Ways to Warm Up Your Family Room for Autumn

Happy Autumn! 

It's been fun setting out all the Autumn decor this year.  I love how you can add sparkle to arrangements with mirrors, candle holders, metallic enhanced ribbon, glass pumpkins and glittery leaves.

Please excuse the hammer and chisel on the fireplace.  We (my husband) has been lifting the wood floor planks up due to water damage.  I should have caught that, but, I didn't.:- O  I wanted to show you the full look of the fireplace, which is the room's focal point, before I show you a close up.

When you walk in the family room it bursts with the look of fall.  

I feel like a puppy in a pile of raked up leaves!

While I really enjoy viewing the traditional orange pumpkin color, I felt it might be a good idea to incorporate a few of these creamy pumpkins on the sofa table the rests under the octagonal window.  This space furnishes a lot of height under the window.  So I opted to place these on top of some wooden candle sticks.  I turned a fairly large Autumn spray upside down in front of the candle sticks and it creates the look of newly fallen leaves.  I thought it was delightful!

 I think the vignette still needs some life.  I'll have to ponder that.

This wreath encircles a vintage look lantern and I keep it on my coffee table year around.  I never get tired of it and it pulls all the colors of the room into it's glory.  It really works well with all the Autumn decor I have displayed around the room.

Just off the family room is my kitchen that I have set up for an Autumn gathering.  I am getting excited to have a few friends over.  But...we have to complete the re-piping of our plumbing and lay new floors in the family room and kitchen before I can do that.  I'm hoping it will be all done within two weeks.  That would truly be delightful!!

I am thinking of serving chili and cornbread or pumpkin soup and sandwiches with a light salad.  What do you think you would serve?   I'd love to hear your ideas. 

Until next time, I hope you are able to make someone else's day delightful!  That's always fun!  

XOXOX, Debbie

Ways To Warm Up Your Dining Table For Autumn

I think Autumn is almost everyone's favorite time of year for a variety of reasons.  I know it is mine.  One of our very favorite vacations is going to New England in the Fall.  I must say, Utah and other states offer fabulous colorscapes as well.  The colors at this time of year are anywhere from majestic to magical.  Photographs never do them justice.  

When decorating my autumn tables, I make every effort to duplicate the beauty of the natural season.  I love fresh flowers as a rule, however, in Autumn I am able to save lots of money by using artificial florals that give me the look I desire without having recurring costs each year.  I invite you to come take a look at what I've come up with.

To begin with,  a bright orange tablecloth graces the table.  Adding to that are rattan chargers topped with fine Lenox Eternal china this year, rather than the autumn colored plates of past years.  I adore these leaf and bird appetizer plates that furnish a pop of color and will launch the dining experience.  They could also be used for rolls and butter and be placed to the left of the dinner plate above the forks.

 A little silk leaf was added for whimsy above. A bit of berries is added below.

Combinations of crimson and sage bird plates were alternated at every other place setting.

Lenox Charleston water goblets were chosen to create sparkle on the table.  They teamed up beautifully with the King's Crown vintage wine goblets, which contributed to creating additional drama in the color on the table.

An Autumn wreath encircles the vase with sequined sparkles and artificial bittersweet berries.

Additionally, Autumn sprays fill the brushed nickel vases on each side of the centerpiece.  If you look closely you can see the glittered glass leaves that were purchased at Hobby Lobby this year.  I loved the sparkle they provided to the table.

 

If you are thinking that the artificial flowers don't do a table justice, please think again.  I have never had a guest come in and say, "I'm surprised you used artificial florals", or  any other negative sounding comment about them.  Everyone generally ooohs and ahhhs over the settings, which makes all my efforts worth it to me. ;-)

I did purchase new Autumn napkins this year from Kohl's.  I just love them!  Along with the small floral sprays that could be used for napkin rings, they really look amazing.  I'm just setting the sprays on the table this year so that the napkins don't have to compete with any other thing.

