Yesterday Was "One of Those Days"

Yesterday was one of those' "other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how did you like the play?" days (okay, politically incorrect, but Abe had a sense of humor, in fact, one great quote from many was, 'They say I am two-faced; if I had two faces, why would I be wearing this one'). Anyway, I was on my way to the new resale shop here in Georgetown, and as I was backing out of my garage, I heard a terrible "Whomp" , and the garage door had come down on my car..making a scratch on the back windshied, and the car had bumped out the garage to the point that I thought we would have to replace it. So, children, always make sure your garage door is ALL the way up, before backing out.
I called my husband, and was so shrill I am sure only dogs could hear me, and he was late for a meeting and couldn't talk...just said, "sorry". So, I called the garage guy, and he said a new door would cost $650.00 (gulp-there goes Christmas), but after he had seen it, he fixed it - for $96.00, and other than a few, small dents at the very bottem, it's fine...praise the Lord.

Today, I am cleaning high-traffic areas of the carpet, so haven't had much time to make fruit, or much of anything else, so I thought I'd share some photos of the "Ghosts of Christmas Past"...We are having friends in tomorrow evening, and being obsessive-compulsive, everything has to be as close to perfect as possible.
I loved my garden bunny, and he was very "seasonal", spending the spring and summers in the lovely garden, and gracing my coffee table for Christmas. I gave him to a wonderful friend of mine when I left, as she was ill, and admired him so much.....

Our house in Wisconsin was so very different than our Texas home. I was sort of in my "Victorian" period then, and instead of "less is more", more was more. I did make the footstool, and yes, gave that away, as well. Gussie Plushbottem Goodcat is warming herself by the fire. It's a gas fireplace, and I like our real, wood-burning better, as the gas give a nice ambiance, but you might as well cut a hole in the roof as far as being energy efficient.

This is Raisenette Funicello Buttafuco Badcat...with the erie eyes..he and Gussie took turns, trying to get the decorations off the staircase. This was before I painted it all white...looked so much better than the orginal "spec house" oak that is everywhere in WI.

Gussie is much smarter than Raisen...she opens cabinet doors, and rummages around, while Raisen can sit for hours by a partially open door, trying to figure out how to get through it..God love him.

With the winters being so long, cold, and dreary, I painted our walls a raspberry, and then, put a tobacco glaze over them. Before I left, I painted the mantel white...much prettier.

This was our "big back yard"....I dont' miss the cold...........................................................at all.

My beautiful friend, Cam in Wisconsin, took this photo a few days ago...she's such a good photographer. I LOVE the Yellow porch railing, contrasting with the recent blizzard results. I've asked permission to use this as my Christmas card this year, and she said yes...thanks, darlin'.

Again, in Wisconsin, my theory was "more is more", and here in Texas, I just have wrapped a few of our Pecan trees in lights, and have a couple of metal, lit topiaries...maybe, I'll try photographing them at night.

So, now is the time for me to clean carpets, and floors, and finish making everything as close to perfect as possible.....stay warm, and remember, it's better to have the garage door open when backing out.

Jessica Day Off....

When I was in JoAnn's Fabrics awhile back, buying fabric for my window treatments, I met two, lovely ladies, and we struck up a conversation. Yesterday, I got an invitation to join them for lunch, and since I know so few people in Texas, decided to take them up on it...What fun!
When I first was emailing Sue, my new found friend, she said she was behind in putting in her Christmas decorations, as she had 148 trees to put up...I thought, okay - typo. No, not typo; when I walked into her home, I couldn't believe my eyes. Sue has every single room, nook and cranny decorated for the holidays - even the ceiling in the foyer. She has been on the national news programs, and is trying to get into HGTV. Since I didn't have a clue, I didn't take my camera. I just got off the phone with her, and she's fine with me coming back and taking photos. Next week...can't wait. My friend, Kathy, owns the "Purple Puddle", in Chapel Hill, NC...http://wwwpurplepuddle.com, should get you there. It's a floral and gift shop, and is always enchanting. Years ago, she flew me from the frozen tundra of Wisconsin (we had lived in Chapel Hill previously, where I did her displays and windows..and some floral design), to do her Christmas windows. She had this enormous bunny, along with Bunnies By the Bay (remember them).

Since I took the day off yesterday, and then before that, shared a bit of my past and my design philosophy, I thought I'd share some of the photos of her windows.

This bunny is six-feet tall, and has served as the "anchor" in many of the windows I did for Kathy.Ya'll may recall that I've been cutting out and saving all kinds of things pretaining to design from the huge quantities of magazines I've had over the years. I keep them catagorized in large binders, and what the heck, if I can't share a few with you, what's the point? I don't want to just have these instructional or inspirational photos all the time, but they are good for days like this, when I am recharging my camera, and working on some projects of my own to share with you.

