Black and White Rocking Horse

During the holidays I moved this table over to the corner and have decided to keep it here.  I updated the interior of the wood lantern.  This location proves difficult to take a picture because of glare so bear with me. 

I opened the door to view everything better.  

The idea all began with this little rocking horse.  Isn't this the cutest!  I found it at a local store in a basket of mark downs.  I only took one since I had it in mind for this lantern.  I love how it looks like an old piece chipping away with age.  It's actually sold as an ornament but it's kind of heavy so I just took off the string hanger it came with.

We were at Hobby Lobby shortly after I found the rocking horse and I spotted this antique looking candle holder.  The black part is cast iron in the shape of a flower.  I cut the candle shorter and melted it a bit to look aged.  It's too close to the top so I really won't be lighting it again.

I put a lace doily in there that came from my Mom's house.  The tree came from the same place as the horse but I had to have Dan cut a chunk off the bottom of the tree to lower it because it was taller than I thought.  It came with the wood base which I thought was pretty cute. 

I added more black and white with another candle holder and the plates.  The swan was already dressed for the occasion!  

The swan has some history.  I saw this Swan Decoy in a Ballard Designs catalog (still available $129).  We were at a friend's house and I became aware that he liked to carve wood and I casually said I had recently found this swan for but it was too expensive for me to buy.  He privately told Dan he could carve one for me so they secretly worked together on it.  

Dan finished the painting on it and then it was presented to me at Christmas 2016.

While putting my pictures on the post I realized something seemed to be missing.  I decided some kind of tray should hold the plants and candlestick on the left side.  I looked and looked on the internet for something but just didn't want to spend the money on what I was finding.  

Finally the light bulb went off and I remembered I had this white charger.  I was happier with the look the moment I put it together.  I am even more happy because it tied in the black and white look that I had started with the dishes I put on the plate rack.

This charger was originally a green/with gold color from Pottery Barn several years ago.  I didn't like the coloring the moment I got it (didn't even look like their pictures) so it got a coat of an off white color.  The details showed up much better so that was an unexpected bonus!

I love to play this way!

Joining the following blog parties:

Dishing & Digging It 

Celebrate Your Story 

By the way-

I will be joining a group of bloggers starting Monday Feb. 5th thru the 9th for my first blog hop

sponsored by Chloe @ Celebrate & Decorate

I hope you'll check it out!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Joining the following parties:

Dishing It & Digging It 

Cyclamen and Thanksgiving Deco Cont’d!

Earlier last week I noticed this Cyclamen plant was still blooming even after a couple of frosts had occurred.  I hadn't yet emptied the container it was in along with a fern that I planted in the ground.  Someone I know says she waters hers from the bottom and it does well- I'll have to give that a try because I usually overwater these and kill them!

I potted it up in a wide but short clay pot, set it on the table in a pie tin with one of those pie carriers that look like wicker.  I lined the pie tin with foil so there would be no contact between the pot and the actual tin since it's used for food.

This picture is from 2010 when we visited at Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania.  They had many displays with cyclamen around and I enjoyed seeing them.  I was chatting with one of the attendants about the cyclamen and he said that before the Poinsettia plant became popular for the Christmas holiday the Cyclamen was the plant of choice.  It's a fantastic place to visit- if you ever get a chance go there it's worth it.  They have a giant conservatory and a large outdoor area to walk around so it's a very enjoyable place to see inside and out.  This is a link to our visit in 2012 "here"

The winter storm turned out to be much milder than they warned but still we received about 2" of snow which is a little more than normal for this area so early in November. 

I put a few things out for Thanksgiving around the kitchen area.

I found a pair of Pilgrim turkey salt and pepper shakers I set out on the first shelf and the whimsical turkey tea light holder I got a Pier 1 a couple of years ago.

I replaced my fall dishes with these turkey plates and left the other blue and white ones there along with the pumpkin mugs.  

The ceramic Polish Pottery pumpkin has a carved out face on the other side.  I just turned it around so I could still use it through  Thanksgiving.

