Embracing Fall in the Kitchen Dining Area

I've been gone for a little while but when I returned I finally got out my fall deco stuff and started putting together the kitchen-dining area.  

Before I went away I cut some Limelight Hydrangeas and put them in these pitchers with water.  Eventually (5 days roughly) they stop drinking and the soft petals become papery.  When I got home they were dried out enough and I just tossed out the water and then arranged them in my container. 

I remembered seeing these olive buckets at Michael's so I grabbed one (50% off $6.99) and put some chicken wire down inside to help the hydrangeas stay in place.  I'm actually going to set this down on the left near the rooster but for now it's center stage!

On the plate rack wall I added some old and new pieces for fall and even a step towards Halloween.

The Water Color Black Plaid dishes are new from Pier 1.  I bought them a little while back and figured they will make a nice backdrop for accent plates.  I've had the Harvest Pumpkin Watercolor dishes from Pottery Barn for a few years and I believe they still sell them.  The maple leaf plates are from a set of 4 that I've had a while and the coffee mugs were also from Pottery Barn a couple of years back but again I think they still sell them.

A venture through Kohl's one afternoon landed me with this black and white checked runner. 

On our trip we traveled through Beckley, West Virginia and stopped at Tarmarck which has a collection of all sorts of items made by artisans from West Virginia.   I saw this hand woven Halloween Corn and decided to splurge on it.  There was a tag attached and you can see more of her things at www.jamitbaskets.com

This could also be hung on a door.

The étagère got emptied, dusted and decked out for fall too.  I changed the wall plates to the roosters to add more black and white.

The Farmer's Market tin is also from Michael's as well as the Happy Fall piece and the floral cluster from last year also came from there. The pumpkin came along a couple of years ago and is a Polish Pottery piece.  I can put a candle inside to light it up when I'm ready.  I set it on a inverted bowl for height and put a wreath at the base.  

I had the metal pumpkin and found the satin nickel painted basket in my stockpile and thought it would be a good pickup to the pumpkin.  I stuffed some faux berries and pumpkins inside.   I decided the copper wine bottle coaster needed something so I placed a little glass pumpkin on it.

So I've begun embracing fall starting here in the kitchen dining area!

Sorry I haven't visited many of your blogs lately but I'll get back in the swing of things now!

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Sunny September Mornings!

Sunny September Mornings are the best!

I buzzed outside early this m morning to capture a few sunny morning shots.  I pulled out the vining plants that were beneath these geraniums and it looks new all over again!  Geraniums like the cooler temps that we've been having too!

The zinnias are wonderful to look at!  These colors seem perfect for the fall season!

My phone camera had a hard time with the ultra bright sunlight on this zinnia-  it looks a bit cartoonish but it's real!

The celosia is really doing well.  The sun was hitting it perfectly and it looks a bit like a flame!

My fall wreath in contrast next to the summery basket of flowers!

The sun reaches through the trees spotlighting things.   The limelight hydrangeas are starting to turn pink and then they'll go brown but not for a little while longer.

These Bandana Red Lantana have been spectacular all summer!  No maintenance either!

This plant draws butterflies!

I have really enjoyed these nonstop Mocca orange begonias.  I definitely want to grow them again next year!

Again my phone camera struggled with the intensity of the sunlight on the flower- just gorgeous!

Behind our property it drops off along a big hill and goes into a large field that goes on quite a ways.  The sun is lighting everything but the woods surrounding us creates a canopy of shade.

There was a dew on everything since the evenings have been dropping into the mid 50's to low 60's at night.  The benches and stones are often wet so it's not always inviting to set out here this early.

These wax begonias did great- no maintenance other than water and some fertilizer.  Can't go wrong!

Another brief moment of sunshine was falling on these impatience.

This is the other side of it.  The foxtail ferns have all but disappeared into the menagerie of plants!

From the house I watch the sun dance across my hostas.

Thank you for visiting!

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Fall Welcome Wreath

2 years ago I put this Welcome Wreath together using an older wreath I had on hand as seen "here".

I came across this wreath at JoAnn's for half off ($20).  I liked the orange flowers which will catch the eye from a distance. This will be sandwiched between the storm and entry doors so I can't really add much.  

If you enjoy a more elaborate wreath you should check out the Halloween wreaths that Debbee from Debbee's Buzz created- she's really talented! "Here" is a link to it.

I de-wired the welcome part from the owl welcome sign on the other wreath and added it to this one.  The bright green just happened to go well with the some of the accent leaves on this new wreath.

I hung it on a nail that was already on the outside wall but I will transfer it to the entry door soon.  I got a new look for a low buck and I donated the older wreath with the owl.  Win- win!

I still have the wreath with the blue hydrangeas on the door for now as seen "here".

This is a link "here" to my "Autumn Woodland Wrapping" wreath I put together last year.  It has an adorable fox on it.

I guess I'm wreathed out for now!

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Sunflowers and Slow-Cooker Chicken

I've been lazy about posting things from my home lately.  I put this area together a couple of weeks ago.  I like to use sunflowers as decorating with the late summer to fall transition.

I found this chicken on markdown at Pier 1.  Had my eye on it and decided to go for it. 

I kept the blue and white plates up and added these new red dishes with sunflowers.  I re-used my metal cylinder for some faux sunflowers.  

I have some very large white dishes from the same manufacturer that I've used in the past.  I fell for these red ones and ordered them on Amazon.  If I can I like to do something different each year.  The little chicken wire candle votives are old- from Pottery Barn quite a few years back.  I had slipped a pieces of a sunflower in the bottom of them and there they've stayed!

The corrugated tin cylinder was from Pottery Barn 1 or 2 years ago.  I added the burlap and twine to give it a little more substance. 

I found this cute checked planter with sunflowers on clearance at Pier 1 a little while back.  

I need to do a tablescape and use this!

I could have sold that white rooster about 20 times now.  Each year some contacts me through my blog about wanting to buy it.  I found it at Cracker Barrel back in 2013.

I'm not quite ready to warm up to the fall tones completely but it won't be long!

I made a dinner using the crockpot on Sunday and my first Apple pie this year!

I can definitely recommend the recipe and here is the link:

Slow Cooker Balsamic Honey-Glazed Chicken and Vegetables

"link"

My images aren't as perfect as theirs but it was as delicious as I hoped!

I used 6 chicken thighs instead of 4 and increased the vinegar and honey a tad because I also had more potatoes and carrots in the pot.

I made it just as they said and we loved it.  The recipe calls for pouring the liquid into the pan and reducing it which I did but it didn't thicken up much.  Either way it was a nice Sunday meal!

I used one of those plastic molds to press on the pie dough. 

Thinking of the "Big Apple" today and remember 9/11.

God Bless all those who perished and those who came to their rescue.

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