my past 3 years of neighbor gifts...

Hey everyone, hope you had a fabulous weekend, we're in full holiday mode

over here, parties, shopping and enjoying our decor, that is done ~ woo hoo! It's always a

tad hectic (actually total chaos) to get it done early, but so worth it to have it

 finished and be able to enjoy it. It motivates me to invite everyone over, we had my 

parents on Sunday to watch the Broncos and I made this delicious copycat soup

that's one of my dad's favorites ~ yum, you definitely need to try it!       

My friends are always asking me to post ideas early enough that they can use

 them, and I don't have my neighbor gifts ready to go for this year, but I thought

 you might like to steal an idea from a past year. Click on the title for the detailed post.   

You guys know it's all in the presentation, so the little details are a must! :)

Homemade Cookie Dough 

Each family received a block of Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip cookie dough,

ready to bake now or freeze for cookies when the mood strikes or guests appear!   

Homemade Biscuits & Gourmet Honey

I loved the jar resembling a beehive and also included a cute dish towel,

with the warm biscuits.

Ikea Lantern with DIY Monogram Towel

The Ikea Borby lanterns are a great useful container, I tucked in a simple DIY 

personalized Ikea dish towel and a box of their cookies. 

The 12 Days of Christmas Tour of Homes continues this week and up Monday is one

 of my favorite girls, Kris @ Driven by Decor, I'm betting her decor will be classic and

 sophisticated with a dose of something fun inspired by her two sweet girls!

12 Days of Christmas Tour of Homes Schedule:

December 1 - Jenny @ Evolution of Style

December 2 - Amanda @ Amanda Carol Interiors

December 3 - Amanda @ Dixie Delights

December 4 - Pam @ Simple Details

December 5 - Lisa @ Shine Your Light

December 8 - Kris @ Driven by Decor

December 9 - Jennifer @ Dimples & Tangles

December 10 - Cyndy @ The Creativity Exchange

December 11 - Elizabeth @ Little Black Door

December 12 - Stacey @ Steward of Design

December 13 - Andrea @ Oak Ridge Revival

AND

December 16 - YOU - Link up your Christmas Home Tour

Also, more ideas and inspiration are on tap over at 11 Magnolia Lane, up

tomorrow (the 9th) for their HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE

 is Sarah, the sweet, gorgeous girl behind Life on Virginia Street. 

 

Happy Monday, friends! 

How is your holiday to-do list coming along? 

Holiday Open House @ 11 Magnolia Lane

Happy Sunday, everyone! I'm quickly popping in today to let you know 

I'm thrilled to be sharing my Christmas Home Tour with the lovely group of

bloggers and talented ladies over at 11 Magnolia Lane for their Holiday Open House.

They have a great line-up of inspiring holiday posts that are sure to inspire you!

Here are a few snippets of what my friend's have shared so far...

Heather @ Southern State of Mind shared her beautiful, vibrant Christmas decor.

Emily @ Eleven Gables shared her family's awesome tradition of giving.

Summer @  Simple Stylings shared her  whimsical table setting.

Thanks so much for stopping by, hope you're having a wonderful weekend!

best of the nest features ~ november

You talented bloggers did it again, thanks so much for sharing your awesome

 projects!! Here are just a few of my favorites, be sure to stop by and check out the

 features from: 

Kris @ Driven by Decor

Jennifer @ Dimples & Tangles

Lisa @ Shine Your Light

**Please pin from the original site**

Ange @ Inspiring Hearts & Homes recently joined the One Room Challenge

and revealed her gorgeous master bedroom! 

Patty @ That's So Pretty came up with a super clever and budget friendly 

idea for creating artwork ~ the possibilities are endless!

B @ The Cape on the Corner re-purposed a beautiful mid century dresser as a TV

 stand, it adds a big dose of style to their room!  

Darrielle @ D.D.'s Cottage and Design did a wonderful job transforming

this unique table with whitewash, and she shares her great tutorial.  

Since we'll all be taking some time off around the holidays to enjoy time with

family and friends there will be no Best of the Nest Link Party in December. 

We'll resume our usual schedule the last Friday in January, where you can 

share your favorite project from December or January.

Are you following along with the 

12 Days of Christmas Tour of Homes

you're in for a treat today ~ Lisa @ Shine Your Light is sharing her beautiful home,

and Kris and Jennifer are hard at work decking their halls, they're up next week! 

December 1 - Jenny @ Evolution of Style

December 2 - Amanda @ Amanda Carol Interiors

December 3 - Amanda @ Dixie Delights

December 4 - Pam @ Simple Details

December 5 - Lisa @ Shine Your Light

December 8 - Kris @ Driven by Decor

December 9 - Jennifer @ Dimples & Tangles

December 10 - Cyndy @ The Creativity Exchange

December 11 - Elizabeth @ Little Black Door

December 12 - Stacey @ Steward of Design

December 13 - Andrea @ Oak Ridge Revival

Have a wonderful weekend my fabulous friends! 

christmas 2014 ~ home tour

Hi friends, thanks so much for stopping by to check out our Christmas Home Tour,

and welcome if you're new to Simple Details!
If you've been following along I don't have to tell you how fabulous the
 12 Days of Christmas Tour of Homes
 has been, if not, pop in and see what you've missed, these ladies are amazing!

