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At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

Where Ideas for your Home Meet Inspiration for your Heart

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June 6, 2011

A Simple Solution for Coffee Lovers and Introductions…

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Blogging can be a strange thing.  You start out with your head full of all of these ideas that you can/want to blog about and then you slowly find yourself thinking, “Is the only thing worth sharing some big kitchen reveal, or dining room makeover or a complete wainscoting of the house?”  You start to worry that the simple little ideas and changes will appear…well boring.  But if you are going to blog for the long haul then often the small projects you do are what will keep you chugging along between the big reveals, re-do’s and makeovers.  For example, my new “coffee station”.  It’s a simple little idea really, but one that makes me happy and has made the everyday, mundane task of making coffee just a wee bit more pleasant. 
If you are like me there are only certain things that are “allowed” to be on the countertops but having to hide everything away can make food preparation in the kitchen a hassle.  Also, when we decided to leave a section of our cabinets open in our kitchen remodel, it eliminated the area where I hid away my coffee cans, filters, sugar, etc.
Enter in the “Coffee Station” 

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I found a darling little “vintage” wood and galvanized tray at Hobby Lobby on clearance recently and I knew the perfect purpose for it.  I gathered up some items I already had and purchased a few more here and there on clearance and the coffee station was born!

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I had this unusually shaped little galvanized bucket that had been hanging around forever looking for a new home.  It was a perfect solution for those odd shaped coffee filters!  They nestle in perfectly but are easily accessible.

Then I found these darling little glass containers at HomeGoods on clearance.  They had a little indention that was crying out for some chalkboard paint.  I painted in these little label spots and stored tea in one

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and our sweetener packs in the other

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I found the darling sugar jar at TJ Maxx and I already had the ideal lidded jar for our coffee beans

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and all together they make the perfect Coffee Station for our counter. 

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We often fill our house with guests and we love them to feel at home..which could include being asked to make a pot of coffee. smile.  It is lovely having everything readily available without them having to dig around in our cupboards. They can help themselves to coffee, tea and all of the extras that come along without us having to dig it all out for them. In fact…if you want to head on over I’ll let you make yourself a cup of coffee and we can have a nice long visit…

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…now that would be “simply” lovely.

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Up next we have two special introductions! First we want to introduce you to our

We adore everything that this blogger creates!  Her husband told her she “had too much time on her hands” we think she just has “too much talent for one person to possess!”

Kim from
Too Much time on my hands

Always has the neatest ideas, frugal knock-offs and fabulous projects! Ones like these:

luggage tag lamp
Luggage Tag Lamp
pottery barn clock knock -off
Pottery Barn Clock Knock-Off
Anthropologie Dresser Knock-Off
We want to invite you to head over and pay our featured blogger Kim a visit to her fabulous blog, Too Much Time On My Hands.  Make sure you have some “time on your hands” though because you’ll be there awhile drooling over all of her amazing ideas!

We also want to take a moment to introduce you to our Etsy Shop of the Month here At The Picket Fence

Stay tuned, later this week we will be hosting a giveaway sponsored by Stacey the author of A Sort of Fairytale, and owner of Maggie Jane’s Vintage! We are so excited to be working with Stacey and her fabulous Etsy Store!

This post is Partying at the following places:
Green Door Designs and SAS Interiors: Saturday Spotlight
A Stroll Thru Life: Tabletop Tuesday
Elements Interiors: Whassup Wednesday

28 Comments Filed Under: Etsy, Featured Blogger, Good Ideas

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Previous Post: « A Legacy of Sighing? Confessing on a Simply Sunday!
Next Post: A “Sew” Simple Update and a Revisit »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Judy says

    June 6, 2011 at 1:10 PM

    I don’t drink coffee, but my husband does. What a great idea for a coffee center. I might have to “steal” some of those ideas. Maybe I can put together a father’s day gift? BTW I posted the announcement about the blog block party today. It’s going to be awesome!

