4th of July Decorations – The Holiday Hutch
Bring out the Red, White and Blue…
We have come full circle. 4th of July is the last of the holiday decorations showcased in The Holiday Hutch since we started last year in October with Halloween decorations.
A person could leave this Americana look up all year long if they had the inclination to do so. Red, white and blue is a very comforting and yet cheerful color combination.
Use 4th of July cloth napkins like you would a doily. Get a fabric in a red, white and blue or a solid red or blue and cut it into squares to use under or in your theme.
Add in unexpected items. The reason the copper kettle is included is because of Paul Revere’s work with copper. It’s always fun when someone gets the connection.
Get a handful of little American flags and place them in a red or blue vase or glass like a little bouquet.
Remember to vary the heights of your items to add interest.
The Holiday Hutch – Not just for the Holidays
You don’t have to limit the themes of your Holiday Hutch to the holidays. You can also showcase collections that you might have, items that you like or events. For example: summer sunflowers or a beach theme would be nice. Birthdays, anniversaries, or any congratulatory event will bring a smile to anyone’s face. If you have kids or grandkids you can fill it with animated characters. Of course you can always fill it up with items that fit in with your everyday décor.
Have fun with your Holiday Hutch. It is a great way to decorate and showcase fun items that you have accumulated over the years. It can be a moving part in your otherwise stable décor.
Amazing Advantages of The Holiday Hutch
The more items you put in the Holiday Hutch the better it looks. You will not believe how many items you can put on each of the shelves. Quite frankly it’s “AMAZING”, I love it and I’m sure you will too!!!
Hover over the above photos to pin separately.
Easter & Spring Decorations – The Holiday Hutch
Hoppin’ down the Bunny Trail…
Hurry and get the St. Patrick’s Day decorations down and the Easter and Spring decorations up!!!
It’s always nice when Easter lands in April but when it is in March we have to hurry, hurry, hurry.
Easter and Spring decorations are so cute! We have bunnies, chickies, duckies, lambs, decorated eggs, baskets, cellophane or paper grass, carrots, daffodils, tulips and of course the Easter Bunny.
All of the pastel colors can be used. Because of the chickies and duckies that are used yellow seems to be a predominate color.
As with all of the other Holiday Hutch themes here are a few tips:
Use items with different heights and build up height variations from underneath if need be.
Use other pastel pretties (not only Easter/Spring decorations) to add interest.
You can use themed greeting cards either standing up or leaning against the back to add interest.
Use Easter, Spring or baby animal books.
Use cellophane or paper grass (I usually use green) under the items and let the grass drape down over the shelves.
Put colored eggs all around. I have painted plaster eggs that I use but you could always use plastic eggs. In fact, these days there are a lot of cute choices when it comes to plastic eggs.
One of my favorite decorations is this take apart egg that I painted many years ago. It actually comes apart and stores flat, which is always a plus because it takes up less storage space.
Amazing Advantages of the Holiday Hutch
The more items you put in the Holiday Hutch the better it looks. You will not believe how many items you can put on each of the shelves. Quite frankly it’s “AMAZING”, I love it and I’m sure you will too!!!
Hover over the above photos to pin separately OR Click on the rectangle “Pin It” button below to pin all photos.
St. Patrick’s Decorations – The Holiday Hutch
Top O’ The Morning!
It’s time for the green…
I really enjoy decorating for St. Patrick’s Day. It is time for that touch of whimsy with mischievous leprechauns everywhere. After Valentine’s Day with all the red and pink, green (being their complementary color) is especially refreshing to look at.
Around my house we refer to St. Patrick’s Day as the celebration of the “Wee Folk.” It’s a good time to put out any fairies or other magical Wee Folk that you have, especially if they are wearing green.
St. Patrick’s Holiday Hutch Tips
Stay with different shades of green as your color scheme. If you need a secondary color use yellow (because the daffodils are in bloom.)
Use items with different heights and build up height variations from underneath if need be.
Use other green pretties (not only St. Patrick’s decorations) to add interest
You can use themed greeting cards either standing up or leaning against the back to add interest
Use books that match the theme. Books about Irish Blessings, Ireland, Celtic information, Staying with the Celtic side of it all you could even put out Scottish objects.
Put out a framed photo of the Irish countryside or an Irish castle. If you’ve never visited Ireland and don’t have your own Irish photos you could print out a photo from the internet and place it in a frame and stand it up or place against the back of the hutch.
Meet Sir Lepp
He is the newest addition to my St. Patrick’s decorations. He is hand carved by a painting buddy of mine, Dorae. Isn’t he just the cutest! He is only 8 1/2 inches tall but his presence is so much more…Welcome Sir Lepp and thank you Dorae for letting him come live with me!
