2020 Thomas Family Christmas

Christmas Home Tour

After the year that was 2020, you can imagine my absolute delight at this Christmas being one that would go down in the books  according to my ten year old, as “the best Christmas EVER”. I will admit that she pretty much says that every year, but it still warmed my heart.  Last year’s Christmas was not up to our usual standards because we moved that July, and as you can imagine Moves and getting a whole family settled in a new home ain’t cheap.  And, I must admit that heading into December, I had all kinds of doubts that I would be able to pull off the feels of a traditional Christmas during a Pandemic.  But, it turned out that I was very wrong.  Working from home, and not having to commute or be the “Mommy Taxi” this year, left me with much more time on my hands than I would usually have and that ended up being a great thing.  And, as quiet as it’s kept Mr. Stage, who would give the appearance of being the Scrooge of our bunch, always jumps head first into the Christmas Spirit.

This year I started Christmas shopping in July, and began stashing things all around the house.  Every year that is our intention, and every year it simply doesn’t happen.  But, as I said in a pandemic with no where to go, we made it happen.  I also starting creating my Christmas 2020 Decor Board in Early September.  I knew that I wanted to use a lot of my existing Christmas decorations, but up my game a bit, when it came to what we like to call “Our Decorator Tree” or Tree #2.  And, all that means is it’s the one that Mommy gets to create the vision for and decorate.  The kids have their own tree with all our traditional and handmade ornaments from years past. I knew, I wanted to go with Buffalo Check again this year, but I also wanted to add some Black and White Plaid, and that is exactly what we did.

As usual, every year I try to sprinkle a little bit of Christmas every where  I can.  And, this year is no difference.  Take a look at how we transformed our home for the Holiday.

Front Foyer Christmas Decor

Foyer And Decorator Tree

View Of All The Christmas Trees

Stockings Hung By The Chimney With Care

Mantel Countdown to Christmas

Christmas Buffalo Plaid Table Setting

Full View of Christmas Tablescape

Christmas Side Buffet Decor

It is my firm belief that there are only so many years when you get to make Christmas magical for your family.  My oldest child is out of the house, and has a child of his own now, and my oldest daughter is already 16.  I know that the years are fleeting, and soon there will be other’s to consider and they will want to make traditions of their own.  But, while I can, and while they are still willing, I will always do my best to create memories and traditions that we can hold on to.    Thanks for stopping by and visiting our Christmas Home 2020 Edition.

Want to see Christmas Past with Our Family Click Here.

Our DIY Farmhouse Table

DIY Farmhouse Table - A Labor Of Love

I have been sending my husband pictures of this type of Farmhouse/Pedestal Table for years, no exaggeration.  I knew what I wanted but in order to get exactly what I wanted I was going to have to pay a pretty hefty price tag.  I hated our glass kitchen table, plus with little kids you can imagine, how often I had to clean said table.    So last year shortly after we moved into our new home, my hubby called me and text me a picture of a table and some chairs that he found at a yard sale.   I was unsure…. I mean really unsure.  It seemed like it was going to be quite the undertaking, and I was not sure that we.. by which I mean he, could pull it off.    Not because I did not think that he was capable, but while working a full time job, it seemed like a lot.  But, the price.. it was so ridiculously cheap that we could not pass it up.  The original owner was selling the table and 4 chairs for $45.00.  The yard sale was around the corner from the house, so he came home, grabbed my Jeep and went back to pick it up.  It lived in the garage for about 4 months before the project actually began.  But, once it did, it moved pretty quickly.

Before The DIY - Farmhouse Table

Even though the original color of the wood was beautiful, I knew I wanted to go a different way.  Luckily for us it was real wood, so our options were unlimited.  We could use pretty much whatever we wanted when it came to paint, stain, sandpaper, etc. Initially I was leaning towards a gray stain finish, and we went that way before we decided to course correct and go with black.  I was the photographer on the project.  Hubby did all the hard work, from sanding with the orbital sander, sanding by hand (for the more detailed areas), removing the original stain and then repainting it.  It was a true labor of love.

