Monday, 26 December 2011

Happy New Year!

I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday!  Do you have wrapping paper and empty boxes everywhere?  Are you stuffed from this past weekend's fabulous meals?  We are, for sure!  Jax is busy playing with all of his new "goods," and John and I are cleaning up (yuck).

Are you someone who opted to go with the "less is more" motto this season when it came to holiday decorating?  If so, I envy you right.this.second!   Yes, I have the lovely task of taking allllll of our decorations down and, lemme tell ya', this is NOT a part of the holiday season that I enjoy! 

Sooooo, while I am preoccupied in lots of *mess* this week, I wanted to wish you all a Happy New Year, and that I can't wait to see what trouble our decoratin' minds get us into in 2012!



Christmas 2011 Family scrapbook

'Twas the night before Christmas and all through our house, 
I was getting ready to host our family party.
Before most of the gang arrived, 
I took a few minutes to snap pics of the house with my iPhone. 
The kitchen chandelier had icicles and 
snow flakes hanging from it's wire frame,
a glass of proseco waits on the hostess to get back to her cooking duties.
I had prepared a lasagna with homemade sauce, 
a honeybaked ham, aspargus and pototoes,
delicious homemade coleslaw and a big tossed salad.
Tiny light whites made the room feel magical.
Our stockings were hung by the chimney with care!
 My mom knits all the christmas stockings for the family, 
with the exception of the original 5 stockings for me and my 4 siblings, 
which were knitted by my grandmother.
 Hubs put a dimmer switch on my chandy for me earlier in the day~
it looked so pretty with its blue opaline drops, 
an early xmas gift from my blog reader Betsy!
 This blurry picture shows all of the stockings that St. Nick must fill before morning.
 A rare appearance in the kitchen by Mr. Maison Decor~haha!
 My sons, Brandon and Colin with me and Brandon's girlfriend Mimi.  
Mimi wears a Santa hat every year to our party!
 I spent a lot of the first half of Christmas eve in the kitchen~
 At the sink with my sister Ellen.  
Ellen is wearing a pretty beaded sweater I bought for her~
I loved that it is beaded on the back as well as the front.  
 Lots of picture taking was going on all night long~
I have lots of blurry pictures,
 but this wasn't the time for staging pics. 
 Here Ellen takes a shot of my little brother Brian
 working on the mashed potatoes, 
with my son Colin assisting.
 Mother and son having a good time taking a self portrait!
Brother and sister share a moment over the stove.
  You can see the mosaic transferware creamer night light
 in the mini hutch that I asked Penny to create for me. 
I love how it brings some life the shelf at night.
With my brother in law, Mike, I am modeling 
a blingy cuff bracelet gift with tags attached 
and a new gold pashmina from my exhubs!  
There was lots to eat and drink~ 
Colin with his Dad in the dining room.
and before we knew it the evening was over.
It was Christmas morning! 
Hubs took this pic of Colin in his new robe 
and me in my new pajamas with the dogs by our sides.  
The kids opened more gifts that Santa
 brought and the hectic holiday subsided into calm.
With me in my new cap (from Colin) perched on the top of my head 
 I stole a Christmas nap on the couch. 
The rest of my day was so nice and relaxing~
I spent the entire day with my wonderful husband, my best friend. 
The perfect gift. 





Sunday, 25 December 2011

My Favorite Projects of 2011

I really can't believe how many projects that I completed in 2011, mostly because of this blog. I feel the need to continually show you something new and different that I have made or transformed. Later, you can check out my Before & Afters tab at the top of my blog page.

I decided to look back at what I have done, and pick my 12 favorite ones and tell you why...in no particular order.

Here we

Friday, 23 December 2011

Honorable Mentions ...

Okay ... Christmas is day after tomorrow, which reminds me of ALLL of the things I have yet to cross off my list!  Who's with me?

I almost forgot to share a few other trees in our home ... so, here's a little shout out to them:

This simple one is in our master bedroom, done in soft blues, golds and whites.  I can't show you the rest of our bedroom, because, well, it would make you want to sign me up for the "Hoarders" show:


Crazy topper (everything came from Wal-Mart last year):


Jackson's tree in his playroom, which he decorated mostly by himself ... Mommy and Daddy stepped in to fill in just a bit and add the topper:


It's filled with sports, superheroes ...


and his handmade ornaments:


"Little Bit" sits in Jax's bedroom on his dresser ... done in just sports to go with the theme in his room:


Annnnd, out in the "man cave" (a/k/a, our garage), sits our (I mean, John's) NY Yankee tree:


I filled it with all things "Yankee" ... from candy canes and coasters ...


pops of red and jersey ornaments ...


to these cute, little nutcrackers:


I hope you all have a great day, finishing up your shopping, preparing yummy treats or just enjoying the season quietly at home!  Just be sure and watch out for the crazed lady today ... it's just me, and an I apologize in advance if I happen to knock you over while on my mission of last minute shopping!  LOL

Happy Holidays,





Christmas Wishes



Oh my!  
Do I have time to paint my walls raspberry pink and put in white carpeting before my party on Christmas Eve? And then  rip off my silver bows and make big pink ones?!  I guess not.  I will just have to have this entryway virtually, which I think is just fabulous!!  And on that note~ Did you see this most incredible hall console?  It could certainly go in my virtual hallway...
Everything the sisters at Juniper Hill Antiques in CT make at their workshop is to die for.   That silver console with the caning is so beautiful and the way they finished it is simply AMAZING!  Just wanted to share this before...


I wish all of my friends, followers and blog readers
 a very Merry Christmas~
I will be spending this time with family and friends~
making merry and reflecting on the true meaning of Christmas.
Wishing for a happier and more peaceful world for us all.
I will also be making my goal list for next year~
do you do that?
I think of what I want to create, achieve, and do
 and make a conscious effort to try to do just that in the new year.
I will also be picking the winner of the 
Shabby Chic Soho samples right after Christmas,
so if you would like to enter visit here.


Thursday, 22 December 2011

A linen slipcover for Christmas

 Just like everybody else, 
I am trying to get things ready for Christmas.
  We add a bench to our table to accommodate the extra guests,
 and it has always been a desire of mine to slipcover
 it in a simple style so it blends in with the dining room better.
 Yesterday I took the time to finally get it done. 
 The color is that blue green color which 
is similar to the chairs around the table.
Here is is before in its dark wood and leather finish. 
 I never wanted to paint this bench and so the slipcover 
was my solution to lighten it up and make it a little bit more romantic.
  Voila~it has been transformed with 2.5 yards of linen fabric!
Just in time for Christmas.