Thursday

Decor 101- Use what you have!

4.3.14- 


  Sharing one of the decorating rules I live by here on Lilac Lane.  It is my go to every time I change things up each month.  It's a simple basic easy way to decorate your home in style, YOUR style & here it is.... 
-Taken from A Beautiful Decorated Life class I taught last Nov.- 
You might be asking yourself, "What do I have?" or "I don't have anything to decorate with"  Oh, yes you do!  I'm sure of it.  What I'm about to show you I didn't go out & buy one single thing, I just walked into my pantry & started to look around & pull things off the shelf to bring out into my kitchen & family room. 



This wire rack was where I started.  I wanted the "kitchen" theme of coarse since this nook is right off my kitchen.  I love to incorporate vintage items into my everyday decor.  There is such a story, back ground & conversation built into anything you decor when you use vintage items.  

This whole set up started with this amazing  red popcorn seasoning tin {that my sweet friend gave me, thanks H!} & went from there.  The old tin honey container I dug out of an old barn up by my parents last month & the rest I've found or collected over the years.  It was all just in my pantry!  The giant cupcake tin I just bought from Vintage Whites, maple syrup container from Maine, old spice tins, berry baskets from Bake it Pretty, adorable honeybee can a birthday gift from my friend a few years ago, the brown pottery bowl came from my Grandma Hall's house, my beloved & well used scale & my Grandmother's old, I mean old wheat tin anchors the space.  I just love how it turned out. Again just using the guideline of using what you have. Taking the time to look around & bring items together, based on a theme of coarse.  That always seems to help. 

When decorating be open to inspiration!!  I had a wire cubby still to fill so I walked back into the pantry & pulled out some vintage Ball jars, glass milk bottles & just cool glass jars I've collected over the years with the intention of placing them in my wire rack.  Well..... I set them on my table until I was ready to place in the wire rack & inspiration struck!  I started laying them down in my trusty vintage chicken feeder 
{if you're keeping track I think this is use #42} 

I just adore the combination of glass & wood, I always have!  So this was just a perfect fit & display to have out on the kitchen table. Love the simplicity of the centerpiece, the different heights, shapes, colors & patterns of glass in the chicken feeder.  
Such a pretty display of things that I love.  Put together in a charming & interesting way.  I think the two separate displays play off each other & tie in beautifully together.  Says to me, this is a home that loves to eat, bake & spend time in the kitchen together. 
 A wide shot of all of it together.  Swoon!  
Another decor spot I've wanted to change around for awhile now was the top of my china hutch.  It has had the same thing on it for awhile now & that all came down & these fabulous new "picker" finds went up.  It's really a highlight in our family room now. I love how it all came together & turned out. 
The big mustard wooden spool came out of an old barn that sits across from my parents home.  I "picked" it a month ago with my Dad, brother & sister. What a cool find!  The large metal wheel of sorts came out of the Smith & Edwards yard that my friend, Staci & I picked through last year.  Grabbed it just because I thought it was cool.  Haven't really found a place for it until now.  

Glad that they take up the space above the hutch because I needed something large to go there. 
I love anything that has peeling paint, patina & a lot of personality to go along with it.  Just look at those cool rusty old bolts.  Glad this made it through the test of time in an old barn to get a new life inside Lilac Lane.  Love the color! 

Now for the fun part of decorating your home.... 


Make your house your home, own your space, fill it with things you love.  You don't have to go spend a ton of money to create a happy space.  Granted I've had some of these things for years but it's all come together over time.  Find your passion, what you love to collect & then show it off!  This is why I love to decorate because it's putting together what  I love.

Hope this post has inspired.  For other inspiring ideas check out One Kings Lane
*By the way... Did you see the vintage chicken feeder again?  If so leave a comment & let me know. 

{M} 

1 comment:

Natalie said...

Love that your items have a story - makes the decor even that much more exciting. I'll have to re-look around my house and see what "new" treasures I find :). Thanks for sharing!!