Family Craft Boutique

Country homes are some of the simplest to decorate, in part because they lend themselves well to a mix-and-match style of design. This might not be the case with a townhouse or city apartment, where one might expect to see a uniform theme running through the place. To gather ideas for redesigning the interior of your country home, crack open a few homemaking magazines – Better Homes and Gardens is a safe bet that will probably be available at the local library.

Don’t be intimidated by the idea of redesigning your rooms from scratch – you most likely won’t need to. Some of the best primitive home décor is inspired by pre-existing elements in the house. If you find some old antiques lying around, make a few trips to local thrift stores to try to find complements. Family heirlooms – such as old portraits and furniture – provide excellent center pieces; you can design entire rooms around them.

Designing a space can be an intimidating endeavor, but it doesn’t have to be. With the right blend of creativity and ingenuity, anyone can come up with a winning combination of design elements. The most effective interior design work involves thoughtful selection, not grandiose spending.

If you’re shooting for a warm, rustic quality in a room, try exploring primitive home decor. This school of design calls for a mix of antiques and other familiar household items. Without much effort or cost, it’s possible to put together a cohesive design that truly ties a room together. Start by taking a look at what’s lying around the room, then shop to match that theme.

Because they don’t technically have any structural purpose, a barn star can be understood as a decorative object used to enhance the look of a barn. As the name would suggest, barn stars typically come in the form of five-pointed stars. Sometimes, however, these products come in the shape of a wagon wheel or other figure, and it is technically still known as a “barn star.”

Historically, they are most popular among German-American families, but as they are becoming increasingly popular, they are cropping up on many different farms and in many different communities. Often, these barn stars are considered lucky, and in this way, they are roughly equivalent to a horseshoe. Around for many years, they were particularly popular during the Civil War. In modern times, these decorations are often intentionally rusted or distressed to look older than they actually are.

Halloween is more a holiday for the children than it is adults, and when it comes to decorating the home for Halloween, it’s best to involve the kids.  Instead of parents decorating the home, have the kids do it.  You might even think about letting them make a haunted house in the basement or garage.  There are all kinds of creative ways to have children involved in Halloween.  For example, with the amount of leaves on the ground during the fall, chances are there’s a few that need raking up in the yard.  Purchase the Halloween style pumpkin bags and have kids fill them with leaves from the yard, then place them on the porch.  Let the kids decorate the exterior of the home too on Halloween; it’s a great activity that will foster their creativity and their love of the holiday. 

Make it a point to purchase a couple new Halloween ornaments every year; it doesn’t have to be an expensive purchase, but just something fun that the kids will enjoy.  With a little practice, kids might even want to help more around the house on other holidays. 

Well, I was all excited this week, as it is spring break from school and I had taken over 100 pictures of scrapbook paper to upload to the website. Then, Thursday and Friday of last week the wind blew like crazy at our house.

So, today I called the internet people and they said my satellite was not showing up. So, my loving husband climbed on the roof in the 26 degree weather and heavy wind and found that my internet hookup had blown over, ripping out part of the roof with it!

Luckily for me, although he wasn’t happy about it, he fixed it for me and I have been able to start uploading a very small taste of our scrapbook paper selection. I should have about 130 uploaded by late this evening and I plan on adding at least 100 more each day this week. Yeah!

So be sure to check out our new section to see what new papers we have uploaded!

http://www.afamilyaffaircraftboutique.com/store/WsDefault.asp?iNew=New

I will keep working hard to get all of our scrapbook supplies uploaded before the baby comes- the due date is June 7th.

Melissa

 In the West, style décor is inspired by the rustic, the natural and the rugged.  Influences of American art are evident.  Primitive country décor sits well with this style.  It evokes warmth and casual living closely associated with hospitality and friendliness.  Wood is the material of choice in these decorations.  They may be handcrafted or produced with the help of machines but always they adhere to the natural look.

Many of today’s homes embrace the style of primitive country décor.  These are homes of people who want to connect to the beauty of the great outdoors.  An old bench positioned in the garden is inviting.  Fine antiques are used to adorn distressed open cabinets. Candles and potpourri as well as table runners and window treatments are personal expressions of style.
 

One of my favorite blogs! Check it out.

http://antiqueornot.blogspot.com 

What you need:

paint roller with cardboard center

black buttons/beads for eyes, buttons down front

wooden plug

buttons, lace, wings, to decorate as you wish

To make:

cut paint roller to desired length

paint wooden plug in desired color

hot glue halo, wings, buttons etc.

makes a great ornament or tree topper

Fall is one of the most beautiful seasons for me. I love it when the leaves turn rustic brown and carpet the streets. I also love the colors of pumpkin stands that line the roadsides in our areas. The climate is also agreeable.

That is why I decided to bring fall into our house. We hired an interior designer to include a fall home décor theme to our current interior look, which she executed perfectly. I now find our home to be beautiful and relaxing.  Friends who come over are impressed with our home’s refurbished look.

The Christmas season is a festive time that most people look forward too. Each year many families drag out heavy boxes stuffed with Christmas decorations. Though people usually save their decorations to use year after year; many struggle over whether to purchase a real tree or a fake tree.

These days it’s important to be environmentally conscious. One may wonder whether that fake tree in their Christmas home décor is better than a real pine tree. But there are downsides to both types of trees.

Many of the “needles” on the fake trees are made of polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, which is a major source of dioxins. Even worse, PVC is often stabilized with lead, which can pollute your home as the fake tree ages.