Hidden Magnolias

I love flowers.  I try to have fresh flowers on my dining room table all the time -- just ask my husband. Since we eat in our dining room every night, I get to enjoy them daily, plus I see them through the kitchen door.  Here are a few of my arrangements I have done so far this year. Love jonquils. These came from my garden at my mother's house. I planted them years and years ago and they steadfastly come back every year. I paired them with Camellias off my bush in the backyard. For Memorial Day, I grabbed a huge Southern Magnolia off my tree and some greenery from a nearby bush. A little later in the season, my neighbor had not cut his grass in a while, so I picked his weeds. Even weeds can steal the show when placed in a festive pitcher turned into a vase. For July 4th, I thought nice, bright sunflowers would be fun. I just love their fresh faces. I have to admit, I bought these from the local Kroger. Then just this past week, I sneaked b...

One of my favorite rooms is my office. It is bright with lots of natural sunlight. It is upstairs and tucked away from the main part of the house, so it is quiet. This what is looked like when we first moved in. As you can see, it has some strange angles. Once we moved in, it became a typical "junk" room with boxes of books, genealogy files and information. I am almost embarrassed to show you what is has become. Since one the main items stored in this room are books--boxes of books crammed into the window area. By the closet is a wall that really served no useful purpose. The perfect place for a built-in bookcase. So I searched the net and came up with some inspiration. I just love this full wall built in. I even like the simple desk and a small sofa in the room. So after many months of nagging reminding, my super talented husband got to work. Deciding on the trim was not really too hard. We have t...

Despite cooler than average temps this year, nature still finds a way to show the beauty of Spring.  I thought I would share some of my garden delights that are not the traditional southern dogwoods and azaleas. The Cherokee Rose bush. Designated in 1916 as the state flower of Georgia, there is some debate about the origins.  Women's clubs all over Georgia insist it was a flower cultivated by the Cherokees, but today's horticulturists say it was brought over from Asia and should be considered and invasive species.  Regardless, I love it. Beautiful irises have popped up here and there. I particularly like this old fashioned purple bearded guy.  The yellow one is not bad either. And all over my yard is an abundance of Silver Dollar plants. I love their frilly white flowers. They have popped up in the best places this year. And of course, the short lived, ...

A task I enjoy doing every Saturday morning is winding my clock. I love clocks and don't own near enough to make me happy.  I prefer the kind of clock you have to wind. There is something so satisfying about the actual action of winding a clock. My favorite clock have three places to wind: the time, the chimes and the hour strike.  My clock rings a Westminster chime.  I love clocks in decorating. Here a few of my favorites. Susan at Between Naps on the Porch used one of her antique clocks as part of a New Year's table setting. Loved this idea. Pinterest I really like this idea of the clocks in a stair way. What a great way to keep track of the time on your way by. Pinterest These little rhinestone vintage clocks have a perfect vintage, shabby look. Pinterest This masculine collection is perfect for an office or man's room. Mantel clocks in family rooms are classic and add both be...

When we moved to Kate's House, I decided to make the guest bath, the horse bathroom. It is a nice room, but lacked snazz.  It had basic, boring white paint on the walls. What is needed was some color to freshen it. Here are before pictures. Blah. Off to Home Depot I go.  I finally settled on  Martha's Stewart's Beach Sand MSL232. With paint brush in hand, it begins. I am liking it. Here is the finished product. The old bits were found in the various out buildings that came with the house. I just had to use them. I bought this picture years ago for my very first apartment. It proudly hung over the only piece of furniture I had in the living room at that time - a classic white sofa from Rich's. You Atlanta girls know that dates me, doesn't it? I bought these two pictures at Boxwoods 8-9 years ago, because they featured horses and because the frames are made of such a pretty...