TRANSFORMED, from broken to beautiful
Do you want to be the favorite guest at all the holiday parties you attend this year, AND assure that your name stays on the party list for years to come? BRING. FOOD. Not just any ol’ food mind you, but my very favorite treat to make at Christmas.
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These were the exact words of our stager as we began the process of de-cluttering our house to put on the market.
So while Thanksgiving banners waved gaily on our street, our house had nary a wreath upon her door. And when neighboring halls began their be-decking, our house stood naked of outward adornment. Naked yes, but confident in her own Southern charm to bring a quick sale.
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Hey there friends. Today’s post is my very first nod to Fall. I’m nodding at you Fall but I’m not embracing you, especially after you littered my yard with debris last night.
I’m writing this post as I listen to the sound of chainsaws next door, where my neighbor had two trees go through their roof last night during the windstorm. We were on the far edge of hurricane Irma’s path but we had heavy winds and power outages. All I can say is that I’m very thankful that we were spared any damage to our home.
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Another year draws to a close, and while most people have already put away their Christmas pretties, I linger. I sit beside the fire in the den sipping hot tea and gazing upon the figures on my woodland themed mantle, dusted with shimmering snow. I see the glow of the Christmas tree lights in the living room behind me reflected brightly in the den’s windows before me. The rains pour down outside my windows and the dark clouds have cocooned my home in darkness. Here in my den I find shelter from the heavy winter storm.
Shhh . . . don’t remind me that the temperature outside is in the 60’s and that Christmas is over. Let me spend a little more time enjoying the Wonder of Christmas.
Looking back on 2015 today I’ve compiled the most viewed posts of the year. They are in two categories, Home Decor and Inspirational, since my blog is comprised of both! If you choose to see more of any of these posts you can simply click on the pictures.
Here’s the countdown:
Drum roll please . . . because I’m kinda goofy like that!
10. At Long Last Dining Room Reveal
9. Southern Etiquette & How to Make Your Neighbors Jealous of Your Front Porch!
8. My Secret to a Great Looking Arrangements Using Faux Flowers
7. Giving Baskets a Vintage Look With Chalk Paint
6. Southern Gardens Tour Part I
5. Spiffin’ up The Screened Porch The Easy Way
4. Decorating With Preserved Boxwood
And finally, in the Home Decor category,
1. Ideas For Adding a French Country Look to Your Kitchen
Next is the Inspirational category which was special to me. It wasn’t just the traffic that caused me to share the top three, but there were also personal emails and stories shared behind the scenes that blessed me to no end as people related to the words God inspired me to write. Whenever I wonder if I should include these posts on my site (because most people don’t want a Home Decor site that is “preachy”), the response I receive back confirms that I am to continue to speak what God lays on my heart. I am probably more blessed than anyone who reads one of these posts by the feedback received.
So, moving right along, the top three Inspirational posts are:
3. Freedom Friday – on Hospitality
2. Freedom Friday – On Forgiving Yourself
Finally, the top post in the Inspiration category was the most heartbreaking for me but also a blessing to have been loved by a dog this good.
1. Freedom Friday – Wise Words From a Dog Named SnoopyGirl
So, looking to the year ahead, I am excited that I’ll be continuing as a contributing author for Faith’nFriends (I hope you’ll all go over to the website and show some of the other writers some love), my friend Debbie Kitterman and I will be teaming up to teach on online course about starting a Mastermind Group, as well as getting our own group off the ground, I’m praying that I will have the opportunity to attend another writer’s conference this year, I’m looking forward to being on the launch teams of a couple of different books that author friends will be releasing in the new year, and I will also be plugging away here at home as I work on my own book and #write365. Of course I will continue to make home improvements to share on Old Things New.
I hope you’ve enjoyed the year with me. I have certainly enjoyed meeting new friends here on the blog and continuing relationships with those of you I’ve come to know and love through this wonderful job I get to do called blogging. I am MOST blessed of the Lord!
Happy New Year and abundant blessings to you all!
TheDIYShowoff, LifeOnLakeshoreDrive, NiftyThriftyThings, SilverPenniesSundays, SundaysAtHome, RusticAndRefined, Spiritual Sundays, Sunday Stillness
How in the world did this battered old white bucket with the goofy looking rainbow trout painted on it’s side make it’s way into the moving van and travel all the way across the country with us? When we were feverishly trying to lighten the load by selling and giving away things of value (like all of my thrifted furniture that was slated for makeover – TEARS) how did this silly bucket make the cut?
Perhaps we’ll never know the answer to that question unless maybe, just maybe, it was destined for some purpose all along. With Christmas right around the corner and some of the prettiest pinecones I’ve ever seen just waiting to be displayed, I took a little walk out to the garage where said bucket jumped right out at me and begged for a makeover. With a lumpy bottom (Hmmm, sounds familiar) from the water that froze in it one winter when it was the dog dish, this little bucket wasn’t worth much.
Being transformationally inclined I pounded out the dents in the bottom so it would no longer tip sideways. Then I printed off this free chalkboard art that I found on Pinterest.
That and a bottle of Mod Podge gave this old bucket new purpose in life!
I applied some Mod Podge to the bucket, carefully applied the chalkboard art, then sealed it with a little more Mod Podge over the top. Piece of cake right?
It’s the perfect thing to hold my pinecones and a few sprigs of berries.
And these are the most perfect pinecones I’ve ever seen, collected on Tybee Island this Fall.
I’ve pinned some of my favorite free printables and also some tutorials for drawing your own chalkboard art to my Chalkboard Art board on Pinterest which you can find right HERE.
Baby, it IS getting cold outside, even here in South Carolina. It is the perfect weather for enjoying an evening by the fire and the beauty of another Old Thing made New.
Blessings,
TheDIYShowoff, LifeOnLakeshoreDrive, NiftyThriftyThings, SilverPenniesSundays, SundaysAtHome, RusticAndRefined, Spiritual Sundays, Sunday Stillness
