easy Christmas projects and recipes

I’ve been contributing to Country Sampler Farmhouse Style for more than 6 years now, and today I want to share some of my favorite Christmas projects and super yummy recipes with you.

First up is this hot cocoa bar that was in the 2023 Winter issue. I wanted to create a sort of campfire vibe for this shelf in my kitchen. I gathered several vintage spice tins and plaid accessories as the start to this whole look.

My secret to delicious and easy hot cocoa is to just buy your favorite carton of chocolate milk and then keep in nice and warm in a small crockpot or “slow cooker” as they now call them.

 

If you don’t have the room or the budget for even a small Christmas tree, then this project is for you! It starts with a fun vintage crock, but any similarly shaped container would work.

The secret is to add a little pyramid shaped piece of floral foam, the wet kind, to the crock. Water it, and then add small little branches and cuttings of foraged evergreens and winter berries. I like to start at the top with a strong leader branch and then fill it in from there.

 

Covering a small crate with festive plaid wrapping paper is another fun project. I decided to create a little farmhouse winter scene in mine, complete with a cheery red barn and lots of bottle brush trees. A little moss around the bottom of the landscape finishes off this idyllic scene. 

Now for a couple of non-Christmas projects… they both involve thrifted treasures. The first one is a little lamp made from a small ironstone pitcher. 

The bottom of this lamp is actually a spare metal chandelier medallion that I had on hand in the garage. It was the perfect size for the base of the lamp. I bought a lamp kit online and put this little beauty together. The shade was an extra little chandelier shade I had left over from another project. 

During the pandemic, I found a whole box of Fiestaware on the curb that someone had set out for free. I took a long wooden board and decided to glue the cups and saucers on the board for a fun and colorful utensil holder.

 

A few little “s” hooks do the trick for holding whisks, wooden spoons and other kitchen gadgets.

 

recipes

I'm currently working on four more projects for the Autumn 2025 issue of Country Sampler Farmhouse Style, and then we head straight back into some winter and Christmas projects and more recipes for 2025.

 

What a surprise it was to have my picture selected for the Winter 2024 issue of Country Sampler Farmhouse Style...

 

Did you read this one? I have several projects and recipes in this one too! I’ll share those with you all in a few weeks’ time.

 

ciao fabiana

 

For lots of fun extras, follow me on Instagram!

 

 

 

You can check out some of my favorites here at “Tablescaping Essentials” 

 

 

 

Please note that this post may contain affiliate links.

 

the best lemon gift!

Life. Lemons. Lemonade. 🍋 You know the drill... But making the best of something also includes a little indulgence, like this gorgeous new Lemon Glass Pitcher from Vagabond House.

 

I absolutely fell in love with it. 🍋 

So when you're making your lemons into lemonade, remember to treat yourself to something special like this gorgeous pitcher, because after all, YOU are worth it!!

You can find this lovely pitcher here: 🍋Lemon Glass Pitcher.

 

And here’s a little bonus… 

10% OFF any Vagabond House item, 

exclusive for my followers. 

·     Use the Promo Code: CIAOFABIANA10OFF

·       Valid Until: End of August 2024

 

ciao fabiana

 

For lots of fun extras, follow me on instagram!

 

 

 

You can check out some of my favorites here at “Tablescaping Essentials”*. 

 

 

Please note that this post may contain affiliate links.

roses, bunnies and candles for spring!

The one word that keeps creeping up this season is BUNNIES! 

And I just found the cutest hand painted blue and white bunny rabbit pitcher on Amazon that’s so perfect for holding lots and lots of flowers!

 

It’s a really nice large size, as you can see here holding 3 dozen roses from Trader Joe’s. 

Also pictured on my breakfast room table are the Songbird Candle Holder from Vagabond House and a tablecloth I recently made from a couple of yards of vintage fabric. 

I love how it looks with all the blues in this room, I especially think it looks fab with this fun rabbit pitcher. 

