Mini Easter Brunch Tablescape and Vintage Decoupaged Bottles

Every once in a while the crafty bug bites me and I get the urge to create a little something fun, especially if it's for a  "holiday".  I really enjoy using decoupage with Mod Podge because it's such an easy method. Well, I say "easy" as a relative term, since it is a bit messy and imprecise. But since I love vintage goods, I've found using old bottles for decoupage to be a wonderful way create small gifts and holiday mementos.

Farmhouse Table Valentine Tableau

My Garden Room farmhouse table needed a new look once February arrived. I'd been using my rustic vintage wooden ice cream-maker bucket which I've loved, but I wanted something a little more garden-y and "french-y" for Valentine's Day. I cleared the table top and tried something fresh for February.

She Collects (Vintage) Seashells

This time of year, late July, I get that little nudge to play with some Seashell Decor. There's a short window of opportunity to do shell decor around here. Early Summer is filled with garden fun, then comes the Patriotic decor. Now's the time before "Pre Fall" starts. So I put together a little vignette on an antique tray in the Dining Room. It's not really  "beachy", but more "vintage".

Candlestick Lamps on the Sofa Table

I love using tabletop and task lighting to give a room a comfortable intimate feeling. In this house it's not only for the ambiance, but mostly because it's dim; ok, sometimes kinda dark. This time of year, with gray and dismal skies, doesn't help to keep things brightened up. I'm not a fan of overhead lighting because it's mostly too harsh, so I realized I needed to have some extra table and floor lamps around here. *This isn't a sponsored post, just sharing my new lamps from a great online source.

Birds and Branches

This has been such a cold Spring... very few warm days with a lot of cold and dreary ones. The flowering trees and growing things got a late start. Then just when they thought it was safe, we had nights of temps in the 20's. So the peach tree, plum tree, and cherry tree have had their bloom time disturbed and cut short. 

Patriotic ReView

Hi Everyone, I'm always surprised at how fast summer flies by. This weekend will start a wonderful extended weekend for many of us, lot's of family and casual fun inside and out, so here are a few photos of one of my favorite Holidays, Independence Day! 

Easy Patriotic Accents with Vintage Bottles

I've been gathering a few of my patriotic and red/white/blue items to 

bring a little July 4th fun to the Kitchen Sitting Area...

Patriotic Bottles with a Vintage Vibe

Are you looking for something a little different for your July 4th decor? Something to use on your table for some Patriotic fun with individual place settings, mini flower vases, flag holders or just a little favor for your guests to take home?

I'm always on the lookout for old glass bottles at the flea or antique mall. You can usually find them for a dollar or two. Or if you don't have old bottles any clear glass bottle would work, even screw cap bottles that are now lurking in your fridge.

These are images I downloaded from one of my CD ROMs

 from Dover Publications for July 4th and Patriotic images.

These would be so unique at each place setting with a little American Flag,

or could be used also as a place card if you'd like to get even more creative

in using paper flags with each guests name written on it.

Lot's of fun in a grouping on a stack of old red/white/blue books.

I wanted to put together a few for my window ledge above the sink,

where I always have a few ivy starts growing.

There are some free Patriotic images over at The Graphics Fairy that you might want to try. I just printed mine out, cut them out, and then used Matte Mod Podge lightly to adhere them to the bottle. Be careful not to wipe them with water or get too saturated, or the colors might bleed. Mine did just a little but I liked the vintage look.

Here are links to a couple of posts I did a few years ago with Halloween Bottles and Christmas Bottles. I've also made them for Valentines Day, Easter, and Thanksgiving. A larger image could also be used on bigger bottles filled with colorful candies. I thought that layered red white and blue jelly beans in a larger apothecary jar would also be fun. There are lot's of ways to use them, and they add a easy to make, quick vintage touch to your holiday decor.

Have a great weekend!

just playing...

I have a hundred other things to do this afternoon, but I had to go play over at PicMonkey for a few minutes. These are just a few photos from the last two years at this time in October. Have I told you it's my favorite time of the year? thought so...

Hope you're having a great Sunday afternoon. Cloudy and warm and humid, but oh gosh, the trees are gorgeous!

xoxo,

Quick and Easy Seashell Topped Bottles

Since the window of decorating with Seashells for me is a maximum of 4-6 weeks in the summer, I'm kinda low on the scale of said seashell decor. I love having some on display during this "after the 4th and before the late summer-pre fall excitement" season, but living in the middle of the US and the fact that the closest beach is a good 16 hours travel time away, seashells just aren't on my radar most of the time. 

But...I did get a little hankerin' for some seashell bottle fun for my mantle.

I had some old bottles and a few misfit shells, so I wanted to figure out a way to make some "faux soldered seashell topped bottles" on the cheap. Do you remember the song with the lyrics "from a distance"? Uh huh...these work "at a distance". not foolin' anyone up close, but hey...for a few weeks they will suffice.

So guess how excited I was when I saw this post with a 

Seashell Bottle tutorial from Nita at Mod Vintage Life.

Nita's cool version involves tinting antique bottles, and then using a low temp glue gun attaching the seashell and paint. Don't you love how they match her gorgeous tiled fireplace?

I decided to keep my bottles clear, and since I didn't have a low temp glue gun, I went with what I had on hand...which was white wood putty. It kept the shell in place without glue and gave a smooth surface.

 Then after some drytime, I used some bronze metallic paint and a pewter Rub n' Buff mix, brushed on.

I know I'm not fooling anyone.

These don't come close to the real thing...

gorgeous soldered seashell topped bottles.

But they do look OK "from a distance"...

 Hmmm...

this "From a Distance" theme seems to be a recurring one.

More Living Room Seashell Stuff tomorrow!

Joining in for Met Monday
AKA Design
It's Overflowing
Redoux
My Romantic Home

Hope you're having a great weekend,

xoxo,

Summer Mantel Makeover

Do you ever get stuck in a rut? ...and you don't even realize it until you want to change something, but you don't make the change because...you're stuck in a rut. OK, that describes my mantel. I just tend to do the same old things. Well, at least I did until I started on my paint transformation a few weeks ago.

This room really causes me to be symmetrical,

you know something alike, or at least similar on either side.

my sofas, chairs, end tables, lamps...

works for me,

but can be predictable and boring.

...OK, so it's easy,

but not a good excuse.

And, I still needed out of the mantel rut.

Spray painting my small accent lamps, buying new shades,

 and then changing out the book stacks

were a good place to start.

But my light and bright obsession

and a need for something summery caused me to try some new things.

I removed the small clock that had been there,

then went on a hunt for a couple of prints that were similar,

but different.

Two vintage bird prints fit with my summer theme,

and then an old white iron doorstop for the centerpiece.

My large conch shell and two smaller ones were added in the mix.

Anchoring both ends are vintage demijohns that my husband contributed.

Actually I borrowed them from his collections,

but he agreed they fit the French feel I was going for.

One of the best bits of advice I was given during my makeover was

to remove everything from the place in question,

then try new things.

It's still "symmetrical" in here,

but at least I've changed out a few things.

Now, to just stay out of that rut!

linking up with these great parties,

links on the sidebar:

More news coming on the new weekly feature

click here for info

xoxo,