skip to main |
skip to sidebar
This post contains affiliate links.
It's finally feeling like summer around here! We have had 3 full days of sun with no rain or snow. I count that as a win! If you follow me on social media, you'll know that we have had a super rough spring...technically it's still spring, but usually we are watering our grass beginning to mid May. It's mid-June and still haven't turned on our sprinklers. This weather is perfect since today I'll be sharing my dining room with you all for Marty's from A Stroll Thru Life's summer tour! This is where 30 bloggers share some amazing summer decor inspiration with you all week! You can see the full list at the bottom of the post. If you are joining along the blog hop, and have just come from Follow The Yellow Brick Home, welcome!
This year all around my home I have included lots and lots of terracotta. I found an easy technique to faux age the pots and kind of got carried away :) So, I have them all over....and the dining room was no exception.
The only thing that changes seasonal in my dining room is what goes on my table, like place settings and the tablescape. I tend to change up the pillows on the head of the table along with the draped blanket. Why do I need pillows and a blanket in here? I don't :) I just love the look and it makes it so inviting.
For the tablescape, I used a variety of terracotta pots. You can see how I aged them here (tutorial). I placed them in this vintage wood crate, added some height with other pots and a planter stool.
For the places settings, I kept it really simple. I found these amazing new chargers from Kirklands to change things up from my normal rattan ones.
I put a simple sprig from my boxwood on each plate, just to add enough of a pop of color.
I added a little greenery and hug some more boxwood sprigs to my cup rack. This isn't an angle I show to much and I don't know why ...I guess it's the fact I have to go knee deep in my kids toys to get this angle :)
For my buffet, this stays the same for the most part besides slight changes.
I just did a tutorial on how to make your very own vintage style cutting board last week. I have a slight obsession with them...both handmade or store bought. You can probably tell if you look around all these pictures :)
I played around with changing up my lavender gallery wall but ultimately came back to them. I think they are timeless and I couldn't find anything better. You can see the tutorial on how to make them here (tutorial). Also, this shiplap/planked wall was one of the first projects I did in my house about 10 years ago, and is still my favorite! It brings so much character into the space. You can see the tutorial for it here.
And there you have it! I'll be sharing all my rooms and my new patio update in the coming weeks, so be sure to come back and check them out :)
Next in line for the blog hop is Hymns & Verses. If you want to see the others going on this week, check them out below:
Monday, June 10
Tuesday, June 11
Wednesday, June 12
Thursday, June 13
Friday, June 14
Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
You guys! This weather has me all sorts of annoyed. We have had like 3 days of sunshine in the past 3 months. The storms just keep rolling in and ruining my plans for my patio. I have all the stuff to redo it, took my old table apart (sadly), have mostly everything prepped...and yet it sits like an empty square with no love. haha. Anyway. Hopefully I'll be able to share something in the next week. Fingers crossed!
Until then, I have been meaning to share with the tutorial on how to make your very own vintage style cutting board...for practically free. Well, at least for me. I have a slew of unused scrap wood just waiting to be used on projects like this.
Here's how I did it...trust me, it's so easy and only uses one basic power tool (besides your drill) :)
Grab a 1x12 piece of wood and roughly sketch the top of what you want your cutting board to look like. Try to make it symmetrical. If you aren't good at sketching and have a cutting board you already love, us that and trace over it adjusting your lines as you need.
Using a jigsaw, cut along the lines. And yes, this is when mine resembled a pumpkin. Don't worry, I make sure to remember it every time I look at it. haha.
The board is gong to be pretty rough, so go through and sand the edges.
Since this is for pure decoration and not food-grade, I stained mine with Minwax Dark Walnut.
I then placed a piece of painters tape about 2 inches down from the handle and painted the top portion with a white craft paint.
I drilled a hole in the middle and strung a little piece of jute.
Done! Seriously like a 15 minute project.
I have a slight obsession with cutting boards that I have had to cure. I have no place to put anymore no matter how much I want to stuff another one somewhere. I think I am reaching hoarder status over here with some of my stuff. No but for reals...you should see my basement :/ Or no...probably not, I wouldn't let you :)
I just love the instant farmhouse and vintage charm cutting boards add to a dining room or kitchen. You can easily add some fun vintage designs on them too, or a little mending plate for charm. These one's I actually bought, but you can easily duplicate the look on your own now that you know how to make one! :)
Pin for later:
Spring to me is all about flowers, greenery, and pots. I love terracotta pots, but I feel like the actual color has it's place...in small amounts for me. I do love how they look when they have been painted and have good age to them. I have been faux aging my terracotta pots for some time now and thought I would share the super easy way to do it!
My favorite place to get the pots are at Hobby Lobby. These ones don't have a large lip to them like the others you may find at common hardware stores. They are just smooth all the way up and down. Plus, they are super cheap when you catch them at 50%...which is usually every other week. The smaller pots are about $1 and the larger one shown below is $1.50.
Okay....ready for my secret ingredient? This makes aging the pot so easy and fast. Petroleum jelly. Yep. Get a small dab on your finger and run it along the top and bottom rim of the pot. If you want more aging, then continue it down into the middle on some parts of the pot. You don't need a lot. Just enough to change the color of the pot.
Next, paint it. I have used many types of white paint and not one is any better than the other. Depends on the look you are going for with a matte finish or glossy. Matte is better for the aged look so go for a crafty acrylic in that case. On these pots, I used a satin enamel in white. Since it's satin, even though it's enamel, it doesn't show a gloss.
Do two coats of paint. The terracotta will soak it in pretty quickly allowing for a quicker than normal dry time. Just make sure it doesn't sit to long before the next step or else the petroleum jelly will also absorb and make the sanding a little more difficult.
Now, grab a square of sand paper and lightly sand the pot. You'll notice quickly where the petroleum jelly sections are since it will come right off. Work on that area gently until no more paint comes off and continue on until you think you got all of it.
Here's the before and after of the pots.
How easy and fast is that? I think it's about 30 minutes per pot which includes dry time. You can easily get in 5 to 8 pots in that half hour...you know, if you really love pots to make that many :)
As you can see, I do! I made them in all different shapes and sizes.
I had fun playing around with my collection on my dining room table. One would think that I'm a plant lady, but I definitely have a black thumb of death. So, the fact that these are still green means two things: One, I just got them. Two, they will not be staying with me or I got them as a present :) The three main plants are actually going as teachers presents for the end of the school year which I'll share more about below.
And again, playing with how to display these. It was super fun adding something different and unique to my tablescape that just screamed spring......while it was snowing outside. Yeah. Don't get me started on that. The first day of summer break for my littles and the highs are in the 40s...
Here's how I used a few of these pots for teacher gifts. The ones on the table above are called Moondrop plants, and this one below is a succulent.
I tied them all with some jute, adding a cute little tag that said: Thank you for helping me grow.
And done! The total for each was under $5 which includes the pot. Not bad!
I don't know about you, but teacher gifts are always so hard for me! What are your go-to ideas? Comment below and let's share! :)
PIN FOR LATER:
Posts
