If you've read my blog with any kind of regularity you might have assumed two things; A.) I'm a little nutty and B.) I start collecting fun things for the holidays shortly after the ball drops on New Years eve. While I love shopping for bargains, I always strive to make little moments in our house look like we spent hours creating them and sold a car to do so. By "moments" I mean fun little nooks and cranny's often ignored..the front table in our entry, the guest bedroom closets (with fun baskets, scented sashes, local maps hung on the inside of the door, etc.) and a dinner table...no matter what time of year...is a great opportunity to create all kinds of happy, artistic moments. Some people like little frames at each place setting with photos of the guests, others like colorful tablecloths (and don't hide them under plastic PEOPLE!!!), I often carve out miniature pumpkins to serve dips and soups and one of my all time favorites this time of year is to pepper our entire house with freshly fallen leaves. Even as a kid, I've always been fascinated by the beautiful colors found on leaves, and as an adult I'm even more fascinated that people actually pay for such beauty. The top photo is from Pottery Barn where they actually sell something called "vase fillers" starting at $14.95 (a collective..WHY DIDN'T I THINK OF THAT..). The bottom photo is our neck of the woods (and my two stars, Joe and Canyon) walking on millions of dollars worth of leaves and pine cones (at least according to the bank of Pottery and Barn). The key I have discovered is not to bring wet leaves inside, instead let them dry outside or they'll curl right up and ruin your design plans. If I gather them really early in the season (like early October) and want to use them for place cards, etc. at the Thanksgiving table I make sure they're dry, then put them in a ziplock bag until the holiday is right around the corner. You won't ever find this guy buying a bag of fake leaves because natures pantry outside my door is a treasure trove of creative genius.
