A Lemon Yellow Wedding

Over the weekend, Jeff and I attended the wedding of a good girlfriend.  It was the perfect day for a beautiful, outdoor wedding at an estate tucked in the foothills.

The wedding color was citron — and the tables were simple and elegant with beautiful yellow flowers, lemons and limes.

The flowers were breathtaking.  All of the arrangements were atop glass vases filled with cut lemons and limes in water.

The bridal couple had their own intimate table set for two.

On the backs of their chairs, hung adorable bouquets labeled “Mr.” and “Mrs.”.  Such a nice touch!

The cake was beautiful (and delicious)!

It was such a fun and lovely wedding … Congratulation you two!

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4th of July Tablescapes

Can you believe the 4th of July is next week?  I sure can’t!  Are you planning a BBQ?

We have an annual BBQ on the 4th, so I’ve been looking for tabletop inspirations.  (Remember, I have those GREAT 4th of July finds that I picked up from Target back in May).  Oh, how I love those $1 Target bins!!!

I love the use of the tin pails at each place setting … to hold the napkin, utensils and other goodies.  And, I LOVE the layering of while and red plates.

Target, Marshall’s, TJ Maxx and HomeGoods are all great places to find cute plates on the cheap!  And you know you can often find painted tin buckets in the $1 bins at Target.

All of the pictures in the post are from my “4th of July” inspiration board on Pinterest.

To see the entire board, click here.

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Beach Themed Tablescapes

I was browsing through Pottery Barn last summer and came upon this beautiful tablescape.  I asked the store manager if she would mind me taking a few pictures.  She welcomed me to take as many as I’d like.

I loved the clean, crisp look of the white linen.  And even better (after buying the white linen table runner), I had all the things at home to create a similar tablescape!

I’ve created variations of this type of tablescape for indoor and outdoor entertaining.  It takes some time to set up, but is really pretty.  There are many variations you can create using using white linens, white candles and sea shells.

Here I’ve used my “good ole bedspread” as the table foundation.  I added apothecary jars filled with shells, along with glass cylinders filled with sand, candles and a few shells.

This year in Pottery Barn, I snapped a few pictures of some of the beach-themed tables.

This one uses PB’s shell napkins and starfish napkin rings.

Love this one with the blue and white napkins and cute seashell salad plates.

When you see beautiful displays in stores, I would encourage you to ask if you can take a picture.  The worst that can happen is that they say “no”.  But, I usually find that they are happy to allow you to photograph their products and displays.  It often leads to more sales for them.  And you end up with great ideas & inspiration for your own tablescape creations.

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Happy Summer!

It’s official … Summer is here!  The kids get out of school this week.  The weather is (finally) starting to warm up.

We’re looking forward to spending a few days at the beach.

Enjoying the incredible fruits and veggies of summer (some of which will come from Jeff’s garden).

Getting together with friends for BBQs and Pool parties …

And maybe even taking a few naps outdoors.

Hope you have a great start to summer!

All pictures from Pinterest (my new favorite hobby … when I need a break from working … on Gangaroo)!  Be careful – both Pinterest and Gangaroo are addicting! 

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Decorating with Lanterns

It seems everywhere you look, people are using lanterns as home accessories (and for lighting).  I love the look — especially for summer.

You can find lanterns at Pottery Barn, Restoration Hardware, HomeGoods and most of the home decor stores.

I love them when used outside … hanging from tree branches, an umbrella or a covered structure.  On a front porch or near the edge of a pool.

They are also great when used as centerpieces.  And, they even can serve as the lighting for the table.

I snapped the photo above at our local Pottery Barn.  I loved how PB mixed lanterns with red and white ceramic pottery.  I came home and cleaned off  some of my old lanterns and added a couple that I picked up at Home Goods (love that store).

I created my own version of a lantern display in our family room.  I need to add some candles and possibly sea shells (which I have plenty of) … but I’ve only spent $25 so far.

I’ll be sure to post some pictures of 4th of July decor … as I plan to use lanterns on the tables for our 4th of July BBQ.

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Pretty Peonies

Peonies are one of my favorite flowers.  Oh, how I wish we could grow them in Southern California!

It always amazes me that a peony bud in a bright pink …

Can end up looking like this … at the last stage of full bloom.

Add hydrangeas … and you have the perfect floral bouquet.  (photo below from Pinterest)

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Stairway Picture Gallery Part I

We have this curved staircase in our entry that has an unusual ledge midway up the stairs.   It is a decorating nightmare challenge.

For the past year and a half, I have been buying architectural drawings and renderings at our local Antique Flea Market.  I have been framing them in black, silver and gold frames.  Aaron Brother’s knows me by name!

I have quite the pile of framed art, “stacking up” on the stairway ledge and piled on our treadmill in the gym.

I’m envisioning something like Amanda Peet’s staircase (pictured in Domino Magazine above).  But our ledge is going to make it quite tricky!

I started with the easy part first …. hanging a few pictures in our entry way.  Now on to tackle the stairway!!!  Stay tuned to Part II.

I will say that we are making progress.   Our stairway did look like this (above) when we moved in a few years ago.  A nice country mural painted up the stairway … with bunnies, scarecrows and all!

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