Belle & Beau Antiquarian

Favorite Books for Vintage Lovers

2019-06-23T15:22:00.000-04:00

Favorite Books for Vintage Lovers

Do you have a favorite book from your childhood?

I read a lot as a child. A random, odd fact about me is that our family did not own a TV from the time I was about 7 until I was 13. My parents decided that they didn't want a TV in the house. While I think that this can be a great thing if done correctly, I do regret that my siblings and I missed out on a lot of Pop Culture. One benefit, however, is that I read. A lot.

Through my antique finding and selling adventures I discovered that there were some titles I remembered fondly, and I made a point to look for them. A few of my favorites:

Anne of Green Gables, Pollyanna, The Secret Garden, Heidi, Little Women, and Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm.

If you have some favorites from your childhood that you would look for, what would they be? Some titles are especially valuable. Some titles are especially hard to find. For example, The unabridged Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm was really hard for me to find. Of course, condition and published year can make a big difference, too. For me, I didn't so much mind the condition of the pages as I did the cover.

Online auctions are a great resource if you are looking for a specific book!

Happy Book Hunting!

Patriotic Summer Decor

2019-06-23T14:35:00.000-04:00

Patriotic Summer Decor

Red, white, and blue can carry you Memorial Day through Labor Day.

One of the reasons I love decorating for the summer is I know that once I have my home all decorated I can leave it up for a long time. If you break out all of your red, white, and blue patriotic decor in May for Memorial Day, you can have your home decorated for flag day in June, Fourth of July, and all the way until Labor Day in September.

I have one storage bin with some Fourth of July and patriotic decorations. I will also "shop" my home for some other red, white, or blue items. I also like to include seashells, because they remind me of summer. I like to think of seashells as a neutral color. I even use them to check off the "white" if I am missing that in a red, white, and blue vignette.

Layer china patterns for a patriotic look. How cute are these Allerton's Blue Willow individual butter pat dishes?

I like to use red Coca-Cola crates, vintage Pyrex bowls, books, and napkins for "red". Blue canning jars, picture frames, and Blue Willow china are perfect for "blue". White seashells, milk glass dishes, and anything silver will make your "white".

Use seashells you picked up on the beach for filler.

Another tip I have is one that I use for every holiday. Shop the after-holiday clearance sale. I've had this bunting and these "fans" for a couple of years in my storage bin. I found them on clearance at Target a few years back.

Summer makes me so happy! I hope you find joy in this season as well.

Setting my Thanksgiving Table

2017-11-19T10:15:00.000-05:00

I had a few minutes this morning before the rest of the house woke up. (Turning off all of the alarm clocks for Thanksgiving break is such a decadent feeling.) I decided to play around with some Thanksgiving plates to get a couple of different looks.

On Thanksgiving Day I'll use my table runner (from World Market) and some chargers. I haven't decided yet, but I might not use a table cloth this year. But for the photo's sake and just having fun, I used this plaid blanket I have. Our blankets are usually on this antique ladder, and we just grab one for watching TV or standing in front of the coffee pot waiting for it to brew. :)

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The pillow and the blanket on the top are from TJ Maxx/Homegoods. The bottom two blankets are vintage Pendleton blankets.

First I used my Johnson Brothers His Majesty plates for this look:

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And my chargers are from where else? Homegoods!

Next I used my Johnson Brothers Hearts and Flowers plates for this look:

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I know these aren't traditional Thanksgiving plates, but the couple on them has always reminded me of Pilgrims.

I love how navy blue looks with gold. It's one of my favorite color combos. I didn't have time to get these napkins monogrammed, but I think they'll look great with a traditional script "S" on them.

Lastly, just to show how much one detail can change the whole look, here are the same plates as above, but with a gold napkin instead of navy:

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I like it better with the navy, but either would be fine!

Note: These are my personal plates, but I collected quite too much of the Johnson Brothers Hearts and Flowers collection over the years. There are many pieces of this pattern available in my Etsy shop HERE.

Remember to use what you like. Maybe what you like is not washing dishes - so use Chinet! It's about the food, the conversation, and the memories, anyway. This just happens to be something I enjoy doing. Any time we've spent Thanksgiving with family and friends, I am just happy to be there. Don't worry about everything being perfect for your guests.

Thanksgiving Music Playlist

2017-11-06T10:50:00.005-05:00

Just a quick post to share some of my favorite songs to play on Thanksgiving.

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Just a quick post to share some of my favorite songs to play on Thanksgiving. We're in Georgia, so Georgia on My Mind was included. I like the Michael Buble version. It's easily swapped with a song about your favorite state.

Do you have some favorite "Thanksgiving" songs that sound similar to these? I prefer this vibe to some jumpier ones while I'm cooking, eating, or talking around the table.

Here's a link to the playlist on Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/thanksgiving/pl.u-9N9L2ydT75EVaX

Thanksgiving Dinnerware Patterns

2017-11-04T20:43:00.001-04:00

Only one holiday comes to mind that is almost entirely centered around the dining table and food: Thanksgiving.

Food is important in all of the holidays we celebrate, but other activities such as church services, gifts, egg hunts, or fireworks also take center stage. But when it's time for Thanksgiving it's all about the food. And therefore, I have a love of Thanksgiving plates that the food is placed on.

There are many vintage china patterns with Thanksgiving or turkey patterns that I admire, but there are some new ones, too. Here are a few of my favorites that I'd like to share with you.

photo from Replacements.com

These plates called His Majesty by Johnson Brothers, England were produced from 1955 - 1983, but reintroduced in 2004. Johnson Brothers seems to have caught on that America loves to put a turkey themed pattern on their Thanksgiving table. They have produced many patterns featuring the bird of the day.

photo from Replacements.com

This Thanksgiving scene in red transferware is very handsome! It's called Bountiful Harvest by Homer Laughlin.

photo from Replacements.com

This pattern, called Thanksgiving by Spode, is elegant and formal.

Blue and white transferware is very popular, but also quite timeless. This is Blue Turkey by Wedgwood.

Available at Williams Sonoma this year are the Plymouth Turkey and Plymouth Pumpkin patterns, which are very pretty!

The Plymouth Pumpkin plates from Williams Sonoma could be displayed for the entire fall season from Halloween to Thanksgiving.

