home decor

“It Takes a Village” Christmas Table

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Whew, Christmas came in a whirlwind! I may have just recovered from all the activities. We had the privilege of hosting some special people for a holiday meal, and I was so excited by how the table turned out!

Last year, I painted the wooden laser cut village scenes to sit on top of our built-ins in the living room. This year actually turned out pretty sparse on the decor due to emergency surgeries and hospital stays… That’s another story-all is well and on the mend. By the time I got to the village scenes, I didn’t feel like decorating any more spaces. But, serendipitously, that freed them up to be an amazing little centerpiece for our special dinner!

I’ve loved this block printed tablecloth for a while now, and snapped it up along with the LED birch trees for added drama.

I was really eager to use the etched glass chargers I found on clearance from At Home (they were a great dupe for the Terrain mercury glass chargers). And I gasped when I saw the matching napkin rings at Home Goods (almost perfect dupe for the now sold out napkin rings from West Elm)!

Since the punch was such a hit at Thanksgiving, I wanted to make another special drink or punch for this dinner. My punch bowl came with only 8 cups and I needed 10. During my hunt for extra cups (and ones that were not actual leaded glass), I noticed that Crate and Barrel’s hatch glass collection now had teacups with saucers! No lead, dishwasher safe, say less.

I wandered the aisles of Hobby Lobby looking for snowy fabric to wrap around the trees, and stumbled across the most darling place card holders that look like little evergreen trees in galvanized pots. You know how you just know something is going to work? I could literally feel the zing of creative energy when I picked them up. And at 60% off, it would have been a crime to leave them!

A star topper place card and ribbon finished it off, and voila! I just couldn’t believe my eyes when it all came together.

It truly takes a village to love on and support the churches in our area, and my husband has been blessed with the best team for the job. They are kind, generous, hard working and creative people who love their jobs and love him. It’s such a gift to watch, and I love that we got a chance to give a little of that love back.

Did you host this year? I’d love to hear about it!

xo, Amanda

2025 Green and Pink Thanksgiving

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The magical Dining Room Makeover has culminated into this beautiful day! You know I love to host Thanksgiving, so what better way to show her off than with a spatchcocked turkey and all the trimmings.

I scoured the internet for the perfect (and affordable, let’s be reasonable here), tablecloth to set the stage but not overshadow. When I stumble into blue and green, something comes over me. I’ve decided that this year calls for Dopamine Dressing – wearing things that make you happy! Blue and green and pink. Always. Forever.

I love a patterned tablecloth! I try, oh how I try, to love a solid. I add table runners, placemats, flowers, and still? It feels so sad. Patterned it must be. I decided on this block print beauty from Amazon. I was torn between this and the purple (more fuchsia-ish), but this felt right.

I wanted sparkle, I wanted glam! This is a debut, after all. Champagne beaded placemats. Is that a question? Not here!

I’ve been drooling over this Ikat print from Pottery Barn since it came out and was able to snag the napkins on clearance! I love the burgundy and pink as well.

Last minute, I decided to make place cards since our group grew overnight! Using Canva, I found this turkey graphic and adjusted the colors to coordinate with my table. They are such a cute, unique touch.

I wanted to use my new ivory basketweave dishes, but it was feeling flat. The moment my Old Havana plate hit the table, all hopes for restraint were lost. I immediately grabbed some pink gross grain ribbon to tie off the napkins and leapt with delight! Restraint? I don’t know her.

Was it relief? Was it a flood of dopamine? Was it all a dream? I don’t really care what it was, I’m just thrilled to step back and see the fruit of so much work. And I can’t wait to share it with the people I love.

In addition to smoked turkey and my usual casseroles (sweet potato and sinful potato), I added a Maple Dijon salad with butternut squash and candied pecans, homemade cultured butter, and did a punch in coupe glasses to dress up the table. It was a hit! We made a sample glass the night before to be sure it was a good choice, and Austin raved all night. Safe to say, we’ll be making more!

I hope you and yours had a blessed and happy Thanksgiving, wherever you are.

xo, Amanda

P.S. Tutorial for these custom china plate ornaments coming soon!

Dining Room Makeover: The Reveal!

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We have finally crossed the finish line! Months of dreaming and working and creating are finally paying off. That being said, is a room every truly finished? According to Austin, yes. According to the rest of the world? We’ll see.

You know Mr. Darcy had to have a cameo in this reveal. I love the extra something the velvet ribbon added to this lampshade. It was missing something pink in this corner, and this was an easy project to finish it all off.

I love Alexis Walter Art, and was finally able to snag some prints. I took them to Hobby Lobby to be framed in these gorgeous burl wood frames.

Such a fun project. Hope you enjoyed following along!

xo, Amanda

Dining Room Makeover: Soft Furnishings

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Finally! The wait for fabric and drapes is over.

First up, the drapes! I bought them from Neutral, an online shop that makes custom sized curtains. I was searching all over for affordable (but not cheap or requiring hemming), aqua-ish, silk drapes. Preferably pinch pleated and 50ish inches wide.

I found the perfect hue in the Rina Premium Silk Drapes in Cyan. I was torn between Cyan and Light Blue, so I ordered samples of both. What arrived was two sample books: one of all the Rina Silk options and one of all their lining options. That made the decisions so much easier! Thanks, Neutral! (Not sponsored, a girl can dream.)

I ordered them on 10/14 and they arrived 10/24. I was concerned due to recent customs issues, but they had no issue making the leap from China to me. They even came with adjustable hangers to hang them on the curtain rings.

Of course, I had to dress them up with this trim from Etsy. Even Austin agrees that the trim was a necessary addition to tie everything together. I sewed them on with just a straight stitch. So far, so good! Then I left them to train after steaming out the creases.

Next up, I ended up ordering the chevron fabric after all, much to Austin’s chagrin… he’s coming around, I promise :).

My original plan was slipcovers, but after several attempts and making 10 yards of piping, I gave up and grabbed my staple gun. All was well until I got to the back and had to reckon with my decisions. Thankfully, I was going to reupholster a different set of chairs once upon a time, and had bought this metal tack strip that saved the day. Thanks, past self. I love when that happens.

I attempted scallops. Did not go well.
Made an absolute ton of piping. Did not use.

When Austin got home, we worked on the back, and wouldn’t you believe that it actually worked?! I wish I could say I was less surprised but wow, could it all really be so easy? Ask me again in a year for how they’ve held up.

Whew, y’all. I can see the finish line. It’s still past five chairs, but it’s there. With three week until Thanksgiving. Tender mercies.

I’ll keep you posted!

xo, Amanda