Category Archives: Holidays

Summer Show and Tell: Where We Went and What We Did There

Hey Readers,

As your kids and those new backpacks head back to school this week, we’ll be back to blogging with frequency. We’ve been busy enjoying the summer, and thought we’d share with you what we’ve been up to:  

Ashley enjoyed a wonderful week long vacation at Wrightsville Beach with her husband and adorable daughter, Sophia.

    

Molly: “Our 2012 summer was not very relaxing or restful – but I did manage to grab a few “aaahhhhh” moments here at our beach place on the sound in Morehead city, NC. The banks of the property are lined with old oak trees – they provide a beautiful setting that welcomes our family whenever we can get away. I treasure and feel very blessed to have this in our lives.”

 

Lauren: “After moving into our new house, my husband and I spent the beginning of the summer unpacking and getting settled.  We flew to Denver, CO for a friend’s wedding, took several trips to the beach, and celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary!  After all that traveling, I finally found the perfect rug for my living room.”

 

Katerina’s collection of snaps from her Coney Island Adventure, complete with the unique people watching experience.

 

 

Hilaire and Judy went to Texas and spent the 4th of July with family. The incredible view from the dock.

 

Rob spent some time in Chicago and enjoyed a game of shuffleboard at the Jersey Shore in Sea Isle City, New Jersey. 

 

 

Ever the hostess, Judy was surprised by a birthday party at her own house- planned secretly by Hilaire.  Below, Judy blows out the candle on her gorgeous and delicious Lemon cake from the Cupcake Shoppe.

Brittany:  “I went on a roadtrip to my central Illinois hometown and watched the beautiful Scandinavian designed windmills at a local windfarm. I also got the chance to spend a lot of quality time with my goofy little brother.”

 

Around the studio, we’ve enjoyed ice cream sandwich breaks, installations at the beach, dressing in bright summer colors, and fresh roses from Katerina’s rose garden…

 

What have you been up to this summer? 

-Design Lines

Be Mine, Valentine!

 

At a Valentine’s party this weekend- I chatted with both Men & Women about the holiday of St. Valentine (for a brief history click here). The general consesus-was that gentlemen find the day stressful, while most ladies adored the holiday.  Whether you loathe or love it, don’t stress if you haven’t already made plans, here are some last minute  things you can do for your sweetheart:

1- How about a cool valentine with a hand-written note inside?

2- Breakfast in bed or meet your Valentine for lunch

3- No one’s too old for a mixtape- put together a playlist of your favorite songs and download it to their ipod or make a CD to play during the commute

4- Rather than ordering your Valentine flowers online- consider picking up a few bunches at your local grocer and arranging them yourself (demonstrating thoughtfulness in your selection)- or consider a flowering plant like ranunculus that they can plant in the ground when it gets a bit warmer outside.

5 For him? What about a car wash or a geeked out case for his phone?

Happy Valentine’s day! Remember that thoughtfulness is completely free!

XOXO,

Brittany

12 Days of Christmas: Decorating the Mantel

Want a neat idea for your mantel?! You’ve only got a few days left until Christmas. Molly’s best friend’s mother, Margie, through the years – has given her beautiful Santa Clause figurines. A few years ago Molly decided that rather than putting them in different places she would put them all on the mantel and enjoy the Santa Parade!

Molly adds a few of her own and has even ordered a funky little 26″ tall boiled wool Santa to add to the crew from Garnet Hill. I add in a fresh wreath above for a simple yet memorable Christmas display. Amazing how quickly the kids look forward to this newly inducted tradition. “It is not overly creative but I just love the memories that each one brings as I unpack them from the attic. The middle one may be my favorite because it was one of the ones that Margie gave me.”

