holiday matchbox giveaway!

Welcome!

Once again I am honored (and flattered) to be a host in the fun and festive Where Women Create Twelve Days of Fabulous Giveaways! Today is the kick-off and I am one of four holiday hostesses. You can visit the post to enter today's giveaways at this link: The First Day of Holiday Giveaways.



The giveaway I am offering is a bunch of little decorated matchboxes as seen in my current Make It in Romantic Homes magazine.



I will be sure to fill each box with crafty treats!



Just remember, you need to visit this post at WWC to enter!

Good luck!

xo
elyse

giving thanks and getting ideas

Greetings! I spent a lovely and yummy Thanksgiving with family and stayed at my sister's new-to-her/dream-come-true lakeside cabin and just had to snap pics to share no matter what the lighting (so please bear with dark photos). Also, I am writing this as quickly as possible before running to meet my boys at the bus ... Catch as catch can!



My sister Betsy's cabin is quite adorable and she is having the bestest time ever "feathering" it.



Her bedroom has a view of the lake. {Note her own Anthro splurge on bedding}



My sister's cabin is decorated the way I think cabins should be -- with slipcovers, cheap finds (Betsy loves auctions) and GASP-induced splurges.





In the kitchen, Betsy had the upper cabinets removed and added beadboard and open shelving in their place.



Cabin Fever: Glasses from Dollar Tree, shelving brackets from Anthropologie, and a pretty decanter filled with dishwashing liquid!



Mirrors and mercury glass on the mantle



A small chandelier over the table



The day after Thanksgiving we visited Groff's Mill Pond Nursery to swoon over beautiful displays of decorations.



Love this idea of branches in mason jars filled with moss and natural items.



Inspiration on every shelf!



Wasn't it just summer ... yesterday?

Hope you enjoyed Thanksgiving, too!

xo
elyse

stirring things up

Ever spend time at someone's house and it gives you the urge to try new things around your own home? It happens to me when I visit blogs and it happened recently in person after visiting Christine Chitnis' (Lavender and Limes) very cool home which features lovely blends of patterns, textures and tones, as evidenced in this shower curtain below with which I was instantly smitten!



Yep. Smitten with this Flamenco Shower Curtain from Anthropologie. I began to rationalize ...


The existing shower curtain
- Shows wear
- is discontinued
- Haven't found anything else that I like as much
- Price of current shower curtain x years of use = new shower curtain
- Oldest sister Betsy (a big Anthro fan) says to go for the new one



Today I headed to Anthropologie where there was only 1 left in aqua (surely a sign). While clutching to the shower curtain (mine!), I also found these Spoonful of Sugar knobs on clearance.



On to the small cabinet they went ...



Which of course, kicked off moving around furniture.



The dining room is generally set-up like this and it's pretty tight.



Experimenting, I pushed the table against a window/wall, diner-style.



It's a little different but it just might work.



I've been home alone today and am curious to see what everyone will think about these little changes, purchases and rationales! :)

xo
elyse

hello!

Greetings! I know it's been a while. Probably the longest between posts since I began blogging. Things have been busy!



I am happy to have a Make It tutorial in December's sparkling issue of Romantic Homes. M's blog {OC Cottage} is in there along with Tiffany's site The Fancy Farmgirl, too!

I have all kinds of other stuff brewing ...



An Artisan profile of Margaret Owen coming up in Romantic Homes. {Learn about Margaret's Moroccan Sketchbook workshop in Marrakesh here}


Photo by Bronwyn of Casapinka

as well as a tour of Margaret's cheerful and very cool home for Cottages & Bungalows! This was my first time acting as stylist-photographer-writer and it was so much fun. {I'll share more when it's on newsstands this spring.}



Weeks later I did a "house tour" shoot of blogging pal Hilary's amazing farmhouse for Romantic Homes. {Again, so much to share later!}



There are two more Make It pieces coming up in 2012. Above is a sneeky peek of a Valentine's Day project.



And around the house, we finally started on some exterior projects.
(No, not the door yet ...)



And of course, keeping the boys busy, too!

Phew.

As many of you know, writing for magazines has been a dreamy dream of mine that I have been working at for some time now. It amazes and delights me that it is happening. It's busy but boy, I am thrilled.