What is your favorite Thanksgiving dinnerware pattern? I love discovering new vintage patterns that I've never seen before, especially when they're mixed and matched. Please share yours with me.

Simple Fall Mantle

2017-09-23T12:24:00.000-04:00

Wow, I haven't posted in two whole years! Oops.

I really wish there was a better app to blog post while on my phone. I spend a ton of time in my car waiting on my teens, and I could totally get some blogging done that way. Super quick update on Belle & Beau: Right now I am exclusively selling on Etsy. I have a lot of long-term goals that include a brick-and-mortar store at some point. But Etsy's working for now. I tend to update and post the most (which still isn't nearly enough) on Facebook. So if you're missing me, look for me there. (Thanks for making the Pages Manager easy to use, Facebook.)

Onward! I recently found an over-sized Rubbermaid bin of fall decor that I hadn't used or thought about in 2-3 years. I figured if I didn't miss it, then I should just get rid of it. So, off to Goodwill it is ALL going. Buh-bye!

I decorated our fall mantle by just switching out a couple of things. The vintage blue books, the old window, the jar, and the wood art that I created years ago were all already there. The frame was already there with a verse, but I just switched out the verse to one with more fall colors.

Did you know that you can click on a picture to make it bigger?

Years ago I bought a set of Bible alphabet memory cards from She Reads Truth. They fit perfectly into an 8 x 10 frame. I never really liked the colors of this one, but when I was thinking about the mantle, I realized that it is perfect for fall. I don't know if they still sell this particular set. Try clicking the link on their name above, and you can see what's available.

I picked up the 3 pumpkins and the Gather sign from the Target dollar spot. But other than that, I already had everything in the pictures. Total for everything was probably under $10.

The wall color is Danville Tan by Benjamin Moore. It looks different throughout the day depending on the sunlight. Our family room gets quite a bit of light. It is kind of hard to photograph this wall color, so I am sometimes reluctant to do so.

Thanks for reading! That's all for now. Hopefully it won't be two years again.

The 50 Week China Cabinet Makeover

2015-09-03T11:00:00.000-04:00

There really isn't a solid reason why, but this china cabinet took me 50 weeks to finish. I wasn't feeling a big creative push when I started working on it, and I think at the time we were transitioning out of an antique store we were in. I.e. I didn't have a big need for additional inventory. Regardless of why, it actually took 50 weeks from start to finish.

Here it is "before"...

As always, a little repair work was needed before painting.

So there are a few things that lead me to believe this is from the 1920s - 30s. I think it has some definite Art Deco elements like the original handles on the bottom, the feet, and the trim work. (And who said I don't use my degree on a daily basis?! Those Furniture History classes come in handy more than I ever thought they would.)

So after 50 weeks, here is the after.

Obviously there was a color change. I made my own "chalky" paint from scratch using Benjamin Moore's Danville Tan. Painting was necessary mainly because of the repair work needed. I also changed the glass on the front. I created a "mercury glass" type of finish instead of clear glass. There are lots of methods for creating mercury glass if you search for it on Pinterest. It's not my first time doing this technique, but a word to the wise: Just like a crackle finish will never turn out the same way twice, mercury glass will never turn out the same way twice. Let's just say I thought long and hard, was definitely sure it was what I wanted to do, took some long, calming breaths, and said a prayer before I started it.

I'm happy the "mercury glass" turned out well!

It would have been fine without the mercury glass finish, but it didn't seem quite complete to me without it.

The handles on the bottom are unique. I'm all about using the original hardware whenever possible.

Here's the before and after...

What a big difference! I know it's hard to tell from the pictures how big this is. It's only about 64" tall, which is on the smaller side for a china cabinet. That's typical for the time period it's from though. I can totally see this being used as anything from bathroom storage to a bar or bookshelf.

Until next time...

Soft Aqua Dresser

2015-09-02T11:00:00.000-04:00

Another new dresser! I don't know why I'm so bad about showing these off to everyone once they're finished. I'm really going to try to be better about that.

Here's a small dresser that I picked up a while ago. As always, it needed some repair work. I don't tend to paint quality wood furniture unless there's something wrong with it. I do make exceptions for "ugly" furniture that needs a makeover though.

I usually try to paint furniture in neutral colors so that more people will be able to use them. But I have this one particular blue color that I love to use. It's a custom color that I make. I make my own "chalky" paint. There are recipes galore on Pinterest.

I've had a hard time capturing the true color in photos. I like to describe it as the perfect, soft aqua/blue/teal color.

I'm happy that I was able to keep the original hardware. It still looks great, and it's usually higher quality craftsmanship that what is currently available.

This is fairly small, just 35" tall. Perfect for a guest bedroom or even bathroom storage.

I also just finished an Art Deco era china cabinet that I'll post about soon. I seriously started working on it 50 weeks ago - almost a year! I'm glad it is done.

Dresser Makeover, Hardware Too!

2015-09-01T12:52:00.002-04:00

Sometimes I forget exactly how many pieces of furniture have come and gone through our hands. It doesn't seem like that many until I start scrolling through the files on our computer. It's a lot, y'all. There's a lot of learning and hands-on experience that have resulted from doing so many pieces, but from time to time I still come across problems that need to be solved.

Here's a dresser that I just finished. Sorry, I don't have a great before picture, but it's the one on the right. It was blah, painted brown, and nothing to be desired. It's wood, but the wood was painted over with a brown color. Not sure why.

I decided to go with gray and blue. I'm holding off on the "after" picture because I want to talk about my hardware problem first. I may have mentioned it before but ALWAYS, for the love of Pete, ALWAYS count the hardware before you buy it. Why? I promise you that you WILL spend more on new hardware than you did on the piece. And I also promise you that you won't be able to find new hardware that matches up to old holes. Trust me. So anyway, I counted the hardware, but failed to notice that some of it was damaged. Take a look:

Pretty brass hardware (y'all know it's back, right?) with some faux tortoise cabochon type thingies. Except, some of the cabochons were broken and some were missing completely. First of all, let me be completely honest: The cabochons were ugly and plastic-y feeling. But I would have TOTALLY left them on there if they had all been intact. Not gonna lie - I would not have spent a dime to replace them.

