Clear the Christmas Clutter!

     Now that the holidays are over and the relatives have moved the RV (that's recreational vehicle) from your driveway, it's time to pack away the lights, garlands, wreaths and snowmen.

    Also, for those of you who live in California I would like to point out, it is never acceptable to leave your lights on your house year round and just turn them "off". In fact, last year my neighbors came home (after Valentine's Day) to find their icicle lights neatly coiled on their front porch. :)
     Now that you're already packing up the holiday gear, why not buy a few more rubbermaid tubs and pack away any other seldom used household items. You may even step it up a notch and label a couple tubs "donate" or "Garage Sale". (www.freecycle.org is a great place to get rid of anything locally)
    If you have young kids this is the perfect time to clean out toys and make room for all of Santa's latest additions. My youngest is 2 years old, so he has out-grown some of the "baby" toys and books. The nicer items and books I donated to the babycare room at his Pre-School, now the babies have "new" toys to play with and we have room to store the umpteen new books and toys grandma/santa gave us.
    We also donate to our local battered women and children's shelter, clothes, toys and books. The address isn't posted online (for obvious safety reasons), but if you contact them directly they will give you a drop off location. My boys are excited to give to children who don't have toys and it creates a nice cycle of giving. My sons went through their own toy-boxes and bins (not that I don't sneak away a few things here and there) but involving them directly in the process is important.
     Now, back to the Xmas clutter, when you bring your "bins" in to fill them up and pack away, if you have some items "left" in the bin from previous years when you open it up, consider putting those items in the garage sale pile. Chances are, if you didn't use it/ put it out this year, you won't use it next year either. While clearing Christmas, use this time to clear your linen closets and bathroom cupboards. You only need 1-2 extra sets of sheets for each bed in your house. If you have more (or you're addicted to bed linens like myself) toss any that have holes, are no longer "fitted" or are faded and worn. All others can be folded neatly and tucked away.... see this link for how to fold a fitted sheet! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Z5k9nWcuFc

Remember, an uncluttered home = an uncluttered mind!

Live Beautifully! Erin

Holidays are here again!

Since the holidays are here again I thought I would give you some simple holiday decorating tips. With kids, family, in-laws, cousins, grandparents... who has the time to even think about changing the decor. I mean, lets face it, I am lucky my counters get a Clorox wipe and floors get a quick swiffer in between our clean lady's weekly visit.

BUT.. I do change out my window treatments and mantle decor... down come the crisp white linen curtains and up go the mid-night blue sail cloth drapes. Somehow they just feel cozier, as if our living room is wrapped in a heavy cotton blanket. Off, come my sea shell throw pillows and on come the deep chocolate velvet... downside..ummm toddler drool / snot really shows up on chocolate velvet... Thankfully, IKEA thought of everything and they're washable.

Now, for the mantle.. My grandmother actually inspired this idea. As a child I remember sitting in her living room pocketing ribbon candy and looking up at the horse drawn carriage flurrying down the snowy trail which was beautifully framed and placed above the mantle on or around Thanksgiving. Down came the painting of the covered bridge and up went pine cones and bright red maple leaves.

Thus.. became my fascination with always changing out my mantle with the seasons. For fall, it's easy! Mini pumpkins and tea-lights. Now, I am no Martha.. I am not going to tell you to hollow them out for tea lights so they can turn to mold in a week in CA. Which reminds me of the clove oranges my own mother made for a centerpiece for Christmas.. they took FOREVER about 60 cloves per orange.. and then they rotted the next day! So... as Grammy would say.. "Keep it simple stupid!"

 For winter.. change out the pumpkins for pine cones here in Southern California the pine cones are the size of a softball... seriously... so go up to the mountains and grab some pine cones and place them on your mantle with a few pine boughs. Now.. I come from a long line of decorators.. so... it's in my genes I guess, but I am going to spray paint (credit to Momma B.) my pine cones a glossy silver, tuck them in the pine boughs, sprinkle in a few shiny red ornaments (.99$ Store) and a few silver pillar candles and Whhhaaalllaa! Done!

Now.. if you want to get "martha on me" soak your pine cones in cinnamon water over night to give them a fresh scent then place them on block (hidden by the pine boughs of course) to add some height to them... give them a little interest.

Remember... beautiful things don't have to cost you a fortune... keep it simple!

2nd Sunday of Every Month...

I know I have written about the flea markets in the past.... but I found some GREAT vendors at The Rose Bowl Antique Flea Market!

Every decorator in Southern California has spent a sunny Sunday wandering The Rose Bowl. Today I fell in LOVE with Euro-Linens... a Parisian grain sack has found a home in my mud-room. I am going to use the sack to recover a bench I use as a shoe cubby. Once I complete the project I will post a picture. I have to say it was meant to be, as the sack has the initials O & M on it (the initials of my two sons). They have fantastic pillows for a child's bedroom & the bolster pillows are perfect for daybed... now.. I just need an extra space in my small cottage for a daybed!

The second vendor I will be sure to use on future projects are Olde Good Things (they have 2 stores in LA). An old ceiling tin has found its home as a back splash behind my stainless steel range in my kitchen. They have amazing architectural salvage pieces, many of which are repurposed into unique furniture pieces. One of my favorites I saw put to use on their website is a clock face from an old clock tower. The new owner reused it as a headboard in their bedroom.... very unique!

For those of you on the East Coast or NYC they have two stores in NY and can also be found at flea markets. Addresses and flea market dates/locations are found on their website.

If you find yourself in The Bay Area in CA... be sure to check out The Alameda Points Antiques and Collectible Faire on the 1st Sunday of every month. Many of the antique vendors I chatted with today couldn't say enough about this flea market...

What a great way to spend a Sunday!
Live Beautifully! Erin