Favorite Gifts for the Gardner, Perfect for Mother’s Day

Hello Pretty Ladies,

Today, I’m sharing a quick Mother’s Day Gift Guide. Favorite Gifts for the Gardner, Perfect for Mother’s Day, gardening items your Mom or garden lover would appreciate. These are some of my favorite items, many of which I have been using for years.

Some of you may be aware that, if you’ve followed me for a while or watched my Instagram stories from the Spring and Summer, I share many of my gardening tips and insights from my garden. I grew up gardening with my mom, who adored caring for her English garden, and that wore off on me. I loved learning about flowers, how and where they grew well. Not to mention how beautiful all the flowers were to look at and fill your home with cut blooms. This also created my love of flower arranging.

If you’re not following me on Instagram, you can do so here. If you’d like to take a peek into my garden, I’ve created a highlight here that you might want to watch. I also share gardening and floral tips in my weekly newsletter. If you haven’t signed up for my newsletter, you can do that HERE.

Gifts for the Gardner

Gardening Outfit

A cute outfit inspiration for those who love being outdoors in the garden.

Coffee Table Books for the Gardeners & Outdoor Living

Outdoor Patio Refresh

Outdoor Patio Refresh: The Perfect Items to Refresh Your Outdoor Patio Spaces. In a beautiful palette of tan, white, and green, these items will have you relax, yet want to show them off to family and friends—pillows, wicker furniture, plants, lanterns, birds, blankets, and candles.

Follow my Amazon and Liketoknowit storefronts.

Need more inspiration? You can follow my Amazon storefront here and shop for everything I share on my Liketoknow. it shop.

Have a beautiful day, ladies, and remember that your smile is your best accessory.

Thank you for stopping by.

Thank you for stopping by and reading “Favorite Gifts for the Gardner, Perfect for Mother’s Day. ” If you haven’t signed up for my weekly Newsletter, you can do so here .

“Helping women look and feel good at any age!”

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This post may contain affiliate links. All opinions are my own. I only promote brands that I genuinely love and believe in! Thank you for the support!

Easy Four Ingredients Recipe: To have Your Home Smelling Like William Sonoma

Hello Pretty Ladies,

Happy Sunday. I hope you’re having a beautiful November so far. It’s been chilly in Utah this week, and we even had a little snow dusting. Thank goodness that didn’t last, as I am not ready for that yet. I’ve been busy trying to prepare for the Holidays; some of you may know I decorated several homes for the Holidays and all my clients like their homes decorated before Thanksgiving.

This makes November the busiest month for me, between decorating and styling for clients ( I shop for them as well), decorating our home, creating content for you, and getting gift guides ready to help make your shopping easier. Honestly, I love what I do, and having the goal to have everything done before Thanksgiving helps me enjoy the month of December and take in the special moments of the season.

Here are a couple of tips I have for enjoying the season.

This week, I am getting our Christmas cards ordered and am almost done Christmas shopping; this has helped me create excellent gift guides for you, as I will be sharing many of the items I am giving this year. (If you follow my stories on Instagram, you’ve already seen several.)

I aim to have everything wrapped by the end of next week; my Holiday Wrapping paper should be here from All Wrapped Up in the next couple of days. This Is what I chose this year: ONE & this ONE. I have always pushed myself to finish shopping and wrapping, as I love seeing the gifts under the tree. Again, this is another way to enjoy the holiday season. It takes away some of the season’s stress, and it goes by so fast that doing everything early really makes a difference.

Why is it okay to start Christmas prepping early?

They say it’s earlier and earlier every year. What I do for a living has to be getting content and ideas done in time to share with you, but in reality, it’s beneficial to prep way ahead, taking away stress and giving you more enjoyable moments. Yes, it’s a lot of work, but it’s better to spread it out than force it all into 20-ish days.

It gives me time to bake or host a gingerbread-making night with the family; I can have a party for my girlfriends without feeling like I have so much more to do. Our family can see the lights in Salt Lake City and the Giant Gingerbread Houses at the Grand America.

