Summer is flying by

Hi, everyone! Sorry for the radio silence over the last couple of weeks. I don't know what happened to the rest of July...all the sudden it's practically two weeks into August! Crazy how that happens.

So I'm here today just to give you a quick update on what I've been up to the last couple of weeks. In no particular order...

We drove up to the top of Mt. Washington...

We enjoyed some Maine summer favorites -- beach, lobster and camping...

We visited some friends and got up close and personal with some sea life in Boston...

We bought a new dishwasher. Our old dishwasher broke for the third time in less than three years, so instead of fixing it, we decided to replace it. We bought this Whirlpool Gold on sale at Lowe's. We're pretty happy with it so far! It cleans well, is relatively quiet and holds lots of dishes.

I did a little thrifting...

And I started painting our bedroom. Our bedroom was pistachio green when we bought our house, so we immediately painted it a Behr color called Mushroom Bisque. But it didn't take long for us to dislike the color. We rushed picking a color so we could paint before we moved in our furniture, and we didn't examine it in all lights. Our bedroom doesn't get a lot of light, and the color was just too dark. We were craving something light and bright...and we're on our way to getting it! I'll post more about it soon when I'm finished.

So that's what I've been up to! What about you?

A "new" patio set, and a Memorial Day BBQ

Happy June, all! And woo, it's already Wednesday! Don't you love short weeks? They always seem to drag at the end though...

I mentioned on Monday that we had ourselves a little cookout over the weekend -- not only our first outdoor party of the season, but our first at this house. That makes it monumental. But, if you remember from our backyard tour, we only have this little four-person deck table.

When we had our families over for Mother's Day and ate on the deck, we had to pull our dining room chairs out and use them for both seating and extra plate-holding space. Not ideal!

Remember a couple months ago, I got that free bookcase, wine rack, beer sign and other stuff from the new restaurant near my office? Well, the guy renovating the space also offered me a patio set he found in the basement. At first, I said no, but after eating off chairs on Mother's Day, I decided we needed it.

So, I borrowed my parents' truck and loaded the set up. I was really nervous, and pictured it flying off the back of the truck while I was going down the highway, so I made sure to use lots of knots and bungee cords. Dad, if you're reading this, please look away...

Oh boy. I managed to get it home no problem, but the hubs did laugh at my tie job.

But he stopped laughing when he saw how great it fit great on our deck. I really like the way the wrought iron contrasts with the gray and white.

But it needed a little dressing up...

Much better!

Okay, full disclosure: this is my first tablescape. I kept it simple and didn't clutter the table with lots of candles, or flowers, or decorative things. Though I love the look of a really full and detailed table, for me and my own life, simple seemed better, especially outside. I also didn't want to buy lots of new stuff (saving up for Quebec City!), so I used mostly what I had on hand.

I started with this yellow and gray tablecloth from Target, the only thing I purchased, for $17.

The yellow and blue plates are part of a plastic set I bought for cheap at Target a couple years ago. The white ones are paper Chinet. I wrapped the silverware in gray paper napkins left over from our housewarming party and tied them with some sisal.

A pitcher of lemonade just screams summer, and happens to coordinate with the yellow palette -- nice! I added some reuseable ice cubes in yellow and blue. They're not only functional and super-cool (har har, ice pun), but the blue ones tie in well with the aqua plates.

A yellow gerbera daisy in an equally sunny pot, given to me by a coworker, made the perfect centerpiece.

I filled a few mason jars with candles and river rocks and lined them up along the railing as a backdrop.

I didn't leave the table this way for the BBQ, since we were going to have way more than four people, but it was fun to set up and dream about sitting out there in the evenings, sipping (hard?) lemonade, watching the birds and listening to the peepers (want to hear some peepers right now? You can listen to a recording on Wikipedia!).

I just happened to spot this patio set at Home Depot over the weekend. See how much it is?

Let's zoom in...

This set would have cost us $350! Major score. Plus the restaurant owner was just planning to throw it in the dumpster, so I feel happy that I salvaged something with so much life left in it. I think the chairs need some cushions, but I didn't find anything I liked, so I'll keep looking. Maybe I'll DIY something.

Okay, enough on this table -- let's talk about the cookout, shall we? We finally had a wonderful, gorgeous, warm, sunny May day, and it was so glorious to be outside after nearly an entire month of rain -- I swear, it was magical!

We did lots of eating, under the shade of the Easy-Up (these babies are totally worth the money, by the way)...

The hubs got up at 6 in the morning to start barbecuing a brisket and pork butt, and OMG they were yummy! He used to compete in BBQ competitions, so he's quite the perfectionist when it comes to meat. But it was worth it (especially for me, since I didn't have to do it!).

No pictures of the meat. I was too busy scarfing it down.

And we played some laddergolf. No, the hubs didn't DIY a set, like he considered. He found this one at Dick's for $30, and since the balls are a softer plastic instead of actual golf balls, they're kid-friendly, which gave it bonus points. This game is really fun but deceptively hard. I lost. A lot.

We had a couple kids show up, and to entertain them I bought some sidewalk chalk at Target for a couple bucks. I also picked up a couple tins from the Target dollar spot and filled them with sparklers and bubbles (um, left over from our wedding last year!). The bubbles and chalk kept them busy for about 10 minutes, and the sparklers entertained me and my sister for about that long as well.

I actually got carded at Target for buying sparklers! Apparently they card everyone who buys sparklers and cough syrup, the cashier said.

 
It was relaxed and low-key, which is just what we wanted.

That hose was brought over to the fire pit for safety, and the stick in the ground was used to tie up our friend's dog while we were eating. Just in case you thought we were playing some crazy Maine hose-stick game -- we weren't. :)

After eating and games, it was bonfire time.

There's nothing like a bonfire and s'mores to cap a good cookout, don't you think?