Yes, this is from Martha Stewart's magazine; in fact, I have an entire binder of her "good things"..thanks, Martha. There are instructions below this photo as to how to do these wonderful orange pomender pyramids. Just click on the photo to read the directions...also, throwing in an origami star. For some reason, when I edited this, I cannot get it to come up by double clicking...all the others do...wonder why? Anyone out there know? Again, Martha...I love this look, although it does feel a bit cold...perhaps a fire in the fireplace. I would be concerned about setting the "flocking" afire..still, beautiful.We no longer have a staircase, but if we did, I'd love to do this......

I've spent the entire morning dealing with the "heater guy", and we finally are off "emergency heat", thank goodness. Now, I am going to go string lights in my ficus in the dining room, make a blanket cover, and maybe a few velvet fruit. We shall see.

You Can Make a Silk Purse Out of a Sow's Ear

This is my Mama...she was raised during the Great Depression....She lived in grinding poverty...just look at the natural grace and class she had.... so read on.

Well, I don't mean that literally. What I mean is, no matter what your station in life economically, there are ways to make things pretty. These are "the girls", who came running everytime we were working in our 4,000 sq. ft. garden in Wisconsin. The first few seasons, we grew too many vegetables to put up, and much of it went to the local food bank...the no longer fit to eat, went to the "girls". I've always wanted to use this in a greeting card, with the caption, "Your name came up at lunch today"....don't steal it...mine, all mine. I love the photo. We are by no means wealthy; in fact, the recession and my move from Wisconsin has pretty much shut down my business, but I do have a resourceful husband, who has been consulting for nearly two years, so I thank God everyday that I still have my lovely home, and way too much to eat.
What does this have to do with design, you ask? You don't have to live in a "McMansion", or have a house in "The Hamptons", to live with beauty and grace. When I was first married - not to this husband, by the way. My father-in-law said to me; 'you have a way of making simple things beautiful"..which started my foray into interior design.

I lived for awhile in my Grandparent's "shack" in Oklahoma - Cherokee...dirt floors, tin roof (they are fashionable now, but I bet they don't say "RC Cola" on them. This is me, in my grandmother's arms...my sister (the whitest Cherokee kid on the block), and my cousin, who's mother was full-blood - I am a bit over a quarter, but proud of my heritage. As you can see, that porch doesn't know whether to stand up, or fall down. Even though the floors were dirt, my grandmother would sprinkle them with water, and sweep and tamp them down until they were like concrete (funny, my house has stained concrete floors, all the rage, don't you know). She made rag rugs out of scraps of fabric, and quilts, and even clothes and curtains for us out of flour sacks (they were printed with flowers back then). This wasn't a hundred years ago...I am 61, but don't tell anyone.


This was my grandfather, who was a mule skinner...I once had a city friend ask, "what did they do with the skins?" - a mule skinner drove a team of mules. He was rough, tough, and hard to diaper, and drank homemade "shine", and lived to be 96. He used to take me to the woods, and set me on a stump, while he smoked out bees from the hive in a tree, and always gave me a chunk of beewax, dripping with honey. He also would shoot mistletoe down from Blackjack trees, and we would sell it in town.

My grandmother (center) loved to fish...she didn't like to eat it, but we did eat a great deal of catfish...She would take Rex Lard buckets (quite a pretty red, actually), and plant "moss rose" in them, and hang them on the porch (not too many, as it would pull it down on top of us).

This was my grandmother on my father's side...I took the photo when she was in her late seventies...all those years of chopping cotten in the fields took their toll. Remember ladies, sunscreen...She sat by my grandfather's bed for ten years (he smoked, and was on oxygen all the time), and pieced together quilts...not beautiful, but pretty...and functional. Remember...form follows function

I came across this photo this morning, and the one of the pigs, and that's what got me started on this - We lived in poverty, but we had beauty around us...we lived in beautiful country, with hills, and lakes, and trees to climb, and berries to pick, and wild flowers...It's much easier being poor in the country. At least now, inner city kids are getting garden programs and hopefully, some introduction to art by taking them to museums.

So, if there's not enough money to paint the entire house, or even a room, go to Home Depot to the "whoops pile" of paint, and you can get a gallon for $5.00. Go to the supermarket in July, and you can find glads for $2.00 a bunch. Or just stop for a moment, and gaze at a wildflower.

I have done multi-million dollar homes, and I have done modest homes...I have also learned that just because a person is wealthy, doesn't mean they have good taste.

There is the dictum, "If it isn't beautiful or useful, get rid of it"....Which is what I am doing this afternoon...cleaning out my closet.

I hope this hasn't been too self indulgent. But for those of you, who feel you are not able to have a lovely home...a clean home, a simple home, and alot of love for it is just fine.