Christmas 2013 Farmhouse Tour

Merry Christmas!

 Come on in!

 Welcome to our living room.  This room is focused on the true Gift of Christmas.

Our advent trees bring us

 a verse for each day.  

Go here to get your own list of advent verses.  Merry Christmas from me!

Our nativity.  

I leave it up for most of the month of January.
It's worth celebrating!

Across the room is the door from our family's barn.

I found the burlap bow in the dollar section at Target.  It was the perfect necklace for my lamp.  

Moving to our dining area of the kitchen...

My favorite Christmas decoration this year is my husband's grandfather's tool box filled with red balls.  Sentimental. Fun. Festive.  

Adding some bling to our cabinet-door-turned-chalkboard and spreading joy

My practical kitchen table centerpiece

Mom's tree by the kitchen sink hold some of my favorite things, like coffee mugs and ornaments from my travels around the world.

Moving to the keeping room...

We went old-school with large globe lights.  

Wishing you a season filled with PEACE and JOY

I'm linking up to these fabulous friends:
Nesting Place
Between Naps on the Porch
The Dedicated House
Coastal Charm
Cedar Hill Farmhouse
Cozy Little House

Christmas on My Porch

Welcome friends!

 The front porch is one of the most important rooms of your house.  It sets the tone for your home.  It is the first impression for anyone who visits.  I want my porch to reflect warmth and fun.

Even if you don't have a large porch a couple of special touches are all you need.

 It doesn't even need to cost much.  The only thing I purchased for our porch was the burlap ribbon.  We spray painted the bird feeder red, pulled the basket out of the barn and filled it with sprigs from the yard.

We cut some trees down earlier in the fall and I requested the "best branches."  Tucked into the wagon that was hidden under the house, they make a fun little spot on the porch.

I also pulled out my summer red pillows.  Left over trimmings from our tree and a few balls thrown on the table took ten seconds to put together.  

 My man was thrilled when I asked for an antler.  I like the natural element.  He likes the antler.   Antlers are all the rage this year and they are EXPENSIVE.  We have a large collection to choose from... for free.  Yes, my husband likes this designing fad!

Speaking of him, he always makes my fresh wreaths.  He is so talented.  This year he added in some cedar, rosemary, and red berries to the Frasier fir.

 The door color is Sherwin Williams Festoon Aqua.  It's my most asked question about the new house.

The exterior color is Sherwin Williams Earl Grey

Welcome to our farmhouse!

Come back for a peek inside!

I'm joining the party at
The Nesting Place
Between Naps on the Porch
The Dedicated House
Coastal Charm
Cedar Hill Farmhouse
Cozy Little House

Tree Shopping In North Carolina

We've only chosen a tree from a local lot twice in the last 16 years: the year of the accident and last year because we had just moved into our new home.  This year held the promise of a return to the mountains.  Unfortunately, we have things like jobs and high school to contend with on the calendar.  We knew it would be a quick trip, but it was worth every mile.

We left the flatlands on a nasty rainy evening.  Arriving late, we went straight to bed.  But we awoke to the most splendid gift: a winter wonderland!

We took the kids to downtown West Jefferson and enjoyed the sights. 

Snow in November is a special treat.

The christmas tree farms dot the landscape like my grandmother's patchwork quilt.  The week of Thanksgiving is my favorite week because it is alive with tree farm help.
Massive amounts of trees are tagged, cut, and sorted.  They await their passage to homes throughout the USA.

We discovered a tree farm that usually only sells wholesale, but the farmer makes exceptions for those of us with connections.  And by connections, I mean word-of-mouth friends.

We were the only ones on the whole mountain.  It was truly magical.

Mountains+snow+family+Christmas trees = happy momma

 The ride home was filled with fellow travelers like this:

I'm so thankful for traditions.  I feel grounded.  Nostalgic.  Contented.

Tell me your favorite tradition.  Please!

Holiday Table Ideas

Each year our church hosts a holiday brunch for the ladies.  Every table is decorated differently to inspire the festive mood and give ideas for Thanksgiving or Christmas tablescapes.
I was asked to do two, which was great because I was having a hard time deciding between the two holidays!  I wanted to encourage women that a pretty table doesn't have to cost a lot of money.  The green "placemats" are actually Ikea napkins opened up.  The square plates came from the dollar store and the houndstooth napkins were from party city.
The lantern was from my front porch (Ikea) and the sparkly fabric is just a half yard from Walmart.

I wanted the ladies to have a take-home-treat, on the cheap, so I bought the silver trays at the Dollar Tree and spray painted them with chalkboard paint.  

I did the same for my Thanksgiving table.  The oval trays were too difficult to tape with painter's tape, so I just sprayed the whole plate.

Again, an inexpensive table, using objects I already owned: pumpkin from my front porch, mason jars from the kitchen filled with Dollar Tree gourds and paper plates from Tuesday Morning.

A funny thing happened with my "Give Thanks" table.  After the meal, we were listening to a godly woman share her heart.  It was super quiet in the room, and all of the sudden the box that I had placed under the pumpkin and jars collapsed.  The ladies at the table had to catch all of the jars before they rolled off the table.  Centerpiece fail!  ;)

Each year it is a treat to see the variety of table ideas.

Loved the polka dot plates!!!

The layers and the fruit= natural warmth

Simple elegance, using her fine china.  Loved the navy, silver, turquoise and green.  Now I want some miniature disco balls!

This table was a great example of a kid-friendly party.  Loved the red polka dots (Oriental Trading) mixed with the green dot napkins (Walmart).

She used wrapping paper as a table runner... brilliant!

Red, white and silver.  So classic!  Those brown ornaments?  Filled with homemade hot cocoa mix!

Can you see that pumpkin made from a book?!  Love at first sight.

Christmas trees from book pages?  I am complete.

To see more ideas from previous years, click here, here, here, and here.