Tag: Easter

Easter Dessert Presentation

The first holiday of the spring season is upon us, and I’m thinking Easter dessert presentation.

Even though we’re all in this together, Easter 2020 we will not be what most of us are used to, entertaining wise at least.

fresh-roses-cake-topper

Have you seen this Hosting with Kelly Clarkson for Wayfair commercial?

 

“You’re welcome.”

Love it!

Taking a cake from grocery store shelf, bakery display or freezer section to dessert table impressive is easy.

Loire Glass Round 7.75" Cake Stand, BlueLoire Glass Round 7.75″ Cake Stand, Blue

Boom, you too can be a chef with a pretty cake plate and garnish for the host or hostess with the most or mostess win.

knockout rose bush

The usual made from scratch Easter coconut cake ain’t happening this Easter 2020, but the one from the bakery at Kroger’s (delicious) will be decorated with a spring bouquet topper of knockout roses.

It is said we eat with our eyes first which translates pure and simple to the proven fact I know to be true.

Presentation is key, folks.

Easter dessert presentation

It seems my camera has decided it does not want to import photos to my computer for some driver-hardware-update reason only known to Windows 10, Nikon, and the evil computer gods.

There goes the photos of the blue hobnail cake stand I inherited from my grandmother’s collection and fresh rose petals I meticulously staged for this Easter dessert presentation post.

Loire Glass Square Cake Stand BlueLoire Glass Square 10″ Cake Stand, Blue

Another spring-Easter-Mother’s Day-summer entertaining (hope we can do lots of that this year) favorite is making rose petal ice cubes.

freezing-rose-petals1

So easy to make, and it takes your beverage presentation to the next level.

rose-petals-ice-cubes1

Dave the Builder brought home a dozen yard eggs the other day in various colors much to my Easter egg decorating and baking delight.

chickens-farm

fresh eggs

The idea here is to intermingle a half dozen farm to Easter table eggs with a half dozen decorative speckled multicolored eggs in the DIY Easter basket I made last Easter.

Easter dessert presentation

From fresh flowers to grandmothers cake stand, simple touches and visually impressive details come together to dress up your Easter dessert presentation.

love your style

 

 

 

Easy Easter DIY Decorations

If today’s blog post could talk, it would say look at these wonderful easy Easter DIY decorations I found on some of my favorite internet sites.

seed-packet-easter-wreath

Country Living

Springtime is the right time to adorn your entry door with a spring and Easter door decoration.  Welcome spring, friends, and family to the Easter party with this seed packet Easter wreath.

foam-floral-wreath

You’ll need about a dozen seed packets.  Using straight pins, secure the seed packets to a 12-inch foam wreath.

flower-seed-packets

Easter ribbon

Tie a bow with ribbon in a zippy spring color and pin to wreath.

faux-flowers-wreath

Tuck, pin, or hot glue faux floral stems to fill in and complete the look.

Chinoiserie Easter Eggs

Elegant in presence and easy to make, these Chinoiserie Easter eggs DIY from Yvonne at Stone Gable blog instantly caught my eye.

Click here to be redirected over to Stone Gable blog for her DIY tutorial.

moss-egg-decorating-ideas

Moss covered DIY Easter eggs capture the natural essence of spring is sprung.

floral-moss1

Easy is the idea here, and it doesn’t get much easier than using a hot glue gun to glue strips of moss to plastic eggs.

free-printable-easter-gift-tags-scissors-cherry-blossoms

I love these easy-to-download free printable Easter gift tags from the talented Ann at On Sutton Place.  These will enhance any Easter basket or gift, and make a wonderful addition to the Easter table as a napkin tie or place card.

Click here to be taken over to On Sutton Place for download instructions.

bath-body-Easter-basketA dear friend has an April birthday, so I thought a grown up Easter basket with a rose theme a fun way to go with the gift presentation.

Easy Easter DIY Decorations

Begin with a yard or two of tulle in your color of choice.  For this demonstration, I’m using a vintage pressed glass basket.

basket-with-lid

Willow Basket With Flip Lid

For the actual gift basket I’m leaning toward using the willow basket with flip lid as shown above and rose tulle as the filler grass.

rose-tulle

speckled-eggs-crate

Working with the word rose turns out to be an easy a-tisket, a-tasket,
a grown up Easter-and-birthday basket theme.