I've been collecting these great vintage Reader's Digest books just for their colors, designs and the fact they come in handy for adding dimension and character to any setting.   

You may recognize the Songbird Candle Holder from lots of my vignettes over the years. It's one of my favorite little pieces for spring!

Some of my favorite vintage and bargain finds are also pictured here. The table was an alley find for $0! The plates and platters on the wall were thrifted years ago, and some even came from Marshall's.  

The chandelier is new, but has so much character, like a real vintage piece!

Here are some links to some of my favorite spring items:

Rabbit Picher

Songbird Candle Holder

White Bunny Cream & Sugar Bowls 

I hope you're having a great weekend! 

Off I go to the veg garden to plant some lettuce and rainbow chard...

ciao fabiana

 

For lots of fun extras, follow me on instagram!

 

 Please note that this post may contain affiliate links.

 

 

the apple collection for your table

 

One of my favorite family traditions is making homemade apple jelly, and now I’m really in love with the whole process because I found the perfect Apple Honey Pot from Vagabond House to serve it in. 

It even comes with the most adorable apple embossed spoon!

If you’ve never had apple jelly, it’s truly a culinary delight. 

The flavor notes are subtle and delicate, and my favorite way to eat it is on a warm croissant, and of course we must have coffee.

 

Check out the gorgeous matching Apple Pitcher which also doubles as a vase.

 

How about kicking off your weekend with a refreshing and delicious twist on a classic cocktail: Apple Sangria! 

This recipe is actually a “mocktail”, so it can be enjoyed by people of all ages.

This gorgeous pitcher from Vagabond House comes to life when it’s filled with these 4 simple ingredients: Apple Juice, Lemon Juice, Orange Juice, and Sparking White Grape Juice, and then add pretty sliced fruit. 

A simple and yummy recipe from Martha Stewart.

🍏 Apple Sangria

· 2 quarts fresh apple juice, plus 1 apple thinly sliced
· 1 cup fresh lemon juice, plus 1 lemon, thinly sliced
· 1 quart fresh orange juice, plus 1 orange, thinly sliced
· 1 bottle (24 ½ ounces) sparkling white grape juice chilled

🍏 In a pitcher, combine the apple and lemon juices immediately after juicing. Stir in orange juice, cover, and chill. Just before serving, add grape juice and sliced fruit.

 

For a 10% discount on all Vagabond House products, 

use the code CIAOFABIANA10OFF.

 

 

 

ciao fabiana

 

For lots of fun extras, follow me on instagram!

Please note that this post may contain affiliate links.

a new look with blue and white

We're skipping ahead one season today, just for fun! This vivid Villa Vaux blue and white tablecloth from August Table simply goes hand in hand with this pretty little Crab Cheese Board from Vagabond House.

 

Throw some white hydrangeas into a vintage blue Calico pitcher, and I feel transported to the middle of July. 

Summer sunshine is in my thoughts, probably to help block out all the rain we’re having today!

 

And check out the same August Table Villa Vaux Tablecloth and napkins with the most adorable Easter cookies found at Whole Foods. 

 

I love how easily these blue and white patterns mix with all my vintage blue transferware plates!

 

Be sure to check back soon, as I’ve got a pretty red, white and blue version of this Villa Vaux pattern ready for all the patriotic holidays this summer!

 

ciao! fabiana

 

For lots of fun extras, follow me on instagram!

 

 

 

You can check out some of my favorites here at “Tablescaping Essentials”*. 

 

 

 

Please note that this post may contain affiliate links.

vintage finds from antiques cottage

 

Don’t you love discovering new little shops right in your own neighborhood? There’s a sweet little antiques shop called Antiques Cottage right here on 17th Street here in Costa Mesa that I never knew about before.

 

I found some really fun little finds last week when I stopped in, and it just so happened that they were having a sale, so the prices were really reasonable. What more could you ask for?!

