Olioboard Inspiration: Summer Vacation Home Holiday Celebrations

Entry #2575, June 28, 2013

Today we continue Stagetecture’s feature ‘Olioboard Inspiration‘. Last week you enjoyed – ‘Entertaining Guests in your Summer Kitchen ‘from Xiomara Zayas and this week I bring you Adele Baumann Healey with a wonderful take on summer holiday celebrations! She’s a member of the Facebook Olioboard Fan Room and I asked her to create a outdoor summer vacation holiday that would be perfect to celebrate the 4th of July!

If you’re interested in being featured see details here: How to be featured on Stagetecture’s Olioboard Inspiration‘ series.

Whether on the beach or in the mountains, when celebrating Holidays with family and friends, it’s easy to add the holiday spirit to your home and outdoor area.

No drastic measures need to be taken to add the spirit of the holiday. For the interior space, a good and simple solution is to remove a few accessory items and replace them with the appropriate holiday décor. Today I’ll be using The 4th of July as an example for some easy decorating ideas.

I often will remove a few paintings and prints, and replace them with flag plaques or a patriotic plaque or poster. Exchange your daily pillows with red, white and blue pillows, or have one red, one blue and one white pillow lining the sofa. These types of holiday items, can be easily stored away until they are needed the next year and allow you to fully enjoy the 4th of July experience.

Outside, have fun with party décor easily found on the internet and at party stores. Often discount stores will have added inexpensive decorations to their inventory that will be quite festive.

Add small decorations to your potted plants, hang a flag, medallion, or star wreath on the door leading outside, and if your area is covered, don’t forget those fun banners and buntings and garlands. Be subtle or go all out with decorating. It’s entirely up to you.

Bring patriotic colors to your celebration

Your tabletop can be full of the holiday colors. Paper plates, cups and even plastic cutlery can create a party spirit. And don’t forget those great tablecloths. You don’t use disposable items? Place red, white and blue party hats, on top of the plates, to create a fun vibe, and add an appropriate flower arrangement to the table. A great idea for kids and adults alike to enjoy, is the use of red, white and blue patterned pin-wheels. Not only will they be fun for the kids to play with, if planted in a pot of sand and placed in a breezy area, they will contribute to the mood and spirit of the party with their wild spinning.

Food – Red, white and blue!

Your food can even add to the décor. Make or buy cupcakes with white frosting. Plop a strawberry and a few blueberries on top, and there you go – a 4th of July desert. Fill a carved out watermelon, with watermelon cubes, blueberries, and banana, apple, or pineapple slices. You could even freeze blueberries or strawberries in ice cubes and toss them into tall glasses of water for a merry way to keep hydrated (VERY important on hot, humid July days).

Running out of space for serving dishes? Layer your green salad with your pasta and potato salad. One serving dish for three dishes! I could go on forever, but due to my limited space, I will end with, “No matter where you live, I hope ALL your holidays are filled with family, friends, love and laughter”.

About Adele Baumann Healey

I am a mother of two and a grandmother of 4.  Our family was a member of the military for 21 years and lived all over the U.S and in Europe, moving 13 times in 19 years.  While residing in Germany, we traveled constantly (my little kids in tow in our old V.W. camper) and I absorbed, through osmosis, the many historical attributes of architecture and design.  Even in the U.S. it was a learning experience to see how the many people I met decorated and used their creative skills, each influenced by the environment in which they were living.  Simply put, when you move so much and live in so many types of residences it was always a challenge to achieve a homey place for your family to grow and be nurtured.  What was my biggest challenge?  An old TB ward of an empty hospital building! Follow Adele at her Olioboard profile