However, that wasn't an option. I played around with several things, but I ended up coming up with this:

I married the old, original drawer pull with a new, pretty knob. And....I love it. But wait, there's more. The next problem? Screws. Yep, turns out it was annoyingly difficult to find screws that worked. I got some blank stares at a local hardware store, and one morning I had two employees at Home Depot finally help me put together something that worked. I needed 8 screws exactly, but...

Instead I got 7 plus this screw ^ that someone didn't turn into a screw. (Another trip back to Home Depot.)

Ok, finally. Here's the after:

The hardware certainly wasn't an issue I anticipated, but I think it completely transformed the piece. What do you think?

What Are Tomorrow's Collectible Items?

2015-08-21T11:51:00.000-04:00

Recently my dad was visiting, and while we were eating dinner we struck up a conversation about things that we have stopped using in recent history. In other words, what do we no longer use today that perhaps ten years ago we used regularly?

As we sat there we came up with some very interesting things. Looking back on our conversation I think that those things we came up with may be one day valuable and sought after. So what can you collect today that in the future will be valuable? What are people not missing on a daily basis today that at some point in their golden years will give them a rush of nostalgia? Because, after all, most vintage and antique items are emotional purchases.

I can't tell you how many times while selling at an antique fair or antique store that I have heard, "Remember when..." or "I haven't seen one of these in years!" or "We used to have one of these..."

So, let's think. What do you no longer use today that you needed on a regular basis 5 or 10 years ago?

Here are just a couple of things we came up with:

Phones - House phones, pay phones, handheld on the wall phones. Especially phones that aren't cordless.

Phone books - When is the last time you've used one?

Dictionaries - nice quality, hard bound dictionaries used to be very common. Google, anyone?

Maps - I recently tried to find some inexpensive maps for a project I was working on. You can find them, but they are NOT cheap because no one buys them anymore. Move over maps, GPS and the internet are here.

Film - very uncommon to find it to purchase or to find someone to develop it quickly. No more one hour photo when you drop a roll of film off.

Feel free to chime in in the comments below. Share what you no longer use that in recent history you stopped using! Chances are, the things you think of will be tomorrow's collectible items.

Garden Update: 3 Sisters Garden & Square Foot Garden

2015-06-01T09:55:00.000-04:00

Quick Update! Back in March I posted my garden plans using the 3 Sisters Method, as well as some square foot gardening. I thought I'd post some pictures so that you could see how it grows in, and also so that you could visualize how it all works out. To see the original post with the garden plans, go HERE.

Here's an update on how the 3 Sisters Garden comes together:

3 Sisters Garden
To see any photo larger, just click on it!

I did end up supporting the corn with some garden stakes. We had a few days of heavy rain and wind, and it fell over. I am really enjoying the nasturtium this year. I've never grown it before. The leaves as well as the flowers are pretty. And then there's the fact that it does double duty keeping pests away.

Nasturtium at dusk after rain.

Here you can see the beans climbing up the corn...those 3 sisters!

Here's a view of one of my square foot garden beds:

Original garden plan found HERE.
To view any photo larger, just click on it!

So far. so good! Everything is coming in nicely. We've already eaten a bunch of the lettuce. One night I wanted to make tacos, but had forgotten lettuce. Then I realized I had lettuce in the backyard. Perfect!

Here is how I train the cucumbers to grow vertically:

I also use twist ties left over from bread bags. Be careful not to break off the heads of the vines!

Pretty soon the cucumbers will be ready!

Thanks for stopping by! Happy gardening to you!

It's a Wonderful Life to Travel the World

2015-04-24T11:51:00.002-04:00

I can't think of traveling without thinking of George Bailey. You know, the guy played by actor Jimmy Stewart in the classic Christmas Movie, "It's A Wonderful Life." I think of George's giant suitcase and all of the stickers that didn't get put on it as he planned. George got sidetracked from his travels when he stayed in town to save the old Building and Loan. I hope George got to travel one day.

We're just a few weeks away from sending our son to Europe for 9 days. Every scenario possible has woken me up at night over the past week. But I have always made a conscious effort not to parent out of fear. We want our kids to be safe, but we also want them to spread their wings and fly.

I think it's funny how life goes along with little bits of fate mixed in. Last week I pick up this vintage globe bank. It reads: As you save, so you prosper. It just resonated with me that what you make a priority in life will surely be available to you. We hope our kids will make it a priority to see the world and appreciate the diversity of its people. (Interesting side note, this bank was made around the same time as the movie.)

If you're interested in this bank, go HERE.

"And he said to them, go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation." Mark 16:15

Southern Hummingbird Cake with Tupelo Honey Cream Cheese Frosting

2015-04-12T16:00:00.003-04:00

Do you have a favorite cake? Funny enough, I associate a specific cake with each of my siblings. My sister, Tara, is without a doubt "Pineapple Upside Down Cake." It's one of her faves and I enjoy making them for her when I can. My twin bro, Ty, is Coconut Cake. We grew up with a sweet little Southern neighbor named AnnieBelle, who adored Ty so much that she made him a Coconut Cake all for himself. I'm not sure if he likes it as an adult, but there's nothing he can do to change my mind that Coconut Cake = Ty. And my biggest bro, Stephen, is Baked Alaska. It's a long time running joke that he would, of course, request one of the most difficult desserts to make from his wife on his birthday. Poor Dawna.

So what cake am I? I don't know...I'll have to ask them what they think. Samantha thinks I am "Carrot Cake." And I do love it. But for my birthday I decided to make a Southern cake staple, the Hummingbird Cake. The density and icing is totally something you would like if you are a carrot cake lover.

I'm making a few changes. First of all, no nuts for us - Both because of food of allergies and because I don't like a crunchy cake. Secondly, I am using Tupelo honey in both the cake and the icing. My sister gifted me with a jar of my favorite Tupelo honey from the Savannah Bee Company.* Tupelo honey has a buttery flavor and it's going to pair nicely with the bananas, pineapple, and coconut in my recipe. (Recipe at the bottom.) *This isn't a paid advertisement. I just really like their honey.

To get started, mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl.

In a smaller bowl whisk the eggs and oil. I whisked the honey in at this point, too. But next time I'm going to add it at the same time as the bananas.

Time to add the bananas, pineapple, and coconut.

So rich with the yummy Tupelo honey cream cheese icing...Disclaimer: I am NOT a cake decorator. Not pretty, but oh so good!

