Friday's Favorite

You may remember this little table from a previous post of our house tour. This mirrored table serves as my bedside table in our master bedroom. I got it from my favorite furniture store, At Home. I love this little table. It could easily move to our living room or another bedroom, making it a very versatile piece. I love furniture like that-pretty and practical. So, it's my favorite for Friday. 

Happy Weekend!

Friday's Favorite

By now, it's no secret that I love flowers. Hydrangeas are among my favorite for summertime. We have several in our yard. This year they were so pretty.

 I only treated myself to a few of the blooms, but what a treat they were. I enjoyed them so, so much. 

In fact, I still have one bloom that I've been enjoying for two weeks now. I'm hoping it will last another week or two.  So pretty!

Happy Friday!

Friday's Favorite

A few years ago I tried a Voluspa candle. Now, they are my favorite. You know it is hard to find a really great candle. Often times, they don't smell or just the opposite- they have a very overpowering smell. Sometimes they come in an ugly container, don't last very long, and the list could keep going. Well, not so with these. The smell is evident, but not over done, the containers are simple and sleek, and they burn for a long, long time. 

Now, I'm not an expert on all the scents, but I do have a couple of favorites. For the fall and winter, I love Santiago Huckleberry. In the spring and summer, I prefer Saijo Persimmon. So, if you are in the market for a new candle, you should definitely try one out. 

Happy Friday!

Friday's Favorite

There is something wonderful about coming home to a beautiful bouquet of fresh flowers. That is what happened yesterday. My sweet mama brought these zinnias to me from our local farmer's market. I put them in a vase and have been enjoying them so much-definitely a Friday Favorite! They are bright and happy and just perfect for the carefree days of summer. Hope you have a fabulous Friday!!!

Friday's Favorite

Yay, yay today is moving day!!!

Today is a wonderful day! My sister is moving back to Auburn!!! She has been wanting to move back (and I have been begging her to) for awhile now and it is finally happening today. She got a great new job and bought a house!!! So, it is a very exciting time for her and I'm thrilled to be a part of all of this with her. 

Sister, I'm so proud of you! Another amazing accomplishment for you!!! We are going to have so much fun decorating and arranging and your favorite-repurposing! So, get your running shoes and painting clothes on (wait, do you have any painting clothes??? ha, ha!) cause we've got a lot to do!

I'll be posting the pics of our projects throughout the next few weeks! And, hopefully she'll let me post some pics of her house, too.

Friday's Favorite

Sister, Sister

I haven't been doing so well with Friday's Favorites lately or blogging at all, for that matter. Life has been busy, very busy. But, it has been great! One of the greatest things about my life is sharing it with my sister!!! So today, she's my Friday Favorite. 

Over the past few weeks I've enjoyed getting to tag along for the ride as she embarks on an exiting new chapter in her life-more to come on that. Last weekend we celebrated her 25th birthday. What a celebration it was!!! She has accomplished so much in her life and I am so proud of her. She is intelligent, beautiful, compassionate, determined, loving and sassy. Amanda, you are amazing! I hope you never forget that. Keep smiling your bright smile. I know the best is yet to come!!! I love you, sister!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Best friends are we, my sister and me!

Friday's Favorite: Frugal Flowers

Flowers and greenery are an easy and cheap way to add that special touch to your home. I love using different types of arrangements in my decor. It's even better when you can shop your yard! Some of my most favorite arrangements have been the ones I put together with branches and blooms from my yard. Even simple stems of leafy greens look amazing when paired with a pretty vase. Here are some of the arrangements I've made using clippings from my yard. 

Azaleas from the spring

Branches of lemon-lime colored leaves (these will last practically forever like this-all you have to do is change the water periodically)

Magnolia leaves mixed in with cedar and grocery store carnations (this was an arrangement I made for Christmas)

Knock-out roses mixed with gardenias and greenery (a simple summertime arrangement)

So, the next time you need to spruce things up on the cheap, check your yard and bring the outdoors in.

The Shabby Nest is hosting a Frugal Friday party today. Check out her site for more frugal decorating ideas.

 Happy Friday!!!

Friday's Favorite

In celebration of Easter, my favorite for this Friday is a little egg garden stake. My mom gave this to me for Christmas. That's right, she got it on Easter clearance last year and saved it for Christmas so I could have it for this Easter. It's so pretty with all the glitter and little flower embellishments! I have it in one of our house plants-it's too pretty to put outside-it just makes me happy when I see all that shimmering glitter. Wishing you all a happy Good Friday!

Friday's Favorite

This little ruffled glass bowl has found several uses over the past few months. I love that it is simple, yet feminine. During the fall, it held a display of mini pumpkins. 

For Christmas, the bowl was brimming with shiny ornaments. 

Now, it serves as a soap dish in our master bathroom. 

I can think of many other uses. Wouldn't it be especially lovely at a brunch, filled with fruit salad? Mama-don't worry, I'll wash it thoroughly! I love that I can use it for so many things. A practical and pretty favorite. Happy Friday!

Friday's Favorite: Happy Spring!

Happy Spring and Friday! 

What a perfect combination! Spring is certainly one of my favorite times of year. I am loving the beautiful weather, blooming flowers, dinner outside, swinging and wearing my flip flops. This weekend I'm planning to celebrate this lovely season by planting some flowers and sprucing things up around the house-inside and out. I hope you have a beautiful weekend!!!