Merry Christmas to all!

images: DLL

12 Days of Christmas: Gift Wrapping

Today marks the first day of Christmas. By now, you’ve managed to find gifts for almost all on your list, now you just have to wrap those treasures to delight the ones you love. I remember wrapping gifts as a girl, sitting on the floor in my parents bedroom, er um Santa’s headquarters with some invisible scotch tape and some store bought To: and From: tags with snowmen on them.  A Lot has changed since then- but I still take joy in the finishing touches. I’ve given my advice on wrapping for the past two years- below: this year’s gift wrapping round up-

1. Gift Tags 2. Silver Ornaments, consider tying them on! 3. Design Sponge4. DLL Pinterest 6. Faux Bois Wrapping Paper 7. Wool Ribbon  8. Baker’s Twine

 

1. Thoroughly Modern Tree 2. Glittered Wrapping Paper in Violet 3. Snowglobe gift tags 4. Vintage Ornaments from Local Furbish Studio 5.Bourgeouis Bow Tags 6. Tinsel & Candy Cane Wrapping Paper

1. Upcycled Gift Wrap 2A.  Handmade Snow Globe  2B. Typewritten gift tags  3. Mitten Gift Tags 4. Doily Cookie Containers

 

What’s the best gift you’ve ever recieved? Do you still remember the wrapping? How will you wrap the presents you give this year? Check out previous posts on the topic: here & here.

-Brittany

12 Days of Christmas: Staff Favorite Holiday Recipes

 The holidays are in full swing and at Design Lines we are all about sharing some of our favorite holiday recipes. Round one – we’ve got a few appitezers great for those potluck parties, a cute dessert and even a delicious drink. Enjoy!! Stay tuned as the remaining staff gathers their faves.

Rob’s Favorite – Basil Grande

4 Fresh Strawberries

4 Basil Leaves

¾ ounce Grand Marnier Liqueur

¾ ounce Chambord Liqueur

¾ ounce Vodka

2 ounces of Cranberry Juice

Gently crush the strawberries and basil leaves in the bottom of a shaker. Then combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

 

 

 

Lauren’s Favorite – Reindeer Cookies

I came across this recipe for reindeer cookies and thought they were so cute!  They’d be a neat snack to stick in kid’s lunches for their last week of school before Christmas break.

3/4 cup peanut butter

1 1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup shortening

3 tablespoons milk

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 egg

1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

Chocolate-covered mini pretzels

Mini brown M&Ms

Regular-sized red M&Ms

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Combine brown sugar, peanut butter, shortening, milk, and vanilla in large bowl. Beat at medium speed until well blended. Add egg; beat until just blended.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to creamed mixture at low speed. Mix just until blended.

Form dough into 1-inch balls. To make reindeer-shaped cookies, pinch the bottom of the ball slightly to form a point, then gently flatten with your hand. Space cookies about 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet and bake for 7 to 8 minutes, until set or just beginning to brown.

Remove from oven and immediately (and gently) press two mini pretzels into the tops of the cookies for the reindeer’s antlers. Press two mini brown M&Ms in for the eyes and one red M&M for the nose (or any other color… some of mine ended up with green noses. They might be South Pole reindeer.).

Allow to cool 2 minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer to a wire rack or paper towel to cool completely.

Makes about 40 reindeer cookies.

Source: Peanut butter cookie recipe from Jif.

Molly’s Favorite – Cranberry-Pecan Cheese Wafers

These are a tiny bit spicy as any good cheese wafer should be – so kids were not all over my new favorite treat!!  These are just perfect with a nice mellow glass of Cabernet.  I plan to make them for gifts and put them on cute Target plates that I bought.

Makes:  about 18 dozen (I don’t think so)

Must chill 8 hours or overnight!

1.5 cups chopped pecans

1.5 cups coursely chopped sweetened dried cranberries

2 cups butter, softened (4 sticks — use real butter)

4 cups (16oz) shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese

1.5 teaspoons salt

1.5 teaspoons ground red pepper (cayenne)

4 cups all purpose flour

parchment paper

1.  Preheat oven to 350.  Bake pecans in a single layer, in a shallow pan, 8-10 minutes or until toasted and fragrant, stirring halfway through.  Cool completely, about 15 minutes.

2.  Meanwhile, soak cranberries in boiling water to cover 15 minutes; drain and pat dry with paper towels.

3.  Beat butter and next 3 ingredients at medium speed with a heavy duty electric stand mixer until blended (I used a regular hand mixer).  Gradually add flour, beating just until combined.  Stir in cranberries and pecans.  Shape dough into 4 (12 inch long) logs; wrap each log in plastic wrap.  Chill 8 hours to 3 days.