Ingredients

3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 3/4 sugar
1/4 cup honey (You can order Tupelo honey from Savannah Bee Company HERE.)
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups very ripe chopped bananas
8 oz. crushed pineapple (un-drained)
1/2 cup coconut
1/2 chopped pecans (optional)
softened butter and flour for greasing pans

Preheat oven to 350*
Grease and flour two 9-inch baking pans
Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl: flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, sugar
Beat eggs and oil in a smaller bowl; add to flour and stir with a spatula.
Stir in bananas, un-drained pineapple, coconut, and honey. (And nuts if you are using them.) Mix well.
Pour batter into pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Cakes are done when a tester comes out clean.
Allow cakes to cool in pans for 10 minutes and then cool completely on wire racks.
Ice with honey cream cheese icing and top with toasted coconut and/or nuts.
To toast coconut or pecans spread evenly on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes at 350*.

Honey Cream Cheese Frosting

8 oz. softened cream cheese
2 tbs. room temperature butter
1/4 cup of honey
1/2 tsp. vanilla
3-4 cups of powered sugar

In an electric mixer beat the cream cheese, butter, honey, and vanilla until it is smooth with no clumps. While the mixer is on a slow speed, gradually add the powdered sugar until you get the consistency that you like. The more powdered sugar you add the thicker the icing will be.

Want to save this recipe for later? Use any of the "PinIt" buttons to add it to your Pinterest boards.

Caring for Blueberry Bushes

2015-04-10T16:35:00.003-04:00

So I pruned my blueberries a few weeks ago. Super Important. You will not believe how much blueberry production will increase if you've never pruned before. More branches and growth do NOT equal more blueberries. For more info on how to prune go HERE. If the plant is using all of its energy and nutrients to feed leaves, guess what it won't be doing? That's right, making blueberries!

Now is the time (I'm zone 7) for all of the flowers to cover my bushes. And time, too, for the very important work of bees. Without the bees and their pollination, the blueberries would not be possible.

A busy bee at work pollinating my blueberry bushes.

This essential pollination is why you should have at least two varieties of blueberry bushes planted. Next to each other.The cross-pollination will greatly increase the production of blueberries. Some varieties won't produce at all without cross-pollination. Side note: this is really the only time of year bees will be attracted to the plants. So if you have bee sting concerns, don't worry!

All of these flowers will soon be blueberries!

During the time of year when the bees are pollinating the bushes, I also like to fertilize with Epsom salts. I let 1/4 cup dissolve in a couple of gallons of room temperature water, and then I divide it between the two mature plants. (I planted 3 new ones this year, and I'm not going to fertilize them this year.) Epsom salts provide magnesium, which blueberry bushes like. (Your tomatoes and bell peppers like it, too, BTDubs.)

Okay, so are you ready to see my bushes? I hesitate to post a picture because it doesn't look like these two could actually produce the gallons of berries that they do. Here you go...

These guys are in full sun on the south side of our house.
They love to be mulched, so there is pine straw covering the soil.

Can you believe it? They don't look like much, but they are big producing bushes!

If you want to read more about my blueberry care and other blueberry related posts:

Blueberry Muffins

Blueberry Pie

Misc. Blueberry Nonsense

Easter Egg Salad

2015-04-03T12:30:00.000-04:00

What do you do with all of the dyed eggs when Easter is over? We love deviled eggs, but don't forget about yummy egg salad! Here's my personal recipe below. Try using different kinds of bread, too. You can get variations of flavor with rye, white, or croissants. I personally love egg salad on rye bread.

Ingredients

10 hard boiled eggs
1/2 cup of Kraft Miracle Whip (Mayo is BIG in the South, and if you want to use mayo, you can. But the Miracle Whip adds a pleasant tang, so I use it in my egg salad.)
3/4 tbsp. of dry mustard
1/4 cup sweet pickle relish
Salt & Pepper to taste

Get Cooking!

To cook the eggs place them in a cold, large saucepan. Cover with one inch (or a finger tip) of cold water. Once the water starts to boil, reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes. Remove and place in an ice bath until completely cooled.
Peel cooked eggs and rinse with water to remove all bits of shell. "Surprise" shell is very unpleasant!
Cut eggs in half; Separate the yolks from the whites.
Chop the whites; Smash the yolks with a fork; Combine in a large bowl.
Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. If you prefer more Miracle Whip, salt, or pepper--add to taste.
Chill before serving.

Use this method to boil all of your eggs to avoid those weird green yolks. Eggs are one of those starchy foods, like pasta, that continue to cook even after you turn off the heat. The ice bath stops the cooking. No rubber eggs, please!

Enjoy!

Easy and Elegant Easter Place Settings

2015-04-02T12:03:00.000-04:00

Let's get real for a minute here: You're probably not hosting Easter brunch for a magazine shoot. Your place settings don't have to look like the Easter Bunny couldn't decide what to buy, so he bought ~~one~~ five of everything. There are several reasons why I like to feature simple, but elegant place settings.

First, hosting friends and family for a meal doesn't need to be unnecessarily complicated. Your guests aren't expecting a "show." What they really want is conversation, fellowship, contact. It's possible to make them feel special when they sit down to eat without killing yourself to make it look that way.

Next, making a place setting look special doesn't need to cost a fortune. As I talked about in this post HERE, I like to find basic dishes that can be used for all sorts of occasions. White works...go with it. If you buy different dishes to use for different holidays and events, the cost of hosting will take some joy out of doing it. Not to mention, you will need to find storage for all the various things. We are blessed to have an abundance of storage space; but honestly, there's never enough space to store all of the things you have. Bottom line, invest in some nice, quality basic pieces that you can use time and time again.

Finally, sometimes less is more. I firmly believe in keeping things simple and classic. I don't want to sit down to a meal and feel like I'm surrounded by cluttered decorations. Can we say, "Claustrophobic"? That's not how you want your guests to feel. Hosting is all about making your guests feel comfortable and welcome. Focus on that!

With all of that said, here are some examples of simple and elegant Easter place settings.

This is in our dining room:

To see any photo larger, just click on it!

The tablecloth, place mats, and napkins are all from HomeGoods. The plates are antique German china, but I'd also be completely comfortable using my favorite white plates from World Market. The mini tulips are from Publix; we used them all throughout our Spring decor this year and you can see more of that HERE and HERE.

