Christmas in our Dining Room

It is looking like Christmas at our home and today I am sharing our dining room.





We have a simple country look all year in our dining room. For Christmas decor I added greenery and natural elements, shiny and glass ornaments and candleholders, ribbons and burlap. Our dining room is visible from the front entry and open to the living room so I kept the colours and textures of our holiday decor in these areas consistent: whites, creams, browns and tans, silver and shades of blue, mixing natural elements like greenery, wood and pinecones with shiny and sparkly.



  
I adore my white dishes and keep this black pine Mennonite cabinet (and our kitchen cupboard and buffet and hutch) filled with many pieces. Crocheted and vintage linens are also things I love to collect, so little bits show up in most of my photos.





The little star hanging on the knob is made of battenburg textile and I added some pinecones and aromatic cedar to the cabinet.





I shared more photos and details of the dining table vignette here. 





The ornaments in the window were shared here. We already had all of the items used in our dining room Christmas decor, except for a $4 package of the little blue glass ornaments on the table and the greenery. We woke up to beautiful sunshine today so I was able to take lots of photos that I will be sharing in the upcoming week. Wishing you a great weekend!


I'm sharing our dining room at these great parties...
SNS at Funky Junk Interiors
Potpourri Party at 2805
Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage
Weekend Wrap up Party at Tatertots and Jello

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Christmas in our Dining Room

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Christmas Dining Room Table Vignette

I had fun styling our dining table for the Christmas season.





For Christmas decorating this year in our dining room and living room I am using whites, creams, browns and tans, silver and shades of blue, mixing natural elements with shiny and sparkly. These colours, along with black, are the colours we have throughout our home all year. 





For a focal point on our dining room pine farmhouse table I started with a plank of rough sawn solid cherry that we got from my father-in-law's former sawmill. The plank is layered on a white cutwork tablerunner and wide burlap ribbon.





Then I began to gather items from around our home and in our Christmas bins. The only new purchase for this vignette was a pack of mini glass ornaments in blues (a pack of 24 on sale for $4 at Real Canadian Superstore this week.) I started with another length of burlap on the plank, then a length of sheer silver ribbon. Strings of cream and white beads were added on top of the ribbon and across the burlap. Then I added the little sled to the centre and an apothecary jar with silver balls and a glass vase with wine corks on either side. Gaps were filled in with silver and white votive candles, lots of glass candleholders, creamy-white pillar candles, and white square cut dinner candles.





Next came large and small pinecones and fresh princess pine and aromatic cedar followed by shiny and matt mini glass ornaments in white, cream, silver, and shades of blue.



 A vintage Crown mason jar with river rocks holding some fresh pine and a kissing ball made of birch bark curls sit on the little sled.





Despite the constant rain these past few days, and the fact that it gets dark now so early, I decided to take these photos this afternoon. I am hoping for some sunshine by the weekend to take photos of both Christmas trees. I'm not a pro, but I sure had fun pulling this together. It is probably not practical for dining, but we have another table in our kitchen. For Christmas Eve and Christmas day we will need both tables so I will probably move this display and just use a simple pitcher with greenery or flowers. But for now, we are really loving it. 

There are so many great parties to join this week, and I'm loving all the holiday inspiration at the following parties...
White Wednesday at Faded Charm

WOW Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm

Christmas Cheer Link Party at A Thoughtful Place

Potpourri Party at 2805

Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage

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Christmas Dining Room Table Vignette

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Happy Thanksgiving and Roses

It is our Thanksgiving weekend and in between cleaning and preparing for guests I bought myself a boquet of roses.





I don't usually indulge, but today I popped by our local grocery store for a few forgotten ingredients and couldn't resist. They had beautiful Fall bouquets and potted mums, but I was drawn to the simplicity and beauty of these roses.





They started out in a galvanized sap pail in the dining room,





but soon moved to the kitchen. I think I like the simplicity of them better in the dining room. Remington was very curious.





(I really need to change the placement of our light and I should probably redo the finish on our farmhouse table to better match the buffet and china cabinet.)





