My Love of Sideboards

I fell in love with sideboards many years ago, long before I felt I could afford one.   My sister’s mother-in-law had the most beautiful sideboard in her dining room in Mountain Brook which my sister eventually inherited.    It came from one of their trips to Europe and was very valuable.

The first auction David and I ever went to (about 5 years ago) we went with the intention of hoping to find a sideboard we liked in good condition and at a reasonable cost.     That night we actually bought two!    One is in the den and one is in the dining room.   

Here’s the one in the den:

And the one in my dining room (my favorite)

Then at another auction we attended a couple of years ago we weren’t looking to buy another sideboard but as we were leaving I saw one outside that was in pretty bad shape.     We bought it for $25.00 and when we got it home, I cleaned it up and painted it black.    It wasn’t the greatest looking piece of furniture but it served its purpose at that time.     Now that I’m ready for my sunroom to undergo a facelift, the sideboard was the first thing to get a new look.     I decided to paint the body of it with Heirloom White and stain the top in a dark walnut.   

Here’s the sideboard painted black:

                  

And I just couldn’t wait to show you how it looks now:

    

 

 

  

Please excuse the mess and boxes in the background-----I’m still sorting stuff from my mom’s house and this has been the dumping ground for all those things.

I just added this little applique to the bottom drawer.    I have one I can use on the top drawer but I think I’ll leave it just like this.

Gone will be the red walls and in its place will be a creamy white.   I found an 8 x 10 seagrass rug at a local flea market for $19.99!      I already have a khaki loveseat and dark walnut TV cabinet.     I have a little something in mind for panels at all the windows and the french doors.    I plan to get started on a complete revamp of that room shortly after the holidays so you’ll just have to come back then to see how the room comes together.     I will also give a list of the products I used on the sideboard which made my job a little easier.

On a side note, on Monday my daughter and I went to Birmingham for our annual girl’s day Christmas shopping.    The weather was yucky all day long.    My son was also off doing some shopping of his own and he met us for lunch at P.F. Chang’s (my favorite place).      I am so fortunate that my kids love spending time together and Shannon has always loved being with her big brother.    I snapped this of them as we were walking out of Barnes & Noble (of course, they think I’m crazy always taking pictures)….

(Yep, they’re probably saying “why is she ALWAYS taking our picture)

Then to top off our shopping extravaganza I stopped by Rhoda’s so Shannon could meet her and see her house.     Well, as you can imagine, Shannon loved everything about it!     I have now been instructed that we MUST use beadboard wallpaper in the kids bathroom (Rhoda is the beadboard wallpaper queen).      Shannon and Rhoda’s hubby had quite a little talk about the upcoming National Championship game between Alabama and Texas that will be played in Pasadena, California.    Shannon’s husband is a huge Alabama fan (among all us Auburn folks) and they are flying out to the game…..guess who’s babysitting?

Classic Christmas Dining Room

I can’t tell ya’ll how much I love my dining room with its soothing neutrals and dark woods.    It has really been a privilege to decorate it this year for Christmas.   I found that less really is more in such a calming environment.   

 

Mahogany chest next to the window.    Like my “custom” drapes?   You can read about those here.      I picked up the curly iron candlestick at a yard sale for $1.00 when we were in Decatur, Alabama.

This sweet little pitcher is from my uncle’s home.    He was a fabulous collector of china.

 

 

View of my dining room from the kitchen door.    I lit the candles just for you!    

Love, love, love this tray.    I sprayed it with Almond satin.    It is the tray that matches the coffee and tea set a few pictures down.    Those are painted with Heirloom White but I didn’t have any on hand so I used the Almond….almost a perfect match.

 

   

 

Can you spy what’s different in this picture from some above?    I took this picture before I put the glass candlesticks on the white tray using the Heirloom White coffee/tea set in place of the tureen with white ornaments.      When I decided to use the candlesticks, I moved the tureen back to on the sideboard the put the coffee/tea set in the kitchen (you’ll see that in another post).

 

The pair of deer above I picked up last year at Walgreen’s for around $10.00.   

My favorite piece in the dining room is this large tureen.    I love everything about it…..its size, its color, those darling handles…..

I’m joining the party at Rhoda’s so check out all the Christmas inspiration there.

I’ll be posting pictures of my kitchen in a day or two.    Still tweaking in there!

Christmas In My Den

As I’ve said in prior posts, I’ve done so much less decorating this year than in years past, mostly due to time constraints.   And you know what?   I’m okay with that.   I’m having a hard time coming back from this fall when we put my mom in assisted living, I think I’m just “done” and don’t have the energy for anything else.      Seven weeks of my sister and I going through her home and clearing out/cleaning out then having an estate sale, plus getting her settled in at her new home.      Fortunately, she is settling in quite well and that relieves my mind a lot.

So here’s my den this year…enjoy!

Sideboard decked out with a garland, white urn filled with shells, coral and ornaments.   

      

 

  

I filled the shell  the little angel is holding with sugar….an idea I saw in one of Nell Hill’s books.

Now the mantle (or mantel?).    Simple lighted garland and Ballard stockings.

 

 

This urn sits on the mantel all year,  I just added some green balls.

 

      I picked up these gorgeous Ballard stockings last year.    Lime green and leopard, great combination!

     

Close up of the cuff

Our little tree in an urn.    For the past 5 years we’ve put the urn on a mahogany table so little fingers (grandkids) could not reach it but this year they are 4 & 5 and old enough to put the tree back down on the floor.

 

Love these green and red ornaments I picked up at Old Time Pottery a few years ago.

 

I had this huge bow made at Southern Homes & Gardens a couple of years back.    It has really long streamers that I weave down the length of the tree.

So there you have my den….just enough to be “Christmas-y” but not over-the-top.

Still to come…my kitchen and dining room.    

Traditional Outdoor Christmas

I have used traditional reds and greens in my outdoor decorating for many years.      I just love the way that color combination works.    Although I really haven’t done that much decorating inside or out this year, I did put a few things outside.    I hope you enjoy your tour of my outdoor decorations.

 

Front door wreath.    This is just an old wreath I’ve had for many  years that I dressed up with some red balls and a big red bow.

 

I used a simple lighted garland and tied a bow on my bench.     If you’d like to see the story of this bench re-do and burlap pillow, you can read about that here.

(Excuse the extension cords….I didn’t realize they showed in this pic!)

Wall planter filled with pieces of greenery and large Christmas ornaments I started buying a couple of years ago.    It really looks pretty spotlighted at night.

 

And finally my garden gate.     This cone shaped planter I picked up on our recent road trip (read about that here).    We stopped on Saturday morning at a yard sale and I got it for $5.00!   

I will have to replace the red picks next year-- they are looking kinda sad.    I got them at Kirkland’s a couple of years ago on a trip to Biloxi.     I just stuck them in the planter….doesn’t get any easier than that!

And that’s it for my outside decorations.     Check back later this week when I’ll be taking you on a tour of the inside of my home.    Can’t wait to show you the gorgeous tray on my dining room table!