All Posts By

lori@farmfreshstyle.ca

2 In Make Something

Homemade Christmas Gifts

Ok, this post is really late. Posting about Christmas in January?? But I couldn’t share gifts I was giving before I gifted them, I didn’t want to ruin the surprise!  But since it’s January, I’d say its safe now, right? 

Usually I have one gift a year that I’m really excited about giving.  This year it was a gift for my Dad.  If you’ve been hanging around these parts, you may have picked on my love of barn quilts? No? Well, you can read about it HERE and HERE.  Since Mom and Dad moved, I decided they needed a barn quilt on the garage at their new place.  So I started looking for a design I wanted to use and I chatted with Mom about the colours that she thought might work into their current colour scheme and I strongly recommended a yellow front door and some nice navy shutters….and if that rings a bell, it’s because that’s what we have at our house!  But since their house is green/blue/teal { what colour is that siding anyway??? } it would look very different.

Anyway, I digress. Back to the barn quilt…  I had a rough idea that the pattern couldn’t be overly complicated because I was only doing a 2′ x 2′ barn quilt.  And I found the perfect one.  Guess what it is called??  Farmer’s Daughter!!  Could it be more perfect?? No, I didn’t think so!

Mom had mentioned she was looking for a sign with a certain prayer on it but couldn’t find one that she liked.  So I offered to make her one.  I stenciled the prayer onto my stained sign { with some help from Angela who has a Circut } and then free-handed the wreath around it.  It isn’t perfect and part of me cringes when I see it, but Mom loves it and that’s all that matters, right?  Hannah has adopted this prayer and will sometimes say it at the beginning of meals instead of our regular grace.

This next gift was one I had given to several friends this Christmas.  It’s made from an old barrel stave from the property where we built our first house after we got married.  I’ve been lugging these staves around for years and finally found a good use for them!  With the handsome Mr. Byrne’s spade bit, I drilled holes that I measured out and then I gave it all a sanding.  I decided to finish them with a coat of Miss Mustard Seed’s Hemp Oil and it made the character of the wood really pop.  I did up a little paper bag with the tea light candles, too, so they could be lit right away!  I made one for myself, too.

I wish I had more time to make more gifts each year, but with these gifts featured in this post and some cuffs that I made, too, I think I did alright.  Do you make homemade gifts to give for Christmas or birthdays? I’d love to hear about it!

Colourfully yours,

Lori

 

January 23, 2019 By
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3 In Make Something

Weaving a Rainbow

Ever since I took the weaving workshop with House of Woolly Thyme, I’ve been addicted to weaving.  I’m not sure how many weavings I have done since then.  And I’ve even taught weaving to my 4H Craft Projects kids.  So when Mary Anne asked me to help promote her weaving kits, I was all in!  

The kit arrived in all it’s colourful wonder, with everything I needed to complete an entire weaving.  The basic weaving supplies like the warp thread, needles, and even the scissors! The wooden loom included in each kit is so nice to use for weaving.  I have done a few other weaving projects on handmade looms or cardboard looms, but there is no comparison to using one of the House Of Woolly Thyme looms.

There is an instruction manual included that explains each step to completing your weaving so you know exactly what to do.  I love that it follows Mary Anne doing a weaving from start to finish so you can see what a completed weaving looks like and just how achievable they are!  The photography is beautiful and the whole manual very well thought out.

The fibre I selected for my weaving was very colourful.  I want to embrace my Word of the Year, Colour, and this colour palette seemed like the right fit, don’t you think?  The selection of different types of fibre is incredible.  The more variety in textures and fibre, the more dimension and interest your finished weaving will have, too.

I especially love that the kit includes an authentic piece of Nova Scotian driftwood to hang your weaving when it’s completed!  If you follow House of Woolly Thyme on Instagram, you’ll see posts about driftwood collection and you’ll catch a glimpse of some of our amazing Nova Scotia beaches.

When I started my weaving, I debated doing it in perfect rainbow order.  I hummed and huhed while watching Netflix with the girls.  Then I decided to jump right in and go all colour, all over.

And here’s the finished product:

If you want to try weaving, I highly recommend one of these Introductory Weaving Kits.  You can’t go wrong with the quality of the items in the kit.  And the instruction manual will take you step by step through the entire process.  You can see the selection of available kits HERE.

And if you are in need of a more hands-on experience, you can always go to one of Mary Anne’s workshops at the Lunenburg Makery or the Trainyard General Store.  You can read my experience at the workshop I took over a year ago HERE.