I found the porcelain powder shaker at a vintage store, and knew immediately it would make a lovely addition to the gift basket.

I’m also including rose water, a rose rollerball perfume, rose facial oil, rose and honeysuckle body lotion, rose colored nail polish, rose hip oil lip gloss, and a bottle of Chandon California Rose.

speckled-eggs-lamb-figurine

A bouquet of rose colored faux peonies and rose colored speckled eggs placed here and there complete the look.

bowl-of-pastel-dyed-eggs-in-Instant-Pot

I like a one stop-one bunny hop Easter DIY project.

Instant Pot Duo 6qt 7-in-1 Pressure Cooker

These Easter easy DIY directions from Better Homes & Gardens for dying Easter eggs in the Instant Pot.

In about six minutes you can cook and dye one dozen eggs.

food-coloring

food-coloring-chart

Click on the link for step-by-step directions How to Dye Eggs in an Instant Pot.

Easy Easter DIY Decorations

An ample handful of wheatgrass seeds from the local feed and seed store is all you need to make a live grass Easter basket centerpiece.

Fill the container or basket you will be using for your centerpiece with potting soil.

Add a thick layer of wheatgrass seeds spreading evenly over the soil.

Fill a plant mister or spray bottle filled with water.  Generously mist and soak the planted area.

Place container in or near window so it can get a good amount of daily sunlight.

Water your newly planted crop daily, and in seven to ten days you’ll have a living Easter basket.

plant-atomizer-watering-mister

DIY projects bloom beautiful at this time of year.  Here’s hoping you are inspired by these ideas and inspired to project with these easy Easter DIY decorations.

Happy spring, happy midweek, and as always, happy decorating.

love your style

 

Easter Table Decor Suggestions

The sounds, scents, and sights that accompany spring beautification curb appeal, as well as inquires about my Easter table decor suggestions, signals spring is sprung.

curb appeal Southern Home

Southern Home

Spring officially begins this Wednesday (March 20).

Easter will be here in thirty-two days.

easter-table-decor-suggestions

Gardenistas and decoristas alike realize that’s a small window of time to plant and plan.

Easter definition throw pillow

Emails and push notifications from home decor sites alert subscribers to what’s new in store for the Easter coming together of family and friends season.  If you live in an area of the world that is retail deficient, ordering from online outlets opens up the retail world to you.

Keep in mind you have to allow ample time for sourcing, selecting, ordering, and arrival.

After a particularly disappointing shipping arrival time incident,  I realized the importance of getting my decorating plan finalized and my holiday decor ordering done sooner rather than later.

cottontail-rabbit

Remember me telling you all about the bunny rabbit Dave the Builder found in one of our flower beds?

Cottontail instinctively knew when it was time for Dave to drive in the gate.  He would sit in the driveway close to Dave’s parking spot waiting for Dave to come home.  After the odd couple greeted each other, Cottontail would hop to it, following Dave into the house.  He would wait ever so patiently at Dave’s feet for Dave to pick him up and hold him.

I include at least one rabbit themed piece of decor in my Easter table decor suggestions in honor of Cottontail.

It’s an Easter table decor suggestions must.  Our pets touch our hearts and our home decorating choices.

As far as the rest of the look goes, I select pieces able to make the decorating transition from spring to summer.

 

bunny cookie jar

Figural Bunny Cookie Jar by Arlington Designs

Scrolling through the home section on the TJ Maxx website resulted in two super cute, super affordable bunny pieces.  The first of two ideas is to use the Figural Bunny Cookie Jar by Arlington Designs as an ice bucket.

Easter grass

I’ll set up a beverage station on the dining room sideboard for our Easter luncheon.  To implement the idea, first I’ll place a dinner plate or charger  on top of a mirror placemat to protect the finish of the sideboard from water spots.

The cookie jar will sit in the middle of the plate.  A thick layer of Easter grass or paper shreds placed around the bottom and sides (if need be) of the bunny  will hide the plate-charger and the mirror placemat.

speckled-ceramic-robin-eggs-blue

Creative Co-op HD4474 Blue Speckled Ceramic Robin Eggs

Complete the look by “hiding” decorative ceramic or plastic Easter eggs in the grass or shreds.

