Neutral Christmas Mantel

Hello again,
 Chaos Central is, as ever, an apt description of our home and life. We ran into fall, going gangbusters into DIY projects and home renovations. Between those projects and our typical running after 3 kids I somehow misplaced most of September and all of October. Please tell me that happens to y'all. I get sucked into the schedule and blink....a week is gone.

And now we are flying past Thanksgiving and into Christmas!!!!! Holy crap!!! I am frantically hanging lights and tying bows and online shopping till my husband begs for mercy!! I wanted to share a few pictures of our newly remodeled fireplace and how it is all dressed up for Christmas!!!

During the decorating process

We are ready to hang our stockings!!

Now to enjoy it for the season!!

Family Room Upgrade!

A while back I shared with my facebook followers my super fab Craig's List find of a beautiful mantel. Custom, never installed, solid wood and GORGEOUS! I was so excited when I scored it! I picked out some tile for the surround and a little hearth area in front. And then had to convince my husband we could handle another home reno project. Poor Husband Darling. He hates "projects" But I think he was worried I would try to do it all by myself or worse make him help and so he agreed and hired a handy man to help expedite the to-do list.
 I had way more fun they I probably should have smashing that ugly fireplace with a hammer and taking up that disgusting carpet!!! On my list was to take the high end laminate thru from the breakfast room and est of the main floor into the family room to the fireplace. To put a tile hearth in front of the fireplace. Yes, I know code doesn't require a hearth in front of a fireplace but I think it makes it look more fireplace-y. I made up that word, sure did. And to hang the fabulous custom wood surround I had found and add new surround tile.

I had no idea tile could be so complicated but I picked out herringbone marble and it became the biggest part of the whole project! And the most expensive, ouch!!

But after several days and a life in chaos and way to much Taco Bell we began to put it all back together. Here is our before, during and after photos

tile I picked out

custom, never used mantel I found on Craig's List.

Before demo

beginning demo

I love smashing stuff with a hammer!

about a gazillion layers of paint to get this to match my trim

destruction!!

pulling off baseboards to get ready for flooring

buh-bye nasty carpet!

my helper!

dry fitting the mantel

visualizing the beauty!!

this collage shows the navy hot mess this was at house purchase, just before demo and the final product in all it's beauty!

 
I am super in love with how it turned out and I love not having carpet. At least now when there is dirt on the floor I can see it and clean it! The marble herringbone was pricy and difficult but worth it. It is just stunning!

Living Room Fall Tour

Good morning friends,
 I have been having more fun then a pig in a puddle getting the house ready for fall! Today I am going to share the Living Room with you. I am continuing with my neutrals in here and sticking with metallics for glimmer and interest.

Dollar Store pumpkins and plastic skull get a new coat of paint and a whole new look. That is my 25 cent bowl from the World's Longest Yard Sale this summer! 

 I found these little laser cutouts at Michael's and couldn't resist them

Hobby Lobby pillow covers help set the mood

 Mr Evil thinks I placed this table her merely as a cat stand so he has a better view of the bird feeder in the front flower bed. He is wrong.

 This little round table was a antique market find. The top looks pretty rough so I found these matching silver trays at the antique mall to dress up these simple tables a bit

 My RH knockoff trunk DIY can be found here

All falled up and ready to entertain! Truthfully though this room gets used most for board games and my middle child likes to lay on the fluffy rug and watch you tube videos on his phone after school. Just keepin' it real.

Rustic Glam Dining Room All Dressed For Fall

Hello my friends,
Thanks for popping in to see my dining room all dressed in it;s fall finery. As I mentioned in other posts about fall this year I am just not in the mood for bright colors this year. I am digging my whole serene neutrals with lots of metallics and textures to keep it interesting.
 I shared my fall centerpiece and table scape in a previous post so today I will share a little more of the room.

 All set for a Pumpkin Pie Martini

 The whole room has a bright happy feeling, I think

 I spray painted some fabric leaves in metallics  and hung them from the ceiling over the table for a little festive fun

 love the sparkle of my new vintage gold silverware!

That's my old buffet with it's new grey paint and walnut stain on top! I just love vintage glass decanters. I have bought them on vacation trips, our local Goodwill and even the Country Living Fair in Columbus last fall. They just sparkle so pretty with their amber colored liqours in them. Especially set on the silver tray in front of the mirror. Pictures don't do it justice, I can't catch the light refraction and glitz of a beautiful glass in the light!