I hope you give weaving a try, I find it to be very satisfying and stirs my creative soul.  And, I can do it from the comfort of my comfy couch!

Colourfully yours,

Lori

PS I was supplied the Introductory Weaving Kit by Mary Anne of House of Woolly Thyme but my take on it is just that 😉

 

January 22, 2019 By
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4 In Life

What’s In a Name?

Names are an interesting thing.   They can mean so much and yet how often do we even think about the meaning behind a name? Rarely.  So let’s talk about names!

Let’s start with the name of this blog – seems like a good place to start as any.  Farm Fresh Style.  Well, I knew the blog needed to have a nod to my country roots and the lifestyle in which I was raised.  That landed me on Farm but I didn’t want it to scream ‘country’ so paired with Fresh, it takes on a slightly different meaning – Farm Fresh – fresh off the farm, country with an updated twist.  And the Style is for my own personal style in our home which I share on the blog and socials but also to my career path of interiors.  I’ve had people try to get me to change it to something more distinguished or classic but I think it truly suits me and what I’m doing over here in the blog.

People know me as Lori but you might be surprised to hear that my given name is actually Lorraine.  Mom wanted me named after her best friend, Laurie, and her sister, Anne. So, Mom and Dad named me Lorraine but with the intention of calling me Lori.  I can tell how important a phone call is based on what they address me as – only the most formal of documentation is under my given name.  So, it is rare that I am addressed as Lorraine, except when the handsome Mr. Byrne calls me that….or Rainie, which I really do love 🙂

Our daughters are both named after their great grandmothers or even great great grandmothers.  I love a name with roots and history.  Lena is named after my grandmother who was an amazing artist.  I talk a little about her HERE.  And poor Lena, no one pronounces her name correctly if they see it in writing, they think it is the traditional way of saying it Lee-nah but the Dutch pronunciation is Lay-nah, just like her Great Grandma.

Hannah was named after Michael’s side of the family and the cutest was when his Nanny informed us that her middle name was Mae – she didn’t realize we had named Hannah after her!  She was pretty tickled when she did find out, though.

When Penny arrived in our lives, she needed a new name to start her new life with us.  I’m not one who believes in ‘luck’ but she showed up like a ‘Lucky Penny’ and I have to say, I’m not sure who the lucky one is – her or us.  And with her pretty copper colouring, it seemed like a good fit.  I was looking up dog names the other day to help out a friend and so I looked up Penny as a dog name, which means ‘flower’ and it suits an independent dog….which made me laugh, Penny is a such a good girl when she has boundaries but let her off leash { read: escapes } and it’s hours or much longer before she’s ready to come back…

Our farm name is Clear Day Farm and it isn’t the name we named it, it came with that name.  The pervious owners loved this property very much and it was hard for them to let it go.  So, to honour them, we kept the name.  I’m not sure the background of it, but I do know that on a clear day, you can see so far away!  The hills that surround us are goregous.

I’d love to hear the story or meaning behind your name or your children’s name or your farm name!  I find this is interesting and such a meaningful way to connect to our past!

Colourfully yours,

Lori

January 20, 2019 By
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2 In Clear Day Farm/ Decorating

A New View

We are not high maintenance people by any stretch.  But we have something in our home now that might make you think otherwise.  Remote control blinds.  Sounds fancy, right?

I have been selling blinds for nearly 20 years now.  It’s all part of my job to help my clients find window coverings { or furniture or flooring or whatever } that suit their needs and home.  And I have to admit, after selling thousands of blinds, I never knew just how much I would enjoy having blinds on our living room windows.

For us, privacy isn’t an issue, we live in rural Nova Scotia and our road isn’t very busy. Even the north and eastern exposure doesn’t cause too much trouble, except on the rare day when the sun shines in on the right angle and hits the TV.  So, really we don’t need blinds.  We have curtains on the windows but they are very rarely closed.

Part of the thing about selling blinds is knowing what products are out there and of course, I like the ones that are a little on the expensive side.  But when a special sale for Hunter Douglas dealers cames up and your boss makes you an offer you can’t refuse, you go all in.

And that’s how we ended up with two PowerView Silhouettes in our living room.  And guys, I can’t imagine life without them now.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Hunter Douglas’ Silhouette line, it is a shade that has two layers of sheer front and back, with a fabric vane in between the sheer layers.  This means it will filter and diffuse the light coming in the room when the blinds are open but when they are closed over, they offer privacy.  And they also provide a nice layer of insulation, too.  They also can roll completely up into the headrail when you want the wide open view to the outside.  So they are a very functional product, but they are also oh so pretty.  The fabric we selected has a nice natural texture to it so it doesn’t feel too formal.