One of my favorite things to do with my hubby is to go to a pretty mall to take in the festive feels of the season, have lunch, and not need to purchase anything, but If I see something I can pick up, I do, without having to check anything off a list. HINT (This is when my hubby shops) It’s a great way to get your hubby to the mall:)

Today’s Sunday Recipe:

Now That I’ve filled you in on a little behind-the-scenes and my thought process, let me share a Fast and easy recipe today for making your home smell excellent with items you probably already have on hand. Watch my video HERE

Easy Four Ingredients Recipe: To have Your Home Smelling Like William Sonoma

Fill the air in your home with an aromatic, woodsy, and citrusy fragrance, just like you would experience at Williams Sonoma. This inspired Williams Sonoma signature simmer pot recipe is easy, fresh, and non-toxic, and your space will smell like a luxury store.

Who doesn’t love their home smelling great, especially when you’re using safe and non-toxic ingredients? It is such a mood-booster. Try this easy fall simmer pot that smells delicious and is suitable for seasonal energy.

Simmer pots are perfect for the cooler weather in Fall and Winter. They give your space a warm and cozy vibe. Grab a blanket, a book, and a soothing cup of tea; try my London Fog below.

Or maybe it will put you in the mood to set your Thanksgiving table.

Ingredients:

Lemons – I do one to two lemons sliced

Fresh Rosemary – I grow this in my garden and love the earthy woodland aroma

Vanilla Extract – pure vanilla extract. Several types of vanilla will change the scent depending on the purity.

Peppercorns—for an earthy yet floral note. (I sometimes add them and sometimes leave them out, depending on my mood.

Water– I’ve found a 2 or 3-quart water pot allows you to have a much longer simmering time

Fill the pot with water, add ingredients, and simmer on low.

Caraway Pans

I use Caraway Cookware

Non-toxic pots and pans are safe to cook and beautiful to set out. I adore the gold handles; of course, there are several colors to choose from.

Save 10% with my code: DARCYVANDENBERG Shop the link below:

rstr.co/caraway/vandenberg

The benefits of Caraway Cookware

Non-Stick

Transform your kitchen with the best-selling 16-piece Cookware & Minis Set, featuring non-toxic ceramic coating for elevated non-stick performance. Enjoy easy cleanup and healthier meals with less oil and no harmful chemicals. Featuring modern colors and a convenient Pan Rack & Lid Organizer, it’s the essential ingredient for a more stylish and organized kitchen. The 10.5” Dutch Oven lid also fits the Fry Pan.

Need more inspiration?

Need more inspiration? You can Follow my Amazon Store Front HERE and Shop everything I share on my Liketoknowit shop as well HERE

Have a beautiful day, Pretty ladies, and remember your smile is your BEST accessory.

Thank you for stopping by.

Thank you for stopping by and reading” Easy Four Ingredients Recipe: To have Your Home Smelling Like William Sonoma “If you haven’t signed up for my weekly newsletter, you can do that here.

“H️elping women look and feel good at any age!”

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THIS POST MAY CONTAIN AN AFFILIATE LINK. ALL OPINIONS ARE MY OWN. I ONLY PROMOTE BRANDS THAT I GENUINELY LOVE AND BELIEVE IN! THANK YOU FOR THE SUPPORT!

New Year’s Target Home Refresh

Hello Pretty Ladies,

Christmas has been taken down, and the house feels a little empty. I love doing a little home refresh in January. How about you? Adding just a few pieces to your home decor can give a minor update. I found a few pieces at Target to freshen up your home, whether you’re looking for a small amount of furniture, a new lamp, or a great coffee table book to inspire you. Target has some great affordable pieces.

I love changing up my dish towels and refreshing the pillows. It’s a great affordable way to give a little update/refresh to your home. Adding a new piece of art or a mirror can give your room a new look, while a new little accent piece, like a chair or a small dresser, can change the room’s look.

Here are my picks from Target:

Upholstered Natural Wood Accent Chair – Hearth & Hand™ with Magnolia

16″ Faux Olive Leaf Potted Plant – Hearth & Hand™ with Magnolia

3-Drawer Wood Dresser – Hearth & Hand™ with Magnolia

Assembled Resin Table Lamp Tan – Threshold™ designed with Studio McGee.

Shiraleah Decorative Montecito Jug Vase

Rolling Hills Framed Wall Canvas Green – Threshold™ designed with Studio McGee

Cozy Feathery Knit Border Striped Throw Blanket – Threshold

Cable Knit Throw Pillow – Threshold

30″ x 42″ French Country Wall Mirror

Cozy White Cottage Book – by Liz Marie Galvan

Thank you

Thank and for stopping by and reading today’s day’s blog post. “New Year’s Target Home Refresh” Do you like a refresh? I would love for you to tell me in the comments. You can also find me on Instagram, Pinterest, Liketoknowit, Amazon shops, and Facebook.