In Progress DIY - Farmhouse Table

Tools Required:

  • Orbital Sander

Materials:

  • Rust-Oleum Painters Touch 2X ULTRACOVER PAINT + PRIMER Black Satin (I purchased this HERE.)
  • Drop Cloth/Old Blanket Comforter
  • General Purpose Sand Paper (100-medium, 220-finer)
  • Grit & Perseverance & Some Brut Force

Finished Project DIY Farmhouse Table

What I love most about the completed project?  THE DETAILS – In the Table Legs, and The Chairs.. And I Just Love How BLACK (Satin) IT IS.  Also, I loved seeing hubby getting his hands dirty.. something about that, does it for me, LOL.  Lastly, I definitely think that the dark color gives the room a more formal feel, while complimenting the marble on the island and counter tops in the kitchen.

Each morning when I come downstairs, and walk into the Kitchen to start my coffee, it’s the first thing I see and that makes me happy.  Special Thanks to my hubby for a job well done!!

Laundry Room Reset

Laundry Room Reset

I chose to call this a Laundry Room Reset, because there really wasn’t that much to be done.   This month makes a year since we moved into this house, so I thought it would make sense to start working on those spaces that remained untouched.

Like most Moms  I spend a good amount of time in the laundry room, so I guess I thought I could trick my mind into enjoying it more, if  I used Spa Like Colors. ( I will have to get back to you on whether or not that worked.)  I chose my go to’s colors Grey and Teal.  I was able to find these curved Y-Weave XL baskets at Target.  And I used my growing Photo Shop Skills to  create chalkboard labels for the room.  If you like them, be sure to follow the Link Down Below, to get some of your own.

Laundry Baskets With Chalkboard Labels

The basket pictured in this picture and the one above was literally about the fourth basket I picked for this space.  Since I am vertically challenged and can’t actually reach the shelves without my Step Stool.  I wanted a little basket that was both decorative and could hold Laundry Detergent, OxiClean and Dryer Sheets, without showing what was inside.

Close Up On Laundry Room Baskets

My oldest daughter and I are the only ones that have hampers in the Laundry Room.  So I thought I would find some matching hampers to keep the room uniform.  I was able to grab these online from Bed Bath and Beyond.

Laundry Room - Matching Hampers

There’s so much out there these days in the form of Laundry Wall Art, especially if you are an “Etsy head” like me.  It was not an easy choice for me to make, especially because I kept gravitating to items that were outside of the budget that I had set up for myself.  I had a general idea of what I wanted but , I was willing to be pretty flexible and then I found this Fluff and Fold Piece at Target.  They had it in stock, quick shipping turn around and the Mr. was mounting it on the wall before I knew it. Laundry Room Reset Fluff and Fold Wall Art

After I had completed the room, I still felt like there was a lot of empty open space.  I wanted to do something to dress the room up without taking away from the open airy feel.  So after pouring over all the Pinterest Laundry Room Inspiration I could find, I decided to add clothespins.  I still had a few Half Gallon Mason Jars left from the Pantry, so I grabbed them and added the clothespins and Voila!!  There actually still is a lot of empty space in this room, but hubby told me to embrace it.  So the room is complete, FULL STOP, lol.

Laundry Room Reset - Clothespin Decor

Grab Your Free Laundry Room Chalkboard Labels Here.   Right – Click -Save- Print.

A Thomas Family Christmas

The saying goes better Late Than Never, and even though this is not a concept that I try to subscribe to, that is exactly how it shook out this year.  This holiday season was a particularly busy one.  But, it turned out just fine.  We hosted Christmas this year, so the pressure was definitely on.  Not only to make the house look particularly festive, but also to come up with a menu that suited everyone’s specific nutritional/dietary needs.  And yes, as my eight year old would say, that is “a thing”.

