Christmas decorating is about . . . pillows

Well, not really. But changing all, or even some, of the pillows throughout your house for Christmas can make it feel more festive. I use a lot of pillows throughout my house the whole year long. They just add so much to the overall decor, I think. And, I know I'm not the only one by a long shot. If you've watched any shows on HGTV, you know what I mean. If you search for pillows on Etsy, the results are overwhelming.

But, the pillow habit can be expensive.  And, I have a small house so have limited storage space.  While I would love to have a whole room devoted to storing pillows, that will never happen.  So, I've come up with several ways to change pillows without taking up much space, all without spending too much money.

In my bedroom, I don't change out all the pillows, just a couple.  The two pillows in front, the gold and red, are pillows I've added for Christmas.

I have also been pretty fortunate to find pillows on sale after Christmas and in the New Year that are extremely reduced in price, so I buy them then to use the next year.  Several of the pillows on my couch were bought after Christmas last year for less than $5.

But my most creative solution to saving money and space is to buy placemats to use as pillows.  Here are two pillows I created out of placemats which I bought very cheaply.

I also do that for my front porch pillows.  Both the back pillow and the middle pillow are placemats.  The square placemat came in a set of four at Home Goods for $6.99.  In addition to the pillow, I am using two of the placemats on my table.  The red placemat I bought on sale after Christmas last year for less than a dollar.  The gold pillow on my bed is also a placemat that I bought last year after Christmas.  I'll post exactly how I turn placemats into pillows in my next post.

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Adding an accent wall

All the walls in my house are a taupe color, and I left them that way when I moved in because I figured I could use furniture and accessories to add color.  I love color but I also love to change up things every now and then, so I didn't want to be locked into a color choice that I might regret later.

However, the more I looked at the wall where my couch is located, the more I thought it begged to be an accent wall.  I have a lot of greens and blues in my house, but I decided using one of those colors as an accent would be too much.  Eventually, I chose Spiced Cider - SW7702 - from the Sherwin Williams HGTV Home collection.  

This is the couch and wall before I painted.  You can see how the couch almost blends into the wall.

Adding the accent wall really makes the couch, pillows and accessories pop.  I couldn't be happier with how it turned out.

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A Kitchen Redo

I don’t plan on redoing my kitchen/dining room anytime soon. But if I ever do, I will use Etsy to plan it and to stock it. I’ve put together a treasury for a red and turquoise kitchen. It’s so bright and cheery and has a farmhouse look to it.

'Ideas for my next kitchen/dining redo' by TouchingThePast

Vintage Red Kitchen Canister... QuietRainz $8.75	Vintage Pillowcases - Croch... VintagePDX $24.00	Vintage Pillowcases Bright a... HarrietsDaught... $19.99	Vintage Wood Kitchen Dish D... VintageChichib... $23.00
Original Vintage Tablecloth-... EmbellishOnBro... $40.00	Vintage Red White Blue Plaid... MargsStuff $15.00	10 Ten Vintage Furniture Cab... ALovelyTimeAgo $45.00	Vintage Canisters Bright Red... monjardinVinta... $24.50
Turqouise Blue Breadbox from... flattirevintag... $42.00	Gorgeous Red Crochet Trim, 4... PineyRoseDesig... $12.00	French Country Farmhouse Sty... ASentimentalJo... $35.00	Vintage Roses Tablecloth Blu... TheSquirrelCot... $6.00
Vintage Cherry Wall Hanging ... AntiquesGalore... $20.00	Vintage Placemats and Runner... LookHiLookLow $12.00	30% OFF TIL 11/30 Vintage An... amysdeliciousv... $21.00	Sale Set of Vintage Linens B... IndulgeYourShe... $5.00

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.

