Dining Delight

Tuesday, June 20, 2017

Canada Day Mantel Decor

Canada is celebrating its 150th birthday on July 1st and I've been busy adding some appropriately themed decor to our home in honour of the occasion. Although Canadians can come across as a bit subdued in their patriotism, most of us are very proud to live in this wonderful country and will be celebrating this milestone birthday with full vigor.

I've started my Canada Day decorating by adding some red and white to our mantel and hearth.

I wanted the look to also reflect the summer season so I left up the boxwood wreaths that were part of my previous mantel decor. (here)

It gets a bit tricky as the greenery mixed with the red and white elements tends to give off a Christmas-y vibe. I went with it though and added some Canadiana in the form of these white moose.

I always like a bit of sparkle so I wove some battery-operated white mini-lights into the display.

These red lanterns were set atop birch log pieces.

A smaller lantern was placed at the opposite end of the mantel beside some faux florals in the coordinating colours.

And beside the lantern, a faux candle and holder were given some red and white touches as well.

Our beautiful Canadian flag is highlighted in a vintage picture frame with a couple others in a vase in front.

Of course, I decorated the hearth as well.

On one side, I placed a red pillow, a Canadian loon, and a framed print on top of a chest covered with a flag-printed kerchief.

You can create your own patriotic pillow using what you have. This pillow actually says "Noel" on the other side but I wrapped ribbon around it and tucked in some flags for a new look that fits my theme.

I typed this line from our national anthem in Word on my computer, printed, cut and framed - voila, easy Canada Day decor!

Just for fun, I swapped the loon for one of the moose.

Looks quite Canadian, eh? :)

On the other side of the hearth, a red vase is filled with faux florals with another loon and a faux candle beside it.

A hockey stick is pretty symbolic of Canada and I got this one at the Dollar Store.

Below the mantel, I taped little flags onto the existing curtain rod.

And that's just the start of my Canada Day decorating!

Hope you'll check back in for upcoming posts with more ideas on how to decorate for Canada Day.

Thanks for visiting!

I'll be linking this post to these wonderful blog parties:

Saturday Sparks on Pieced Pastimes

Share it One More Time at Everyday Home

A Bouquet of Talent at Life on Lakeshore Drive
Sundays at Home at Love of Home
Silver Pennies Sunday at Silver Pennies

Dishing It & Digging It at Rustic & Refined
Amaze Me Mondays at Dwellings
Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch

Show & Share at Coastal Charm
Celebrate Your Story at Celebrate & Decorate
Brag About It Tuesday at My Husband Has Too Many Hobbies

The Scoop at Stone Gable

Inspire Me Tuesdays at A Stroll Thru Life

Tuesday at Our Home at Our Home Away From Home

Tutorials & Tips at Home Stories A to Z

Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style

Sizzle into Summer at DIY by Design
Share Your Style at Essence of Home

Share Your Cup at Have a Daily Cup of Mrs Olson
Grace at Home at Imparting Grace

Home Matters at Life with Lorelai

Inspiration Gallery at Craftberry Bush

Home Sweet Home at The Charm of Home

Foodie Friday & Everything Else at Rattlebridge Farm

Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage

Friday, June 16, 2017

Fishing Centerpiece in Cylinder Vase

As promised in my previous post, here is a simple tutorial on how to create a fishing themed centerpiece in a cylinder vase. I've had some emails asking me about this picture I posted here a couple of years ago and so I thought it was time I explained what I did to design it.

Here are the items you will need:

- cylinder vases with inserts (inserts optional)

you can purchase them HERE

- blue coloured glass beads

- aqua coloured sea glass pieces

- faux greenery

- fish-shaped fishing lures

- fishing floats/bobbers

- floating candles

- fishing line

- scissors

Start with freshly washed cylinder vases/inserts.

Place blue glass beads inside vases/inserts to cover bottom.

Sea glass pieces should be available at craft stores. I can't remember for sure but I might even have gotten mine at Walmart.

Place a few sea glass pieces on top of the glass beads in the vases.

Faux greenery helps to set the underwater scene for the fish.

Place small pieces of some type of greenery that resembles grasses that grow in water, in the vases.