I found this idea for Stair Decor on Pinterest.  I thought it would be the perfect back drop to the kid’s tree.  mentioned it to hubby and it became a Daddy daughter project.  He found the Cardboard Top Hats at Joann Fabric and Crafts and they painted it.  For more info on how we pulled off this project check out the details on Our Instagram Page Link Here.

I try to add little Hints of Christmas, in ever little corner.  But over the years I have found that introducing the Colors of Christmas to be just as important as Traditional Christmas Decor.  For example for this Centerpiece in the Kitchen, I used Green Moss Balls, and Mini Apples as Vase Fillers coupled with an old wreath made of Red Bells and a Countdown to Christmas Nutcracker to complete the look.

The same look has pretty much flanked our Fireplace for the last couple of years.  However, this year we added in two outdoor mini trees on either side of the fireplace for more sparkle, especially at night.  And, a Poinsettia on STEROIDS that I scored at Sams for just $14.99.  It decorated my area at work for the whole month of December, before it made its way home.  We kind of grew tired of the letters that we had on our stockings during the previous years, so hubby found these wood letters at Hobby Lobby and gave them a Merry makeover with some red paint and some twine that he attached with hot glue.

This is our Second Year Using Buffalo Check for the Tree and the Formal Dining Room Table Decor.  I grabbed these napkins on sale from Pier 1 and Hubby Created the Centerpiece all on his own.  He found the Merry Christmas Wooden Box at Hobby Lobby, then he found Garland and Candles at Michael’s and lastly he added some battery operated lights, found at Kroger.  Honestly this year’s Christmas Decor was brought to you in large part by my better half.  This was my first year back at work full time and trying to pull everything together, and if it was not for him, I fear I would not have been able to do it.  So Shout Out to My Darling Hubby for being just as into the details as I am.

There is nothing quite like Christmas to me.  The joy I feel being surrounded by my Family and Friends that have become Family, well its indescribable. And, though it takes some effort pulling it all together, I wouldn’t change a thing. I hope and pray that you all have a Happy Holiday Season.

Here are few more glimpses of  Our Thomas Family Christmas.

‘THE BEST OF ALL GIFTS AROUND ANY CHRISTMAS TREE: THE PRESENCE OF A HAPPY FAMILY ALL WRAPPED UP IN EACH OTHER.’ – BURTON HILLS

Our Christmas Home Tour

Our Christmas Home Tour 1 of 3

Our Christmas Home Tour 2 of 3

Our Christmas Home Tour 3 of 3

Come On In, and Welcome to this year’s Christmas Home Tour.  This year we stuck to the traditional Christmas Colors and just added some Buffalo Check and Gold, to our color scheme.

Things I purchased to make this year’s Christmas Look Complete:

  • A Christmas Wreath
  • New Christmas Stockings
  • 2 Yards of Buffalo Check Fabric
  • Buffalo Check Wrapping Paper

Simple DIY’s:  

  • I used the Buffalo Check Fabric to Cover Existing Ornaments that we already had to add a more rustic, yet defined, look to our  Real Tree.
  • I also used the same Buffalo Check Fabric to Complete my Table Setting, by just adding a Pop of Color that I used to marry both rooms (Living Room flows into the Dining Room)
  • Kitchen Centerpiece (1) was made from Mini Apple Vase Fillers that I already had at home and Green Moss balls to add a little More Red and Green to the space.
  • Kitchen Centerpiece (2) was made from Lemons and Little Mini Red Ornaments, for yet another Festive Look.
  • Outdoors/Front Porch.  I stained the (2) crates that we used in our Fall Display to sit our Outdoor Lighted Christmas Trees, and added Fire Wood to add some warmth.

Thanks for stopping by, and now I am off to enjoy the rest of my Holiday Season with my family.   Merry Christmas to all and to all a Good Night.

Christmas Greeting

Our 2017 Fall Home Tour

Fall Home Tour 2017

It was my intention to have this year’s Fall Home Tour posted by the first day of Autumn, but life happened, and I had to settle on getting it done before the Time Change.  That being said, my home is finally all decorated for fall and Visitor Ready.  So come on in and look around.

