My favorite posts 2011

Hello friends:


It seems that we are all looking back at our favorite
posts, tutorials, finds, and more.
I took a tour of my favorite blogs, house tours,
designers, tutorials, and favorite posts.
There is an overload of pictures in every blog including mine. Some people decorated late, I did too, there is very little time for us, I enjoyed it. Oh well, its okay with me hope you enjoy the pictures.


  One of my favorite Christmas
living rooms is this one:





Holly Mathis is an amazing designer, with two little toddlers she created a beautiful living room for Christmas.

My favorite house No.2 is the beautiful Jennifer Rizzo, enjoy,

Another house is funky junk interiors, I love her house!!!

Here are some neat shower curtains by Bed and Bath, they come

in different cities, streets, and more, check them out,

more houses tomorrow,

love to you all

martha

2011 ends too soon!!!

Christmas was such a busy endeavor, it went so fast.
How was yours?? Did you eat all the goodies?, and then more???
I had a great time with my family, eating, playing, watching family videos, playing games, telling stories, laughing, my favorites were the appetizers, the fire going, Jay is from Maine, he can really make and keep that fire going, everyone took a long nap,
and then the party started all over again.
I hope yours was as fun as ours, it is a great thing to
enjoy family and friends.


Well, where did 2011 go?? I can't believe that in a few days we will say 2012, write a new date on our books, and have memories only of the past year.


I want to thank you for allowing me and following my first blog. It was such an experience for me,very different and sometimes challenging, however, I enjoyed each day, and each new follower, friend, there is so much talent, I learned from everyone of you, and spent many cold windy nights reading blog after blog, learning new crafts, new ways of decorating on a budget, praying for some of you, crying with some of you, and laughing with joy as so many of you earned beautiful awards, opportunities, photo shoots, featured on magazines, new finds, trash to treasured, and my favorite "PB,Anthr.,B, Wist, knock offs"  I just can't believe how some of you can
make such beautiful things to looks just like our favorite stores, kudos to all of you.
My new thing in 2011 is antique sheet music, I love it, I have a piano, so its all over the house. I started with one wreath, and I got hooked. Another beauty was the famous "chalk paint", ASCP, I felt in love immediately. I love "easy" since I'm not a painter at all.
I will share some of my favorite projects later,


love you all,
martha

Merry Christmas

To all the wonderful friends, I wish you the best
holiday.
I will be enjoying the days with my family, and kids.


One of my favorite people and blogger is Layla and Kevin, they are a very talented couple, so I'm showing you a beautiful job they did for HGTV,


Layla's style is so simple but beautiful, well, HGTV
did a great job picking Layla and Kevin,
here is another shot:







Merry Christmas from all of us at "Katecreativesalvage"
M

Last minute Christmas is two days away ho, ho, ho,

Hello friends:


Last minute decorations, checking the list twice, making sure we didn't forget anything. I'm sure you
are  all done. I'm behind, really behind, oh well!!!
I stopped and dragged the old Bible out, opened it to the gospel of St.Luke, and read the story, reflected a few minutes while I sipped a cup of tea about why we (Christians) try to make this birth so special . I thought, as I was going through the pages (this Bible is dated 1860, it has the marriages, births, and lots of pictures)  I wonder how many people read this story at Christmas time, they were lots of children in the
family.  Anyway, I became reflective and emotional,
I felt so blessed that I'm a Christian and that Jesus was born in a simple manger, to forgive me a simple person, I felt so so good about Christmas. I thought of my faith, my wonderful upbringing, I thought of many years that we celebrated his birth in so many different ways. However, one thing unites us all, we celebrate his birth in a big way because we all know how wonderful God is, how real you can feel Him, so nothing is enough to celebrate his Son's birth. I don't think we do enough, its such a privilege to be a Christian and be a part of the celebration. Here are the pictures of a few corners of our living room. I'm trying to decorate with pine cones, real bits of pine, sheet music, a handmade old old sheet music wreath,
an antique Bible, and candles.
To me Christmas is being with family and, enjoy the closeness and love that we can only find in our time together. Hope you are all celebrating and many many blessings to you,

The Antique "heavy" Bible 1860  amazing!!!

and more pine cones, I'm sure you are tired of them, but I love them.
A simple natural vignette on my coffee table.

pine cones from the yard, and some branches.

the mantle, huge pine cones, and ornaments

I had these huge fat pine cones for years, I love them!!!


martha

A Telegram to Santa

Hello friends:  A sweet telegram for Santa:
 A great idea for the kids, now we have i phones and twitter, but Santa loves last minute telegram, cute?







Gingerbread cookies (old recipe)  Grandma's cookies

2 1/4(250g) sticks butter

3/4 cup dark molasses

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon cardemom

1 teaspoon ginger

1 teaspoon cloves

3/4 cup water

5 cups plain flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

Place butter and molasses in a saucepan and stir until the butter has melted.

Have sugar and spices in a large baking bowl and pour in the hot butter mixture.

Stir until the sugar has dissolved.

Add water and stir well.

Stir in the flour and baking powder.

Stir until you have a soft dough.

Wrap in plastic at let the dough stand in the fridge at least 24 hours.

Can be stored in the fridge for 14 days.

Take it out and roll thin.

Cut out stars, hearts or whatever you want to make and bake at 320F, 180C for about 5-6 minutes.

Cool on a wire rack.

A cute and different holiday center piece:

Print the family pictures individually, cut and glue to cardboard,
super cute on each cupcake.




Relax and enjoy the family

martha