Adding Romance to a Room

Hello everyone!

I recently moved this statue out of my powder room and into my family room next to the fireplace.  I love the romantic style of it and with it being grey (cement) it coordinates perfectly. 

Did you know this thing is solid cement?  It is SUPER heavy!  That's probably why, when I move it somewhere, it stays for a very long time.

I bought it years ago at an antique store that is only open once a month and various vendors set up for it.  So, it was a great score!   I got the crown from Decor Steals and it fits perfectly on her head.

She has been everywhere throughout my home,  from the master bathroom and powder room, to my front steps outside.  But for now, I think I'm enjoying her in my family room for awhile.

I hope you have fun plans for the weekend ahead.  We may try to go to a movie tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping by.

~ Dian Mayasari ~

Share Your Style Party #28

Hello everyone!

Welcome to the 28th week of Share Your Style.  This week, Lynn from The Vintage Nest is your host.  I hope you will take a look at some of the great features she's sharing from those of you that linked up last week.  I'm looking forward to seeing more inspiration this week!

My name is Lynn and I am the author of the blog, The Vintage Nest, and today I am your host for the
 Share Your Style party

 Welcome! ~~~~~  Share your link on one blog and it will also be on seven others....great exposure for your blog and inspiration.   We love that you are here and delight in all that you SHARE with us.   We hope that you will visit other blogger post.  You may find a new recipe that you just have to try, a new bloggy friend,  a project to do this week, or inspiration for an Autumn vignette.  And please add a link back to the party on your post.  :)

This week on a blog post I explained a little bit about pickling, white washing or liming furniture.  I took you thru the process that I use on a vintage pine cabinet.  I hope you will check out the post here.

As always, it's terribly hard to pick out just a few features for you.  I spent hours looking at all the beautiful posts.  Here are a few that really caught my eye.  Enjoy and if you were featured please grab the button below to post on your blog.  :)
FEATURES
On the blog Bringing French Country Home, Pat shares some late summer blooms  in her garden.   My garden is waning right now, especially with no rain lately, and I enjoyed her post and beautiful photos so much.  Thank you Pat.

Is this the cutest vignette ever??  Michelle of Dandelion Patina, shared how she made a lounger out of hay bales.  How charming for your front porch for Fall, right up on to Thanksgiving.  Thank you Michelle for this charming inspiration.

Sarah gave us the basics of canning.  With summer's bounty coming in in full swing right now, I loved that she shared her knowledge with us.  It's so healthy for you!  Not to mention so pretty sitting on the shelves in your kitchen.  You can find her post on her blog  Must Have Mom.

LZ of Summery Umbrella, shows us how to make the cutest branch ladder.  Perfect for an Autumn  vignette on your front porch or yard, on a screen porch holding some throws for those chilly nights or just as she shows,  which family photos.  It's so cute LZ.

And Briana of the Bargain Briana blog, shared with us how to make this adorable crayon wreath.  Now, wouldn't your kids think you are the best Mom on the block with this on the front door for the first week of school or on a school teacher's class room door?  Thank you Briana for this delightful project.

An InLinkz Link-up

What To Do When Your Orchid Has No Flowers

Hello everyone!

I hope you're having a nice Monday so far.  After a long week of rain here, it is nice to see the sun shining once again.  My allergies are starting to improve too.  I think I will continue to take my Zyrtek throughout the Fall months so it will not come back.  It seems to be helping.  

Do you love orchids as much as I do?  I have had good luck growing them (somehow).  I am not an orchid specialist but what I do know about them is that they will only flower part of the year.  So don't think they're dead if they stop flowering!  When your orchid looks like this it's still alive but not   too pretty though.

source

So rather than wait several months for it to re-flower, I just bought a fake orchid stem from Walmart (yes Walmart) and attached it to the stem that would normally have flowers.  You can also attach it to the stake that comes with all orchids to hold up the flower stems.  Just use the little clips that they have to attach it.

And voila!  

No one will ever know it isn't the real thing.

Just bend the stem to be droopy the way that live orchids are.

The real leaves keep it from looking fake.   Be sure to continue watering it every week too. I use a tiny cup that came with mine to help with the proper measurement of water.

Another fun thing to do is pick out a different color of flower than what yours naturally has.  That way you'll have 2 orchids for the price of one!  Part of the year this one is white and part of the year it's fuchsia.

Don't be afraid of real orchids.  They're not super expensive either, so if they do die, it's not a huge waste of money.

Thanks for stopping by!

~ Dian Mayasari ~

Decorating with French Style Accessories

Hello Everyone!

Or rather, should I say, Bonjour!

That's about all the French I know.  I chose Spanish over French in school, so I'm not going to be able to write a true "French" post!  However................

I love French style decor.  So, when I found these pretty accessories in the store, La Bella Maison, I knew I had to bring them home.  One of my favorites, is this pretty candle holder. It looks just like a small crown.

I love the stars on top and the flowers on the bottom.  It came with a glass container to hold a candle.  Doesn't it look pretty lit up at night?

