Happy April!
So many of you reading have already entered into the joy of Spring.
Well, here in the Northeast, our calendars say Spring… but today we awoke to a blanket of snow.
I guess the joke is on us.

the crocuses have peeked their heads, and our forsythia blossoms stand at the ready, not daring to open just yet. still waiting.

So, I have daffodils on the brain.
I have had dreams of fields of daffodils ever since I saw a picture, similar to this one, years ago in a Martha Stewart Living magazine. I never would have imagined the beauty of so many daffodils.

so fleeting. so bright. so sugary sweet. and so Spring.
Why not bring a touch of Daffodil into your home?

{mazizmuse via etsy}

{monkeybeetle via etsy}

{redbirdink via etsy}

{HeartFeltFlowerShop via etsy}

{alwayspainting via etsy}

so many beautiful ways to bring a touch of daffodil into your home.
even so, I am ready for a touch of the real thing.

I adore a glass vase packed with sunny daffodils.
soon, darlene, soon.

happy weekend!
-{darlene}

I can’t believe it has taken me this long to post on a subject that is so near and dear to my heart.
A decorating practice/obsession that I like to call: “Hiding the Uglies.”

This decorating concept is more of a way of living for me, but it can definitely be learned if you desire to add more organization and peace to your home.

So, what is “Hiding the Uglies?”

Hide diapers and wipes beneath the bar, of course:

Hide the family plethora of {overflowing} paperwork in attractive boxes in the windowsill:

Hide piles of bedtime reading, handcream, lipbalm, and other bedside essentials, behind the headboard:

…and this is just the tip of the iceberg, my friends, to my “hiding the uglies” obsession. you will be hearing more from me about this, no doubt.

Life takes stuff… but if that stuff happens to be ugly, then you should hide it 🙂

Hiding the Uglies.

Once you start, you can’t stop.

-{darlene}

When we moved into Fieldstone Hill 6 years ago, the back of our historic home looked like this. Check out the back door {that is kinda what this post is about 🙂 }

From another angle, you can see the “large and loud” 3 car, concrete block garage out back, and the {very} large deck that expanded out of the back of the home; 2 levels.

After 2+ years of construction {and one baby later}, this is how the back of Fieldstone Hill looks today. But I digress.
Back to the back door.

When making plans for our addition, we had to decide what to do with the historical back entryway of our home. It had been there for approximately 180 years, and countless footsteps had crossed its threshold.

You can see the doorway in the photo below, as our construction was being framed in.  The doorway appears to be floating because, on the other side, you access the door from a raised landing. The threshold that juts out from the bottom of the door is one solid piece of fieldstone, and is as old as the house itself. Footsteps have worn it down and left their mark.

Here you can see all of the door framing and the door itself has been removed to reveal the bare stonework. Look at the old, original headers above the doorway.

Just before this point in construction, we had to decide what we would do about the old threshold.
We were encouraged to remove the original threshold and the stone beneath it. That way, whatever we added there would be able to touch the floor. But neither hubs nor I felt good about that.
Too many footsteps had crossed that way…

We decided to preserve the threshold, and work around its awkward hovering effect.
We also decided to turn this amazing space into a future bar.

Here, you can see the next step of framing in the custom cabinetry for the bar. {I will have to post about our barn beams!}

and here she is. our happy little floating bar:

Not quite free,
but you can easily get some “for a song.”

I love ball jars.
beauty and purity and practicality, all in one.

these sit in my kitchen windowsill. happily soaking in the sun, and
waiting for the first bundles of spring daffodils.
Bare, and in a set of three, I like to think that they are an artist’s sculpture.

Beautiful “for a song.” Ways to use Ball Jars:

• Use them as a bare and lovely display, sitting alone or in groups.
• Why not try ball jars in your kitchen to store grains, tea bags, or sugar? Be sure to throw in a gorgeous, galvanized scoop.
• Stunning when filled with long, dry linguini noodles, set in a spiral.
• Use them in your bathroom to hold fluffy cotton balls. or q-tips all in a row.
• Collect a set of the small size for some darling juice glasses. They are the perfect size, and look amazing on your table.
• Use them within your pantry or medicine cabinet to sort and organize.
• Fill with tea light candles, light with a long match, and enjoy the simple beauty.
• Perfect as vases. The little size looks delightful with a bunch of overflowing lily of the valley. The large size makes for an amazing centerpiece vase.
• Fill with candy. I think they look amazing filled with candy corn.
• Don’t forget about how beautiful they look when filled with homemade jellies or jams. Perfectly delightful just sitting on the countertop.

Do you decorate with ball jars?
-{darlene}