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Happy Friday! I’m so excited for this weekend because we have absolutely nowhere to be. OK, we have a little bit of soccer, as always, but other than that, the weekend is free, and I am going to get so. much. done. We have a ton of work to catch up on and I’m really starting to feel ready to switch things into Christmas mode around here, so I’m looking forward to a fun and productive couple of days. Wishing you a very lovely weekend as well! Grab a cozy beverage and let’s get caught up.
I just need to go on a little design rant here, so please stay with me. If you are in the middle of designing a new kitchen, or renovating an existing kitchen, and you have a typical layout with an island in the middle, I cannot stress enough how much your pendant lighting and choice of bar stools will make or break your kitchen design. The right lights and bar/counter stools can take a kitchen made of builder basic cabinetry, and make it feel like a beautifully layered, thoughtfully detailed space. Likewise, the wrong choices can make a very high-end, expensive kitchen look cheap and like a bit of a mishmash of styles. Forgoing pendant lighting for potlights is not a great choice because it can make a great kitchen look like something that was thrown in as an afterthought, kind of like the kitchen you put into a college rental apartment. Your space needs that detail and visual interest from above and below to feel complete, and without it, nothing you try to do with backsplash tiles or countertop styling will ever really work. If you’re not sure about what specific lighting, stools, or other design choices are right for your space, find a local designer or decorator who will be more than happy to give you a quick consultation to come up with a plan that will work for you. Just had to get that off my chest after years of photographing kitchens that were aaaalmost great but not quite because of a few silly-but-costly mistakes. Thank you for listening to my rant and please reach out if you’d like a little help with choosing the right pieces. 🙂
Do you jump right into Christmas as soon as Halloween is over on November first? Over the years, I’ve learned that I like a little pause between Halloween and Christmas to take down all the fall/Halloween/Canadian Thanksgiving decor around the house and just to enjoy the leaves outside, which are at their very peak of fall color at the beginning of November. Once the leaves have fallen outside, usually about the middle of November, it starts to feel like Christmas to me. I think this little two-week reset allows me to enjoy the anticipation of the Christmas season a little more, and just take joy in the process a little more once the hall decking and cheer making really begin. I’ll be getting started soon (probably this weekend!), but I’ve been enjoying making my plans and gathering up inspiration for how I’ll be decorating and how we’ll be celebrating this year.
I think I’ve mentioned this before, but I learned a little fact a few years ago that has really helped me immensely, especially when any health issues pop up. Supposedly, there’s a statistic that says that people who have access to medical care and make use of it on a regular basis are significantly happier than those who don’t access medical care or don’t use it very often. I think I could look at the psychology of this in a few different ways, but the fact remains the same: When you meet with health care providers more frequently, you’re statistically more likely to have a higher level of overall happiness in your life. Since then, anytime I need to see a doctor, specialist, or even a dentist, I think of it as my little “happiness boost.” These things may not always seem like the most pleasant tasks in the moment, but now I know that not only am I helping my physical health in the long run, I’m doing big things for my mental health and life satisfaction as well. It always helps me approach these things with thankfulness, and feel just a little better after the fact as well. Just had to share in case anyone has an appointment coming up that they’re not looking forward to. I hope this might just be a little bit helpful the way it was for me. 🙂
I’ve been ordering new curtains for a few different rooms around the house this year, as I’ve been adding in more layers of pattern here and there. I just installed some incredible new curtains in the most charming botanical pattern (the color is “Travertine”) in our primary bedroom last week, and I ordered the most amazing windowpane plaid curtains for a client decorating project a few days ago. I’m so excited for them. Anyway, in celebration of all things curtains, I thought I would go over a few key points for choosing curtains that might help take some of the guesswork out of the process for you and help you end up with a look you love. Here are some of my key “curtain rules” that I follow that never let me down:
- Always use a rod with at least a 1″ diameter. Anything else will look flimsy once it’s installed and the curtains are hung. A heftier rod makes inexpensive curtains look better, and custom or semi-custom curtains look the way you hope they will.
- Get the memory training. This ensures your curtains will fall in tidy, regular folds and pleats. This is really what gives your curtains such a high-end look.
- My go-to header style is a double pleat or a French pleat.
- Get at least a light lining for a substantial look to your draperies, even if light blocking isn’t a big concern for you.
- Hang your curtains high and wide. Your rod should be as close to the ceiling as reasonably possible. Have your rod extend out to either side of your window by at least a few inches to several feet, if possible. This gives the illusion of a bigger window and makes this important focal point have more presence in your space.
