I Blame This Entire Post On Pinterest

So I have developed a serious Pinterest habit that has awakened inside of me a serious love for pretty things. I blame what you're about to see on Pinterest. And the fact that, after I took down our Christmas decorations my house just looked... sad.

 

 

My mantle, which is my favorite thing. I am actively lobbying for my husband to paint the brick a bisque color so that my mantle creations would show up better. Thus far he has been... hesitant. But even with the red brick this mantle makes me smile when I walk by. I'm already thinking through how easily I could change a few things out to switch it over to St Patrick's Day. Curt is of Irish descent so he likes to mark that day and I know he will love for shamrocks to show up in our house in honor of the holiday.

 

A quick run-down of what you see: I already had the off-white candlesticks so it was easy enough to pick up some red candles at the dollar store. I already had the little heart votive holders and the pink vase. I found the bunch of tulips at Michael's for 40% off. And the heart garland was just $2.99. As for the print, I downloaded it for free and bought an 8.5X11 frame to pop it into. Now that I've made the investment of the frame, I have designs on multiple ways to change out what goes in it each season. Sigh. This makes me happy.

 

 

 

I already had this heart, which did not show up very well in the picture but you get the idea-- it's hanging in my kitchen window above my sink. I'm pretty sure it was a dollar store purchase from years ago.

 

 

This is my dining room table. I had these hurricanes from Christmas time and was looking for something quick, easy and inexpensive to fill them with. Then I got the idea to use the multi-colored bag filler and thought it was ingenious. Of course I was sad to since find it used several times on Pinterest and see that I'm not the only one who has had this burst of inspiration. The center candle holder is a large silver one that has moved all over our house and held many a candle in its day. I have a little dollar store tchotchke up there right now. It's not the most beautiful thing in the world, but it gets the job done and looks pretty when I light the candle inside it. I also scattered a package of dollar store glittery hearts and used some glass candlesticks w/tapers I already had.

 

 

In case you were unclear on what the hurricanes looked like with the filler inside, here is a closeup. You're welcome.

 

 

This is a little table in my living room that I elected not to go all red and pink with-- but I did want something seasonal so I was delighted to find this "LOVE" sign at Ross for $5. It gets the message across nicely and I might leave it out all year, seeing as how LOVE is My One Word for this year.

 

 

Here is the sign in better lighting, in case you were curious what it looks like. I love the colors and designs. It also makes me smile when I see it. And it is a nice reminder to practice love all year, not just at Valentine's Day.

 

 

This is also terrible lighting. A professional photographer with an expensive camera, I am not. This is on my kitchen table all year long and I just change out what goes in it. The center is filled with candy conversation hearts and white votives right now. It looks very pretty when lit but the candy level in the center keeps mysteriously getting lower.

 

 

Another free printable, another cheap frame. This will also get changed out seasonally. I already had this little candle holder so I just got some red dollar store candles to put in it. This sits in my entryway. I'm thinking green candles and a St Pat's printable after Valentine's is over.

 

 

I love this towel. It came in a set of two at Ross. I washed one and it just does NOT look like it did when it was new any longer. So I have told my family if they value their lives they are NOT to use this towel. It is for decoration purposes only. My sons especially think that a towel you can not use is the most ridiculous thing they've ever heard of. But they are not making the rules, no sirree.

 

 

And here's another printable. Can you tell I'm on a kick? The pinner I found who created this did it much larger and put it over her fireplace. Since I was looking for a small reminder of My One Word to have in the bathroom, this smaller one fit the bill perfectly. I have it on my bathroom counter where I will see it everyday, and be reminded. Because I need reminders. Really bad. This is a dollar store frame but it does the job nicely.

 

 

And finally I decided I needed something on my island and found these real tulips marked down to a dollar at my grocery store. I have now found where they keep the marked-down flowers in my grocery store and take a look each time I'm there. Will these last til Valentine's Day? No. But at that price they're easy enough to replace!

 

I have one more project I'd like to do that involves doilies and baker's twine to make a garland. I intend to string that across my kitchen windows and the large mirror in my den. I already have the doilies... now to find that baker's twine...

 

As we turn the page to February today perhaps you'll be inspired to display some red and pink of your own without breaking the bank. If you'd like to be inspired, check out my Seasonal Display board at Pinterest. I've pinned most of the pins that inspired this post there, including the printables. Happy decorating!