5 FALL FAVORITES!!

  

Today I am honored to have my good friend and fellow blogger Michele of Hello Lovely blog, to do a guest post for you all. If you have not read Michele's wonderful blog  you have been missing something in your day!! She is gorgeous inside and out. She is extremely talented in so many ways. I love to read her uplifting words on her blog. Her writing style is so personal and so HER, it is lyrical at times, funny, uplifting, inspiring and always makes me think. I love her and I know you will too. Today she is sharing 5 of her Fall favorites. I know you all will be inspired!!

TAKE IT AWAY MY LOVELY MICHELE............

Photo: Hello Lovely Studio

Hello, friends of Good Life of Design! I'm Michele, author of Hello Lovely, and I'm so grateful to be a guest here today sharing fall goodness. Kathy and I are longtime blog buds who share many of the same sensibilities when it comes to our homes and hearts...

Hello Lovely Studio

This is the front door of our home in the heartland,

and we renovated the entire place ourselves...

never again!

Please make yourself at home,

and let's chat over a mug of hot cider and

5 fall favorites captured with my camera.

1.

Granny Smith or Ginger Gold apples.

Our home is decorated in white and neutrals,

so I love the pop of color they bring,

and I adore baking them in a crisp.

My Kitchen - Hello Lovely Studio

Ginger Gold apples - Hello Lovely Studio

2.

Working fireside.

While a laptop lifestyle and working from home

 can be highly distracting, one perk is the ability

 to create a peaceful mood with a fire

 in the cooler months (and also, barefootin' it...

bet I couldn't get away with that anywhere else).

My Living Room - Hello Lovely Studio

 3.

Visiting the apple orchard.

The cinnamon donuts. The apple tastings.

So many sweet sights, sounds, and smells

of autumn at our local orchard where I snapped these.

Hello Lovely Studio

Hello Lovely Studio

Hello Lovely Studio

4.

Savoring fall's colorful, turning leaves.

Winter lasts far too long in the Midwest,

so I have to be extra intentional about

getting out in that brief season when the leaves

turn luscious shades of red, yellow, and orange...

these next images were snapped in Paris,

not Chicagoland, a few falls ago.

Paris in Fall - Hello Lovely Studio

Paris in Fall - Hello Lovely Studio

Paris in Fall - Hello Lovely Studio

5.

Shopping the fall flea markets.

There's just nothing like shopping

for vintage treasures in the fall!

I found this vintage rusty bike last week,

 and after a few tweaks and some blooms

in the basket, it will be a wonderful

ornament in our courtyard.

My Courtyard - Hello Lovely Studio

Main Street Market in Rockford - Hello Lovely Studio

Hello Lovely Studio

Thank you so much for having me, guys.

I'd love to have you visit Hello Lovely Studio,

where Kathy is sharing fall inspiration.

Peace to you right where you are.

michele 

 

 

Coming Up For Air

As you have all probably noticed there has not been much blogging going on in my life lately. A lot has been going on and it is all good, but it did require my full attention.

Recently we moved my wonderful, loving, caring, 85 year old mother closer to us. She is only about 5 minutes away from me now. I am so happy to have her close enough that I can go and visit and have coffee chats with her and take her shopping.

Good bye,  sweet little yellow house you have been so good to our family. It all started years ago with my grandparents. I ran through the sprinklers in the backyard with my cousins. My boys hit golf balls and played catch here, My grandchildren played in the backyard and dug a hole in the garden as if they were digging their way to China. We ate cherries,pomegranates picked lemons and oranges. We will be forever grateful to you little yellow house.

Life is a marvelous journey with twist and turns but it is always moving forward and that is a good thing and as it should be.

We are yet again starting a somewhat new journey with having Mom closer to us. I am beginning to feel like a professional mover since this is the third moving process in the last two years. However I will say I hope and pray there will not be anymore moving anytime soon.

Fall has arrived here and the mornings are cool and crisp and that is a welcomed sight as well. I am trying to get myself back into a new routine and hope to be back to blogging on a semi-regular schedule.

Thank you to all of you who continue to read and follow along with me and my journey in life, I so appreciate you taking the time to read my words.

 

 

Fall Plantings For Your Yard!!!

 

Are you getting excited about cool crisp Fall mornings yet?

We had about a week of cooler weather and now we are back to a bit warmer temps, but that has not dampened my excitement about FALL!!

There has been a few mums and pansies purchased to go by our front porch.

 Every year I try to change things up a little bit, just because it inspires me to think of how I can change things.

One year I used these plants.......

 All purples and whites, of course there are also some white pumpkins and blue/green pumpkins added to the mix.

 This particular year I chose to mix yellow, whites, and purples. One of my favorite plants to use is the ornamental kale. I have not seen any at our nurseries yet, but as soon as I do they will be added to the mix as well.

 I love the white center of this ornamental kale plant mixed with the white tipped ivy. This made a fun mix.

 This was the ear I decided to add a touch of lime green with sweet potato vine and the miniature lemon cypress plant.

 You can never go wrong with a few mini white pumpkins for a touch of Fall.

 This is on our entry wall into the front door!!

 When you walk up to our porch you will see this black planter!!

Have you started planting any Fall plants outside yet? It really will get you in the mood for Fall, it sure did for me!!!