Christmas glow

May the glow of the season begin within your heart....

Have a beautiful friday...

Love to share with you tomorrow..... "Saturday's designing with vintage".

xo,

me

Christmas pines..,

Happy * Wednesday *

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the smell of pine at Christmas.... & all year. 

So lucky to have some big ole pines on our property... 

 when the wind blows it reminds me of the mountains. 
That sound... swishing through the needles!!!

I love to cut pine branches throughout the year and we use the pine cones as fire starters.

A few piney pretties at my home...

A vase filled with pines on the sink in my son's bathroom....

This is above his bed.... 

I'll share more of the room later!

Can't wait to finish it...

 A short post... but have to go to an appointment!

Have a beautiful day 

 bring some pines in your home!!!!

{even a pine candle would be lovely}

xo,

me

Deck the Halls in VINTAGE style

Beautiful Morning!

The season is upon us ....  it's time to deck the halls...

Vintage style for me*

Come on in...

 a glimpse and some ideas starting off the Holiday's at our home...

I have my favorite pink ladder...

 {I found it years ago just like this, very old with rope for bracing... it was this beautiful enamel pink old paint}

that I use around the house to reach high doorways to hang lighted garlands and wreaths for the holidays.

Vintage luggage..

Here is my Dec. 25th piece!

I made tags with the date of specific holidays.

Storing my delicate decorations for different holidays in them.

Vintage lighting like these french sconces

 looks even prettier with a sparkly snowflake*

Vintage glass peanut butter jar filled with fresh roses from my garden...

pretty fragrance and simply hangs off an old french window 

by a vintage monogrammed initial *P* ribbon

adding a touch of holiday red!

A great gift idea: a vintage container filled with fresh flowers would be a beautiful gift anyone would love!

Fresh greens I clipped from the trees in yard, mixed with my garden roses in a vintage container for the door.

Have you started making Christmas plans???

My Design tip:

Christmas is the time to express {decorate} your home in a way that is comfortable and memorable.

"Using vintage is key to a unique style".

Hope you had fun at my house this morning....

Get a cup of cocoa

 stay in your jamies...

 hop over and read my Saturdays' Designing with vintage blog  post.

Then... shop for some unique holiday pieces for your home and start Decking the halls!

 Get a jump start on that list and you will truly surprise them with something unique 

from Second Shout Out shops!

Thank you for visiting...

Have fun!

xo,

me

Wishing for *snow*

A girl can wish can't she!!!

I was on my way home this morning with my car loaded with fresh garlands and wreaths for Christmas...

I love The scent of Christmas....

 I heard my first Christmas song playing on the radio!

As I drove the windy road back to our house,

I can't help but to wish for cold and snow...

Yes like this!!!

I took this picture from inside the car on our way to Mammoth for christmas a couple years ago...

That year was record breaking snowfall for Mammoth, Ca

It was truly magical and breathtaking that year...

 I grew up in the midwest so I soooo miss the joy and fun of a beautiful White Christmas and iceskating, sledding and snowmobiling!!!

I really connect with the lyrics....I am dreaming of a "White Christmas"

Made my favorite cup of Nespresso.... 

After we unload all the Christmas greens from the car, 

All of the newly split firewood has to be transferred to the  another area on the property and be stacked so it can be seasoned and ready for next year.

I know I will be dreaming it will look like this....

Well better get going and start the season...

grab my gloves...

Have a beautiful day***

xo

me

*Thanksgiving*

Happy Thanksgiving Darlins...

Simply hope your day is Beautiful...

Filled

 with

ABUNDANCE

*

*BLESSINGS*

*

 *THANKFULNESS*

*

JOY

*

PEACE

*

*LOVE*

*SWEETNESS*

I am Thankful for the warmth of friends like you!

 Below is the little wise words that were sent to me last year ...{ a little light hope you can read it}

I would like to share it with you!

xo,

me

I know I am!

xo,

Gail

My Casual Loves Elegance Thanks giving at home

Hi Darlins...

In a few days we anticipate gathering around tables and having a moment of silence and giving Thanks for our Blessings.

Gather with me a moment won't you... we will prepare for our Casual Loves Elegance vintage style gathering at my home.

A vintage Cornucopia on our front door filled with roses from my garden and birch twigs off our tree.

Fresh flowers are essential!

Some foliage or branches in the foyer to bring some earthliness indoors..

Greeting guests with a simple vintage glass of freshly made apple and kale juice, light yet entices their appetite a bit.

When guests walk in and say Mmmmm. the fun begins! 

Delicious smells of fresh made banana bread and fresh baked cookies in the kitchen brings back memories of past holidays with family and friends...

My collection of vintage wooden chairs... 

Choose any one you like to bring and set around the table.

Vintage Ironstone mixes and matches with my brown and white transfer ware. 

Here are a few favorites I have collected for years. 

Grab the stack and follow me!

Large vintage cloth napkins with sparkly napkins rings (they aren't vintage) I found years ago...

 I loved them so much I gave some as gifts to friends for christmas years ago!

These add lux to our gathering... rolled up and ready to go under this glass glass etched cloche.

A warm and comforting soup will be served as the first course.

A family favorite I make all year long Velvet Pea and Zucchini soup.

I'll get the vintage silver heirloom soup spoons...

 I have a surprise for the placement of the spoons for you! I had fun making these...

 Love my vintage paint brushes... 

SHhhhhh I'm salvaging from our renovation of our French farm house too!

 Only natural to look around here!

I hope you don't mind...

Follow me,

we are gathering in the library near the cozy fire this evening for our Holiday dinner. 

