Simple Details: November 2014

Thursday, November 27, 2014

best of the nest link party ~ november

We enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving Day hanging out with our extended

family and completely indulging and giving in to way too much delicious food! I

hope you all relaxed and did much of the same! I'm anxious to see what you talented

friends have to share this month ~ here's what we were up to...

I shared a Master bedroom makeover filled with Craigslist finds. I had so much fun

helping a friend pull this room together, it could be my favorite project I've done this year!

Pam @ Simple Details

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Lisa spiffed up an Ikea desk and transformed it into this charming vanity table!

A clever tray displaying jewelry fits perfectly on the open shelf beneath the glass.

Lisa @ Shine your Light

Kris' stunning bathroom makeover on a budget included this amazing stenciled

wall! You must see the before!

Kris @ Driven by Décor

Jennifer shared her gorgeous Thanksgiving table setting bursting with a great mix

of lively colors and patterns!

Jennifer @ Dimples & Tangles

Now it's your turn:

Bring your Best of November

Anyone can enter - not just bloggers!

Enter through Instagram by using hashtag #bestofthenestparty and tagging at least one of your hosts.

Only ONE link per person to show your best work from November 2014
Additional links will be deleted.
Only those with a link back will be considered for features.

If you're linking up with a blog, link back with a text link or grab the party button.

We'd love you stop back next Friday
when Lisa, Kris, Jennifer and I will feature our favorite links.

Tuesday, November 25, 2014

our $139 walmart christmas tree

We decided to get a new Christmas tree this year, our old artificial tree is big,

a beast to put together, some of the lights were out last year and we weren't up for

messing with it anymore, the base is about five feet wide which interferes with tv

watching in our family room and you can guess who cares about that!

We decided the perfect one needed to be tall and narrow, and we'd make it a fun

outing and go cut our own since we hadn't ever done it.

Thank goodness, we came to our senses - as quintessential as it sounds, we are so not

that family. We were happy as clams to pop open the new box and have it up in

ten minutes with the lights on! :)

We chose this ~~convenient,~~ reasonable, pretty, artificial tree from Walmart,

with a perfect dusting of snow. :)

I love it and wanted to share in case you find yourselves needing a new tree.

Our store had a large selection of several different tree styles and sizes,

I saw many of the same at other retail stores priced much higher.

Close up of the opposite side:

Walmart - here

Holiday Time 7.5' Pre Lit Winter Frost Pine Tree

1000 Tips 450 Clear Lights

Width at Base 48"

$149

or $139

if you have a savvy teenager with you that notices their price matching sign and

in a flash finds it on Amazon for $139.

Here's the link:

http://www.amazon.com/Artificial-Christmas-Flocked-Prelit-Lights/dp/B00P10D4UC

Wishing all of you the

Happiest Thanksgiving with your loved ones!

Don't forget to stop back on Friday to share your November project at Best of the Nest.

Sunday, November 23, 2014

on my thrifting list...small foot stool

I have been a bad blogger! I completely forgot about this series I said I was going
to do, the debut of 'on my thrifting list' was last December, and then I apparently
remembered again in August! The concept was to show items you commonly pass
up when thrifting in a setting that inspires you to think of them in a new way.
I'm back on track, and this is a good one.
How many times have you seen those little old dated foot stools for a steal?

Betsey Burnham & Max Humphrey

homedit.com

crazylifelittlemonkeybitch.tumblr.com

Victoria at Home

achicaliving.com

forme-foryou.com

Ballard Designs

They're the perfect piece to inject a little personality into your room with
a fun patterned fabric, and would be an easy DIY upholstery project. If you're
not the DIY type, it would be super reasonable to have done professionally.

on my thrifting list...bamboo accent table

on my thrifting list...candles en masse

Thursday, November 20, 2014

a few of my favorite things...