I took this picture in the morning light because I wanted to show how the glass sparkled.
 I'm lucky that my upholstery and draperies lend themselves to the Autumn color pallet too.

Any menu choice would only be enhanced by the table setting.  I'm thinking a roasted pork with an apricot or other fruited sauce.  Now I'm getting hungry!

Can you see the pumpkin salt and pepper shakers within the small basket? 
It's fun, it's Autumn, and it keeps them together as they are passed around the table.

I so love the deep reds and golds in the leaves of Autumn, don't you?

I hope you have enjoyed viewing my labor of love.  I wish I could have each and everyone one of you over for dinner.  How fun that would be!  

If you enjoy my posts, I would love it if you would make a comment below, and/or even share it with friends.  I blog as a hobby, so I don't interrupt your viewing pleasure with ads along the way.  I do post friends I am promoting at the right side of the blog.  If you want me to add you.  Please let me know. 

I only post when I have something I think would be of value or pleasure to you.  My next post will feature how I decorated my family room.  I hope you'll come back and join me for some more Autumn ideas.

I have over 1,500 followers on Pinterest, perhaps you'd like to follow me there too at: https://www.pinterest.com/dbolduc3/

I would love to hear about your Autumn plans. Hope you have a DELIGHTFUL day!  

Debbie

A Simply Delightful Luncheon

 

This is a very simple but tasty Chicken Salad Croissant Sandwich.  

I simply mixed together:

 3 stalks of chopped celery

One bunch of chopped green onions

1/2 cup of chopped pecans

1/2 cup chopped dried apricots

1 large chicken breast (poached and shredded)

About 1/2 cup of mayonnaise

1/2 teaspoon of cracked pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

Juice of 1/2 of a medium lemon.

You can add or exchange other things you like, such as the type of nuts or fruit.  Some people like cashews, grapes and/or Craisins.  I found the seasonings to be essential! 

It was a very colorful sandwich, as well as different from the norm with the dried apricots. Yum!

The fruit cup was colorful and refreshing.

The salad was a favorite of all of ours!  

It consisted of mixed greens, sliced strawberries, candied pecans, sliced beets, and Mandarin orange slices.  It was topped with a fabulous Brianna's Dressing: Blush Wine Vinaigrette (has a single large strawberry on the label).  It was wonderful!

We finished off our luncheon with warm oatmeal chocolate chip cookies and vanilla Hagen Daz ice cream. Mmmm, mmmm!

The best part of the lunch was one of my dear friend's daughter attended and announced that she was pregnant for the first time...with TWINS!  

This day could not have been any better!  It was delightful in EVERY way.  

My New Logo!

What do you think? Do you like it?  I LOVE it!  I searched for hours for the perfect image.  I found this and immediately knew it was "the one".  Kind of like when I saw my husband for the first time!  I purchased the image and my good buddy, Trina, performed some of her talent on it and here it is.  

I wanted it to embody the fact that mostly what I like to blog about is entertaining and hospitality.  My passion is tablescapes, even though there are so many people much more talented than I am.  I love planning, scheming, and setting a remarkable table almost more than anything!

I have collected dishes, glassware and teaware for years and I love delighting my friends with them like I was delighted the first time I saw Martha Stewart's book, "Entertaining", in which  teal glassware and orange flowers were featured on the cover.  That was 1984 and I have been an addict ever since!  (In a good way!) 

I love the logo because it is imperfect, like me, and it is cheerful, like me.  Remember zippy, zany, and zealous?  (Inside joke.)  Therefore, polka dots! I love the font because it implies embellishment to something ordinary.  That's what I love to do, keep adding and adding until you haven't gone to far! And last, I have a foam heart in the latte cup to inspire me to do everything with love.

I would love to hear what you think about it.  I welcome your comments in the space below where you can click on "Comment". 

