Thursday, January 29, 2015

Hiding Out at Home


Some days I just want to stay home with Bentley.  Just the two of us.
Today is one of those days.  I am in hermit mode.  I have a bit of a split
personality.  Sometimes I am very social and chatty.  Other times I only
enjoy my own company.



Alone time is when I feel the most creative.  It's as though the outside
world is an intrusion.  Do you ever feel that way?  




My husband David is a social animal.  He loves to be around other people
all of the time.  He gets really lonely by himself.  



During my hermit days I love to play house.  I'm really good at it too
because I have been doing it since I was a little girl :-)  



I spend time moving things around or looking at favorite catalogs or 
visiting Ebay.  I can keep myself happily entertained!




Sometimes I will put on one of my favorite cd's and Bentley and I 
will dance around the house.  




Or I will go into the kitchen and start cooking and pretend I am Julia Child.
I put on an Edith Piaf cd or the sound track from Something's Gotta Give
and I am instantly transported to Paris.



It's genetic ~ my great grandmother lived in France for a time.



Bentley and I have to run now.  We need to get back to our 
alone time.  See y'all soon!

Big Texas Hugs,
Susan and Bentley

Monday, January 26, 2015

Magazine Spread Tweaking


Lots of tweaking and lots of excitement around here this week.
Late last week I found out that my house is going to be featured in
an Italian interior design magazine.  So several things that I have been
meaning to do for months now are suddenly getting crossed off the
to do list.  A couple of little things in the kitchen, such as 
finally getting David to hang the little wrought iron bird hook for
my aprons.



It's nice to have them hanging up again.  Trust me, I need to wear an
apron because I can be a really messy cook!  If aprons are hanging up
I am much more likely to wear one than if they are tucked away in
a drawer.  And of course there is something so homespun and 
friendly about aprons hanging up.  Very granny chic.

Also, I like to engage David in these little projects for two 
reasons.  One is that he always criticizes the way I hang hooks
and how I nail and screw things into walls.  Secondly, it makes
him feel muy macho ~ and that's a good thing ;-)




I have been thinking of how best to utilize my French market basket other
than filling it with flowers.  One night I suddenly woke up from a dream
with the answer ~  my vintage wooden cutting boards!  I'm not kidding 
either.  I often wake up in the middle of the night with a solution to a
decorating dilemma.  3 am seems to be a very creative time for me.  I
inherited that trait from my Mom.  She was famous in our family for
middle of the night interior design.  Thanks Mom!




See the slim board?  A friend of mine who is an antique dealer in Idaho 
gave that to me.  She suggested I use it when making sandwiches.  I 
also think it looks quite a bit like my old sorority pledge paddle without
all the Greek letters and floral decorations I painted on it.  I wonder what
ever happened to that old pledge paddle anyway???  



So I am tweaking away in every room.  The journalist who contacted me
wants photos from the entire house.  I am fluffing and tweaking it all to
get some good shots.




These boots are staying right here in the back hall.  I never know when I
will need them to wade through the high ginger plants to hunt for Bentley.
I ran out one day in bare feet and almost stepped on a lizard!



Better get back to work.  I'll let you know when Francesca has the 
article ready. 


Bentley ~ let's find a creative way to store some of your toys.
They are everywhere!

Big Texas Hugs,
Susan and Bentley




Sunday, January 25, 2015

I Love Sunday Houses


David and I have been working with a real estate agent up in 
Fredericksburg, Texas.  When we were last up there this past
November, we looked at a couple of properties but decided that
neither of them was just what we wanted.  So we are still 
looking.  We want something little and cute like this.

The style that you see here is what is known as a Sunday House.
These little cottages were originally designed for a family who
lived out on a ranch to use on the weekend so that they
could attend church in town on Sunday morning.  Of course 
now we all love them because they make the perfect little 
cottage get away or bed and breakfast.  This is a new one that
is patterned after one of the many original ones typically
constructed of local Austin limestone.  



This log style is wonderful and I love the country setting
Talk about peaceful pleasure.  And charm too!  You can just leave
all the city hustle and bustle behind and let all the waves of peace
just flow over your frazzled nerves in this sweet place.



Charm Quotient!

I'll stop talking and let you just take a Sunday "drive" through more
pictures.












That was fun.  Let's all stop for virtual pie!  I can't believe that I have
been to Fredericksburg twice now and have not visited
Fredericksburg Pie.  What was I thinking???  Pie, quilts and
vintage treasures all under one roof.  My kind of place!
Hope you had fun!  

Stop back for a visit tomorrow.  I am working on several
metamorphosis and tweaking projects.  Not sure which one
to share with you yet, but Bentley and I will decided tomorrow.

Big Texas Hugs,
Susan and Bentley



Friday, January 23, 2015

We Are Over 21



Welcome to a little corner of my kitchen.  It's where I keep a basket of fresh
fruit, the bread box is there and of course one of my beloved roos.