I think we are all set for fall get togethers and family occasions!

To see more of my fall tablescape and those sweet vintage dishes I found check out the post on it here.
Now time for a little PSL!!

A Little Fall Sign

I posted about my shopping for fall decor  inspiration trip recently. On that trip I saw this sign.

 The day I saw this I happened to pick up a vinyl of the same words while at Hobby lobby. It was on sale for oh.....4$ and I absolutely hate doing lettering! I find it massively stressful! So I am cheating!!
 A friend recently shared some old plank cabinet doors with me from her attic. I scored 4 of the delicious little things. I will do a post on all 4 of them when I get them all done but so far I have done 2 projects with them. This sign just had to be mine but I knew I could do it for cheap, cheap once I found the lettering!
 I just printed off a sheet of leaf templates on my printer at home and got to work. A little sanding that my 11 yr old was willing to do for me, a couple coats of white chalk paint and I was ready to get to work. I traced the patterns all over and painted them in with gold metallic paint in aztec gold for that bright yellow gold hue.  Then just added the lettering! So fast and easy. I may have drank an entire pitcher of home made margaritas with the husband while I traced and painted. Wasn't it sweet of him to keep me company?! Hell, he even made the margaritas!!
 Here is my version as it is drying.

 I think it turned out well

Stop back soon for more fall decorating posts!

Fall Tablescape 2015

 The leaves on my Sycamore trees are turning bronze and yellow, the birch tree in my neighbors yard is dropping leaves all over the grass. Fall has arrived. Last week was in the 90's so it didn't FEEL like fall at all but today is absolutely beautiful. The sky alternates between light blue and cloudy, moody grey and the cool air has a bit of a breeze to it. My thermometer says it is 73 in the house with all the windows open and the fresh air blowing in. I have cookies in the oven and coffee in my hand......fall.
 This year I am just not in the mood for the warm reds, oranges and yellows in the house. Calm serene neutrals just fit where I am right now. But to keep it from being boring I gotta have a little bling!

 I decided to do greys, beiges, creams and whites with a few hints of green and super de dooper sparingly a few hints of yellow/orange. But to keep it interesting I am focusing on silver, gold and bronze versions of those colors. Last year's tablescape in the dining room was full of bright teal blue with hints of rust and bright pops of orange! Lots of feather motifs and some fabulous ikat fabric. I loved it but this year I just wasn't feeling the blue.

 Pinterest, my bestest friend, showed me some great images of how other people have done these more sophisticated color schemes. I went shopping and found some little treasures as a jumping off point everywhere from Hobby Lobby christmas section to the antique Market. Then one super awesome find on Ebay kind of brought everything together. I love a mix of vintage and new, rustic and sleek modern. I have the "new" trestle table and leather side chairs in the dining room this year which means a different vibe in there then last year's mahogany stained furniture. I am still hunting down some fabulous Captain's chairs for the ends so temporarily I have my old chairs covered with some ivory chair covers. I don't love that at all but I prefer the collected over time look and that takes....time. Go figure!

 Swoon! gold trimmed vintage salad plates with little oak leaves and acorns in the center in black and gold! Gold rimmed sherbet dishes, both from my birthday antiquing adventure and that ebay find I hinted at.......the bouquet pattern gold plated silverware! The acorn in the bowl is actually a Christmas ornament I found at Hobby Lobby and the feathers are ornaments from last Christmas! I chalkboard painted some fabric leaves to use as name cards and tucked in with the acorns. I love the combination of shiny new chargers and my simple everyday Ikea plates mixed with these treasures!

It all just came together after that!

I might add some mini boo pumpkins to the tray with the centerpiece if I can find some or if I see some little mini faux ones maybe they might need a little champagne colored rub n buff. I just haven't stumbled across any yet.

The centerpiece is this fun gold and black antlers pic I found at Hobby Lobby in a vintage brass planter I picked up at a plant sale a couple years ago and some hydrangeas from my yard. I set it on a big silver platter I scored at Goodwill and put little wine glass lanterns next to it. Easy Peasy! I think it has that rustic bling look I like.

What do you think? If you would like to see more of the room be sure to check out the post here.
 If you prefer brighter colors for fall then click on over to last years orange and teal tablescape

Now to keep looking for some fabulous captains chairs!!