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terrain holiday 2019

November 19, 2019

snowy village

If you follow this blog, you know one of my favorite places to shop is Terrain.  I am super lucky to have a store location so close to me in Westport, CT.  Each year, I feel an obligation to share some photos with you because I know many of you are not able to shop at this fabulous store!

greenery at Terrain

entrance Terrain

Each holiday (actually, each season) Terrain has a really wonderful open house and it is one of the best places to visit for some real holiday inspiration.

holiday

white floral

This year, I am not able to squeeze in even a short trip to the open house next Saturday.

topiaries

hanging ornament

So I made a quick visit this past weekend to get a glimpse of the beginnings of this year’s preparations!

multi color trees

stars

Today I am sharing a few photos with you and I will share some additional photos on Friday.

white poinsetta

wreath of driftwood

I hope you enjoyed this little photo trip to the Westport Terrain.  Stop back on Friday when I share my favorite part of this year’s holiday decor at Terrain – the pink accents!  Here is a little preview:

pink section

Thanks for stopping by!  Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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‘sprucing’ things up

November 15, 2019

basketdetail

After my outdoor mum arrangement died with the recent frost, my friend Wendy suggested I cut some greens from an outside tree to make something to replace it.  So, that is what I did!

I collected a few items to create my arrangement – some white berries I had in with my gift wrapping supplies, a ribbon I had saved from an old wreath because the colors were so great – so neutral!   I thought I needed a little something else so while I was at the craft store, I looked around and found these pod-like things in the natural element section and picked them up.  They were the size I thought I needed to fill the space and they were a nice neutral shade.

basket closeup

With what I already had, my supplies cost me under $3. Actually, the worse part of the project was cutting the greens – not that it was hard to do, but it was so cold outside when I did it!

bow closeup

The small basket that contained the mums did not need many greens to fill it.  I kept the dirt in the basket from when the flowers were planted in it and simply poked the greens in!  Then, I shaped the ribbon the way I wanted it  – securing it with a bent-up paperclip (I know – but I couldn’t find any wire so I had to MacGyver it!) and attached it to the basket.

outside decor

I love the way it came out!  Simple and natural looking!  Thanks for the tip Wendy!

I hope today’s post will inspire you to create something of your own for your holiday décor, using materials from outdoors!

Have a fabulous weekend!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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edible birdhouse ornament

November 12, 2019

finished bird house feeder

I recently had a fun evening creating birdhouse ornaments with a group and today I am sharing this super cute idea with you.  This is a great activity to schedule in place of a cookie swap or a wonderful craft to make with children (though a wee bit messy).

These ornaments are simple to create.  Decorating a small, inexpensive wooden birdhouse from the craft store with seeds, corn, and millet creates a feeder for the birds when placed outdoors.  Use your creation as indoor décor on your holiday tree.  I put a little bird on mine!  Or, use it to decorate a holiday wreath – it would look sweet in the middle of a wreath!  After the holidays are over, place it outside as a treat for the birds!

bird feeder

Purchase small wooden birdhouses from the craft store.  In addition, you will need bird seed to decorate the houses.  Also, disposable bowls to make ‘glue’ to adhere the decorations to the house and disposable foam brushes to apply the glue.  Here is the recipe for the ‘glue’ – totally edible for your fine feathered friends!

Edible ‘Glue’ recipe is: ¾ cup flour, 1/2 cup warm water, 3 Tablespoons corn syrup, and 1 package of Knox unflavored gelatin.

To make the ‘glue’, pour the flour into a disposable bowl.  Add the water and mix.  Add the corn syrup and mix again.  Stir in the gelatin and whisk together until the lumps have smoothed out.  Reminiscent of paper mache paste, this mixture adheres the decorations to the birdhouse.

Smear the mixture you have created heavily onto the birdhouse and attach your decorations, aka bird food.  We used sunflower seeds, dried corn, and millet.  (Millet is sold at pet stores for parakeets).

creating a bird feeder

If you cover your workspace, use disposal bowls for the ‘glue’ and apply the ‘glue’ with small disposable foam brushes, cleanup will be simple!

Let your creation air dry for 24 hours.

I hope you are inspired to create an edible birdhouse ornament!

Have a fabulous week!

