Simple Burlap Wreath

I've been wanting so badly to get outside and clean our porches and get them ready for spring.  But, unfortunately there haven't been very many days that were warm enough to do much outside!  So, instead I decided to make a new wreath for my door!

I chose to make an extremely simple one with a straw wreath and some burlap garland.  Both were very inexpensive at Walmart.  

All I did was use my hot glue gun to glue the edge of the garland in place.  (I chose not to remove the plastic wrap on the wreath.)

After gluing down the edge, I just started wrapping the wreath with the garland, pulling it tight as I went.  When it was completely covered, I cut the burlap and glued the edge down onto the back.

Very simple!  Now you can choose to garnish your wreath any way that you would like.  I decided to start with some old vintage buttons I have.  

I stuck with a monochromatic color palette (I know, that is very strange for me!).  But I had made wreaths for both of my daughter's and I really like the black/brown/grey/white look.  And maybe I chose those buttons because in my can of vintage buttons those are mostly the colors that are there!

I didn't really use any rhyme or reason on where I put the buttons.  But I did just adhere them to one half of the wreath, as I had plans for the other half.  

Just one little dab of hot glue is all it takes to stick them on.

I then made four burlap roses.  I would go through the step by step tutorial on them but I found the idea on another blog and her tutorial was so great there is no sense in me trying to do it better.  You can find that here.  

In order to get the roses to really fit on the wreath the way I wanted, I used my scissors to poke a deep hole into the burlap and through the straw wreath.  I then filled that hole with hot glue and stuck my rose stem right in the hole and held it tightly until it stuck.

The roses were really fun to make and as a matter of fact, while I was working on these I made a few more out of some vintage patriotic fabric so that I can put them on another wreath in the summer.  They are a little addicting to make and once you get started you can't quit!

I stepped outside into the freezing cold and hung it on my door, snapped some pictures and it wasn't until I uploaded them onto my computer that I saw I had gotten a few Momma cows and a new baby in the reflection of the glass door!  It's a common sight from our porch.

There you have it.  A very simple burlap wreath.  

I hope your March is off to a great start.  We had a lovely day here on the farm yesterday with fellowship, friends and yummy food!  And now we are really hoping for some nice spring weather as Eldon is gearing up to begin work on his barn!  

Valentine's Day Lunch on the Hilltop

 I was very excited to be able to put on a Valentine's lunch this year.  I love Valentine's Day.  

There were nine of us ladies in all, plus four precious little girls (two of them were my grand-daughters).   It seemed like just the perfect number.  

I was wanting to get away from the traditional red and I have some turquoise dishes I've been so anxious to use.  So the idea of pink and turquoise sounded like fun to me!

I used the hobnail glasses from Anthropologie that are so gorgeous.  

I think the turquoise dishes were so beautiful with the pink. 

I love the burlap silverware holder idea that my friend Ann from On Sutton Place designed.  (It is a no sew project; however, I did sew mine.  You can link over to that here.)

I didn't have enough of the turquoise plates so I interspersed them with these cream ones that belong to my daughter.  I also made the napkins from gorgeous Valentine quilting fabric.   I made them reversible and folded over the top so that I could show both fabrics!

Pink roses in my enamelware pitcher from Ikea just looked so beautiful.  I also set my candlesticks on the turquoise saucers - it was a good way to use a little more turquoise!

I made two pendant banners to hang.    (The instructions for these can also be found here on my friend Ann's blog. )  They were super easy to make and I made the little turquoise pom poms to help tie in the color with the pink!  

I like the little banners so much I'm leaving them up for awhile!

For my table runner I used pink burlap that I cut and frayed the edges and with my left over fabric from the napkins I quickly sewed up a simple piece to set on top of the burlap.  Very simple, but perfect.

Then I set a complete separate table for the four little girls in our group.  I used some of my eighties pink Fiestaware plates, milk glass goblets, home made napkins and a burlap table runner.  

The fun thing though were the Valentine mailboxes I made for each girl and hung on the back of their chairs.  I was kind of winging it the whole time on those... just adding and taking away as I liked!  All the ladies were asked to bring a Valentine for each of the girls.  

Which they did.... and then some!!!  It was like Birthday, Christmas, and Valentine's all wrapped up in one!!!  The girls didn't know what to do!

Aren't they darling? 

The icing on the cake of the day was that all four girls got to spend the night with me!  (My husband was gone so I was super happy to have some girl time!)  

We made home made pizza for supper with each girl making their own half of the pizza with the toppings of their choice.  (And once again I was so happy for that cabinet I designed shorter than the others... perfect height for little kids cooking in the kitchen!)

Then it was bath time, jammies and creating at the craft table!  (And enjoying some Valentine suckers from the party!)

It was the best Valentine's Day I've had in a very long time!  I'm so very thankful for the friends I've met since moving to Tennessee and for the family that they have become to me.  (And of course so very thankful for my daughter and her little family down the road!)

And somehow I didn't take any pictures of my lunch but it was delicious.  I grilled steak and cut it up thin which I served with a huge salad and home made french bread.  For dessert we had Red Velvet Cake and Pink Punch (a special request from Jillian, my 5 year old grand-daughter!)

I hope your Valentine's Day was perfect too!

P.S.  Someday I'll tell the story of my turquoise dishes.  Do any of you have any of these you'd like to part with?  

February Monthly Moos {Covered In Snow}

It was fun to wake up this morning to a snow covered farm!  And the sunshine along with it!

I enjoyed bundling up and heading out to get a few pictures.  

There is something about fresh snow that is just so magical.  

And even more magical is fresh snow with month old baby calves!  (We now have five new babies on the ground with seven more to go!)

And of course we can't possibly have a farm post without a picture of Belle!  

We've actually had a fairly cold winter for here.  And quite a number of times Eldon has had to break ice off the pond so the cows can drink.  Today there was just a bit bit of ice around the edges.

It was such a beautiful day!  

I did spend most of the day indoors, however; as I am getting ready for a Valentine's Party here at the farm tomorrow!  House is clean, tables are set and food prep is done!  

Happy Valentine's to you.  I hope your day is perfect.

January Monthly Moos {The Ever Changing Hilltop}

This is what greeted us this morning when we opened our bedroom curtains.  We have fog quite frequently but our house is always above it!  It's a great way to wake up, lemme tell ya!

The view in the above picture is looking over to the little neighborhood where our daughter lives.  We can have sunshine on the hilltop and they are sitting in heavy fog! 

We love that we have a great view of the changing seasons (and the incoming storms!)

The top of our Hilltop is a perfect vantage point for watching the cotton fields being harvested in the fall.

And even though the view in the fall is beyond beautiful with the changing colors of the leaves...

 ...and the view in the winter is amazing because you can see so far (and the only time of the year you can see our driveway through the woods!)... 

...my favorite time on the Hilltop is by far the summer.  

There is something about all the thick green trees that give me a feeling of comfort.  The temperature rises and the air is heavy with humidity but the breeze on our hilltop is the best feeling ever!  

Summer on the Hilltop calls for Jillian and Belle playing frisbee...

... and flying kites.

Can you tell I'm ready for summer?  (Big smile!)  

Things on the farm have been slow this month; not too much to "moo" about!  

Hope you are having a happy January!