4.  Preheat oven to 350.  Cut each log into 1/4-inch thick slices; place on parchment paper-lined bking sheets.  Bake 13-15 minutes or until lightly browned.  Remove from baking sheets to wire racks and cool completely, about 20 minutes.

Hilaire’s Favorite- Bacon Tomato Dip

 

This recipe came from a Mississippian cookbook I received at one of my best friend’s wedding. This dip is to die for if you love bacon and a chives. It goes great with pita chips or even ritz crackers.

1 Cup Mayonnaise

1 Cup of Sour Cream

1 Pound of Bacon, Cooked and Crumbled

15 Grape Tomatoes, Chopped

1/4 Cup of Minced Parsley

1/4 Cup of Green Onions, Minced

Salt & Pepper to Taste

Combine all ingredients in food processor. Process until chopped, but not pureed, preserving some texture. Adjust searsonings. Can be prepared up to 2 days in advance.

Source: The Vicksburg & Warren County Historical Society “More Groceries” Cookbook

 images. 1. Google Images  2. Baker Girl Blog 3. My Recipes/Southern Living 4. Eat Make Read Blog

Cookbook Giveaway: And the Winner is…..

CONGRATULATIONS TO Teslaca!

You are the winner of our 2nd Giveaway – The Junior League of Raleigh Cookbook.

 

 

Teslaca says, “This looks like a beautiful cookbook. The Jr. League cookbooks have the best recipes! One of my favorite things to make during the holidays is a large cinnamon roll wreath made with yeasted dough and drizzled with icing. It’s beautiful, holds well over a couple of days and makes a great gift.”

Yummy!!! The cinnamon rolls sounds wonderful.

From the Design Lines crew, Happy Holidays!

Holiday Cookbook Giveaway!

We are excited to announce our next holiday giveaway! As we gather for the holidays to entertain with family and friends, having great recipes is a must. The highly sought out Junior League of Raleigh Cookbook “You’re Invited Back” is our second giveaway. This cookbook is filled with Southern recipes good for any occasion and it also includes highlights about our great city of Raleigh.

 

 

HOW TO ENTER:

1. Leave a comment on this post letting us your favorite recipe you like to fix during the holidays!  (Simply click on the comment link in the taupe box just under the title of this post.)

2. Share this contest via Facebook!  Be sure to mention Design Lines Limited in the post so that it shows up on our page as well.

3. Share this contest via Twitter by tweeting: RT to enter the Holiday Cookbook Giveaway from @DesignLinesLtd for a chance to win through 12/11! Details – https://designlinesprd.wpengine.com

Doing any of these will enter you in the contest, and completing all three will give you three chances to win!   The winner will be announced on our blog at noon on Monday, December 12th.  You have until midnight on the 11th to get your entry in!  We will select the winner at random and contact you to send the book your way!


 

Looking for more interior design inspired giveaways? Stay tuned!

 

Source: 1. Amazon

12 Days of Christmas: Holiday Decorations

 Our 12 Days of Christmas Series is back and we are kicking off the series with holiday inspired decorations.  We found these gorgeous pictures using Pinterest. Check out our Pinterest Christmas Board and Follow us!

 

Use green as the dominate color when decorating and gently splash white throughout, giving the space a elegant look. Decorations do not have to be your traditional green and red. Be different! Introduce, silver, white, gold, or even a cafe mocha brown into the mix.

 

 

LOVE the repetition of the wreaths on the wall. Great way to make an impact in one room.

 

 

Red ribbon is always a must for any holiday decorating. The touch of ribbon around the chairs gives the whole dining room a classic feel.

 

 

Don’t have a lot of space in your home, bring the outside in with simple potted plants on the window seal.

 

 

The all natural look is very popular and simple.

 

 

Last but not least make a statement! (above) Martha Stewart creates a chandelier worthy any holiday party.

 Stay tuned…next on our list

images: 1. Country Living 2. Better Homes & Gardens 3. interiordezine 4. theswenglishhome Blog 5. Fleamarketstylemag blog 6. Martha Stewart