One Sweet Find

As yesterday was President's day, Mom and I decided to swing by Goodwill to take advantage of their 50% off holiday sale. Not really looking for anything in particular, I browsed the home goods department, where I snagged two square Pottery Barn vases as well as a stainless platter (also from PB).

But my real find was discovered while browsing the books. I am always on the hunt for them. Mainly for hardbacks with pretty covers-you know, for decorative purposes:) So you can imagine the happy squeal I let out when I discovered an entire section of these Reader's Digest novels! Look at those fun, bright covers!! (There goes the giddiness again!)

Talk about design on a dime-these puppies were originally marked at $2.49, though I only paid $1.25 thanks to the sweet half-off sale. Score!!

Next time you stop by the Hansen's, don't be surprised if you find them scattered about the house, serving as sweet pops of color :)

On The Menu...

Do you remember my cyber drool fest over this? From the moment we signed on the dotted line to purchase our house, I had my eyes set on these prints for our breakfast nook. Their significant size, cheerful hue and nostalgia for my Oxford days made them a shoe-in for this room!

Well, Chris' parents bought them for us this Christmas, though because they came from an Etsy seller in England they took a while to get here. They finally arrived last week, where I instantly gave them a home! I am nothing short of in love with them!

And that means that we actually have a completed room in our house!! So without further ado, I give you the Breakfast nook:

Valentine Love

Happy Valentine's day you all of you! What a lovely weekend I had! My hubby surprised me with a wonderful date Saturday. I was served breakfast in bed and then taken to one of our new favorite wineries to picnic and delight in the sunshine! It was absolutely perfect! Of course, today marks the end of several weeks of warm temps we've had here in Cali, so we had to soak it up!

Sunday evening we had some friends over for dinner and I'm excited to share with you my little Valentine themed tablescape! I love a pretty table and I love free, so this was a beautiful combination of the two as all the elements were pulled from what I already had (my favorite thing to do!) with the exception of the flowers in the center. {Love!}

I first grabbed a long piece of burlap (leftover from Christmas) and used it as a runner for my table, thanks to this inspiration.

Then I trimmed these lilies from last week and split them between two square vases from Pottery Barn. Then using this hurricane from Ikea as the centerpiece, I added more color by filling it with a bunch of carnations (not generally my fave, but they give you a good bang for your buck, especially on Valentine's weekend!).

Using some twine, I tied each place setting together and added a stamped "love" note on each setting.

To finish it off I added a few small bowls and tealight holders for that extra pop of color along with some candle light (neccessary I think!).

And finally, I found those heart shaped mints in my pantry, which pulled together the whole love theme!
And there you have it, my $12 Valentine tablescape! I hope you had a delightful weekend and an even more marvelous Valentine's day!

She Came Bearing Gifts

Leave it to Grandma to complete my Christmas decor. When they stopped by yesterday morning, she came bearing this lovely! Exactly what our front door needed to say, "Happy Christmas!". I love it!

Well, I'm off for a shopping date with my mom and grandma-isn't that the best combo?!

Fond Memories

I've been crushing on this print for some time now. Reminds me of the humble meals I enjoyed during my semester abroad in Oxford! I imagine that seeing it each morning in our breakfast nook would instantly bring a smile to my face!

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Because I Owe It To You

This weekend consisted of projects around the house! Mostly little things that have been piling up, just waiting for a full weekend to accomplish them. It finally feels like everything is coming together-a great feeling I might add. And because I've been promising you pictures for some time now, I thought I would share a few of the house along with some of our Christmas decor!

And because this week is mapped out with several other projects, more sneak peeks shouldn't be far behind!

Our mantle all decked out in Christmas cheer!

Our 11 ft. tree!! Still missing its topper, but beautiful nontheless!

The dining room, which as of last night is close to complete!

Some Kitchen details:

Shelf for my most used cookbooks.

And apron holder!

More to come soon!

Nesting

Nesting: It's a Chic Thing

by Ame Mahler Beanland & Emily Miles Terry

Last night I decided to do some reading before bed and picked up this little read. I purchased it on a whim at Goodwill several months ago-it was one of those "I'm at the checkout stand but this looks cute" buys. And I am very glad I did, because even though it's taken me a while to finally skim its pages, it was well worth the $1 I paid!

It's pages are beaming with real, honest-to-goodness advice about nesting and making your home an inviting haven for loved ones. I already love it and I'm only on part 2!

Being a new homeowner and wanting desperately to make my home feel just as cozy and inviting as our little apartment was, I am struggling with enjoying the process of "putting together". But last night I had a moment of calm, reminding myself that the process is never really ending and the journey is the fun part! Below is a little tidbit from the book that I really loved:

"Interesting houses, like interesting people, evolve, so take your time and enjoy the process. Keep building your room off the special things you've chosen, the palette you've established, and the personal style you're developing. Never try to do a whole house at once. And remember that in decorating, as in life, the rules are meant to be broken."

So there it is, my new motto:) I have given up any anxiety I may have had over not knowing what I want to do with several rooms in my house and instead, will enjoy the process of feathering our new nest!

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