Sparkly Seashell Ornament: An Easy Christmas DIY

This year has been fun to get my children involved in decking the halls, 

not with boughs of holly, but Sparkling Seashells!

My ten year old daughter really has that creative spirit,

and being a little girl, 

it's all about the glitter and sparkle!

You can never have enough glitter and sparkle.

Super easy and quick DIY!

We took one of the scallop shells, from the box

stuffed with shells my mother in law gifted us,

some white glue, you can use Modge Podge,

and super fine glitter!

Spread glue evenly over the shell, completely covering it,
and then cover the glued shell with glitter.

After the glue has dried, shake the excess glitter off of the shell!
Then, we took an ornament hanging wire, and

hot glued it to the shell!

Easy peasy!

If you want to embellish your ornament you can use like I did

and add a fresh water pearl, or some pretty ribbon

would add some pretty touches!

Remember to pin this to your CHRISTMAS pinterest board. You can follow me on Pinterest HERE and see all the fun Christmas things I’m pinning!

Did you know that you can follow me on TWITTER? Click HERE!

A Simple Christmas Vignette, Sprinkled with Coastal & Vintage touches

It's starting to look a little like Christmas...

Yesterday, I finished my Christmas Chalkboard,

that I have been wanting to make for so long,

and I can't believe I hadn't made one sooner!

It was SUPER easy!!

I'll have more information on the chalkboard tomorrow, so

for today I wanted to share with you, how I pulled a few simple

Christmas decorations I had on hand, 

some traditional, some coastal, some vintage!

First, I picked up some red and white roses, and 

here is one tip, I just found out, and again,

I can't believe it took me so long to do this,

I went up to where they were cutting Christmas trees, 

and

simply asked if they had

any fresh cuttings left over!

With an armful of fresh greens and pretty roses, 

I headed home with the smell of pine,

lingering in my car.

That's what I love most, is

bringing in the smell of fresh greens,

into my home!

My Mother in law gifted me with a box, 

stuffed full with sea shells, starfish, and sand dollars.

I made these candlesticks last year,

by painting them with white chalk paint,

and simply hung the sand dollar with twine!

This precious, porcelain doll, was another gift from 

my mother in law to my daughter, Katelyn.

Love her tartan dress with gold trim, and her lovely blond curls.

Surprisingly, this vintage dresser is only a little worn on top.

The rest of it, the drawers and handles are all in perfect condition.

Very sturdy!

For next year, I haven't decided whether to just give it a 

refresh sanding, and new stain,

or stain the top and chalk paint the rest, for a 

contrast.

It broke my heart, the angel on top of the tree broke, after we moved.

Nana, gave it to me when she was down sizing 

her Christmas stash.

Easy fix, I simply hot glued a moonstone shell to the top!

Happy Wednesday everyone!

Wishing you a great rest of your week!

much love,

Christine

Please follow along with me!

Weekend Reads and Finds

Happy Weekend!

What a busy week,

with Christmas decorating, 

the Christmas baking has started,

I picked up my first armful of

fresh Christmas greens,

and simply enjoying 

this wonderful time of year!

Aren't these lovely macaron ornaments scrumptious looking?

They definitely look too pretty to eat;

thank goodness they aren't edible,

otherwise I'd probably eat one too many!

Last night, I took my girls to see Disney's Moana! 

We all loved it!

Hopefully I'll get to relax a little today,

after the tree is decorated, 

and all the lights are put up!

Great reads:

Tips for Making the Holidays Easy
Christmas in New Orleans
Gnocchi Mac and Cheese

12 Ways to Burn Fat Without Setting Foot In the Gym.
25 best habits to have in life.
5 productivity tips for people who work for themselves.

Great Finds:
(affiliate links)

How cozy does this cardigan look?
You know how obsessed I am with the color blush,
I seriously love this blush one shoulder top!
Yes, please! These black over the knee boots
to go with this cute black mini lace skirt
and this great bag!

I've been working on a few posts,of course Christmas decorating,

some Coastal, some traditional,

my Christmas wreath, growing paper whites, my new DIY chalkboard,

and much more!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
much love,
Christine

Please, come follow me!

Dreamy Blues and Whites

One of my most reoccuring dreams,

is a dream where I am living

on the coast!

In a beach house, except that

every dream is just a tad bit different!

One time, this house is a gorgeous 3 story,

beach condo,

and then the next it's a charming cottage

by the sea!

and then One time, I'm sitting on my back patio, 

wrapped in a warm, cashmere throw, sipping 

hot chocolate,

being gently lulled to sleep by the sound of the ocean waves!

@jillianattaway

The next time I'm sitting on my back porch,

sipping my coffee reading,

breathing in the fresh salty, sea air

(which is only mere feet from the ocean tides)

relaxing and getting together my thoughts

on how to tackle the days events!

The one aspect of my dream, that doesn't change,

is there is at least one

BLUE and WHITE room.

Lynn Morgan Designs

My family used to laugh at my Nana, when she moved into her

last house.

The previous owners had painted one of the back rooms,

a shade of 'Ginger Blue'.

Her reaction....she seriously hated it!

