Get It Together!!

I think that thinking about getting organized is one of the most popular "to-do" tasks at the beginning of the year. You can order all kinds of organization items online but a lot of my favorites are items I've thrifted or found in vintage shops and have repurposed for organization. Often this is a much more interesting and economical way to get storage and organization pieces. Sometimes you have to be patient, thrift, and slowly find all the pieces you need but I think it is worth it. 

One of my favorite pieces in my house is this vintage bamboo china cabinet that I have used for over 10 years as the linen closet in my closet-less primary bathroom. Sometimes you have to use your imagination. 

The bamboo china cabinet is filled with vintage wicker suitcases that I thrifted over time. The suitcases store all kinds of bathroom necessities that are not necessarily attractive. They can be found in every size imaginable and are inexpensive. They also stack beautifully so you can get a lot of storage space using them. They add warmth and texture, plus a touch of the unexpected, to the bathroom.

I'm not kidding when I say I hide everything you need in a bathroom in vintage wicker and bamboo suitcases.

The primary bath isn't the only place I use stacked, vintage wicker baskets and trunks. Almost every shelf unit in my home has at least one wicker or bamboo storage piece. 

The bamboo trunk in my entry way holds our candle stash.

And the small bamboo boxes, on the coffee table below, hold all of our remotes, chargers and other little items that seem to accumulate in the room where we watch TV.

More bamboo lidded baskets storing all kinds of little things all around the house. 

I went on my first thrift store visit of the year today and there were two  bamboo/wicker suitcases there! It's easier than you think to find creative storage. 

Happy Organizing!

January 2023!!

Happy new year. When I was young I remember hearing my grandparents saying that time goes faster as you get older. I thought that was so silly - everyone knows a second is the exact amount of time every single time. A minute is a minute. Guess what?? Like so many other things, they were right. 

I'm shocked that it is a new year. I am a little unprepared to be honest. Other than a new calendar I don't have a word of the year or any resolutions. Maybe not deciding any of those things is, in fact, my decision. What about you?

Our NYE "venue" #ourfamilyroom. 

We changed our plans and stayed home to enjoy snacks and champagne and to watch UGA play.

I did do a couple of 2022 "wrap ups" on IG but that's about it. It is the first year that both of my parents are gone so we did not have any holiday travel. Things felt a little different but we did some new things around home and because it was soooooo cold in the South we actually just hung out at home and read and napped. And snacked. And snacked! We decided to enjoy the slower pace. 

I do have a little room refresh that I want to start soon. Christmas decor is down but not completely cleared out of the way (I'm doing some purging.) Once I get everything completely out of every room I'm going to start my first project of 2023. It is going to be all about paint and won't involve any big ticket items. I'll be posting on my Instagram once I get started. 

Are you easing in to 2023 like me? Or do you have plans and goals in place and are ready to jump in?? 

Do You Ever Really Finish Decorating A Christmas Tree?

I admire people who put up their tree and it is "finished!" Somehow I just can't quite get stopped adding decor to a Christmas tree. Are you finished? Or are you like me? Tweaking the tree until the last moment?

I got a new King of Christmas Tree that I knew I was going to put in our Library and that really motivated me to do some fun DIYs that I'd been thinking about but hadn't gotten around to doing. You can see the previous DIYS here,  here, here, and here. 

Today I'm going to share the last few DIYs on the Library tree. 

Mollie and I made some of the faux mercury ornaments that are all over Pinterest using Krylon Looking Glass spray paint. I used the mirror spray paint on French doors between our entry and garden room years ago and I was impressed at how easy it was to get a mottled, antique mirror look on plain glass. 

It's like having little mini gazing balls all over the tree. The reflective quality is great. 

Next up were some decoupaged ornaments. I decoupaged an Easter tree and a fall tree with chinoiserie and marbled papers! I wasn't about to leave my Christmas tree out of it!

I found museum images of Japanese woodblock winter scenes. Snow and pagodas! Perfect for my Christmas ornaments. Follow the links to the Easter of fall tree for complete DIYs.

You aren't limited to chinoiserie ornaments for this project. Any subject matter that you would like to see on your tree is possible - just search for copyright free images to print and decoupage. 

The first ones I ever made were Audubon bird images downloaded from the Audubon Society website. 

I tried some botanical images as well. I chose pine, holly and mistletoe.

The last little DIY (if you can call it that) was to glitter some inexpensive plastic icicle ornaments to add some shimmer to the tree. I found mine at Target -$3 for 12. 

I painted the icicle with Mod Podge and then dipped it in crystal glitter. So quick and easy but it adds a lot of sparkle and shimmer to the tree.  I like a little sparkle during the holidays!

I hope you have a chance to create some ornaments of your own this year! Enjoy your Christmas tree - they are magical!