That orange bucket is full of water, to douse the fire if it got out of control. Fire safety, people!

When it got dark, I lit a few of my mason jar candles to help people find their way to the stairs. (That's my adorable sister, being all stealth.)

I hope we have many more cookouts and gatherings this summer!

Check out Centsational Girl's fabulous outdoor tablescape here!
Want more tablescape inspirations? Between Naps on the Porch posts a tablescape every Thursday, and you can see lots of them here.

Sharing this at Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch!

And Inspiration Friday at At the Picket Fence!

And The Shabby Nest's Frugal Friday!

And Chic on a Shoestring's Flaunt it Friday!

And the summer decks and porches party at Savvy Southern Style!

A fresh display for summer

First off, I'm just floored -- another fabulous blogger highlighted little ol' me! Brenda at Cozy Little House included Heart Maine Home in her recent Welcome Wagon Friday roundup. Wow! Thank you so much, Brenda!! I'm feeling so welcomed into this blogger community, and it sure is nice. You have to go check out Brenda's blog -- it's full of gorgeous photography that I know will cheer you up on this Friday as you watch the minutes tick down until quittin' time. Go over and say hi, and check out the other bloggers she featured this week! And to my new followers, welcome welcome! I'm so happy you're here.

Don't worry, I'm not going to let all of this attention go to my head. :)

We've had a pretty lousy May here in Maine -- lots of rain, cold temps and week-long stretches of absolutely NO SUN. It's been a little depressing, to say the least! The sun did come out this week, which gave me the itch to bring in some new, fresh summer decor in the living room. (The sun arrived, but of course did not stick around long enough for me to get nice light pictures...oh well!)

Our spring vignette was playful with lots of color...

For summer, I wanted something relaxing and soothing, like a warm, lazy day at the beach. We only get about three months of beach weather in Maine, so we really cherish those perfect beach days. Maine has lots of coastline and gorgeous, wild beaches, and my absolute favorite thing to do in the summer is walk along the beach, watching the waves crash, the little sandpipers running around, the kids playing in the water -- and yes, I do swim in it! It's very...refreshing :) I'm totally in love with the ocean and all of its colors -- watery blues, peaceful greens, sandy tans.

Using the colors and feeling of the ocean, I put together this summer dislay on the console table and floating shelves in our living room.

Let's take a little tour around it, shall we?

Starting with the shelves...the bottom shelf holds a little succulent that I wrapped in some jute fabric and arranged with some sea glass. I just love succulents, and they remind me of our Aruba honeymoon, where cacti dotted much of the landscape. Next to it is the white vase I snagged from Michaels and used in our kitchen as part of our spring decor. I love repurposing!

On the top shelf: a votive holder with more sea glass, a framed photo and a big glass fishing float I bought at the antique store. I love its color and unique shape

The photo I took a couple years ago at one of our favorite Maine beaches, Reid State Park in Georgetown. I shopped my house for this summery vignette, and stole the photo from a frame in the guest room, and the frame was holding a print in the dining room.

It makes me feel so relaxed...

I kept it simple on the console table -- I didn't really like how busy it was looking with all the little items, so I decided to use fewer, but bigger, items this time around. 

Remember that wire basket I bought in Kennebunkport? I love how it looks filled with a couple more glass fishing floats. Aren't they so neat? I'll have more on those another day.

I arranged a few pieces of coral we collected in Aruba and smuggled through customs (shhh don't tell!) on a white tray. I find the white-on-white very calming.

An old wooden bowl I found at the antique store for only $10 holds my collection of white shells. I love collecting shells, and everyone knows it, so when my mom and my sister go to the beach or travel they are sweet enough to bring me back a few treasures. I have a ton of shells as a result, and I love it!

Rounding it out is my green glass bottle from the flea market, and a wine bottle of sand, also smuggled out of Aruba. 

I love how the warm tones of the wood bowl contrast with the cool colors of the shells and the glass. The bowl definitely brings some dimension to the display.

On the bottom shelf, I added some jute string and shells to the baskets. I don't think I'm liking it though. After I took these photos, I kept looking at them and they reminded me of, ahem, a part of the female anatomy. (Scroll back up to the first head-on shot and tell me you see the same thing! Either that or I'm super immature.) But I do like that the baskets play off the warmer tones of the wood bowl and keep the whole display from being too cool-hued.

A few more photos...

I love how airy it feels with all the glass! And the repetition of a few colors -- white, aqua blue and green, is very soothing to me. It makes me want to put on a light, white cotton sweater and a pair of flip flops and sit down next to the ocean with my toes in the sand.

I stuck all the things I pulled off the shelves and table on top of the media cabinet to get them out of the way, including the book wreath and bundle. I'm kind of liking how they look up there, and how the wreath reflects in the mirror. I think I'll leave them there (but pare down all the stuff, obviously). If that candle ever got lit, that wreath would go up in flames so fast!

I'm working on a new summery centerpiece for our dining room table, and I'm STILL sewing something to add to the living room (okay, a hint: they're pillows!) that will bring in some of those cool blue and green colors. I promise I'll show those to you soon!

I hope you all have a fantastic Memorial Day weekend! We'll be having a little cookout if the weather cooperates (please, please, please!), and I'm really excited to finally use our outdoor space.

We'll also be playing for the first time this game...have you guys seen it? I guess it's called ladder golf, though some may know it as redneck horseshoes (ha!). Being a fellow DIY fan (but in a very different way!), the hubs is planning to build our own set before Sunday. If he does, I'll do a little tutorial in case anyone else is looking for something fun to play this summer.

I wish we were playing on the beach! Photo from Coastal Living

Have a great long weekend! I'll be back on Monday for another Maine Monday, highlighting another iconic Maine creature...can you guess what it is?? :)

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