Update to Holiday Decor

Just a quick update to our mantel decor. This past weekend, my husband's grandmother was giving all of her Christmas decor and ornaments to her grandkids, since it is to laboring to put it up every year. Among the boxes, I found four Danish-looking wood reindeer in all different sizes that would compliment my reindeer fireplace and mantle. Check them out:

Aren't they cute? I just love them, and their size is perfect. Here you can see them with the whole setup:

And since we finally got the lights and wreaths up on the outside, here is a glowing shot of the house:

Wrapping up my shopping and wrapping this weekend. Are you ready for Christmas?

Impromptu Dinner Party

Last night we had our families over for dinner, and for the first time in the 4 years we have been in our house, we decided to do dinner outside. I have always wanted to have a beautiful dinner party on our patio, but in Florida, 90% of the time, the nights are humid and buggy. But last night was a perfect night and we had many reasons to be thankful to all be together.


With an hour to set up, I first brought out our two 6' folding tables, that we got at a Black Friday deal last year for $29 each, and our 8 folding chairs that we use ALL THE TIME for various get togethers.  To round out the seating for our 11 guests, we used our wicker bench (found for free in an alley behind our house) and our desk chair with pillow.

Next, I covered the tables with two green Ralph Lauren tablecloths that I bought at HomeGoods 6 years ago for $7 each. They are used pretty much every Christmas (I now have red ones too!) and every holiday in between. Green is actually a neutral color, so they go with everything and every occasion! Don't judge me, the hostess did not have time to iron them. But in an hours time, most of the wrinkles had fallen out, and because it got dark before guests arrived, I didn't worry about it. Typically, I would iron them, or wash them and take them straight out of the dryer. Quick Tip: If in a pinch, use some Downy Wrinkle Releaser on them as they lay on the table and smooth some of the wrinkles out with your hand.


The napkins I bought on super clearance years ago too at Bed Bath and Beyond. They are a brown polished cotton, and I got all 12 for $6 (thats 50 cents each!).  The flatware is a special fun set that I bring out occasionally from Neiman Marcus. I purchased it on sale, but even at regular price it is a good deal for 12 placesettings ($105!).

The stick table runner is a few years old from Plum Party, but you can find a similar one here or here. Sicne it gets dark right around 6pm when we were having people over, I decided to light up the table with lots of candles. My husband thought it was a little too romantic for what we needed, as we were only cooking hamburgers and hot dogs, but I still loved it. I gathered all the glass Waterford and antique bowls that I never used, and several little glass candle holders and filled them with water and floating candles from IKEA, and citronella tea lights from Pier 1. The 'D' pewter napkin rings were from our wedding registry at Williams Sonoma, and match our everyday flatware, also from our registry.

As the sun was setting, we turned on the globe twinkle lights around our yard (which are up all year), and started a lovely dinner. I think it came out pretty perfect for being thrown together in an hour.

 

Check back this week for a few last minute tips for Thanksgiving! Happy Turkey Week!

New Living Room

I m helping my brother-in-law redesign his condo. After a few weekends of searching for the perfect couch, we found the following at Hudson's Furniture:

It has a great twill fabric and we chose some custom fabric for the pillows. I then used the pillow fabric as inspiration for the room, and built a board around it:

Since he is single, we are trying to keep the elements soft but a little masculine, since this is a bachelor pad. I love the oversized, industrial look of the coffee table, and its lower drawers provide some storage in addition to the open shelf. He wants a brown leather streamlined recliner to compliment the couch and loveseat. We are also working in some green plants (most likely good fakes) to bring a little more color and warmth to the beige space, and some large abstract artwork, rug, and cool lighting for decoration. Also, rattan storage ottomans can not only hide the PlayStation controllers and games, but provide extra seating for game nights as well.

I am still working on elements for the dining room/entertainment area. We have a vintage bar cabinet that I may repaint, as well as updating the current seats on the dining room chairs. More on this area as it progresses, but I am so excited about where the room is headed!

Bathroom Renovation : Lighting Update

I found a genius idea on a blog (and of course didn't save it for reference, so if you know the source, let me know so I can give them credit!). The blogger was having difficulty finding a bathroom light that didn't scream "I'm a Dressing Room", which coincidentally, was the same problem we were facing.  So instead, she picked up an outdoor light fixture to hang above the mirror, which is even better, because it can weather the humid elements of a bathroom. 

I described the light fixture to my brother, and he thought the idea was cool, but needed to see the fixture. I found one online at Home Depot that was similar, if not exact, to the one on the other blog. This past weekend, after going to see it in person, we purchased this Hampton Bay Outdoor Lantern for the bathroom light.

It has a bit of a nautical feel, and I love that light from it is not restricted with a shade. The clear glass bulb around the light bulb allows light to bounce off of all walls and angles. It is also much more chrome than in the photo above, which we liked to go with all the other chrome being installed in the bathroom.  It looks a little industrial, which compliments the white subway tiles, but also allows the other elements of the bathroom, like the teak accessories and Kohler faucets, to really stand out.


I can't wait to show you pictures of it installed this week! We're almost done!