Thanks for stopping by.  Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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autumn in connecticut

October 29, 2019

pumpkingrouping

I know I complain about the end of summer but it is only because I hate to see my favorite season end!

fall in litchfield

Fall though, certainly has some redeeming qualities…

more pumpkins

I was able to appreciate some of them this weekend!

overhead view of pumpkins

I spent some time with family and when we took the time to slow down a little bit, we were able to reflect and appreciate the outdoor beauty of our state at this time of the year!

leaves

Driving anywhere here in Connecticut right now is truly breathtaking.

ppumpkin arrangement

These few photos were taken just walking from lunch…

pumpkin close up

pumpkins side view

I didn’t even grab any photos while we were driving – it was too spectacular to hesitate for a photo!  But I loved these groupings of pumpkins!

And, I loved to see how some of the flowers are still hanging in!

moon flower

I can’t believe these cosmos are still around!

fall cosmos

some pumpkins

It seems our leaves are at their height of  color right now – they seem mighty late this year!

row of pumpkins

I hope you are inspired to find some beauty in the season where you live.

Thanks for stopping by!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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diy mini metallic pumpkins

October 18, 2019

a trio metallic pumpkins in bowl

I diversify my velvet pumpkin making each October by introducing a new fabric to replace the velvet.  My original creations were velvet fabric pumpkins accented with real pumpkin stems.  In recent years, I have used cashmere and chenille in addition to assorted colors of velvet.

metallicfabrics

As you saw in a previous post, my first pumpkins of the year included one made from tulle.  Today, I am sharing photos of my newest pumpkins – mini metallic pumpkins!

gold pumpkin with beads

My mom gave me the idea when we were together recently.  At my mom’s suggestion, I planned on trying metallic pumpkins and white leather pumpkins.  I found some great metallic fabrics, but unfortunately, the fabric store I visited had no white leather.

coppermetallicdiy pumpkin

So today, I am sharing my mini metallic pumpkins!  They are made in the same way as the original velvet pumpkins – just a switch of material.  Fun!  What do you think?

a trio of metallic diy pumpkins

Thanks for stopping by!

fun with metallic diy pumpkins

Have a fabulous weekend and remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie  

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updated mahogany secretary

October 15, 2019

detail of inside

Graphite and old white are the Annie Sloan Chalk Paint colors I chose to update an antique solid mahogany secretary.  I think the dark charcoal color adds a little more sophistication to the desk than a solid black would.

Before desk photos

This piece is one I am doing for myself, so of course it has been on the back burner for some time!  I plan on using it for my stationery – I think I am one of the few that still uses it!

ASC Gray

I didn’t use any fancy painting techniques on this piece, but the job was extremely time intensive because of all the little nooks, crannies, and secret compartments!  I started by putting a shellac coat on all the interior parts to be painted in the old white.  I needed to seal the mahogany so none of the color would seep through the white – an orangey yellow often comes through white with this type of piece if it hasn’t been sealed.

painting ASC Gray

The outside of the piece was straightforward painting – I used the graphite and painted two coats.  After a coat of shellac on the inside, I painted two coats there as well.  After the painting was complete, I added a coat of Annie Sloan clear wax.  I did not do any distressing on this piece, but I did put a second coat of wax using Annie Sloan dark wax.  I wanted to give the graphite a deeper color and I also wanted the old white to look really old.  I was sure to rub dark wax into some of the nooks and crannies!

before and after graphite secretary

I used all the original hardware.  I really like the old, dark hardware with this piece – the inside hardware looks especially nice against the old white paint and in combination with the graphite paint on the outside.

 

showing after photo of inside

I am so happy to have the piece completed and ready to store all my paper products.  I see a Felix Doolittle order in my immediate future!

Thanks for stopping by!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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first pumpkins of 2019

October 4, 2019

velvet pumpkin on book

In case you were wondering, yes – I did start making pumpkins.

For today’s Friday field trip I am sharing my first creations of the season!

My very first pumpkin of the year is a simple gray velvet.

gray pumpkin on log

So far, I’ve only made two.