I hope and pray you have a DELIGHTFUL week.  Big hugs, 

Debbie

How to Make Floral Adornments for a Tea Table

Adding embellished bows and flowers to a table, especially a tea table has become a basic requirement for me.  It dresses up the table like nothing else can do, and so subtly.  I try to match or coordinate the artificial flowers with the real ones that will become centerpieces.  I think it completes the look of the table and makes it so much more above average.  I want my guests to be awed when they come in and sit down.  Above, a simple satin wired ribbon was crafted into a bow and embellished with flowers that will coordinate with the centerpiece.  The above floral bow compliments the centerpiece perfectly!

First gather the fabric of the top cloth with a large safety pin and pin it underneath the cloth. Loop the ribbon through the safety pin on the top. Gather the flowers and tie the bow around them. Work with the flowers until they lay the way you like. Above the adornment of a string of pearls is  added to kick it up one more notch.  Isn't it pretty?

Above is one of my favorite ways to beautify a table.  I first make bows from white or cream tulle, or whatever other color goes best with my scheme.  Then I attach artificial roses and leaves to the bow and it makes a beautifully feminine statement.  (The statement is:  you are really special to me and I am sooooo glad you are here!")  Very often I add a strip of satin ribbon cut with an inverted "V" at the bottom and slip it through the large safety pin for added embellishment. These take a little time to make and attach, but it is so worth it. 

The bows on the corners coordinate with the centerpiece roses

The floral bows above were designed to coordinated with the flowers in the tablecloth and the centerpiece flowers below.

I gathered flowers from the colors in the table cloth to fashion this arrangement.  First tie the tulle bow with at least four loops on each side and room to hang a bit of the tulle in the normalcy of a bow.  These flowers had to be attached with wire because they kept falling out of the arrangement without that process. (See instructions below).

You can enlarge the above picture by clicking "Control +" until you reach the size you wish.

I hope, if you are having a ladies only event, you have the chance to make these for your table.  They are the one element that ties a table together for a coordinated and upscale look. 

XOXOX, Debbie

How to Make an Edible Teacup & Saucer

This is toooooo cute not to share!

Our CBS (Community Bible Study) Leadership Tea every February is a group effort of six of the Senior Leaders designing, constructing, and hosting a lovely tea for the rest of our leadership team.  We are always trying to come up with ways to make them involuntarily express oohs, aahs, and wows!  This year we decided to make edible mini tea cups.

We started with these white chocolate cordial cups found at Tuesday Morning. You can find similar offerings at World Market, possibly Trader Joe's or local gourmet shops.

 We (Trina) set the base as a chocolate wafer cookie.  They can be purchased online here:

Trina filled the cups with caramel that you drizzle over ice cream. Doesn't it look like tea? ;-) She attached the front flower (purchased at a cake decorating shop) with white chocolate that she had when she hand-crafted the diminutive teacup handles.   They were placed on the most adorable lace sugar doilies.  I found them in Tea Time Magazine or Southern Lady Magazine.  They were pictured in a cup of tea.  I thought they would be so great for our tea, but I experimented with one before the tea, thankfully, and found out that they dissolve and break apart in a rather unattractive way that did not  show off their best feature.  So we brainstormed and came up with these as our plan B.  I feel they are worthy of plan A status. You can order the lace sugar doilies from Sweet Marve Lace an Etsy shop.  She has a parade of designs and quantities.

Lace sugar doily atop the chocolate cookie wafer.

The Grande Finale!  Such a remarkable treat!

I'm sure these would work for chocolate cups too.  We just liked the look of these for teacups.  I hope you get the chance to make someone's day delightful with these cute little teacups. 

If you aren't yet a blog follower of mine, please consider going to the top right-hand corner of this blog and sign up to receive my blog posts by mail when I post them.  I don't post every day.  I only post when something has moved me to share something special with you.  I don't sell anything.  I simply share ideas and always love to hear your feedback and ideas.  

