Holiday Spirit at Twigs in Lake Bluff

I love to visit my favorite florist - Twigs in Lake Bluff.

 

 

 

 Entering the shop, one is stopped in their tracks by the gorgeous display of vintage ornaments

hung on tree branches and suspended in the air. 

 

                              A collection of vintage ornaments in wonderful vibrant colors.



Wouldn't this display be wonderful over a dining table for the holidays?

 

Luscious red velvet tartan pumpkins are gathered on the center table.

 



 

Precious little mushroom ornaments add to the organic holiday display.

I love the way they are tucked into the moss.

Old Fashioned raindeer ornaments in another bowl of moss- charming.

Bottle brush trees, all gathered on a silver tray to create a snowy forest.



Sweet pieces of vintage china are  mixed in among the trees along with velvet strawberries.


Certainly puts me in the holiday spirit!  

 



Omni Grove Park Inn in Asheville, North Carolina

My friend Jill and I just returned from the Carolina's. We were checking on the progress of our new homes. Every time we go, we find something new to explore.   This trip we stayed at the Omni Grove Park Inn, an incredible historic hotel.

The Omni Grove Park Inn is a historic resort hotel on the western-facing slope of Sunset Mountain  in the Blue Ridge Mountains , in Asheville, North Carolina . It is a AAA Four-Diamond Hotel and has been since 2001. It has been visited by many United States' presidents. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places , the hotel is an example of the Arts and Crafts  style.

 Driving up the long driveway of lit trees along the entrance road

 

It was raining so it added to the romantic allure of the magnificent building.

 

Massive Christmas trees were placed throughout the property, including this one by the main door.

I was fascinated by the roof and wondered how they constructed it in 1913.

 

Construction began in 1912 and was completed in 11 months and 27 days. This was accomplished by paying high wages to the dedicated workers. Circus tents were erected on the job site to house the workers. Just three days shy of one year, The Grove Park Inn opened on July 12, 1913



 

Massive wreaths were hung on the dry stack rock walls.

Jill by one of the tall Christmas trees in the lobby.

 



View from breakfast in the morning.  Their biscuits- on my goodness- light and fluffy- the best

that I have ever had.

The grotto style spa on the lower level- unbelievable.

It is a  $44 million, 40,000-square-foot , modern subterranean spa, which placed #13 worldwide in Travel and Leisure's World's Best Hotel Spas in 2008.

 

The list of spa treatments available is endless and there is a spa cuisine restaurant in the spa for guests who want a healthier eating venue. 

 



 

Two massive fireplaces in the great hall.

 

Specialty hot chocolate drinks from the Gingerbread bar in the lobby.  The national

gingerbread house competition was held there for the holiday season.

 

I couldn't resist this pastry from the hotel's bakery!  Divine light chocolate mousse filled the interior!

Oh my - it was so good.

 

 

 The deck overlooking Asheville.  I can't wait to enjoy a cocktail there when the sunset happens.

The rain prevented us from it during this trip.

 

 Dinner on the Sunset Terrace- open  during the warmer seasons. Can't wait to try dinner here once I move here in the spring.

 

During our stay, Jill and I had dinner at the Vue 1913 restaurant in the hotel.  It was wonderful.

The Charcuterie plate, the filet mignon and the corn soup- delicious cuisine. They feature different cuisines from around the world as their specials.  This time Chilean  cuisine was featured.  Oh -before I forget - the house made bread from the bakery on premise- delicious.

 

 

Found this picture on Pinterest of a bride who held her wedding at the Grove Park Inn and had to share it with you.  Love the vintage fur stole and that luscious bouquet. The Omni Grove Park Inn would be a fabulous spot for a wedding.

 

Jill and I thoroughly enjoyed the gift shops in the hotel.  They were filled with many tasty items- jewelry, clothing, food, Christmas décor.  One of the favorite shops was the Gallery of the Mountains shop.

Their jewelry made by local artists was stunning.  I couldn't resist this beaded beauty by local Asheville artist - Amolia Willowsong.  She is 73 years old and creates the most beautiful beaded necklaces, earrings and bracklets.