Every year I look forward to the Favorite Things series that Melissa @ 320 Sycamore hosts
For the past three days our favorite bloggers have shared their favorite items,
you can get all the scoop here!
I always love finding new products, gifts and ideas from her series, I'm much more likely
to try something if it's come recommended by a stylish blogger friend. :)
Today I'm sharing a few of my favorites...

Beauty

NARS Dolce Vita Lip Pencil, Lipstick, Lip Gloss

nothing more to say than...the PERFECT dusty rose color!

The lipstick is sheer, so if you like a little more color the lip pencil is great.

A bit pricey but a nice if you want to treat yourself.

Home

I LOVE this starch from Dollar Tree!!

It smells SO good, if I had a gazillion $$ and sent my linens out to be laundered and

ironed, I imagine it would come back smelling like this. :)

Since I don't I just use it to iron my pillow cases, and it makes me happy!

Guy Gift

This is my go-to gift for every hard to buy for guy!

Monogrammed Beer Mugs, Pilsner Glasses or Martini Glasses

Williams-Sonoma has a great selection of styles and the prices are reasonable at

$40-$50 for a set of four.

Fashion

Target Katherine Boots aka Frye Knock Offs

I can't even tell you how many compliments I get on these boots, everyone

thinks they are the real deal Frye boots. SO comfortable, and reasonable for leather

$70 at our favorite, Target! Free Shipping through the holidays.

732 Reviews 4.5 Stars

Decor

Busts and planter heads are all the rage and I'd be happy with one in every

room, but for now I'm stopping at these two. I found both of mine at Homegoods,
in the spring in the garden section for around $25 - $30.

Pillows

Ikea Sanela Velvet Pillow Covers with Zippers

20 x 20 - $7

26 x 26 - $10

Pink, White, Gray, Brown, Light Turquoise

I used the gray covers for our bedroom, and trimmed them with Greek key trim from

Hobby Lobby. They're nice quality and the price can't be beat for the generous size!

Food

Do Ahead Molten Chocolate Cake here

is a favorite dessert to serve during the holidays when I'm entertaining.

It's SUPER easy, but looks and tastes like you went to a lot of trouble.

I love that I can make it the day before and then pop it in the oven for 20 minutes

and serve warm - soooo decadent.

Join me over at Melissa's Favorite Things Link Party for lots of fun lists,

gift ideas, tips and inspiration!

Sunday, November 16, 2014

unique christmas party invitations

If you've been reading for awhile you know one of my favorite traditions to

kick off the Christmas season is my annual girlfriend party with ten friends, most of

us met when our kiddos were in pre-school and this is our 14th Annual Party! As part

of the tradition I come up with a creative invitation that I leave in their mailbox, and

today I'll be dropping off these...

~ It's beginning to look a lot like cocktails... ~

This is the front, I included the pertinent details on the back.

I loved that the back of the notecards look the same as the front with no text.

They were super easy to put together, and if you're not able to drop off invites,

a flat paper martini glass would be fun.

Martini Glass - Dollar Tree - $1ea.

8 Gold & White Notecards - Target - $1

Gold Berry Branches - Michaels - $2

Green & Leopard Ribbon - Michaels

(last year after Christmas sale, but I saw it this year)

I punched two holes in the notecard for the ribbon, wound the berries around the stem

of the glass and tucked in an evergreen sprig from our yard. The berries came in a longer

piece, I just took it apart to create 6" pieces. I added a drop of hot glue to the edge of the

glass to keep the invite upright.

You can check out the details of my previous invites and our gift giving game

here and here.

AND

I'm so excited to announce that I'll be joining these lovely ladies again this year

for The 12 Days of Christmas Tour of Homes starting in two short weeks!!

We hope you'll join in the fun and link up your holiday home on December 16th!

Friday, November 14, 2014

fess up friday

I'm sure you all know Elizabeth at Little Black Door, and her infamous series,

Fess Up Friday, where bloggers confess embarrassing traits, reveal their hoarder

rooms or worse. Well, I'm up today and all I have to say is, "What was I thinking?!!"'