Recently I came across this construction paper bookmark I made when I was little.



Of course, it has "my logo" on the back (a big Miffy fan). I feel like my young self would be happy to see me still making things. I know my little self would GASP at my stash of crafting treasures! I do! :)



Still making book marks, too.

{A very special thank you to Karen for this gift of a post. I hope you'll visit her blog -- each post is assembled so thoughtfully and showcases the different mediums with which Karen works -- when she's not enjoying lovely New England towns, that is!}

So speaking of brewing, looks like a quiet moment for hot tea and blog visiting!!!

xo
elyse

artful sharing!

I am so honored to be included in the upcoming issue of Artful Blogging (NOV/DEC/JAN 2012). Like many, I have swooned over and dreamed of contributing to this publication in some way for quite a while now. I probably submitted essays with photographs on three separate occasions. I never gave up (and neither should you, if this is a goal of yours).



In August I received an email asking if I would like to contribute an essay. Yes! I was asked to provide 650-850 words along with high-resolution originals of a list photos they selected from my blog.



Words came easily about how the myriad of friendships I have through blogging help fill some of the void left by my mom, who was my biggest cheerleader and fan, and a sort of "keeper of memory," recording my actions sometimes even better than I did myself.



The first draft I wrote included a list of at least twenty bloggers whom I consider dear although most of us have never met or even spoken on the phone. But the more I edited and tweaked the article, I worried about leaving someone out and decided to keep the two friends most relevant to my essay: Maryjane (aka my FairyBlogMother), who from the very beginning of my blogging experience took me under her wing, and Debi, who continues to amaze me not only with her talent and generosity but her recollection of what is shared.



I am thrilled and honored to be part of this beautiful issue, alongside such talented women as sweet Cassandra, who constantly dazzles me with her dreamy creations.

Lately I haven't had much time for blogging (due in part to writing news that I will be sharing soon) but please know that I continue to cherish blogging and am looking forward to an evening soon where I will sit with a hot cup of tea and luxuriate in blog-hopping!

{And remember, if being in Artful Blogging is on your list of goals or dreams, visit this link for how to submit.}

Warmest thank yous for reading!

xo
elyse

bright idea

I really like Serena Thompson's Farm Chicks style. To me, it's very Cath Kidston meets down-home Americana. Lots of pretty pale shades of blue and green punctuated with pops of cherry red and cheerful prints. (If I sound like I've been writing a lot, I have!)



Ever since seeing Serena's colorful kitchen in Where Women Cook (Dec/Jan/Feb 2011) I have been thinking about storing cupcake liners in a jar. So simple. Well, the other day at Target, I finally purchased a jar.



In went the cupcake liners. (I might paint the lid?)



Ready for cupcake and muffin baking!



My apologies for being absent from blogging. I miss being inspired by everyone and hope to make a big evening of visiting soon! As mentioned earlier in this post, I am busy writing these days, which is a dream come true!

Happy October!

xo
elyse

picture this

When my home appeared in Fresh Cottage magazine it was exciting to me for many reasons. One of the biggest is the pat on the back it gave for all of my hard work painting, repurposing and decorating on a dime.



When I saw the magazine a year after the photos were taken, I was dazzled by Fifi's styling and words and especially moved by her perfect title. I love the "live happily ever after in a tiny Cape Cod" because this house symbolizes so many dreams of mine that I dared to dream. I knew instantly that I wanted to frame this page but forgot about it ... somehow.

Last week, a dear neighbor returned a copy with a sweet note and as I flipped through the issue, remembered: I want to frame this. I went to my framing go-to Recycled Relics for something chippy and a little pink. They asked me exactly how big I wanted the "face" of the frame to be.

{The customer service at Recycled Relics is excellent. This was my 3rd online purchase and please know this is not a paid/trade endorsement.}



I sent dimensions and it wasn't long before my special order arrived.



I framed the magazine page and hung it immediately on an existing hook in the dining room. {This may change later when The Hubs is home to help. I am terrible at hanging pictures.}



I used my old trick of covering the nail with a pretty hair pin propped on top.



Believe it or not, having the frame made custom didn't cost much. Thrifty Vintage indeed! Hmmm ... what else have I been meaning to frame?

xo
elyse