Here are some examples of other people's place settings that I found on Pinterest. If you'd like to follow me on Pinterest, use the button on the top, right corner of the page.

I found this on Or So She Says.... She has a great how-to. I'm not great with acrylic paint, so I'd opt for a gold or silver Sharpie marker. Look for the little nests in the floral department of Michael's or Hobby Lobby.

This one seems so simple and FUN! I found it on All You.com. You can find M & M's of all one color at Party City, Michael's, or Hobby Lobby.

Super affordable and your guests can take this one home! I found it on With a Grateful Prayer and a Thankful Heart. Use simple twine, string, or even embroidery floss to bind the sticks together. If you want to skip on the tags, you could type of the verse on some paper or card stock and cut it into strips. You could lay it with the strip or even glue the strip. Since it's sticks, simply use Elmer's glue.

This one is a little different, but I love it:

I found this on Apartment Therapy. If your local store has carrots with the green tops attached, you could totally use those, too. It reminds me of the poem by Else Holmelund Minarik:

Little seeds we sow in spring

growing while the robins sing,

give us carrots, peas and beans,

tomatoes, pumpkins, squash and greens.

And we pick them,

one and all,

through the summer,

through the fall.

Winter comes, then spring, and then

little seeds we sow again.

Enjoy! Remember, relax and don't make hosting a chore.

Want to see more posts about simple place settings? Go HERE.

Spring Entryway Decorations

2015-04-01T12:30:00.000-04:00

The sunshine and warmer temps have definitely been inspiring. Our bright and happy Easter and Spring decorations have carried throughout the house. Here are a few pictures of the entryway.

Click any photo if you want to see it bigger!

I don't think I've shared a photo of this table yet. It was originally a dark cherry finish. The bottom has a glaze over powder blue and the top has been "crackled."

This little lamb is so sweet, don't you think? Plus, tulips in antique Ball jars is a no brainer. The chalkboard was picked up at Hobby Lobby and I used our barnwood vinegar stain from THIS POST to age the frame. Before, it was new and unstained.

This typewriter is a fave. I picked it up one year while on an adventure with my sister, Tara, at the Crabapple Antique Festival in Milton, Georgia. If you're interested in finding other antique festivals in Georgia go HERE and HERE. (It's an older post so the dates won't be accurate, but you can put it in the Google-machine.)

Our Easter Mantel

2015-03-31T13:25:00.004-04:00

I thought I'd share a few photos of our Easter mantel this year. If you've read my past posts then you know that I like to decorate by "shopping" my house for items I can use. I always gravitate towards shopping for items of specific color. This time I was on the hunt for blue.

To see the photo larger, just click on it!

I can't for the life of me remember where I bought the banner, but I am certain that it was one year after Easter and on discount. Then it sat in a Rubbermaid bin for a couple of years before Samantha and I put it together last year. We stamped "Hoppy Easter" on it.

The blue books on the mantel were easy to collect throughout the house. And well, Ball mason jars are pretty common around here. Let's just say that I've ~~hoarded~~ passionately collected them. I regret every one of them that I've sold!

You might recognize the little bunnies from this post HERE. They're from World Market.

I keep meaning to spray paint that candle holder. Warmer temps are here, so now may be the time!

I am pretty sure the bunnies (one piece) came from Hobby Lobby. The wall color is Danville Tan by Benjamin Moore. It's been our wall color since we moved in ten years ago, and I still love it as much as I did the first day. It looks different at night than in the day. It's very calming in person. (P.S. This color looks great in person. It looks totally wonky on my cellphone screen, so keep an open mind!)

Do you remember the barn wood that Ken and I got off of a an old barn/army building HERE? And also used to make THIS?

We used some our favorite pieces to make some free wall art for our mantel. The color is all natural and original. All we did was cut it and attach it together.

The "S" is for our last name. ;) The window was picked up on one of our Craig's List adventures.

I had fun pulling everything together. Everything other than the fresh tulips and the tiny bunnies on top of the books are things we already had. My favorite kind of decorating...FREE!

If you want to save any of these pictures, just click on the Pin It button and you can save it to Pinterest.

How to Create an Easter Centerpiece in 3 Easy Steps

2015-03-26T12:24:00.000-04:00

Good Morning! I'm working on some Easter decorations and thought I'd share my 3 step method for those of you that might get stuck and need some inspiration. Breaking it down into 3 simple steps makes things so much easier!

Things you already own can be used as a container!

Step #1 Pick a Container

I "shopped" around my house for options to use as a container for a centerpiece. These things all seemed to have Easter-like colors or inspired me with an idea. The clear glass kitchen canisters can be purchased at Walmart. They are made by Anchor Hocking and you can find them in the kitchen storage section. The antique Ball jar, jadeite bowl, Brush McCoy bowl, and milk glass sugar bowl were all items that I've picked up over the years.

For help finding these, check the floral department of a craft store.

Step #2 Pick a Filler

Most Easter decorations are inspired by nature: rabbits, chicks, eggs, carrots. I tried to keep in this mindset while I picked up some dried moss, raffia, Easter grass made of straw, and natural looking eggs. I found all of these at Michaels. The Easter stuff was all 40% off, plus I had a 20% off everything coupon. Sweet!

My cast of Easter characters that I used for focal points.

Step #3 Choose Your Focal Point

Find something to be at the center of your centerpiece. ;-) I've had the ducks for years; I think they actually came from Party City. The lamb has been around a while, too. Hobby Lobby, maybe? The rabbits are all new from World Market. (Oh, I love you World Market.)

Put the filler into the container and arrange the focal point. That's it!

1. Jadeite bowl 2. Straw grass and eggs 3. Bunny

1. Cake plate for a container 2. Moss and straw grass 3. Egg holder (World Market)

Same as above, except the focal point is the lamb.

1. Extra large glass canister 2. Dried moss and eggs 3. Rabbit (I did add some ribbon to this one.)

Same as above except I put in an antique book and the smaller bunnies.

1. Antique Ball jar 2. Straw grass 3. The eggs are the focal point in this one!

I truly hope this helps you create some lovely decorations for your home. I'd love to see your creations or to know what was helpful for you.

