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All Things Home

All Things Home

fiddling in the living room

Over the past couple of weeks, I have been very productive in many ways, but I haven’t been able to work on some of the things I really want to work on like house projects and painting!  I try to plan my weeks, though, so they are “front-loaded.”  I have all of the meetings and heavy computer days at the beginning of the week, so I have the last half of the week for more creative pursuits.  It’s a strategy I’ve used for several months, but I am admittedly still finetuning it.  I’m still trying to figure out how to get all of my work done and have a life and quality family time and paint and workout and cook…  I know many of you get it.  Aren’t we all trying to figure out how to fit it all in? So, after hitting the gym this morning, I carved out

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All Things Home

last week’s antique finds…

Last week, I just needed to get out and away from my desk.  I had plenty of work to do and the weather was terrible, but I was determined!  I had planned it and I was going to stick to my plans.  I’m also finding that if I use “I have work to do” as an excuse, then I won’t ever leave the house!  There is always some sort of work to do. So, I went to my PT appointment to have my shoulder worked on (it’s getting so much better) and then I hit a few of my favorite antique and second-hand shops.  There is not a ton of antiquing right here in Rochester, but there are a few spots I like to hit every now and then.  I have been looking for a few things…a mirror for the living room, a large basket, and a buffet-sort-of-piece for a

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All Things Home

Reviving Hydrangeas

A couple of weeks ago, I picked up some hydrangeas and a few other flowers from Trader Joe’s to use in upcoming photoshoots I had planned.  Right after getting them home, I plopped them in a bucket of water in the laundry room sink and left them there until I was ready to arrange them the next day. The next day, though, three of the six hydrangea blooms were wilting!  Oh, the disappointment!  I love hydrangeas, but they can be unreliable sometimes.  I huffed about it a bit, but I needed to get the pictures done, so I used the good blooms and filled the arrangement in with some other flowers. But, I still was hoping to be able to use the wilted hydrangeas, so I put them in a sink filled with cold water.  I’ve tried this trick in the past and it works well if the flowers aren’t

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All Things Home

Arhaus Pillow Giveaway

Disclosure: furnished the pillows and throw featured in this post along with the prize for the giveaway.  I received no additional compensation for this post. While I was eagerly awaiting the delivery of the new sectional, asked if I would like to select a few and a throw to go with it.  I could imagine Jeff’s eye-roll at the idea of me ordering more pillows!  He just doesn’t get pillows!  I, however, love pillows and that the featured colors for the new Arhaus catalog were blue and white.  That sounds right up my alley! I do already have an ample supply of pillows, though, so I just picked three that I thought would look nice with the new sectional (the ) and one throw.  I also selected pillows that I can use in other rooms if I want to change things around. The first pillow I selected was the I

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All Things Home

Other Living Room Plans

Sometimes I have trouble sitting back and enjoying what I’ve accomplished in the light of the size of my to-do list!  I’m sure many of you can relate!  I realized as I was putting this post together that there is a to-do list a mile long made up of all the little and big projects I want to do in the house.  Some of them are as simple as repairing a tear in a cushion or slipcover (I have a few of those) or as involved as installing wainscoting and crown molding. But, I just need to remember that #1 – it’s not a race and #2 – that list will shrink one project at a time.  Little steps to get big things done. So, one thing that I want to do is change out the fabric on the backs of the French chairs.  The fabric worked great in my

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All Things Home

How to Crochet a farmhouse dishcloth (for beginners)

Just so you don’t miss it, I’m giving away a set of three of these dishcloths towards the bottom of this (rather long) post!   Ever since I started showing my crocheted dishcloths, I’ve been asked by readers and followers if I could share a tutorial for how to make them.  Since I’m a beginner myself, I have been directing them to YouTube to find tutorials from people who have been doing this for a lot longer than I have!  But, I’ve learned over the years that blogging is about sharing my journey and what I’ve learned along the way.  And I’ve also learned that my audience wants to learn from me.  And I get that!  I like learning from people I know and trust.  Maybe I helped you make a slipcover for the first time or planted the seed that you could start a business.  So, why not teach

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Artistic Endeavors

How to Crochet a farmhouse dishcloth for absolute beginners…

Just so you don’t miss it, I had to crochet this farmhouse dishcloth three times for the tutorial, so I am giving away a set of three of them towards the bottom of this (rather long) post!   Ever since I started showing my crocheted dishcloths, I’ve been asked by readers and followers if I could share a tutorial on how to make them.  Since I’m a beginner myself, I have been directing them to YouTube to find tutorials from people who have been doing this for a lot longer than I have!  But, I’ve learned over the years that blogging is about sharing my journey and what I’ve learned along the way.  And I’ve also learned that my audience wants to learn from me.  And I get that!  I like learning from people I know and trust.  Maybe I helped you make a slipcover for the first time or

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All Things Home

foyer refresh & slate update

Before I get into today’s post, I wanted to share that Mustard Seed Mentoring is now open to new members!  You can get all of the details on group and one-on-one mentoring HERE.  I am offering an early bird gift to those who JOIN TODAY – a pocket-sized version of my favorite journal/notebook.  It’s the one I use every single day for notes, sketches, and journaling.  It’s a leather notebook that can hold three inserts, which can be changed out when they are full.  It’s just a little bonus from me. I’ll be sending out e-mails about Mustard Seed Mentoring this week and if you are not starting/running a creative business, you can opt-out of those specific e-mails at the bottom of each e-mail.  Opting out will not unsubscribe you from my blog feed.  I want to let people know about it, but only the people who need it and

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I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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