Monday, August 11, 2014

Something Old, Something New


Today, Brian and I celebrate our 13th wedding anniversary.

2014
2001


It's amazing how many months of planning went into our wedding and yet I remember so few of the details.  I  know I followed the tradition pulled from an Old English rhyme:

Something old, 
Something new, 
Something borrowed,
Something blue.


My something old was a family Bible that I carried with my bouquet.

My wedding dress was new.  Though I bought it used on Ebay and it fit so perfectly I didn't have to have it altered, my mom remembers that it arrived with the tags still attached. I also wore new shoes and a new tiara.


I borrowed a string of pearls to wear.

Though my wedding color was periwinkle blue,  I cannot remember what I carried of that color. My bridesmaids had blue ribbons hanging from their bouquets, but I think my ribbons were all white.



*******


We've been doing some sprucing up and changing in our home this summer and unconsciously following that same Old English rhyme.

I read The Nesting Place: It Doesn't Have to Be Perfect to Be Beautiful by Myquillen Smith early in the summer and was inspired to rethink how I think about my house.  One chapter asks you to determine the purpose of a particular room and treat it accordingly. Many people gather in our dining room throughout the year whether it is for dinner, a playdate, a birthday party, or craft day, but our dining room is also our school room. That room needs to be pretty yet functional.

To serve both purposes, I set up a new area designated our Nature Corner.  I shopped around for a side table and found and old one for $5 at a thrift store.  Brian sanded off the glossy brown paint  and I re-painted it a shade of blue and replaced the drawer pull.



I put a tray on the tabletop where the kids can display leaves, rocks, or seashells and included two vases for branches, flowers, and twigs.



The bottom shelf houses our nature guides and animal books.



The table adds beauty to our dining room while contributing to its functionality. I anticipate this being a wonderful asset to the room!



And remember one of the chairs I painted blue for our living room?  I felt like it needed a little something more so I borrowed a pillow idea I saw on my friend  Joanne's blog.



I cut and stitched the little birds while binge-watching seasons of Downton Abbey, then sewed a pillow slipcover using this tutorial.



It adds a lot of color (including more blue) and a little quirk to the living room.








9 comments:

  1. Happy anniversary! I love all the sprucing up you've done in your home. I've definitely noticed your added little details.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Allyson! It's been fun and a challenge to myself to do it without spending a lot of money. :-)

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    2. Oh, and just out of curiosity, did you take either of the wedding photos I posted today? I'm thinking you didn't take the one on the Plaza because I have another similar one where you are in the background.

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  2. Happy Anniversary! Your dress was gorgeous and I really like Brian's suit too!

    I love to see how people live in their homes and it makes me happy when people make their home work for them! I love your nature center area, the table is so pretty, and I know you're going to have a lot of neat items collected there! I like your posters too!

    Deanna

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    Replies
    1. The posters were an Amazon find. I did mount them on foam board to make them more durable.

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  3. Happy Anniversary! You wedding picture is so lovely!
    I like your nature area idea very much. I don't think you'd have to be a homeschooler to set up a display like this. Hmmm... it has me thinking!
    Your pillow turned out so well! I just love those little birds and now I am determined to do a white version of the pillow.

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  4. Happy anniversary (again...and I'll say it again when I finally give you your card...good grief)! It doesn't seem like 13 years...and yet, it seems like you've been married forever! Time is weird that way...

    I love the new nature table, and the posters make me swoon. Great (thrifty) job! The bird pillow is adorable! I loved Joanne's too!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Mom! And don't worry about the card being late. We like to stretch out celebrations around here. We were laughing today that Maddie gave us an anniversary present by making Brian come home at lunch time to unlock the bathroom. ;-)

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