My Hanging Lantern

I have been wanting to hang a lantern from the ceiling of my porch for a long time. A few weeks ago in The Pottery Barn, I saw some lanterns hanging from the ceiling so I grabbed my camera out of my purse and took this picture.

I decided to duplicate the look. The Pottery Barn has some great looking lanterns but the prices are a little more than I want to pay.

On my way home, I stopped into T.J. Maxx and look what I found.

And look at the price!

I then found this battery operated candle with a REMOTE CONTROL. How cool is that? I won't have any trouble turning it on while it is hanging from the ceiling.

Now a trip to home depot to purchase rope and a hook. I wanted a rustic look so instead of using a chain I used large rope.

My husband came up with a great way to tie the knot so it won't fall. I like my version better than the one at The Pottery Barn.

I'm Back With a Little Monogramming

I took a little break from blogging but I'm back now. Spring is here and I have a lot of projects planned to complete.

I want to share with you how I achieved a designer look to my bed. One day while browsing through a major department store, I saw a comforter set that I really liked but it was very expensive so I decided to duplicate it. I grabbed my phone, took a picture and set out on a scavenger hunt. I found a comforter set at a very famous discount chain that had a similar pattern in the same color scheme but cost a lot less. Instead of using the bedskirt that came with the set, I found a crinkled bedskirt at Tuesday Morning. Then I searched for coordinating pillows and found the perfect ones at Old Time Pottery.

Now for the finishing touch: I had the pillow shams monogrammed.

I'm linking to Addicted2decorating

I need a Little Spring

First it was the snow and ice and now it is rain. Last weekend we had 2 beautiful sunny days but it was just a teaser. It has rained all week so I decided to make my own springtime by making a little trip to "Michaels".

I started with a few cherry blossoms and a crystal vase that I already had.

Add a few twigs that I found in my back yard.

I then added some greenery. To make it look more realistic, I curled some of it around my finger.

Then I added some glass beads.

Add a little moss and it's done. Very simple.

I needed a little more color so I added one sprig of "Forsythia". Now I have brought a little spring into my home.

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Country Living Inspiration Tree

Remember the teddy bear tree that I posted earlier?  My friend actually had the original picture that was featured in a 1987 issue of Country Living magazine ( not Southern Living).  I actually think that my friend's tree looks better because she has the bears evenly distributed and balanced with the large bears at the bottom and the smaller ones at the top.  My mother in law even said that the Country Living tree looked a little more cluttered.  What do you think?

Thank you A. for sending me the picture.

Country Living Teddy Bear Tree from 1987

A Partridge in a BEAR Tree

We went to visit some dear friends tonight and as soon as I walked into their home I had to grab my camera out of my purse.  The Christmas tree was decorated entirely with teddy bears. It was adorable! Large bears, middle sized bears and small bears.  You might remember that several years ago there was a teddy bear tree featured in Southern Living.  My friend did a fabulous job recreating it. 

The mantel even had teddy bears.

Isn't this just adorable!

Breakfast Room Bears

This was displayed in the hallway.

I would love to see a little child's face after seeing this tree.

I have searched all over trying to find the picture that was in a past issue of Southern Living.  If anyone out there in blogland has a picture, please forward to me.  Thanks.

Just a Touch of Christmas!

I am sure you are familiar with the phrase "less is more". I just don't like a lot of stuff in one place, especially when it comes to Christmas decorations. Clutter drives me nuts!  My students know it too, and I have them trained to keep my room organized! (That's a good thing)
To put just a touch of Christmas in my breakfast room, I placed some red apples in front of my tea cups.I just didn't want to add a lot of "cutesy" decorations.   Since my cabinet is black, it needed a little punch of color.  What do you think?  I'm open for suggestions.

The Stockings Are Hung

I did something a little different with my Christmas stockings.  Instead of having names on each stocking, I placed childhood pictures over each one. These pictures are of my sons, daughter in law and granddaughter.  It brings back so many fond memories.

There's more to come.  Ya'll check back later and I'll show you some more little snippets of things I have done. 

I'm linking up with  Kim at Savvy Southern Style

It Looks a Lot Like Christmas

Christmas decorating is done.

I like to keep it simple so come in and I'll show you a few snippets of what I have done.

 This is the same centerpiece that I showed you on a previous post.  I just added a few poinsettias and changed the fabric that is draped around it.

Come back later and I'll show you a little more.

I'll give you a little hint.
It has something to do with Christmas stockings.
Merry Christmas!