Fall Home Tour 2017: Front Porch

Not to toot my own horn, but I think that I am finally getting the hang of re-using things we already have in a new way.  Believe it or not that makes decorating that much easier.  This year the list of things that I purchased were minimal.  For the front porch, I bought a new wreath on sale for 60% off at Joann’s and (2) unfinished wooden crates.

Fall Home Tour 2017 : Foyer

In the foyer, I simply changed out the Fall Printable, with one from Our Etsy Store, and added some leaf votive candle holders, fall flowers and a ceramic pumpkin.

Fall Home Tour 2017 : Formal Living Room

In the Formal Living Room, I purchased a few mini Pumpkin and Gourd Vase Fillers and threw them in with Pine Cones and Fall Leaves from previous year’s decor, and surrounded the basket with Salt and Pepper Acorn Shakers.

Fall Home Tour 2017 : Fall Tablescape

The only thing new in this year’s Tablescape were the Velvet Fabric Pumpkins I found at Joann’s for 40% off.

Fall Home Tour 2017 : Centerpiece on the Side Buffet

A fun centerpiece for the Side Buffet using a Fall Bouquet and some mini apple vase fillers.

Fall Home Tour 2017: Mantel Decor

Fall Home Tour 2017 : The Family Room

Our Family Room is where we spend most of our time together, I did the least in this room.  Just a few simple touches here and there, the Football Fall Wood Accent over the fireplace, the pumpkins in the Dough Bowl and the super plush Football Throw that I picked up at Hobby Lobby.

I hope you enjoyed this year’s Fall Home Tour.  How do you decorate for the season?  I’d love to hear all about it.  Feel free to share in the comment section below.

Our 2017 Spring Home Tour

2017 Spring Home Tour - www.stage-presents.com Welcome to Our 2017 Spring Home Tour.  I am always excited to invite you guys in to see the little changes that we have made through out the year.  I think that maybe I should admit that I just love seasonal decorating.  Even though I claim that Fall is my favorite season, and it is.  I had just as much fun decorating for Spring this year. We had a particularly mild winter,  but there is just something exhilarating about seeing all the fresh blooms popping up out the ground and knowing that the summer is on its way.

I don’t  go nearly as hard with my Spring decor.  I just try to add some color where ever I can.  In the front foyer, I simply changed out the flowers in my vase, and put a new Spring Printable in a frame.  Then, I added some fresh blooms to my Vintage Picnic Basket, and some Easter Eggs to the Wood Truck, for good measure.

2017 Spring Home Tour - Foyer - www.stage-presents.com

The Family Room had been long overdue for a refresh.  So last year, we purchased a new sofa and love seat.  Then, we decided that the mantel could use a change too.  I am not sure that I would say this was definitely Spring Decor.  But, the blues and greens tie in with the changes sprinkled all around the house.

2017 Spring Home Tour - Family Room Mantel Update - www.stage-presents.com

Our Spring Tablescape was very simple this year. I opted to use a lot of natural elements from the Wood Chargers to the Green Moss bunnies and the Egg Shell vases.  Even though it was probably the easiest tablescape I have done thus far.  I really love the way that it turned out.

2017 Spring Home Tour - Formal Living Room Tablescape - www.stage-presents.com 2017 Spring Home Tour - Formal Living Room Tablescape - www.stage-presents.com

In the kitchen, I didn’t do much.  Pulled out the Spring Kitchen Towels and I used two different cake plates and a Egg Wreath to create a Cloche Effect and a Centerpiece for the Island.