    Reply
  2. Rosemary@villabarnes says

    June 6, 2011 at 1:34 PM

    Sometimes the simple ideas are the most inspirational. I think your coffee station is great.

    Reply
  3. Pattie says

    June 6, 2011 at 1:40 PM

    Coffee station looks great love the idea… and the cups LOVE them…. Post about the Blog Block Party I’m ready to go sounds like fun…

    Pattie

    Reply
  4. Amanda says

    June 6, 2011 at 1:46 PM

    The coffee station is a fantastic idea, since getting our pantry sorted I have to get the items from more places, this is a great solution!

    Reply
  5. Christine @ Stonehouse Living says

    June 6, 2011 at 2:43 PM

    Hi Heather,

    I couldn’t start my day without a good cup of coffee! I enjoy our Sunday coffee best when we take our time and enjoy the whole pot! The coffee station is an excellent way to have your guests indulge as well, so neat and tidy. Love all of the vintage inspired pieces.
    All the Best,
    Christine

    Reply
  6. NanaDiana says

    June 6, 2011 at 3:01 PM

    Well, I have my own little “coffee station” too-but it is not nearly as cute as yours. I love all your little jars and your “tray”. Perfect set up!!

    I think you know that my home away from home is Starbucks..where everybody knows my name…where everybody—(sung to the tune of the old Cheers song). Yeah..gotta go now- Starbucks is calling my name! xo Diana

    Reply
  7. Pam - diy Design Fanatic says

    June 6, 2011 at 3:21 PM

    I don’t drink coffee, but this would be a great idea for when we have guests stay over! Love the sugar jar and the tray!

    Reply
  8. Amy Kinser says

    June 6, 2011 at 4:02 PM

    I have a coffee station as well and love it. It is so handy.

    Yours is wonderful also.

    I agree about the little projects keeping us going while we wait for the big ones. I don’t always have big stuff going on, but I do always putter around doing small things here and there.

    Reply
  9. Karen says

    June 6, 2011 at 4:34 PM

    We are huge coffee drinkers, I love the idea of a coffee station. Yours is really great. Thanks for sharing this.

    Reply
  10. Bonnie@Creative Decorating says

    June 6, 2011 at 5:33 PM

    I have a little coffee station with the tray and the coffee maker fits in the tray along with a cute sugar and creamer set. I love how it makes me feel somewhat organized!

    Reply
  11. Kelly says

    June 6, 2011 at 5:35 PM

    I have a coffee station, but it’s more or less a basket of coffee-related stuff all thrown together! I may need to rethink this….. love your featured blogger!

    Kelly

    Reply
  12. michelle says

    June 6, 2011 at 5:37 PM

    That is so cute! I love the chalkboard tags. HA HA I am with Diana, my little Chai station is at Starbucks where they know me by name as well. 🙂 Too funny!
    Enjoy your coffee!!
    XOXO

    Reply
  13. Kristin @ My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia says

    June 6, 2011 at 6:14 PM

    I’m in love with this idea! I can’t start my day without coffee…I have a bunch of wood boxes, might have to copy you 🙂
    XOXO
    Kristin

    Reply
  14. Lauren @ My Wonderfully Made says

    June 6, 2011 at 10:26 PM

    Being only into blogging for just a few months — this is a very helpful upost to read!! I agree that we forget that the ‘little’ things/projects are necessary and in a way, give us a break! AND I LOVE your coffee station! You make such a good point about having everything out so guests don’t feel intrusive if they’re up before you and want to get the coffee going! I just LOVE this idea! Thanks for sharing it!!

    Reply
  15. Natasha says

    June 6, 2011 at 10:40 PM

    Your coffee station idea is brilliant and definitely something I will be trying out myself (if you don’t mind!)

    This was a brilliant post! Thank you.

    Best wishes,
    Natasha.

    Reply
  16. ⚜ ↁℯℬℬᴵℰ⚜ says

    June 7, 2011 at 12:44 AM

    I love coffee. I have the keurig maker so I only use pods. THis is such a cute idea Heather.

