Welcome to Debbie-Dabble Blog!!
I am so happy you decided to stop by!!
Today, I will be sharing one more area in our Living Room decorated for Late Summer.....
But first, a few personal notes.....
We had a few days where we had no humidity and cooler temps. so I was able to take advantage of having a cup of coffee, sitting out in our back Patio in the morning.....
I am still amazed that even though I live closer to my neighbors than most people do because I live in a townhouse, that I have almost total privacy in our patio and back yard......
When the neighbors behind me......
And even myself......
Planted the trees in our yards, I don't think we ever thought that they would grow like they did......
Forming such a great natural privacy fence.....
One would never know that there is a row of 10 townhouses directly behind us!!
And with the addition of the privacy lattice to the sides of our fence using simply zip ties, my Secret Garden was created......
I do hope that I get to spend more time out there before the Winter.....
We did get a bit of rain on Thursday morning from some thunderstorms that rolled through our area in the morning.....
Almost 3/4 of an inch of rain!!!
Saved me from watering!!!
After 4 years of Retirement, I STRONGLY suggested that Joe go through all of his clothes to see what fits and what doesn't and now that he is fully retired and not working part time, get rid of all work related clothes.....
When Joe's Postal uniforms took over this double closet in our bedroom, moving my clothes right out of it, I decided to design a cheap but effective solution to our lack of closet space because at the time, our sons were still living at home......
One of the things I had my Father do before we moved into our townhouse was add a second shelf to all of the closets......
Instead of buying a fancy closet system, I removed the lower shelf, moved the bar up under the top shelf and added a second bar, therefore doubling the closet space.....
After getting rid of 3 large garbage bags of clothes, donating them to Salvation Army, this is now how Joe's closet looks.....
All of his clothes are now here at our house and he no longer has to store Seasonal clothes in tubs ( 3 of them!!!) down at the Storage Shed we rent!!!!
He organized the closet himself.......
Short sleeve and long sleeve shirts....
Boots and Winter shoes on the shelf.....
AND on the ENTIRE bottom bar, along with a few jean shorts are ALL of his Hockey tee shirts, jerseys and sweatshirts!!!!!!
Since there were no lights in any of our closets , we added battery operated lights on each side.....
More Seasonal shoes on this side of the shelf.....
On this side on the top bar are Sweaters, Christmas tee shirts and sports coats and dress pants....
Along with more Hockey clothes on the bottom bar on this side of the closet!
At least now, I do not have any of his Seasonal clothes in the closet in the Sitting Room!!
Can you believe that he got rid of 3 large garbage bags of clothes and he still has all these clothes left!!!!!
This is the reason why we stopped buying each other gifts for Christmas, Birthdays and other occasions many years ago ....
It becomes quite silly to buy something just for the sake of giving a gift when one truly does not need anything, especially at our ages....
When the temperatures get cooler, Joe will paint the closet gold like the walls of our bedroom and the shelves black, which are his Pittsburgh colors, as you can see that the closet is still painted blue which was the color we first painted this room when we moved in.....
Even though it has been painted 2 more times after that, i never painted the closets....
I have my Clothes in this single closet in our bedroom, mostly everyday Seasonal clothes....
And I have dress clothes in the double closet in my Craft Room.......
I go through my clothes with the change of each Season but I do need to get rid of clothes that I know I will not be wearing now that I am retired and we really do not go out much....
Let me rephrase that.....
Now the I am the one who really does not go out much!!!
My own choosing.....
When I look at all the clothes that we both have, I could kick myself for wasting all that money!!!!!
We have adopted a philosophy now that we do not buy any more clothing unless it is something that we absolutely NEED and not just WANT!!!!
One last thing........
I made some beef meatballs for dinner the other evening with pasta......
I mention that they are beef because I also have used ground turkey and ground chicken to make meatballs......
I almost forgot that I did not share this area of our Living Room decorated for Late Summer.......
I have mentioned before that I decorate the top of our TV Entertainment Center as if it is a mantel......
I told Joe that I would allow him to buy a bigger TV for the Living Room if he could find an Entertainment Center to put it inside of because there was not going to be a big "black box" in my Victorian styled Living Room!!!!
Within a week, he found one which I knew he would as Joe is the ultimate shopper!!!!
For several years now, I have decorated this for Late Summer using some of my Home Interiors Victorian figurines, creating a "Park" setting......
This is my offering for this year....
I added more figurines this time around.......
Gold battery operated Branch Trees......
In Victorian times, people frequently visited the neighborhood Park......
Mostly mothers and children during the day......
There usually was a Carousel or Merry Go Round at the park......
Much to the children's delight!!!!
I bought this Carousel many years ago at Sam's Club on Clearance after Christmas.....
It appears that dusk is falling in the Park now........
And soon it will be time for everyone to go home for Dinner.....