XOXOX, Debbie

How to Make a Napkin Rose

Napkins fashioned into roses are perfect for an afternoon Tea.  They are so feminine and make a delightful impression on your guests. What made the one above look so realistic is that it had all four sides completely edged with a frilly ruffle.  This is THE BEST way on earth to use a napkin that has four ruffled edges! Have you ever tried to fold a napkin with four ruffled edges?  It's too big to hold in the middle and squish outward.  It looks awkward when folded any other way.  I know, I tried it first!

The napkin doesn't have to be a solid color to look amazing.  The napkin above is a floral patterned one.  The leaves were taken from an artificial floral arrangement I designed for the edges of the tables.  I will feature how to make them in the next day or two, so please check back!  I am a believer that "details make it delightful".

The smaller the napkin the smaller the rose.  Folding the napkins this way saves so much room on a tea table.

 

(To enlarge these instructions, press "Control +" until you reach a comfortable viewing size.)

I hope this has made it easy for you and you have fun making and displaying these.  They add so much more than normal to a table.  Actually, they make it delightful!

If you would like to follow my blog posts, please sign up at the top right hand corner of the blog where it says, "Follow By Email".   Enter your email address, then go to your email address and be sure to confirm that you signed up.  Thank you for following my blog.  I LOVE to hear your feedback.  

XOXOX, Debbie

Tea Time Veggie Bouquet Salad

 

I saw a salad very similar to this on Pinterest.  However, there were no instructions to accompany the picture so I decided to post some because many people have asked me how to make this salad.  It is really very simple, but time consuming to make.

First one...a prototype.

Starting with yellow and red bell peppers, I used mini-floral cookie cutters found a Michael's to cut small flowers.  I then used an even smaller heart cutter to cut a heart in the middle of each one and switch out the hearts in each color. I then sliced and cut flower shapes from radishes and cucumbers (These can be seen in the picture of the final bouquet).

Blanch the asparagus spears.  These are about 4-5' in height.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

All blanched and ready to refrigerate.

Wash and slice radishes.  You can use a cookie cutter to cut your shapes, but I found simply trimming them into the shape of a flower with a paring knife produced a better result with a different shape than the bell peppers.  I liked the variety of shapes.

            

Peel and slice the carrots into about 1/4' slices.  Then cut the top of the carrot to resemble a tulip.  Slice a washed cucumber (I used English Cucumbers) into about 1/4" slices and fashion a double leaf out of each side of the sliced cucumber. Just like the picture.  It is very easy!  I loved the look of this little flower.  It looks so cheerful!,

I think you could slice up jicama to make a daisy-like flower and even used sliced beets for flowers.  I'm sure there are other items that could be fashioned into beautiful flowers.

I purchased plastic cups with stems at Party City in a package of 32.  I washed and placed the leafiest lettuce leaves I could find in the bottom of the cup.  I added two asparagus spears and two snow pea leaves to each arrangement to resemble plant leaves.  I then placed all the different flowers on tooth picks and inserted them into the lettuce leaves.  You may have to work a bit with them to get the desired arrangement you're looking for.  When your guests enjoy the salad all they have to do is reach in for the toothpick, and dip it into the dressing and consume. 

My Tea was for 30+ women so I made two recipes of Hidden Valley Ranch dressing with one cup of milk in one recipe and one cup of buttermilk for the other.  Then I mixed it all together.  It turned out perfect!  With the two recipes we did have about 1/2 cup of dressing left over.  We placed the dressing in small ramekins.

Everyone "swooned"  (Swoon: to enter a state of hysterical rapture or ecstasy ;-)) when they saw this salad!  It was truly delightful, and really fun to hear my guests enjoy a treat made especially for them.

Hopefully, you can surprise someone at one of your dining events with this arrangement.  I think they are perfect for Valentines Day, Mothers Day, Birthdays, Showers or just to impress you loved one.  Have fun!  And send me pictures at MakeItDelightful@gmail.com if you make these.  I love to see them!  

If you haven't signed up to receive my blog posts you may do so by going to the top right hand side of the blog and enter your email address where indicated.  I'd love to have you join me in my domestic endeavors. Big Valentine hugs to all of my blog followers.

 XOXOX. Debbie