I am really enjoying these roses as we prepare for 25+ family members for an early dinner tomorrow (my husband and sister are helping.) The menu includes turkey, spiral ham, meatballs, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberries, turnip, caesar salad, rolls, corn, peas, and a veggie tray to start. Dessert includes pumpkin pie with whipped cream, apple pie with ice cream, and confetti squares. We are blessed to have our family, our home to welcome guests and food to share.





Wishing you all a great weekend, and to my Canadian readers and friends a happy Thanksgiving!


Joining the party at...
Funky Junk Interiors ~SNS
Tabletop Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life

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Happy Thanksgiving and Roses

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Early Fall Tablescape

I used part of my vintage cow tag centerpiece for an early Fall tablescape in our dining room.



It is just beginning to feel like Autumn here so I hinted at Fall with the pinecones, wood berry wreath, and rustic candle. Pumpkins and leaves will be saved for later in the season. This tablescape incorporates one of my favourite looks~ a bit rustic and a bit pretty.



I love the scratches and dings on our pine farmhouse dining table. They remind me of so many dinners and activities with family, but I decided to add a bit of softness and texture with a crocheted ecru tablecloth and white linen napkins. The tablecloth is actually an oval pattern but works just fine.
We often serve buffet style because our extended family is so large, but I do enjoy setting the table nicely for a smaller group.

White dinnerware, stainless flatware and Longchamps crystal stemware add some sparkle to this neutral colour scheme.



The centerpiece was first shared here. I love that the pillar candle, a gift, has a little leather and brass tag detail. The square white platter was a clearance find at Home Sense and I like that it brings some of the white of the dinnerware into the centre of the table.



I just can't get enough of the vintage brass cow tags.

I would love to find some inexpensive wood or woven placemats and do a really rustic tablescape one day.





I also wanted to say thanks to Traci at Beneath My Heart for hightlighting my faux grain sack No. 8 pillow as a best DIY project of August. Such a pleasant surprise.

I'm joining...
WOW us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style
Fall Festival at Nest of Posies
White Wednesday at Faded Charm
Farmhouse Friday at LaurieAnna's Vintage Home
Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground
Saturday Night Special at Funky Junk Interiors
Tuesday's Treasures Fall Party at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

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Early Fall Tablescape

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Vintage Cow Tags and Early Fall Centerpiece

Cows and Fall just seem to go together around here so I decided to make a quick centrepiece to incorporate my newest etsy find and celebrate early fall.



We are full into Fall Fair time with both of our boys in 4-H clubs (Dairy, Beef, Rabbit and Tractor.) Our family loves cows and farm related items and when I found these vintage brass numbered cow tags on Etsy I had to buy them. I think I have found a new collection!



I tried to find 97 and 99 for the birth years of our boys, but settled on 77 and 99.


The cow tags are surprisingly heavy and so different from the plastic versions used now. I especially like that the numbers are engraved.



The cow tags are displayed on a square white platter with a simple wood berry wreath in Autumn colours, a pillar candle and some pine cones.



Two large pinecones I bought last year add a natural element and more Fall colour. I love the wavy glass and bronze finish on the pair of lanterns.



I removed the white table runner and if I can find some burlap I would love to make a more rustic runner for Fall.



I will be sharing a tablescape using parts of this centerpiece later in the week. Have you started to add any fall vignettes to your home?

I'm linking with...
Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm
Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life
Fall Nesting Party at The Inspired Room
Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground
Saturday Night Special at Funky Junk Interiors
Fall in Love link party at Modern Country Style

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Vintage Cow Tags and Early Fall Centerpiece

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Authentic Style~WhisperWood Cottage ~Sarah of A Beach Cottage

I'm joining Amy at WhisperWood Cottage again for her Authentic Style series~this month featuring Sarah from A Beach Cottage.



I shared my Authentic Style in this post. Amy asked if we "share similarities with Sarah's style?" A Beach Cottage is one of the first blogs I started following and I have been influenced by Sarah's beach cottage style to add some lakeside elements to our home. We are not anywhere near an ocean, but have numerous beautiful inland lakes and beaches here in Ontario so I decided to use accents with more of a rustic lakeside cottage feel.  



