John Derian

Damn he's cute, isn't he? I don't think he's batting for my team, though. Shame, that.

Have you all seen John Derian's decoupage work? I'm in love!
(Click below to enlarge the pics.)

Imagine my surprise when I came across this page on his website. He's selling TREE FUNGUS for anywhere from $140-$350!! The "artist's" name is Mark St. Clair, and the tree fungi are "kiln dried and mounted for easy hanging." I had to laugh, because ONLY someone who lives in a city and has never taken a drive through the woods would possibly BUY one of these things, would they?! I mean, I just drove by a tree with four of them on it the other day! It just kills me, the stuff people will pay money for.

Of course, this IS a post about little pieces of paper glued to the back of glass plates, so I'm one to talk. Heh. I'm thinking that instead of breaking the bank and actually buying one of these things, I should try my hand at it myself. What do you think? Good craft idea?
I love this hosta:

And I'm *swooning* at this cloche:

....and this compote:

...and this one:

...and this one:

And it all started, once again, from an email in my inbox, with a photo of a linen chair. What's up with the marketing ploys? Is someone out there reading my mind? I had no idea John Derian sold furniture. (You can get it at the Hammertown Barn if you're in upstate NY. That's who sent me the email.) So that's what prompted me to head to his website and rip off all the pics for my blog post today. :)

Can you stand it? I love the lines of that stuff!!
So THEN, when I was looking at what was new in my blog list to the right, Catherine Nolin had posted another painting, and it was a gorgeous chair! I love chairs. And her paintings are bright, happy, and lovely:

See how one thing just leads to another in my world? I need to stop surfing so much! I just keep seeing more things I WANT. I guess the good news is, I've always been good at window shopping, and resisting the urge to spend money I don't have. Well, for the most part anyway.

Cool Autumn in NY

Tess wasn't up for posing, but Kathleen was! :)

She's really an indoor cat, but both Kathleen and BF insist on bringing her out for little outings, which on this day, involved Tess running under the neighbor's porch, and Kathleen looking at ME like I was supposed to do something! I said "Go GET her!" Geez. Don't look at me with that stuff. I told them both to keep the darn cat INSIDE. Whatever.
Nobody listens to me around here.

I love this shot I got of Kathleen standing in a bunch of cattails. I thought it was cool that her hair matched the grasses, and the way she looked right at the camera--perfect!

....and then she ran away...hee!

The other morning, there was frost on the field as the sun was coming up and hitting the tips of the trees. I love the ever-changing landscape around here. Just a few weeks ago, the field wasn't mowed, and the grasses and wildflowers were tall and glowing at sunset.

I am going to try to work with purpose this week, and see if I can pull myself out of my funk.
Wish me luck!

Gorgeous Grasscloth

Ok, since my last post about linen got everyone all excited, and the one I did yesterday about how fall depresses me got NOBODY excited, I thought I'd go back to my decor musings.

I'm dying to do grasscloth wallpaper somewhere in my house. The dining room seems like the most logical place.

Nobody really sees my hallway to the upstairs except me and Kathleen, so that's probably out...

...although this little landing looks an AWFUL lot like my stair well...hmmmm....maybe just on that one wall?

I think the little settee and the wood cabinet got me more excited about this photo than the actual wallpaper did:

Do I have a nook? I need a nook!

I like the idea of popping it with color....so perhaps grasscloth in the DR with my red bamboo chairs in there instead of in the kitchen?

Another nook!

Hmmmm....I COULD put it in my bedroom...would look great with what I already have going on in there, don't you think?

Although I would never have the guts to do this myself, I'm loving this Phillip Jeffries
green grasscloth:

Hey Sally...when you send me my other four bamboo chairs (hee!) I could paint them all white and it would look like this!:

If I had lots of money and a way bigger DR, I'd love upholstered chairs. But that's never happening. That chandelier, however, is sort of what I want to do with my existing POS brass chandelier. My plan is to buy the parts for a drum shade, wrap it in linen, and install it over the brass chandelier--having painted the brass chandelier a fun color first, of course:

It's on my list. My never-ending list. *sigh*

Inertia

The Autumn

~Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Go, sit upon the lofty hill,
And turn your eyes around,
Where waving woods and waters wild
Do hymn an autumn sound.
The summer sun is faint on them --
The summer flowers depart --
Sit still -- as all transform'd to stone,
Except your musing heart.

