Let's Add Sprinkles: Late Summer/ Early Fall

Showing posts with label Late Summer/ Early Fall. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 12, 2025

Late Summer Sunflowers and Bees/Summer To Fall Transition

Hello, Friends,

How are you? I hope you are well.

It's been a long time since I've blogged. I started a post in July for the Fourth but I never got around to finishing it up.

Here in East Texas, we have had a pretty mild summer, however, I get tired of temperatures in the 90s by August.

In the transition from summer to fall, I always pull out some sunflower decor. If you have been around for a while, you might remember that my classroom decor was sunflowers and bees for many years. I love this type of decor to bridge the summer to fall decorations in the house.

Let's have a look around.

I'm going to start with my cute Honey Pie. I had no idea that a honey pie was an actual recipe but in my search of images for inspiration, I actually found that there is such a thing.

So I created a faux pie using a mini pie dish from Hobby Lobby, foam, muslin and paint.

Don't forget the glitter!

As far as I know, there isn't another one like it on the internet. I love making these faux pies. I adorned it with a little "prim" tag, some scraps and a cute little bee button. I didn't move a lot of my craft supplies so I've had to essentially start over. I'm sure moving a few little bee buttons wouldn't have loaded down the moving van but they did not make it to the new house. I have no idea what I was thinking except I was feeling overwhelmed with the move.

I copied the recipe onto a bee recipe card and created a vignette on a wood riser that was made by my brother in law at Zander Wood shop. This was a birthday gift from them.

I added a little prim bee and a decoupaged sunflower box. This was my fourth attempt at a bee that I loved. The box was made from a Michel Design Works napkin.

Because we never use it, the breakfast room table has become the location of some large centerpieces that are changed for the seasons.

The sunflowers were ordered from Walmart. My collection did not survive the summer of our construction. I guess there were just a few too many Daddy Long Legs on them for Bill's liking.

The lights came from Hobby Lobby online.

I adore the little pillow. I used transfer paper to copy an image from The Graphics Fairy.

This other little pillow is one in which was successfully printed directly onto fabric.

This is the best of the lot because it is printed instead of using a transfer method.

It was nerve wracking experience because I didn't want to jamb the printer.

I styled it in the gravy boat painted by Bill's grandmother. My Le Creuset pie bird is nestled in with paper shreds and a crochet sunflower. This is my second pie bird because I broke the first one. I found it on eBay.

I usually dangle an ornament from the knobs on the corner cupboard. These are a set from The Round Top Collection.

The theme would not be complete without some honey pots.

The breakfast room buffet got a vignette.

The bee hive ornament came from Hobby Lobby. I found the glass bee and sunflower garland last summer. I cannot remember where I found it but I love it so much.

I created a couple of vignettes in the living room.

The clock faces came from an antique mall in Sulpher Springs. More paper shreds elevate the clock faces. I got the idea from the YoUniquely Vintage You YouTube channel.

The new little shed porch got a sprinkling of decor.

The screen porch got redecorated.

The potting bench had been tucked back in the new shed. It needed a thorough cleaning but I'm so glad it's out in the open again.

The front porch got some pillows

and a few faux sunflowers.

Here are some more photos.

Finally, say hello to the newest member of our family.

Rufus showed up at the beginning of May. According to a comment on my Nextdoor app, he had been dumped or abandoned by his previous owners because they moved. He could have been hiding that day but who really knows. He showed up in the yard. I think to eat birds feeding at the feeder. Bill fed him (saved the birds) and the next day he came right up to me. He was very thin but he is in good health. We got all his shots, flea and tick treatment and got him fixed. The vet thinks he's about a year old.

He spends a small part of the day outside and the rest we've transitioned him to indoors.

He and Caroline are getting along great.

They love to wrestle.

He is a keeper!

I hope to continue blogging. It is rare, though, that I sit down at the computer.

You can follow me on my Instagram because there I post frequent stories. That is the best way to see what I'm up to.

Katie

Friday, August 28, 2020

Late Summer/Early Fall Decorating

Hello, Friends,

I hope you are well.

In the mist of thinking about and bookmarking all things farmhouse, I took some pictures of our early fall or late summer touches.

I thought I'd show them to you.

We visited Giverny three years ago in mid September. The late summer flowers were gorgeous. They were tall and almost buoyant with vibrant blooms that thrived with the slight drop in temperature.

Oh, that my borders would look like this.

I was captivated.

We visited Monmartre which is where Sacré-Coure is located. There was a market right outside the church. Bill and I bought some precious little watercolors.

I cannot believe that it has taken me this long to pop them into a frame. Especially, since I already had frames that would work. Are they the best frames in the world? No, but this is a season of using what we have. I wanted our decor this August to have that feel of a mature garden.