Pearls and a single large baroque pearl form the center design.

 

Wouldn't this have been a beautiful bracelet for our vintage bride in the picture above?!!

 

 

Oh yes- the reason for the trip- to check on the progress of our new homes-

 

 

Jill's new home is starting to get the dry stack stone and shingles.

                                       It really looks as if it has been their for many years.

Driving into French Broad Crossing to our new house, it is still drizzling- but still pretty.  The river is muddy from the rain and the clouds are low in the mountains.

It almost looks surreal in the fog as we drive along the narrow road to our house.

And as we turn the corner to go up the hill to our building site, we are surprised with this truck in the middle of the road, raised off the ground.  We obviously couldn't go any further.

This truck would be drilling the wells for our geothermal heating system. 

 Looks pretty precarious to me. 

 

 

 

 



We couldn't get very close to the footings as the hill was muddy and wet from the days of rain.

But the river looked really closeto the lower level of the home.  I just couldn't get down there to see it for myself.  Hopefully, next trip.

 

 



Driving out in the mist, the moss on the trees was extremely noticeable.

You can see the river in the background.  Wish I could be by a fire with a great book right now!

We head back home- through Hot Springs and into Tennessee on US 25/70.  We follow the French Broad River the entire route back to I-40.  I can't wait to see this on a daily basis.

Dinner Party Farewell

I am the luckiest girl to have such wonderful friends! Last Saturday night, my friends got together to host a dinner party to celebrate my move to the Carolina's.   A lot of fun was had with the decorations- lots of country humor about my relocation to rural Madison county , north of Asheville, NC.   There's a saying about the county- "if you shake a tree, a guy with a banjo will fall out of it"!

 

 

Right by the front door was a guy with a "banjo" in the tree!!!

Appropriately dressed in a plaid shirt, suspenders, cowboy boots and blue jeans!

 A little more "off the grid" humor at the front door!  

 

Stepping inside Julie's home, I see all my friends dressed in plaid shirts and overalls!  

 I wouldn't have thought they knew where to buy them! And they actually looked pretty cute.

 

But then- a bit of beauty appeared!

  A gorgeous bouquet of peonies, purple hydrangeas, and berries in a rusty  sap bucket! 

Divine, divine, divine.

 

 

It was placed on a rusty tartan throw-

                               Mason jars and pie tins were used for the place settings- very clever! Elegant silver chargers and vintage stemware were used to balance the country elements! 

Dinner was wonderful.  All the girls prepared a different recipe from our Romancing the Home Entertains Cookbook and we dined like country royalty!   Crab cakes, pimento cheese, asparagus and tarragon dipping sauce, deviled eggs, Gail's tuna dip, beef tenderloin with Henry Bain sauce, green beans with shrimp salad, macaroni and cheese, and on and on- it was an incredible feast. 

 

Squirrel in camo-  crowned with a rhinestone crown- guards the cake with a bow and arrow.

 

A huge cake embellished with pink overalls and a silver tiara was dessert! 

 Yummy almond filled vanilla cake with berry filling.

 

 

 

 

As the lucky guest of honor, I took the beautiful flowers home to enjoy for the week!

I had to photograph them in natural daylight to see their beautiful color.

 



The blooms on the peonies were 8 inches wide-

 

Lost in the center of this fabulous bloom.

 

The center detail of the peony.

 

 

Wouldn't this be a beautiful mural on the wall in my new home?

 

 

Thank you girls for a wonderful evening-one I will never forget! 

The Kitchen Sink

We have finally started to pour the foundation for our new home in North Carolina.  We hit a large piece of rock while excavating and that really slowed down the progress, but we are now building again!  

When you are waiting for your dream home to be built, it occupies your thoughts much of the time.  It  gives you time to really pursue and examine which products that you ultimately want in your home.   Last week, I researched kitchen sinks.  I am going to need two of them- one for the scullery larder and one for the entertaining kitchen- known as the dining hall.   The larder scullery will be the kitchen that is used for preparation and clean up of meals- think of it as "back stage", while the dining hall will be used for the cooking and entertaining part of the meal.  Think of it as "on stage"!  So I need two sinks- one very utilitarian and functional, and one that is drop dead gorgeous and used more sparingly. First let me share the  kitchen design in order to understand the layout.



