Tuesday's Tablescape

We had our first snowfall last Saturday. You can't really call it a snowfall as it was truly just a glorified dusting, but it looked pretty and gave me the opportunity to set a table with snowmen!

I found this set of adorable snowman plates at a garage sale last summer. The stack was still wrapped in the original packaging and I thought they would be so fun to use for a wintertime table! I love their simple "chalkboard" feel.

I pulled out this salt and pepper set which a sweet family gave me for Christmas a few years ago. The snowman's top hat seemed to be fitting!

'Snow' fooling...I hope your day is a good one!

Miniatures

Over the years, I have been given several miniature penguins. They are all cute...and fragile. You probably have some sort of tiny treasures of your own, so here's a way you could possibly display them.

Gather some larger stemware. If you don't have any, you can pick them up at sales or thrift shops for just a little money. These were a quarter each.

Invert them and place your figurines within.

I stuck this trio on a shelf next to the fireplace, added some greenery and put candles on top. The penguins will be on display throughout the winter.

If you prefer, you can make your display a little more permanent by gluing the figurines to a piece of foam core and then gluing the rim of the glass to that. My sister and nephews created this one for me several years ago. Although it's tough to see, it has boys sledding with a snowman and a little Boston terrier dog!

Have fun if you try it!

Wintertime Mantels

I mentioned earlier this week that some Christmas decorations can be enjoyed throughout the winter. I was able to simply modify some of my vignettes so that they can stretch over the next several weeks.

For example, I just switched-out two things from the Christmas mantel. It looked like this before:

The "joy" sculpture on the end and the beautiful gold angel were put away. That reminds me that I never explained about the golden angel. My mother made her when I was a kindergartener. Constructed from fabric scraps and a styrofoam "egg" head, she's put together with a starch solution so she is rigid. Then she was painted with gold spray paint. Isn't it beautiful? She is on display every Christmas, but I borrowed her this year since she was in keeping with my silver and gold theme.

Last week I tucked-in my white and gold penguins and some gold candleholders. The branches I had spray painted gold remain on the end.

The solarium (electric) fireplace mantel stayed the same. I did, however, add the old family bushel basket on the floor where the Christmas tree stood.

The three logs are from the old Sycamore tree. When I was in fourth grade, each of us received a seedling on Arbor Day from the local conservation department. I planted mine and it thrived! Many years later, it outgrew its spot and was a major threat to my parents' roof and the corner of the house. Sadly, it had to be removed (which cost a fortune) but my parents saved these logs for me for sentimental reasons. My dad also made me a birdhouse from one of the logs (I'll show that one day).

Have a wonderful weekend and stay warm! We're supposed to have our first snowfall, accompanied by extremely cold temperatures.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Do you like Brussels sprouts? If so, this is an easy-peasy recipe that you may enjoy with your dinner.

Fresh Brussels sprouts will work, too, but need to be sliced in half for best results. I prefer the baby (or petite) ones sold in the frozen foods.  They don't need to be cut. Spread them out into a single layer in a baking dish. Drizzle a few tablespoons of olive oil over them and then sprinkle sea salt, cracked pepper and sesame seeds. Bake them in a 350 degree oven for 30-45 minutes, depending upon the size of the sprouts. Immediately upon removing them from the oven, douse them with grated parmesan cheese and serve. An alternative option  (for a dish with a little "bite") is to substitute the sesame seeds with dried pepper flakes.

These make a good side served with fresh fruit salad, grilled meat and baked potatoes.

Enjoy!

A Simple Snowflake

Some Christmas decorations have a winter theme and can be enjoyed for several more weeks. Most of my seasonal pillows are definitely Christmas, though, so they have been tucked away for another year. I wanted a wintery pillow and decided to make this one. All you need is an old pillow that you may already have on hand, some white buttons in various sizes and a hot glue gun.

Begin by gluing a large button in the center and then you can make the six spokes radiating from that point. A small spot of hot glue holds the button well, but it looks like the bottom spoke on the left-side is missing one of its buttons at the end. Hmmm... just pretend you don't see that, mkay?!

Even though we haven't had any real snowflakes, it's still an enjoyable project for winter. Have a good evening!

Tuesday's Tablescape

Today's tablescape seems good for winter. It has a little sparkle and was inspired by a 50 cent runner I bought last summer at a garage sale.

I had this pretty centerpiece, which was a gift from my parents a few years ago, and it went perfectly on the runner.

Then I pulled out my old gold chargers, everyday white dishes and a set of Mikasa plates. The luncheon Mikasas are good for winter-use and were a bargain at a quarter a piece!

I considered using gold flatware, but ended up with silver to pull-out the silver threads in the runner. It seemed to be in keeping with the silver and gold theme.

 I've exchanged the ornaments for pinecones in my retirement jar and I think they'll do the trick all winter.

The sun is out here and the temperatures aren't bad. I hope you're having a good day!

Garden Glow

Happy 2016! Before the wonderful holidays are too far behind us, I wanted to share a few pictures from Garden Glow at MO Botanical Gardens. It's an awesome affair and was a perfect seasonal activity! We attended very early in December and since it was a weeknight, it wasn't crowded. The weather was fairly mild, too, which helped to make the evening even more enjoyable. Garden Glow opened shortly before Thanksgiving and has now been extended to run through next weekend. The garden, of course, has so much to offer throughout the year. Seeing it at nighttime and transformed into a twinkling wonderland is over the top!

Can you imagine the job of taking down all of these lights? Have you put away all of your Christmas decorations? We kept ours up to enjoy for the new year, so I am chipping away at it and should complete the task today.