I love blue as an accent colour and collect aqua mason jars. The wavy glass and colour reminds me of water. Using white in linens and draperies adds a bit of the beach cottage style to our home, that Sarah is so well known for.



More shades of blue and white in classic miniature Muskoka chairs add a bit of lakeside colour and motif to a mostly white vignette in our kitchen.



I recently added white walls to our living room and while Sarah has white slips, I am staying true to my authentic style in this room with a dark brown leather sofa but using white slipcovers on chairs.



In our family room I went with the white slipcovers. I love the airy feel they add to our room (and the fact they cover outdated patterns), but I don't know how much longer I can live with them. Think teen boys and a chocolate lab! Not a good combination with white slipcovers, no matter how frequently they are washed. The canoe paddle is another hint to our love of the Canadian outdoors and beautiful lakes.



Our ensuite bathroom has a beachy feel with light aqua walls, lots of white, beach stones and shells, and a pair of vintage seaside children figurines (a gift from my sil.) So although our home has a rustic farmhouse feel we certainly have a few lakeside beach accents, many inspired by A Beach Cottage.



I am really enjoying the Authentic Style series at Whisper Wood Cottage featuring Sarah from A Beach Cottage and hope you get a chance to stop by to see all the other links. Thanks, Amy for hosting the link party and helping me to discover my own Authentic Style.

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Authentic Style~WhisperWood Cottage ~Sarah of A Beach Cottage

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Changes in Our Dining Room ~And Hydrangeas!

Some small changes in our dining room (and fresh hydrangeas of course!) are making me happy today!



Our dining room is open to the traffic path through our home and to our living room (this view is from the living room.) It really only has these three walls. I love our Mennonite pine farmhouse table and Windsor chairs. The curtains are a simple cotton with a very subtle white on white stripe. I made them very full and may still change the way they hang (more clips.)



The opening, below, (parapet wall) is to our basement stairs, our main stairs beyond and the front entry. I have plans to add trim to the opening and basement stair walls. This view is standing in the entry to our kitchen. The table runner is made with water shot moire cotton (leftover from my wedding dress my sister made for me 19 years ago yesterday!)



Below is the view from the dining room towards the kitchen and family room. I would like to disguise the thermostat and switches. The distressed black buffet and hutch holds some of my collection of white dishes.



I started this little update because I wasn't happy with the look of the previous wood pole and black metal curtain clips (IKEA years ago.)





I decided to change to a thin black metal drapery rod, similar in style to the other drapery rods on our main floor.

I also changed the direction of the table now that the wall opposite the hutch no longer has a cabinet. It looked like this before: 



I can always change the table back if I find a long and low dresser or buffet for the wall opposite the hutch.





 I also took down the extra scrolly arms on the light fixture for a simpler look.



We still need to center the light over the table with a ceiling hook (the builder centered the light in the open space, not the table space.) I filled aqua Crown mason jars from my collection with hydrangeas for the table.




Things around here are always a work in progress. I'm thinking of adding a wood blind to the window for more texture. We also need to work on adding wood and moulding to make the drywall posts look more intentional and less hockey stick chipped (our boys used to play hockey indoors!) I'm also wondering if I need something on the walls. I'm open to suggestions! But for now I am enjoying the simple look and of course loving my hydrangeas!




This mini makeover had a whopping cost of $18 for the new rod and 2 more packs of rings costing $7 each (50% off drapery hardware at Zellers this week.) Total: $32 plus tax Cdn. Wishing you a wonderful day!



I'm joining the following parties:
 Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays at Coastal Charm

 Tuesday's Treasures at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia


 Wow Us Wednesdays! at Savvy Southern Style

 Summer Loving Link Party at Modern Country Style













Room by Room, Dining Rooms, at Cottage and Vine

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Changes in Our Dining Room ~And Hydrangeas!

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