Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2023 i Country Sampler Home

It’s getting close to the time when Christmas decorations will fully replace autumn and Halloween merchandise on store shelves, so I started wondering about which trends will emerge in this season’s decor. Reflecting on holiday decorating when I was growing up, we usually stuck to a more customary look and bought ornaments and other accessories that featured red, green, white, gold and silver tones—most likely because we didn’t have the vast number of options found in today’s marketplace. Curious about the types of products retailers will be carrying in 2023, I did a quick internet search and found several sources that cited a multitude of trends running the gamut from subtle to sparkly and vintage to luxe. However, I was happy to notice a greater focus on natural colors and…

From Americana to lake-house emblems to barnyard animals, there is a well-appointed theme in nearly every room of Michele Caler’s charming home. The Chester, West Virginia, resident always liked country styles, but it was her cousin, Sue, who introduced her to primitives years ago. “We started going to the Shaker Woods craft shows together in Columbiana, Ohio,” Michele remembers, noting that once she laid eyes on the dark woods and aged wares, her “light blues and mauves” soon became a thing of the past. Michele’s 1920 two-story farmhouse is an appropriate backdrop for her prim preferences. While she has done extensive modernizing—adding two bedrooms and a bathroom, remodeling the kitchen, removing wallpaper, redoing floors and ceilings—Michele focuses on keeping the vintage patinas intact and allowing the rich millwork to shine.…

Get More Inspiration Online Did you know you can find inventive country decorating ideas and tips on our website? Visit www.countrysampler.com and click on Decorating in the top bar, then select Downloads & Projects in the menu to browse current and past projects. Or, type www.countrysampler.com/decorating/project-downloads into your browser. Check out our website for instructions to create this jolly snowman made with aluminum pot lids. Warm Winter Bedding GIVEAWAY! Stave off the cold weather and snuggle into cozy new bedding, courtesy of Country Sampler and Allyson’s Place. Enter today for your chance to win a complete bedding set and accessories including decorative pillows, curtains and a braided rug valued at more than $500. See page 25 for details, or to enter online and for official rules, go to www.countrysampler.com/promotions. NO…

When Susan and Mark Brux were planning their retirement years, he made a bold proposition: They should build a new house on their densely wooded lot in rural Willard, Wisconsin. About an hour’s drive away from their primary home, the property featured a quaint little hunting cabin where Mark frequently took their sons for outings. As Susan remembers, “It was always a boys’ thing.” It took a little convincing, but she eventually agreed to make the move. “We’ve been here 15 years, and I love it,” she says of the ranchstyle home they built and the peace and tranquility of the forest that surrounds it. She especially enjoys lounging with her morning cup of coffee and listening to the chorus of songbirds. “It’s just beautiful.” The natural environment played a…

René Haines has a singular design aesthetic in mind when decorating her home: her grandmother’s style. Growing up, René found herself drawn to her grandmother’s Colonial decor, which infused her home with a comfortable and cozy ambience. “I really, honestly, just think that I’m trying to recreate my grandma’s house,” she says. And it looks as if she has succeeded. In the Portland, Indiana, ranch-style home that she shares with her husband, 18-year-old daughter and three dogs, the former Country Sampler stylist swathes the 1960s-era interiors with repurposed treasures and weathered curios. Here, antique sewing notions, stoneware crocks, architectural salvage and pie safes abound. For three years, René has been lovingly renovating her home while punctuating it with flea-market finds. She wanted to provide a proper backdrop for her decor,…

1 Keyed Up for Christmas The repurposing possibilities of antique skeleton keys are as vast as the imagination, and Deborah has dreamed up an artful way to put a fresh spin on her pieces. Her composition contains 38 keys in total—two long keys for the tree trunk, 14 for the branches, 20 for the base and two brass keys for a creative door lock. She assembled the vignette on a white backdrop to showcase each object’s patina and shape. “I find old keys intriguing! I like to imagine their history and the people who used them,” Deborah explains. Tiny bells underline the tree’s lowest branch, while Boggle dice spell out a clever message along a folding ruler. 2 Ringing in the Season Wreaths are a go-to accent at Christmastime to adorn…

Country Sampler’s Resource Guide includes all available information on the makers of paint, furniture, window treatments and flooring found throughout the magazine. Items pictured in individual stories but not listed in this Resource Guide are not available to the public. These items are either antique, one of a kind, discontinued or from private collections. Country Sampler has no information about them. Please note that due to the complicated process involved in photography and four-color printing, the paint colors that are shown in the featured homes may not match the original manufacturer’s paint swatch. Cozy & Content (pages 8-14) Green yarn in tassel tree wall art, Yarnspirations Caron Sprinkle Cakes, Lovely Layers Collection, Mocha Rainbow, available through several online retailers. Past, Present & Peaceful (pages 18-32) Lighting throughout home, Irvin’s Tinware,…