A study in Textures

I bought myself this fun little "tree" when I bought three for my good friends.  Mine is a grain sack.  Two of them were plain burlap and one was feed sack with writing.  At the top of each tree is a piece of vintage jewelry.  I love it so much I'm keeping it up all year because it doesn't look that Christmasy!  Isn't it wonderful?  A very talented woman from a small town in Nebraska makes them.  I'm calling this shelf my "mantle" because I don't have a real one in my den. 

My talented friend, Helen, made this darling iron snowman.  She makes incredible ironworks and I love this snowman.  I found the burlap garland at Michael's--huge roll for $3 or $4.  We use it in our staging and I love to decorate with it.  I am crazy about pinecones too -- there are so many different varieties.  I picked these up at one of my seller's homes.  I like the softness of them and the lighter color.

What was a big booboo on my part actually turned out to be a good thing.  My mother-in-law gave us some Morel mushrooms a couple of years ago and I set them in a dish on top of the frig.  And of course I forgot about them until they had completely dried up!  But . . . I looked at them and thought they would look good in a glass container and I added a few other tidbits.  It looks great on my "texture" shelf.

I then added this darling little brown birdie--because I love birds and the color & texture fit right in with the theme.  You can't see the little brown case very well that the tree and bird is setting on but I picked this up at a garage sale.  It's very old brown leather.  Not sure what it was for--maybe a file of some kind.   It has that rustic old look I like so much.

Well that's it for my makeshift mantel.  Hope you liked it.  I wish I had a fireplace setting under it . . . .

I'm linking up with TheStoriesA2Z. 

Fabulous giveaway at Dreamy Whites

Dreamy Whites is one of my favorite blogs.  She is giving away a beautiful wreath, table runner and stockings made from grain sacks.  I could spend hours on her blog.  Check it out at dreamywhites.blogspot.com.

After Thanksgiving!

Wow--Christmas is coming soon.  I bought my first presents yesterday.  This year we're really going low key!  Very small, inexpensive presents, mostly one to each family member.  I may have to buy our one month grandson, Coen, a couple of small things!  I got ahead of the game last week and have all of my indoor Christmas decorating finished!  Woo hoo!

 Didn't buy a real tree this year because I have so many smaller artificial trees that I like and don't have room for a real tree too, plus, we're trying to save bucks!

 When my daughter walked into our house Thanksgiving nite, she thought maybe she was mistaken and it was Christmas instead of Thanksgiving!  I decided what the heck, I wasn't having Thanksgiving dinner so why wait til after Tgiving to put Christmas decs up.  Now I just have to do some outdoor when the wind isn't blowing so hard!

You have to check out French Farmhouse 425 for their giveaway.  What a fabulous blog.  I love farmhouse decor, salvage, cottage, etc. and this blog gives me lots of ideas!  A local shop that I visit frequently (probably too frequently) is Simply Bungalow.  If you're in the Lincoln Nebraska area, check out this charming little shop on 33rd & B.  Great cottage items for a very reasonable price.  Heidi and Pam, owners, are sooo creative!  Check out the
 Simply Bungalow  blog too.

I had a website several years ago and made pillows and other items from vintage fabrics, buttons, trims, etc.  I love these chenille stockings.  Had to keep a few of my creations!

I've included a few photos of my decorating this year.  I'm not the best photographer so please excuse the photos but they will give you an idea of what I've done.  I just love to decorate for Christmas so I get a little carried away!  Oh well.  As long as I like it I guess that's what matters!

This was one of my best finds at an antique shop--$10--and I use it constantly. Great with moss balls,
Christmas balls, pumpkins and much more!

Well, that's all for now.  I'm still learning how to blog and have much more to learn but I'm so impressed with all of the creative blogs out there that I'm determined to get better at this!  Happy decorating and good luck shopping!

BEFORE & AFTER CHEAP OR FREE FINDS

CURB APPEAL

We want to make this as economical and simple as possible for you. If you can't afford to do more landscaping, make sure the yard is tidy and cleaned up--dead plants, toys and junk laying around outside should be removed. The porch should be clean and free of clutter. Touch up the paint if needed. The front door should be clean,including the window if there is one. If paint is chipped,or the door is boring, repaint door in a neutral but contrasting color to highlight the front of your home.

Replace the light fixture, door handle, kickplate if needed. No brass! They should all coordinate. Even the house numbers and doorbell should be updated. This will add HUGE curb appeal. Add a new colorful doormat and door hanger or wreath, potted plant, and a chair or bench if there's a porch. You want potential buyers anxious to come inside!

INDOOR UPDATING

Updating light fixtures is an inexpensive way to add a new look--brass is out but there are many choices such as bronze, brushed nickel, chrome, or black. A very important lighting feature is the dining room light fixture and the choices are varied. Get rid of the dated brass or chrome bathroom vanity "Hollywood" lights that have all the globes. Kitchen and bathroom hardware and towel racks should coordinate with the lighting.

Wallpaper is a no no. Buyers will turn around and run if they see a house full of wallpaper so remove it yourself or hire it done. This will help your house sell faster and for more money. Really bright colors or wild faux painting is a distraction. A warm taupe is a great neutral color that appeals to most buyers.

So you want to have your home "staged right" . . .

I'm going to give you some things to do before you have the stager visit your home. If you can take care of some of the necessary cleaning out, etc. it will be easier for the stager to actually look at your home and determine what needs to be done to prepare it for selling without having to look at all of your family pictures, kids outgrown toys, collections. This article will talk about preparing an occupied home to get it ready to put on the market.

First of all, and this is probably the most important, you need to take the emotion out of this process--forget about how much you love your collections, family pictures, etc. and think like a buyer. Start from the front and walk up to the house like you're a potential buyer and look at the landscaping, paint, roof, front porch, door, etc. with a critical eye and determine whether you need to paint, add a new door handle, light, numbers, etc.

Then walk through each room and pretend it's NOT your home so you can be objective. Because you're planning on moving anyway, this is the time to clean out, throw out, give away, pack up all of the things you don't want or need right now. If you have to rent a storage unit, it will be worth it as clutter and too much furniture and "stuff" is a real turn off.

Next time I'll talk about doing some necessary updating before your home goes on the market if you want to get the best price! If doing the preliminary work mentioned here is too much for you, then the stager can help you with it. I'm just trying to save you some money by doing the things homeowners can usually do themselves.