The View from Foxglove Hill – A House Full of Friends and One Last Look at Fall

Welcome back to The View from Foxglove Hill! I’m hosting some of my blogging friends this week, and there’s been as much laughter as there has been work. Between a story about a cleaning lady crawling through a dog door and a personalized wrapping paper project that somehow ended up featuring a different family, we’ve had plenty to laugh about! Today, I’m sharing how I got the garden room ready for guests, a few favorite finds from around our home, and one last look at my fall mantel before the Christmas greenery goes up.

Use it naturally once near the beginning, for example: Preparing your home for guests is about more than making the beds.

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Getting the Garden Room Ready for Guests

I’ve been looking forward to welcoming guests to the room I’ve been calling the garden room. It’s a large space, with room for the bedroom furniture from our primary bedroom in Florida as well as a pair of daybeds with trundles. The extra beds give us more flexibility when family and friends come to stay, and I love their pretty scalloped edges. I dressed them with Clover Sateen sheets and set out fresh towels. Getting the beds ready is one of my favorite parts of preparing for guests—it’s when the visit starts to feel real!

Shop the garden room
The Daybeds · Clover Sateen Sheets

Olive Floral Curtains and Favorite Living Room Finds

The living room and dining room are where we’ll do most of our visiting, so I thought I’d share a couple of the things I’ve chosen for those spaces, too. The olive floral curtains run through the living room, dining room and foyer. I wanted those rooms to feel connected since you can see from one into the next, and repeating the fabric did more for that than I expected. The rug is from the Winslet Collection, and I’m including the curtain rods here, too, because I know how frustrating it is to find a fabric you love and then have to track down the hardware separately.

Shop the living and dining rooms
Olive floral curtains · Cato traverse rods · Winslet Collection Rug

Fall Mantel Decorating with Velvet Pumpkins and Autumn Leaves

I know I said November 1 was the start of Christmas at my house, and with guests, I am running a little bit behind! Fall is still my favorite season to decorate for, so I wanted to share my fall mantel here before I put it away. If you’re keeping your autumn décor up through Thanksgiving, here’s a little inspiration from Foxglove Hill. I’ll link a few pieces below so you can pick out whichever detail catches your eye.

Do you ever put a taper in a candlestick and watch it lean to one side? I have these beautiful stag head candle holders on my mantel and had to use my great standby! I swear by these little Sta-Put Candle Grips! When a candle is just a bit too narrow for the holder, I put one of these discs under the base and press the candle into place. It helps keep the taper upright, and the grip is easy to remove when I swap out the candles. If you’ve ever straightened the same candle three times while setting the table, you’ll see why I keep these handy!

If you want a rustic look for your mantel this Thanksgiving, perhaps this golden theme will catch your eye!

Magnolias and all cream colored pumpkins dressed up this fall mantel if this is more your idea for a Southern styled mantel!

And while I’m putting away the pumpkins, I’m already thinking about Christmas! I haven’t added this stag bust to my collection yet, but I’d love to work him into my holiday decorating.

Shop the fall mantel
Large Stag head – Candle Grips – Velvet pumpkins – Oak leaf garlands – Magnolia stems

I’d love to know what people always ask about when they come to your house. Is it something you chose especially carefully, or something you’ve had so long you forget where you got it? I think those are some of the most fun finds to share.

Do you have friends you can sit around the table with and laugh until your cheeks hurt? An evening like that makes me wish I had more friends like these living close enough to say, “Come on over!”