Pier 1 Share the Love Contest | Jolene Balyeat Designs

I get a kick out of going to the hardware store fully intending on getting something to use for a purpose the manufacturer never intended. This hardware store hack flowerpot makeover was an accidental discovery. Here is how it began. I was looking for a silver metal tape that is usually used for duct work in order to use it on a pastel painting. (You’ll have to wait for my blog post to find out why a mirror surface was needed for my pastel painting!)

As we exited the Duck tape aisle, I told my Lowes personal shopper that you would think they would call it “duckt tape” (Yep, it sounded funnier in my head.) When we found the duct tape, it had 3M stamped in red all over it which wasn’t going to work and the other brand was not very mirror-like. So I grabbed some Underlayment Tape just in case I couldn’t find the perfect solution. As I was leaving, another personal shopper suggested I try an auto parts store. (Yeah, I know that Lowes’ employee’s aren’t technically personal shoppers, but they sure can be a ray of sunshine on a cold winter’s day… even more so if their courtesy extended to laughing at my jokes.) Anyway, he was brilliant and so I did.

At the auto parts store I found a Cut-to-Fit Mirror Replacement Sheet that will work perfectly for the pastel painting. So I went home to try it out. Alas, before I could return the underlayment tape, I spied my little flowerpots across the room and they begged me to give them a quick makeover. So here is the world’s fastest tutorial: Stick pretty tape on plastic terracotta pots. The End. They were shiny silver in minutes and I love the added texture from the crinkles. It was so quick and easy, I just had to share!

Oh, and this little suitcase was quite the find for 50 cents at a local theater’s prop sale! It is so sweet recovered with my favorite Birch Gift Wrap from Pier1. Hopefully they will carry it again this next Christmas!

Inspirational Scripture:
“See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land.” Song of Songs 2:11-12 (NIV)

I am loving my dining room! Now if only some of that love can rub off on my feelings toward cooking! I’ve met beautiful souls who love to cook and others who love to entertain. Sometimes these characteristics exist simultaneously in the same person, but for me its the entertaining part of hospitality that I love…the people. So for the sake of the food, we’d better hope that I managed the meal before everyone arrives, otherwise well… meal shakes anyone?

Busy lives can lead to a sad disconnect from the people around us. Many people are missing meaningful relationships and conversations. The effort of getting together is so worth it! When we found our little house a few years ago, I wanted to create a space where we could share dinner as a family and still have room for guests to join us. We collected the various pieces over quite a few months, and now we have been enjoying each opportunity to connect with friends, both new and old.

Pier 1 is having a Share the Love Photo Contest on Instagram, and I had to laugh because sooo much of my decor in this room came from their lovely store. I finally created an Instagram account and would be over the moon if I won so visit and favorite my photos! The boxwood wreaths, vintage chic chalkboard (to which I added one of my favorite quotes), champagne colored ornaments suspended from the chandeliers, napkins, napkin rings, glasses, glitter chargers, and salad plates either are or were available from Pier 1. The French script ribbon used to hang the wreaths came from another favorite of mine, Ballard Designs. I custom made the linen skirts (inspired by this pic on Pinterest) and sashes for each chair so that I could wash them when little ones come over, and not have to worry about the combination of pizza, or red velvet cake and linen. The table was inspired by another picture on Pinterest, and in collaboration with a builder, I customized the design to fit our space. Finally, after months of searching I found a set of vintage Mother of Pearl flatware on eBay, just in time for the holidays!

Inspirational Scripture:
“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” Acts 2:42 (NIV)