 

DIY Faux Fruit Pomanders.

Clove studded citrus, or pomanders, has become very popular the last couple of years but it is really a very traditional, classic and old tradition. My mother always made them at Christmas and we would help push the cloves into the oranges after she made the holes with a toothpick. Citrus like oranges, lemons and loquats were always a part of our lowcountry holidays and the tradition continued after we moved to Washington DC and often visited Williamsburg. 

From Wikipedia:  A pomander, from French pomme d'ambre, i.e., apple of amber, is a ball made for perfumes, such as ambergris (hence the name), musk, or civet.^[1] The pomander was worn or carried in a vase, also known by the same name, as a protection against infection in times of pestilence or merely as a useful article to modify bad smells.^[1] The globular cases which contained the pomanders were hung from a neck-chain or belt, or attached to the girdle, and were usually perforated in a variety of openwork techniques, and made of gold or silver.^[1] Sometimes they contained several partitions, in each of which was placed a different perfume.^[1]

The term "pomander" can refer to the scented material itself or to the container that contains such material.^[2][3][4] The container could be made of gold or silver and eventually evolved to be shaped like nuts, skulls, hearts, books and ships. Smaller versions were made to be attached by a chain to a finger ring and held in the hand. Even smaller versions served as cape buttons or rosary beads.^[5]

A pomander can be a bag containing fragrant herbs and might be viewed as an early form of aromatherapy. Pomanders can be considered related to censers, in which aromatics are burned or roasted rather than naturally evaporated.

Pomander Balls in America

It’s in the 18th century we do see pomander balls as we know them today. However, it should be noted these were a luxury. Most founding families would not have wasted perfectly good oranges on simple decoration. Not when there was scurvy to keep at bay during those long winter months. Having said that, one could find a pomander ball in colonial homes in baskets or cupboards and in a handkerchief for a traveler to smell on the road (again, to cover any nasty smells in the street…and oh, were there nasty smells).In the Victorian era, pomander balls were a staple in many American homes and a lovely tradition families looked forward to creating.

I have to agree with the founding families - I am funny about using food that cannot be eaten as decoration (I'm not as concerned about candy like on gingerbread houses.) I have just worked with too many populations who are food insecure so I choose to go faux with my citrus plus using plastic fruit that someone else tossed out and I thrifted is recycling at its best!! You do you - no judgement here.

If you want to make faux fruit pomanders that will last for years this is what you need: 

Faux oranges and lemons. I happened to thrift two huge bags of faux/plastic citrus - one bag of oranges and one bag of lemons. Each less than $4.00. 

Whole cloves - easily found in the spice section at any grocery store.

A drill with a small bit. Just match the drill bit size to the size of your cloves. You want a snug fit but not so tight that you break your cloves when inserting them. 

Glue that dries clear (optional) 

Thin ribbon of your choice. I used velvet. (optional)

I have a video on Instagram showing the steps but you simply drill holes into your fake fruit  using a small bit and then gently push the cloves in. I put a dab of glue on my cloves but it is not necessary if you want to skip that step. 

You can add as many cloves as you wish and even create designs if you wish. If you plan to tie them with ribbon be sure to take that into consideration when placing your cloves. 

The cloves smell nice and these will last for years without trying to figure out how to store real, cloved fruit. 

I have another "faux fruit' Christmas decoration DIY here that is quick and easy too!!

Coffee Table Books and a Christmas Tradition.

We started a new to us Christmas Eve tradition a few years ago (and it was a nice one to have the last couple of Christmases!) I've written about this before. I wanted to share again for two reasons. One is that once children are grown and some of the "Santa" traditions don't happen anymore there is a bit of a void to fill after Christmas Eve service and a special dinner. The second is that I have a lot of great books to share in case you want to start this year. 

And, really, there's a third reason - it's never too early to start this tradition even if you are still leaving cookies out for Santa!

The tradition is called Jolabokaflod and it originated in Iceland. 

"This tradition began during World War II once Iceland had gained its independence for Denmark in 1944. Paper was one of the few commodities not rationed during the war, so Icelanders shared their love of books even more as other types of gifts were short supply. This increase in giving books as presents reinforced Iceland’s culture as a nation of bookaholics.

Every year since 1944, the Icelandic book trade has published a catalogue – called Bókatíðindi (‘Book Bulletin’, in English) – that is sent to every household in the country in mid-November during the Reykjavik Book Fair. People use the catalogue to order books to give friends and family for Christmas.

During the festive season, gifts are opened on 24 December and, by tradition, everyone reads the books they have been given straight away, often while drinking hot chocolate or alcohol-free Christmas ale called jólabland."                                                               From Jolabokaflod.com

We are a family of readers (we love to eat, too, but we turned our dining room into a library - we are definitely readers!!) but this is still a great tradition if you have a few less enthusiastic readers in your family. There are books on every hobby and interest and for every age. And just like the Icelanders you may foster a love of reading. I would include comic books and make and do books like paper dolls if that's what it takes to get someone to read! And it doesn't hurt that hot chocolate or chocolate candy is involved! Books that favorite movies were based on would be a way to interest a reluctant reader as well. 

