Candlescape Designs... Harvest Lights

By Christiane Francin

As the sun sets, the home becomes the perfect environment to light harvest candles, offering your special rooms the warmth of an autumn glow. Whether you want to create a festive centerpiece or just add a bright note to an area, candlescape designs are presented for your enjoyment and creative inspiration.

Set the Stage

By Christiane Francin

Dramatic tablecapes add intrigue to festive gatherings and are destined to become memorable. The holiday season provides an ideal opportunity to create beautiful place settings that combine a few gifts from nature with simple dishware. Although these arrangements were designed with the harvest celebration in mind, they can easily be adapted for a Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year’s Eve soirée. Dynamic color schemes enhance the flair, but it’s the little details that make these place settings showstoppers!

Touting the Towel!

Written by Christiane Francin

Beauty, function and style blend together as we present the art of the multi-faceted towel!

Beach Towels
These strikingly bold towels make a visual splash on pool decks and beaches. Designers have introduced lines of beach products with colorfully hued, patterned towels that complement swimwear, umbrellas and even beach chairs. With their large size, these versatile towels are ideal for wrapping around your body as a cover-up, stretching out and enjoying the sun, or for drying off after a dip in the gulf or pool, making them the perfect beach accessory!

A Bouquet of Edible Blossoms

Photographed by Albertine Ellinwood

We celebrate birthdays often at the magazine, as we enjoy creating and designing our party themes and incorporating the Gulf Coast Living design ideas. The latest event was held on March 8 for the birthday of our publisher, Christiane Francin. Two creative staff members, Romaine Purdy and Betsy Eno, designed the tablescape for this gathering. We felt the centerpiece, which showcases a basket of edible posies, was worthy of sharing with our readers. The sweet spring basket, with cupcakes baked and decorated by Betsy, is a showstopper and can be given as a gift not only for a birthday, but for any type of joyful celebration.

BACKYARD BEACH PARTY

Party around back...Come join the fun!

Written by Jami Wright

The Party!
Summer is just around the corner, so let’s celebrate with some fun in the sun! You can design a fantastic party even if you don’t live close to the beach. Just plan it in your own backyard!

Fabulously floral

Written by Betsy A. Eno

Alluring and captivating, flowers exude an elegant beauty that beckons to be displayed. With this in mind, we offer some unique design ideas to demonstrate how you can creatively showcase some of nature’s beautiful blooms.

A Cup of Elegance
A rose snuggled in baby’s breath makes a charming display when placed inside a teacup.