For the past 10 years, I have coveted the German Silver Sink,

and knew that if I ever would remodel or build a new home, I would use it.

With it's signature s curve in the middle and the brass fittings, it is a piece of jewelry for the kitchen.

It is pricey- actually the highest priced sink that I considered - but to me- worth it!

 

 

 

 

Lots of finishes and configurations

 

Antique German Silver Sink on 1st Dibs-   already sold- dang !

 

However when the cost estimate for our home came in so much higher than the budget, I began to

challenge every design decision's cost and look for alternatives.  What an eye opening experience!

 

First I started collecting pictures of kitchen sinks on Pinterest and I loved this look.

Integrated with a carved drain board.  That would be so beautiful.

 

 

 

Next I thought I should add a little more rustic elements to the dining hall mix. This carved stone

farm sink from Stone Forest was a winner and retailed for a quarter of the cost of  the German Silver Sink.

 

My friend Jill is using the classic white Shaw farm sink in her new kitchen.  A real winner for its clean design and extreme functionality  with the deep large bowl.  Maybe something classic like this would tame my mix of rustic and elegant elements.   I have always admired this sink.

 

But then- one morning while browsing Pinterest- my heart stopped.  I found the one-

 

Officine Gullo  made in Florence, Italy.  I simply had to have this in my kitchen.

It is perfect in its brass finish to blend with my French range brass details.  Look at the adorable stopper and the towel bar on front.   I can only imagine this sink when it is tarnished and used- just like it came from a Tuscan farmhouse.  And the bonus- it is one half of the price of my beloved German Sink Sink and I love it even more. 

 

 

The sliding brass drain board- my, my, my goodness.

 

I called the US  Officine Gullo office and inquired about the sink.  It takes about 3 to 4 months to order and some customization can be done.   Love it!

 

Go to their website to find tantalizing kitchens, but especially look at the sinks.

http://www.officinegullousa.com/sinks-products

 

 

 This one makes me want to design a corner sink!  

 

I think this one would be a perfect bar sink- or even in a powder room.

 

They are all so beautiful, it is hard to decide.

 

Now on to the scullery larder sink.  This one needs to be extremely functional.

As you can see from the floor plans, I need to maximize counter space in the larder, as my extensive dish and crystal collections ( that I can't seem to part with )  take up a lot of the wall spaces. 

It's pretty funny as I think about it- I can leave my grown children in Chicago, but I can't seem to leave my dishes???  Something's wrong here!

 

 

 My husband and I visited the Kohler showroom in Kohler, Wisconsin and found the perfect  solution for more counter space.

The Kohler Stages sink is an impressive 45 inches in length , but can be used as counter space with the cutting board and ceramic inserts. 

 

 

"Designed in collaboration with the chefs at Kohler's Five Diamond resort hotel, Stages meets the needs of the serious home cook. The Stages sink comes with a full array of integrated accessories to simplify the cooking and cleanup processes. The design offers a wide basin to accommodate large pots and pans, as well as a stepped side platform for prepping food or drying dishes. Handcrafted from premium quality, 16-gauge stainless steel, Stages features an engineered sound-absorption system that significantly reduces disposal and dishwashing noise." Kohler web site

 

 

Watch this video on the functionality of this large sink.  It is so well thought out by the chefs at the American Club in Kohler.



http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=kohler+stages+sink+video&FORM=HDRSC3#view=detail&mid=0089602AC916CE251D3F0089602AC916CE251D3F


I am so excited about both of these choices.  But I will never stop looking- who knows what else is out there?  The internet and especially Pinterest have brought an infinite amount of knowledge and choices to us. Our choices are almost limitless in the design of a new home.  I am embracing this time while the home is being built and trying to uncover every resource possible.  I have 5 months before the final sink choices  have to be ordered.  What else is out there?  It's fun exploring!