I purchase the books each year for everyone in the family. The first year or two they were surprises but now they start telling me about books they want months in advance! And, of course, I choose my own books carefully. 

I have gotten some beautiful books as my Jolabokaflod books and it's so much fun to look forward to opening them. 

Here are a few favorites:

Safari Style is one of the most elegant design books ever. I have wanted to go on safari since I was young but even if that's not on your bucket list this book will intrigue you. And there are design ideas that are relevant to any suburban, non safari style, home. If you love following Serena Crawford's adventures on IG then you'll love this book. 

Rattan is an all time favorite. It is full of amazing, inspirational photos and a great history of  fabulous rattan furniture produced all over the world.

I treated myself to Dragons and Pagodas: A Celebration of Chinoiserie last year. 

I loved Chrsitopher Spitzmiller's book, A Year at Clovebrook Farm. I love books that are structured that way. Do you?

I own all of India Hicks books. They are all so beautiful and so much fun to read. She is very entertaining. I have this one , this one  (probably my favorite) and this one. I gave my mother this India Hicks book and she loved it. 

This Mark D. Sikes book is one I can look through over and over again. Sometimes I reread and sometimes I just soak up the beautiful images.

I gave my mother this book several years ago as she was quite the blue and white collector. Now the book is in my collection and I've enjoyed reading it and ooh-ing and aah-ing over the fabulous blue and white pieces in the book. 

And I must include this favorite. I don't know how many times I've read this book by the late, great Furlow Gatewood. This book is a must-own.

This is another book that I gave my mom and now have in our library. I love this book and I am excited to hear that Nora Murphy has another book coming out - 2023 I believe. 

I could go on and on but I can't end the list without gushing about how much I love Island Hopping by Amanda Lindroth. 

Oh, and any and all of the books by that boy from Perry, Georgia - James Farmer. I gave my mother one for Christmas and he wrote the sweetest note inside - not just an autograph! She loved his books. 

I hope you give (and get) books this Christmas. We love to give books for all occasions but I'm especially taken with the history behind Jolabokaflod.

Can You "Spot" the Newest Ornament?

You didn't really think I'd decorate my new King of Christmas Tree and not include leopard print in some way, did you??

I decided to go big and incorporate leopard print by including the leopard itself! I found these leopard shapes back in the summer. I could immediately imagine them on my tree. I liked that they were a little larger. It adds a nice variation in scale and it only takes a few to make an impact on the tree. 

I painted the first one or two in "traditional" leopard tones - golden tans and black spots. 

And then, I wondered about a fun colored leopard and tried a couple of blue ones! 

Now I can't decide! Tan only? Blue only? Or both on the tree? 

What do you think? 

Be sure to keep following along because I still have a couple more DIY ornaments to create for the tree. I'm not finished yet!

My Paperwhites Are Planted.

I'm excited because I am never, ever this on top of it. I usually have paperwhites for Valentine's Day not Christmas. It's actually a nice touch during the cold, gray days of February, but this year, just maybe, I will have paperwhites for Christmas!

Do you like to force paperwhites? I love them and I love the scent. Some people do not care for them but I think they smell nice. They don't smell as good as a forced hyacinth in the house but that is for late Spring.

This year I found bulbs at my local garden center. I never found any bulbs last year so this was a good sign for my rather haphazard bulb forcing history. There are plenty of places to order online but that requires even better planning!

I decided to use an old square-ish jar for some of my bulbs. The stalks will grow quite tall and the jar provides some support and I think it will be a fun look. I already had a bag of dark rocks from the dollar store so I decided to use those.

I nestled the bulbs on the rocks - wiggle the rocks until they are fairly even and your bulbs sit steadily on the rocks. This is important when you are adding the water. 

I used a cup to slowly pour water just to the bottom of the bulbs. Be gentle because you want your bulbs to stay in place. You don't want your bulbs to sit in water because they could rot but the water should just brush the bottom so roots can begin to grow. 

I also had several bulb vases that I saved from last Spring when I purchased hyacinths at Trader Joes. Just one hyacinth in bloom can make the room smell amazing. You just fill with water and add the bulb. So easy. 

Another reason I wanted to use the jar for my bulbs? It has the perfect neck for a ribbon! That makes it even more festive- especially if you give these as gifts!

I hope you try forcing some bulbs this winter. It's also a lot of fun to do with children because they can see all of the parts of a flower through the clear container. The paperwhites grow very quickly so it's very gratifying too!