White Out

Whites, creams, and ecru combine for white out conditions, and I'm not talking about the kind of white out conditions I'm privy to in the Midwest. The talk is all about decorating with lack of color or hue, and in artsy terms, a surface that REFLECTS EVERY color, thus appears white. 

    

My favorite white basket is filled with an off white china plate, a silver plate, and a distressed thingamajig (thingamajig: item with absolutly no purpose, but adding color or texture). My black pedestal table displays a candlestick, a vintage pottery piece, a children's tea set and a glittered star.   

When putting together vignettes of one color, (or in this case, lack of color), choose pieces with texture and variations of the same color. Think of visual texture as the glue that holds it all together. If all the pieces were glossy or matte they would seem to slide away.  The weave of the basket adds visual texture that allows the sleekness of the pottery and silver pieces to (visually) stick together.  The pottery and the thingamajig add another type of glue due to their distressed appearance.  Even the star contrasts and adds texture against a glossy tea service. I like it simply for the pop of sparkle :) 

I prefer combining white with its complementary color: black. This works well for me because I have touches of black around my home, like the table where this vignette sits. I added silver pieces because black and white mixed together makes gray (silver).  Easy peasy. Get it? But, remember the best rule when combining items, do you like it?   

My friend Mary at Vintage Patina really knows how to use white and creams in her home. The following pictures are from her Christmas post, (I know, I just can't let Christmas go).

 

Look at those textures! 
 This is the kind of white out I don't mind!

DIY: The star in the little silver children's teapot is an easy do it yourself project. You can buy chipboard stars already cut out at your local hobby store. Paint the star silver, and glitter away!

Blessings, Ele

Humble Pedestal Plates, or Party Divas?

Pedestal Plates are showing up everywhere. Who can blame them? Humble vintage china plates have a new purpose. They love being the center of attention and their self esteem has reached new heights. 

They showed up at my mother's birthday party here adding beauty, elegance, and function to the serving table. The different heights add visual interest.  I swear I heard them say, "na na nana na" to the flat serving platters.  

These divas started out as plates acquired at flea markets and rummage sales. New (bargain), and old candle holders were glued to the bottom of the plates.

Mismatched plates, bowls, and candleholders were used.

CRAFT TIP: While visiting blogs the other day, I found that "Organize and Decorate Everything" had a tutorial on this very same project!  Visit her Desert Stand post for a detailed how to.  She made great looking stands with new plates. The all white plates give the grouping a sense of unity, but the use of different plates and candleholders add a wonderful interesting mismatched feel. 

Blue sheer bows were added to my mismatched plates to unify them. If the vintage plate designs had fit into one color theme: pastels, brights, blues, reds, etc. this in itself would have provided a unified look. Because I had one bright plate mixed in with the pastels, they needed a common factor, (blue bows). 

 

"O.K. my party diva plates, play nice with the other serving pieces." 

"Play nice."

Ele

PS: If you want to watch a video that will make you smile. Click HERE. Really, it's worth it!

Plate It

This old house of mine has nooks and crannies perfect for decorating.

Flow blue china, an antique dresser , and fabric artwork by Floss complete this little unused entryway. Visit THIS POST and scroll down to see close up pictures of the artwork.

Do you have wall space and aren't sure what to do with it?

Plate it!

Dining Room Update

Dining room makeover (almost) complete.

If you want to see what the formal dining room looked like before go here. I really did like the room before. I just felt a change was needed, and wanted it to coordinate with my sitting room here, (scroll down).

The items in my home are my treasures. My treasures are vintage, antique, almost new, and may only be beautiful to me, but they each have their own story.

When I redecorate, I incorporate my "treasures" into the design. Do you do this? Do you have things you LOVE and just have to make them part of the design, or do you start totally new? I can't start new. It's not me. Read on, and I'll share.

My seashells...

...fill the base of a very large glass vase. A reminder of wonderful vacations with Mr. Pink Heaven, and my children. Laughter, relaxation, love, and warmth are inside this vase.

The walls have been painted a soothing pale shade of blue and new white flowers top off the seashells. I reupholstered the chair backs in the same fabric as the sitting room couch. I actually haven't recovered the seat cushions yet. Because I like to mix and match, I am looking for a darker blue in the same hue as the walls. What to you think?

The antique chandelier (70 years old) from my husband's grandmother's living room. The stories of his childhood, hang from our dining room's ceiling.

A new mirrored dresser graces the corner, (yes, I said new), and a vintage picture gets a new coat of white paint.

On top of the dresser, I have displayed a Swedish Art Glass heart vase from someone I "heart", my favorite teapot, (picked out by my pink girl), and faux cuppies made by Shannon of Paint Mine Pink. Don't you love the reflection? Isn't the mirror with silver trim a great look against the blue?

More of my treasures include...

...vintage china plates from three grandmothers, a plate from the church where Mr. Pink Heaven and I were married (27 years ago), a few plates from friends, and a plate from the church I attended as a child, with my grandmother.

Remember the inspiration picture?

It received a fresh coat of white paint, (the original pic I took is a little washed out....geez!).

A new table runner with white embroidery brings in a little texture.

Vintage teacups.....

...that once belonged to two of my great aunts. They were Norwegian immigrants who homesteaded on the Midwestern prairie. I'm sure the teacups can tell many stories. Another treasure, a coffee pot painted by my husband's great aunt.

Three generations of vintage plates on my wall. A plate from my mother's first set of plates, a plate from my grandmother's dishes, and another from my great grandmother. Can you hear the families gathering around the table? Children laughing? Families praying? My great grandmother had 13 children. It's a miracle the bottom plate, which is hers, survived.

Now, I said my formal dining room was almost done. Besides the bottom chair cushions, I also need to sew drapes, curtains, and/or valances. I'm not sure what I want. Any suggestions? Take a look at the windows.

I really don't need to cover the windows, as I live out in the country. It doesn't matter to me if the cows look in, ha! The window on the left side of the room looks into the sun room. I'm sure there are many great ideas out there. Help me out!

Happy Mothers Day!

Blessings to all of you,

Ele