Get Merry!

A couple of years ago Mollie and I decided to host our favorite ladies

 for a festive kick-off to the holiday season. 

It has become a tradition!

We have our "Get Merry with Mimosas" brunch on the first Saturday in December. 

This way we can catch up with everyone before the day and the season gets too busy.

I highly recommend it. 

Brunch food is fun and easy- we do a brunch charcuterie board

 and everyone helps themselves.

 Plus minimal cooking!

We get the house clean and decorated by the first of December

 and then we just enjoy the rest of the month!

 :) When I started looking through the photos for this blog post I realized we never got the cheddar cheese out!! No one ever asked about the sign without any cheese!!

 Mollie and I plan the charcuterie board components in advance

 and I make up the little signs the night before.

 It's supposed to keep us from forgetting anything!! 

Our pickier eaters have said they like that everything is labeled and doesn't touch!! 

But if you want some serious charcuterie board inspo (where it ALL touches) then check out @ainttoproudtomeg on IG!! #goals

 I took these before everyone arrived and it was pouring soooo hard.

 The light wasn't great but it's a simple set up on the island.

I use gift wrap as my "runner" and top it with a huge breadboard.

 This year I ran a strand of small globe lights around the board. 

We just gather our favorite blue and white dishes, rattan trays, vintage cake stands and other favorites from around the house.

We usually have 3 or 4 cheeses, ham, prosciutto, salami, and candied bacon.

There's fresh fruit, candied lemon and orange slices, ground mustard, mayonnaise, 

TJ cranberry relish and strawberry jelly. 

Fresh croissants from the bakery and 

 GF bagels from TJ with whipped cream cheese and cinnamon sugar cream cheese.

I made GF sausage balls (best recipe so far!) and the empty trivet in the picture above was waiting for GF hash brown casserole to come out of the oven. I made it the night before and I made an extra one for us to "test." It was so good. Tasted just like, or better maybe, than the canned soup version!

We tried to "class up" the OJ with a silver champagne bucket! :)

And look at that big silver beauty of a champagne "tub" - easily hold 3 bottles!

I found it at Goodwill a week ago for $10.00. It was practically black but I figured it was worth the $10.00 to see if it would polish up!

It came out beautifully - not a scratch on it!! I guess someone got tired of polishing it!

We added strawberries, pomegranate seeds and cranberry juice to the regular line up of OJ and bubbly!

We love BRUNCH. And we love this tradition! 

And in case you are wondering about the exact definition of Brunch...

Both of these made me laugh!

From Urban Dictionary: Contraction of breakfast and lunch, usually occurring around the hour of 11 a.m. Typically reserved for snobs and biddies who like tea and jam.

And from Wikepedia: Brunch is a combination of breakfast and lunch eaten usually during the late morning to early afternoon, generally served from 10am up to 2pm, and regularly has some form of alcoholic drink (most usually champagne or a cocktail) served with it. The word is a portmanteau of breakfast and lunch.

We just hosted a brunch and we didn't see any "biddies"

 but there was definitely "some form of alcoholic drink!"

And bonus points if you can work the word "portmanteau" into a sentence this week!

ORC Lucky No 7 - The Reveal.

This reveal is all smoke and mirrors.
And creative editing.

Repairs were not quite finished 
by the time this ORC started six weeks ago (and they still aren't!)
 but I didn't let that stop me!

And we only had one way to go on this project. Really.
It couldn't have gotten any worse!

There are still a few things that will have to be finished construction/repair wise
 and I didn't complete all of my plans -
  so maybe you'll check back and see.

But here is what did happen in the 5 quick weeks of this One Room Challenge...

Thank you to Linda of the One Room Challenge because, finished or not, this is the greatest motivator and we always end up with a space that I'm glad I took on the challenge!

Please be sure to see what everyone else accomplished. So many great rooms.
And check back on the blog because I'll be sharing in future posts where I found some of my items and what I still need to finish and more!

From My iphone 5/2017

Some randomness from my phone.

It's a mixed bag for sure!

This one pan ( read 5 minute clean up) recipe is turning into a major favorite around here. I've made it for my parents when visiting and they are big fans too. The original came from Waiting On Martha but I have tweaked it slightly. 

I have switched WOM's green beans for the asparagus. 

The timing still works perfectly and we love it.

It's in the rotation!