Over the years, every time when I visited her,

I stepped in the back room to see what color,

she finally decided to paint it,

and there it was

still bold and blue !

via

I asked her why she never got around to painting the room

if she had such a strong dislike for it, and

she simply said,

it grew on her and she 

actually loved the feeling she got when she 

stopped to rest in it.

As the sun hit the room perfectly in the early afternoon,

she could read and relax.

And that's the story of Nana's Blue Room!

So far in our new house, I've only painted an accent wall in my daughter's room!

This year we will be painting our house, inside and out, and I will be changing 

things up a bit!

I like the color scheme, they chose to repaint our house to sell it,

but I'm not too fond of the dark chocolate colors.

The medium brown and light browns are ok, 

but still I'm wanting fresh and clean!

In the winter, it gets really dark in our house,

I want to lighten it up.

designed by Hillary Thomas

This is what I have in mind!

I don't think I'm ready for a vibrant blue wall color, yet;

to start with I'll play around with Blue and white patterns,

for the throw pillows and drapes.

I am seriously drooling over the black and white marble fireplace,

and the tufted ottoman!

So look for a Blue and White room to debut in our house, coming soon!

Happy First weekend of December!

much love,
Christine

Please, come follow me!

Shop the Look!

SW Interesting Aqua and Black Chandeliers

Hope you all enjoyed spending time with family and friends over Thanksgiving! 

 Our family spent some time up North. 

We actually missed a snow storm that rolled in after we left! 

That didn't stop us for a drive to see it Up Close! 

 Today I wanted to share a little inspiration; 

One of my favorite wall colors is SW 'Interesting Aqua'

via


What I love most about the above photo is how elegance simply
flows through every aspect of this room.
From the gallery wall to the rug on the floor,
to the dramatic black chandelier on the ceiling,
to the contrast of the clean and stylish chair covers.

Let's not forget the gorgeous Boston fern in the corner!
Absolutely my favorite; that pop of green botanical,
to bring the room to life!

Photo by Tracy Murdock Allied ASID 

I could seriously spend hours gazing at this coral collection,

displayed on custom lucite shelves.

Another of my favorite color combinations,

Ivory and SW 'Interesting Aqua'.

Photo by The Tile Shop 

Doesn't this photo just draw you in?
Having the pedestal tub, seaparated barely in it's own
space, just sets this room off.
I am usually not a huge fan of too much white or silver,
this room is absolutely stunning to me,
simply because of the black, dramatic accents, with the mirror,
the outline tile, and the black and white photos in the background gallery wall.
With the bistro lights and chandelier, also adds that romantic touch.

The wall color isn't SW 'Intresting Aqua',
it's Sherwin Williams Aqua-Sphere SW 7613.

Photo by John David Edison Interior Design Inc. 

How gorgeous are these black chandeliers?

Not just one, but a pair!

If I had to choose a dream living room, then this would be the one.

It has all the elements I love, the contrast of black and white,

all the bright, vibrant pops of color,

and then the palm tree in the room.

photography by PAUL COSTELLO

via

At first the black chandelier, puts me off;
my first thought is that it doesn't belong in this 
space;
it's the calming wall color that sets my mind at 
ease that it doesn't take long for the chandelier
this dramatic to belong in this charming kitchen.

Wall color: BM 'Woodlawn Blue'

Happy Wednesday everyone!
much love,
Christine

Dreaming of the Mediterranean

Yesterday, I mentioned that with 

the temperatures dropping

I was dreaming of some warmer local!

With exotic or tropical breezes!

To bathe in the warmth of the sun!

This is the view I want to see every day;

Catalonia, Spain, or

anywhere along the Mediterranean Coast!

Photo by Angels

Since, I'm only dreaming, I thought why not 

try and be inspired and bring the 

Mediterranean to me!

One of my favorite designers is Justina Blakeney and she shares

her inspiration over at her blog 'The Jungalow'.

In a tour of her home, this is her Master Bath!

A wall of 'Adriatic Sea' hexagonal tiles by Fireclay tile, 

in lovely shades of Ocean Blue.

I'm seriously in love with her Wallpaper lined master bath.

You can find it by Blakeney for Hygge & West!

No affiliate links, I'm just awe struck at how gorgeous it is!

Photos by David Tsay via House Beautiful

You can find the mirrored medicine cabinet (affiliate) here!

Happy Tuesday everyone!

Come join me!

Lovely Stripes and Pretty Pastel Colors

Let me start by saying, 

I have a confession

I'm semi-obsessed with 

not only

stripes but  pastels too!

What are my favorite colors?

Mostly aquas and blues,

but some dreamy neutrals,

or romantic blushes

are a favorite of mine too!

That is why this post is about my crush on these truly lovely designs 

by Tracey Rapisardi Design

Photo Jean Allsopp 

While I love this time of year with all it's Holiday Cheer and

Festivities, 

I'm not a Winter kinda girl!

I crave Summer, and sunshine!

Can you believe that Christmas is around the corner?

So while I'm busy decorating for Christmas, (which I 

do have several posts planned),

I'm sharing this post, that inspires me 

of warmer Summer days !

Which photo do you like better?

This creamy neutral bedroom suite,

or the fun loving aqua pastel bedroom

with barn doors!

Don't make me choose, because I can't decide which one 

I love more!!

Happy Monday everyone!

Come join me!