Who needs a mantle?
Not me! I love getting creative around the house, I have really had this calling lately to make our house our home. We have lived here for a little over 5 years, and have done some work: new siding, made two small rooms int a larger living room, and the small living room into a comfortable dining room, put up a fence, and ...that is it actually. We have not done any real decorating, or any fun decorating. My mindset was always that a pretty basket or bowl would not make a difference on a gold speckled counter top-I am not exaggerating thrifties. Gold. Speckles.
This is totally the wrong mindset. We should create a haven for our families where ever we live. Our homes are our "bedrooms" in the world. We need to feel safe, comfortable, and esthetically pleased with our homes. In the spirit of that, and appreciating the little things in life, I did some decorating for Valentines day today! Let me run it down for you. The two apothecary jars were purchased at Michaels with the weekly 40% off coupons, making them about $8 or $10 each. I use them for every season, at Christmas they had ornaments and glitter snow in them. For Easter they will be showcasing moss bunnies on a stick (so cute) and speckled eggs. Note: speckled eggs in home decor are good; speckled counter top not so much.
I used Extra Bucks and Register Rewards to buy cinnamon hearts and conversation hearts as filler at 99 cents a bag. The frosted take out counters came from the Target one spot a few years ago, as well as the heart doilies and the ribbon I used to make them into a garland. The candle holders inside the jars are items I have had for a few years, as well as the Fairy with the flower. The rose photos were gift I had given to my grandmother and my mother told me to take them home after she passed away. They went from her apartment to her room at the nursing home. My husband gave me the pink jar candle for Christmas, and I took off the label and added some of the ribbon I bought at the Target One Spot, and it is sitting on top of its lid for additional height.
This is on top of the microwave. The three tier server is Pampered Chef ( I wasn't always frugal you know) and I took the white bowls out and put in these little striped basket from the Target One Spot. I did not spend fifty dollars at the One Spot, these items have been purchased over the past two to three years and stored away. Yup, I am one of those. It is okay, I know you won't judge. The candle holder was a wedding shower gift 11 years ago! The bucket and flowers I have had for about 5 years. (I love tucking those hydrangeas into my Christmas tree!)I think there is a second point emerging here. There are so many decorations that can be used for multiple holidays or multiple decorating purposes. This year when I packed Christmas away I had a few containers of generic decorations candle holders, ribbon, grapevine wreaths, etc that can be easily changed out for the seasons. There is no need to suffer because we don't have granite counters, or a dozen roses. Get creative and stay frugal, and you'll find more than just an esthetically pleasing home, you'll find some self confidence and satisfaction from your creativity.
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