DSC022001

So there you have it. I truly love decorating our home.  And, lately I have found a lot of pleasure in using things we already have in our home to create new and interesting looks.   Hope you enjoyed your visit.  What are your favorite ways to decorate for Spring?  Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Our 2016 Christmas Home Tour

2016 Christmas Home Tour Front Door

2016 Christmas Home Tour Front Door

2016 Christmas Home Tour Front Hallway

2016 Christmas Home Tour Front Hallway1

2016 Christmas Home Tour Mantel

Every room in the house gets decorated with  traditional Christmas Colors, except for the Formal Living and Dining Room.  This year I added some Christmas Plaid and Buffalo Check just to introduce a new element.  You can see it in the printable by the front door and weaved into the Garland over the Mantle. I also added a Vintage Lantern I bought to sell in my Etsy Store, but decided to hold on to.  I loved the feel of it.  I must gush about the new piece I got to go in the foyer.  It is not a Christmas decoration at all.  But, what a find at Hobby Lobby!!  Do you spy it?  “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

2016 Christmas Home Tour Christmas Tree

2016 Christmas Home Tour Coffee Table Centerpiece

2016 Christmas Home Tour Side Buffet

2016 Christmas Home Tour Tablescape

2016 Christmas Home Tour Dining Room and Living Room

Purple and Gold have been part of my color scheme for the last Couple of Christmases with other colors  mixed in there.  This year I just used Purple and Gold.  I loved the way it came out.  The purple poinsettias in the Christmas tree were part of my tablescape some years back.  And, I added them to the tree for an updated and more professionally decorated look, or at least that is what I told myself.

I have an announcement, Christmas is my favorite time of year.  No duh, right.  But, honestly there is soo much ugly in the world.  I relish the opportunity each year to bring some of the magic inside for my family. There will be more than enough years of serious life ahead of them, but during Christmas my main focus is joy – joy – joy.  This year, I tried my hardest not to purchase any NEW Christmas decorations.  And, I did really well.  I literally only purchased a new Tree Skirt for the real tree in the Formal Living Room, and some Festive little plates for the Tablescape.  Everything else I used were things that I already had.  I tried to use them in a new way or change where I put them around the house, but that was about it.

Can you believe 2016 is really pretty much over?  And, I for one am pretty much over it.  So Merry Christmas to All and to All A Fantabulous Holiday Season  from Our Home to Yours.

THE BEST OF ALL GIFTS AROUND ANY TREE: THE PRESENCE OF A HAPPY FAMILY ALL WRAPPED UP IN EACH OTHER. – BURTON HILLS

Our 2016 Fall Home Tour

Stage Presents 2016 Fall Home Tour Hero Image - stage-presents.com

Welcome to the Our 2016 Fall Home Tour. This year virtually flew by for me.  I can’t believe it’s already time for another Fall Home Tour.  This year I happened to be working while trying to get everything together for the Season, which had its own set of challenges. And, I charged myself with trying to reuse as much of the past seasons décor but in different ways and or in different areas of the house.  For the most part, I was able to do that with just a few additions here and there.

Stage Presents 2016 Fall Home Tour Foyer - stage-presents.com

Stage Presents 2016 Fall Home Tour - Formal Living Room - stage-presents.com

Stage Presents 2016 Fall Home Tour Tablescape - Formal Dining Room - stage-presents.com Stage Presents 2016 Fall Home Tour Tablescape - Formal Dining Room - stage-presents.com

The Exterior of the House

Decorating the outside of the house/front porch area was a lot of fun for me this year.  Mostly, because I was able to use all  the decorations from last year. The only new purchases were our Pumpkin Door Mat and (2) bales of hay from Walmart.

The Formal Living Room – 

The formal living room is the least used room in our entire house, but since it extends into the Formal Dining Room, I can’t get away with decorating one room and not the other.  I was able to reuse a wreath from last year and a lamp that we bought last year.  We added some seasonal pillows with pops of orange to the couch and I think it tied the whole look together.