Friday's Favorite

Lamps light up my life. I love lamps, as I mentioned here. I'm constantly on the look out for lamps that are affordable as well as stylish. A few months back, I ran across these beauties at TJ Maxx. I was attracted immediately. I didn't buy them right away, though. I resisted until I just couldn't stand it anymore (two whole days). Then, they made their way home with me. And in our master bedroom they found a home. I love a pair of lamps flanking a dresser. So, that's what I did with these. I love the glass mixed with the metal overlay. I especially love the pattern of the overlay. The pattern complements our bedding but, you'll have to wait to see that on a future installation of House Tour Tuesday. 

Happy Friday!!!

Friday's Favorite: French Flair

I don't know what it is about this time of year, maybe it's an early case of Spring Fever. Whatever it is, I've been yearning to get away. Lately, Paris has been on my mind. Oh to sail in the moonlight, down the Seine River and bask in the glimmering lights all along this Parisian riverbank. I enjoyed visiting this wonderful city some years ago. Since then, I've had a fascination with objects, art, books, anything really, that reminded me of my stay. I picked up this fleur-de-lis sculpture sometime last year. This piece is a favorite of mine, a hint of travels greatly treasured. Happy Friday!

Friday's Favorite

An Upholstered Headboard

As I've mentioned before, my mother-in-law does upholstery work. Not only that, but she and my father-in-law are quite handy. A couple of years ago, I saw a picture of a slipcover that loosely fit over a headboard. Well, I had an extra headboard that had a nice shape, so I thought a slipcover would be a nice idea. I showed the picture to my MIL and she obligingly made the slipcover. It did not turn out as I had imagined. Not because of her, but because it just wasn't what I wanted-go figure. I loved the shape of the slipcover, though. 

This summer I asked her if she thought she could take the slipcover and cut some wood and stuff it (don't you like my technicality) to make an upholstered headboard. She, along with my FIL agreed to give it a try. A week later, I had myself an upholstered headboard. Of course, it wasn't as simple as I made it sound. But, they are really good at this kind of thing! I couldn't have asked for anything better. It is exactly what I wanted. I just love the shape, so feminine and tailored. Definitely a favorite! Happy Friday!!!

Friday's Favorite

I love the looks of books. 

Books here,

Books there,

Books, books everywhere!

Just so you know, I actually enjoy reading books, too. 

Friday's Favorite

I was at a loss as for what to write about today. I asked my mom if she had any ideas and later she gave me this idea, which was perfectly fitting. Remember, I've told you my mom is good and this is just how good she is. 

She reminded me that today would have been Granny's (my dad's mom) birthday. Now Granny was one of my all time favorite people.  She and I had a special relationship, one that I'll always cherish. I miss her so much, but am thankful that a little part of her lives on through my sister and me. You see, Granny was so talented. She could cook and bake and decorate and make all kinds of crafty things. I didn't get her talent for cooking and baking, but my sister sure did. That girl can whip up the most delicious (and gorgeous) Coconut Cake and Italian Cream Cake you've ever tasted (and seen). But, I'd like to think that I got my passion for for decorating and crafts from Granny.  

Well, my mom also reminded me of a pitcher that I have that belonged to Granny. This pitcher is made of cut glass. I have never been too fond of cut glass, but I treasure this pitcher because it belonged to Granny's mother, Big Mama (my great-grandmother for whom I'm named). My mom suggested that I make a flower arrangement for the pitcher-what a wonderful idea! If you remember, I've told you that I love flowers and I get that from Granny. She was a remarkable floral arranger and just loved flowers-any kind, anywhere. So, these flowers are in memory of my sweet Granny, she'll always be a favorite. I think she would be proud of me. 

Mama, thank you for this idea. It was the perfect suggestion for a Friday Favorite!

Friday's Favorite

Isn't she lovely? You might not believe this, but I turned my nose up at her the first time I saw her. Sad, I know. I had a change of heart, though. You see, she used to live with my mom. Now she lives with me. And, I love her. Since I've had her, she's moved from room to room adding a special touch everywhere she visits. She makes me happy and Fridays make me happy, too. Happy Friday to you!

Friday's Favorite . . .

a few days late . . .

For this week's favorite I've chosen the flower arrangements I made on Friday. My oldest (not in age but length of time) and one of my dearest friends, Stephanie and her husband Ben came to visit and I wanted a little something special for their visit. I found some red and white carnations (not usually a fan of carnations, but for this I think they're perfect) and mixed them in with magnolia leaves and branches from a pine tree. The carnations I picked up at the grocery store and the magnolia and pine I cut from trees in our backyard. These are my favorite arrangements, yet!

Friday's Favorite

I posted awhile back on my Mandy Bagwell dishes. Well, they're back-this time in the Christmas edition. I have these adorable salad plates sporting an ornament, reindeer, Christmas tree and present. I mix them in with my green and red dinner plates, pair them with these lime green and red ric-rac trimmed napkins and there you have it-a Christmas-ready table setting. A Christmas favorite for sure!

Friday's Favorite

Christmas! It's the most wonderful time of the year. I love it all. I'm busy getting my house decorated-can't wait to share! From now until Christmas day, I'll be doing one Christmas related post each day. So, stay tuned. For now I'll show you what I've been working with. And, there's more-these boxes are just the ornaments for my trees. Oh, I'm so excited for all that is to come! Happy Black Friday!

Friday's Favorite

This week's Friday Favorite is a small cabinet that sits in my living room. I've only had this piece since summer. While shopping for bedroom furniture at my absolute favorite store, my mom (of course, she was there) pointed it out. You know the story-love at first site- yada, yada, ya. I took it home with me. Thank goodness for SUVs with seats that lay down. The cabinet has imperfections that make it look old. Although, I think it's a reproduction. It's a perfect fit for the living room. Plus, it gave me a space to display a few of my favorite accessories-like the bride and groom plate my friend Ellen painted for Jamie and me.




Happy Friday and hope you all have a wonderful weekend!