A History of Country Easter Egg Decorating: a Pennsylvania Dutch Tradition

2015-03-24T10:54:00.000-04:00

An introduction:

Today most families decorate their Easter eggs with store bought kits. I know we certainly do! The more advantageous egg decorators may even use natural dyes they discovered on Pinterest. I would like to share with you the history of how my grandparents and great-grandparents decorated Easter eggs with their kids, my dad included, while they lived in Shenandoah Valley, Virginia. Their ancestors were Pennsylvania Dutch and these methods for Easter egg dying most likely came with them from Pennsylvania to Virginia over a century ago. I post this here in the hope that this history will not be lost. Thank you to my aunts Gail and Martha who humored me a couple of years ago with my questions, and my apologies for taking so long to publish it here.

"Easter was an important part of growing up in the country -- not only did we see Easter Sunday as the most important Sunday in the life of the church, it was a time when we kids could take part in coloring Easter Eggs, and at the same time we heard stories of an even older time! Here is the sequence of how we did our eggs:

First, on Good Friday Mama (Grandmother Polly Will Lytton) would boil several dozen eggs -- sometimes 3 or 4 dozen depending on how many were at hand. Once the eggs were boiled they were placed in colanders or pans -- nestled into old cotton of some sort (old dish towels, clean rags of every kind) and ALWAYS with very clean hands -- Mama did not want any oil or grease to spoil what would be the final product. The pans of eggs were then put on the back screened porch to cool overnight -- never into the icebox (or later the refrigerator) where if cooling too fast they would "sweat".

On the Saturday before Easter, after supper, Mama would gather all the things needed to "spot eggs" --- vinegar, suet, dyes, old woolen shirts or sweaters -- she would have everything ready before she brought the eggs in from the porch.

With all us kids hovering around and Grandma Edna and Granddad Carson near by we would start (I can't remember your Granddad Ty Cobb Lytton being involved at all -- maybe he was doing final outside chores ...or taking time to just sit aside and read the paper!)

This is how it would go: Grandma had boiled some onion skins to make brown dye; Granddaddy would be standing by to mix the toxic black dye (kids not allowed to touch - it was cloth dye and it was toxic!); Mama would set old cups or those stained from previous Easter dye sessions around the table and carefully put the dye tablet, some vinegar, some hot water in each cup and each of us would take up a space around the table and try to stir and melt the tablet without spilling a drop (not always successful at that). With that accomplished Mama would carefully put an egg in each cup and we would try to made sure that each egg was evenly colored. Each colored egg was laid again in clean cotton cloth to completely dry and wait for "spotting." We kids of course would try to outdo each other in whose eggs came most perfectly out of the dye -- not a quiet discussion.

When we were very young we would be sent off to bed to wait for Easter morning where we would find baskets of the decorated eggs -- as we grew older and stopped believing in the Easter Bunny WE were allowed to help and this is how it went:

Once the eggs were cool and colored, Mama would melt the suet in a pan on the stove -- this really was beef tallow that she saved from year to year -- from Easter to Easter -- with very clean hands we would each take an egg and using our fingers -- or for more intricate designs a straw from a REAL broom -- and dip into the tallow and make spots of tallow all over the egg -- or dip each end of the egg in tallow and put a design in tallow around the middle --or use a straw to make a design; Mama ALWAYS took the green eggs and made a wheat design [shafts of wheat, little tadpoles, crosses, bunny tracks, spiders] up and down the egg w/tallow using a broom straw -- Granddaddy used the black dye to make "baldies" by dipping each end of the egg in the tallow -- then he would take a black egg and with a straw draw spiders all over the egg -- somehow I cannot remember if we decorated Grandma's onion skin dyed eggs --maybe we just admired them as brown -- I'll have to ask one of the "Lytton girls" about that ...anyway we could make any design we could manage -- as you can imagine some of us had much more artistic talent then others!!

After the tallow hardened on the egg -- and it hardened quickly on the porch-cooled eggs -- and the older the tallow the more quickly it hardened -- Mama would place the eggs in a bowl of water and apple vinegar where they would sit for a few minutes -- then out she would take them and rub with the woolens she also kept from year to year -- all the color would come off EXCEPT for that under the tallow -- can you picture that? Of course the tallow came off too but the color underneath did not and formed the design.

Preparing/decorating Easter Eggs in this way was always attributed to our Pennsylvania Dutch/German ancestors -- I like to think of them as folk art -- while those of the Ukraine are/were much more complex and sophisticated -- I do not know of anyone who decorates eggs "our" way now -- Some of us have tried over the years -- but the eggs are treated/coated when they come from the store - so you need straight from the hen -- the dyes are much too harmless nowadays so the color won't stick - and the tallow must be heated again and again to render it to the point when it will harden quickly --"

The eggs were a simpler version of traditional Dutch decorated eggs such as these.

This process must've produced the most beautiful and unique eggs. I don't think that I will ever actually be able to take these steps. The tallow and fresh eggs aren't realistic ingredients for me to come by. But I do think it is important for this history to be written down and remembered. There is a lot of art lost in convenience, don't you agree?

How to Prepare Your Garden Soil for Planting

2015-03-23T12:25:00.002-04:00

Yay, Spring! If you missed my last post on my plans for my garden beds this summer, check it out HERE. Before I plant anything, I want to make sure that the soil is healthy for my plants. This will help them to produce the maximum amount of food and keep them disease resistant. Here are a few steps I take before summer planting:

#1 Turn over the soil.
One reason I like raised beds so much is that if you don't need heavy machinery to till the soil before planting. When I prepare the garden soil for planting I like to turn the soil over to loosen it up, remove rocks, and also to search for unwanted pests. To do this, simply put in your shovel, dig in, and turn it over. Go through the entire box and dig down as deep as you can. My boxes have been there for several years, so the organic burlap that I laid on base to kill the grass the first year has now decomposed. I am able to reach down and mix in some of the Georgia red clay with the garden dirt.

Here are my 4 - 4x4 garden beds. They are about 12" deep. I'm in the process of installing garden pavers for a path through and around them, which is why there are 4 random pavers in the middle.

#2 Check for pests.
As I mentioned above, while you are turning over the soil look for unwanted pests. An important part of preparing your garden soil is to remove these guys. If you dig deep enough and thoroughly, you will be able to see if there are any grubs or larvae. I had a problem with tomato hornworms last year, so when going through the bed I had my tomatoes planted in I was especially vigilant for getting the hornworm larvae out. You can toss out smaller grubs and step on them. The tomato hornworm larvae are disgusting and large, so I take a shovel to them and annihilate them. I can use terms like "annihilate" with them because I hate them. Hate is such a strong word. It works here.

