HOW TO RESIZE OLD CHIPPY SHUTTERS

I love the Rustic Luxe look!  So when I saw a pair of grungy, chippy, wet, snow coverd shutters on a recent antiquing outing I knew that they were destined to live in my dining room!

There was one little problem.... they were way to big to go on either side of the gilded mirror!

But that was really no problem at all! Here's how to cut a shutter down and resize it to almost any length...

CHIPPY SHUTTERS IN THE DINING ROOM

The dining room at StoneGable has been one big DIY project! From the hardwood floors to the homemade curtains to the  painted chairs and buffet!

Our newest DIY addition are the white, chippy shutters we sized to fit on either side of the mirror...

THE SCOOP # 107

Hello, StoneGable Friends!

Welcome to

THE SCOOP #107

Exciting news for next week!

Not only will you be able to participate in The Scoop but you can also show off your best Spring posts at our Mega Spring Linky Party going on at the same time!

The Scoop girls want this to be a linky party full of mega inspiration...

THE WHITE CUPBOARD

Each season I like to change up the little cupboard in the dining room.

I was going to add spring things... but instead I just kept adding more and more white dishes. I love white dishes. They are like little pieces of art to me.

So, I'm holding off on the Spring nest and eggs and fluff and flowers for a couple of weeks to enjoy an all white cupboard with a few new Spring inspired soup tureens and bowls and such...

ON THE MENU MONDAY~ WEEK OF FEB 24, 2014

March 1st is Saturday... I can't ever remember wanting Spring to come so badly! What a long long winter it has been!

Here are some wonderful things to look forward to in March...

I usually see my first Robin in March. I bet many of my southern friends have seen one already! They are such harbingers of Spring. Daylight savings time begins Sunday, March 8th and the official 1st day of Spring is March 20th.

Yea for March and warmer weather!

Now, here's what's ON THE MENU this week...

PUT YOUR GOD GOGGLES ON

If you read StoneGable with any frequency, then you probably know that I am soooo tired of snow and cold this year.

But, this morning when I got up and looked outside I saw a sight that was so beautiful... and so full of wonder, that I saw God's magnificent handiwork in the magical scene...

MINESTRONE SOUP... A SOUP THAT'S A MEAL!

Minestrone Soup... so full of flavor and very very filling.

It's a soup, but we eat it as a meal. It's that good!

Loaded with vegetables, beef, beans and pasta, StoneGable Minestrone Soup is one to make and keep extra in your freezer for those days you don't have time to cook but still want a great meal...

THE ART OF STACKING DISHES

To say I have a little crush on dishes is quite an understatement! 

I love love love them!

And one of my favorite ways to use them is to stack them! Using stacks of dishes in a tablescape gives them an alluring and dimensional quality and a steal-the-show way to be displayed! 

One of the biggest benefits of stacking dishes is that I can use the same dishes over and over again and get a new look every time!

Here's a few tips for creating beautiful stacks of dishes...

NESTING INSPIRATION

It doesn't matter that there is a foot of snow still on the ground... my internal clock is ready for Spring!

How about you?

Here's a little spring nest inspiration to hold us over until the snow melts...

6 TIPS FOR CREATING A KITCHEN TABLE VIGNETTE

A Kitchen Table Vignette is one of my favorite things to create!

 I pull out my dishes and silverware and a few other kitchen items and seasonal things... and play until... VOILA... it all comes together to create a big punch of panache in your kitchen!

Here's 5 easy steps to create a kitchen table vignette yourself...

THE SCOOP #106

Welcome to THE SCOOP #106!

I'm trying very hard to coax spring along by starting to bring nests and tulips and flowering branches into StoneGable.   This week I have a couple of fun decorating posts for you, and a formula to "build" a great kitchen table centerpiece... and I'll be making a hearty main meal soup!

Hope you will come back daily to see what's happening at the farmhouse...

VELVET PILLOWS IN THE DINING ROOM

I've been working on the dining room lately. Just little things here and there.  Isn't decorating a process of adding and editing! This week I've added new velvet pillows.

But not just any pillows... velvet pillows. They always say elegance to me...

ON THE MENU~ WEEK OF FEBRUARY 17, 2014

Oh NO!

 The forecasters have predicted more snow this week. We have over a foot of snow on the ground already!

The upside to being stuck inside is making soup! When it snows I'm all about soup! And my very favorite soup to make is the one my Nani taught me... Chicken Noodle! There are a few secrets to making the best Chicken Noodle and I've spilled the beans, so to speak, and shared them all...