On one side of the sink are more roos and a tin basket full of kitchen towels.

Now, if you are over 21 and not opposed to the consumption of  adult
beverages, you may go on to the next pic.  If however you are 
offended by this ~ please stop here and avert your eyes!




My husband David and I had a discussion last week about having a little
bar set up in what I lovingly call the butler's pantry area of our kitchen.
As you may recall, I wrote a post about them here.  

David is a sweetheart and lives with lots of feminine touches around the
house and very rarely complains.  So I set this up to give him a touch of
the "man cave" in a kitchen full of roos.  He'll never understand my
fascination with them ;-)





I actually had fun setting this up because it has touches of things I like too.
I placed everything on a vintage tole tray.  There is a 1950's vintage ice 
glass ice bucket and tongs.




Vintage cocktail napkins.  I don't know if I will be able to get out that little stain 
on the napkin, but I will try.



David picked up this vintage bartender's guide once when we were in
an antique shop together.   He rarely comes along with me into antique
shops which is a shame because he often finds a gem or two.




Remember the white ceramic basket I found on my first ever trip to
Home Goods?  It's perfect for storing the lemon and limes.




I love to save wine corks.  A bowl full of wine corks just adds je ne sais quoi!

So that's it.  The bar is all set up and ready for the weekend and just in case
anyone drops by, David will be ready to bartend.  As for me ~ I'm not
drinking any alcohol.  No wine, nothing.  I follow the British trend of 
a dry January.  

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Big Texas Hugs,
Susan and Bentley


Thursday, January 22, 2015

Everywhere and Nowhere


Several months ago I signed up with a website that lists estate
sales not only in my area but in other areas of the country.
Estate Sales is a great free service that will notify you of 
estate sales in your town or you can expand your search to 
include nearby cities.  They give you the dates and the address of
the sale and also include pictures so you can easily decide if it's a
sale you want to visit or to skip.  

While looking through the photos of this coming weekend's 
sale in my town I decided that I would skip it.  What I did notice
though was a woman's life opened up and displayed before my 
eyes.  She has passed away yet her life was there on display
for all to see.  She liked to quilt.  She had all sorts of quilt 
patterns and there was an unfinished quilt top.  She was a neat
person.  Her shoes were all carefully placed in the original boxes
never to be worn by her again.  A winter coat with a fake fur 
collar hung on display.  I could imagine her wearing it to
church on a cold winter Sunday morning in this church going
town.



She was everywhere yet she was also nowhere.  Do you ever notice
that feeling when you walk through an antique shop?  Everywhere 
there are dishes, trinkets, furniture and books that were once loved
and used by someone.   



How many times were the drawers of this dresser opened by it's 
owner?  What did the owner of this dresser look like?  




Do the vibrations of a heart become attached to a beloved piece
of furniture the way one's DNA remains on an envelope that 
has been licked by the sender?  



Do the vibrations of sound and movement live on in a recovered
upholstered bench?  Sounds of laughter and tears that are
permanently etched in the fibers of the batting and into the
wood of it's legs.  Vibrations that no amount of paint or new
fabric can cover?



Have you ever looked through an old family photo album and
sensed the essence of the loved ones who have passed?
Loved ones who are nowhere yet everywhere?



Sometimes I find a vintage book in a shop and when I open 
the cover there is a note written inside for it's recipient.  Happy
Birthday wishes or Merry Christmas to one loved one from 
another.  If I pause very quietly over those handwritten words
on old faded and yellowed pages, I can almost feel the love
that was meant for that book's recipient.
  
  

The other night I was taking Bentley on his nightly walk and
I looked up at the very clear and star filled sky.  The same stars
that looked down upon loved ones who have now past.  Loved
ones who were suddenly here with us yet nowhere.



Just some random musings on a cold and rainy day.

Big Texas Hugs,
Susan and Bentley


Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Little Nooks and Crannies







In every home I have ever lived in I have had spots, nooks and
crannies that have been special to me.  This house is full of little 
spots that I love.  Places where I walk past every day that make
me smile.  I have always been this way.  

Are you that way too?  I am guessing that you are.  


Big Texas Hugs,
Susan and Bentley


Monday, January 19, 2015

Makeover Madness Monday


Sometimes we all feel like a new look.  Maybe it's a new nail polish.
An easy change that won't rob the bank.



Or maybe it's some new make-up.  Look out, I have been watching
IT Cosmetics on QVC ;-)







Or maybe a new blog template.  I have been looking at lots and
lots of them on Etsy.  Hope I find just the right one soon!



Or maybe it's a new camera.  My dear, darling and cute hubby bought
me a new one.  Can't wait to start using it.  I have been using my little
Fuji pocket point and shoot for a long time.  This is a big step up for me.

What is it about the month of January and Mondays in January in 
particular, that make us all want to wipe the slate clean and do something 
different???

Big Texas Hugs,
Susan and Bentley



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