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Thanksgiving #1 and Dining Room Update!

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hey there! I'm monica 

I pride myself on making amazing style and design accessible for everyone, regardless of location, budget, or ability! My design philosophy is rooted in authenticity + attainability - If I can do it, you can too! My work has been featured in countless publications, but I take the most pride in homeowners that have been personally inspired by my DIY ideas and have tried something in their own homes!

learn more about ME + MY BIZ

I can’t even tell you how stuffed I am right now.  I couldn’t eat another bite if you paid me! We had Thanksgiving with some of our close friends and it was awesome.  We’re so thankful to be blessed with such amazing friends.  I didn’t go crazy with decor, but I did a few cute little things that I thought you might like to see…
My kiddos helped me make “really fancy” centerpieces for the kids’ table…
Craftin’ it old school my friends…
Who doesn’t love a paper plate turkey?  My favorite part is that we made these before 9am Saturday!
I wanted the kids’ table to be fun (so that the adults might actually get to sit down and eat), so my younger two helped me make placemats.
I made the little name cards on Picnik and then snagged a free printable from Pinterest (I pinned it if you want it), added a piece of construction paper, tied up the utensils and voila! Remember, this was quick and easy, not fancy schmancy, but the kids loved it and had a blast!
Look at all those happy kiddos!
Since the kids had a fun table, I had to do a little something for the adults.  Using the same method we shared on 69 News, I just printed out some little cards.  Under the “Thankful” I listed the people at Thanksgiving.  If you wanted to use these as place cards, you could just circle the name of the person.
Since Jess shared a fail (turned awesome) yesterday… I’ll share a fail (turned umm… still fail!) today.
So, I was inspired by this jute runner, but forgot to get jute, so I figured I’d use my kids’ craft paper and do the same thing… umm, not so much…
I measured out the paper, I had the hubs help me fold it (then I mentioned he was in the picture, and this is the cheeseball pose I got. Nice one babe), I started cutting on the lines and was reminded that I’m a lefty in a right handed world (and my perfectionist husband couldn’t stand the sight) so Eric cut.  I started weaving, but guess what?  The paper was all rolly and wouldn’t stay put and needed tape every two inches.  UGH.  I gave up halfway through, trimmed what I had done, plopped a huge gourd on it and had a good laugh with Jess over it!
Lame table runner or not, we had an amazing time together!
Now, ready for a dining room update?  Well, thanks to an awful cold, I’ve been worthless the past few days.  Today, about 4 hours before 20 people arrived for thanksgiving Eric and I used our lunch breaks to paint the bottom half.  (I love the days he works from home!)
We love chalklines.  Honestly, I won’t paint a line without one! Since we’re using a chair rail we didn’t have to be neat with the top line (just in case you thought we were sloppy!)
I’m so thrilled with the color.  It’s Antique Silver, from Olympic (but I got it color matched in Valspar).
We still need to paint the area between the moulding, but that can wait until after I’ve wallpapered.  It arrived in the mail and I can’t wait to put it up!! I called in the big guns for that job.  My father in law is coming this week to lend a hand. There are just some things that I know better than to do with the hubs!
So there you have it.  Thanksgiving # 1 and at least some progess on the dining room.  I’m hoping that my next update will have the room almost done!
PS… Did I mention that we deep fried our first turkey?  It was amazing, but I’ll point out that it’s never a good sign when someone is lighting the gas and has the directions in hand. We were clueless, but in the end, it was worth all the craziness!

The comments +

  1. Anonymous says:

    Deep fried turkey is the best! We have been doing them for several years. My husband deep fries a turkey and I roast a turkey. The deep fried turkey is always the first to go. BTW, love the makeovers and decorating tips. Have a Blessed Thanksgivng…Cheryl S.

  2. beth says:

    can’t wait to see the end result …..by the way, love how the girls are one end of the table smiling for the camera and the boys are at the other end, well, being boys!

  3. Jenna says:

    I really like your paint color too! Can’t wait to see the wallpaper. Also the yellow and grey throw pillow (on your window seat) is so fun! Do you know the name of the fabric?

    heyhomeslice.blogspot.com

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