The second was an experiment.  I made it from velvet, but added a ‘top coat’ of tulle.  The tulle is a very special one…it was taken from my mother’s wedding dress!  (It’s the pumpkin in the first photo in this post.)  I want to try using the tulle in a few different ways, but the overlay idea was my first one.

pumpkins with shutter

I hope you are inspired to make some pumpkins of your own, maybe using some fabrics that are special in some way to you.

velvet pumpkin with plaid

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a fabulous weekend!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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and so, the pumpkins begin

October 1, 2019

white pumpkins in chenille

Well, it is October after all!  Even as I write this, I haven’t officially started making pumpkins yet this year.

white pumpkin in velvet

I did put a few out that I made in past years though.  Today will start the beginning of this year’s pumpkin making!  Chenille was new last year…I need to come up with something new for 2019!

velvet pumpkins

Happy October!  Thanks for stopping by!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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pumpkin hanging

September 27, 2019

many pumpkin varieties

I was never much on fall.  I never really cared for the whole pumpkin spice, warm and cozy vibe.  And, I certainly never really cared that much for pumpkins.  I always enjoyed carving pumpkins, but other than that, I never decorated with pumpkins or got inspired by them.

It wasn’t until the white pumpkin entered the picture that I opened my eyes to pumpkin décor.  I love me a white pumpkin!

Once I started decorating with white pumpkins, I became much more interested in pumpkins as a decorating component.

pretty white pumpkins

Of course, making pumpkins from fabric and real pumpkin stems has become a staple to my October routine!    But now, every year, it seems there is some new aspect to using pumpkins in décor that appeals to me.  A great example of this happened a few years back when I first started noticing pumpkin ‘topiaries.’  I was so intrigued by stacking pumpkins and I started using the technique in varying ways.

pumpkin time

For Friday field trip today, I thought I would share this great idea from Terrain – something I’ve never used before  – hanging pumpkins!  You may have never thought about hanging a handful of pumpkins, but what a great look!

more hanging pumpkins

I hope you will be inspired to add this look to your décor this season, or to be inspired to try something new with your pumpkin décor on this first weekend of the season!  Maybe you will try using a new and interesting variety of pumpkin in your decorating!

autumn fun

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a fabulous weekend! Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Note:  If you don’t live near a Terrain, you can purchase these cool spheres on their website!

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apple pie fudge

September 24, 2019

make fudge apple pie flavor

Recently, while in Mystic, CT, I bought some ‘flavor of the day’ fudge which happened to be the flavor of apple pie.   “Interesting.”  I thought.  I figured fudge is like cheesecake.  You start with a basic recipe and then alter it according to taste.  I can honestly say I never thought of making apple pie fudge, but it sure sounded very seasonal.  It tasted seasonal as well – very much like an apple pie!

About a week after I had tasted the apple pie fudge, I decided to try making some myself.  I knew mine would taste just as good based on seasoning alone.  I only use Penzy’s brand seasonings because no other brand is as flavorful!  (So, if you decide to make my recipe and you don’t use Penzy’s, you may have to adjust the seasoning!)

So, I looked at as many fudge recipes as I could and adjusted by adding apple pie spices and some apples.  I decided fresh apples would be too hard so opted for the apples from canned apple pie filling.

apple pie fudge recipe

I was planning on making a gingersnap base, but without any artificial color, the fudge was very light in color and that made me decide to put the gingersnaps on top instead to add a little variety in color.

I think my apple pie fudge came out better than the inspiration fudge!  Try it yourself or be inspired to come up with your own flavor!

Apple Pie Fudge

  • 3 cups sugar
  • ¾ cup unsalted butter
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • ½ tsp nutmeg
  • ½ tsp allspice
  • ½ cup canned apple pie filling
  • 3 cups white chocolate – chips or broken into small pieces
  • 18 gingersnap cookies, crushed into small pieces with a rolling pin

Line an 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper and set aside.

Measure out ½ cup of apple pie filling.  Cut the apples into small pieces and remove most of the ‘liquid.’  Put into a heatproof bowl with the chocolate and set aside.

Heat butter, cream, sugar and spices in a large pan over medium heat while stirring often.

Bring mixture to a rolling boil and continue to cook, while stirring constantly, for 4 minutes.

Remove from heat and pour immediately over chocolate chips and apple pieces.  Stir until chocolate is melted.

Pour into the baking dish and spread evenly.  Sprinkle the gingersnap pieces over the top and press down lightly to set into mixture.

home made apple fudge

Refrigerate overnight.  Cut into small pieces to serve.  Tastes best when eaten at room temperature.  Store with a lid in fridge.

Thanks for stopping by.  Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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