FINDING GOD IN THE STRANGEST PLACES

Sea Of Galilee, Israel


This week I found God in a very strange place! In the wee hours of Friday morning... He was sitting behind a curtain in a small cubicle in the emergency room at our local hospital.

I know He was there... because I was there too!

Bobby had rushed me there about 11:00 on Thursday night with crushing chest pain. We were almost certain it was not a heart issue and pretty sure it might be another bad reaction from yet another antibiotics.

But, at four in the morning I was back from a chest CT scan waiting to hear if I had a blood clot in one of my lungs... and I was very frightened! Another reaction to antibiotics didn't seem so bad, I was almost used to them popping up. But a blood clot was very scary...

ZESTY RANCH CRACKERS

Don't put a bowl of these scrumptious Zesty Ranch Crackers in front of me... I'll eat every one of them! They are that good!

And they are ridiculously easy to make! I keep the 3 ingredients needed to make them in my pantry. 

I'm sharing the love today by sharing my recipe for these addictive, bursting-with-flavor snacks...

5 TIPS FOR CREATING AN EASY VIGNETTE

Creating vignettes can often be daunting. Few people have the ability to create a beautifully put together tabletop display without a lot of effort. I fit into the first category. I have a fuzzy idea of what I would like a finished table vignette to be, but executing it is another story.

Today I created an EASY little vignette and 5 tips that will help the "vignette impaired" like me to create a simple arrangement to be proud of... 

INDOOR HERB GARDEN

About this time of the year, I start wanting to dig in the dirt! However it will be another 5-6 weeks before I uncover my garden beds and dig in!

I put together an indoor herb garden with a little nod towards spring so I can snip herbs and use them to finish some of my savory and sweet dishes.

Just the smell of them brings thoughts of warmer days and glorious veggies, herbs and flowers straight from the garden...

THE SCOOP #105

It's SCOOP DAY! YEA!

I love love love seeing all the creativity and inspiration on Scoop Days! 

This week at StoneGable I'm so excited to share my indoor herb garden. I'm enjoying fresh snipped herbs while snow is on the ground! And my herb garden is in a vintage soda crate! 

I'm also planning an easy culinary diy with puff pastry! I think I just may be the queen of puff pastry!

I hope you will stop by StoneGable daily to see what's going on at the farmhouse...

NO SEW BURLAP POSY PILLOW

Don't we all love a project that we can do without any sewing! I sure do!

That's why I made this easy NO-SEW pillow filled with over 2 dozen posies that and will add a sassy pop to almost any room in your home...

SUNDAY SCRIPTURE~ WHAT IS LOVE?

Love is a huge and permeating theme in the bible! According to Bible Gateway, the word love is used 471 times in the bible.

So today let's talk about LOVE....

ORGANIZING THE JUNKIEST DRAWER IN YOUR KITCHEN

You know you have one! We all have a junk drawer in our kitchen. It's the one that you can find a finishing nail or dog toy or baggies or a burnt bread crust or a missing sippy cup lid an extra pair of pantyhose in!

Yes, that drawer! Let's clean it up and organize it today!

Here's what the junkiest drawer in my kitchen looked like BEFORE...

VALENTINE HAND PIES

Valentine's Day will be even sweeter if you serve your loved ones these adorable VALENTINE HAND PIES!

Mine are sour cherry and blueberry/strawberry! So yummy and quite easy to make. And they are shaped like scrumptious hearts you can hold in your hand! How fun!

Edible LOVE, what could be better...

THE SCOOP #104

Hey, Friends! It's SCOOP TIME!

This week we have some big news! Make sure you read the whole post!

You can see what I have planned for the rest of the week above! I have a little bit of spring and a little bit of winter in this week's post...

5 TIPS FOR BRINGING SPRING TO YOUR TABLE AND HOME

I know yesterday was Ground Hog day... and that horrid little vermin predicted 6 more weeks of winter.. but aren't most of us ready for Spring?  Today I'm sharing 5 easy tips to bring early Spring to your table!

Five little ways you can add harbinger's of Spring to your table and home...

KNOWING GOD THROUGH THE PSALMS

photo source

Every new semester of Bible Study I ask the girls in my group 3 questions... "tell us your name"... "tell us about yourself" ... and "what is your favorite book of the bible TODAY".

In the fifteen + years I have been teaching, the hands down favorite book of the bible is Psalms.

I find this so so interesting. What makes this book written over 3,000 years ago still so very popular?

Here's my guess at the answer...

WINTER DECOR~ ADDING BLUE TO NEUTRALS

I'm not chasing away the winter blues... I'm adding them to my family room decor!

Recently, I picked up these blue and green embroidered pillow covers at the local Pottery Barn Outlet and added them to my slipcovered sofa...