A tomato hornworm larva that I removed from my garden.
They are large, but blend in with the soil. If you find them, remove them and destroy them. It's much easier to remove them as a larva then after they have changed into the green, destructive pests that will ruin your tomato plants.

#3 Rotate your crops.
A little advanced planning will help you prepare your garden soil for the next season of planting. You don't want to plant the same thing in the same spot two years in a row. There are a couple of reasons for this. First, the pests that are attracted to particular crops will become a problem. Also, your soil will become nutrient deficient. Some plants use a lot of nitrogen and some feed the soil nitrogen. With quick and simple planning of how to rotate your crops, you will be able to make sure that your crops are actually producing food.

How I plan to rotate my crops over a 4 year period.

#4 Amend the soil.
With raised beds it is easy to forget that you aren't replacing the soil. Instead you are amending it, adding to it. After the first year you don't want to just dump bags of garden soil from the hardware soil into your boxes. You want to mix it with the native soil. While I am turning over the soil (see #1!) I will add a bag of compost, some bone meal, some blood meal, and some Epsom salts. If you make your own compost or buy it, 1-2 cu feet of compost per box is a good starting point. Don't overuse the blood meal and bone meal; a little goes a long way. Blood meal and bone meal are exactly what they sound like, and what they sound like are a little disgusting. But they are good, organic options to fertilize and amend the soil. Preparing your garden soil by amending it will again keep your plants healthy, making them disease and pest resistant and yielding high crops.

Just a side note, the first year you start raised beds you'll most likely need to fill them up with bags of soil from the store. In subsequent years you might need a bag or two to keepl the soil level up. What I recommend avoiding is completely replacing the soil each year. I don't think it's necessary, and it would not be cost efficient. Use these steps to amend the soil, and you won't need to replace it.

#5 Consider cold weather crops.
Another good way to prepare the garden soil is to plant something in the cooler seasons that will replace nutrients used in the spring and summer. Kale, peas, and many other foods can be grown in the colder months. (I'm in Zone 7; things may be different in your area.)

#6 Consider helpful insects.
If I happen to be digging elsewhere in the yard and notice lots of earthworms, I will take them and put them in the garden. Worms, bees, ladybugs, praying mantis and many other types of bugs and insects are friends to your garden. Consider ways to attract beneficial visitors that will either contribute to the soil or prey on harmful pests.

I hope this is helpful! Enjoy your garden.

Square Foot Garden Plans for 4 x 4 Beds

2015-03-20T09:47:00.001-04:00

Today is the first day of Spring, so it's fitting that I post about my garden plans! I made these plans for myself, but I thought that I'd share them with you.

Just to be clear, I am not a master gardener. I am average in my experience, but above average in my passion for growing things. What I lack in experience I make up for in random knowledge of gardening that I've picked up over the years.

I am so thankful to be living in that Age of Information. Several years ago when I was planting my first garden I checked out dozens of books from the library and did countless hours of research on the internet. Anything you want to know, it's out there! You just simply have to ask Google!

Our backyard is on the south side of our house, which is perfect for full-sun loving plants. I have set up our raised bed garden boxes to orient along with the east-west axis that the sun travels in. I purchased our raised bed garden boxes as kits from Home Depot. While it may be slightly more money than making the boxes on your own, there are several reasons why I chose to go with a kit. #1 I could do it myself. I'm a small person and working alone I needed to be able to handle the materials and build the boxes. #2 No tools required! While we own all of the tools needed to cut wood, I am not comfortable using them without help. #3 My step-dad was recently building some garden boxes for my mom and had an accident resulting in a hospital visit and loss of fingers. #4 These come with untreated cedar. Treated cedar will poison your food and I didn't want to hassle with finding untreated wood. I know these garden box kits are still available because I recently had to purchase another one to replace broken boards from a passionate soccer player we have in the house.

Knowing which direction the sun moves across your garden is very important.

Knowing where North and South are will help you decide what to plant in each garden box. This is very important because you will want to make sure that the taller plants are on the North and West sides of the garden, otherwise they will shade your other plants and block the sun that they need. In my case, I need to make sure the taller plants are on the left and back sides.

Below are the details of the 4 garden boxes that I am planting in this area. You may wonder why I chose the plants I did or did not use. First and above all else, you'll learn quickly to only plant what you will eat. Also, there are things that I love, like carrots, but after 4 years of trying with no luck to grow them I am giving up on them. Maybe a neighbor will trade some with me.

The 3 Sisters method using cantaloupe instead of squash.
C = Corn, B = Beans

In the back left corner I am using the Three Sisters method. This is a Native American technique of growing food. Traditionally the 3 Sisters are corn, beans, and squash. The corn gives the beans something to climb on. The beans feed the soil nitrogen that the corn and squash use. The squash with its large leaves shades the soil, keeping it cool and moist. I love squash, but my family hates it. So I am not opting for summer, zucchini, or pumpkin. Instead I am using another relative of the squash family, the cantaloupe! Since I am working in a 4 x 4 garden box, I am using a dwarf variety. But honestly, any variety would work. In the Three Sisters method, plant the corn first. When it is 6 inches high, plant the beans and cantaloupe (squash). I am also including Marigold and Nasturtium because they are companions for them, deterring pests. I'm using a dwarf variety of Nasturtium to save space. Did you know you can eat the flowers and leaves of the Nasturtium? Hmmm...

In the back right corner I am using the 3 Sisters method again, but with a dwarf variety of watermelon. We want a full size variety also, so I'm going to find another spot in the yard for that. I have enough wood for one more square foot garden box, I just need to decide where to put it.

Tomato Garden Plan for a 4 x 4 Raised bed

In the front left corner, or southwest corner, I am planting a square foot garden box for tomatoes. Mainly what I want to note on this one is the placement of the taller plant varieties so that they don't shade the shorter varieties. Also, I'll be planting companions basil and marigold to deter pests. I've had issues with Hornworm in the past. I know they aren't completely avoidable, but I detest them, and I'm hoping the basil and marigold will cut down on them. When I prepared my boxes (another post maybe), I did search for any larvae. The box I'm using for the tomatoes is a new addition this year. I'm hoping that will also help. Did I mention that I ~~hate~~ loathe Hornworms? I'm going to plant several different varieties with different color. We eat a lot of homemade salsa in the summer, and it's beautiful to see the different colors in it.

