Thursday, October 24, 2013

Autumn at the Beach #5 - Sonia's Dinner Party

There are times when I really am homesick for my "brick and mortar" store.  I miss our quaint Norwegian fishing village, I miss my fellow merchants... mostly I miss my customers; I miss their stories, and being part of their celebrations and redecorating projects.  During the five years that we were open in Poulsbo, I was so lucky to have met so many wonderful customers, many that actually became my friend.  Sonia is one of those special people.


Last weekend, I had a few minutes to catch up on my personal Facebook page, and Sonia had posted these beautiful pictures of her dining room table for a special Sunday night dinner party.  Of course they caught my eye right away - original and fun fresh design!  They were planning dinner for eight, and she was incredibly gracious to send me the photos and her menu.

Gosh, I hope we get invited sometime!


Sonia's Tablescape Ideas...

"For the tablescape, I collected curly willow branches, maple leaves, moss and cedar branches from the woods near our home. Then added white pumpkins, candles, and colorful fall gourds. To add a little coastal flair, I also added antique glass, aqua fishing floats and starfish!"

For us Pacific Northwesterners (not sure that was a word?), this is a perfect example of using nature's bounty; cedar, moss (goodness knows that we definitely have enough moss!) and curly willow branches from our backyard to create something that is so special!  Love the pretty aqua blue vintage fishing floats, adding that extra special panache.


Sonia's Menu:
Panko crusted Dungeness crab cakes with a light lemon & dill sauce, roasted garlic and rosemary smashed reds. A fall salad which included mixed greens, pears, blue cheese, candied pecans and a real maple vinaigrette. Accompanied by garlic roasted asparagus and homemade Manor Farm Inn Bread* (time consuming, but to die for) I learned how to make it when I worked there in high school!  For dessert I collected winter apples from my yard and made a crispy apple crumble with vanilla ice cream.  

Oh mi goodness.... I might have to beg for an invite!   I am drooling while I am typing... not a pretty sight.



*The Manor Farm Inn, is just outside of Poulsbo, Washington on the Kitsap Peninsula





Friday, October 18, 2013

A Michigan Lakefront Storybook Cottage

One of our long time friends on our Caron's Beach House Facebook page sent me these wonderful pictures of her sister's beautifully remodeled lakefront home Dexter, Michigan.  Wow, I am so jealous! I could live here, how about you?

Located on Baseline Lake, this is a storybook cottage home with classic periwinkle blue shutters, scroll porch details and gingerbread scalloped siding.  Don't you just love that red brick walkway?  (I can see myself skipping up to the front porch!)

This is definitely a home built for extended family with extra guest rooms, a cute bunk room for kids, and extensive seating around the varied patios and decks. These lakefront home owners adore their grand kids and have them out to the lake as much as they can.  What a magical place for kids to visit and play; fishing, boating, or simply dreaming away an afternoon...


 Someone definitely has a green thumb.  Simply gorgeous with an abundance of brightly colored flowers with an adorable blue and white birdhouse perched in the middle to greet guests as they are welcomed up to the front porch.

Stripes!  I think using a larger rug to greet guests makes so much more of a statement, and makes the porch area feel like more of an actual "room".  Great idea.  (P.S. More flowers!)

 What a wonderful contrast to the blue and white outside - a sunny yellow kitchen.  Love that chandelier!


Beautifully done lakeside cottage bedrooms

  I can see why their grand kids would totally want to have this "bunk room" for their home away from home!


Wow, what a wonderful wall of windows!  Now to just find a cup of tea, a cozy throw blanket, a good romance novel, and I would be set on a cool fall day in Michigan. 

Definitely a beautiful home built for fun and extra guests!


Yep, I could live here... now to just get Tom to think about lake living? 

Have a great weekend everyone!  Not sure what we are up to, but do know that we probably will be avoiding Half Moon Bay this weekend, as it is the annual Pumpkin Fest craziness... Always looks like fun, until we get stuck in traffic...





Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Autumn at the Beach - Tablescape ideas #3 A Dash of Coral and Sea Stars

Living beside the sea doesn't always mean aqua, blues and greens - here's an idea for a pretty coastal tablescape using chocolate brown linens for fall.   Decorating for Autumn just means using a little more creativity at the beach!




White shells, pretty plates, elegant wine glasses and a dash of rattan in the chargers makes this one of our favorite ideas!


(P.S. Yes, you can find these linens on our site: Caron's Beach House.com)


Thursday, October 10, 2013

Autumn at the Beach - Tablescape ideas #2

Blue and White with a dash of pumpkin orange!

You just can't go wrong with blue and white on the coast.   I actually have a cupboard full of inherited vintage Blue Willow dinnerware from my grandmother - this gives me a great idea for our guests this week!

 Adding tiny pumpkins and a dash of bittersweet just makes your table ready for fall entertaining.


(Idea Discovered at StoneGableBlog.com)

Or maybe just a few beautiful "neutrals" with white coral a rattan chargers..



hmmm.... wonder if I can find any sunflowers at Trader Joe's?





Monday, October 7, 2013

Autumn at the Beach - Tablescape ideas #1

This week we have friends visiting from the Pacific Northwest - perfect time to create a fun dining room fall beach themed tablescape to entertain our friends.  Putting a few ideas together throughout this month.  At the end of the October, we will reveal our actual table!

Stay tuned as we also introduce some of our new dinnerware....

Table Idea #1  Sea-Washed Natural Beach Table

(image source unknown - so sorry!)
Beautifully elegant with easy elements from your local beach and grocery store!  Keep it neutral, clean and "sea washed" for something really spectacular.  Using a natural linen backdrop with white linen napkins; add driftwood, white shells or coral, white pumpkins and natural rattan or wicker candle lanterns and you've created a beautiful relaxing sand and shore table.

Love it.



Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Sea Creature Coastal Pillows

New on our site this week! 
 Love these fun wool needlepoint pillows with their bright primary colors 
and sea creatures.   There are eight of these lovely beach pillows in the series;  mixing and matching a few of these would look great!   They would also add a pop of color, whimsy and fun to your beach cottage room.  




F

Still thinking about which ones I would start with, although I am a little partial to a blue octopus...





Relax and Live at the Beach Every Day of the Year!

Most Popular Beach Posts!