How to make the fluffiest {and cutest} yarn Christmas trees!

I hope you had a relaxing weekend and stuffed your bellies! I got a ton done around here, including finishing up a really cute yarn Christmas craft. I couldn’t wait to show you because I just think these are the cutest. 
I wanted some new holiday decor for our basement but didn’t want to spend a ton of money — I came up with this idea and they turned out better than I imagined. I was going to use basic yarn on Styrofoam cones, but wanted a fluffier look. 
Enter this finger knit yarn I’ve had forever — for the blanket I still haven’t made yet, ha!: 
It is SO so soft and fluffy and I had an idea — I wondered how it would work wound around the cones instead of regular yarn. Well, I’ll tell you…it worked ADORABLE. 😁
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Categories: Home Contractor, Home Decor, Home Experience, Home Exterior, Home for rent, Home Improvement, Home Improvement Ideas, Home interior, Home security

My must haves {for home, kitchen and more!} this shopping season

Hello my friends! I hope you have a relaxing and enjoyable holiday week planned. We were supposed to be in Disney World this week but had to cancel our trip…we are so sad not to be there. I’m looking at the bright side — at least we are able to relax this week and I will get all of the Christmas decor finished earlier than usual. 
I have a tradition of sharing some of my favorite things on this week in preparation for holiday shopping — which looks a little different this year for some! It’s the same old for me because I haven’t gone OUT to shop on Black Friday in…well, ever? 😉 
I have some of my “old school” blog friends joining in with me and you can see their lists by visiting their blogs (at the end of this post). We’ve all been blogging forever and have
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Categories: Home Contractor, Home Decor, Home Experience, Home Exterior, Home for rent, Home Improvement, Home Improvement Ideas, Home interior, Home security

Two simple and elegant Thanksgiving tablescape ideas!

Hello all! I hope you’re staying healthy and happy! 
No matter how you’re celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday — I say do it up right! If there was ever a year to be extra, this is it! I thought it would be fun to do a tablescape since I haven’t done one in forever. I did two looks…one more neural and one with color. 
I absolutely love how they turned out! Both are simple table displays that could easily be changed up just a bit for Christmas as well. 
For the colorful look I started with this fall scarf draped over the table and then added everything on top: 
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You don’t have to just use table linens for a tablescape, just like you can use linens to make other stuff around the house too!
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Categories: Home Contractor, Home Decor, Home Experience, Home Exterior, Home for rent, Home Improvement, Home Improvement Ideas, Home interior, Home security

How to create a super fluffy and full Christmas mantel {for less!}

I’ve started to pull out some Christmas decor and it’s been fun to get it all out! I want to enjoy the twinkling lights even longer this year, and I’m looking to a much slower pace this December than usual. It will be so nice to have it all done in the next week or so!
I decorated our mantel a couple days ago and thought I would share how I get a fluffy and full mantel without spending a ton. 
I’ve seen so many gorgeous fluffy greenery and garlands shared online recently…but some are one to $200 EACH! I don’t mind putting some money into items like this that I know I’ll use year after year — but that’s way too much for me, especially knowing I’d want more than one. 
Instead, I shop the half off sales at craft stores this time of year. They’ve never failed me!
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Categories: Home Contractor, Home Decor, Home Experience, Home Exterior, Home for rent, Home Improvement, Home Improvement Ideas, Home interior, Home security

The easiest Christmas village {that tastes good too!}

Hello my friends! I found an adorable baking pan a few weeks ago and it immediately went into my online cart. I thought it would be SO cute for holiday baking. 
If you’ve ever tried traditional gingerbread villages and ended up with a crumbled mess…this method is for you! This baking pan is SO stinking cute and the little village turned out better than any other we’ve tried. 
This is the pan I found:
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It’s the Nordic Ware village baking pan (you can also find it here!) and the detail is just adorable! You can see why I fell in love. 
I planned to hold off a bit before trying it, but when it arrived I was too excited to see how they would turn out. I read the instructions that came
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Categories: Home Contractor, Home Decor, Home Experience, Home Exterior, Home for rent, Home Improvement, Home Improvement Ideas, Home interior, Home security

Decorate for the holidays with these pretty tiny trees!