Day 1 - Jenny @ Evolution of Style
Day 2 - Amanda @ Amanda Carol Interiors
Day 3 - Amanda @ Dixie Delights

For our Christmas decor this year I used mostly what I had from previous years,
 but switched it all up and brought in some fun colors, pink and green, for a fresh look.

Our front porch...

Our entry...

Earlier this year I gave our entry some pizazz with this stencil that
looks like the popular pricey wallpaper.

our living room...

So you guys know I LOVE Craigslist, that's my hutch I made over, and the
coffee table I scored in the summer, and my $10 garage sale chair I rescued.
I gave my old wreath a big update ~ three pink bulbs. :)

I bought a couple great textured pillows when this stylish blogger offered them
for sale on her blog one day, and mixed in others I already had.

I stole the tree stump from Detail Boy's room, and he wants it back.

The white campaign dresser, another Craigslist find works perfectly for a bar
during the holidays. Do you remember the mirror from the One Room Challenge
bedroom? Well, we decided it was more my taste than hers and guess what?
I love it! Can you have too many mirrors, I'm sure I'm over doing it.

I found 'It's beginning to look a lot like cocktails' napkins, after I decided
 on the theme for my girlfriend party, and sent out these fun invites,
and they were pink!

My DIY framed batik fabric miraculously tied in with my lively pink and green,
I really had no idea how I was going to make those work with Christmas decor.
One little Target pillow did it!

our dining room...

I've seen all those popular striped candles lately and was just about ready to diy some
with spray paint when I remembered this striped wrapping paper I had, done!
 It was just what those traditional candlesticks needed.
The poinsettia pillow was a Pottery Barn Knock Off a couple years ago.

our christmas tree...

I've always loved flocked trees, and we're so happy with this one from Walmart!

our family room and our girl, rio...

To give us a fresh look I bought pink and green ornaments and made new
pillows, have I ever mentioned how much I love our neutral background?

I had completely forgotten, last year I bought fur to make us new stockings but it never
 made it to the top of my list, this year it did! Do you guys know that Home Depot has
a Black Friday deal every year - that 22" wreath - $5, and 15' of garland - $5!
Mark your calendars for next November so you don't forget.

our kitchen...

Can I tell you how much I enjoy my bright white kitchen since the
One Room Challenge makeover earlier this year! A lot!
When I was doing the ORC I considered getting rid of our chalkboard because it
didn't seem too chic and fresh, but I decided to keep and I'm so glad I went with my gut
 on that one, it's always fun to have a message on it.

I thought my Grandma's vintage ornaments would be safe and cute on this
covered cake plate.

I'm still loving our Formica Calacatta Marble countertop.

I gave my planter head guy some festive evergreens and pine cones,
he's from Homegoods, check in the spring in the garden section.
My glass jar from a friend is filled with gold and silver bells.

our bathroom...

Last but not least, our bathroom that got a new coat of dark charcoal paint recently.
I had to show you this cool arrangement a friend brought me, the stems are
going through the decorative balls and how fun is the bow out of greenery?

Wow, that was one wordy Christmas tour!
Thanks so much for visitng and if you'd like to check out last year's Christmas tour I
think it's all pics with nary a word! :)  Here.

If you'd like, check out my Instagram here.

Tomorrow's tour is one of the blogsophere's sweetest,
the lovely Lisa @ Shine Your Light, didn't she do an awesome job on our graphics?
 I can't wait to see what creative goodness she's been up to at her house!

Inspiration all over the place :)  here's more:
Christmas Home Tour @ Nesting Place
Inspired by Charm 
Sarah @ Thrifty Decor Chick Annual Christmas Tree Party

12 Days of Christmas Tour of Homes Kick Off

Happy December, friends!

Are you ready for the fun to begin? I'm prepping for my annual girlfriend Christmas

 party tomorrow and still decking the halls of our little cottage. Today kicks off the

 Second Annual 12 Days of Christmas Tour of Homes!

 I'm so excited to be participating again, it's sure to get you in the spirit and inspire some

 new decorating ideas! 

Thank you to the talented Jenny @ Evolution of Style for organizing these these lovely

 ladies again, and to the fabulous Lisa @ Shine Your Light for the hard work she put into

 creating our beautiful graphics!   

I can't wait to see what all of my stylish friends have to share with us! 

Our tour starts at Jenny's home today at Evolution of Style here.   

Here's a snippet from her tour last year - is this festive or what?

You can check it out here. 

12 Days of Christmas Tour of Homes Schedule:

December 1 - Jenny @ Evolution of Style

December 2 - Amanda @ Amanda Carol Interiors

December 3 - Amanda @ Dixie Delights

December 4 - Pam @ Simple Details

December 5 - Lisa @ Shine Your Light

December 8 - Kris @ Driven by Decor

December 9 - Jennifer @ Dimples & Tangles

December 10 - Cyndy @ The Creativity Exchange

December 11 - Elizabeth @ Little Black Door

December 12 - Stacey @ Steward of Design

December 13 - Andrea @ Oak Ridge Revival

AND

December 16 - YOU - Link up your Christmas Home Tour

Go get inspired!