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Summer is the time for shells, beach cottages and all things surf and sand! I pour over magazines who's beach homes are graced with views of bright blue water and white sandy beaches.
Homes filled with bleached linens, outdoor showers and lots of beachy elements! Things that are swoon worthy... but do not work with my Lancaster County home!
Determined not to miss out on the summery feel of beach life, I am upscaling shells to make them feel at home in my family room decor...
To make this work in my traditional farmhouse inspired home, I chose just a couple of beach elements... shells and rope knots... and contained them to one area of my family room... the coffee table.
I also kept a very tight color palette which helps tie the vignette together. These colors would be found at the beach... sand beige... blue...white... and soft textural browns.
Mixing just a wee bit of coastal detail with decor elements that are authentic to my family room gives them an upscale and not contrived or out of place look. There is no way I can pull off a full blown beach look in the middle of bucolic farmland!
Shells, starfish and sand dollars fill a blue willow bowl that is set on a complimentary saucer. The shapes, texture and color of the shells looks so pretty in this very traditional bowl and give the shells a more upscale feel.
This big flat-bottomed basket has great texture and works well to hold the books that work as a riser for the bowl full of shells and little blue pitcher.
If you look carefully in the picture above... the top book is one I published of our vacation in Bar Harbor last summer. I like MY PUBLISHER to make books. It is a bit addictive!
Big rope knots in blue and white continue the beachy theme.
A big glass bowl on a wrought iron stand holds assorted white shells. A white candle is nestled in the middle to bring a soft glow to the arrangement.
This vignette bring a little bit of the beach to my family room!
Don't forget TUTORIALS TIPS AND TIDBITS goes live Wednesday evening at 8::00! Bring your great ideas, tutorials, and things you want to show off!
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WOW US WEDNESDAY at Savvy Southern Style
MAKE IT PRETTY MONDAY at The Dedicated House
OPEN HOUSE PARTY at No Minimalist Here
HOME SWEET HOME at Charm Of Home
ALL ABOUT COLOR at Thistlewood Farm
Looks beautiful...and of course my favorite color palette. You just can't go wrong with that color scheme.
ReplyDeleteLove all the blue and white accents and the shells remind me of my hometown on the beach in Florida! Beautiful post!
ReplyDeleteMiss Bloomers
Beautiful Yvonne...and I love your coffe table. Your book...the title..Bar Harbor Aug 2011. Can I find it at B&N?
ReplyDeleteYvonne,
ReplyDeleteBeautiful! Blue & white are Traditional hues and so c o o l for Summer!
Looks great with your family room, dear friend!
Fondly,
Pat
I do love blue and white, yet when I moved here I have not a drop! I miss it though. I am happy to see that you are published! You really have so much to share with us.
ReplyDeletePerhaps in the fall, maybe early November, we can plan a PA blogger tea at the Talking Teacup in Chalfont, PA? Not a confernece just a little get together to chat and laugh. We can also visit the lavender farm. I would be happy to make reservations. You can email me any time. xo
Looks fabulous, I love the arrangement!
ReplyDeleteBig hugs from the hot, sunny summer of Italy! :)
Very pretty. I love the soothing blues. Have a wonderful week!
ReplyDeleteThis looks so pretty and perfect for your LOVELY family room! I also love the blue and white pillow I see on the sofa! All of my shells are PACKED:(:( I ALMOST kept them out to use but decided not to. I miss them!! Hope to see you soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! XOXO, Pinky
ReplyDeleteClearly you have the shells traditionally displayed just right Yvonne. Me, I go overboard. Every time with shells.
ReplyDeleteLooks very pretty! Love the soothing colors:@)
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely vignette!
ReplyDeleteLovely photos! Blue is a wonderful color..
ReplyDeleteJust perfect. I live in Florida surrounded by beach and I don't have a stitch of shells anywhere. I might need to change that. Your setting is gorgeous as usual and I love visiting your blog.
ReplyDeleteHave a great night.
Tammy
Just Gorgeous..you hit just the right amount with the perfect colors!
ReplyDeleteI would love to do that right now but babysitting my toddler grand-daughter means my coffee table is mostly bare!
Thanks for the beautiful views!
Cindy
I love it! Everyone needs a little bit of the beach in the summer time!
ReplyDeleteComment Test
ReplyDeleteLovely.. I need to add more shells and such.. Thanks for the inspiration..
ReplyDeleteYvonne, beautiful and just the perfect summer touch! I added a few shells in myself this summer just thinking of those shells I would have brought back from the beach as a child. Gorgeous touch:-) We have been enjoying our version of the iced tea recipe you posted a couple years ago. We drink so much of it in the summer, I have to make it every day!
ReplyDeleteJust beautiful, Yvonne. I love blue and white anyway and with the added touch of the shells, just gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful vignette Yvonne! I love the shells in that pretty blue and white bowl!
ReplyDeleteWow! I'm totally relaxed after looking through all these beautiful pictures! I love the blue and white with touches of shells! XO, Aimee
ReplyDeleteI just love every single thing about this vignette you've created Yvonne! It truly does have such an elegant and upscale feel to it while still being relaxed and
ReplyDeletebeach-y. You have such a gift for putting things together and making them look like something out of a magazine!
