Hippity-Hoppity Happening

Can you believe Easter is less than a week away?  I thought I'd better get my tush in-gear and share my Easter/Spring decor.  Life has been and continues to be rather busy around our home, so it was now or never....well, probably not never; just much later!

The Easter Tree in all it's fluffiness and fun!

 

 I've been adding more pinky-blush and love how fresh and calm it feels.

There's been some paper-crafting going on....there are tons of free patterns on Pinterest for making flowers of all sizes and types!

 I'm loving these pink cherry blossom stems!

A birdcage filled with old book pages tied together and a bird and bird nest 

equals simple Spring perfection.

These two show up every Easter, often with a re-glued ear!

 This sweet scene on the foyer table welcomes one and all.

 Love hydrangeas!

 More paper (cardstock) flowers...so much fun to make!

This is a FREE printable from Anne on Sutton Place.  It was part of my

St. Patrick's Day decor, but I love this Irish Blessing, so it's staying for awhile!

 MAY YOU ALWAYS BE BLESSED

with walls for the wind,

A ROOF FOR THE RAIN,

A warm cup of tea 

by the fire.

LAUGHTER TO CHEER YOU,

Those you love near you,

AND ALL THAT YOUR

HEART MIGHT DESIRE.

I had some fun decorating my breakfast nook buffet!

I'm feeling the lure of live plants, like these orchids, above and below.  Got them at our grocery store (WINCO) for $7....I know, right?  Fingers crossed that I don't kill them!

 Perfection....God's handiwork.

Very simple mantel.

Well, there you go....my Easter/Spring decor.  I kept things fairly simple this year, except for my Easter Tree, which is just wild and crazy!  I'm really enjoying the pretty pastels and could easily keep this look going through Summer.....probably, well, not very likely!  Bloggers have to change stuff...nothing stays the same for very long.  I do hope to keep this look at least through April, but we will see!  Anyway, hope you enjoyed this photo-heavy glimpse of Easter/Spring around our home.

Wishing everyone a very Happy Easter!

Hugs,

Carol

I hope to be joining some of these lovely ladies this week:

Cindy at Dwellings--The Heart of Your Home for Amaze Me Monday

Maria Elena at Our Home Away from Home for Tuesdays at Our Home

Marty at A Stroll Thru Life  for Inspire Me Tuesday

Suzy at Worthing Court for The Scoop

Carol at The Red Painted Cottage for Share Your Style Party

Richella at Imparting Grace for Grace at Home

Wearin' O The Green

Well, not exactly wearing any green right now, but maybe next Saturday!  I just wanted to share my "St. Paddy's Day Tree" before time gets away from me.  I have never really decorated for St. P's Day, and would simply bring out the Easter things right after Valentine's Day.  That changed this year after   finding out through DNA testing that I am 30% Irish!  Who knew?  Certainly not me!  So, this year I am celebrating the "Green."

Deciding to have a seasonal tree this year has already been one of the most fun 

decisions I've ever made!

Doesn't she look adorable in all her green fashion?  You can see her decked out for Christmas HERE 

and Valentine's Day HERE!

I wasn't sure how I was going to dress her up for St. P's Day, because the ONLY St. Patrick's Day item I had was this little Irish Gnome...truly!  I knew I did not want to spend very much, so I went to HobLob to see what they had on sale.

I found a package of these little shamrock ornies (a set of 8 with a couple of shades of green and some with glitter) and a bundle of little shamrock necklaces that I just draped here and 

there on the tree. 

In wandering around the store, I saw feather boas and knew I could tuck it in and around the tree

for filler.  I also picked up one for my Easter tree....yes, I am already planning for that one!

I made all of the other ornies using scrapbook paper that I already had.  If you know anything about scrapbookers, then you know we are hoarders lovers of pretty paper and cardstock....just sayin'.

We are actually celebrating St. Patrick's Day today, because next Saturday we are hosting several of my high school friends for a mini-class reunion.  Several live in the area and a few others are Winter visitors here.  I thought seriously about cooking the traditional corned beef and cabbage, but we decided hamburgers and hotdogs would be so much easier since we'll be eating outside.  That being said, I have cooked Corned Beef and Cabbage using THIS RECIPE from Marilyn's Treats today. 

