gigi's legacy.

part of my legacy from my grandmother [affectionately nicknamed Gigi when she became a great grandmother] was this great ink sketch of her high school in Covington, Kentucky. the sketch was in a very thin and plain black frame so i've been on the hunt for a frame that is a little dark but also has a little shine. i think this one does the trick, and even has some rustic scratches so it matches a lot of what i already have.
the building was called Holmes Castle and it was a private residence before being sold to the school district in 1915. however, in their infinite stupidity, the district tore this beautiful building down right after Gigi graduated in 1936 and put up a typical sanitary school building. Gigi shared a lot of her fond memories of growing up in northern Kentucky, crossing the Ohio River on a sternwheeler to visit Cincinnati, and attending this beautiful school. i am grateful that she willed this sketch to me.

the meandering path.

we recently installed a simple gravel path in the backyard ['cause I like the crunch underfoot]. just 20 ft from patio to gate was 3 years in the making...geez.

it's not that it was difficult, far from it. just that I kept putting it on the back burner.  but I'm so glad to have it because it's not only beautiful but functional as well.

the cats are less enthusiastic. they try their best to walk along the bordering rocks, with varying degrees of success  :-)

I love how the path twists and turns, and really sets off the plants along it's edge.  oh, did you notice those golden ferns? I bet you thought, hey this picture is clearly from summer, why are those ferns showing fall color?

I'm glad you asked! These magical plants are called Autumn Fern, so named because the new fronds emerge as a coppery-pink, then slowly turn green over time:

[autumn fern]

Here's a view of the path facing the other way, toward our teeny tiny back porch:

I have some secret sneaky plans to put in another gravel path in the front yard this year.
If you've created your own garden path, I'd love to see it!


As always, thanks for reading,

 

canister lights are [so not] lovely.

no idea what possessed me to put so many hideous canister lights in my home. they're great for mass-lighting a room but lack any kind of warmth or charm. cripes.

so now i've launched a full offensive to obliterate canisters that make me sad: over the kitchen sink and in the downstairs powder room. pottery barn to the rescue with the Serena antique mercury glass pendant, which we put over the kitchen sink

the canister was inexplicably off center over the sink so we put up a gorgeous heavy hunk of mahogany and centered the pendant on it. fake out! 

yum. sigh. heaven.
next one to fall is the powder room.

lovely tissue poms.

just when you thought my office couldn't get any chickier...behold the lovely tissue poms from party poms' etsy shop.

fun with instagram filters.

i conceived the idea of making these poms myself a few months ago but stumbled on the etsy shop and their colors were just too yummy to pass up.

in all their glorious color, waiting to be hung.

i know these are designed as special occasion or party decorations, but mine are staying up all year so i can enjoy them for hours every day. after all, i live in this crazy office so i might as well have some lovely eye candy.

and who knows, maybe i'll do some special temporary ones around the holidays!

the big picture.

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a lovely and too brief stay at the Old St. Francis School hotel

I've been wanting to stay at a McMenamins hotel for a long time and finally realized the dream a few weeks ago when we had a much-too-brief overnight stay at the McMenamins Old St. Francis School hotel in Bend, Oregon.

It was as wonderful as my expectations! The rooms are converted from actual classrooms, covered wall to wall [and ceiling!] in wood and log accents, with McMenamins' classic murals, clever celestial accents, and a healthy dose of wit.

[old school drinking fountain outside our room; oh yes, it works!].

We stayed in the Robie Anderson room, complete with a funky portrait of Robie himself. The room was clean, spacious, with tons of thoughtful items like a coat rack and bench right inside the door, plenty of great armoire storage, 2-chair desk and super-comfy reading chair.

[light fixture in our room no. 114].

[our room no. 114].

The bathroom was great and lovely as well. On McMenamins properties, no wall is safe from clever mural painters. not even the bathroom. thank goodness, because they're always fantastic.

[our bathroom room no. 114].

I can't say enough nice things about the staff, who were so friendly and attentive, with that great laid back personality I've come to expect at all McMenamins properties; I felt like I was a treasured guest at the home of a good friend. Even down to little touches like asking what kind of coffee I like, as they have a coffee maker in the room but grind your preferred bean flavor fresh every morning and leave the grounds outside your door for you to brew in your room. 

The crowning touch: the heavenly heated saltwater soaking pool, with about 1/3 of the ceiling open to the sky...must be incredible when it snows down into the pool. I could've stayed there all day!

[to the soaking pool].

[oh so heavenly saltwater soaking pool].

[unbelievably gorgeous murals surround the pool].