One of the paintings is on the dish dresser in the garden room.

I put the other one on the mantel. Don't ask me why they aren't together.

The artist told us where these were painted but I do not remember.

They reminded me of that visit three years ago.

The mantel is essentially the same. I try to change it up like a good blogger should but I end up putting it back the way it was. For a slight change, it got some old gold candlesticks and a new to me candelabra.

I found this beauty for $4.75 at the antique store. I'd just seen some @ French Country Cottage but I never dreamed that I'd spy one so soon after noticing hers.

It needed crystals which we had in my stash. There used to be baggies of crystals at the thrift store for only $2.99. That was before chandeliers became popular again. Those were the days.

The ticking chair next to the hearth got a darling sunflower pillow with a brown background.

I've had this one for years and I love pulling it out for late summer.

The arrangement on the little brass table is comprised of faux black eyed Susans, branches from the woods, and dwarf nandina from the yard. Bill thought it was all real.

The majolica pitcher is a reproduction but I've had it so long that it is approaching vintage status.

Unfortunately, grocery store sunflowers do not last very long.

My first batch for 2020 was pretty with burgundy alstroemeria and branches.

Another brown needlepoint pillow rests on the couch in the background.

The yard was slim pickins for flowers since it was unbearably hot so I bought some.

There are some late summer touches to see in the garden room.

My red truck from Hobby Lobby got a makeover with some Rust-Oleum Spray Paint in Moss.

This is my favorite color spray paint. The truck fits into my style better now that it is green.

A burlap sunflower sits in the bed. The thrifted little corn cob is a tooth pick holder.

I'm so happy to have the dish dresser back in this room.

Bill made it for our second house and it is so special to me.

It calls for more of a casual look than it can get in the entryway.

The grocery store sunflowers dried which was a surprise. Usually, they don't dry very well.

The farm stand wall hanging from Raz Imports also got spray painted. It was red as well.

One coat of hunter green covered the red. Vaseline was dabbed on in spots so that the lighter Moss green would look chippy.

Late summer flowers spill out of the cart.

Here is the elusive and rarely seen corner where Bill sits.

I didn't bother to straighten the books for you.

If all goes well with the farm, the secretary may end up out there.

A string of light provides a cozy glow in it.

A few other farm touches echo a late summer look.

I pulled all this out before we saw the farmhouse.

Hopefully, it is a providential foreshadowing.

The inspector and a foundation guy will be out to look at the property on Monday.

We have a few concerns. Hopefully, it isn't anything that would be a deal breaker.

I'd be disappointed but we'd just keep trusting and looking.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Bill is going to add a few details to the arbor.

I rummaged in the attic for antique beds and chairs to work on.

I'm a purger so there isn't much left.

I'll show it all to you.

Katie

Tuesday, August 6, 2019

Summer Celebration Blog Hop/Late Summer Vignettes

Good Morning!

Welcome to the Summer Celebration Blog Hop hosted by the amazing Amber from

Follow The Yellow Brick Home.

She is such a gracious blog hop hostess and her home is so cute.

If you are coming from Botanic Bleu, welcome. Judith is one of my dear blogging friends. She was actually assistant principal when my children were in high school. It's such a small world.

Her French Country inspired home is just stunning. I love those darling place mats.

Please hop over to Art and Sand when you are finished here. Carol has a darling cottage full of the California sun. It's always decorated in such an adorable way.

If you have been following me recently, you might remember that we were seriously considering a move. We found an adorable house that seemed absolutely perfect for us. We didn't win the bid and it turns out the buyer bid $22,000 over asking. We would never have done that but we were the back up contract so we got our hopes up. Once we knew that we weren't moving, we decided to do some improvements to our home. We had the ceramic tile cracked up and carried away so that we could put down hard wood floors. We also did some little improvements to our downstair's bath.

Our floors have been ordered and we're waiting on those to be installed.

A few hours after we finished the bathroom, our dog was attached by another dog in the neighborhood. She is fine now for which I'm very thankful.

I want this to be a happy post so we'll forget all of that.

All that to say, I'm over this summer - completely OVER IT so I've moved on to late summer/early fall decor.

Cheery sunflowers have been sprinkled about the downstairs level of our house.

It will be a few more months until we feel cooler temperatures here in Texas but I can at least pretend inside.

I'm going with faux flowers this year.

I've picked up two real bouquets of sunflowers but they aren't opening well or lasting very long.

I'm over them too.

I'm in love with the purple lavender and sunflowers together.

They're a gorgeous color combination.

Sunflowers and bees are a perfect pairing.

You can get a glimpse of our concrete floors in these photos.

Once the tile removal was done, we put the living room back together. I'm so glad we did because we may have a few more weeks until they can book the team of installers who are well versed in wood stairs.