DIY Cracker Barrel inspired centerpiece

After I set up my dining room table I spent way more time than I'd like to admit mulling over possible centerpieces. I didn't want to do anything conventional like candles or flowers, but I couldn't really think of anything else. Then I went out for dinner at Cracker Barrel with my family and as we passed around that little peg game while we were waiting for our food this idea came to me!

I got a vintage tray on etsy (scalloped border!!) and filled it with fun games (a Rubik's cube, a deck of cards and a magic 8 ball) as well as restaurant table condiments like sugar packets and salt and pepper shakers. I also added a little bowl of candy and, well, I went with some flowers after all. It just needed some height and they look so pretty! ;)

I got the pea pod shakers and sugar packet container from amazon, and all the games were from K-Mart. I love that whenever I have guests they can fiddle around with the toys while I'm finishing up in the kitchen, or munch on some candy if we're just hanging out around the table. Since it's on a tray it's easy to move it when I want to bring out food... and in addition to being functional, it does make for a pretty (and fun!) centerpiece!

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christmas, take two

I've done a bit more Christmas decorating since my last Christmas post -- not a huge amount but I love the little additions and wanted to share some new pictures! I loved how my tree looked bare, but I love it even more with some mini tinsel and a mid-century style star (both from target) I originally wanted to add ornaments instead but I think I love the tinsel even more!



I got these adorable flocked vintage Christmas mice on etsy! I'd love to add more vintage decorations to my collection. I'm also working on a vintage-style caroler after seeing Danielle's angel in this post. I have the doll head and the paper cone, I just need to find the time to put her all together lol :)

Also the art in the background is from an It's a Small World postcard set I got on vacation last month! Mary Blair stuff can be hard to find, so if you can't make it to Disney World or Disneyland, I also found them on amazon here.



I'm at Michaels (the craft store) almost every day, it seems, but I still spend at least 20 minutes scouring the shelves for something I might have missed on a previous trip. Last week I found these candy canes. I threw away the box so I don't remember what flavor they are (I'm thinking either skittles or smarties?) but they're so pretty and pastel, I just had to hang them up! I alternated them with these pretty snowflake ornaments I got at Target. I don't know if you can tell from the photo but they look like iced gingerbread cookies! They're adorable!



Lastly, I got a little pink Christmas tree for my dresser! I actually bought it thinking I'd put it in storage for when I eventually have more room (it's the perfect grapefruit-y shade of pink, and it was 50% off, so that's when my "buy it even if you need to put it in storage for now" thoughts kick in) but once I realized it would fit on my dresser I just couldn't put it away! And I made a makeshift star from an enamel brooch :)

Oh, I also got some miniature wooden nutcrackers from the dollar store and painted them to match my room, but I forgot to take pictures! I'll sneak them into an outfit post sometime this week ;)

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it's beginning to look a lot like christmas

I'm finally starting to recover from the cold from hell. I can't believe I've been really sick twice already and it isn't even officially winter yet. yikes! I'm loading up on vitamin c and hoping I can stay healthy for a while. To lift my spirits I started decking my room out for Christmas! I spend so much time in here, it's nice to be surrounded with holiday decorations to make me feel some Christmas cheer while I work!



I got this purple tree at Michaels this year. It's so beautiful, and I'd never seen a purple tree before... and I had a 50% off coupon, so bringing it home was a no-brainer! ;) Now I just need to find some tiny pastel ornaments to finish it off! I haven't been to Target yet since they put out their Christmas decorations so I'm hoping maybe they'll have something that will work. If I can't find anything there I might just DIY some!



My beloved white shelf actually broke last week, so I had to buy a new one :( It's almost exactly the same but the layout of the shelves is different from my old one, with a giant display space in the middle. At first I was a bit disappointed because I liked the old layout so much but I'm starting to really love this. I think I might make my own putz village to display there each Christmas! In the meantime though I just made a little Christmas light garland from craft store bulbs and embroidery thread!




In Disney I picked up three of these Santa hat ornaments, hoping desperately that they'd fit on my bobble heads when I got home, and they do!!! Hands down my favorite decoration in my bedroom.



I got this little tree at Target last year, along with the tree topper and the snow girl under my lamp. The gnome figurine was another Disney purchase, in Epcot Germany. And every year I switch out my "pink champagne for dancing" record that I normally have on display for my Bing Crosby Christmas record :)



I saw these lollipops at Michaels and knew they would be perfect for my ikea cabinet! I'm really tempted to keep them up all year long, or at least find something similar since that big white space sometimes drives me crazy. Must. Have. Clutter. Everywhere. At. All. Times. ;p



Finally I put some snowflakes and lollipops on my string hanging thing (what is it called?) and switched out an embroidery for a vintage plastic santa head :)

I only started decorating my room about two years ago so my assortment of Christmas decorations is pretty sparse but I like that I'm starting to build my own collection!

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