The treasury has lots of vintage linens. If you’ve read my prior blog entry, you will have seen that I used pillowcases to make coverings for my dining room chairs. That’s why I included two sets of pillowcases in this treasury. I like the idea of coverings, but I also like the idea of mixing and matching them with the two sets. I’m thinking about using the red striped tablecloth as roman shades and the rose damask tablecloth as curtain panels with the roman shades. I’m currently doing something similar in my bedroom now with a rose damask tablecloth I purchased on Etsy. Then, I would use the red crochet trim on the bottom of the roman shades. My other thought for window coverings is to use the roses tablecloth as roman shades and then use the set of floral vintage linens as valances.

The linen tea towels I would use for the purpose they’re intended. I love draping vintage tea towels on the handle of my oven. I would also use the placemats and runners for their intended purpose, on my table.

I can just see the red wing pottery bowl filled with red apples. And the cherry wall hangings will pop on the walls which I’d paint in a light turquoise color. I have white cabinets and appliances and have no plans to change those, because I love the clean look they give a kitchen. One thing I love to do is to replace knobs and handles to match my décor, so I’ll use the turquoise knobs for another pop of color.

At this point, I’ve almost talked myself into redoing my rooms. :) I guess I’ll just have to find someone who will allow me to redo their kitchen.

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More on vintage linens

My dining room is really small. I have a round table and four chairs. It's really a combo kitchen/dining area with a bar separating the two rooms. This is where I have the vintage tablecloth window coverings.

I recently replaced my table in the dining room with a round glass-top table. The legs of the table are in the Bentwood style, so I purchased four Bentwood style chairs to go with it. I stained the chairs which had been stripped of paint and recovered the seats in a designer chenille fabric.

CHAIR COVERINGS

The backs of the chairs were not in the greatest of condition, so I came up with an idea to cover them. I purchased a vintage set of monogrammed sheets and pillowcases with crocheted trim. The monogram happens to be the same for both my first and last names. I outlined the shape of the chairback on the pillowcase and sewed around it.

Even though I had cut the vintage tablecloth in two for my window coverings, I really don't like to destroy a vintage item if I can help it. So I didn't cut the pillowcases and was able to sew a seam around the inside without too many problems with the extra fabric on the inside. If I ever decide that I no longer want to use the pillowcases as my chair coverings, I can rip the seams out and have pillowcases again.

They're not perfect by any means but I think they look ok.  I have a vanity and intend to use the monogrammed sheet from this set as a cover for it.

VALANCES

I love filet lace and have bought quite a few pieces of this over the years, mostly dresser scarves. The theme in my guest bedroom is french country. I decided to use three of the filet lace dresser scarves as valances over the shades. I also have two of the dresser scarves draped over the chairs which are sitting under the window. I did not have to alter the dresser scarves in anyway.

 

 

I have a large filet lace tablecloth that I use as a shower curtain in my guest bathroom. I use a lining behind it and it gives a very french country feel to the bathroom and ties the two rooms together.

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Using vintage linens in home décor

I love vintage linens but when I buy them, I want to use them. I think so many people put linens in a drawer and they never see the light of day again. So, I’ve started incorporating what I buy into my décor.

Sometime ago, I wanted to replace the window coverings in my combo kitchen/dining room. I was looking around a shop which sells vintage and antique items and spotted a vintage tablecloth for less than $5. It was very colorful with birds and butterflies and flowers, and I couldn’t resist buying it. At the time, I didn’t have a clue what I was going to do with it. But when I got it home, it struck me that maybe I could use it to create window coverings.

NOT A SEAMSTRESS BUT I GET BY

I’m not a seamstress by any means, but I do have a sewing machine and can sew well enough to get by. After determining the size of the tablecloth and the size of my windows, I discovered that the tablecloth was a perfect size to create the two window coverings. I cut it down the middle and then cut the top off to use as a valance on each window. I bought some fabric to use as a liner and sewed the pieces together. I sewed some rings onto the back of each panel and threaded a piece of string through each so that I could use them as roman shades. I glued some beaded trim on the bottom of the valances.

These are pictures of the resulting window coverings. For very little money and a couple of hours of my time, I have a totally unique pair of shades for my windows. And I’m able to indulge my love of vintage linens - and see them everyday instead of having them stuck away in a drawer.

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