Spring Mantle Pantone Honeysuckle

We have been redoing our home for the past four years and it has been a  true labor of love. My husband enjoys replacing baseboards, molding and most anything that  involves a saw and wood. My passion is decorating and for this Spring Season I just sort of went with what inspired me and that is Pantone 2011 color of the year Honeysuckle. I have really been doing my research on these Pantone colors and even  though this was thee color of the year three years ago, it is still an incredible  color to add to your home. Since our French Gray Walls and white molding lend themselves to  incorporating this magnificent, confident and vital color into our family room, I went with it and now I am enjoying it. In the beginning I was hesitant because Honeysuckle seems  quite feminine to  me and in my mind I am saying to myself pink.... Hum... for a family room? But as I slowly began adding and layering this calming and hopeful color into our home I saw the power and affirmation it brought to our m

Easter Terrarium

Terrariums are a wonderful way to garden indoors and one of the most  interesting aspects,  is that you can make them as elaborate or a simple  as  you like. They are even carefree enough and durable enough to encourage participation of all ages.   As the seasons change so can the elements in your terrarium. I am beginning to decorate for Easter, and I wanted to include keepsakes that my Mother and children have given me throughout the years, some of  them are so tiny that this is just the perfect spot to display them. Terrariums can be functional or decorative, if you choose to go the  functional route you will  want to seal the edges of your terrarium with  silicone or invest in a   vinyl liner.   This way you will be able to add dirt directly to the terrarium and plant the plants in the terrarium. For this project I chose decorative and here is how I put it together. Underneath it all is a terracotta saucer where the succulents are sitting.  I left them in small pots so that I can w

Grandma's Vanilla Cake With Cocoa Frosting

If I close my eyes tight enough I can almost taste and smell Grandma's  homemade vanilla cake. Sometimes it had caramel frosting and other times chocolate. You remember those days, when the kitchen was infused with homemade  goodies and all of them from scratch, because that is just how it was. Some say simple, well my oh my, I say heavenly. I made this cake just a week or so ago and it was oh so yummy! With just a few basic ingredients, and a little stirring them all together   you can  be  serving this by dinner time, if it lasts until then, which it probably won't. But I don't really think that is a bad thing, do you? Smiling .... Did I ever tell you about my Momma having a slice of cake or a warm cinnamon roll waiting for me when I got off the school bus? Well, she did, and a glass of milk, then it was time to run outside and  play. We all ate well, loved ferociously and played outside until completely  exhausted.  Winter time included, Mom always insisted on plenty of

Spring Coffee Filter Wreath

This is day five and the last wreath in my little series on a week of Wreaths!  Whoo hoo!   We made it, I bet you you are thinking to yourself, what was this  woman thinking of.... Am I right ?  I was sort of thinking that too. Well, many of my dear friends have asked that very same question and here  is  the answer... It was snowing outside, and it was cold and I just wanted Spring to  hurry up and get here so I made wreaths. But, I did not make them all in one week, so I am crazy but  not that crazy... But, I did not make this wreath... Rebecca made this wreath for me and isn't it just lovely? She made it so full and I adore the crisp white coffee filters she used. This wreath is really perfectly beautiful for every  season. I thought it might be interesting to add a a touch of color to it for Spring, so when I spied these darling little silk flowers at Hobby Lobby, I snapped them up.   You know the time to snap them up is when they are fifty percent off, which they were a few

Radiant Orchid Spring Wreath

Radiant Orchid, Pantone color of the year for 2014 has been my inspiration  for our  fourth wreath in this series of Spring wreaths.  Perhaps this is a wreath which you might remember from my Fall wreath makeover , here it is again updated for Spring. I really never dreamed I would get so much use out of this wreath and each makeover it receives seems to enhance it more.   Full and abundant, magical warmth, mixed hues of fuchsia and purple married with brown to create a  radiant wreath to welcome family home. Vibrant Radiant Orchid livens up the neutral base of this wreath, brightens and energizes without being overbearing.   With the addition of a few orchid baubles, chevron ribbons, bouquets of  lavender flowers and a sweet paper robin this wreath becomes a cohesive  blend of all of these elements. Bringing Radiant Orchid home for Spring. xo Please Join Me~ Lilacs and Longhorns Dishing It and Digging It Confessions of a Plate Addict French Country Cottage

