Using Natural Elements In Decorating Your Kitchen

 

I love to have fresh flowers and bowls of fresh produce in my kitchen in every season. 

I have found it is a fun way to change things up a bit in the kitchen without doing a major overhaul.

Lately I have been playing around with different vases and different bowls for the kitchen. 

Since Fall is drawing near I thought I would pull out my antique wood bowl, and add some fresh produce. 

I chose to pair it with a very large blue and white  vase that contained a simple color combination of greens and white flowers. 

I love the rough primitive texture of the bowl with the refined design of the blue and white vase.

I like to keep the color scheme in my flowers pretty tight, usually just one color of flowers, but the addition of green is always a welcomed sight in my home.

This was a fun mix of spider mums, and carnations for the white, and there were lemon leaves, eucalyptus leaves for greenery.Notice the big green puff? This was a flower I have never seen. 

It has a stem that resembles the carnation family. I have no idea what it is, but it sure is fun.

As you all know flowers fade, but I try to stretch out their life by using what is left, and still looks  somewhat presentable.

This time I switched things up a bit, and put my fresh fruit in an antique silver bowl that my sweet daughter-in-law gave to me as a gift. 

She knows exactly what I love and always gets the perfect gift for me.

Notice the design around the edge? It has a Greek look to me so I pulled out a vase that could hold what was left of the flowers to pair it with that had a similar look and feel…..

The carnations have lasted, but they are on their last leg so to speak!!

             

See It?

A beautifully monogrammed letter, “K!” Could it be anymore perfect for me?

So that is about all I have been up to lately. 

My hubby is recovering beautifully, and each day brings on more, and more normal life for us both. 

Thank you all for your caring, and interest in my little life, and for continuing to read this little account of my life, and decorating escapades. 

Hopefully we will be up, and running at a normal pace not only in life but in blogging again.

I am:

“Still Enjoying The Process!”

I hope you all are as well.

For a look at other combinations I have used in my kitchen in the past......
Click HERE!

 

 

How I Decorate For FALL Without Any Orange

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Every year when Fall comes around I find it hard to get motivated to change out my Summer décor to Fall décor. 

I love Fall weather, crisp air, beautiful colors in nature, but inside my home I have a hard time accepting Fall.

Fall decorating can be hard for a Springtime gal like myself. Especially when I don’t decorate with the typical Autumnal colors, ( NO orange in my life!)

To help me get motivated I had to write down the elements, and colors that I DO enjoy.

I thought about what represents Fall to me and made a list.

Wooden bowls

 

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Wooden turned candlesticks

 

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Wooden cutting boards

 

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 This is in my very own kitchen.

 

Pomegranates 

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Such a beautiful pinky/red color.

Soft Green Eucalyptus Leaves

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Cream or basil colored candles

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Crisp red and green apples

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Brass candlesticks that glow

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Pale Green/Gray Pumpkins

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Golden Pears

 

 

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Mums

 

 

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I love to use purples, white, and yellows for Fall. These are my Fall plantings.

Ornamental Kale

 

 

Loi from Tone on Tone’s Fall Kitchen

BASKETS

 

Adding texture with baskets adds warmth to any space.

Bakelite or Horn handled silverware

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Bring in the warmth of Bakelite silverware. 

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I placed mine in a vintage spooner.

Lanterns

 

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Nuts and acorns

 

Fall Branches in a vase

 

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By having this list on hand it makes it easier for me to change my décor to a more Fall-like look.

You will notice that in my list there are no russets, or oranges! 

So you see it is possible to decorate for Fall without using any of the colors in the orange family!! 

Do you like to use traditional autumnal colors, or are you like me?

For more ideas that I like for Fall go to my Pinterest board.......

 "FALLISH!"
(just click on the word Fallish!)

  

 

 

Next Step In Decorating The Guest Room

 

When I left you last we had already made a decision on the bedding (this is where I usually start in a bedroom.) The base colors of navy and white were dictated by the bedding…..

Next I needed a jumping off point for a color scheme.

This came from the art piece I found…….

From this the color scheme had developed into……

I knew that the yellow in the room had to be used judiciously. Yellow can make a very loud statement if not used carefully.

I already had it in my artwork so I had to decide where else to sprinkle it around the room.

DECORATING TIP:
A good rule of thumb when using an accent color is to use it in at least three pieces in the room.

With this in mind I decided to use it in another piece of art for the walls. This particular piece is a personal touch from me to my guest……

The room will have a nightstand between the two twin beds so I needed some elements to place on the night stand…..

This is where I am using my third touch of yellow:

So this brings me to my next

design decision!

What color will the walls be?

At first I thought I would leave them the Martha Stewart Lemon grass that they are now….

As you can see they would work very well with the other choices I have made.

But, what design enthusiast would keep the same color on the walls when her hubby offered to paint the walls any color she would like? (This was a first!)

I seriously debated, but once I chose the artwork and realized that the room would have a fun beach vibe I then decided to paint the room a different color.

A very soft turquoise blue is my color choice. I actually might us the same color of blue that is in my master bedroom. 

It is a color that I made up the formula, after a day of working with a great tinter at the paint store. It has very little pigment in it, but the pigments tint up quickly so very little is needed.

I have found this color to be so soothing and restful.

I want my guest to be wrapped in a color that makes them feel peaceful.

We have not tried any colors out on the wall due to a recent health issue, but that does not stop us from planning for the future.

I have enough elements chosen that I can make a design board just to see how the elements will work together.

At first I did some in green, and then I used turquoise as a backdrop.

You will see some elements in the collages that I may or may not be using. I like to add possible elements to see how they work with the elements that I know I am using. By doing this you can see what goes well with the overall design.

In this particular collage you will see the addition of a yellow trimmed pillow sham. 

I actually ordered this from Pottery Barn, and as perfect as I thought it looked with all the elements in the collage, once I received it the yellow was not bright enough, and to be honest it felt like one step too far for my personal design aesthetic.

Sometimes elements will work in a room, but they just won’t feel right to YOU. 

When this happens, eliminate them, and try something else. If it does not feel right to you it will create an obstacle for you to move forward in the room. 

You will spend endless hours trying to make it work. Sometimes we have to just rely on our own personal feelings, and move onto something else that will work.

DECORATING TIP:

Remember when choosing elements for a room not to make every element speak loudly. There has to be supporting pieces in the room. Everything can’t be the newest kid on the block, or the star.

I have found many homeowners who try to put every new decorating element they have found in one room, and it just creates a room that has no flow. Each piece is shouting look at me, look at me!! Not a good way to design any room.

In this collage you can see I put a turquoise lantern instead of the yellow. That is because my room actually has a very large turquoise lantern in it so I needed to see what that would do with all of the other elements.  

You will also notice the wall color has changed from the lemon grass to a turquoise.

Notice one more thing has been added to the night stand!

This brings us to the next decision!!

You all can help me out here. I am going to use a globe that is actually a nightlight.

It not only represents traveling, vacation, but it will give a nice glow in the room.

I have three choices to choose from:

light off

#1 a white bisque finish
7in. diameter

#2 
5in. diameter 7in. tall

A traditional style globe but much smaller in scale.

 #3

5in. in diameter

This actually is a dark navy, and it shows the constellation of stars.

I have a favorite, but I thought it would be fun to get some feedback from my very talented readers.

So what do you say, #1, #2, or #3?

Next on the agenda is to find the right pillow sham to back the striped shams. The yellow did not work, so next is a simple framed navy sham. I have ordered it so when it arrives we shall see how it works…..

More to do, more to see

so stay tuned!!!

Other post about the guestroom can be found:
Here
Here
Here