[canadian gardener]

what can you do, to cheer the house up cheaply after the Christmas decor is put away?

Last year, I got a sale at Michaels and I bought 2 of the nicest most real looking silk hyacinths (hyacinths for the soul perhaps?) and a sort of old fashioned milk can to put them in. They were cheap and cheerful and people coming to my house said, "oh hyacinths, where did you??? and they had to touch them to see they werent real"

It cheers up my dishwasher no end.

I have a blue ceramic vase with nice cream colour silk roses in it on the small bookcase by the china cabinet.

I am going to sew a couple of round endtable cloths to cover my battered old oak endtables (real 1970's decor-- drum shaped hexagons, with doors) or find ones

in a nice cheery springlike pink and put lace doily toppers on.

And I may just get my pink tablecloth out and put it on the table with the lace topper.

They are selling African Violets, cheaply at Home Hardware, and those pretty ceramic plant pots you can stick a cheapy green plastic pot down into.

That might look nice for the center of my table.

 

[canadian gardener]

this is along the same idea with that Decorate on a Budget article that Sara has in http://www.frugalvillage.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=237665

 

[preparedmom]

Margery, your hyacinths in the milk can sound lovely. I was just thinking that it's about time I got something fresh. We have a local floral warehouse that sells cut flowers really cheap. I'm thinking a bunch of colorful carnations might look nice on the dining room table.

 

[canadian gardener]

Oh I love carnations. Their spicy sweet scent, and what a frugal flower, it lives on in the vase practically forever! Much longer than other cut flowers.

Great plan!

 

[preparedmom]

At Christmas I made several lovely bouquets using red and white carnations, a touch of baby's breath, and evergreen cuttings. I filled the vases with cranberries from my freezer (bought last year as a loss leader) before adding the flowers and the vases looked so pretty. Many people commented on how pretty the cranberries looked. The arrangements lasted for at least 3 weeks!!! I might do the same thing minus the evergreens and adding pink carnations for Valentines.

 

[Heather]

Sounds lovely! I was in the grocery store the other day and purchase a bunch of fresh flowers and have them on the diningroom table. A breath of fresh air!

I have got out more of my lace runners and doilies and it has brightened up the house.

 

[Darlene]

Another nice thing to do if you buy the flowers with a buy one get one deal is to give one bunch to someone (you know or a stranger behind you in line) and brighten their day.

 

[Heather]

VERY nice idea Darlene!:angel:

 

[canadian gardener]

:smball: that's the spirit! This is always such a thin season, the parties are done, the seed catalogs are there, but the garden is a future dream, and it can seem an awful long time till spring.

Unless that is, you put a jump on spring and get it going inside your house.

When spring really happens outside, you want to be out in it, not necassarily decorating with it on the inside.

WTG ladies!!!!:angel2: