Oh Say Can You See...

Apparently I must buy every U.S. flag I see on sale after the holiday because I have SO MANY! They actually have become easy decorating because flags in any kind of container just say "4th of July" to me. I guess that is why I am O.K. with the simplicity of this area.

This is also a new look for me. In the past I have had the apothecary jars here, but now that I have the white olive jar, I decided to give this look a try and I love it!

I know you have been wondering where my bargain black frame was hiding. Such a simple fix yet I really like using it every holiday that has a "numbered" day. This time I cut the 4 out of glittery paper and mounted on a simple holiday scrapbook paper. I'm not sure if it is the black frame or not, but it always seems to balance any area where I use it.


That pretty much gets you around the inside of the house. The sunroom has a few decorations, but once again they are mostly just for the kids.

I wanted you to see the "Uncle Sam" that I decided on for the end of the mantle. He is the match to the guy in my living room. He adds just the amount of height I wanted on that side of the mantle and now I am happy.... and life can go on. We had a fun weekend in our house - so much so that I forgot to take many pictures but I will share what I did take tomorrow. Stay tuned.

ZZZZZZZZZZZ!

O.K. I admit it! Just the sheer volume of this post could probably put you to sleep. I warned you that I love crafting for the 4th of July. The good news is that most of these projects are pretty much replicas of other holiday decorating just using patriotic images. I seem to do that a lot once I find a craft that I like. Hence, we have probably talked about the "hows" before, so most of this should be self explanatory. Let's get started.

The above banner was made last year from a download I purchased. I simply printed out the words to "The Star Spangled Banner', printed the download on those papers , added pounds of glitter and strung. It turned out to be quite long so I didn't have too many choices of where it hung.

I know I showed you this last year, but I love it so much that it is worth another peek. I can't take credit for this. My youngest daughter made it for me using the handprints of her children. Those hands are getting bigger every day but I can never get enough of those chubby little prints!

A very simple banner just cut from cardstock, embellished with rhinestone stars and strung on glitter cording.

We made lots of these hangers last year. Simply downloaded patriotic images, decoupaged onto thin wooden rectangles, glittered and strung. I use them hanging off apothecary jar lids, cupboard knobs, etc. but when I first made them, I used them on a 4th of July tree.

4th of July fire crackers. Just dowels of varying lengths covered in scrap book paper. I drilled a small hole in the top and added a wire swirl with a wooden star on top, tied them in a bundle and glittered the top surface.

My oldest daughter made this flag many years ago. I think it is crumbled brown paper painted and then stained and hung on a piece of twine. The staining must be what makes this paper so strong as this has really been around a long time and is none the worse for wear. I think we used the same technique to make jack-o-lanterns in Brownies when the girls were very young. We actually made a front and back and gently stuffed them - and they're still around also!

A vintage fire cracker made from a paper towel roll. We just covered them in a downloaded image and embellished with crepe paper, glittery sparklers and glitter.

Simple, inexpensive votive holder painted with glass paint. I also painted dish soap dispensers one year because who doesn't want their dish detergent in a decorated bottle?

I needed a big embellishment in this vase and couldn't find any so I made this from cardstock, scrapbook paper, crepe paper and glitter. I think I saw the idea on a vintage image sight.

This has to be my favorite 4th craft because it gives so much bang for the buck. I made them for my girls at the same time, so the supplies worked out perfectly - as cheap to make 4 as it was to make one because the wood came in large pieces. It is simply a rectangle of bead board painted red and white. Then, a rectangle of luan was glued on and painted blue. I used my Dremel with a cutting tip to cut out the star. Then, everything was sanded to distress and a light touch of stain was wiped on. I love the size of this piece. I bought the wooden letters at HL and painted them black to give a bit of a contrast to the mantle. The stars are 3-D paper mache' ornaments that I cut in half and painted.

This star is kind of hard to see, but it is my copy of a Bethany Lowe decoration that was sooooo expensive that I'm not sure who could afford to buy it. It was a bit tedious to make, but my grand daughters and I did them together, so they weren't difficult. I bought sheet styrofoam and cut out the stars. We then glittered them. The silver stars are cut from chipboard and glittered. The large rosette is a tea stained coffee filter. Then we embellished with glass beads in the points if the star, word banners and glitter pipe cleaners. They did take a long time, but I love them!!

See how pretty the hutch looks with all of them displayed the year we made them. I had a hard time letting the girls give them away as gifts.

Here is the infamous Bingo card from last year. I still love the way it looks because most of my 4th of July decorations are vintage.