The Formal Dining Room – 

As always the Formal Dining Room is where we do the most decorating.  The table centerpiece is always the point of most contention.  Whenever the season starts, [in my mind],  I have already narrowed down the look I am going for.  However, that rarely works out the way that I think it will.  This year was no different, I put together what seemed like an easy look and I sent hubby on a mission to find me deer antlers.  He accepted the challenge and brought them back, but somehow we just couldn’t make it look like it did in our heads.  So then I went to Walmart and bought these Better Home and Gardens Acacia Wood Bark Chargers,  (Click the Link for Pictures), and some pumpkins.  At this point, I still wasn’t sure about what I wanted everything to look like, but, I knew that I wanted the table to have different dimensions.  I wish I could show you pics of the mess, when I laid all of this out on the table.  After shaking my head one too many times, I called in the hubby for reinforcements or maybe it was for a rescue mission.  I fiddled with a few things and told him what I was looking for and he waved his magic wand and our Centerpiece was complete.  The Fall Leaf Garland, was something that we already had, we used the Acacia Chargers to give the Pumpkin in Our Centerpiece some height.  I picked up the leaf candle holders and the Acorn Salt and Pepper Shakers from Family Dollar and all together it created this year’s Fall Tablescape.

Every year, I learn more and more about my husband from the strangest things.  This is no different.  I am pretty sure he could care less about the house being decorated for the seasons or Tablescapes, and Centerpieces, but he knows that it makes me happy.  And, even though he probably would never admit it, he subscribes to the concept of Happy Wife, Happy Life.  And, though I consider myself to be a creative person, what we do together far surpasses anything we do apart.  So I dedicate this post and this year’s Fall Home Tour to Mr. Stage without whom things just wouldn’t go the way that they do.  Well, that’s the mushy part of this post.  If you haven’t gagged yet, lol.  Thanks for coming on over!!  We loved having you!!  See you next year.

Stage Presents 2016 Fall Home Tour Tablescape Close Up - stage-presents.com

“AUTUMN PAINTS IN COLORS THAT SUMMER HAS NEVER SEEN.”

Our 2015 Christmas Home Tour

Christmas Home Tour 2015 | Stage Presents | DIY Ideas and Christmas Decor

It’s that time again.  Can you believe that this is our Third Christmas Home Tour?  The years are flying by so quickly and the kids are getting bigger and bigger, and by default, I am not getting any younger either.  But, the one thing that remains the same is my Love for this Time of The Year. It’s not Christmas unless you are throwing a little red and green around.  And, as far as the little ones are concerned the Kid’s Tree and everything surrounding it should be flocked in traditional hues.  And, I am ok with that.  Because as much as I literally live for the Real Tree in my formal living room, my heart strings are permanently attached to the Kid’s Tree.  It is literally stock full of memories of Christmas past.  The hallway leading into the Family Room and the Kid’s Tree and the Mantel are always very conventional.

Christmas Home Tour 2015 | Front Foyer | Stage Presents | DIY Ideas and Christmas Decor

Christmas Home Tour 2015 |Front Hallway | Stage Presents | DIY Ideas and Christmas Decor

Christmas Home Tour 2015 | Kid's Tree | Stage Presents | DIY Ideas and Christmas Decor

Christmas Home Tour 2015 | Mantel | Stage Presents | DIY Ideas and Christmas Decor

This year I introduced gold as our new accent color for the Formal  Living and Dining Room, while holding on to most of the color scheme from last year.  Since, I decorated for Fall this year, when Christmas time came my creative brain was pretty fried.  I had no idea in what direction I wanted to go this year.  However, I really loved how these two rooms turned out this year.  We purchased the large Gold bowl on the table from Home Goods and the pears and apples we got from their as well.  The purple napkins we scored last year from Bed Bath and Beyond and used them again this year.  We also scored the table mats from Home Goods and believe it or not the chargers came from the Dollar Store.  As you can see, the Gold literally carries through all the way to this years tree.

Christmas Home Tour 2015 | Centerpiece | Stage Presents | DIY Ideas and Christmas Decor

Christmas Home Tour 2015 | Tablescape | Stage Presents | DIY Ideas and Christmas Decor

Christmas Home Tour 2015 | View of Borth LR and DR | Stage Presents | DIY Ideas and Christmas Decor

Christmas Home Tour 2015 | Decorator's Tree | Stage Presents | DIY Ideas and Christmas Decor

Happy Holidays from Our Family to Yours!!

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