    Reply
  17. Kim @ Savvy Southern Style says

    June 7, 2011 at 12:47 AM

    Love your coffee station. I don’t really have a designated station, but I do have everything close at hand. I have the coffee in a glass canister and the filters are in a little wooden box open right next to the coffee maker and the sugar bowl is in the cabinet right over the coffee jar and the cream is in the fridge right beside the coffee maker. Love what you did with the jars. You are so right about sharing the little things too or we will run out of stuff to blog.

    Reply
  18. ℳartina @ Northern Nesting says

    June 7, 2011 at 1:30 AM

    I would love to come and have a cup of coffee with you Heather:) Your coffee station is perfect! Martina

    Reply
  19. leah mari says

    June 7, 2011 at 2:56 AM

    I love your little drink station really cute! I want to do it for tea!

    Reply
  20. Courtney ~ French Country Cottage says

    June 7, 2011 at 4:32 AM

    LOVE the coffee center idea- I get the coffee ready ahead of time at night so that when we get up in the morning a fresh brewed cup is ready! 🙂 Love your jars ~ such a sweet idea

    Reply
  21. marty (A Stroll Thru Life) says

    June 7, 2011 at 7:34 PM

    I love your coffee station. I love all the containers and you have them all displayed so beautifully. Very clever. I love me some coffee and occassionally some tea also. Perfect. Thanks so much for joining TTT. Hugs, Marty

    Reply
  22. Richella says

    June 8, 2011 at 1:55 AM

    I like your coffee station! What a good idea to keep things all together and easy to reach. A great example of how everyday items can look beautiful!

    Reply
  23. meg says

    June 8, 2011 at 12:13 PM

    i LOVE this idea!! the canisters are just adorable!!! so cute. you have a beautiful blog; looking forward to following you! thanks so much for your sweet comments on my blog!

    Reply
  24. thetwistedruffle says

    June 8, 2011 at 3:07 PM

    i was just holding that coffee mug from anthro in my hands this weekend, and i left without it! i reeallly liked it…

    i love your coffee station, i have one similar, but i love the tray you found! i’m going to be on the lookout!

    Reply
  25. Tanya says

    June 8, 2011 at 3:16 PM

    I have a coffee station too! Yours looks wonderful 🙂 Visiting from Elements Interiors.

    Reply
  26. Gypsy Heart says

    June 8, 2011 at 5:32 PM

    I love this! I have minimal space on my counter tops but I like the convenience of everything easily available.

    I stopped by from Kara’s. Have a great week!

    Pat

    Reply
  27. Kim @ Too Much Time says

    June 9, 2011 at 1:32 PM

    Hey Heather!
    Your coffee station is fab. I love my coffee and having an organized and cute little area for all the goodies is such a comforting and welcoming thing to come down to every morning.
    AND, thanks so much for the shout out and making me your blogger of the week. I always appreciate both of your comments and never ending love you send my way. You are doing such a wonderful job here and your blog always makes me smile!

    Reply
  28. KAT says

    June 12, 2011 at 3:54 PM

    HI Greta idea..I love my coffee too! and I love how wonderful you have made the coffee stuff look so elegant and homey
    KAT

    Reply

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The month of June is coming to a close and it has The month of June is coming to a close and it has been JAM packed! The highlight by far though was my son's graduation from high school. When I started blogging, he was only 6 years old and some of you have been apart of my community here for that entire time. Now, he's 19 and there is a reason parents are told not to blink because the years truly do go faster than I ever could have imagined. He has become such an incredible young man we are so excited to see how God is going to unfold the next chapter of his life. We celebrated with parties galore (SO many open houses to attend!) and made memories we'll forever cherish. My mama heart was filled to bursting with the joy of it all! Now we're taking some time to just enjoy these warm, summer days making even more memories because, when you’re at this stage of parenting, you know all too well how much you need to grasp every opportunity to spend time together.

