Christmas Tree Party, 2014

Well hello! It’s that time again! I’ve hosted this little shindig for six years now – crazy! It’s time to gather together and show off your beautiful Christmas trees and decor:

But first, mine! :)

We usually have four trees in our home – it sounds crazy but one I’ve never even decorated till this year:

And it was so easy and cheap – check it out here if you missed the bedroom tour earlier this week.

Another one is a real tree for the kiddo’s stuff – the fun one with colorful ornaments. I love it. (Check out last year’s party to see it more of that one.)

Those two are minimal effort and don’t take up much storage space.

A few years back I picked up a flocked tree for our newly finished basement:

Goodness, I love this tree. It was from WalMart and I’m still so happy with it. It doesn’t shed a ton of “snow” and you would think it would. It’s just so beautiful.

It’s only three pieces and super easy to set up – I had it up and fluffed within 30 minutes. Every Christmas break we pretty much hibernate in the basement for two straight weeks so it is lovely to have this down there:

Of our three faux trees I think this one looks the most real. It will look spectacular one day when that electric fireplace behind it is actually built into the wall. Been dreaming up that project for years now. :)

And our last one…I have a confession to make about our big tree. I call her Big Bertha. The Beast. Pain in my butt.

She’s huge and I kind of dread getting her out every year – isn’t that awful? When she’s up I’m so happy but the process wears me out. My husband goes along with pretty much all of my ideas for decor around the house and rarely has a strong opinion about things…but this tree is his baby. He loves Christmas decor and loves. this. tree.

Last year he was out of town and my sister helped me get all the pieces down from the garage – I thought I would be able to make things a bit easier by making it 10 feet tall instead of 12 feet (I didn’t put the bottom piece of the tree on so it was shorter).

Swear to God he noticed when he walked in the door – nobody would ever notice!! He did. So this year he pulled it down and we set up his baby in it’s full glory.

Twelve feet of tree takes some time to decorate – and it’s a workout on the ladder. Another reason this tree wipes me out? The cats LOVE IT. Our insane kitty literally climbs up around the inside of it and will poke his head out the top. It drives me absolutely crazy:

But last night I was taking pictures of it and I have to tell you…after pulling the cat out for the 15th time, my heart warmed and I just sat and appreciated Bertha:

That snowflake is made from the old Hoosier Dome top for you locals by the way – we spent a lot of time there back in the day so I had to get one. :)

She is a beast but my goodness…she is spectacular:

It’s all worth it. :) And I love that my husband loves the tree so dang much:

Although I’d be fine if this guy lost a little of the love:

I’m not gonna lie – I got a little emotional standing there last night, just taking a moment to enjoy it.

It is magnificent. :) Here’s the view from our second level:

My “Fa la la” prints went back into the frames and they reflect the light beautifully:

And of course a little bokeh never hurts:

Whew. It’s a lot of work but after all is said and done…so worth it. There is NOTHING like sitting by a lit up tree with all the lights off, am I right? So grateful.

Now I can’t wait to see your tree and decor! Link up here – and if you’d like to link back to TDC it would be appreciated but it is not mandatory.

I’ll be back on Monday – I’m currently in freak out mode to get all the shopping done. ;) Have a great weekend my friends!!

An InLinkz Link-up

June before and after!

Hello everybody! It’s time to kick off June (can you believe it?) with another before and after link up. I so enjoy looking through all your projects and homes – blogs are pretty awesome. :)

I’m sharing a few that caught my eye and then we’ll see what you’re up to this month. I was SHOCKED when I saw the before photo of this sofa:

It was a Craigslist find and Cheryl had incredible vision (and a great upholsterer) – it just goes to show that a good quality sofa can be transformed. I absolutely love the new look.

There were two kitchen redos that caught my eye – first up was Laura’s before and after:

Can you believe the difference? Amazing! She shared a whole before and after house tour, be sure to check it out.

Michelle shared the progress her kitchen has made over the years as well:

Her kitchen table is gorgeous too!

I love a good knock off and I love a lighting knock off even more – Tasha’s take on a West Elm light fixture was brilliant:

And Carrie’s fixture was so simple it’s just ridiculous:

I have one of those orbs and the thought never even crossed my mind!

Haeley shared one of the easiest, cheapest tricks for large artwork:

Her whole master bedroom turned out beautifully, check it out here.

So inspiring, all of you!