I like to share Christmas projects and decor in November so you can plan for the season ahead of time. I usually start to pull decor out earlier than most, but this year I’ve heard I am not alone! So many friends in real life and online are decorating early this season and I’m thrilled about it! 
We all need to enjoy the pretty lights and warm fuzzies even longer this year…I am here for it!
I went into Target the other day and was giddy with all of the new Christmas decor. It’s like they knew we’d need the pick-me-up this year. There are so many fun items and I had a blast looking around (and buying a few things). 
I noticed a ton of decorative trees in particular — so many beautiful options this year! Over the years I’ve gathered more and more trees for the holidays…they have
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Categories: Home Contractor, Home Decor, Home Experience, Home Exterior, Home for rent, Home Improvement, Home Improvement Ideas, Home interior, Home security

Pretty pinstriped foyer reveal!

I finally finished up the little hallway updates I’ve been working on for a couple months! This nook is just off our foyer and I wanted to dress it up a bit. 
Here’s how it looked for years: 
I shared how I added that art light without electricity and how I changed out the recessed light with a lamp shade fixture: 
decorating small hallway
I also painted that ceiling the same pretty blue as the foyer ceiling. (North Star at 50 percent.)
The biggest part of this project was the wallpaper I picked out for this space. I’ve now added wallpaper to FIVE rooms in our home and I love it! 
I used a very classic pinstripe pattern in blue and white: 
norwall striped wallpaper

This is a regular paper that needs to be pasted — but that part is easy! See my tips on how to wallpaper here! 
It fits in perfectly and
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Categories: Home Contractor, Home Decor, Home Experience, Home Exterior, Home for rent, Home Improvement, Home Improvement Ideas, Home interior, Home security

The most beautiful…cookware? Yes!

Hello there! I’ve been busy working on some projects that I can’t wait to show you! And the Christmas stuff will be coming out soon. I don’t even want to hear how early it is — let me have my joy this year! 😉 
I don’t think I’ve ever blogged about cookware before. But here I am. Ha! I couldn’t resist sharing this with you because I am SO impressed with it and it’s just crazy pretty. Yes, pretty pots and pans. I love when form and function meet! 
A YouTuber I follow recently shared these pretty pans and I immediately went to find them online. They were SO lovely — there are a few color options but she picked the black and brass option: 


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They’re the Thyme and Table brand through Walmart
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Categories: Home Contractor, Home Decor, Home Experience, Home Exterior, Home for rent, Home Improvement, Home Improvement Ideas, Home interior, Home security

Our cozy round patio fire pit {with new chairs!}

I’m so excited to share our finished fire pit area with you! We made some changes big and small recently and now it’s ready for nights around the fire! 
We had a backyard patio installed last year and have been updating it since. I gave you a tour of the patio earlier this summer and then later we installed cafe lights over the entire patio as well. (See that tutorial if you don’t have trees to attach your lights to!)
Last year I bought clearanced plastic Adirondack chairs to go around the fire pit: 
We started with six and after a few storms were down to four. The plastic was fine for what we paid, but we were always planning on something more substantial long term. 
SO many of you mentioned your love of POLYWOOD when I talked about our plan to upgrade. I looked into them (and with your
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Categories: Home Contractor, Home Decor, Home Experience, Home Exterior, Home for rent, Home Improvement, Home Improvement Ideas, Home interior, Home security

Simple and delicious pumpkin bread recipe

Because I’m fully in the fall spirit, I was on the search for a good pumpkin bread recipe a few weeks ago. I found this super easy one online and of course had to share it with you. You know if I’m sharing a recipe it’s SUPER delicious and really easy. 🙂
I made some slight adjustments to this recipe to fit our tastes better. I think it would be SO good with raisins too, so I added those (and some others) as an option as well. The ingredients are pretty basic and easy to find! 
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Here are the ingredients (grouped by how you mix them): 
1 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup olive oil (canola or vegetable are fine)
2
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Categories: Home Contractor, Home Decor, Home Experience, Home Exterior, Home for rent, Home Improvement, Home Improvement Ideas, Home interior, Home security