Place your  chairs where you like, gather around the table get comfy and cozy.

Who would like to light the candles...

I

Am 

Thankful 

for the warmth of friends like you...

Have the most beautiful Thanksgiving ya'll

xo,

me

My Design tip: Mix and match vintage finds with your family heirlooms. Collecting beautiful essentials for entertaining and decorating like this can so much fun... and be found on SECOND SHOUT OUT vintage market place.

Hop over and visit me to 

Read this full blog post on Second Shout Out blog my series Saturday"Designing with Vintage" with Gail Smith-Peterson

Photos: All photos by Gail Smith- Peterson for Casual Loves Elegance 

except 2,4,13 from Pinterest

Antique framed print

Sometimes are you drawn to to something beautiful and can't explain it but you LOVE it instantly...

I can say this is true with me...

About 20 years ago I found these Antique frames they were with these prints inside.

 I looked at the scenes  and they were so beautiful...

 I noticed it was a Christmas scene. The I fell in love with the delicate 

 carving on the frame... it had Holly with a bow! 

I Loved them and thought they would be perfect under a set of antique oil lanterns that had the same motif on them A bow and Holly swag. 

What are the chances of finding that motif twice!

 That is why I was drawn to it, already familiar.

The black metal lanterns lights were converted to electric

.

I still have the prints though my lights stayed with my beach house!

I have a collection of old mirrors and a vintage window all black and I love them together.

Also see the Antlers and the black farm table?

LOVE! 

Enjoy your friday*

xo,

me

Season's Wishes

Happy White Wednesday  Darlins...

Tis the season when everyone wants something...

You hear it everywhere... radio television and you read and see it in all the publications.

What is wanting?

Why do we want?

 A single word that can have so many attachments.

My attachments to the word...

I have had many wants from a young girl...throughout the years I see them the same, only really one.

Though as I get older... those same wants haven't changed, they have more clarity. 

Little did I know, I had clarity at a young age.

 Putting what I saw and experienced translated into words came when I got older...

Does that make sense?

I only have had One consistent, lifetime real want.

 A beautiful existance:

With everything that I surround myself and my family core with to be kind and sincere.

 To hold appreciation for our past and our future.

 To see others for who they really are, and to value only those who are true.

 I want this and strive for this in mine and my family's everyday life... 

not just because of a Holiday.

Simple and true, though not easy attained...

I would love to hear what you really WANT?

Have a beautiful day ya'll

xo,

me

Gail

Beautiful weekend

Morning...

I hope your weekend was perfect... 

You did everything you wanted or maybe just nothing at all but kick back...

Our Saturday was filled with football... my youngest son is in Pop Warner and we won again!

 He is on a good little team...

Saturday morning at 7 am the tree Arborist's came to take down some HUGE Eucalyptus trees and lace  some others. The wind was pretty fierce on Saturday and the guy in the tree was swaying with the limbs...

 Oh my goodness, a little worried about his safety....

I asked them... Don't you come back when the wind dies down?

They said no were fine....

 Feels so good to get those trees out of here. Now we have to split and stack the wood ourselves.

 So you know what we will be doing the next couple of weekends!!!

We are going to plant some evergreens in a row it should be lovely!

These are huge! 

I  can't wait... we are going to take 6 or 7 of them down to the grove for making chairs!!!

Yesterday{Sunday} afternoon... I was driving up the road to our house I saw about 5 hot air balloons all floating so beutifully over the house... 

I  grabbed my camera to capture a few...

After the rain the sky's were crystal blue and clear!

You can see a second one following in the right bottom corner!

I love our country House!!!!

Have a beautiful week Darlins...

xo,

me

Unique storage*

Hi Darlins..

I hope you have had a lovely day... mine began early with tree trimmers taking down a couple large trees. I also found out a couple of my roses I just planted are bare, we found some hoof prints...DEER prints...

 I can't believe the deer would come that close to the house in the night!

 What is my dog, Miss Chloe doing? She needs to start sleeping with one eye open.... the other to watch out for the deer coming to eat the roses. Miss Chloe, no kidding is the size of a small bear, complete with an attitude!

Ok...  my post today is on unique storage using vintage materials.
Also the entire post is on Second Shout Out Saturday's day's "Designing with Vintage"

Storage is a commodity....
 We never have enough, or the perfect storage to accommodate those organized life necessities! 
We are in the middle of a renovation so that means we are tearing out what storage there is and replacing it. 
I have had to find some unique creative options for storage.

These two tall cabinets made from wood constructed boxes and vintage doors have been made from windows. 

I am using them in my kitchen right now to serve as temporary cupboards since we have removed all my kitchen uppers and some lowers.  

The doors keep the construction dust off our glasses!

Another door used for storage... Pinterest

Love these doors on this dining storage too! 

Pinterest

My Design tip: Using vintage and salvaged materials is perfect to construct a one of a kind storage piece. 

You will find endless uses for these pieces

.

I can't wait to share my ideas for the pieces later...

I hope this inspires you to think a bit differently about your storage...

Hop over to Second Shout Out  read the whole post and shop... it's easy to find some really cool pieces there!

xo,

me

Thanks for Giving..

Loving the new time change.... Hope you are too.

Time to give Thanks for all the gifts that we have received.

Humbled and appreciative for this time of year and reflecting on family.

I have a few vintage cards that seem to say it all.

 I display them where they can be 
read daily
 and 
thought about.

Interesting  I have noticed each year,

these same cards evoke a new feeling about something that year...

I love that*

My hydrangea is still holding its Autumn color...

As you prepare your home for this Thanks for Giving I hope it will evoke new thoughts for you too!

xo,

me