Repurposed Flea Market Finds

I have always been fascinated by oil lamps at the flea market but never wanted to bother with the oil and lighting them, so I passed them by. Then, being a stylist and always looking for new floral container ideas I realized how beautiful they would be filled with flowers. Now I have an excuse to buy more.

I created this on a shoot with photographer Jim Westphalen for Country Gardens.

So easy to do.
Remove glass chimney
Unscrew metal fixture with wick.
Clean out glass with bleach to remove oil residue.
Fill with water and flowers from the garden.
Flowers with thin stems work best.

Garden Light

Here are some "Make It Yourself" ideas I created and styled for Country Gardens magazine in the Summer 2009 issue. I had a great time shooting this story in VT at Muddy Creek Farm with Jim Westphalen.

I discovered clam baskets make a great
hanging chandelier.

Hang with clothesline from a tree, beams or a pergola over your table. Pad the bottom
with moss and stand pillar
candles inside.
















Love Buckets! use them to make pretty
floating flowerscapes. Add a floating candle.
Place it where your friends will Ohhh and AHHH!!
Flowers will look pretty
for days
















Chandelier globes from the flea market
make festive votives for candles.
Collect them in different shapes and sizes.
I placed them on a metal plant tray lined
with moss as a party idea.






















I created this as another way to bring
candlelight to the garden border. Stacking various
old galvanized containers for height.
The middle is planted with flowers and the
top is filled with water and
floating candles

Fast and Festive Accents for the Fourth of July

With three rolls of Crepe paper (one each in red, white, and blue), and double sided tape , you can quickly transform simple straight sided household glasses and glass containers into patriotic accents: luminaries, flag holders, vases, or cutlery containers. Bold stripes by day, add votive candles for glowing color at night

Oh,..., and you will have enough left over to lay out the fun table runner,... lickety split.

Here's how to make the containers:
Gather any straight sided glass vases, glasses, or
containers. Run two strips of double sided tape, side by side, down the back of the container from top to bottom..Cut crepe paper to the exact circumference of the vessel. Wrap the cut pieces around the vessel tightly securing with the double sided tape. Tip: pull crepe paper tight around vessel, humidity will make paper buckle.

Here's how to make the table runner:
Cover your table with a white tablecloth.
Down the center of the table run five long stripes of red crepe paper, the length of the table plus a few inches on each end to hang over.
Use double stick tape under ends to hold in place.

Weave lengths of blue paper thru the red in the center. Cut ends to hang over table edge. Use tape under edges to hold.

Summer Party Time! Make a tablescape using garden pots to serve up a summer buffet that will be truly memorable.

Use your garden pots, trays and containers for serving up summer foods. Use new or old pots, but first clean dirty pots well with soap and water and lay out to dry. Use fabric liners, wax paper or aluminum foil if desired under foods. I like the look of burlap because it enhances the earthy garden theme. Pots from benwolffpottery.com.

Combine small flower pots of various sizes with ceramic plates to create a tiered serving dish

These small pots from Ben Wolff pottery are perfect for small treats. Fill with a fabric or burlap liner and add chocolates. Add a name tag and you have great party favors for the guests.

Add damp moss to ceramic plates and add small flower heads from the garden for added decoration.

A medium- sized planter is perfect to hold ears of corn. The plate beneath is there for decoration.

In the last FOX NEWS Craft Segment I quickly transformed this boring glass vase into a pretty flower vessel. Try it !

1. Cut flowers from the garden.





2. Place a fabric napkin inside the vase.














3. Add a glass filled with water.















Add flowers. SO EASY!

In my mind, these are 3 "must haves" in creating your cozy home

Here is a cozy room I designed for Renovation Style Magazine. photography by Michael Partenio

#1 Throw Pillows- Pillows are essential for making a room feel complete. For a quick makeover change your pillows to create a fresh new wave of color and patterns that will transform your space. Work with odd numbers like 3 or 5 on a couch and use 18" or 24" sizes that are more substantial, instead of lots of small pillows.
Pick pillows that are sturdy, but soft and comfortable. Down filled is desirable. Stiff, foam pillows never look natural on furniture. In a casual setting they do not all have to match . In this shot I created for Renovation Style you can see how we mixed patterns but worked with a color palette that was similar.

#2 Throws- Invest in a few good throws, essential for comfort , napping and softening your spaces. I keep a huge basket filled with folded plaid wool blankets so there's always a comforting blanket for everyone









#3 Books- invest in coffee table size books in whatever topics you love; art, history, aviation, travel. Coffee tables, side tables, desks are all natural places to create neat piles of big books. Books invite curiosity and discussions, and bring a layer of your personality to your space.

Bookshelves enhance any space, not just for books, but for artful pieces or collections. If you do not have bookshelves look for my upcoming poston creative ways to create places for your books