We made theses sand candles a long time ago as well. I think the idea came from a MS magazine. It is kind of a no-brainer. The hardest part was finding the sand back before HL came to town. Then you just put a smaller glass container inside and layer up the sand between the 2 surfaces...can't make a mistake!

Our 4th of July decoupaged plate - this one using downloaded images and another candle holder using a cobalt blue glass container embellished with red, white and blue glass beads.

I love this picture. I simply ripped it out of a BH&G magazine a long time ago and had it matted and framed.

This is an inexpensive wooden star decoupaged with a paper napkin, sprinkled with clear glitter, wired for hanging and embellished with tied ribbon.

This project wasn't a favorite so I don't think I ever made more. I cut a 2X4 into blocks, painted them black, decoupaged on the letters (that I had to have my grand daughter do because I don't have a clue how to use clip art and then put letters over it ) and decorated with glittered stars and fireworks.

The "Liberty" banner is another copy of a Bethany Lowe item. This was really tedious, but I love it so worth all of the time I spent. I printed the words to "The Star Spangled Banner for the diamonds. They were then glued to chip board and then red card stock because I discovered that the backs showed when hung over the mirror. I then had to trace and cut the letters from chip board and glitter. I cut out the dangling stars from chip board as well and glittered them and then added the glass beads. Then, they were all strung on blue glittered cording.

And here is another glass plate this time decoupaged with napkins and tissue paper. I use the blue bottle and put in the topper that my girls gave me that reminds me of fireworks. For some reason, I love this simple vignette.

That's it for the old crafts. I will show you what I came up with this year very soon. Hope everyone is having a safe and happy Memorial Day!

Almost Happy!

So this is the mantle this year. I made a few changes and like it a lot, but there is still something missing. Do you see the white obelisk on the left hand corner? That is just holding a spot for my new, tall Uncle Sam that I will be buying as soon as I get into Micanopy. I can just see him standing there in all of his red, white and blue splendor! Perhaps an intervention is needed here!? How can I get so excited about an Uncle Sam statue? In any case, I can't wait! But, moving on....


I am not nearly as excited about this guy. Usually I can find some nice Uncle Sams at HL or Michaels. Not the same quality as from "The Shop" but they will do to fill in empty spaces and not totally break the budget. But this year, I am having trouble finding any of size. I found this guy at HL. He isn't my favorite but he stands about 12" tall and was 50% off, so how could I resist?

I changed the banner on the mirror above the mantle. I went with just the glittered stars this year. I like the way it mimics the star lights below the mirror. I'm a symmetrical kind of person, so this pleases my senses.

I also love the white pitcher just full of flags. I have used this pitcher in every bit of decorating I have done since I purchased it. A really good, multi purpose purchase for a change! In the past I have had my Southern Living candle hurricanes here with red candles. I love them, but they got kind of boring. I love the punch of the white pitcher and, dare I say, the simplicity of it. That's a pretty new word to me as I usually subscribe to "more is better"!

I love this metal sculpture. I got it at "The Shop" several years ago.



As usual, my decor uses lots of seasonal frames filled with lots of family photos.


There are a few more things to look at in this room but I am saving them for my craft post. That will be a long one as I love crafting for the 4th of July. I do have to admit that we've done so many things in the past, that I'm having trouble coming up with totally new ideas for this year. Surely somewhere out there there is an idea that I can blatantly steal - I mean borrow.


On a whole different topic, the "retaining walls" are finally up. Who knew you would need retaining walls on a patio that is practically on the ground??!! Maybe that's why it looked like a "soup bowl" after I was finished with it. In any case, have you ever heard the story of "The Tortoise and the Hare"? I am living it! My contractor is definitely the TORTOISE! I hope that means he is methodical and a bit of a perfection... not just SLOW as we are paying him BY THE HOUR!!! I guess it remains to be seen. Oh, did I mention that we are now putting mortar between the stones - not just sand. Seems as if "I wouldn't be happy with just sand and it would get tracked into the house, etc., etc." Oh yeah and "as long as we're spending X, we may as well spend a little more and do "it right"! And I thought I was a fairly smart person. Where has my mind slipped off to? I will say that I like the way it is going. The only problem will be if it turns out so nicely that everything we already have in this area no longer looks good and I have to start all over with my decorating. Yikes! I'm sure you are on the edge of your seats to see how this will play out. Stay tuned!

I'm Seeing Red...

...and white and blue!!! The hutch in the end of the dining room is pretty much as it was last year. Some of the things on there were crafts from years past and I will focus on them in a later post.



