Saturday, February 11, 2012

Sweethearts Sharing Supper

Friends and dinner -
they just seem to go together.
We entertained eighteen friends for dinner last night.
I had fun decorating and getting ready.


I used my red and white transfer ware plates
on the mantel -
they're so romantic!!!



Individual French Silk Pies on an Angel Crust.
Yummy! 
(I've recreated the French Silk filling and do not use raw eggs.)





Dining Room Table is set for eight
for dining by candlelight.




Sweet Treats for all!


My little silver basket filled with chocolate hearts.
If you tip your head a little to the left,
this pic looks a bit better.  LOL!!!!



Candles aglow
and floating in crystal goblet candle holders.


Fresh flowers and boxwood (from my yard)
nestled in my "Fun Find" silver goblets.



Some shots with the "FLASH".
(just 'cause I like it better.)



Dinnerware waiting for dinner of
Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin
Twice Baked Potatoes
Green Beans
Salad
Rolls



The table in the breakfast nook
served six of our guests



I used the same theme on all
three tables.
(candles, candy and fresh flowers)




A table set up in the family room
seated four more guests.




The "tray" my sweetie make me
to use over my island cooktop. 
It sure is handy for
all those casserole dishes.



And as we all think about LOVE
on Valentine's Day,
remember the greatest
LOVE
of all
Jesus Christ and His love for us.


This chair is from my parent's dining room set.
The chairs have been in storage for years and not used.
With a little Old English Polish and
new seat covers - they are so pretty.
So much better than using folding chairs.

Thanks y'all for stopping by.
Happy Valentine's Day to you.

I'm linking to:

Friday, January 20, 2012

First Project of the Year

When we my husband put the crown moulding up in the living and dining rooms several months ago,
he mentioned that the walls needed to be painted. 
Well, I love a change
and welcome an opportunity or excuse to make a change. 
But, I do not love and welcome the mess!!!


This is part of the "stuff" from my server and china cabinet.
Having it emptied out gives me a
good time to reorganize my treasures.



See the diff in the old (at the bottom)
and the new color.
We're putting up chair moulding,
so there was no need to paint
the new color at the bottom of the wall.


Applesauce Cake
on the wall
chair railing
up and primed.



Trimming in the LR
See the diff.


A-h-h-h
much better!
All painted and everything back in place.
I'm still debating about putting up
picture frame moulding on the
DR wall. 
 Maybe next week,
or the week after.
Actually, I ran out of paper
(not really, but I wasted several pieces)
trying to figure how to lay it out
and make the panels pleasing to the
eye since we have different size walls.


We moved the plate rack from
the other side of the DR
to this spot.



I've had these for several years
and never gotten tired of them. 




The new color goes well with all my things.


And, after living with and looking at
the new color, I'm happy with it.
At first, I thought it was too dark.



I'm so glad we did the chair rail and white -
this really helped to "lighten up" the room.


LR all back together too!!!
YEAH!


 ~ Symmetrical ~
I decided I need to have balance,
so I am using
companion prints on
either side of the window.
These are the botanical prints
I found a while back.

And the silhouettes of the "Grands"moved in here from the DR.




A good corner for some
Quiet Time.


Bright sunshine - but cold air today.


An old oil painting that's been in the storage room
for years and years.

But, I decided to use it here even though it has blue.
But I don't know what other color I would want
God's pretty sky and water to be.
(If the "Decorator Police" come after me,
I'll just lock the door and hide!!!)


Symetrical on one side of the room,
but not here.
Decided the birds didn't need to be split up.

As you can probably tell, I don't follow any
decorator's advice - just my own eye. 
And, if I don't like it today,
I can move it around tomorrow.
I've been known to do this a few times in the past,
just ask my sweet husband and painter
who without his help, none of this would be possible.
I'm a lousy painter and this project took
six days to complete.

Now, on the the next project.
Until then,

May God Bless You and Yours!

I'm linking to
The Shabby Nest 

Feathered Nest Friday

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Now, I Have Some TOO!!!

I've admired the deer antlers all over Blogland. 
Now, I have some too. 
My sweet friend's son found killed the deer them for us.
I was so afraid I would break them,
they look so delicate.
But, after "Googling" I found out that is not the case.
My hubby sawed the fur off and
I scrubbed them as outlined
in my Google Search.




Now, they are adorning my coffee table in the FR. 
I placed them there along with some
other things (treasures)
I have in my "stash". 





Notice my new find, my little black dog. 
I had a solid black
Cocker Spaniel when I was a little girl
 and when I found this
little chalk dog in an antique mall,
I felt like I had found my "Betty".


The book is open in the middle -
Since I was using it for display,
I didn't even notice what was written on the page.

"The reason a dog has so many friends
is because he wags
his tail instead of his tongue."


I'm linking to:


Chic on a Shoestring Decorating