Pastel Gingham Easter Egg FillerPastel Gingham Easter Egg Filler

 

cement bunny decor

Modern Bunny 9.5in Cement Bunny Decor

The cement bunny will be a two, two, two uses in one piece as Easter table decor now and spring into summer garden decor later.

Rainbow Rock Candy Sticks

Rainbow Rock Candy Sticks

The rainbow colors of these rock candy sticks remind me of the ones in the traditional Easter egg dye kits.

A glass of iced tea served with a rock candy stick adds an extra kick of sugar sweet swizzle and stir.

Signed Fenton Opalescent Basket With Pink Handle

Signed Fenton Opalescent Basket With Pink Handle

A tried and true idea in my Easter table decor suggestions bag of tricks is to use a vintage glass basket as a dish for garnishes or as a condiment bowl.

It’s makes a lovely presentation.

It is said that iced tea is the house wine of the South.   We steep, sugar, and serve the stuff year round.  Bridal and baby showers, brunches, luncheons, holiday dinners, and other celebratory general fancy-schmancy occasions call for upping the iced tea recipe game.

Governor's Mansion Summer Peach Tea Punch

Governor’s Mansion Summer Peach Tea Punch

Ingredients

3 family-size tea bags

2 cups loosely packed fresh mint leaves

1 (33.8-oz.) bottle peach nectar

½ (12-oz.) can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed

½ cup Simple Sugar Syrup (see recipe below)

1 (1-liter) bottle ginger ale, chilled

1 (1-liter) bottle club soda, chilled

Garnish: fresh peach wedges

Directions

Bring 4 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan; add tea bags and mint leaves.  Boil 1 minute; remove from heat.  Cover and steep 10 minutes.

Discard tea bags and mint.  Pour into a 1-gal. container; add peach nectar, lemonade concentrate, and Simple Sugar Syrup.  Cover and chill 8 to 24 hours.

Pour chilled tea mixture into a punch bowl or pitcher.  Stir in ginger ale and club soda just before serving.  Garnish, if desired.

Simple Sugar Syrup

Ingredients

2 cups sugar

1 cup water

Directions

Bring sugar and water to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.  Boil, stirring occasionally, 4 minutes or until sugar is dissolved and mixture is clear.  Cool to room temperature (about 30 minutes).

– Southern Living – Junior League of Austin, Texas – Photo: Jennifer Davick Styling: Lydia DeGaris Pursell

lilacs

This photo serves no purpose other than being just a pretty reminder of the in full bloom splendor of spring coming to a lawn, garden, planter, or centerpiece near you this Wednesday.

peony picnic napkin set

Peony Picnic Napkin Set 6

 

Godinger Claro Blue Highball Glasses, Set of FourGodinger Claro Blue Highball Glasses, Set of Four

Set Of 4 Adelaide Dinner Plates 222 Fifth222 Fifth Set Of 4 Adelaide Dinner Plates

pink-yellow-roses

Fresh, faux, or a mixing of both, remarkably gorgeous flower arrangements need not be expensive.  Some of the most impressive flower arrangements are simple in nature and elegant in statement.

Begin in your yard and garden, and build your arrangement from there.

Hull Pottery Woodland Pink Basket Hull Pottery Woodland Pink Basket

Garden roses mixed with dusty miller, bridal wreath, fern fronds, and fresh seeded eucalyptus brings spring beauty to your dining table or sideboard.

cabbage-pattern-serving-bowl  Farmhouse Cabbage Serving Bowl from Martha Stewart Collection

Container ideas range from serving bowls and art pottery baskets to ornamental cabbages and decorative cement planters.

spring-diy-flower-arrangement

Cabbage Arrangement

Anthropologie Cement Tulip Pot

Anthropologie Cement Tulip Pot Collection

Easter Table Decor Suggestions:

Garden Variety Salad Plate Set

Garden Variety Salad Plate Set

 

Mikasa Silk Floral Teal Appetizer PlateMikasa Silk Floral Teal Appetizer Plate

Made In Portugal Cabbage Serving Dish

Olfaire Pottery Made In Portugal Cabbage Serving Dish

Gingham Robins Egg Dinner PlateGingham Robins Egg Dinner Plate

Delicious desserts have become works of culinary art.  Do your Easter desserts justice with an impressive plating presentation.

berry-cream-tartlets-easy-easter-desserts

Very Berry Cream Tartlets

Included in my Easter table decor suggestions repertoire is the use of at least one vintage piece.