I bought tickets to see India Hicks speak at a garden club fundraiser.

 I have been a fan since an article in a magazine decades ago. She's my hero - she ran away to  small island and lives in a big white house. What more do you need??

She was delightful.

Go see her if you have the chance.

I'm loving these two chinoiserie fabrics currently.

Where, oh where, can I use them?

(I've used this fabric before but in a different colorway. This colorway is growing on me!)

I posted pics on IG and on the blog of a blue version
of these hand stamped anthro knock off curtains. 

I printed the pink version for my One Room Challenge.
The details of how I went about it and what I used are here.
I will tell you that for the blue version I used old sheets, laid them out on a table and eye-balled the layout. You can read why time was a major factor.
For the pink version I was printing on IKEA panels and I laid them out and used painters tape and a t-square to create a registration process for the hand blocked layout. It didn't take much longer to do the measured registration if you feel the need for more definite order. However, when the two different treatments were hanging I couldn't really see where the more precise layout made any difference. So if you are pretty sure handed and can eye things then you may not feel the need to register the block printing.

Then I felt the need for a pink pagoda pillow. The example I found while making my Olio Board was $91.00. So you know what that means? I had to make my own! I used a white pillow cover I happened to have, some of  the gorgeous Sherwin Williams paint - Ruby Shade- I used for my block printed curtains, and a small flat brush and painted it freehand.

 I like it. 

I am currenty obsessed with the Watermelon Mint Lemonade at Chic Fil A.

It is sooooooo good!

Where have I been??

I just discovered @blueandwhitehome on IG. 

Great feed!

Look at this porch. I want to be there. Sipping Watermelon Mint Lemonade!!

I'm also loving this blog right now!

I fell in love with their room on the One Room Challenge that I just participated in and now I'm reading the blog like a book!

J and J Design group.

This room!!!!

And school is out here. 

So we are putting together a Summer Bucket List and getting ready for FUN!!

For us that means lots of porch time with friends. Grilling. Relaxing. Chatting!

BTW, Chloe is more excited than she looks!

Time on the Boules court...

And maybe an umbrella drink around 5 o'clock right here on the shady chaise!

 

Happy Summer!

PS. I love to see pics of fabulous backyards to hang out it.

Tag me on IG if you post your backyard hang out spots!

Bamboo Bar Carts - Not Just For Happy Hour!

 I know bamboo bar carts have been a topic on every lifestyle/shelter/decor blog for years now but they do not seem to be fading in popularity.

I love them and wouldn't care if they were trendy or not.

 (We have discussed this. More than once. )

Of course, it does make you feel good when you google "bamboo bar carts" and this one from 1st Dibs pops up for $895.00.

It's circa 1965 and mine are considerably older!

I've talked about my great luck in receiving 2 antique bar carts 

that belonged to my moms dearest friend.

  I showcased them at Christmas and NYE.

 But we can't party all the time (insert perplexed look here!) 

so I needed to decide where the biggest of the bar carts was going to live

 when we weren't whooping it up.

Enter the bar cart as an end table. 

We had this narrow spot at the end of the couch 

and no place to perch a drink except the coffee table if you are on that end of the couch.

It's on wheels which is actually nice.

It's located directly across from our wet bar closet. 

That is very handy if we do want to style it up for drinks when we entertain.

We use the blue and white saucers and salad plates as coasters.

They work great and are prettier than a lot of coasters. 

And they have all been thrifted!

This is not the first time I've used a bar cart for something other than drinks.

A few years ago I used this one that I found at GW in my Master Bath 

to hold towels and a few bath necessities. 

(Sadly, no pics of it all styled up in the MBR)

Then I replaced the towel holding bar cart with a china cabinet.

Yes, a china cabinet in the bathroom.

We have no respect for "job titles" around here.

So, bar carts aren't just for happy hour.

What have you used your bar cart for?

Happy New Year!

The first blog post of the year on 1/1 !!

Don't be impressed.

 I'm putting off the inevitable- using lopping shears to trim the branches off the tree to be able to get it out of the house.

 It grew - a lot- when we took the mesh off at the beginning of December.

We had friends over for NYE - small scale and quiet-

 but I wanted to do a little bit of festive decor to welcome 2017 in the door!

I justified the glittery 2017 banner because I am giving it to the only girl in my youth group to graduate this year!! 

