A dose of beauty!

Sometimes life brings you happy moments just when you need them most. After reading my last entry, you know we are sitting in the midst of total chaos in our home. It is even worse now but as the saying goes...things can only get better. We continue to pack up things are carry them downstairs. It is wonderful to make you purge and part with things. But everyone needs a break and dose of beauty every now and then.


I had made arrangements to take one of my friends from my quilt group out as she had to miss our group's day out for High Tea. She rarely is able to go along because of her job. I promised her a chance to still do the High Tea when she was able. The timing could not have been better as we went on Tuesday. I needed a dose of beauty and got it in spades!


We went to an old Dutch farm called De Espeterhoeve. This farm is being used as a combination of lifestyle and floral shop and a tea shop. They recently added a new thing to the menu which is a Cafe Plateau. My friend is a coffee drinker and I thought she would like this better than having High Tea. I was not sure what to expect but it was wonderful and perfectly arranged as normal by this tea shop. You are greeted and shown to your table after which they bring you each a tray of French style morsels to enjoy with your coffee.

Bep and I then spent time going through the lifestyle and floral shops to enjoy all the pretty things and get ideas for brightening our home and garden in the coming dark season.

Wicker bells are big here this year.

I wish I could have taken this beautiful oblong urn home with me. It was far too pricey but did give me an idea of how to dress up my own urn at home.

I have these lighted branches in brown and white and now have some new ideas of how to use them. The first arrangement was using real tree branches mixed with them and then tea light holders from "poor man's silver" hung from them.

The second display was using pine boughs with the white lit branches and then hanging pearl berries and white ornaments from the branches. I think this would be beautiful with any color of ornaments.

This simple display of boxwood in tall containers was so pretty as it started to get dark in the afternoon and the pretty fairy lights outlined the form.

A long pine branch becomes a fetching decoration when you add a red bow, apples, pinecones and berries. I loved the length of this. I am definitely going to try making one of these.

So I came home contented with the gift of friendship and full of inspiration to give my own garden a pretty new look for winter. Now all I need is the time to start...