Have a beautiful day, pretty ladies,

Did you know I have a shop on Amazon and live reviews with shoppable collections?

Follow me HERE

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This post may contain affiliate links. All opinions are my own. I only promote brands that I genuinely love and believe in! Thank you for the support!

Styling A Dough Bowl For Fall

Hello pretty ladies,

Today, I am sharing an easy way to add Fall touches to your home with a dough bowl.

Whether you’re a big fall decorator or just want to add a little bit of fall decor to warm up your space.

A dough bowl is a great way to add decor for every season, on your kitchen island, dining room table, coffee table, or even entry table.

Makes a great anchor, for seasonal items.

I love fall and I love to decorate. One of my favorite items to style is a dough bowl. Here are a few tips that can help you create a Fall display with ease.

Styling A Dough Bowl For Fall.

Fall decorating is can be so fun and actually really easy with these easy tips.

Tip 1

Keep it simple, using a Dough Bowl Makes a great anchor for your collections for any season. They come in several sizes to fit in many places.

A dough bowl is a great way to add decor for every season, on your kitchen island, dining room table, Coffee table, or even entry table.

Makes a great anchor, for seasonal items. Easy to change them according to the time of year.

Tip 2

Work in odd numbers, an interior design trick is to work in odd numbers, 3,5,7, etc. This adds balance and helps create clusters that work to keep the eye wandering along with interest.

Tip 3

Use items you love, use a variety of items in different textures and materials. Use different sizes and heights. This not only adds interest but keeps your display from being flat.

How I created this display for one of my Kitchen Islands

Here, I used Pumpkins, flowers, and candles. All at affordable prices from Target.

Shop the Photo:

Thank you for taking the time to stop by and read my blog post. “Styling A Dough Bowl For Fall” I would love for you to comment if you decorate for the seasons You can also find me on Instagram, Pinterest, Liketoknowit, Amazon shops, and Facebook.

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Easy and Affordable Tips to Remodel Your Space!

Our client wanted an updated look with an affordable budget. She also wanted a modern feel and liked the soft feel of grey but loves color, she also doesn’t like much clutter or collectibles. With this in mind we created a space around these needs. I love the pop of color with the grey it works well with each other. Note how the color is in the accessories, this allows for an easy change to the look affordably buy switching out the accessories for new colors and trends.

The finished look. Note: the dresser painted silver to take something old and make it new again.

This space was created to sit and work/read have a cup of coffee or wine and chat. I created a couple of areas to sit and large pillows for the kids to lay around, gather and chat.

Before the space in the front room was used for an office. The space was dark, furniture placed wrong and the flooring was a strange vinyl padding.

Before: boring, furniture placed wrong, no color and doesn’t reflect the owners personality or style .

The entry walking into front room prior used for office. New space living/sitting area. Note the dark dresser, see what a little paint did to it! We did paint this space the same shade of Sherwin Williams grey and added a beautiful new light fixture. (sorry I forgot to take a photo of this.)

As for the molding to help with budget, we re-used the existing molding, painted it white and placed a smaller molding a 1/2 inch space above, leaving a gap that we painted white to give the look of much more expensive wider molding. This give a big budget bang and a fraction of the cost. Molding is like jewelry to an outfit, it really finishes it off. It’s a detail that finishes the job.

This is the before on the two floorings and the baseboard. Sorry for the bad photo! (it was the only one I took and I didn’t realize it was blurred until it was too late.) I really felt it was important to show the up close detail.

The after… refinished hardwood floor to give it an update without the cost of a total redo. Added a fun patterned carpet for detail and a unexpected pop! I think it turned out so sharp.