She can repurpose it into Graduation Party decor!

And of course the fabulous Bamboo Bar Carts made a reappearance!

I bought amber colored Christmas lights on clearance because I thought they would add a warm glow to the bamboo and brass pineapples I was planning to use on the carts.

I used one bamboo cart in the foyer again - just like for our Christmas Brunch - 

but I put party hats, horns and noisemakers on it. 

Target and Dollar Store all the way.

Just inside the Family Room Door I placed the other Bamboo bar cart. 

It held the essentials for our under 21 guests!

(I forgot to take a picture after it was completely stocked - oops!)

It wasn't very cold but we also had the new Keurig corner

 (one of Mollie's Christmas surprises - coffee is important to her!! Isn't the color fab??) 

stocked if anyone wanted Hot Chocolate, Hot Cider or Coffee!

I hope you got to ring in the New Year with family and friends.

 I'm headed to "undecorate" some more, cook our traditional Southern New Years Day meal 

(Hoppin' John, Greens, and pork roast) and then we are headed out to a rockin' worship service called "Day One" (complete with food trucks afterwards) to get this party known as 2017 started!!! 

Ladies Who Brunch

We had a party!
Mollie and I decided to host a Christmas Brunch for a few favorite ladies.

We wanted to let them know how special we think they are.

We made our list and sent out invitations the middle of November.

The holidays are busy and we wanted to get our date on their calendars.

We chose the first Saturday morning in December.

We hoped people would have fewer conflicts that early.

It motivated us to get started with our Christmas decorating!

A bit tricky since we were at the beach for Thanksgiving 
and we don't decorate before Thanksgiving.
We had 6 days to pull it off!

Come in!!
(and Go Braves!)

 Wal Mart had $4.00  Fraser Fir wreaths.
 I added the bow and some additional greenery 
including the obligatory Southern Christmas greenery - Magnolia.
 If you live in the South and don't have a Magnolia in your yard 
and your friends won't share their Magnolia with you then you need new friends.;)

Our Entry Way.

In August, my mom surprised me with two, yes two, amazing bamboo bar carts. 
They are in perfect condition. They belonged to a dear friend of hers who is clearing some things out. Her friends' mother bought them many years ago in the Philippines when they lived there. They are truly antiques and I feel so fortunate to have both of them. Mollie and I decided to decorate the carts, stock them with goodies and sprinkle them around the downstairs to help with the  flow.

This bar cart was to the right in front of our DIY mirrored French Doors

 

 Next to the front door, we placed the other bar cart. 
This beauty has a brass tray for the top!

(I still have more polishing to do but it already has a great, warm gleam!)

The bamboo basket holds a little "surcie"
  (Definition (n): word used in the South to mean a small, thoughtful gift, unexpected gift, just because.)

We made an ornament for each guest.
And gave it to them as they got ready to leave.

To the left is our Library from our Spring One Room Challenge
 all decked out for the holidays with plenty of seating for Ladies Who Brunch.

I've already talked about this little tree and it's DIY Chinoiserie ornaments.

To the right of the entry way is our Family Room.
Clean and without two big dog beds in the middle of it :)
Can we take a moment?
#raredoghairfreepicture

No ornaments on the big tree yet. We only had 6 days, remember??

And in the corner of the Family Room we placed a bar cart that we already owned. 
It's thrifted, but not as old or distinguished a the other two!

This cart was for those who weren't having Mimosas.
(We also set up a coffee and hot chocolate bar in the kitchen using Mollie's Keurig.)

And then in to the kitchen...
and this is where I fell down on my job as photographer!
We got to talking and I forgot to take many more pictures!!! Happens at every party!
But here are a few shots of the food and fun...

Chicken Salad in little jars with leaf lettuce.

I'm not sure Valerie was ready to have her picture taken!

We used the large blue and white flower pot to hold our champagne on ice. 

Worked perfectly!

I always use gift wrap as my table runners.
 I bought this bright green and white at Hobby Lobby back in October. 

The table at the other end of the kitchen matched the island set up!

But I didn't take any more pictures of all the goodies or cute touches!!

#bloggerfail

Mollie and her Sorority sisters at the brunch.

(They did not talk beforehand to coordinate their outfits for this photo op!!)

We had so much fun, everyone was so glad our get together was brunch

 and early in the month.

Mollie and I think this may the beginning of a tradition!