Holiday Table Decor

The last couple of years

I have been decorating my Thanksgiving table 

with a nod toward Christmas.

This year I knew I wanted 

a Tablescape 

that was new and whimsical

that would transition easily to the Christmas season.

I was inspired when I saw the idea of 

deer in recycled cans!

I quickly ran with the idea

and now

it has morphed into my 

Christmas Design Scheme for 2025

Woodland Whimsy

I began my tablescpe with my very large piece of driftwood

which is a constant on our large dining table

that Jeff built decades ago.

I 'built' out my deer cans first by filling the cans almost 

to the top with tiny rocks.

(I think. sand would even work better).

I ordered a set of three deer families from Amazon

along with a collection of bottle brush trees.

I got the set with some gold trees 

as a color nod to Thanksgiving.

Lastly I added reindeer moss tho complete

the Woodland Theme in the cans.

I filled in the Tablescape with various candles

finishing off with fairy lights

that I leave on even during the day!

I made sure that the tablescape design 'read' beautifully from all seats at the table.

One of my favorite parts of my 

Woodland Tablescape

are the tiny pinecones mixed into the design.

This sweet addition was from my darling Grand Daughter Lennon.

I was lucky enough to have her over for several days

and 

Lennon came up with the idea to add the tiny pinecones for the deer!

She made sure to get one for each of the deer!

I was so happy how the tablescape worked into the room as a whole.

We have a small house with an open floor plan

so I always want my sight lines to be cohesive.

I actually make sure the outside works as well.

We put the tree up for Thanksgiving

but keep it plain of decorations until after the family holiday.

Having it up early feels like an exciting build to the holidays for me!

Plus it make Christmas decorating so much less stressful!

For place cards for the table

I used small wooden easels

with black canvases with chalked names.

Another lovely benefit of having Lennon over

is I made little heart tags with initials out  of self drying clay

while she did her colorful clay design play.

The tags are such a simple project

but I have been wanting to do them for years

but always felt 'too busy'

The actual making process is as simple as rolling out the clay

cutting out the shape and hole.

I finished by stamping the initial with black ink.

Time with Lennon in the studio

has made me so much more present.

Her sense of creative studio play and creativity

is so invigorating to be around!

She is a continual creative inspiration to me!

I always bring out my collection of

 whimsical salt and pepper shakers for the Thanksgiving table.

Speaking of whimsy

I was so happy with my

Thanksgiving outfit!

Especially how it spoke to my tablescape!

Of course I had a perfectly coordinated 

'Hostess Crown'.

These days I really do

 dress to make myself happy.

If not now, when?

My favorite thingabout Thanksgiving this year

is how everybody contributed!

I obviously did the decor.

Jeff did the turkey, stuffing and green beans.

Ellis brought a batched cocktail - a 'figgy martini'

home made rolls, the best sweet potatoes casserole ever and a delicious 

charcuterie board of hand selected cheeses and bites

from her favorite cheese store in San Diego.

Megan made a pumpkin pie from scratch!

And when I say scratch ...

she not only made her own graham crackers for the crust,

she cooked the pumpkin from fresh pumpkins!!

She also brought homemade butter for everyone as gifts!

My bother brought special pies

just like my Dad used to bring each year.

It fills my heart that everyone 

spent so much time and effort contributing to

the family celebration!

I once again set out trays of jewelry making supplies.

This time I added in enamel charms for Christmas.

It's always a beautiful thing to see how creative everyone is in our family!

Melts my heart!

Thank you so much for stopping by here!

I hope I was able to offer you some 

Holiday Decor Inspiration

my friends!

Paper Whites are planted in the living room centerpiece

working their way to Christmas!

As always my friends

I wish you love and joy

as you style your life.

Making My Life My Art - Fall Edition

 For me being 

an Artist and Designer

is as much about how I live 

as it is what I create.

I want a simple,  joyful and peaceful life

filled with beauty and love.

For me this is the foundation from which my creativity flows.

Celebrating the changing seasons 

gives me a chance to refresh my rooms and gardens.

I know it's one of the reasons why I have been so content

living in a small house for over 30 years.

We have maximized literally every square inch of our home.

Making sure it is organized with a place for everything

and 

curated with only things we love.

Changing decor for the seasons is a love letter of 

appreciation  and gratitude to my sweet little home.

The practice of 

Intentional Gratitude

is something that literally changed my life years ago.

Focusing on what I do have

and

being grateful is life changing.

Bringing out beloved and collected seasonal objects

and creating beautiful spaces

is one of life's simple beauties to me.

Sometimes in our house this time of year

 the light stops me in my tracks

and 

takes my breath away with it's beauty.

I believe refreshing my little house seasonally 

helps me see things with new eyes

instead of just going through the motions in familiar spaces.

I have created spaces like our stair lift bookcase

where I can showcase seasonal art.

These days it a perfect to display seasonal books and family art.

It makes my heart so. happy 

to see art family artwork

and 

treasured books

just climbing the stairs.

This year Jeff and I, with our grandchildren

once again painted fall sun catchers.

Sentimental seasonal family art is always one of my favorites.

Seasonal rituals are also a favorite of mine

The changing light brings back my

Coffee, Candles and Sunrise.

The peace and tranquility of the possibilities of a new day

in one of  the highlights in my

Practice of Intentional Gratitude.

Fall in Southern California is still warm and sunny

so our garden umbrellas are still up.

This year I created a living fall vignette on our back round table

which actually houses a fire pit 

which makes it's appearance once again come winter.

The shorter days mean the pool will soon be put away

so I'm squeezing the very last days of splashing time.

The courtyard also gets it's fall textiles

(and yes, I do have to pull them in if it rains

but it seldom does in the fall in Southern California).

Even something as simple as a lone pumpkin can make a seasonal impact.

I have been changing out seasonally for so long now

I have it down to formula.

I only decorate as much as I have a joyful experience.

Out front the terraces get big bowls of fall flowers.

We have so much going on in our yard

I only like to add one big punch per space

of seasonal color.

The front planter also gets a row of flowers.

To get the height I wanted

I planted them in large pots

that were then set on inverted pots to give them prime viewing.

We have begun to sprinkle in out Halloween decor

with our 12 foot ghost.

We use all of our spaces in our little house and garden.

We set up a fire pit for

 s'mores with our grandchildren.

Thank you so much for stopping by my friends.

I hope I have left you with some seasonal inspiration.

I really do believe we can all 

Make Our Life Our Art

by taking the time for order, beauty and 

intentional gratitude.

As always my friends

I wish you Love and Joy

as you style your life

Styling Summer

 Before the calendar actually turns to fall next week

I pulled some of my favorite Summer Styling  moments from this summer.

It was a wonderfully quiet and calm summer

with much time spent gardening and enjoying our backyard.

I was intentional this year with what I wanted from my summer.

 I wrote all about it in an earlier post.

I wanted a simple, beautiful summer.

One of my favorite things to do at the beginning of every season

is to change my seasonal decor.

For summer it's always blue and white.

Once again I got so much joy  from our sweet inflatable pool

with a little bar cart set up beside.

I spent much time in my gardens.

I get so much soulful solace in my backyard.

As always I carried the blue and white decor inside as well.

And to finish up my Summer Style recap

 few of my favorite summer outfits ...

As always my friends

I wish you love and joy 

as you style your life