Home Decor

First and foremost, I feel the distinct need to cover Fall decor, since that is on the brain at present. I just need those cooler temps to roll on in so can stop feeling like a fool with my cozy candles lit when it's 100 degrees outside. Anyway, here's a lovely picture of our fireplace to inspire cool thoughts:

The truck in the first photo and the pumpkins in the lower left hand corner of the above photo are both new from Hobby Lobby this year. Pretty much everything else you see pictured above or below came from my mom, Michael's, or Marshall's over the last decade or so. I usually root through and get rid of old cheap decor and buy only one or two new things a year--one always being a seasonally scented candle (on which Michael and I both have to agree). The pumpkin banner is actually from Amazon, and it was under $10!

This year's seasonally scented candle is this Rose and Currant candle in the most beautiful ruby jewel tone and smells divine. Something a little different than your usually pumpkin or vanilla concoction. Michael picked it out at Michael's and we were both surprised at how much we liked the scent and we can burn it all through Christmas without tiring of it (because it will take us that long.)


I always feel the need to finish up any home projects and have the house feeling as homey as possible, in tip top shape for the Fall and Winter. For us to enjoy and for any guests who may end up visiting or staying, so it's never a construction zone during the holiday months. Holidays are fun, but fun can also be stressful and busy, so this is one way I minimize the stress of the holidays. I also do all of my Christmas shopping over the Summer, so that's done now, too. All that's really left is to save up the energy to socialize--which is, admittedly, the hardest part for me as an introvert.

So we've done a little more finishing and redecorating the house over the last several months and, of course, many of the new items came from Amazon. I thought I'd share them here in case you're in the market for a few of these, too.

Since the Etsy shop has kind of picked up and I wanted a real work space that I didn't have to worry about cleaning up every day, I moved our old dining table into the office and we purchased this new one from Amazon. I've always wanted a round dining table, just for breakfast and things. My grandparents had one and it was cozy and versatile. We could fit four around it, we could fit eight around it. It is what you need it to be. This one is solid wood, it ain't light. But it came right to our front door and we easily and quickly assembled it and set it up without any problems. They also had many other finishes from which to choose if this more traditional wood look isn't your thing. We also love that it doesn't have that nerve wracking center pedestal that does not make physical sense. It has four nice, sturdy legs and feet, and even a little shelf underneath. Our chairs are old, from Amazon, too.

Nelms Table With Shelf Deep Brown

Since my move to the office, I noticed how disorganized many of our (my hoards of) books were and decided we needed another small bookshelf to help house some of these.

I found this one on Amazon and, again, I was so impressed. It's real wood, easy to assemble, and can clearly hold the weight of my bad habit. So there's that. It was under $50, but the price fluctuates. 

Winsome Wood Shelf, Espresso

I had also been trying to figure out a way to better maximize the space we have in the one walk in closet, which we share, in the Master bedroom. I decided it would be nice to maybe have just my dresses on some manner of hanging system in the bedroom, since they were relatively neat and colorful and not a complete eye sore like hanging pants or assorted items that would undoubtedly make their way to the floor or other surfaces rather than back to the hanger. So I ordered this lovely looking shelf from Amazon and anxiously awaited its arrival:

Industrial Style Shelf

Now, if I had read more carefully, I'm certain I would have noticed that the hangers pictured above had to be hanging at an angle if the shelf were actually mounted to a wall. When I tore excitedly into the package I received and Michael so helpfully leveled and measured and screwed holes in our wall, I never stopped to notice how far the hanging bar jutted out from the wall and if it would indeed fit a full size hanger for adult garments. It does not. Unless you keep them at an angle, as the ones pictured above apparently are. No big deal, it all worked out and it actually takes up much less space in the room with the dresses hanging flatter against the wall. But if you are not interested in hanging your garments any way other than straight across and easy to access, this is not the shelf for you. It would be really nice in a guest bathroom with a couple hand towels and flowers or pretty bath salts or soaps. It's a great shelf. Just maybe not for hanging clothes. Up to you. Here's how ours looks:

It's not so bad. And I do love having nice storage space to display photos and things up high and out of the way of chaos or harm. 

Last, but probably our favorite purchase, is our new porch dog and lamp! We searched for months for one of these. I'd seen a few around town and even an antique store in the Midlands visiting with a lot of my family up there, but I wanted just the right one, at just the right price for our front porch. and here he is:

This was by far the best price I found, and he's hollow! It's appropriate for outdoor use, but so easy to move, unlike the cement statues I'd been perusing for so long. Plus, he has an extra little solar light to illuminate our path if we come home after dark. It's so sweet and a great price. I may have even bought a witch hat and a Santa hat to dress him up for the holidays. Is that weird? I think it'll be cute. Not weird. I hope.

So that's it! It's a ton of stuff and doesn't even include the gardening and painting and rearranging furniture we've done, but those are the newest purchases housed here in our humble abode. I'm overall quite pleased, you can't beat the ease and competitive pricing or offerings of Amazon, in my opinion. Hope this was helpful or at least informative and maybe everyone will start dressing up their porch decor for holidays...or not. Either way, happy decorating!

Best,

Emily