Amazing Advantages of the Holiday Hutch
The more items you put in the Holiday Hutch the better it looks. You will not believe how many items you can put on each of the shelves. Quite frankly it’s “AMAZING”, I love it and I’m sure you will too!!!
Hover over the above photos to pin separately.
Valentines Decorations – The Holiday Hutch
Valentine Decorations are just “Pretty”
Or to put it another way Valentine’s decorations are anything but plain!
Pink is pretty – Red is pretty – Lace is pretty – Hearts are pretty – Flowers (especially pink, white or red) are pretty – and cupids are cute! How can your Valentine’s Holiday Hutch not be “Pretty?”
Remember, not everything you put into the Hutch needs to be an official Valentine’s decoration. In fact, your Hutch will look more interesting if you also add items you might already have that are of the Valentine’s color scheme or a Valentine’s symbol (cupid, heart, chocolates, etc.)
To fill up the Holiday Hutch with Valentine’s decorations is an easy task for me. I just walk around my house and gather up all of my pink or red “pretties” and put them all together in the Hutch. My everyday home décor consists of a lot of pink and burgundy “pretties”.
If your everyday home décor is more of a modern unadorned look with a neutral color palette you will need to accumulate your Valentine’s decorations. Do not get a bunch of stuff that has “Happy Valentine’s Day” printed on it! A couple of items are OK but a nice pink candy dish with no “Happy Valentine’s Day” printed on it will go a long way to the look you will want to achieve.
Amazing Advantages of the Holiday Hutch
The more items you put in the Holiday Hutch the better it looks. You will not believe how many items you can put on each of the shelves. Quite frankly it’s “AMAZING”, I love it and I’m sure you will too!!!
Hover over the above photos to pin separately.
Christmas Decorations – The Holiday Hutch
Christmas Decorations
And even more decorations can fit in…
We can just keep adding and adding to our Christmas decorations. Instead of spreading decorations all over the house – a little snowman here, a little santa there, try putting them altogether in a Holiday Hutch. Whether we are just starting out and don’t have much or if we are downsizing and would like to make our Christmas decorating a little easier the Holiday Hutch may be just the right fit for your decorating needs
Amazing Advantages of the Holiday Hutch
The more items you put in the Holiday Hutch the better it looks. You will not believe how many items you can put on each of the shelves. Quite frankly it’s “AMAZING”, I love it and I’m sure you will too!!!
Hover over the above photos to pin to Pinterest separately.
Thanksgiving Decorations – The Holiday Hutch
Change out couple of things and your Thanksgiving Decorations are completed!
Ok, this is going to be easy peasy…
Half of the work (or play) is already done!
Put away all of you ghosts, goblins, witches, monsters, jack-o-latterns, etc. and replace with all of your turkeys, Pilgrims, Native Americans, etc.
Sometimes you can even keep up a jack-o-lattern by turning it around hiding it’s face so it becomes a pumpkin. This doesn’t always work but if it has a good pumpkin side use it!
Amazing Advantages of the Holiday Hutch
The more items you put in the Holiday Hutch the better it looks. You will not believe how many items you can put on each of the shelves. Quite frankly it’s “AMAZING”, I love it and I’m sure you will too!!!
Hover over the above photos to pin to Pinterest separately.
The Holiday Hutch – Halloween Decorations
The “Decorating Drought” of Summer is over!
After the 4th of July there is nothing! Sure we can display our non-holiday pretties (in fact, it’s kind of nice to see them all again) but that is not holiday decorating.
We are officially into the fall season – a “Decorator’s Delight”
What does “Decorator’s Delight” mean? It means we get to start the holiday decorating cycle – Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Easter, 4th of July.
With the days getting shorter, the kids back in school, and warm meals for dinner we are ready to welcome fall…starting with Halloween.
Halloween decorations are actually a combination of all the usual Halloween items (witches, ghosts, skeletons, jack-o-lanterns, etc.) plus all of your fall pretties (minus any turkeys or Pilgrim related items). Use your fall leaves, fall garlands, scarecrows etc. to bring in the warm colors of fall.
Amazing Advantages of the Holiday Hutch
The more items you put in the Holiday Hutch the better it looks. You will not believe how many items you can put on each of the shelves. Quite frankly it’s “AMAZING”, I love it and I’m sure you will too!!!
Hover over the above photos to pin to Pinterest separately.
The Holiday Hutch
WHAT!?! Not enough room to put out all of your holiday pretties?
Do you love to shop at holiday craft shows or stores filled full of little holiday lovelies that you just must have?
Do family and friends give you holiday decorations for gifts?
OR… are you downsizing and just don’t have the space to decorate with all of your holiday pretties? Is it just getting to be too much work to decorate your entire home?