After Dinner, maybe a couple who is "courting" will take a stroll around the Park.....
Enjoying what remains of the Summer......
I hope you enjoyed seeing this year's "Day in the Park" display.....
This will stay decorated like this until after Labor Day.......
When I will strip the Living Room down, changing drapes, curtains and linens and decorate it for Fall....
I have been frequently asked where do I store my "normal everyday" things when I decorate for the different Holidays and Seasons.....
So I plan on sharing a little trick that I learned making it easy to do so.....
In my next post, I will be finishing my tour of the Dining Room, totally devoid of Holiday and Seasonal decorations for the Summer.....
So I hope you will stop by to visit again soon!!
Stay safe, healthy and most of all, HAPPY!!
Thanks to those who took the time out of their busy day to spend a little bit of time with me!!
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Oh how lovely! I love the park setting that you created for the figurines. Years ago, we military wives used to host Home Interior parties frequently. Ah, those were the days.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean about clothes. I was retired about 5 years when I did my first "sort". All those dress clothes from years and years as a secretary. Up until the 1990's, we all wore what were like "church clothes" in a business office. The next sort was my last job as a secretary in the 2000's for a farm equipment dealership. We wore khaki pants and nicer tops. I must have had at least a dozen pairs of khaki pants in different weights from summer to winter. All my dress shoes with heels left, too. I try to go through the closet about once a year now. I had to remind myself that even dresses that were flattering, barely worn and expensive are now at least 20 years out of style, LOL. One winter dress outfit, one summer dress outfit is good enough. I have been getting a lot of mileage out of my five year old "mother of the bride" dress, a sleeveless navy floor length with a long sleeved beaded bolero jacket. It is very flattering and can be worn all four seasons. It went to three different weddings over last winter. And I can wear it with flat navy sandals.
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I always love to see you home and the beautiful victorian decorations. You gave some great advise and ideas on downsizing clothes after retirement. I have so many clothes. Now that I won't be working I need to donate a lot of my clothes. I wish I had the money I have spent on clothes and shoes and accessories. It is so unnecessary. I am like you I prefer to be home. I took a little break this month from blogging. I had to finish up some projects and my leg is still not doing well. I will be posting in a day or two and show some of the changes. I can hardly wait for the weather to cool down and start decorating for fall/autumn. My favorite time of year. Take care my beautiful friend. I look forward to being more involved in the blogging community.
ReplyDeleteYour creation of a small Victorian summer day is lovely!
ReplyDeleteJust lovely Victorian decorations, love all the fun ways you create your rooms.
ReplyDeleteHugs diane
Just loved the day in the park display, so very pretty. I couldn't believe how many clothes your hubby has, my goodness...
ReplyDeleteThat is a lot of clothes. Happy Monday.
ReplyDeleteYou have done a beautiful job! Love that you added some little lights to add some whimsey! So nice to see someone so passionate about home decorating . Looking forward to see what your cooking up for the upcoming holidays! Lisa@ Sweet Tea N' Salty Air
ReplyDeleteYUM! Those meatballs and sauce looks so good. I think I smell it from Florida! LOL! I need to go through my clothes. So many things I need to get rid of. We have several ministries in our county that takes clothing so makes it nice. I just need to get on top of that! LOL! Loving your Victorian beauties. Hugs and blessings, Cindy
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you got a bit of rain. That's good. And I'm very impressed with your closet shelf addition. Well done!
ReplyDeleteO. M. G....I just LOVE this!!!! What a beautiful and peaceful scene!!!
ReplyDeleteNina,
DeleteThanks so much for your kind words once again!! I do love to "play" with this display!! Have a great Labor Day weekend!!! Thanks for visiting again!!
Hugs,
Deb
I really love the park setting you have created. All so beautiful! Thank You for sharing with Charming Homes and Gardens.
ReplyDeleteSuch a beautiful vignette, Debbie. You created the sweetest story with your pieces. Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteHugs, Melisa
Your home is put together very beautifully. So many interesting pieces to look at.
ReplyDeleteTrue vintage charm. Your porcelain dolls are gorgeous. Thank you for sharing at Meraki Link Party.
ReplyDeleteNaush
You have such amazing collections and gardens! Thanks so much for sharing! ~ Kristin | White Arrows Home
ReplyDeleteWhat a pretty mantel, Debbie! Thanks for sharing at Vintage Charm!
ReplyDeleteYour "mantel" is pretty. I haven't heard anyone mention Home Interiors products in years! Thanks for sharing again this week. #HomeMattersParty
ReplyDeleteI love your gorgeous Victorian figurines and how you have them displayed on your "mantel!" They go perfectly with your wall color and surrounding decor - it looks like they were meant to be there! Thank you so much for sharing this at Farmhouse Friday!
ReplyDelete