Hello, I’m Paula from Sweet Pea. I enjoy blogging about crafting, cooking, gardening, decorating, travel, and exercise. I’m excited to guest post here at the CSI Project for Beachy Vignettes and Projects week. I enjoy changing my décor’ with the seasons and think that a beach theme is perfect for summer. Even though my living room is formal with colors that are geared more toward fall and winter, I was able to lighten the room for summer by using shells and by adding touches of aqua blue.
The mantel is always my starting point for redecorating for the season. I shopped around my house to pull together shells, starfish, aqua items, and accessories with a beach feel. My decorations usually have a story as I love vintage items. Everything you see except the starfish and candles was either inherited, gifted, or thrifted.
Using jute twine to attach two starfish to each fabric covered panel gives this vintage Williamsburg fabric from Waverly a summertime feel. When we purchased our home, nearly every window was covered with panels made from this material.
Blues on the mantel including a vintage Bobbsey Twins book and two Fenton glass pieces bring out the blue in the fabric.
Glass bowls on several small tabletops hold shells found or purchased on annual beach trips.
An antique chest gets a beachy vignette, too. Again, most everything you see here was inherited, thrifted, or found on the beach.
My grandmother used the large Abalone shell for garden club arrangements.
I couldn’t resist carrying the coastal theme into the adjoining formal dining area. I crafted the crab table decoration from a piece of a drop cloth and fabric scraps. If you’d like to make one for yourself, directions can be found here.
Many thanks to the CSI ladies for allowing me the pleasure of guest posting. I love visitors and would be thrilled to see you at my blog, Sweet Pea.