Hello Beautifuls,

I hope you enjoyed your weekend. My hubby surprised me with a weekend away to Salt Lake City for some pool time alone. Cheers to weekend dates! I wanted to share some news with you, My hubby and I have been a designer & construction team for years. In California we had a business B&D properties, interior design and construction specializing in remodels and makeovers. We were doing flips and spec homes as a team. While he also owned & operated ski shops for 25 years and I had Pages of Tyme, a home decor and scrapbooking store for 10 years. Business was great, we were really busy and life was moving fast! My hubby was burned out and wanted to slow things down….We decided to move to Utah where we had had a second home. So we sold everything and moved to Utah. Our plan was to take a year or two off enjoy our family and then we would start up B & D Properties in Utah on a smaller scale and x out any retail business and then housing market crashed… Needless to say our plans changed… B&D properties went on the back burner for Utah. My hubby stayed in the construction business and took on all kinds of jobs. While I recreated my career (I needed a break and I needed to do something creative on my fashion side). I had always loved fashion and always wanted to open a clothing boutique as fashion and design have a lot in common. The birth of Chic Style was born. Having grown the shops to 3 shops in 6 years after 9 years, I had really been missing design. I had taken a huge break in design while living in Utah and decided to take on a couple projects while still owning the shops…. Now talk about busy but I loved doing both while also growing my blog and social media. In December 2017 we decided to sell the clothing shops not really knowing for sure what I was going to do for work (I promise there’s a point to all of this!) I knew I didn’t want to do ANY type of retail anymore, I knew my blog and social were growing and I LOVED sharing tips and advice on anything fashion and lifestyle & design related. But I also knew I needed to work until I could make a living at this blogging & influencer job. To be honest I’ve been trying to find what that job would be… I’ve been searching, applying for all kinds of jobs (which I constantly get told I am over qualified!) from corporate manager jobs, retail and even big firm interior jobs. In this process I became a long term substitute teacher which I adore and have been picking up interior design side jobs! Reminding myself I’ve been self employed almost my whole life, why would I want to work for another business while I am capable of doing it on my own? After having to bring my hubby back on as the contractor to my last 4 jobs I realized a dream we hadn’t fulfilled, B&D properties, Interior design and construction in Utah has not been fulfilled! It finally all made since and came back around…that’s what we’re supposed to do, team back up and make that dream a reality. (God I hear you!) So B&D properties, interior design and construction is up and running. Our business license and insurances are all in the works or finished. We have a Facebook page HERE and an Instagram HERE and you can email us at [email protected] Don’t worry I will still be running Dear-Darcy, I will just be adding more design and home projects to the blog with a tab you’ll be able to search. My plan is to come up with a content calendar so you will see an even amount of fashion, lifestyle, travel and design. Stay tuned as I am really working on blogging 5 days a week to give you all the content you want to see.

Now.. Do you need some remodeling, organizing, personal shopping or your closet reworked? Email me because this is MY NEW JOB! Thank you for following along & supporting me, D’Arcy.

Junior League Gala….(Decorator Chair)

My outfit and accessories

A couple of pictures of mt hubby and I…

Junior league Member’s that could attend…We have 80 member’s

The center pieces for 30 Tables

The entry into the venue ….Is in the details, You should have seen the face of the venue manager as I was pouring sand! (I promise we cleaned it All up!) The glow of the lanterns walking up and the detail of sand just set the tone.

A little facebook message from our President, after the Gala! I was excited she loved how it turned out!

Another Junior League Gala in the Books…If you just starting reading or following me, I have been in the Junior League of Ogden for 3 years and the last 2 I have been Decorating Chair for the Gala. The Gala is our biggest fundraiser of the year needless to say it a big event! If you haven’t heard of the Junior League, in a quick response… it’s a wonderful organization across the country that helps empower woman through charitable work in your community. I love being part of such a wonderful organization that really GIVE’s back while building friendships. This year’s theme was LOBSTER UP… (there is a whole story behind it) The President each year picks a theme, which is normally something they feel strong about and sets the tone for the year! This theme set the tone HUGE for this years Gala (a Night in white at the Cape) A Fancy way to have a Nautical Themed GALA!

A big challenge in many way’s… You don’t want it to be decorated to casual (it’s a Gala) The budget is close to 0 and it’s a party for 300. Beach party wasn’t the goal it’s not a Luau or birthday party. So my goal was to feel like a dinner party at a house on the cape, on a summer night. Knowing we asked guest to wear white ( we knew we would get casual white to fancy white attire) I didn’t want it to feel like a casual Beach party. SO sticking with white linens Layered with Natural colored Burlap and fish net. Then accents of gold, natural’s and blue & green sea glass. Helped give it the feel of the Sea without the Bright primary’s of Beach balls. Another challenge was we don’t live near the beach so finding objects to barrow was basically another 0… SO I did a lot of DIY projects! The center pieces were bottles & jars I have been collected for years (knowing I would need one day!) 93 bottles total, 30 of which were wine bottles a fellow member had saved. I will share my DIY project with you at another time… I think they turned out Darling for 30 centerpieces on a major budget!