As always, if you’d like to pin these projects, please do so from their respective sites. :)

Now let’s see what you’ve been up to over the past month! If you’d like to be considered for next month’s review, please include a link to TDC or this button in your post:

<div align="center"><a href="http://www.thriftydecorchick.blogspot.com/" title="TDC Before and After" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.homestoriesatoz.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/beforeAndAfterButton_thumb1.gif" alt="TDC Before and After" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Here you go!:

May before and after!

Hey all! It’s the first Monday of the month and that means it’s party time! Excellent.

It’s the day you all share one of my favorite things in the decor/DIY world – before and afters. I can’t get enough of them. I will kick it off with a few of the awesome projects linked up last month.

Cassie did one of my all time favorite decorating tricks – painting the backs of her bookcases:

I always love the look (I think it makes everything pop) and her black color is super sexy. I think it just makes all the accessories more dramatic. (You can see my gray blue background on our bookcases here.)

You MUST go check out Tiffany’s new pantry. Must. It is fantastic:

Drawers people. Brilliant. I want drawers everywhere. (And there’s a little surprise on the sides.)

Bethany’s kitchen has been undergoing a redo and it looks SO good:

I especially love the detail they added to the island and I dig the blue color. (My island is light blue and I still love it.) Her before and after is pretty amazing, check it out here.

Man, I love a bright white kitchen, but I love contrast too. Julie’s black cabinets look so good, and she shares a GREAT, detailed tutorial on tiling your backsplash:

That choice of tile is perfect with the black cabs and stainless appliances. Love it.

Sometimes the simplest project make the biggest impact. Kammy took a regular rug and turned it up a notch with paint:

What a difference! Stripes make many things better. :)

Jaime’s mudroom underwent a little redo with paint and a few little details:

Again, it wasn’t a big reno, but little projects like paint and hooks that make the difference here. Love her door with the window too. You can check it all out here.

Andrea finished off her dining room with new chairs (that are lovely): 

But it’s that stenciled wall and wood starburst mirror that really stood out to me. Such a beautiful, well done space!

It’s always hard for me to pick just a few projects to highlight! If you’d like to be considered for next month’s round up, be sure to include a link to TDC in your post or add this button:

<div align="center"><a href="http://www.thriftydecorchick.blogspot.com/" title="TDC Before and After" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.homestoriesatoz.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/beforeAndAfterButton_thumb1.gif" alt="TDC Before and After" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

I have the pin it button installed but I ask that you pin from each respective site instead of mine if you want to save these projects.

Now it’s time to see what you’ve been up to lately! I hope to see some outdoor projects creeping in. :) I’m finally starting some of my own! It’s about dang time.

March before and after!

Good Monday to ya! We only got a few inches of snow this weekend instead of the up-to-14 that was predicted, so although the grass is covered once again, I’m OK with it. The sun is shining today and I think this was the last snow of the season.

I cannot WAIT to get outside working in the dirt again!

It’s time for another before and after shindig, and as always I was completely blown away by the projects linked up last month. I hope you enjoy these recaps – I for one love the thrill of finding a new blog to follow. :)

First up, my friend Myra knocked it out of the park with her gorgeous bathroom redo: 

SO pretty right? It makes me want to tear out our bathroom and start over.

I’m a sucker for the light walls in Myra’s bathroom but I am still so taken with a deep color too:

Tasha’s family room looks SO good. I loved all of her choices (especially that paint color!) and her cement fireplace look amazing, you must check it out here.

Lindsey made a space in the basement into a craft room and all the storage has me drooling:

There’s even a hidden door to get into this space. I have a thing for hidden doors/rooms – they are just the coolest.

Cristina shares another fantastic tutorial, this time for DIY pull out drawers:

Which is perfect timing because I’m planning to do this in our closet! 

Speaking of closets – they’ve been on my mind a lot lately. :) Sharon’s gorgeous master closet redo had me drooling:

Wow it looks so good! That stenciled back wall totally glams up the space. Love it!

Elisha knocked off a World Market coffee table that I’ve been eyeing for while:

The girl even welds! I’m totally impressed, it looks so good. And I love her blog name. :)

Brooke restained her oak banisters and the difference is so dramatic:

You’d be surprised to learn that there’s not a ton of sanding involved! She shares the whole how-to in the post.

So much talent, so little blog space. :) As always, please visit the respective sites to pin any of their images.