Vintage pieces possess charming features, distinguishing colors, and delicate patterns able to gracefully stand alone or easily mix with new traditional favorites.

Floral Cake Plate from Germany with 2 HandlesFloral Cake Plate from Germany with 2 Handles

coconut cake with rose topper

Rae Dunn Happy Spring Cake Stand

Rae Dunn Happy Spring Cake Stand

I don’t always have the best luck when shopping the shelves at my favorite local treasure shop, but on my last visit I spied this darling figurine behind a piece that wouldn’t normally catch my eye.

The colors, condition, and price sold the piece, and it fits in perfectly with my Easter decorating theme.

Fenton-basket-blue

These Easter table decor suggestions invite a simple yet elegant charm factor to the spring get-together and Easter celebration.

love your style

Easter Week at Places In The Home

Spring blooms, seasonal snaps, and a heavy dose of Easter tradition ushers in Easter week at Places In The Home.

What’s hoppin’ around your house this Easter week?

BHG-hello-spring

Red and pink beauties are beginning to bloom offsetting the brown and greenish gray color holdovers from winter’s grip.

Easter week

From the I ♥ garden roses collection.

blooming-red-roses

I’ll enjoy the arrangements for another day or two, and then use the petals for rose petal ice cubes.

garden-roses

My brother dropped by yesterday bearing gifts of gardenias.

The spring beautification process is a slowly but surely operation, but we’re getting there.

gardenia

Dave the Builder’s latest pet project, the taming of the squirrel, is proving successful.

squirrel

Maybe too successful.

crepe-window

This crazy thing perches itself on the main branch of the crepe myrtle tree right outside the kitchen window and peers through the window.

Evidently watching me washing dishes is wildly entertaining.

We are one wild and crazy crew, animals included.

I dug this photo of Dave, the Canadian snowbird and Cottontail the rabbit out of the Places In The Home archives.  If you think the photo quality is horrible in black and white, you should see the color version.

Mama Places In The Home snapped this circa 2005 pic with a throwaway camera.

Annie Leibovitz she is not.

Here’s the Reader’s Digest version of the bunny backstory:

Dave and I were checking out the newly planted flower beds late one spring afternoon.  I was in the color in bloom zone, laser focused on the budding design features detailing my mad lawn and garden skills.

Dave on the other hand was channeling his inner Dr. Doolittle with the just discovered addition to our flower garden menagerie.

Cottontail the baby rabbit hopped right up to Dave in are you my father fashion.  We brought him inside that evening and set him up in a toilet paper box direct from the discard bin at the local Kroger.

We lined the box with newspaper and grass clippings hoping to emulate a natural surrounding, and placed a water bowl and rabbit food over to one corner.

Cottontail was in high cotton for the evening.

The next morning it was back to the outdoors where he thrived and frolicked, nested in our yard and flower garden, adapted to the daily comings and goings of our schedules, and waited in the driveway each afternoon to greet Dave.

As mysteriously as he appeared he disappeared, leaving a hole in our hearts.

We got so attached to that silly rabbit, so much so that I cried for three days when he went away.

Dave stills tears up when he talks about that silly rabbit.

Easter-basket

My Easter Eggstravaganza centerpiece is a build upon canvas.

Deconstructing the Mardi Gras King Cake centerpiece, it dawned on me that by adding to instead of taking away from the existing tulle a shimmering color rich nest effect would be created.

Easter-eggs-vase

What nature does not provide, the Walmart-Michaels-Hobby Lobby floral department will.

Faux flowers serve the purpose in certain decorating for the holiday situations, and when quality stems are selected the finished result can be faux fabulous.

eggs

The incredible, dyeable, edible egg.

dyed-Easter-eggs

pineapple-pie-meringue

Fresh mint.

Fresh lemon.

Fresh orange.

lemon-orange-fresh-mint

Fresh parsley.

Fresh carrots.

Easter!

carrots-with-fresh-lemon-orange-mint

Easter week sets spring into motion.