I have to confess, in over 50 years of cooking, I had never before made this dish!  WHAT?

Well, it definitely got the "nod" from both of us!  The meat was so very juicy and tender, and the veggies were delicious! Also on the menu today is Irish Soda Bread using THIS RECIPE from kitchme.com.  This is another new one for me!   

Soda bread has the texture and taste of a biscuit....one giant biscuit suits this "Southern-born girl" 

just fine!  Very good and very easy!

Well, that's a wrap for me.  I hope everyone has a great week, and 

Happy St. Patrick's Day in advance!

Warm hugs,

Carol

I hope to be joining some of these lovely ladies this week:

Cindy at Dwellings--The Heart of Your Home for Amaze Me Monday

Maria Elena at Our Home Away from Home for Tuesdays at Our Home

Marty at A Stroll Thru Life  for Inspire Me Tuesday

Suzy at Worthing Court for The Scoop

Carol at The Red Painted Cottage for Share Your Style Party

Richella at Imparting Grace for Grace at Home

  

My New Makeup Vanity

Happy new week, everyone!  Can you believe how quickly we've moved through February, and now have only 4 days left?  I know some of you have been literally "snow plowing" your way through these Winter months and are anxiously awaiting Spring.  Even sunny Arizona is getting some very chilly weather (36* at 8 a.m.) here in the valley desert and lots of snow in the high country...very happy skiers!  Well, enough about the weather...Mother Nature seems to be playing a cruel game of "Guess What's Coming Next!"  How about some pretty pictures and a lot of my rambling...up for that?

Today I wanted to share my new makeup vanity where I store and use all of the new makeup I talked  about in my last post HERE.  I rearranged and The Man created a vanity where I can sit and do my makeup.  Below are three pics from my 2014 Barbie Dream Closet reveal.

This is where I did my makeup for several years....standing here, using my vanity mirror, and storing my "most often used" supplies in the top shallow drawer.

                                                      

I grew weary of this setup and started thinking about using the top of the dirty clothes bins....I mean, just look at all that wasted real estate!

   

I was just going to move everything over here and use

a small stool to sit on.  The Man's wheels started turning

and came up with something much better......

Wait for it...

Is The Man smart or what!

He also cut down my magnifying mirror to the perfect height.

I made a cover for this little stool and also for the bench you see at 

the upper left...good old drop cloth!  I just tuck the stool back in the corner

when not in use.

 

         

 This acrylic organizer (HomeGoods) is the only new piece

I purchased.  I already had the other organizers.

I keep some tools, sponges and pre-moistened wipes (to clean makeup off my hands & brushes),

in this 3-drawer unit.

 

I've been using this lipstick tray for a few years but recently added this glass dish ($Store)

with small crystal filler (originally from Michael's) to hold glosses and such that were always

falling over.

Originally, I stored folded sweaters in this glass cabinet above the makeup vanity, but I decided it was 

a much better place to display some of my purses.

Pretty and colorful!

The previous makeup area is now home to jewelry and perfumes.

I really like this tiered bracelet holder...HomeGoods a few years ago.

Jewelry and......

More jewelry in the top 2 drawers, and....

Surplus supplies and such...let's just call it an organized "junk drawer," shall we?

So what do you think?  I love it!  The Man made such a nice area for me to sit and work some cosmetic magic....well, at least I try.  And before you even ask, he is all mine and you cannot borrow him!

He is just as sweet as his smile indicates!

Hope you have enjoyed this post.  I'm having fun kind of mixing up what I post about, so who knows what will be on the agenda for next time!  Please come back for a visit any time.

Warm hugs,

Carol

I hope to be joining some of these lovely ladies this week:

Cindy at Dwellings--The Heart of Your Home for Amaze Me Monday

Maria Elena at Our Home Away from Home for Tuesdays at Our Home

Marty at A Stroll Thru Life  for Inspire Me Tuesday

Suzy at Worthing Court for The Scoop

Carol at The Red Painted Cottage for Share Your Style Party

Richella at Imparting Grace for Grace at Home