Elizabeth is the sweetest, witty as all get out and just as talented! I love her style,

traditional with an unexpected twist, she perfectly captures one-of-a-kind sophisticated,

bursting with a lively and playful vibe.

A girl after my own heart she is a die-hard antique hunter and thrifter, I love her

Instagram feed, a fun find is always popping up.

I've lost track of her magazine features, but she has a huge spread in the current issue

of Better Homes and Gardens Refresh! Congrats, E!

This beautiful kitchen and dining room of one of her design client's was also featured.

One of my favorites was her Christmas Home Tour last year, in keeping with her

style it was charming, eclectic and filled with fun traditions! Check it out here.

Didn't I do a great job of distracting you from heading over?

If you really want to check out my embarrassing confession go here. :)

Have a wonderful weekend, wonderful friends!!!

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

a friend, a bar cart and a fabulous dessert

I'm so excited to share with you guys that I'm honored to join Rebekah @ A Blissful Nest

as a member of her team of contributors for the holidays. That means I'll be sharing

some posts specifically for the upcoming holidays and today is the first one!

It involves a bar cart, pretty styling, and my simplest and biggest hit for a

Thanksgiving dessert ~ that's perfect if you're hosting or helping out as a guest.

Head over to A Blissful Nest to check it out here.

If you don't know Rebekah, she is a sweetheart, a go-getter, a mom to the

cutest little girl, and she has an interior design background.

Here's a peek at her beautiful home...

She also has a shop with lots of pretty goodies, perfect to check out for great gifts

and stocking stuffers!

Do you know Thanksgiving is in two weeks ~ yikes!!

If you need a little inspiration to get you in the mood, or a simple idea that's a sure

winner stop by A Blissful Nest here.

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

ORC - craigslist bedroom details

I can't thank you all enough for all of your kind words about our One Room Challenge
Craigslist Bedroom Makeover, it was such a fun project and your enthusiasm and
wonderful comments are truly icing on the cake!

We set out to create a beautiful room on a budget and are happy to share our
sources. We splurged on a couple special items, but of course, were completely
justified because of the money we saved on so many Craigslist scores at great prices.

Headboard

Our first purchase was the upholstered headboard from Walmart.
Better Homes and Gardens Grayson Headboard
4 1/2 Stars and 637 Reviews
$149 - Free Shipping AND Returns (including Pick Up from your home)
I can't tell you how impressed we are with the quality and service, we debated on
colors and ended up ordering both so we had first hand experience with the
hassle free return process.

Drapery Panels
Ikea Ritva Panels - $25/pair
By far my favorite draperies for the price, if you'd like more ideas I did a post about
them here. I always sew a pleat in the top to give them a more professional look.
We sprayed Ikea clips and rings gold.

Bedding
White Comforter and Shams - Hotel Collection - Homegoods
Bedskirt - Home Classic - Kohl's
Threshold Organic Blanket - Clownfish Orange - Target
Ivory Faux Fur Throw - Client owned - World Market
(we customized by adding Greek Key trim from Hobby Lobby)

Fabric
Square Pillows - Thom Filicia - Citysquare - Terratone
Lumbar - Braemore - Journey Ikat - Fruity
Upholstery on X Benches - Sabu Dove Gray

Accessories
Lamps - Homegoods
White Pierced Ginger Jars & Vases - Homegoods & Thrifted
Sunburst Mirror - Martha Stewart - Home Depot
Art - Homegoods

Craigslist Finds
Campaign Chests - Nightstands - $60
Wisteria X Benches - $150
Ceiling Pendant - $175
Media Cabinet - $275
Ornate Gold Mirror - $125

Paint Colors
Walls & Ceiling - Benjamin Moore - Simply White
Trim - Benjamin Moore - Marscapone
Media Cabinet - Annie Sloan Chalk Paint - Pure White

That's it until the next One Room Challenge - mark your calendars, friends!
April 2nd, 2015