Fabric and Button Spring Wreath-DIY

Happy First Day of Spring and what better way to welcome Spring to your  home  than with this absolutely perfect Spring Wreath project using those  mismatched  scraps of  fabric, leftover ribbon and buttons! We are on day three of our Spring wreath collections, if you missed day one we made a  moss wreath , day two we made a  blue yarn wreath . Lets get started! A wreath made from this and that... A wreath on the back door of your home, A wreath to welcome family and friends and   life . Whether you are the crafty sort of person  with oodles of interesting pieces of fabric stowed away in a craft room, Or the once in a while happy crafty  individual this wreath is calling your name. For this project you will need just a few items, the first, your awesome talent and the second, your creative  self,  because you truly are awesome , talented and creative ! Supplies for Fabric and Button Spring Wreath~ 1. Straw wreath form 2. Fabric or ribbon 1 1/2 or 2 inch width (this wreath is a

Blue Yarn Spring Wreath- DIY

Welcome to Day Two of Spring Wreath Week, I am so happy you dropped by. This little wreath just has to be one of the easiest, sweetest and most  enjoyable wreaths to  make  in  the entire crafting world, maximum time 20  minutes and mess free. Such a relief after that  Moss wreath ! I love the color blue, it is such a serene and calming shade.   We have several rooms in our home which are painted blue and I have one  spot in one bedroom which needed just a little something. I really wanted to keep it simple, since this guest room is all about  feeling serene, relaxed, and peaceful. With fresh blue paint on the walls and our antique wrought iron bed updated  with  new linens, this room needed just a little something. It seems to me, this Blue Yarn Spring Wreath is perfect for this Season.   In retrospect I should have made it larger, but never the less it pretty much fits the bill. (Note to self-larger wreath for this bedroom) Supplies For Blue Yarn Spring Wreath 1.  Styrofoam Wreath F

A Week Of Spring Wreaths-DIY

Today is the first day of a week of Wreaths for you to make. You will find some inspiration and a few simple instructions to add a touch of Spring to your front door, armoire, hutch, mantle or wherever you please. Years ago I took a few classes on floral design and from those classes I  discovered that I enjoyed creating wreaths. So, for the next five days I will be sharing some of my favorite  Spring wreaths for 2014 with you. It seems to me a perfectly magical way to infuse color, charm, warmth and a bit of hospitality to your home. I have always loved moss wreaths, and year after year I was always going to  make  one and well, never did.  So this is the year of the moss wreath for me. If you'd like to make one for yourself here are some easy steps! To make this wreath you will need the following: Warning - it is going to get messy-then it is going to become beautiful! 1. Sheet Moss (I purchased mine from Home Depot-It was called sheet moss, but I have been wondering if it trul

Guest Post at Nancherrow

Good Morning and wishing you all a Happy St. Patrick's Day!  In celebration of this fun Holiday I made a little terrarium with a tutorial to help you make your own. So, please come on over to  Nancherrow  and see how to create your Spring terrarium.   It is very simple and a great family activity. Thank you Alison for sharing my post with your readers today!

Greenhouse Tales

Hello Gardening World, my seeds are sprouting! And this has not been any easy task with recent temperature fluctuations.   One day 80 degrees the next 15 degrees. So, what I discovered was this- What this little Green house lacked in shelving and anchors it has made up for in maintaining  an interior temperature of a balmy 65 degrees, when the outside temps were  in the low teens. With these wickedly cold temperatures,  it was imperative to  keep the greenhouse warm so the seedlings and fragile  plants would not  freeze. Our solution to keep the temperature moderate in the Greenhouse was an electrical portable heater.  We ran an extension cord from the garage to  the greenhouse, and through the tiny space above the door the extension cord fit through. We placed the electrical heater on the floor of the greenhouse and set it on 80 degrees and it ran and ran for two days and two nights. Other gardening friends had suggested putting Christmas lights in the  greenhouse to add warmth-I ju