" Panache Designs : 2014-09-28

Friday, October 3, 2014

Fall and Thanksgiving Ideas

It is that time again.  You are probably in a pinning storm for new and delicious recipes.  It makes me hungry to just look at the pictures.

Concentrate your time on the food and family gatherings.  Here are some super easy (and inexpensive) table and counter decorations collected for you from many talented bloggers.  Most of these can be done with items you already have on hand.  Put your kids to work gathering the leaves and pine cones for these arrangements.


Look at how pretty these ideas are.  Several of these would work on a formal and dressy dinner table.  All you need to add is candles.


Etsy Thanksgiving cards, only $12, you print as many as you like.

 Do you have trouble with family confirming they are coming for Thanksgiving?  I do.  I have found over the years different ways to get a head count for beds and food and number of days staying.  I try to bake ahead and freeze things, expecially desserts and breads, in order to minimize my time standing in the kitchen cooking (which I love), but I love more visiting with family and guests in the Family Room.  Some years I have sent out written invitations.  Some years I send out my menu, both ideas seem to help with getting a head count.  I love the invitations above, from Head to Toe Designs thru Etsy store.

The Budget Decorator

How easy is this decoration, maybe takes 15 minutes, and is basically free.
Ok, maybe the thought of feeding 15 to 25 guests for the Thanksgiving holidays leaves you frazzled.  At least you can have a break from thinking about some decorations for your counter or table.
Even if you are not crafty or a DIYer, you can cut some branches for your vases.  Mix it up and give it your personal touch, buy including several types of branches in different vases.  One vase could hold pine branches, one could hold some fading hydrangea branches, red dogwood branches are beautiful.
Live span on these is good too, at least 2 weeks looking fresh.
The Budget Decorator
Another super easy decoration.  Buy a bag of small fresh mixed pumpkins or gourds, when you are already shopping, and available at most grocery stores beginning the end of September.  Throw them in a vase with any bare tree branch.  Live span of the pumpkins is 1 month minimum.
More ideas available from The Budget Decorator, check out ideas for other projects on her site.

Adore Home




 Instructions.  Glass vases.  Pumpkins or guords gourds.  Put them in the glass.  Ok, this one is harder, you have to be able to spell gourds.




This one is even harder, you have to know what a pumpino is, and you have to click the link to buy them from Pottery Barn.  They are $15.50 for bag of 15.  If you do not know what a pumpino is, just type in vase filler.  Or click the link above.
Clipzine

Spy Home Design


Etsy Shop The Violette Bloom

Lauren Conrad Blog
You will need three cans of paint to do these pumpkins.  You can use inside or outside.


Etsy Shop J R Pillow Company
Pillow covers only $15 each, need the insert.  This is a good mix of pillows offered. This is also why it is nice to have a white, cream, tan or light grey sofa.


 
Etsy Shop $5 for 25 acorns at Sticks and Things

Pottery Barm Mercury Pumpkins

These are a good investment, since they are permanent and can be used from year to year.
Priced at $23 to $40 each, they are on sale now October 2014.


Remember it is the season to be very thankful.  If you are the homemaker in your family, do not let the holiday season stress you out.  Just take time to provide nice memories for your family and include them in what you are doing.  Someday they will be providing memories for their own family.  You want them to say "I remember at Thanksgiving, my Mom just put all these things from nature into these glass vases, and they were so beautiful and festive looking".


Thursday, October 2, 2014

The Gallery Wall


Have lots of art, or want to collect art, and not sure how to display it all.  There are several styles of display, and all of them are right, just decide from looking at these pictures, which style appeals to you the most.   Also consider your space for hanging, and the type of pictures: large wall, curved wall, around a corner, up a stairway, family photos, traditional or contemporary art, kid's art, all the same size art, travel art, or irregular sized art.  


see individual pictures for atttibutes

Most important, a "Gallery Wall" creates a dramatic space anywhere you use one, it can become a focal point as important as a fireplace or a large window.

Pottery Barn, one of different styles available



Could this get any easier?  I love these, no more telling your husband hanger, "a little higher, no I mean lower, now left, no, my left......This is Pottery Barn's innovative hanging shelving for displaying art.  Hanger can install these, and leave you to rearrange as you have time.
You can interchange the art with something else any time you want, without extra holes in the wall.

One of my design clients used these to display pictures of the most recent trip they went on, so that they could revisit the the trip each time they passed the wall.  This setup comes in dark and light, and while you are visiting PB online, look at the cubby hole shelving as well.  This would be great for "things" in your collections.

Actress Amanda Peet's Home in Domino Magazine Dec 2008
          
 Isn't this a stunning wall created by Designer Nathan Turner.  Careful attention was paid to the size of the art so that it would lay well on the curved wall.  This would be an "Expert DIYer" project, but so very worth the impact it would give your foyer.

West Elm
 This is a great looking wall.  The same white color frames keep the contemporary look, and the art stays within a neutral palate.  Same color frames is always looks well done, even if the frames are real traditional style, such as all gold frames.  West Elm is a good online source for art and other ideas, as well as great furniture.

from ClassyClutter.net

 This is such a cute look, dressy but not formal.  Hanging the coordinated look around a corner makes this galley wall even more dramatic.  The gold is the follow through that pulls the collection together.  Notice  the items without frame still include the gold coloring.

Up to Date Interiors





Great tips from Kathy, over at Up to Date Interios, click on her collage above to see another point of view on hanging collective art for a Gallery Wall.

Mark Lund Photograhy
 Color is the connecting element in this wall.  A dramatic lime green wall is just the right balance for the multi-colored frames.  Most of the art is in black and white, and can be easily seen and appreciated because of the lack of color in it.



brandsushi.com

Here are some layout styles to get you started with planning your own Gallery Wall.  There are several ways to begin:
             
 1.  Clear a space on your floor that is larger than the wall space you will use.
 2.  Begin in the middle and either centered or slightly left  with the largest piece of art.
 3.  Start surround the largest piece and work out to the outside edges of your frames.
 4.  You can stay strictly square, by using something laid out in the size of your area you
      will cover, does not matter at all to have less or more space between the pictures.
 5.  You can have a less constructed look if you allow the outside pieces to fall beyond the
      edges of your rectangle.  This is actually my favorite style, your wall can evolve and
      spread as you add art pieces as you acquire them.
 6.  Do not over worry this.  If there is an element to tie this together, color, style, or frames:
      it will look coordinated.

Pottery Barn
Pottery Barn shows us a nice arrangement, keeping it mostly straight edges, in a rectangle.
Are you starting to have a favorite look yet?



Jones Design Company








This homeowner was actually trying to block multiple switches on this wall.  She did a great job creating a Gallery Wall to do so.  All the "Ls" look collected, but were probably created for this wall, a very innovative idea.  Of course, I should mention, that the homeowner is a very talented graphic artist, so we are probably appreciating "her own art".  It looks great.  Click on Jones Design above to see some of her graphic design offerings.

Simply Seleta


This art layout makes this little bathroom look very rich.

Elle Decor







Above, this is from Jones Design Company, they actually started hanging the Typography L's to hide
the thermastat on the wall.  Look how great it turned out.



Below, this is one of my all time favorite art displays.  Featured on Elle Decor Not too many people give such presentation to their hallways, but look at the drama of it all.  You could do this also with any color frame and black and white family photos and have the same interesting look.  Great drama gallery wall.



Survival of the Classiest tumblr


Just in case you are still wanting to see lots of well done Gallery Walls, take a look at all my favorites on my Pinterest Board - Art Collections.