Late Summer Home Tour

It’s the first of August, and officially the beginning of the second half of our Canadian summers.  Our kids go back to school the day after Labour Day, so we have one more full month to enjoy.  I’m already fighting off thoughts of back to school, especially as I see lots of my US friends prepping for their earlier start.  I’m trying to stay in summer mode as long as I can and squeeze out all it’s goodness before I turn to thoughts of packing lunches, back to routine and all things pumpkin -haha.

It has taken me a little while to finish up my summer decor.  Usually in blogland we’re at least trying to work way ahead…but of course the funny thing about blogging about your life is it’s always a funny balance of doing things in advance to inspire others, and the sharing in real time to keep it authentic.  This tour is erring on the authentic side…and perhaps a little late in terms of blogging.

I love my home more and more since completing the living room and eating area makeover for the last One Room Challenge (and I can’t wait to hopefully tackle the kitchen for this fall’s next One Room Challenge).  So this was my first time since the big reveal in the spring to enjoy decorating the space for a new season.  I wanted to add in some pastels for summer -a bit of pink, a little aqua, and a touch of lilac and that spilled over to the rest of the main floor too.

This pretty runner is sure to be a new favourite -made from some vintage curtains found on a fun thrift store hunt while on vacation.  I love the colours and the pretty fringe edging.

I spruced up the entrance way with some pretty vintage bottles holding some ferns.

And a call for summer adventures!

I had fun adding lots of flowers for our little tour -some were wild flowers found on a walk and others were from my garden.  One of the things I love about summer is picking fresh flowers all the time.

Now into the living room where I had the most fun.

I brought my garden bench from outside to use as a coffee table and shifted the ottoman over to in front of the chairs.  I really like it, it’s super practical with lots of spots for a coffee cup and the rustic pink bench looks great.

I styled it with a pretty little grouping of cactus in a rose gold container, and sweet little brass watering can -one of my yard sale scores this summer.

It was fun adding lots of pretty pillows to the couch and bringing in some colour with pink and a little aqua too.  I’m a little obsessed with vintage wool blankets lately -they’re always the first thing I check at the thrift store lately and this one had the perfect bit of pink!

It’s amazing how just a little colour can add lots of life to a space.

From the same set of thrifted curtains as I made the runner from, I also made a cushion.  I love it too, and I think I might have to make at least one more.  I love the fringe and the boho vibe it adds.

The mantel got a little refresh too, I think my favourite part is the pretty tassel bunting.

We crafted it ourselves with some cotton yarn and dip dyed it in Koolaid!  I’ll be sure to share the simple tutorial soon.

My little market bag full of hydrangea area – another favourite.

Flowers, flowers, and more flowers.

Over on the other side of the room there are a few more simple summer touches.

I had some pretty birch poles in the corner of this room for the spring, but wanted to add a summer vibe with some pretty driftwood.

These were so simple to make -found the driftwood at the lake and painted with a little craft paint.  I’ll be sure to share a simple tutorial for these soon too.

Over in the kitchen, a few treats.  We’re loving being home and having time to do things like make a pillow fort, run through the sprinkler, or bake.  This morning my youngest daughter made a batch of oatmeal cookies and they’re sooo good!  We’ll see how long they last. 😉

Thanks for joining me, and I hope it’s inspired you to maybe add a few pretty colours for summer, or pick a bouquet of flowers for your table.

With a Late Summer Home Tour, life really is a party!