Christmas Dollhouse and Purple Poinsettias and the perfect Nite Cap

The French Dollhouse has become a Christmas centerpiece since it moved

to the antique table in the living room. I stuffed it with twinkle lights and its

been the most amazing and cheerful thing to have greet us each dark wintery morning.

A dollhouse tour was a big hit on my Instagram page, and its 

available under my highlights if you want to see the interior.

This year we don't have a full size tree, as our spaces are stuffed to the gills waiting on the lake house to be built and delivered next spring. Its like having two pounds of chocolates in a one pound box, all the wonderful antiques and new additions slated for New Hampshire added to our existing things.  So the wrapped gifts are shoved them under the table to be opened by our small family pod of 4 on Christmas morning, this dreary and downsized Covid year.  

All is merry and bright, well it is calm for sure. 

 The quiet Christmas spirit is alive and well and each morning hubs and I 

gather in this room with our coffee and the twinkling lights and the pups by the fire.  

Why this dollhouse all dressed and lit for Christmas may become a new tradition.

Its a magical touch with a nod to the best of childhood Christmases.

In the dining room, where purple transferware reigns, I always try to hunt down the elusive purple poinsettia.  And there has only been one place I have ever found them....at Lowes!

Set in a punch bowl, this purple painted and glittered poinsettia is the perfect Christmas decoration,

along with a few glittery purple snowflakes I found at Walmart one year with Reeve.

A bit of greenery and a dash of snowflake...

One fun new thing~hubs purchased this 12 Days of Christmas collection from Crown Royal. 

 Each day you open up a door and out pops a unique flavor of whiskey.  

We aren't even whiskey drinkers, so I was surprised to see him bring this home, but it

has been great fun to split a tiny crown bottle each night until Christmas!

My favorite is the Salted Caramel, and hubs likes the Vanilla. 

There are six flavors in all.

And the perfect glassware is from this glorious antique Tantalus set bought at auction last year.

It is French and fancy, just how I like things! 

 So it adds a bit of fun in this not as much fun year.

Wishing you and yours a safe and happy New Year,

and along the way figure out a few things to add a bit of JOY.

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Easter family fun and my Estate Sale begins

 In just one week Spring has officially sprung.

The cherry tree in the front yard that hubs and I planted when we moved

in to this house 12 years ago is in full bloom and so beautiful!

 Tulips are popping up and the trees are just beginning to leaf 

out to provide privacy in our back and side yards.

Last Sunday we had all the "kids" over for Easter dinner and a new tradition that

we started two years ago:  The big kid Easter egg hunt!  It is a money hunt, where

the plastic eggs are filled with mostly one dollar bills, a couple of fives, tens and twenties.

However there is one golden egg, and that holds the grand prize of a hundred dollar bill!

This year Reeve's mom, Madison, won the grand prize!

The "kids" have to search our back yard carrying baskets of course, to find the eggs.

It is so much fun for me and Mr. Maison Decor to watch them scurrying around, and 

 Reeve watched along with us, quite confused about what was happening.

Next was Reeve's egg hunt, with eggs scattered in plain

site across my mother in laws green flat lawn (she lives next doors).

I filled her eggs with raisins and Teddy Grahams.

Reeve wasn't quite sure what this was about either, which

explains the perplexed facial expression. She had all of us following

behind her filming her, so it was much like a paparazzi moment, as her

mom and I coaxed her to pick up the eggs.

Building our family traditions continues, and I can't say enough

of how much I love doing things like this together as a family.

 She is the first of my grandchildren and I hope one day I will 

have many many more!

 There was egg dying too, which she thoroughly enjoyed.

Our menu included a ham and roast chicken along with all the trimmings and

topped off with one big decadent coconut cake!! OMG, so delicious.

I didn't gain one pound either, and I have to say I am quite pleased about that!

I only wish I had taken pictures of the dinner and all of us eating, but I forgot

all about it after starting to set up the table for a buffet style meal as we had a crew.

In other news around here, I have decided to start selling off some of my collections of vintage and antique belongings that I have gathered up over the years.  Two weeks ago I made an announcement that I would start to sell off things on Instagram. (I figure I have about a good year before we get serious about moving to the lake house we hope to build one day. ) I sold this big set of purple transfer ware to one of my Instagram followers, and she was thrilled to begin her collection in a BIG way!! I still have purple transfer ware (many have been asking) but I have amassed a collection to big to use at the lake house when we move.

 Next, two of my friends from bogland and Instagram drove all the way from North Carolina and 

New Jersey to shop my house!  Shirley, from Houspitality Designs, and Mary Alice, from Rare Corners, arrived at 5 pm and shopped for three hours!  It was a fun and memorable time, and both gals took home some of my treasures. ( I will plan on having a courtyard estate sale in May or June for local peeps who may be interested.  Please leave me your email address in comments or email me and I can notify you if you want to attend.)

