Still Woods Farmhouse

Woo-hoo...my favorite time of year is only 23 days away!   I started decorating last week and the farmhouse is decked out in autumn splendor.  Yesterday, I made a batch of pumpkin muffins.  The aroma coming from the oven reminded me of falling leaves, crisp breezes, and the delicious spices of autumn.  Why don't you join me for a cup of coffee and a yummy pumpkin muffin? My grandmother's buffet will serve as our coffee bar today. I love the warm tones of the wood in her buffet.  It's the perfect backdrop for autumnal decor. Pumpkin is the flavor of the season!  I have three types of autumn inspired syrups for the coffee bar. Pumpkin caramel, pumpkin spice, and pumpkin cheesecake.  Don't they sound wonderful?! They are actually sugar free which is an added bonus! I am anxious to try the pumpkin cheesecake syrup.  I picked these up at Tuesday Morning a few weeks ago.  If you hurry, you may be able to pick up a set. If you are in the mood ...

Today I wanted to share with you a few easy, homemade Christmas gifts.  After all, Christmas is only 121 days away!  I adore homemade gifts.  I am always grateful for homemade gifts whether it be jam, salt scrubs, or a tin of cookies.  One of my all time favorite gifts has been a piece of wood used to pull open hot oven racks.  A student chiseled and sanded the wood until it was completely smooth.  He fashioned a hook on one end of the paddle. This student proudly explained that the hook was "so you can pull out a hot rack without burning your hands".  I cherish that sweet gift and still use it today. There are many reasons for giving homemade gifts, but here are my top 5: 1.  Homemade gifts are usually less expensive than store bought gifts. 2.  A homemade gift is incredibly thoughtful. 3.  What do you give the person who has everything...a homemade gift! 4.  Or what about the person who wants nothing...a homemade gift! 5. ...

Our home is nestled in the middle of  the woods.  When we first made this our home, we named the woods and our home Still Woods .  The inspiration came from Psalm 46:10. "Be still and know I am God". A meandering creek borders our property to the east.  A spry, red fox lives in the woods to the west.  Every now and then, we see his sleek body racing across the road and disappearing into the thick forests. Lately, a pair of deer have visited our home.  It is amazing to look up from our breakfast or dinner and see these beautiful creatures in the clearing near our home. I imagine they enjoy sipping cool water from the creek and resting in the shade of Still Woods. Our two labs, Lucky and Lucy, have decided to accept these graceful visitors.  The deer stand quietly in the woods and watch our two dogs as they lay on the front porch.  Ever wary, the deer appear to be ready to bolt. We knew that deer were in this area, but they have never emerged fro...

Everywhere you look, you see frames re-purposed to hold photos, mail, etc.  I have a collection of  Luke Bailey's  bandannas and needed a way to organize them.  Before we get started on the tutorial, I wanted you to meet the inspiration for this project!  Here is our Luke Bailey catching up on a little reading! Now back to the project!  I did a little shopping and after discovering the price tag on re-purposed frames, I decided to make one myself.  Even with a coupon, the purchased ones were more than I was willing to spend. I started with a vintage frame that I was not using.  The frame was from a pair of paintings which belonged to my grandmother and had been recently given to me. You may be familiar with these paintings. They are known as Pinky and Blue Boy. My grandmother loved her Pinky and Blue Boy! Poor Pinky's frame was in awful condition, so I gave Pinky and Blue Boy fresh, new frames. My grandmother would be proud of their new and ...

I have discovered the purchased pillow cover.  Yes, I know... I bet some of you have been using them for years.  I'm a little slow at times! For years, I have sewn my own pillow covers.  My mother did before me and her mother before her.  It's what we do.  Who knew you could walk into your neighborhood Hobby Lobb y and find a decent pillow cover? I am doing a little pre-Christmas planning and wanted to make buffalo checked zippered pillow covers for my sofa pillows.  I was perusing the fabric isle for the perfect fabric when low and behold, I saw rows and rows of pillow covers for 50% off. Hold the presses!  After a quick scan of the many rows, no buffalo print was to be found.  Thoughts of Christmas went out the door!  I regrouped and instead, picked up several damask and linen pillow covers.  I thought they would freshen up my decor and would be perfect for this very hot time of year.  The covers are are well made and have a hid...

I have to share this delicious salad with you.  It has been so hot here in Mississippi.  One evening all I wanted was a quick, refreshing salad for dinner.  I had watermelon and Feta cheese in the fridge and wanted a salad which combined both.  After a quick look through the internet, I found Ina Garten's recipe.  I was excited to see that her recipe also included fresh mint and I have a caboodle of mint growing in the garden.  It looked like a win, win recipe! I didn't have arugula, so I substituted crispy Romaine.  I also left out the shallot.  The salad was absolutely wonderful!  The mint added another level of freshness and the citrus vinaigrette was delicious.  I enjoyed the sweetness from the melon and the salty from the Feta.  Yummy!  I can't wait to make it again!   Forgive my fancy, blurry photo!  I wasn't planning on blogging about it, but did snap a shot with my phone to...

Michaels Craft Stores are having an August Fall Decor Challenge .   I'm always up for a good challenge!  It may seem early, but according to my Blue Sky  (love them!) calendar, we only have 24 days until September. I don't know about you, but this house is decked out in fall decor by the beginning of September.  Last year, I made this adorable, bedazzled monogram pumpkin in less than an hour.  Take a look at the simple tutorial and then head to your local Michaels Craft store.  All pumpkins are on sale now.  You might find a different project that meets your fancy. The Starting Line-Up: One- 1/2 Cut Pumpkin of Your Choice, Sold at Michael's Craft Stores Martha Stewart Brushed Bronze Metallic Craft Paint Ribbon Peel and Stick Bedazzling Items If desired, you may want to apply a glaze to your pumpkin before bedazzling.  I chose Martha Stewart brushed bronze metallic paint.  Use a sponge brush and paint the glaze on in sections. ...

Many of the students along the Mississippi Gulf Coast are beginning school today. There will be plenty of excitement mingled with the fear of the unknown.  As a psychometrist and counselor in various school settings, I saw it all the time.  The age of the student is irrelevant.  Whether it is an elementary student or student bound for college, there is often some amount of apprehension. An extremely polite kindergartner once told me, "Thank you for inviting me, but I don't think I will be back"! Loved his forthrightness!  You can be sure that I sought out the little fellow the next school day, knowing that his hopes of staying home would be crushed and he might need a little encouragement.  On the other end of the spectrum, I recently spoke with a college bound student who needed a good dose of encouragement before setting off into the big world of college.   Encouragement...we all need it.  I draw so much encouragement from God's word. ...

If you have ears, you have heard the term shiplap.  A few years ago, I would have thought it was the distance required for a ship to leave harbor.  Now we hear the term in everyday conversation. Friend-       "I'm going to shiplap our entire house!!" Me-            "Really??" Friend-        "Yes! Where have you been?  It's the IN thing" Me-            "I know, but don't you think you might get tired of it after awhile?" Friend-        "Well, I haven't really thought about it.  I just love the way it looks" Me-             "So do I... (sigh)" (Photo Credit: Fixer Upper The Gorman Story Season 1)  I do love the way it looks.  Geez Louise..I have a farmhouse!  It would look perfect here, but do I want to embark on the shiplap frenzy?  Could it be the horizontal equivalent of the paneling...