12.30.2007

These are a few of my favorite things...

...from 2007. Inspired by a list that my good friend Julie Elton gave me of her favorite things from 2007 I thought I'd share some of mine. These are from my interior and craft files. Hope you enjoy. Here's to a great year past and to an even more exciting one to come!

12.22.2007

Handmade Stockings

I was so happy with how my handmade stockings turned out. Thanks Cally and Mandy for all your help on craft night. It was so fun to be able to make the stockings the way I wanted to instead of having to go with what was in the stores. I really love Atticus' corduroy stocking with the apples in the middle.

12.21.2007

Winter Layering

inspired by the creative layering of Casch.

12.16.2007

New Tour Pics






We just got more pics from the tour that one of the ONK board members took (who obviously has a much better camera than me :) ). Enjoy.

12.12.2007

Winter Make Up

This winter I've decided to really embrace my fair skin. Thanks Prada eye wear for my winter make-up inspiration of nude lips and slightly smokey eyes (appropriate for daytime). I even have similar black glasses. Too fun.

12.11.2007

Vintage Village

Too sweet to pass up.

12.07.2007

Project Vintage

Fabulous Etsy clothes on the cheap! I just found this Etsy shop, projectvintage and I love it. I can't believe how affordable and adorable her clothes are. Will definitely have to shop here in the future.

Landscaping

Here are a few shots of the amazing landscaping that our good friend and professional landscaper Daniel Hart designed for us. Looks even more magnificent in person and will be so lovely come spring with colorful hydrangeas and rose bushes.

12.03.2007

Bringing the tour to You!

The Living Room:




Welcome to our living room. We have gone with soft stony-blue and brown theme through out with gold accents for the holidays. I apologize that some of the pics look very yellow (darn that tungsten lighting) but I wanted to give you a feel for how things looked with all the Christmas lights on. Our friend and very accomplished artist Kirk RIchards was generous enough to donate a print of The Last Supper for the tour. It was very well liked and the room overall was big hit.

The Hallway:


Here are some shots of our main hallway. I used my favorite color combination, Tiffany blue and black, for this area to create a Victorian-Glam look. I have to confess that I love it. The painted on blackboard was well loved by all and a new favorite for Atticus as it's right at his level.

The Family Room:


Our family room (also known to us as the pocket-door room due to it's fabulous pocket doors that closes it off to the rest of the home) showcases our Fantasy of Tree's Christmas tree that we purchased 2 years ago. The tree pretty much takes up the entire room as you can see but it was well liked by all. You can also see the beginning of a family portrait painting I working on for our good friends The Harts. Daniel Hart did our landscaping and let me tell you, he is amazing! Everyone went nuts for it (pics to come soon).

The Water Closet:


This is the downstairs water closet. The things I like the most about this room are the oil rubbed bronze doorknobs from ebay (that replaced our cheap brass ones that used be be throughout the house), the $2 Shabby Chic shelf from ebay (yes I really did win the bid at $2!!) and the adorable "Toilet" sign from one of my favorite local Knoxville stores, Abode.

The Dining Room:


Ahh...the dining room. I really loved working on this room. It's truly a girly indulgence of pinks, blacks and splashes of lime green.

The Kitchen:

Please ignore the counter clutter in the kitchen (remnants of the pizza we fed our gracious tour guides) and enjoy the cute counting birdies, new green paint and touches of the outside brought inside with the tree branch atop the cupboards. Everyone loved the birds and I was continually asked if they were mine. One girl even had the same set and was ready for me to sign it. Regretfully I'm not the cool artist that did these but you can find these delightful prints at a boutique near you I'm sure. If I can find out who the artist is I'll be sure to post it.

The Stairwell:

Framed Amy Butler prints and icicle lights lit up the stairwell.

The Studio/Office/Craftroom:

Now we are upstairs and entering my office/studio/craft room with the much talked about pink and black tree. I had several of my books out for tour guest to view as well as business cards for them to take on their merry way.

Upstairs Bathroom:

The Master Bedroom and bath:



And last but not least our master suite. My favorite spot in the entire house just might be my little vanity nook complete with black damask chair. It was also a favorite of many a teenage girl who came through the tour (which I guess just goes to show that there is a young girl in me that will never grow up and I can't say I mind that).

As a whole the tour far exceeded my expectations. The patrons were so generous and respectful of our home, not to mention extremely complimentary. I think the all time high was when HGTV (Home and Garden Television) programmer Connie Schmid said she couldn't believe that I hadn't tried out for Design Star (just missed the extended Nov. 30th deadline). Can you believe it! I was on cloud nine for the rest of the night (in fact, I'm still pretty excited about it). I promised her I'd try out for next season and she said she'd come by next year just to make sure. Never mind that I'm consistently busy with illustration and other design work and that being a mommy is number ONE on my list. It's still nice to dream though!

A big thanks to all of our tour guides for you generous help. We had several friends from church helping, many of the first year theater graduate students and volunteers from the Old North Knox. historic board. Thank you, thank you all for a wonderful success!!

*(side note: I don't have any pics of Atticus's room up yet because he's always asleep when I go around with the camera. I'll be sure to put up pics when I have them).

11.29.2007

New Old Fashioned Way


A big thanks to Knoxville News Sentinel and reporter Ed Marcum for such a lovely article on our home and my art. It's weird to actually see my face in the media as I'm used to my art doing the talking for me. Jon got some great press for his acting as well. So much fun. Well, got to get back to work on my art and my home. See you at the tour!

11.27.2007

Victorian Holiday Home Tour


Ok, here's an official invite to view our home and many others in this years 19th Annual Historic Old North Knoxville Victorian Holiday Home Hour. The tour will take place this weekend on Saturday December 1 and Sunday December 2.

Saturday, December 1, is the Candlelight Tour and houses will be open from 4:00 to 9:00 pm. On Sunday, December 2, tour time is in the afternoon from 12:30 to 5:00 pm. If you are planning on hosting please arrive at least 15 min. before tour time (food and breaks will be provided for all who help). If you would like to view a bit of background information on our home you may do so here.

Advance tickets are on sale at all Kroger's (go to the customer service desk) for $9. Or you can purchase them on the day of the tour for $12 at St. Mary's Woodland Avenue parking lot. From there you can park and ride the trolley to the homes.

Hope to see all of my Knoxville friends come. It should be a great way to ring in the season!

11.26.2007

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Here are few pics of what our Christmas decor is looking like so far. Our good friends Tony and Melissa Marinello came for the Thanksgiving holiday and we worked on creating Sculpey figurines and Christmas ornaments. The head above is from the Sugar Plum Fairy I am working on. Thanks for all your help Tony! Oh and Tony and Melissa also got us the glitter reindeer that I was drooling over. Thanks for such a wonderful gift and such a great time!

11.16.2007

Christmas Villages




OK, stop the presses. I just found my absolute dream Christmas Villages (Yes, I want both!) from Room Service Home. Absolutely lovely. (OK, I'll have to work up to it). I also love their Glitter Reindeer. I bet I could make these from plastic reindeer toys and just coat them in glitter, hmm...

I do have a few decorations going on of my own amidst the painting, crown molding installation and other various home projects scattered about in hopes that St. Nicolas and his festive Knoxville home tour goers will soon appear. When I find my digital camera battery charger I'll be sure to share.

11.14.2007

roulettes





I really want a roulette for my backyard someday. It would be the perfect gypsy hide-a-way where I could read, paint or be even more indulgent and nap. I love how in France you can rent these and have a little camping trip out in the country.