

And, they are soooo easy to make! Especially when you use empty spaghetti sauce & salad dressing bottles. How FUN!

Take care,

Christmas Stocking Idea...

Isn't this a wonderful idea for a sewer? I absolutely l-o-v-e this! Very clever.

Take care,

Annual Christmas Wreath ideas...

As usual, I've started looking for Christmas wreath ideas and I've found a few new ones that I like to share with you.

I especially love this one from Martha Stewart as I find it so elegant and simple.

Isn't this cute, and clever... I'm always looking for good ways to display my Christmas cards.

Since I'm a knitter I've got plenty of yarn around. I like the "handmade" aspect of this wreath and it's sheer simplicity.

This Button Wreath is another great idea for those who sew and have many, many buttons in their collection. Sound familiar?

I like this idea since it's super easy and could actually be used at times other than Christmas. It just seems so clean.

And, last but certainly not least, for the wine-drinking, cork lovers....here's a nice little wreath!



Even though this is about garlands, stocking, etc (and not wreaths), I think this is information that must be shared. Wish I had known about this many years ago. I've always been very careful and very leery about draping my mantle with garland because I was afraid of scratching (or otherwise damaging) the wood. Well, here's a great solultion!!

I know many of you already have your Christmas decorating done and these ideas won't help, but it seems like my wreath is always the last thing I get around to so I'm still collecting ideas!

Take care,

Some fall decorating idea...

This is my favorite time of year and this year it's been perfect weather too! Usually here in So Cal, we're having pretty warm/hot weather but this year it's been overcast and a bit rainy even. Cooler temps too - just perfect for fall decorating.

I was looking around on the BHG website and found this great gourd/pumpkin wreath. This would look great on my front door which is black, but I also think it would look good as an "inside" wreath too.

I love the look of fall branches/leaves in a vase but it's hard to find real ones here where we live and so far I haven't seen anything "faux" that looks good. My sis lives in an area where I'll bet she can find fall color.

This idea I like, not particularly for the Indian Corn, but for the use of natural items in jars in the cabinet. Love that look!

I love this front porch/entry. We all love mums right? But I also love the contrast between the neutral colors of brown door and the white pumpkins with the vibrant orange of the mums and the texture of the red bricks. Just gorgeous!

I haven't done much fall decorating yet although I did get 3 little "Wee Be Little" pumpkins for the mantle. It's a start!