I have told you guy’s I love to collect item’s ( I am not a hoarder..HAHA) I love to entertain so I have a pretty big collection of items for party’s…. I really didn’t own much for this type of party…But I did have Longaberger Basket’s, Vintage Ice chest, Vintage Ironing board, Adirondack chair’s , Vintage coke crate and bottle’s, succulents, white flower pots, A big Boat book shelf and some outdoor lanterns, fire pit, 2 wooden pallets, Burlap and Burlap table clothes. 30 table frames (TIP: look to see what you could use to help with the theme even if it doesn’t scream the theme!) This really helped fill in a lot of area’s at the venue. Then I only had to purchase some key Item’s to really help tie it ALL together. SEE it does help to collect!

Items I did purchase: At Homegood, TjMax, Michael’s, Amazon, Lowe’s….

Fishnet, shells, sea glass, pebbles, white flowers, anchor, nautical flags, nautical flag banners (4), rope… lots of rope, 2 posters & frames, rope knots, fishing bobs, Lobster pillow and beach towel, 30 big battery Candles and 50 votive candles, Ribbon, Strands of lights, Taffy for Party favors!

Donated or loaned: White linens from Model linens & Large tropical plants J&J nursery …..

Above I showed groupings that I placed through out the Venue to have a pop of THE CAPE everywhere you looked. Have any questions or need tips on planning a party with what you have on hand? Leave a comment I will be happy to help

My love of entertaining and decorating is how I can give my time and give back. This is how I use my talents to help others. Being able to Do something I love helps this charity raise money to give back to the community. We ALL have a talent or a gift that we can use to GIVE BACK…I Hope I inspired you to use your talent’s & time in a way that can help others. OX, D’Arcy

Getting ready for New Years Eve ….Nails, Champagne & clothes

New Year’s Eve nail and Diy Glitter Champagne bottle

Sparkle and Glitz

2016 is coming to an end…. Later this week All post My 2016 resolutions and how it turned out

(It was the first year I made any Resolution’s) As we get closer to New Years Eve I thought I would share a couple things I did to get ready for the night. First thing was I had my cute nail girl do my nails In a fun champagne toast theme… I hadn’t decided what I was wearing so we went with a mix of things. Red on 3, 1 white with rose gold & silver glitter over white and a black nail with a hand painted silver flute….. Now I can pick any outfit and it will work knowing my festive clothes are All in those tones….

2nd was to create a DIY project with a bottle of Champagne ….. Everything looks better with glitter 💕 You’ll need a bottle, mod podge, a brush and glitter of your choice ( I did gold , rose gold and silver) spray sealer . cover bottle in mod podge roll or sprinkle fitter on and let dry… Repeat if layering colors , let dry then spray with sealant or cover with mod podge again let dry… Voilà a pretty Bottle for your New Year’s festivities 🎉🍾

3rd. Finding a festive outfit in your closet…. Funny thing, I went into my closet and pulled all my sparkle or festive tops, any thing with beading, sequins or flash…. It all happened to be in the same blush, gold, white, cream family…. I am drawn to sparkles, beading and metallic so I had a few good choices to pick from out of my years of collecting. TIP it’s good to save classic dressy pieces. I was only pulling tops or vest to see what I could come up with. I found some cute items that would go perfectly with Black leather pants and heals…. Add some fun accessories and your set. Knowing we are probably going to a house party , Where you want to look festive but not overdressed. (we were invited to a black tie cocktail party as well and will show that outfit tomorrow) hope you find inspiration in this post and can dig up some great treasures in your closet.

Happy Last week of 2016 ❤️D’Arcy

Gifts for the Gardner

Gardening Outfit

Coffee Table Books for the Gardeners & Outdoor Living

Outdoor Patio Refresh

Follow my Amazon and Liketoknowit storefronts.

Thank you for stopping by.

You might also enjoy the following:

Here are a couple of tips I have for enjoying the season.

Why is it okay to start Christmas prepping early?

Today’s Sunday Recipe:

Ingredients:

Caraway Pans

The benefits of Caraway Cookware

Need more inspiration?

Thank you for stopping by.

You might also enjoy the following:

Here are my picks from Target:

Thank you

Did you know I have a shop on Amazon and live reviews with shoppable collections?

Follow me HERE

You might also Like the following:

Styling A Dough Bowl For Fall.

Tip 1

Tip 2

Tip 3

How I created this display for one of my Kitchen Islands

darcyvandenberg