Fish-shaped fishing lures come in all sorts of sizes and materials and are available at fishing supply stores. I prefer the heavier plastic ones for this project.

The floats/bobbers also come in different sizes and I used some of the smaller ones.

Cut a lengthy piece of clear fishing line and tie it to the wire ring on the fishing lure. Then pull the line through the wire ring on the bobber.

Leave the fishing line long until you place the fish/bobber in the vase so you can see where you want the fish to hang.

Position the fishing lure in the vase at desired level and hang the bobber over the side. You can then trim the excess fishing line.

If you are using the glass inserts, you can then place them in the cylinder vases.

Fill the inserts halfway with water and add floating candles.

This is how they will look if you use the glass inserts however...

...if you don't have the inserts, you may fill the vases with water to desired level and place the floating candle on top.

I've had some readers say that the fishing lure floats to the top with this method so I would suggest using a heavier lure as these ones I used stayed midway in the vase.

The water in the vase does tend to magnify the fish which may or may not appeal to you.

I recently did a fishing themed tablescape using these centerpieces.

You can see more details from it here.

If you have an upcoming occasion where this theme fits, I hope you've been inspired to create your own cylinder vase fishing-themed centerpiece.

Thanks for visiting!

I'll be linking this post to these wonderful blog parties:

Saturday Sparks on Pieced Pastimes

Share it One More Time at Everyday Home

A Bouquet of Talent at Life on Lakeshore Drive
Sundays at Home at Love of Home
Silver Pennies Sunday at Silver Pennies

Dishing It & Digging It at Rustic & Refined
Amaze Me Mondays at Dwellings
Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch

Show & Share at Coastal Charm
Celebrate Your Story at Celebrate & Decorate
Brag About It Tuesday at My Husband Has Too Many Hobbies

The Scoop at Stone Gable

Inspire Me Tuesdays at A Stroll Thru Life

Tuesday at Our Home at Our Home Away From Home

Tutorials & Tips at Home Stories A to Z

Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style

Sizzle into Summer at DIY by Design
Share Your Style at Essence of Home

Share Your Cup at Have a Daily Cup of Mrs Olson
Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch

Grace at Home at Imparting Grace

Home Matters at Life with Lorelai

Inspiration Gallery at Craftberry Bush

Home Sweet Home at The Charm of Home

Foodie Friday & Everything Else at Rattlebridge Farm

Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage

Monday, June 12, 2017

Fishing Tablescape for Father's Day

Father's Day is this coming Sunday and with that in mind, I set out to create a fun tablescape that might provide you with some inspiration if you have a father who likes to fish. This table setting would also work for a birthday celebration or retirement party for any fisherman/woman you may be honouring.

The tablescape centers around these cylinder vases which I used to create the fishing themed vibe.

In my next post, I'll give a tutorial on how to create these

fishy centerpieces. (Update: See here)

This white lantern took center stage and represents something that might be found in a boathouse.

I draped some decorative fish netting over a blue cloth napkin on top of a pedestal candleholder. Then the lantern was set on top and surrounded by various fishing/water accessories.

This aqua coloured glass buoy coordinated well with the table colours.

On the other side, I added oars (wooden chopsticks) to this boat-shaped dish.

Looks like the fish that's being caught is almost as big as the boat :)

The lantern lights up which will create a nice glow for an evening meal.

For the place settings, I layered various water coloured linens and dishes.

These shell shaped plates were a gift from a S-i-L and fit the theme perfectly.

I also had to use my fish and wave etched wine glasses.

Green coloured mason jars as water glasses were given a nautical touch with some white rope.

This candleholder says what any fisherman would dream of...

Green cloth napkins were placed in aqua coloured napkin rings embellished with a bit of greenery.

I created placecard holders using little glass bowls with blue beads and a fishing lure inside - the fishing lure might be a good take-home favour for any guests who like to fish.
(might want to leave the packaging on if using for favours)

Floating candles go with the water theme and provide a lovely ambiance to the table.

Again, be sure to come back and check out my next post if you want to learn more about creating these fish themed centerpieces. (Update: See here)