Library flowers

Last week was National Library Week. In celebration, my school sent me this huge vase of springy flowers.

I enjoyed them as is for a few days, but if you know me, you know I am not one to leave a bouquet of flowers untouched. I went with my usual divide and conquer strategy and scattered the blooms in vintage vases all over the house.

Three sweet little milk glass vases are right at home on the kitchen table.

Cuz, ya know good things always come in threes!

I had to indulge in my favorite form of pampering and plop the hobnail vase of carnations on my nightstand.

Forget the manicures and spa treatments, this country girl just needs a tiny vase of flowers to feel spoiled!

I had to plunk the daisies in aqua canning jars, because daisies just belong in beautiful old jars.

I've never stuck flowers on the bookshelves before, but I think they add some unexpected fun.

It's ridiculous how happy I am when flowers are sprinkled all over the house! What simple thing makes you all giddy?

<3
Hattie

old books and new flowers

Inspired by Pottery Barn’s stack of books,

I decided to give the look my own take by arranging a few stacks of twine tied books in my favorite basket. I added a little extra color by popping in a few fabric flowers for a touch of spring.

These flowers are super easy to make with a few fabric scraps, a couple of stitches and some beading or floral wire.

To make a flower, stack three fabric circles on top of one another.

Then, fold the stack in half and take s stich in the middle of the folded edge. Fold the flower in half the other way and take a few more stiches until you like the shape. I stuck a beading pin through the middle of the flower for a simple stem.

Normally, I have decorating ADD and like to change things up all the time, but I’m kind of digging the fact that this little arrangement will work nicely until the summer.

Maybe it’s the perfect blue/green of the basket, or the texture and smell of the old books, or it could even be the almost-but-not-quite neutral tone of the flowers … whatever it is, this simple little vignette is making me smile today!

<3
Hattie

more fallish decor

Over the weekend, my itch to take the roost from super summery to a hint of fall, expanded to include the living room and entry hall.

During the summer, the hall looked like this:

The coffee table like this:

And the small bookcase like this:

Shopping the house (except for the flowers) provided everything I needed to create a new look for free.

Let’s take a closer look.

My first step was to use a book as the base. I didn’t have a large book in a color I liked, so I covered an ugly book with extra dropcloth fabric.

Next, I used one of the twig frames from the hallway as a tray.

I topped the tray with a bundle of twine-wrapped books (idea stolen from Pottery Barn) and added a vintage safety pin for extra texture.

For some height, I added a jar filled with black and white photos (idea stolen from BHG)

Because good things come in threes, I also added a little bird votive. After looking at these pictures, I switched the green votive for a creamy yellow.

On the bookcase, a few fall flowers and a homey sign add some softness and comfort.

It’s starting to look a lot less like summer around here!

Anyone else change up their coffee table with the seasons?

I'm linking to the show and tell party @



<3
Hattie

Summer's End

Around here the mornings and evenings are cooling down, but the days are still hot. With school back in session and the days getting shorter, I’m almost willing to embrace fall. But – summer still has a bit of a hold on me. I’m not quite ready to string up colored leaves and buy pumpkins. Still, I’m willing to say goodbye to seashells and flowered tablecloths.

I came up with this simple centerpiece to celebrate the golden end of summer.

I started with a vintage tablecloth and added a jute wrapped wreath I made a year or so ago. A red fiestaware salad plate happened to balance perfectly in the center of the wreath. I topped it with a milk glass vase of fall blooms.

I love the mix of warm yellow, natural jute, fresh white, and a small pop of red.

Mmmm, there’s nothing quite like the afternoon light this time of year.

How do you decorate for the changing of the seasons?

<3
Hattie

I sea a living room switcharoo

I am easily bored, I mean ADD, I mean quickly distracted, I mean highly creative. This results in the craving to change up what Pottery Barn calls the, “decorative accents” in my home - frequently. However, I am not one to go out and spend the kind of moola it takes to have new everything every five minutes. So, how do you change things up without spending a cent? I like to call it, “move your crap around” “restructuring.”


This is roughly what my living room looked like yesterday:

Flowers and books on the coffee table.

DIY flying birds with nests on the bookcase.

Faux mantel with paint-by-numbers and glass jar of shells.

On hand, I also had some scrabble letters, votive candles on a window sill, and this tray I painted last summer.

A little switching around got me this new summer look:

The books and flowers moved to the bookcase.

I felt like they needed something to ground them, so I borrowed the candles from the window sill.

The birdies are all packed away for next spring.

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For the coffee table, out came the blue tray.

I layered a painting stolen from the mantle with a book, scrabble letters, and shells - also stolen from the mantle.

I’m trying to send a subliminal message via scrabble letters.

If you have pets, small children, or a husband, I suggest covering the book with pretty paper and using double sided tape to stick the letters to the covered book.
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Since I borrowed so much from the mantle, it needed a little filling out.

I grabbed the “S” that will one day hang on the gallery wall I’m planning for the stairs.

I think it fits in just fine with the nautical paint-by-numbers.

Voilà! New living room look – zero dollars spent!

Tell me I’m not the only one constantly moving things around! And…Don’t forget to enter my giveaway!

<3
Hattie

 I'm joining the party at Blue Cricket Design, check out all the awesome posts linked up over there!

crazy for color

My sweet, precious husband brought me gorgeous flowers for our anniversary. The brightly colored daisies inspired me to really punch up the color in the kitchen and living room. In the spring, I crave soft colors, but something about summer makes my want to just go for an all-out color explosion.

My parents gave us this beautiful bird and flower table runner for our anniversary, which just happens to match a vintage table cloth I already had.

The red and yellow flowers really bring out the colors in the linens.

I decided to keep the silver bird in the arrangement, since the runner also features birds.

It amazes me how much brighter and more cheery the kitchen feels with these simple changes.

I know it might be too much color for some people, but it suits my summer mood just fine!

In the living room, I simply filled my two aqua ball jars with the remainder of the flowers.

Simply and easy, but what a difference it made in the energy of the room!

This is why I love red and yellow.

They really wake up a space and bring a smile to my face.

Ahhh, summer!

Do your color preferences change with the seasons, or am I the only one?

<3
Hattie