Southerners and Their Silver

We are starting to design our tablescapes for the fundraiser that we participate in every May. This year , we are going to use the Kentucky Derby as our theme, since the homeowner of the house we are staging, is from Louisville and always attends the Derby. Being from the south myself, I know how much southerners love their silver. I remember getting 9 revere bowls and several of silverplate vegetable dishes. I haven't used them in years, but they are pretty, especially used in multiples. One of the spaces we are staging is the terrace, so I thought- why not use these as the container for a Derby Day Box lunch. We are using black and white hounds tooth burlap tablecloths, and a wooden slice from a tree log as the place mat. I found this old sheet music - My Old Kentucky Home- and copied and used it as the menu card for each "lunch box". The beautiful little knives are sold in our store and add another elegant touch to the outdoor setting. I can't wait to see all of this put together- it will be a great addition to our new book, Romancing the Home Entertains. I just got a proof copy and it's going to be a great book! Meanwhile, I need to finish the other 4 tablescapes for this fundraiser. We will keep you posted- the event is in 3 weeks!

Antique Addict

My girlfriend, Lynda, and I have just returned from a local flea market. It seems harder and harder to find good stuff, especially locally. But we did find a few cool things. My daughter is getting ready to move into her first place, so we bought her these matching chairs. If we lacquer them white, and put a modern pattern fabric on them, they will be pretty hip! A grouping of old Parisian fashion prints , all in gold frames, will look stunning when all together on a wall. The darling floral centerpiece of white cherubs will be very sophisticated with just herbs or boxwood in the containers.

The Italian jewelry box will be added to a collection that I already own, along with the awesome rhinestone compact. Then on to a different look in the butlers pantry, the vintage coffee urn will find its new home. Not too much for the store today------It's been tooooooo long since I have been antiquing and I really need a fix!

On a side note, Lynda bought some really cool French prints that we are going to try to silkscreen on to a fabric. Will advise on that project later! Wish us luck!

Branching Out!

With the natural and organic trend so important in home decor today, I get very excited when I find a new natural material that lends itself so beautifully to home decor. These beautiful sun bleached branches look beautiful as a part of a dining room tablescape or worked into book cases and tabletop vignettes. In the store, we have mixed them with our decorator books covered in old parchment papers, architectural candlesticks, and mercury glass. The mercury glass bottles are from an old abandoned factory in Danville, Virginia, probably used to hold some type of liquid chemical. Their patina is amazing. Our new lamps with the burlap and document printed fabrics mix well with this look. The white ceremic faux bois garden stools add a little brightness to the weathered color palatte.

Ok- Enough with the Cherubs!

I keep saying that I am never going to buy another cherub in my life-Who am I am really kidding? myself! Who could resist this incredible zinc urn with four adorable little cherubs - at least there's horses on this one. It's my latest addition to the cherub inhabitants in my home. I try to keep them in different rooms so it's not so sickeningly sweet everywhere. I even add sticks to try to "unsweeten them"- yet there they are- smiling sweetly at me- in every room. Just for grins, I should take a cherub inventory in this house- I'll bet there are enough to start their own country. I am not going to buy another cherub - REALLY???

Some Things Just Continue to Look Good!

I am just returning from Atlanta to attend the Gift Show. My friend Lynda helped me purchase jewelry for the store, and then in the evenings, we would group it by trend and price it. Usually we also find time to change the accessory decor in her home for the season, but this time we were too busy with the jewelry and getting her wardrobe ready for her trip to Paris next week. But as I wandered around her home, I decided that her accessory vignettes looked pretty darn good! I still love the dried hydrangea arrangements that we did in January- some of our best ever! The little vignette on the coffee table with the parchment books and old tarnished candelabra was charming.

A grouping of vintage glasses and decanters on columns and plateaus was interesting to the eye.

The vessels by her stove held special sea salts for flavoring her (now famous to her friends) awesome dishes. And I love the simple urn with the curly willow and the old oil and sconce in the corner of the kitchen's sitting area. So I am not sure what we could have changed this time- I am just contently waiting for her to move her home office to the music room so we can begin something new again!

First Signs of Spring

The snow has finally melted, and you can start to see the first tips of bulbs popping out of the ground. The local stores have primroses, violas, and hydrangeas to sell. Easter decor is out, so it inspires us to put fresh flowers in our homes and add some eggs to our displays. I had these old eggs in spring colors, so I just added little flowers and some glitter to them. Sitting in a vintage, silver egg cup holder, they look adorable on a dining room buffet. I love the antique pink shrimp cocktail glass with the eggs. Wouldn't it be great filled with fresh whipped cream and berries?!!!

Wedding of the Year

It seems that every spring, Romancing the Home gets involved with planning a wedding. Last spring, it was the wedding at the Bee Hive in Boston. This year, it's the wedding of one of our own Romancing the Home's girls---- Katha's daughter, Jessica. The venue is the University Club in the city. The room is gorgeous, stone walls, massive fireplace and it overlooks Lake Michigan. The cocktail hour will be in the Library of the Club, so we decided to embrace the "book concept" and make parchment paper books for the center of the hi-tops. Using the invitation, we scanned the graphics into our computer and added the Happily Ever After, Jessica and Jason, July 10th, 2010.

Jessica and Jason are using a special monogram (J*J) , so we put that on the spine of the book, and embellished it with small crystals to add sparkle. We will add color to the centerpiece with small square vases of bright flowers, and a square votive with a floating clear candle in the shape of a diamond to add a little bling!

Stay tuned on this one - there's lots of planning still to come! I found this awesome book, Magnificent Weddings by Design, at Barnes and Noble, - I highly recommend it for inspiration, not only for weddings, but parties in general. It is one of the best books that I have ever seen - the photography is incredible!