Use my code CREEKLINEHOUSE for 25% off your entire order from Two Pages, including the beautiful curtains and the rods mentioned above!
I’ve always loved Spode’s iconic Christmas tree collection, and I’ve been meaning to officially start my collection for the past few years. Well, I guess I technically started it a couple of years ago when I got my first mug, but I’ve really made no progress since then. I love the idea of pulling out the same special pieces every year for family dinners around the holidays, movie nights, or just to make everyday meals feel a little bit special around Christmastime. These are timeless classics that can be passed down to future generations and create a feeling of instant nostalgia when they’re displayed. I also love the idea of adding to a collection each year as an easy but meaningful Christmas gift. How special would it be for the recipient to have a whole collection of special pieces that have been gifted to them over the years by their children and grandchildren, piece by piece? Well, this year, my collection has finally become a true collection with a few new additions to add to my single Christmas Tree mug, and I was so amazed to find everything at Wayfair! They carry such a great selection of different Spode pieces, both serveware and decorative, and I had so much fun picking out the pieces to create the foundation for my collection. I started with this 12-piece dinnerware set, this tiered tray, this large tray, and this little cranberry sauce server (#WayfairCreator #WayfairCanada). Do you have a special collection of Christmas dishware that you bring out every year?
NEWS AND FINDS
-I have to introduce you to a new washable rug brand that I just discovered recently that I’m really loving. Rugette is a UK-based brand that makes a one-piece washable rug system with a built-in non-skid backing. They recently started shipping to Canada and the US. My first Rugette runner was just delivered recently for a collab on Instagram, and I’m using it in the kitchen, but this style of rug would work beautifully in an entryway, hallway, or in a living room with an extra rug pad underneath. These rugs are so soft to the touch, and I love that they have a huge selection of beautiful colors and patterns – good ones that you actually want in your home. 🙂 Definitely check these rugs out if you’ve been in the market for a new rug for your home. Use my code CREEKLINEHOUSE for 20% off your order!
-I’ve had a lot of people asking about my dining room chandelier recently after seeing it in my reels on Instagram. Although my chandelier fits perfectly in our old home and looks like it was made for this style of house, it’s actually really popular fixture that’s available on Wayfair. I’ve seen it used in quite a few different styles of home, and it always looks just right. There’s just something about its graceful curves that just works. I love that it’s available in a number of different sizes, and I would recommend always going with a size larger than you think is logical. We have a 40″ round table with a 36″ chandelier.
–This affordable bench is my favorite recent homekeeping find, and I’m so excited for how well it’s working for me. These benches are sturdy enough to use as extra seating, but they also fold right up to be stored in a closet if you don’t need them out all year round. I got two, and I’ve been using them to organize everything for Christmas, like all my gifts, wrapping supplies, etc. They hold so much, and they come with dividers, so they’ve been working like a dream, and I feel so extra organized this year. They would work so well as a bench at the end of a bed in children’s rooms or a guest room, too. I made a little video of me putting one together, and you can see that here to get a better idea of the size and how they fold up.
Pictured above: Brown Ruffle Windowpane Plaid Pillow | Mission Style Side Table | Tweed Button Pillows (2 for under $20!) | Beige Vintage Floral Pillow | Green Plaid Pillow | Rust Velvet Pillow | Rowan Washable Rug | Wool Plaid Throw | Wicker Floor Basket
-If you’re looking for something that you’ve seen here on my blog or on Instagram, it will always be in my LTK shop, and the shop is fully searchable, so you can easily locate a source for a product, even if it’s from an older project. I recently shared a sneak peek of a client project for an English country/Ralph Lauren-inspired sitting room I’ve been working on, as well as some of my favorite Wayfair light fixtures that we’ve used around our home. I update the shop almost daily, so it’s always full of new and interesting finds.
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Courtenay Hartford is the author of creeklinehouse.com, a blog based on her adventures renovating a 120-year-old farmhouse in rural Ontario, Canada. On her blog, Courtenay shares interior design tips based on her own farmhouse and her work as founder and stylist of the interior photography firm Art & Spaces. She also writes about her farmhouse garden, plant-based recipes, family travel, and homekeeping best practices. Courtenay is the author of the book The Cleaning Ninja and has been featured in numerous magazines including Country Sampler Farmhouse Style, Better Homes and Gardens, Parents Magazine, Real Simple, and Our Homes.