I found another turkey in my stash so it went on top of the etagere and I moved the MC pumpkin over there too.  I am going to move the etagere back to the corner it was in before to make things easier for the holidays.  That'll be my little chore for today!  Of course that means vacuuming and mopping and a little chore turns into a big one!

Sorry I haven't visited your blogs much lately.  I have a sciatica issue and sitting for long gets to me so I am encouraged to keep on my feet!

Have a great weekend!

Joining:
Dish It & Digging It 

Celebrate & Decorate 

Tweaking Things Around The House

I've gotten a lot of fussing and tweaking done around the house since I've been trying to get over this dumb cold.  I still have a plugged ear and Dan got walking pneumonia.  We've gotten out to the grocery store and post office but that's about it.  Basically we're on the mend- it's just taking too long!!

I posted a new arrangement on the dining table back on January 6th "here"  After I lived with it a while I decided it looked a little wimpy so I added a few more pieces.

How it looked before.

I decided to add more to it and to use the wreath the kids gave me last year.  The metal frame came empty but I stuffed it with boxwood balls that I got from Pier 1.  It was so much work getting them stuffed in there that they I'm never removing them!

I adjusted the pieces and added a couple of candle votives with flameless tea lights.

Last time I posted pictures from the living room I had nothing in the center of the mantel.  

I ran across these scroll designed candle votives which are a miniature version of a larger one I got at Pier 1 a while back.  I was trying to find something short to go there and this seems to work.  

I found some flameless votive candles at Pier 1 with a timer.  I hadn't seen flameless votives before so I was pleased to find them.

This is the larger version which is one of my favorite pieces.

Next to the mantel on the game table I used the two yellow pieces that used to be on the etagere.  

I have Ron's book (from Uptown Acorn), a magazine that I had a small feature in from my fairy garden and a book that my sister in-law has a featured art piece in.

In front of the sofa- I've kept it simple.  I added the votives to enjoy in the evenings.

I took a quick picture one night and it happened to be with a football game on.

I showed my etagere in the post about "Reclaiming The Living Space After The Holidays" but I only used my cell phone and the picture didn't do much for it.

I thought I'd show it up close so I broke it down on the different shelves.  As I noted before I wanted a pop of green so the fern went up top in the urn.

I found that brass orb piece on the display stand at T.J. Maxx.  The box in front of it was also from T.J.'s a while back.  I put some personal pictures on here too which I haven't done before.  The painted glass candle holder caught my eyes at the store that we bought the etagere from but I mainly use it for the color and design.  

This twisted root ball has been on the bottom ever since I got the etagere.  

This is a wall unit that I still haven't designed to my liking.  I stripped it down the other day and left these items.  I am still thinking about what I want to do with it.  One of the problems I run into with it is the height between shelves.  I tried some books on it but it felt cluttered.  The shelves are less than 6" deep so I have to find things that work. 

The sun was out today which was a real treat.  More snow is coming this evening- oh joy!  NOT

 This pictures was on display at Christmas and then it dawned on me I could put it on this wall at the stairs by the kitchen where a big pictures of sunflowers usually presides.  I decided I'm going to switch pictures out here as the seasons move along.  

A  glass reflection caused a stripe right through the picture but of course it's not really there.  This is a winter picture from Mackinac Island.

 I opened the door and snapped a few shots this morning of our winter world.  This is our deck furniture all wrapped up for the winter and loaded with some more snow.  We empty it frequently but more  keeps coming!

 I'm anxiously awaiting spring so I can see all of my gardens come back to life! 

I hope which ever teem you are rooting for in the Super Bowl wins!

Have a great week!

Joining:

Dishing It & Digging It 

Metamorphosis Monday

Inspire Me Tuesday 

Angles and Blues

I have adjusted my furniture a bit (once again). I know big surprise!

 I got a bun on to move my striped chest behind my sofa to be like sofa table.  It's a tad higher but the back is finished and it happens to be the same height as the back cushions of the sofa so it works!  While moving things around I suddenly saw another possibility and that was to move the game table to the end of the sofa.  I couldn't be happier with it.
I've been trying to sneak in a way to have some blue in the room and my big picture on the wall has a faint amount of blue in the sky so that was my "license" to allow me to add some more!