Then with the remote function, it means you can easily open, close or louvre the shades from the couch.  No stretching over the furniture to access a cord to raise or lower them, just the simple push of a button.  I’ll be honest, I never really saw the need for the average room to have remote blinds.  Unless you had very obvious windows that were out of reach.  But, let me tell you, the PowerView is awesome.  When we had our tree up in front of the window, the remote was perfect.  Really, we use it nearly every day now.

Here’s a reminder of what our living room looked like when we moved in…

And now….with blinds opened and closed….

It’s so cozy at night.  Or if the girls are watching TV, then they love to have the shades closed so that it’s darker and all snug.  I always loved our living room, it felt inviting but I really do think it has now come up a level.  And I should know this, right? Lol, and yet, here I am gushing about the difference it made.

Even though this isn’t a sponsored post, I do want to give Karl, my boss, a shout out for offering this special to us. { and for being an amazing boss in general! }  I didn’t know I needed these blinds but now that I have them….

If you want to chat blinds with me, let me know.  I love geeking out over the products and possibilities that Hunter Douglas offers for solving UV, privacy or light control issues.  Or if you have a design project you are thinking about doing or are in the midst of and need expert advice, I know we can find a way to help.  You can find me at Costandi Designs on Facebook and Instagram.

I’m off to play with the new blinds 😉

Colourfully yours,

Lori

 

 

January 15, 2019 By
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4 In Faith/ Life

Sunday Reflections – Hymns & Soup

Today felt like a very nostalgic day.  There were two nods to my childhood that lead me down memory lane today, so I thought I’d share them with you.

I grew up going to church.  As a child, we attended the Emmanuel Christian Reformed Church in New Glasgow.   It is no longer still going, it closed down when I was 15 or so.  But my childhood is steeped with memories from Sundays spent there.

I learned about the reverence of God, I learned the basis my faith, and so much more.  There was something to be said for the familiarity with which the services were done.  Some of those things are so ingrained in my being that even today I could recite the Apostle’s Creed or sing ‘From Whom all Blessings Flow”.  I can tell you which pew we sat in and what order my family sat.  Dawn against the wall, me seated between Dawn and Mom, Dad beside Mom and Steve on the far side of Dad.  When the sermon started, we’d pass along the peppermints.  That’s how it was, week after week, year after year.

We sang hymns every week.  And that’s what stirred a memory today.  At the church we attend now, Trenton Church of the Nazarene, we don’t sing hymns often.  Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoy our music, but when one of my favourite hymns gets played, I love it very much.  This morning, it was ‘My Jesus, I love Thee’ and the memories flooded back.  I may not have this 100% correct, but I think that way back in the day, I sang this during a service with my friend Sarah, her sister and brother and my sister, Dawn.  I think maybe Sarah’s mom sang with us, too, like I said, I’m not 100% on it all anymore.

It is one of my favourite hymns.  When the girls were little and I would sing to them at bedtime, this was one I always included.  It has such strong connections to my childhood. And maybe that’s why I was feeling nostalgic today and our noon day meal brought me back, too.

Soup.

We had soup for lunch.  Soup is common meal, right? What’s so special about soup? Sunday soup was a frequent meal if we were having company after church.  Or if we went to friend’s house after church.  It’s the perfect make-ahead meal.  Don’t get me started on Dunnewold soup, that’s a whole other thing! Yum!!

Anyway, we were having company over for lunch today, Janice and her crew.  So I made soup and lots of it.  And sitting around the packed table, chairs drug in from the studio and all the leaves in the table, it felt like a Sunday from my childhood. Except, now, I’m the mom, the maker of the soup.  And it was exactly what we all needed.  The comfort and hominess of it all was lovely.

The kids went out to sled and the parents sat around talking about any number of things with a warm cup of coffee in hand.  I’m just realizing now as I type this how my childhood is being carried on in the lives of my children.  Is this how my parents felt when it was them sitting with the coffee and it was me heading out to the closest hill?  Did Mom worry about how she was going to arrange everyone around the table or if the soup had enough flavour?  As the children, we were carefree and oblivious to all that but now I wonder if Mom felt that same way I did as I prepared to open our home to our dear friends?

Today was a good day.  I felt connected in a way I haven’t felt in a while.  And for that, I am so thankful.

Colourfully yours,

Lori

 PS Photo credit to Janice ☺️

January 13, 2019 By
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