I hope your summer is off to a great start too dear friends! 🪴
“And so with the sunshine and the great bursts o “And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.” F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Happy first day of summer dear friends!! I can’t believe it’s been so long since I posted something new here but life has been crazy. I’ll have some new photos of house projects and life events to share with you soon but, got now, I’m just going to enjoy this gorgeous first day of summer after our ridiculously long, wet spring. ☀️
“It was June, and the world smelled of roses. Th “It was June, and the world smelled of roses. The sunshine was like powdered gold over the grassy hillside.” (Maud Hart Lovelace) 

Welcome June!
“No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom “No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom unless he be vigilant in its preservation.”
General Douglas MacArthur

Grateful today and every day for those who were vigilant to the point of death in the preservation of our freedom. May we honor their sacrifice by being vigilant too. #memorialday
“Those who know your name trust in you, for you, “Those who know your name trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.” Psalm 9:10
This is one of my most favorite projects from my b This is one of my most favorite projects from my book Life in Season! 

Because, if heaven has a fragrance, I’m fairly certain it smells like lilacs.

I think that somewhere along the way the verse in the Bible that said, ‘heaven will smell like lilacs’ just got lost in translation. But it HAD to have been in there at some point, right?

When I bury my head in the blossoms (which I absolutely MUST do every single time I walk past them), I immediately feel a stirring in my soul.

It seems like I wait forever for my lilac tree to bloom. Every year I anxiously watch as the buds begin to form on the branches and then when the blossoms finally burst forth I begin that agonizing process of deciding the absolute perfect moment to snip them and bring them inside.

And then, after all of that waiting and watching it’s just over…done. Because, unlike heaven, lilacs don’t last for an eternity. So, making my own lilac room spray seemed like the perfect way to enjoy their fragrance long after the blossoms have faded.

Here’s how to make it! Ingredients: Water, Vodka, Lilac fragrance oil. Directions: Fill spray bottle with 50/50 ratio of water to vodka. Add 12 drops of lilac oil. Give it a shake, spray and if the scent isn’t strong enough, simply add a few more drops of lilac oil.

Once you’ve made this lilac scented room spray you will be very tempted to spray it in every room in your house. And someone may want to use it in the bathroom to cover up other less…ummmm….pleasing aromas.

But, do not, I repeat do NOT, let them.

You’ve captured the fragrance of heaven in a bottle and you wouldn’t want to go and tarnish it now would you? 😉
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I’m a MUCH better version of myself when the sun is shining! 🤪 So I’ll just be over here today plotting and planning how my husband and I can be snowbirds someday when the kids are out of the house.

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Two of our bathrooms are also in need of major makeovers. And we’ve saved up enough money over the years to tackle those projects. But, for the most part, we made the decision to use the bulk of that money in another way. While we knew that it was financially wise to invest in our house, we also knew that the greatest investment we could make was in our children. 

I’ll admit, there are times where I see other people doing massive overhauls of their entire home in a matter of months and I feel a prick of envy. But, we decided that if our choice was between waiting a bit longer to enjoy a renovated bathroom or going on adventures as a family, we would choose adventures every time. And we don’t regret that decision for a single second. It’s not that we haven’t tackled home projects (we’ve done a lot!). It’s just that it’s been a slow and steady process. 

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We have many years left to remodel our home but only so much time left to make memories with our children.

And, while I’m always happy to look around my home and see rooms that are updated and more reflecting of our style, it doesn’t compare to the joy I feel when I look around my home and see the people I love the most who have been shaped by the many adventures we’ve experienced together.
Happy Saturday!! After endless days of rain (and h Happy Saturday!! After endless days of rain (and hail and snow) we are finally getting some sunshine and warmer temperatures. I’ll be honest, it’s really affected my spirits having one gloomy day after the next. So this is a much needed reprieve. Our cherry trees are showing off outside my kitchen window and we plan to get outside and make the most of these days while we have them.

What’s the weather like where you are?
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