 The next morning  Shirley and Mary Alice loaded their van and hit the road, 

carrying with them my gustavian bench, my Swedish chair, 

and a bunch of other things including some purple transferware!!

Hubs and I posed for a portrait the night before, with Piper and Sylvia in the courtyard.  

The corbels also ended up finding a new home from another follower of mine on Instagram, 

as well as the pink door seen behind Mr. Maison Decor.  This is just the beginning of my sell off,

and if you want to see more of when I will be selling follow me on Instagram @amymaisondecor

and you can purchase things that I can ship in the continental US.  

PS. A lot of folks will open an Instagram account to follow designers or people who inspire them, and they don't post their own pics, so if you want to open an account, and you don't want to post photos, you can certainly do that. 

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A PunchBowl Centerpiece for Thanksgiving

 This Thanksgiving will bring one new family member to sit at the big table. 

 Its Reeve, my year and half  old granddaughter. 

This is her place setting ~ a smaller sized  dinner plate with roses and a mountain scene,

 along with some baby silverware.  I am so excited to have her join us

 and can imagine the years ahead with her, with her as my little helper one day.

 Setting the table for big dinner parties is always a lot of fun, and this year I grouped all

the fabric pumpkins in my big silver punch bowl from Brimfield for an easy centerpiece.  

A couple of years ago I made a bunch of purple velvet pumpkins, one from needlepoint and checkered fabric and even a toile pumpkin too.  Along the way I found some inexpensive velvet pumpkins from various stores and together they make a pretty centerpiece.  

When the turkey comes out, it is easily whisked away to another spot. 

 Little bouquets of fall flowers dot the table in the silver baby cups I collect. 

It couldn't be easier!

 And of course my table is littered with purple transfer ware, 

including a "new" old gravy bowl with a double spout that I found last year.

 I was lucky to find a bunch of silver-plate napkin rings at a thrift shop when I 

went to Connecticut for the Nora Murphy book party.  They hold the big French napkins

nicely.  Even Reeve will have her own gigantic napkin.

The big turkey platter is the star of the show on this day, of course!

These are quite rare, even more so in purple.  I got mine from the biggest 

trnasferware dealer in possibly the world, Nancy Roberts.

Her website is Nancy's Daily Dish, just in case you are looking...

it could make a nice Christmas gift to yourself, haha!

 If you have a punchbowl, think of the possibilities 

it has for any holiday or party centerpiece.  

Holding a plant such as an ivy topiary or a big poinsettia, 

it may be just the thing you need for your next holiday party.

Wishing you and yours a Happy Thanksgiving! 

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Purple Transferware Lamps

Hello hello hello!  

Happy to be back in blog land after a nice respite. A happy holiday season is in the books for 2017.  Unlike many bloggers, I try to blog only when feeling inspired about something I want to write about it.  Bleak weather is certainly uninspiring, and many of us in New England have learned the art of hunkering down for a few months.  Hibernation? Yes, it feels like that, especially in January after the Christmas tree and the twinkling lights are all packed away.  With a stretch of winter ahead of us, I tend to get into cooking, and reading, and more quiet pursuits that don't involve leaving my nest.  Decorating takes a back seat to everything, but recently I got a tip from a friend about a pair of lamps that were up for auction on an online site. Purple transferware lamps to be exact.  While my collection of purple transferware has bordered on an obsession, I have come to a place where I only want to collect the rarer and more special pieces of transferware.  

A pair of lamps in purple transferware?  I had never seen such a thing,

and so I was definitely interested. Bidding  on the Everything But the House website 

was a first for me.  As you can see, I prevailed and the pair of lamps arrived well

packed and in fabulous condition.  They are a pattern match to some of the transferware I 

own, a pattern called Tonquin, by Royal Staffordshire designed by the artist Clarice Cliff.

They set on reticulated brass bases with brass finials.  A pair of lampshades were 

purchased at the local big box store in a silvery grey, to complement my home.

Not sure where they will end up going, but for now I have them in the 

living room on either end table next to the sofa.  Winter is also a good time

to think of what to do for the spring and summer, and its also a good time to

get indoor projects done.  Of course I am babysitting my darling little Reeve several

days a week, so that helps the winter fly by as well.  But as far as projects go,

my darling dog Piper decided to dig her claws into the arm of the sofa slipcover

and so a new slipcover is in order.  Winter is a good time to get a sizable sewing 

project finished before the good weather beckons.

Of course my dogs have dog beds and kennels, but when my back is 

turned they think its great fun to race in circles around the big trunk

coffee table, up onto the sofa, then spring off onto the carpet and round 

again they go.   Hence a torn slipcover.  I made it twelve years ago, and it

has stood the test of time and many launderings....but it couldn't withstand 

a girl dog named Piper. 

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