I am only using this one apothecary jar this time. Don't know if maybe they have run their course with me or that I just like them better filled with pumpkins, fruit, ornaments, etc. Don't really have anything patriotic that I like to use as filler. This one is a poor attempt-just put in some gift bag shredded paper, a USA glitter sign that I found in the $ section of Target last year, a flag, some "fireworks" and one of the extra fire crackers I had left over from a banner I made. Can you tell it's not my favorite?



I will be back tomorrow with the family room and then I'll show you all of the crafts. Hopefully by then my grandchildren will have been here and I can show you what we're working on this year as well. I love making 4th of July crafts almost as much as I do Halloween or Valentines. Those seem to be the holidays that call for lots of glitter. Can you see a connection? I've almost finished vacuuming up the glitter from the Easter eggs, so it's definitely time to make a "new mess"! Stay tuned!!!

Happy 4th of July

Uh, I mean Happy Memorial Day! After all, it IS still only May!!! Who in their right mind would already have their house decorated for the 4th? Who indeed??!!! But, I do have a good reason. All 7 grandchildren will be here this weekend while several of my misguided daughters and their husbands do a triathlon in Crystal River. And, we won't all be together on the 4th so I am using this as our patriotic photo op. There, does that give me a good enough reason?

Because I have so many decorations for every holiday, I take pictures every year and use those as my starting place for decorating. Then, I like to tweak and add new things as I find them. It at least helps with a place to begin putting things. I have found without the photos I can get quickly overwhelmed even though I love to decorate.

The above vignette hasn't changed yet from last year. It took me awhile, but once I got it to this point, I liked it and it will stay like that until something really good comes along to make me change my mind-of course, I do have a trip to The Shop in Micanopy in the works, so things may change quickly!



This is the sofa table in the living room. I left one of the birdcages (out of this picture) and then added a candle, my "hand" holding the flag and a flag picture I made last year. I simply took an inexpensive American flag, tea dyed it and wrote the words to the Pledge of Allegiance on the white stripes. I framed it in a frame I already had and it is one of my favorite things.

Some more simple decorating-an Uncle Sam in a cloche edged with a candle garland, downloads in an antique picture holder and the Liberty banner I made last year.



Most of the rest of the living room is what it was last year. Even though I dislike red, white and blue the rest of the year, somehow right now I can't get enough of it. I have several crafts planned for this weekend as well as trips to Micanopy, Dade City and the Villages in the works so I'm sure I will manage to find a few new treasures-stay tuned. Lots more to come!

Look Fast!

It seems as if I am just showing you the last of the spring decorating and I am about ready to take it all down. I will be out of town the next two days and then have a doctor's appointment and some chores back here on Friday. I am thinking that as soon as all of that is done, I am going to start pulling out my 4th of July stuff. I know it is a bit too early (but it IS my house after all) but someone suggested I decorate for Memorial Day. Yeah, that's it-I'm decorating for Memorial Day.

I think I told you that the grandchildren would be here that weekend-all 7 of them for part of it- so I have begun searching the blogs and my files for some ideas for craft projects we can do. We are all usually together for the 4th in St. Pete but I think my youngest daughter and her family are heading to her in-laws for a big family party this year. I don't have to like it but I know I have to share so I am planning on cramming in all that I can on Memorial Day weekend. Red, white and blue...here we come!

That being said...here is the niche in the dining room. I pretty much stuck as many garden elements here as I could. I leaned up an old iron gate piece and wrapped it with a silk vine-kind of hard to see in this picture. Then I added several old wooden corbels that I found in a little garden shop in Mt. Dora. I fell madly in love with them the minute I spied them but they are more of my purchases that elicit the "how much did they pay you to take them off their hands?" response from my husband. I guess I can just relate to things that have become old and weathered-wonder why?! I also have a finial, my trusty PB olive jar, a silk fern and my "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" statue. She is usually outdoors, but the critters have knocked her over so much lately that I'm getting a bit protective of her and thought she deserved to be indoors for at least a little while.

Pretty straight forward here-PB lanterns, another finial and fern. The new guy in the equation is the mercury glass bird feeder-an Easter gift from my oldest daughter. I absolutely love it and it will find its way outside where it rightly belongs but for now, I am just enjoying its beauty. Have I ever told you how much I love mercury glass?!




That's about it for spring. Don't get me wrong. I love spring. I really do. But, there are so many other things going on in the spring that my attentions are split. I would so much rather be outdoors where spring is really happening and Mother Nature is doing the decorating. Our spring weather has been breathtaking . Not sure why, but I am enjoying every minute of our gorgeous cool mornings and evenings and mid 70s kind of days. I know it won't last forever but I'm taking it all in while I can. See you soon.