Old is New: shabby chic noted

I have always liked the vibration of old things- the lives that have touched them seem to have been imprinted in some perceptible, if un-named way. My family has always traded in that which was pre-owned. Just our way, I guess. It was my delight to see the genre that emerged as Shabby Chic, when this was how my graduate school day's bungalow was furnished many years prior to the official name. I was in East Hampton this summer and got a chuckle to see a Shabby Chic boutique on the main drag of such a refined and upscale venue. I'd never pay those prices...


The painting here is titled 'Blue and Cream' done in the Shabby Chic style by Susan Brown

Soap Love

I love me some soap. That is just the truth. My friends know that I am very considerate when it comes to my budget, but somehow I can spend the ducks on a bar of soap. Case in point, I have been hankering for a bar of soap from a french antiques shop in my parent's hometown that I keep forgetting to ask my mother to mail to me. My love affair with soap started when I was very small and realized that my grandmother's bathroom and, in deed, many older bathrooms had the nicest scent of clean, fresh soap used over years. Then, while in my twenties in Athens,GA, I stumbled upon homemade herbal soaps from local vendors. Sweet, herby, fresh and clean. I was then lead to international soaps always prefering creamy bars to glycerines. I could go on so I won't.

Check out Trunkt.org which is a directory of creative entrepreneurs. The photo of soap here is provided by Micky Byrd and can be purchased there.

Fertility Celebration

This has been the year for flower fecundity at our home. Our orchid, which only had two lovely blossoms last year, graced us with seven. Our violet, full of lush, iridescent leaves that usually sends up five or six flowers a couple times each year sent a whopping thirty two! And our miniature orange tree that sent a delicious four oranges our way last year, is ripening about seventeen as I write this! We suppose that they are celebrating with us as we anticipate the arrival of our baby boy in December. All of nature is joyously partying right along with us!

To see more lovely prints like the one here, go to The Shiny Squirrel. This one is entitled Spring Cloud by Betsy Walton.

Put a Little Heart Behind Everything

Oh, if only my mouth were on my heart and not on my head! I am clearly at my best when my heart is in charge. My head makes things overly complex every time. I love this image from Irana Douer titled Angel. You can see this and others at Thumbtack Press. Tons of great artists and prints from which to choose.

Organicity: Stop Tryin' so Hard

I was reminded today to be less planful, not more. Just let things unfold. Truthfully, the best things in life seem to simply happen. You find this perspective in some of the great teachings, but somehow in our push-pull world this message gets lost.

I love Rebecca Wood pottery for this reason. It just does not try too hard.

Something Elegant in the Midst of Change

Very recently a sweet friend of mine moved from one city in Georgia to another. She and her husband have two children under the age of five. What an undertaking, to say the least. I wondered how I could best support her during a serious transition so full of dust, boxes and emotion. So, I sent her a Boden clutch from the UK in a print that reminded me of her. I imagined her immediately tucking a few things in it and taking it out the door to dinner to say good bye to friends and feeling just a tiny bit special.

What can you do to lift your burden or that of another just a wee tiny bit?

When Hard Stuff is the Right Stuff

I am reminded by yet another jaunt into America's heartland that doing the right thing, even when it is difficult can immediately clear up a congested circumstance for the better. In this case, it had to do with work. But I am aware that this thought applies to the deeply personal too.

Deciding to take responsibility for a less than lovely aspect of self in order to build healthy relationships and allow for the good to grow is not easy. It does have rewards though. In all cases it restores hope and opens a path to something new and possibly very rewarding.

Of course I'd be remiss if I did not emphasize the importance of providing yourself with a lot of love and kindness in the process. In the heartland case, for example, I engineered the difficult day to include plenty of rest and creature comfort which included a beautiful hotel location downtown right by a bricked-in historic area beside a glorious fountain that attracted lots of children who petted the horses waiting to give carriage rides.