I ran across this lidded jar at a furniture store and I felt it had the right kind of coloring that I could add it in easily.  A little more blue from some books helped too!

I wanted to find a new way to use my big wire bowl from Pier 1,  and I saw these blue candles and felt they were close in color to the lidded jar so I thought I'd give it a try.  I  may swap out a blue candle for a green candle to further tie the room colors into this arrangement.

I have my eye on this chenille zebra pillow from Pier 1 (online only).  I have also wanted to add some kind of animal print and this may be the ticket!  I can center it between the other pillows and get a little more blue in the room!

 I found the metal tray hidden away in my stockpile and added some decorative glass rocks to finish it off.  I took this picture with my cell phone and it depicts the color of the candles better.  They seem to be coming up a brighter blue in my other pictures.  There is a hint of green in them which is why I thought they'd work well with the other colors I have in the room.

I am the proud owner of the book "House Proud" that Ron over at the "The Uptown Acorn" was featured in.  Here is a link to his "blog" and also a link to the post that featured the day they came and took pictures for the book "here"
I also have to thank Linda from Life and Linda who sent me the book as a birthday gift.

After I got it I was fortunate enough to have him sign my book for me and I love it even more because of it!  Thank you again Ron- such a sweet man!

Some of you who follow me may have noticed this etagere unit that I've anchored in the corner.  Dear hubby and I went out on our anniversary and he bought this for me.  It was a real leap for me since it's made with a rusted, chippy metal finish-  I was looking for something unique and I think I got it!

On the bottom I've set a "root ball" that I laid some faux greenery underneath to give it a little more pop.

 The deco balls are from Pier 1.  I love these- they may end up in that metal bowl one of these days on the coffee table. I didn't really want to compete with the pattern in the bowl, but for now this will do. 

This ceramic jar and the piece above have the same pattern.  I liked them because they offered a little more of a contemporary look and I thought they looked good with the design of this etagere.  This unit is made up of 4 cubes which actually fit into each other.  Very convenient for moving and storing!  It fit in my Malibu car very easily which came in handy!

 I was trying to find something to add to this shelf so I added my little spaniel dogs and the books add some more blue!  That's the book my husband's sister was featured in that I posted about "here"  We ended up with two of them, one signed by her that she gifted to us and the other we had purchased.  That's a candle votive from One King's Lane that I've had for a while.  The scent is so yummy!

My son and his wife were living in Pennsylvania and there is a store called Wendell August that sells hand crafted metal pieces.  My Dad came from "copper country" in the U.P. of Michigan where his Dad and Grandfather mined copper so Ryan and Angela selected this piece for us knowing the family history.

On the top of the chest I used a clear vase to display this potpourri (that had been in a painted metal cache pot but you could only see the top of the potpourri) and I thought the clear glass would lend a little more contemporary element to the room too.  I got it at  T.J.Maxx for $9.99 and the ones that Pottery Barn sell are $39 and $49!  The bottom of mine isn't as thick as theirs but the overall appearance comes across the same.  I've set some decorating and gardening books out to encourage looking through them. 

I'm really pleased with this room arrangement.  I need something to go on the wall under the big picture but haven't figured it out yet.  I have an upholstered bench that's in the guest bedroom I could steal away, but then I'd loose it's function that it is providing in the guest room.  Always something isn't there!  The two green chairs that go with the "game table" are relocated in the house.  I always felt I had to keep them all together as a set, but when it finally hit me to use the table as an accent I was thrilled.

So I went from this when you last you saw it to this....

I just noticed one of my cats got in the picture too!  Notice the big basket under the table.  I picked that up at my first time ever visiting a Pottery Barn outlet.  It was the only one at the store and I had actually picked it out in their catalog months before.  Hubby liked it a lot so it was sold.  Gosh if you've ever been to one of their outlets you know how tempting it is to go hog wild in there!  I was impressed with the fact that a lot of current items are in the outlet store.

So there you have it!  

I'm joining
French Country Cottage for
Feathered Nest Friday