Another season, another wonderful reason for decorating, planting, entertaining, and gathering round dining and picnic tables of stylish tablescapes and delicious dishes with dear loved ones and great friends.

Dave and I hope your Easter week, weekend and Sunday is one of blessings, love, laughter, and making wonderful traditions and memories time spent with family and friends who are like family.

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Lovely, Delicious and Holiday Spring Things

 These lovely, delicious and holiday spring things on a Good Friday offer a glimpse into the Places In The Home Easter holiday celebration.

garlic roasted carrots

Garlic Roasted Carrots.

Our Easter dinner table staple.

malted coconut cake

Malted Coconut Cake from Country Living Magazine.

malted-vanilla-cake-for-Easter

Malted Coconut Cake for Easter from the Places In The Home test kitchen.

decorative cabbage

Artificial cabbage head decorations will become place card holders.

dot-and-army-seersucker-napkins-blue

Seersucker napkins from Food52 make a seasonal debut into the spring tablescape rotation.

Luigi_Chialiva_-_A_shepherdess_watering_her_flock

A Shepherdess Watering Her Flock by Luigi Chialiva (1842-1914)  {{PD-US}}  is a favorite painting and a favorite subject.

lamb statue

Gold-rimmed china, crystal and blooming wisteria for optimum serving, color and fragrance wow factor.

The entire dining room is filled with the sweet aroma of wisteria.

The fragrance notes should settle to a light floral scent for Sunday’s Easter dinner setting.

lovely, delicious and holiday spring things

Dave the Builder and I hope you and yours enjoy this lovely, delicious and holiday spring things Easter weekend.

Love your style!

Set The Tone and The Table: Easter Tablescape Ideas Part 2

I dig a good word within a word moment.

Take the word tablescape for example.

The word escape is within the word tablescape, and that discovery became the subject of the blog post, Seasonal Update: Turn Your Tablescape Into A Table Escape.

When we tablescape we escape through creativity, and right in the middle of the word creativity is the word that is the reason for tablescaping in the first place- eat.

Now that I think about it, when we tablescape we decorate, and the last three letters in decorate spell ate.

I’m on a roll.

Coming back around to the subject of wrapping up the Set The Tone and The Table: Easter Tablescape Ideas Part 2 series, here are several ideas to get you started.

cut-glass-coolers

You can’t go wrong with these cut-glass coolers from Dollar Tree.

The look is vintage, the material is quality, and the price is right.

Pastel dinner plates perfectly pair with Easter, spring and summer tablescapes.

Euro-Ceramica-Savannah-Salad-Plates-(Set-of-4)

One dozen decorative speckled eggs can be used in many ways past an Easter tablescape.

speckled-eggs

Carved.

Distressed.

Creamy white.

Enough said.

dish towels

White herringbone dish towels with a singular green stripe put a spin of pastel on the dinner napkin situation.

Not too thick, not too thin, completely washable and reusable.

grosgrain-ribbon

Grosgrain knots and bows adds the finishing touch.

French rabbit printables from The Graphics Fairy used as place cards will deliver the ooh la la factor in vintage elegance.

Natural-History-Rabbit-GraphicsFairy21Vintage rabbit printable

A natural angel vine bird nest placed in the center of each dinner plate will lend a lovely look for spring renewal.

bird-nests-3-vine-9-nests-4Save-On-Crafts

willow baskets set

Willow baskets lined with decorative plastic grass and finished with a fresh herb plant make an aromatic addition to an Easter tablescape and an even nicer parting gift for guests.

Carrasco+Bunny+Butter+Dish

Sideboards need porcelain rabbit statue love too.

In varied heights and finishes, rabbit statues draw the eye and carries out the theme.

White Ceramic Rabbit Figurine by Alcott Hill

I prefer fresh flowers, but when Mother Nature or the local grocery store floral department and I are not in fresh flower sync with each other I’ve been known to go this route.

I keep a few artificial flowers on hand for decorating wrapped gifts and cupcakes.

A pastry piping Picasso I am not, and I’m not too proud to accept a helping hand in the decorating and adorning department from nature or the faux flower display at the dollar store.

fresh-roses-cake-topper

Simply give the flowers a gentle wash and dry, cut down the stems to desired length and place them atop your favorite cake.

You will be surprised at how nice a spring flower cake actually looks.

Love your style!