WELL…..Do I have an answer for you. I call it my Holiday Hutch. The one I use is a distress green, with cream interior) cupboard. It measures 35 1/2″ W x 84″ D x 14″ D. It has 3 shelves and because I have tall ceilings I can use the top of the hutch for tall items.
The top has doors (that I keep open) and the 2 bottom shelves have doors that I keep closed. I have chosen to keep them closed and use the bottom for the storage of my everyday pretties that I put out during non-holiday times.
Your display space does not have to be a green distressed cupboard. It can just be a bookshelf that you designate for this purpose or a hutch type piece of furniture that matches or coordinates with your décor. I do recommend that it is located in a very visible location to get maximum enjoyability (don’t try to look that word up..LOL).
Get started by placing a few “anchor items.” These anchor items serve to add a little variety. I use a couple of books and 3 glass jars (filled with old marbles). If you are light on the holiday decorations add in a few more anchor items. Also, be sure to vary the heights your pretties to add interest.
Amazing Advantages of the Holiday Hutch
The more items you put in the Holiday Hutch the better it looks. You will not believe how many items you can put on each of the shelves. Quite frankly it’s “AMAZING”, I love it and I’m sure you will too!!!
Hover over the above photos to pin separately.
The Wedding Photos Are Here!
It Was All Worth It! The Hard Work Paid Off
It was a perfect day, the venue was gorgeous, the decorations were whimsical, the food was delicious, the flowers were fantastic, the bride (little Claus) was beautiful & happy, the groom was handsome & happy…and now the photo are here and they are great. What more could you ask for???
From the Street…
The Gate to the Event!
The Welcome Table
The Table Settings
Old Photos
The Labyrinth Ceremony
For the Candle Ceremony
The Bouquet
The Ring Bearer’s Horseshoe
WOW! Those boots!
It’s Time to Eat!
The Special Plate for the Bride & Groom
The “Oh So Beautiful” Cake
Happily Ever After
A Special Thanks to all of the friends & family who helped make this wedding/reception so special.
Richard & Kimberly Urlich for the use of their beautiful property and help during the event.
Cheri Browne for all of her fabulous floral arrangements (including the bridal bouquet),catering skills and help with the clean-up.
Erik Pollard for the beautiful flowers he hand sculpted and arranged on the cake.
Mitch Rossi for all of the beautiful photographs.
Gordon & Colleen Clarry for help at the venue and for their help at our house preparing for all the guest.
Bob Hudspeth for the use of all his audio equipment (setting up, manning the booth throughout the day and breaking it down).
Our Caterer Smoke N Man BBQ – for the best bbq oysters, tri-tip and salmon. YUMMY
All of the family and friends that helped set up, clean up and break down.
Mrs. Claus – The Focus Was Wedding Decor
Surprise!!! Burlap and Lace Wedding Decorations –
That is what Mrs. Claus has been doing for the last 7 months. Yes, our little Claus got married and there was a lot of crafting that had to be done!!! Invitations, website, table runners, table signs, garlands, guest books, card holders, party favors, you name it and we made it!
When my daughter told me I was going to really like her wedding theme, she was right. She (and her fiancé) chose the Burlap and Lace look with the addition of different shades of pink. Decorated mason jar vases with flowers for the centerpieces, photos hanging from clothesline, tree round slices, etc… you get the picture. It was a great choice especially for the backyard BBQ type wedding they had.
Needless to say all of my time that is usually spent on crafts for myself and presents for family and friends was totally consumed with the wedding décor.
Of course my daughter and I went overboard! Santa says this is just how we do things!
It started with the invitations…
We were always going to make the invitations. We brainstormed for 6 hours on a Saturday and the invites just got more and more elaborate…hee…hee…hee. No longer were we going to use cardstock. Oh no, that would be way to easy and simple. Stiffened burlap, yes, that is what we would use. Just the wedding info would not be enough we needed more, more, more!!! OK here is the finished product
The Venue
The wedding ceremony and BBQ reception took place at the beautiful property of our friends. It was perfect for the down home wedding that the bride and groom wanted. Here are some photos of the property before we set up.
The actual ceremony took place inside the Labyrinth.
The Website
The Decor
Lace,burlap and pink ribbons, everywhere….I was dreaming burlap and lace!
Homemade peanut brittle for wedding favors.
It feels a little strange that I no longer have any burlap and lace projects in the works! The wedding turned out great. We created the look and feel that my daughter and her hubby wanted and that is what really matters.
Our little Claus
The Happy Couple
I will post up photos of the actual event all decorated up and the ceremony when I get them.
Now what!?! Dare you ask!
It’s time to get into the Christmas mode. I have a couple of repairs to make on my Mrs. Claus skirt (dancing with the kids in the sand at the Mattel party last year was a little rough on it). Santa Ed is already in SoCal doing Santa auditions so officially our Christmas season is starting!
