Holiday Recap: Use Your Fine China

These past two weeks of Winter Break were such a blur! I cannot believe it is the New Year already. I talked the other day about what my theme for the New Year is, but still thinking back to the fun we had over the holidays.

Two out of the three siblings-in-law (and my brother-in-law's girlfriend, who is awesome) came and we had a ski trip planned; since we planned on going up to the mountains for a ski trip on Christmas day, we had Christmas Eve dinner the night before and opened presents then.

I set the table earlier in the day, using the ginger jars for inspiration. Using my ginger jars as part of the holiday decor was so much fun this season, so I definitely wanted to continue that trend, and also use our fine china.

Make it with Michaels: Holiday Home Tour Part 2

Stockings (Hamilton Plaid, similar) and Glass Trees (Large on left, Medium on right): Pottery Barn (yay rewards!) * Garland: DIY with materials from Michaels (see below for details) * Stocking Holders: Target

Welcome to part 2 of the Holiday Home Tour - the living room! Part 1 is here, in case you missed it.

I want to start with the mantel because I really really love it. I was inspired by the garland Gray Malin placed over his fireplace mantel, and decided to DIY that myself. This year we added a tv over the fireplace, so  a garland with our two glass trees provided the focal point that I wanted, considering the limited space I had on the sides with the garland in place and tv mounted. 

Make it With Michaels: Holiday Home Tour Part 1

Today I am really excited to share the first part of my holiday home tour, the dining room and kitchen!

Light Fixture & End Chairs: Restoration Hardware (we live right near the outlet) * Dining Table: World Market * Dining Chairs: vintage from my godmother's dining set * Ginger Jars: Pier 1 * Faux Floral: Michaels * Console Table: Handmade * Curtains: Pottery Barn, no longer on site, but would love to also get these * Canvas Photo Print: Meteora from our trip to Greece in 2014. 

I inherited the crafting bug from my mom, and always love trying to replicate high end looks on a DIY budget. I draw a lot of inspiration from Instagram, and the Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma Home catalogs. 

Post-Thanksgiving Paninis

I go back to school today and I have to admit, I always have mixed feelings after a break. I love my job (my kids are AMAZING this year and World Geography is so much fun), I love my new school, but I also like being off. As I tell my students when they complain that they didn't get a snow day or delayed start, "Hey I feel you. I am human. I want the snow day, too."

One thing I do not have to worry so much about this week is dealing with dinner. While we had a small Thanksgiving for the three of us, there were still leftovers. The biggest leftover is the cranberry sauce we got at Costco because we actually forgot to put it on the table!

I've been making paninis with our Cuisinart Griddler that we got for our wedding, Starbucks style. Like their Holiday Turkey Panini, I filled my sandwich (using a baguette from Panera) with cranberry sauce, turkey, stuffing and gravy on top.

Thanksgiving for Three (But Make it Blue and White)

This year, we decided to keep Thanksgiving simple and keep it just to the three of us. I have a week off from school, which means travel is feasible; however, my sibling-in-laws are coming over for Christmas and we are going up to the mountains then for some skiing, so a simple Thanksgiving was the best option. Come Christmas, I will be doing more après-skiing, as I still struggle with the mental block that comes with learning to ski as an adult. 

Moreover, traveling to Singapore and the Philippines over Fall Break this past October, while amazing, definitely took a lot out of me, so I was looking forward to relaxing on the couch and binge-watching "The Crown" and "The Mandalorian," the latter of which was pushed upon me by my 7th graders. I just caught up on all three episodes and I am enjoying it! What was hard was figuring out where the story placed in the larger Star Wars timeline, but I got it figured out (it falls after "The Empire Strikes Back," if I remember correctly. 

As for Black Friday shopping - I do more of that online since my birthday is next month and I take advantage of the sales so they are the treats to myself, as well as Christmas shopping for family (along with knitting many hats). 

Nevertheless, I could not pass up an opportunity to set the dining table. This was taken while the light in my house was still good so the food is not yet done (see my IG stories for that). 

Ginger Jar/Pitcher: HomeGoods * Drinks Glasses: Kate Spade Madison Square Double Old-Fashioned
(from our wedding, discontinued) * Runner/Napkin Rings: Target * Faux Floral: Michaels * Placemats: RL Home via HomeGoods * Napkins: Kate Spade via HomeGoods

I threw this together with the leftover ginger jars that I was not using for the holiday decor; I put the "Christmas edition" into the office for the afternoon, and set the table as you see it.