How there you sat in summer-time,
May yet be in your mind;
And how you heard the green woods sing
Beneath the freshening wind.
Though the same wind now blows around,
You would its blast recall;
For every breath that stirs the trees,
Doth cause a leaf to fall.

Oh! like that wind, is all the mirth
That flesh and dust impart:
We cannot bear its visitings,
When change is on the heart.
Gay words and jests may make us smile,
When Sorrow is asleep;
But other things must make us smile,
When Sorrow bids us weep!

The dearest hands that clasp our hands, --
Their presence may be o'er;
The dearest voice that meets our ear,
That tone may come no more!
Youth fades; and then, the joys of youth,
Which once refresh'd our mind,
Shall come -- as, on those sighing woods,
The chilling autumn wind.

Hear not the wind -- view not the woods;
Look out o'er vale and hill-
In spring, the sky encircled them --
The sky is round them still.
Come autumn's scathe -- come winter's cold --
Come change -- and human fate!
Whatever prospect Heaven doth bound,
Can ne'er be desolate.

The first few stanzas of this poem really speak to my feelings these last couple of weeks. I’m remembering what a wonderful summer I had, relaxing on many of those sunny, warm days by the river and in my yard, and enjoying the water, the birds, and the flowers. This was one of the loveliest summers I can remember. Last year’s was short, rainy, and filled with mosquitoes. This year there were NO mosquitoes, and we could sit outside and enjoy the day without dousing ourselves in DEET.

The fall often brings me this paradoxical joy and melancholy. I love the beautiful colors and crunch of leaves under my feet, and the crisp air in my lungs, but I also feel a strange sadness—not a sadness that summer is over, but that SOMEthing is over and dying. It must rest through the winter, where I will cozy up and hide for a few months, and then spring will bring with it the new beginnings and the fresh start of the new year. In this way I feel like my "mental" year is dictated more by seasons than by months.

I think I’m feeling older this year as well. Watching Kathleen grow is an absolute wonder and a joy, but it is also a reminder of the years speeding by, and that what is happening now, will soon be “remember when?” I do find myself looking forward to her future, and what lies ahead for her with college, career and family, and in my next thought I’m sad (and angry?) that my mother is no longer here to witness my life and her grandchildren’s accomplishments.

There is also a restlessness in me that has been eating away for a while—a feeling that there is something more out there waiting for me, and that I need to do something about it to make it happen. I’ve always been prone to this sort of inertia—where thoughts and ideas spin around in my head like little fireflies in a jar—where the hope of making something happen just sort of floats there, trapped. The last time I can remember kicking myself in the ass to change this, was when I left my husband 11 years ago. I’m thinking it’s time I gave myself another kick in the ass, don’t you? Eleven years is a long time to go without exacting any true change in my life. This is not to say I’m going to kick BF to the curb. What I AM saying, is that I need to wake up each morning with a PLAN for what I’m going to do to make my life better. This is more than what I HAVE been doing, which is waking up each day and going through the motions. Hmmm….could this be my mid-life crisis? The timing seems right… ;)

Wow. This got deep. It’s a good thing there aren’t many of you out there reading this drivel—you might become depressed! My apologies. Read the poem again. It’s uplifting.

P.S. The top photo was one I took of Kathleen last week on one of our photoshoot outings. The other three were taken by either Kathleen or Madeline yesterday afternoon, and edited by Kathleen in Lightroom. Those kids have potential! ;)

Take a Seat

I'm not usually one to take pics off the internet and repost them here, but let's blame it on Schumacher today, shall we? I received an email today with their new furniture line in it, and the above sofa (the Hayward, in a luscious velvet) was featured in the email. So I wanted more. And where do I go when I want MORE of something--ANYthing?? Why, GOOGLE of course!

So for your enjoyment, I've gathered some of my favorites for you to enjoy. I'd also like to know if there is a self-help group for linen addicts out there. If so, let me know, will ya'? Thanks.

This post is dedicated to my friend Sally, wherever she may be. :) I know you're out there somewhere, woman!