I love how it casts shadows of the stars on the wall.

I placed it on top of my fireplace mantel for now.

Do you notice the sacred heart on there too?  I got that at Antique Farmhouse.  It coordinates perfectly with the crown candle holder.

The other item I got at La Bella Maison is this clock.  (If you haven't already noticed, I have a thing for clocks.)

I like how it is placed on a stake.  It's very different.  It has a battery pack on the back so it really works!

I placed it on my painted chest in the sitting room.

So, that is my "show and tell" for today.  Remember that from school?  

Do you like French style accessories too?  

I hope you all have a great weekend.  My ragweed  allergies are giving me fits right now.  I'm taking Zyrtek which is helping. Luckily, we've been getting a lot of rain so I hope that washes some of it away too. So, I will battling that all weekend I'm sure!

Thanks for stopping by!

~ Dian Mayasari ~

Share Your Style Party #27

Hello everyone!

Welcome to Share Your Style!  Are you ready to show us what you've been up to lately?  I can't wait to see!  This week, Rosemary from 21 Rosemary Lane is your host.

Hi Everyone and welcome to another fabulous Share Your Style Par-tay!!! 

It's me Barbara from the blog 21 Rosemary Lane, and I am your host for this week's jamming party.  Wow can you believe that the summer is almost over? Gee whiz it went by fast didn't it? Well before we get this party started let me share with you some of what I have shared here this month at 21 Rosemary Lane.

After I returned from helping my parents pack up their Florida home to move north, I posted their gorgeous bridal Edelstein Bavarian China set my mother so sweetly gifted to me. We are also in the throws of Updating our Screened-in Patio so I shared phase one of this process. And if you like loaded potato skins or just loaded potatoes, stop by to check out this wonderful recipe on how to make A Very Loaded Potato Salad. Finally I shared our new Guest Bedroom's Summer Linens. 

I'd like to invite you all to stop by sometime and visit me over on 21 Rosemary Lane. 

There was another ginormous turnout for last week's party so thanks to all who came by to link up!

Alrighty then, without letting another second go by here are 

First up is this absolutely stunning kitchen transformation from the beautiful blog Edith & Evelyn Vintage. See how a tired 1970's kitchen was dramatically taken 40 years into the future. It is truly amazing!

OK this post caught my eye because I have to be the Queen of used candles. I must have at least a dozen and a half sitting around the house that I just couldn't bring myself to throw away. Barb from Sparkles in the Everyday linked up this wonderfully detailed tutorial on just what to do with them!

And yes I am getting geared up for my favorite time of the year, Autumn. This link from Still Woods Farmhouse is filled with beautifully unique ways to adorn your door for this most nostalgic and colorful season.

Barb from The Everyday Home put together 10 wonderful tips for organizing your laundry room. Thank you Barb!

The blog Anne's Entitled Life shared a yummy Sidecar Cocktail Recipe. The last time I had this classic drink had to be years ago so I plan to give this recipe a whirl!

And finally Sally from Cottage Fix shared her struggle with selecting curtains for her pretty blue family room. I think she hit a home run with this lovely lace and toile combination.

If your style was featured please be sure to take along our cute button to put on your sidebar before you leave!

 Remember when you share here at Share Your Style, your link will be seen on 8 different blogs!

Sherry @ No Minimalist Here
Debra @ Common Ground 

Barbara @ 21 Rosemary Lane

Lynn @ The Vintage Nest 

Dian Mayasari @ Dian Mayasari Style 

Martina @ Northern Nesting

Ron @ Uptown Acorn 

Amanda @ Dixie Delights

An InLinkz Link-up

Shopping at La Bella Maison

Hello everyone!

While my husband was away on a guys camping trip over the weekend, I took advantage of some shopping.  That is standard protocol isn't it?!  I took some pictures to share with you so you could see how pretty this store was.  This store had everything in it that I love.  Check it out!

Are you swooning yet?  

Lots of french style furnishings and accessories.  A little bit of farmhouse thrown in too.  This is one of those small town shops that is privately owned and really gets to know it's customers.  This is my favorite kind of store!  

Be sure to check back in with me later in the week and I'll share what I got there.

Thanks for stopping by.

~ Dian Mayasari ~

What Browsing in a Store Can Lead To

Hello everyone!

The other day, I stumbled upon these pretty draperies in a soft grey and white pattern.  As soon as I saw them I instantly thought of my kitchen.  I have a lot of white in there with some grey accents.  So, I thought these draperies would be another way to bring in some grey along with a soft pattern.

These draperies were already lined too.  So, that was a bonus!

Another change I made was bringing a lamp back in here on the counter top.

Since I don't have pendant lighting over this peninsula, this lamp adds some much needed light.  I seem to change my mind about this alot, but in the end, I think the lamp wins!

Now that the weekend is here, what do you have planned?  Anything fun?  

Thanks for stopping by!

~ Dian Mayasari ~