Just a few little fun things to add to my collection, and some of them make really cute additions to my tablescapes too.

 

I’ll show you some of these fun finds individually… first up is this darling depression glass double-handled sugar bowl in just the most perfect shade of green.

 

This type of glass is also known as Uranium glass because it has minute traces of this element, and it actually glows brightly under a black light. So cool!

It's just the right size for a little impromptu bouquet of flowers from the garden.

 

I also found this amazing zester with vintage green wooden handle. These vintage kitchen utensils still work great, and I’ve gathered a useful little collection over the years.

 

After a thorough scrubbing, this little beauty is set to create beautiful ribbons of citrus peel for a my next yummy recipe or cocktail.

 

Now how about these cute little piggy napkin rings? I found a larger set, and I’m keeping half and selling the second set of 4 on my eBay store. You can check them out here.   

 

These little guys are so charming, they’d be a fabulous addition to any tablescape, from country to farmhouse to grandmother chic.

I paired them with this bright and festive blue and white check napkin for my 4th of July table. They just add such a fun whimsical touch, don't they? 

One of my favorite finds that day was this beautiful embossed antique creamware pitcher. I listed it on eBay last week, and it sold immediately.

 

Pitchers are one of my favorite ways to display flowers. I don’t know what it is, but flowers always looks so good in a pretty pitcher.

 

These soft purple Downton Abbey rose grows like mad in my garden, and I just love it in this creamware pitcher.

 

Here are some other ones, both large and small, that I have listed on the blog shop. 

This McCoy striped mixing bowl is my absolute favorite find of the day. It’s the perfect size for my big salad. This one has bacon, egg, tomato and is topped with a home-made ranch dressing… super yummy!

 

Here are some similar McCoy bowls for you to check out and if you're interested, here’s a link to my ranch dressing recipe. It whips up in minutes and it's dairy-free, paleo, and full of delicious herbs. 

 

The two matching polychrome transferware bowls I found at Antiques Cottage are just the perfect vessels for going out to the garden, picking fresh veggies like these peas and tomatoes, and bringing them right into the kitchen for a fun and tasty display.

 

These beauties went right into our salad for dinner, and now the bowls are ready for more fresh garden produce. 

What I love most about bowls like this is that they can go straight from the garden to the table, and always look beautiful.

Here’s a pretty eye-spy of vintage kitchen utensils. This is the green handled part of my collection. Can you spy my new little zester?

 

These fun and colorful kitchen gadgets are sometimes spotted at garage sales, thrift stores and on eBay, and best of all, they usually work better that their modern versions.

 

So far I've gathered mostly red and green handled ones utensils, with only a few blue ones to be found in the wild. And of course, blue would be my favorite color.

They add such country charm to the kitchen for a timeless nostalgic look. 

 

I’m telling you this zester works better than any I’ve tried, and the citrus peel becomes very fragrant after being sliced so neatly.

 

My husband also loves vintage kitchen gadgets, and since we both love to cook, it’s one of the things we’re always on the lookout for when we go thrifting together.

 

Here’s my little stash of treasures again. The pudding mold in the back will be used during the holidays to make an old-fashioned Christmas pudding full of spices and fruit that we all love.

The wicker coffee cups are just sooo cute, and I got two sets of 4 that are in the original boxes. 

They're from the1970's just as I suspected. (You can just see Mary Richards and Rhoda using these while gossiping at Mary's kitchen table on the Mary Tyler Moore Show.) 

They'll make adorable options for coffee at brunch or they'd even work great for a hot toddy during the winter months, topped off by a fragrant cinnamon stick, and maybe a twist of orange peel from my new little handy-dandy zester. 

All in all, I'm really pleased with these fun little treasures. What are you collecting these days?

ciao! fabiana

 

 

For lots of fun extras, follow me on instagram!

 

 

 

You can check out some of my favorites here at “Tablescaping Essentials”*. 

 

 

 

 

Please note that this post may contain affiliate links.