Vanessa
P.S. Thanks for the sweet comment about my Coral Topiary and I will definitely be sharing it at your party this week!
Vanessa
Yvonne, thank you for sharing this. I often like to bring a bit of the natural seashore into our home for the summer, but like you don't want it to appear as if I'm going for a beach house look. I like the use of the Blue Willow for the seashells. I think I'll try that suggestion with my group of Nantucket Lighthouse baskets that I like to use on the sun porch in the summer. Also love the knots. Do you have a source for these? ~ Sarah
ReplyDeleteHi Sara, I got the knots a couple of years ago at Christmas Tree Hill. Look on line!
DeleteJust beautiful! Lovely photos! Thank you for sharing. Visiting from Savvy Southern Style. Would love it if you would share this at my Make it Pretty Monday party at The Dedicated House. http://thededicatedhouse.blogspot.com/2012/07/make-it-pretty-monday-week-5.html Wishing you a grand week. Toodles, Kathryn @TheDedicatedHouse
ReplyDeleteBeautiful job Yvonne. I love the blues and beach theme. I am not near the beach but just purchased a few beachy elements for the table but haven't shared them yet.
ReplyDeleteSo pretty, Yvonne. Your creativity is always spot on. Love the blue willow with the shells. You have just the right touch of the beach which I also love.
ReplyDeleteJust Beautiful, I'm a fan of anything blue and white...and I love sea shells...it looks very inviting...Janice
ReplyDeleteI found your blog recently via pinterest, I've added it to my daily reads.
ReplyDeleteI grew up near the beach on the west coast so I always use shells in my summer decorating even though I too am stuck in the middle of farm land in PA. (On the western side of the state)
Love! I have been wanting to incorporate shells in decor for the last 1/2 of summer since our return from vacation, but have blue and white decor, so didn't know how that would look, but now I know it will be awesome -thanks for the inspiration!! Jennifer
ReplyDeleteHow pretty and restful! I love how you've made those beachy things your own! Great job! Ana
ReplyDeleteLove how you added the perfect amount of beautiful shells and beach elements to your home...You have the magic touch!
ReplyDeleteHi Yvonne, I love the coastal touches you added to your home. Everything is beautiful! Thanks for joining the Open House Party this week.
ReplyDeleteYvonne, this is just gorgeous! I used to work as an interior designer at a shop with a real coastal/beachy/old meets new feel... this could have been one of our vignettes! It is so inviting and breathtaking. You have done an amazing job!
ReplyDeleteAs soon as I saw the Blue Willow I knew I was going to love your coastal touches. You have such a great way of styling things but not having them look styled. Your home is elegant but comfortable...my two favorite things.
ReplyDeleteThis is so pretty, Yvonne--I particularly like the blue and white bowl and saucer you chose for holding your seashells--lovely!
ReplyDeleteI absolutely LOVE this vignette!!! I hope you don't mind if I pin this onto my board in Pinterest. I'd love to copy this set-up someday, when I move to a lake cottage!! It's really cool that you decorated in beach decor, even though you aren't near the beach. I live in Indiana and realize that pulling that off isn't easy. Thanks for sharing this!!
ReplyDeleteAnn @ http://cairncottage.blogspot.com/
Thank you so much for sharing this at my Make it Pretty Monday party at The Dedicated House. Hope to see your prettiness again on Monday. Wishing you a grand weekend. Toodles, Kathryn @TheDedicatedHouse
ReplyDeleteIt's so nice to see that farmhouse and beach can work together! I love both and you've got the mix exactly right.
ReplyDeleteBravo, Yvonne. I love this idea of "upscaling". What a wonderful way to add a touch of a different style!
ReplyDeleteAll the blue is calming and beautiful! All the texture makes it even more wonderful! We'd love to have you link it up at our "Home is Where the Heart is" Link Party!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.homesteadsimple.com/home-is-where-the-heart-is-link-it-up-wednesdays-2/
Just beautiful beachy touches Yvonne! I will feature this today! I just wrote down your Wed. party. That is the perfect day for me to do a post like that. Thank you for joining me at Home Sweet Home!
ReplyDeleteSherry
So pretty :-) I love how you've incorporated a touch of the beach into your non-beach home. Just because you can't see the ocean from your living room, doesn't mean you can't bring a bit of the ocean into your living room :-) The colours are perfect, and adding the book you made to the vignette is such a nice personal touch. I'm planning to make a beach-inspired book with pictures that I've taken in PEI and Nova Scotia and incorporating coastal quotes and sayings.
ReplyDeleteI LIVE on the beach and believe every room would benefit from a beachy item ... I think it just feels like vacation! Your use of them is so perfect. Thank you so much for linking up. :)
ReplyDeleteI'm with you - if we can't be at the beach we can at least decorate like we are!! Love your shell collection - looks great with the blue & white!
ReplyDeleteSo glad you joined our Color party!
Kelly