Now it’s time to see what you’ve been up to lately. If you’d like to be considered for next month’s recap, please link back to TDC in your post or include this button code in your post:

<div align="center"><a href="http://www.thriftydecorchick.blogspot.com/" title="TDC Before and After" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.homestoriesatoz.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/beforeAndAfterButton_thumb1.gif" alt="TDC Before and After" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Here you go!:

February Before and After!

Wow wow WOW, you all linked up so many AWESOME projects at the Before and After Party last month. I was seriously so inspired. It’s time for another party today, but first we need to look back at a few of those projects!

Roeshel knocked this out. of. the. park. – her wood and pipe industrial pantry is just so GOOD:

I love the walls, the rug, the lights (!) and of course the shelving. Just fantastic. See more of the transformation here.

I always have to share a kitchen redo, right? Leah’s kitchen turned out so beautifully:

And the changes were really fairly simple ones – paint and a backsplash are the biggies. Both of those made a big difference!

I’m pretty sure Tiffany’s guest room is now the prettiest I’ve ever seen:

I love that she went bold with the graphic wall – it works so well with the other green touches throughout the room. Just lovely. I’d stay over any night! :)

I know this fireplace has been a thorn in Jenny’s side and I’m so excited that she’s done and it turned out so well:

She installed that stone by herself, I’m so impressed! It looks like it should have always been there, love it.

Talk about impressed – Michelle shares their DIY farmhouse table plans here:

Love the white (chunky!) legs and that tabletop. So well done.

Here’s another gorgeous table – Jacqui sanded down the top of her old one to work with her new chairs and it all came together so beautifully:

Love that natural wood, it’s hot right now and I don’t see it going anywhere soon.

Hayley made some simple changes in her bathroom that made a HUGE difference:

You have to check out the before to see how far it’s come.

And finally, but certainly not least, Cheryl shared an absolutely gorgeous room makeover:

So many beautiful details, you have to go over to see it all. My favorites are the fireplace and the gorgeous dresser under the television. Love.

OK, beautiful, right? I’m in awe, as always! Now it’s time to see what you’ve been up to! If you’d like to be considered for next month’s round up, please link back or you can add this code to your post:

<div align="center"><a href="http://www.thriftydecorchick.blogspot.com/" title="TDC Before and After" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.homestoriesatoz.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/beforeAndAfterButton_thumb1.gif" alt="TDC Before and After" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Have fun!

November before and after!

Hello all! Have I got some pretty spaces for you today! It’s time to link up your before and afters, but first I have to share these beautiful spaces.

Oh by the way, the overwhelming majority of you wanted to keep this party as a monthly thing, so I will keep it as such, at least for now. I just know there’s SO many of these going any more and I didn’t know if they were still something you wanted to see every month here at TDC. You said yes so it will stay. :)

As I was looking through the links this month I was taken with how much COLOR is being used again and it makes me so happy. I love a beautiful neutral space, believe me, but I’m a color girl at heart for sure. Love these rooms!

First up, Beth used touches of coral in her guest room and it turned out so pretty and fresh:

I loved it paired with the light gray walls. I also love that she carved an office space out of this room too – and you’ll have to check out the bed! It makes me want to go stay for a week or so. :)

Amy used a pretty green color on the walls and then decorated with neutrals in her office:

LOVE the kitchen table as a desk!

OK, Vel’s kitchen isn’t super colorful, but I had to include it because I’m drooling over it:

You MUST to go see the before to truly appreciate it! Love it all.

We’ve talked about the power of a neutral wall before – I loved the color Sarah was able to add to this room with just pillows: A neutral wall sure does make it so easy to change up a room down the line. I’m trying to do this more and more in our house.

I thought Karianne’s kitchen redo was SO fun!:

AND it was done on a budget. Such a fun space!

Linda’s living room is painted in a deep navy blue and white, but still looks bright and pretty with tons of color:

I think blue is the new neutral – there’s very few colors that don’t look good with it, don’t you think?

And finally, at first glance Chelsea’s cute pantry may look like just another organizing project:

But you HAVE to go see the beautiful door they made for the pantry too. It is awesome!

Now it’s time for you to link up again! If you’d like to be considered for the recap next month I would love a link back or you can use my cute button:

<div align="center"><a href="http://www.thriftydecorchick.blogspot.com/" title="TDC Before and After" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.homestoriesatoz.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/beforeAndAfterButton_thumb1.gif" alt="TDC Before and After" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Have fun – I can’t wait to see what you’ve been up to!