Cucumber & Pepper Garden Plan for a 4 x 4 Raised Bed

My final garden box in this area is for cucumbers and peppers. I always grow my cucumbers vertically. The easiest way to do this is to put a round tomato cage over the mound. As the cucumber vines grow, train them onto the cage. You have to do this; they won't do it on their own. My daughter and I love to find the "curly q's" (unofficial term) at the end of the vines and wrap them onto the cage. You can also use twist ties from bread to keep the vines on the cages. I do this for two reasons. #1 It saves space in a small square foot garden box. #2 It keeps the vines off of the ground and away from pests.

Notice that the lettuce is intentionally planted to get shade. This is another reason you need to consider sun movement. Also notice that two weeks after the first cucumbers are planted there is a second planting. This is will just extend the time we can harvest cucumbers. For this planting I will possibly NOT grow them vertically. They can shade the ground and keep in moisture for the peppers.

The other plants are companions and will keep pests away. (Hopefully!)

I hope this helps you! Maybe this will be your first year gardening...you can do this! I'm happy to answer any questions you may have. I'm not an expert, but I don't mind sharing what my experiences have been. Feel free to leave any questions in the comment section below.

Crafts to Make with Hymnal Pages

2015-01-22T11:15:00.002-05:00

Yesterday I listed several vintage and antique hymnals in my Etsy shop, and I had a friend ask, "but what would someone do with an old hymnal...?"

Besides simply enjoying looking through it and being reminded of many of the traditional hymns that are no longer sung at church services, there are many wonderful ways you can repurpose them. In a way, repurposing will actually extend their "life." Something like an old hymnal that may be worn thin and have no value to most people can be turned into things that will be used and treasured for years to come. Below are just a few of the neat crafts I found on Pinterest that use hymnal pages.

One of my favorites, Miss Mustard Seed used old hymnal pages on a lovely dresser:

On AJ's Trash to Treasure Blog, you can see that just about anything can get covered in hymnal pages, including lamp shades:

The Picadilly Post turns hymnal pages in works of art:

Christmas ornaments seem like something doable even for the beginning crafter. These were found on Houzz:

Use them to make a wreath. Here's a How-To from HomeTalk:

Here's an old blog post of mine where I used hymnal pages in a painting:

In my opinion the easiest and cheapest way to use hymnal pages is to simply frame them! In my home I have this framed song in our guest bedroom:

Now let your imagination flow!

Tips: You can link back to all sources. Hover in each introductory sentence to find the link. If you are interested in purchasing one of the hymnals in my shop to use for a project or just to keep, go HERE. (Listed under "Books" on the left.) Depending on the day there's usually 2 to 20 available. I'm happy to check a hymnal if you're looking for a particular song, year, or church affiliation.

A Twist on a Southern New Year's Menu

2014-12-31T15:06:00.001-05:00

I am a girl who loves tradition. Love it. And apparently y'all do, too! My previous post on the Southern New Year's menu, along with the explanation of why we eat what we do, has been extremely popular. (thanks for that!)

And while we will be keeping to tradition this year with my New Year's Day dinner, I will also be changing it up a bit. I'm not going to repeat my previous post with all of the symbolism, so please go HERE if you need a refresher.

With this menu I'm still going to serve greens, black eyed peas, cornbread, and pork, just with a modern twist! So fun!

The black eyed peas will be used to make a hummus. (Mmm! I love hummus!) I found a recipe (here). Since I don't like black eyed peas, I usually only choke down (how ladylike) a few of these. So cheers to trying something new this year.

As for the greens, I'm going to make some kale chips. The flavor of the kale chips will go great with the hummus, but won't necessarily be sturdy enough to be a "vehicle" for it. These are super easy to make. You can even find bags of kale at the grocery store that come with seasoning packets. But basically all you need is some olive oil, salt, and pepper. For a recipe go (here).

For ham, I'm going to make some ham and Swiss sliders with King's Hawaiian rolls. Can.Not.Wait. To find the recipe, click (here). The only changes I'm going to make are that I'll be using some shredded Swiss that is already in the fridge, and since there will only be 4 of us eating, I'll cut the recipe in half or even 1/4.

And finally, the cornbread is actually going to be our dessert. I found a cornbread pudding recipe that looks fairly simple, and I'm going to give it a go. You can find the recipe (here).

My predictions are that the kids will love the sliders and the pudding, but not so much the hummus or kale chips. They are pretty good eaters, but aren't always great at trying stuff that I make myself. (Please don't tell them that they often have kale in their smoothies and have absolutely no idea.)

I really hope that y'all have an awesome New Year.

P.S. If you'd like to save this page for later, please click the Pinterest button at the top or bottom of the page.

Natural Christmas Decorations

2014-12-08T10:06:00.002-05:00

Christmas decorations inspired by nature can be very beautiful! Whether simple or extravagant, using natural elements is something easily done. Some materials that you may want to consider are fruit, pine cones, acorns, nuts, raw cotton, twine, jute, burlap, wood, berries, branches, feathers, and dried or fresh flowers. Here are just a few examples to inspire your holiday decorating. Tip: You can link back to all of the sources by clicking on the names.

This one from Better Homes & Gardens (click for link) looks very doable! Apples, pine cones, and evergreen branches. Did you know that most Christmas tree retailers will give you the cuttings for free? If you wanted to add a little something extra to those apples, try spraying them with a sheer glitter spray paint. Red apples would create a completely different feel, too.

There are so many ways to use pine cones in Christmas decorating.

One of ours:

From Make It & Love It:

Over on the The Lettered Cottage you can see how a poinsettia gets updated in a metal bin and the raw cotton looks marvelous nestled into Layla's Christmas tree:

Another example of using raw cotton from Sophia's Decor. Her whole post is a great example of using natural elements such as pine cones, branches, birds, and cotton.

Classic and beautiful, check out this garland of dried oranges from Buckets of Burlap:

Here's an example of a more detailed and sophisticated use of natural elements from Southern Living.

Look around at what's available outdoors (for free!) in your area. Simply filling a large clear vase with pecans, acorns, cranberries, or even evergreen stems will make a big impact.