You have the whole Thanksgiving feast planned, but now what in the world are you going to do for a centerpiece? Do you want a centerpiece that is creative, inexpensive, and most importantly, easy? Here are some ideas to help add that pizazz to your table that will have your family and friends admiring your creativity.
One of the easiest, is the Cornucopia Centerpiece. Go to your local craft store to purchase a simple wicker basket. With this you can do a variety of displays. You can overfill it with real fruits and gourds, or you can use plastic. Just fill your basket to overflow and let them spill out onto the table.
Also, a great way to decorate with your cornucopia is to use silk flowers and leaves. While at the craft store purchase a Styrofoam block or ball and silk flowers and leaves in fall colors with long stems. Push the Styrofoam in the wicker cornucopia basket so that it is firmly wedged inside. You may want to trim down the foam or add more as needed. Simply push the stems of the flowers and leaves into the foam so that they emerge in a decorative arrangement at the opening of the cornucopia.
Another creative way to use your cornucopia is to overflow it with different breads, such as, rolls and muffins, or whatever bread you may prefer. You can also add some silk leaves around the cornucopia and bread. This creates a marvelous edible centerpiece.
You can also use a beautiful wicker basket that you might have at home, instead of the cornucopia. Maybe add some ribbon in fall colors. It can still look just as beautiful with the three previous ideas.
If you want centerpiece that is a little different, then try using a large, hollowed-out pumpkin instead of a vase to display a fall floral arrangement. Scatter clusters of berries, nuts, and autumn leaves around the base of the pumpkin. Adding a couple of mini pumpkins to the table would also look nice.
With spring just a few weeks away here are a few cleaning tips to get your house back into tip-top shape after winter.
- First of all, make a checklist of chores. This will help get you organized and keep you that way.
- When dusting, be sure to start at the top and work your way down.
- Wash walls from the bottom up. This will help to avoid streaking.
- Remember to take all your cleaning tools with you so you’re not running back and forth.
- Clean as you go. It takes a lot less time to remove new dirt than old.
- Leaving baking soda on carpeting over night will help absorb musty odors.
- Use old socks as mitts for cleaning difficult wood work.
- Wash small knickknacks instead of dusting.
- To removing heel marks , take pencil eraser and rub them off.
- Don’t mix cleaning products. Ammonia and bleach are toxic.
- Remember common cleaners such as windex and comet meet this don’t do rule.
- Allowing cleaners to set for several minutes will help make the cleaning job easier.
Style on a Shoestring
San Diego, CA
Tracy Lynn, owner and designer
1.858.335.7033
SAN DIEGO — Here at Style on a Shoestring we know first hand the damages caused by the 2007 wildfires in San Diego County. We know people who have completely lost their homes and those who have suffered major smoke damage.
As a result, we would like to donate our time to helping the victims of the wildfires in San Diego County turn their houses back into homes. These services would include, but are not limited to; choosing new paint colors, picking out window treatments and helping to create design plans for furniture arrangement. We would be happy to answer any design question for free.
Style on a Shoestring has been in business in the San Diego area since 2002 and was recently chosen for the Service Excellence Award by Angie’s List for 2007.
Please feel free to check out our website at Styleonashoestring.com and call for a free consultation today.
Warm regards,
Tracy Lynn, owner and designer
1.858.335.7033
Plants make can make a beautiful addition to any room’s decor. Here are a few tips from Style on a Shoestring to help you choose and arrange your plants.
First you want to choose plants that fit in with your existing decor. For instance, if you have a contemporary style, you would choose plants that are long and sleek, with slender shapes. If your home is Victorian in style, you may want to choose more “feminine” looking plants like ferns. If your home has a Southwestern feel to it, you may want to look at plants from the cactus family.
Grouping your plants for extra impact is a great look and an easy way to fill up a corner. Make sure the plants in a group vary in height for the most pleasing outcome. If you’re using live plants, choose plants that have similar lighting and watering requirements to make life easier. Then you can keep them on the same watering schedule.
You don’t want to place a 7 foot or taller tree next to a short plant. . It’s better to graduate down with less of a drop off. The scale is wrong and it would look too severe. An easy-to-make platform for pots is a grouping of bricks covered with coordinating fabric from the room. If one of the plants isn’t tall enough, place it on a brick or a flat basket turned upside-down.
You can also group a number of plants in a single container for a different look. Use any large container, like a basket or trunk. Remember to choose plants with similar watering needs. Try using plants from the same family. For example, group different ferns together, or use the same plant with different color variations for more variety. If your color palette in the room is cool, choose plants that are dark green, not a yellow green.
Adding plants to a bathroom can create a tropical or spa-like ambience. To adjust the heights, raise the bottom of a deep container with rocks or bricks so the plants will be more visible. Line the container with heavy plastic, like a garbage bag. (Even with the lining, however, you will probably want to remove your plants to water them at the sink for the best safety and thorough watering.)
Balance and scale are important when placing plants in a room. You don’t want to overpower a wall, but neither do you want to plants to look lost in the space. Choose plants heights and fullness based on the space and the height of other elements in the room, such as windows, armoirs, doors and so forth.
Decorating with Rugs
An area rug can pull all of the design elements of your room together. In addition to adding some wonderful color and design they also serve to keep those expensive floors safe from wear and tear.
To place a rug in a room start by choosing a rug which will allow eight inches of wood to be exposed around the rug’s perimeter.
For cozy nooks in large rooms, create small sitting areas by gathering furniture around a 4’ by 6’ or 5’ by 8’ rugs.
For a dining room rug, measure your table top; then add four feet to the width and length to find the minimum size of your dining room rug. This extra length and width helps with pulling chairs out from under the table.
You can brighten up small areas, like your bathroom or kitchen by using smaller accent rug in bold colors.
Remember to keep your family safe by making sure that rug corners do not extend into high traffic areas and always use a rug pad to keep the rugs from sliding around on hardwood floors. the pad will also help to cut down on the wear and tear of your investment by keeping the rug in place.
