BLOGGING HONORS……

Look at this…..isn’t it sweet!!!  Thank you my dear Belgium friend, Jerome, from http://mamaisondelin.blogspot.com/  for passing on this wonderful compliment!

In the spirit of the award, it is designated that I need to reveal seven things about myself and pass the award on to five fantastic and fabulous bloggers.  Isn’t this fun????

I’ll try to reveal new and fresh details about myself that you don’t already know from my posts……..so…..here goes…….

As deeply as I love flowers, I am absolutely terrified of bees!  I mean the ‘swinging wildly and frantically, running like a crazy woman for cover’ kind of terrified.  Silly, I know!

I organize my shoes in my closet according to hours of endurance – that is how many hours I can endure wearing them in a single day.  Of course, the “one hour” shoes are at the bottom of the shelf – pretty as they may be, they are only good for….let say….church!  The “eight hour” shoes, my favorite Stewart Weitzman’s, are right by the door!!!

I drink Pinot Grigio……….with everything!!!

I eat popcorn….every night…….and not the healthy kind!!!

I can sit for hours and watch birds…….analyzing their behavior. 

I dabble in watercolor painting…..poorly but lovingly!

I honestly will not sell you a window treatment if your window does not warrant it!!!  (photo: Banks Design Associates)

And last… but not least…..I pass it on to five talented, inspiring bloggers who I hope you will find just as enjoyable as I do:

http://heavenonearthhome.blogspot.com/

http://studiobeerhorst.com/blog/

http://vandaff.blogspot.com/

http://www.thewishingwellsnapshots.blogspot.com/

http://bovagoods.blogspot.com/

I am continually inspired by the creativity that has found an outlet through the world of blogging and invite you to link to the many favorites I have listed on my site. 

Everyone…..have a wonderful weekend!!

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions!

Living is a constant process of deciding what we are going to do.

- Jose Ortega

Now that spring is waning and summer looks promising (even for us here in Michigan!), I am faced with the dilemma of what to plant in my flower boxes at the back entrance of my store.  It is another gamble though not determined so much by the weather this time as by whether or not the plants will survive the caretaker – me! 

I am pathetic unlucky when it comes to nurturing plants in any kind of environment.  I can almost hear them weeping when I pick them up for purchase at the local floral nursery.  They sense doom!

However, I love flowers…..

“Flowers are restful to look at. They have neither emotions nor conflicts.” ~Sigmund Freud

Geraniums are one of my favorites and they are fairly sturdy and hardy (as in not easy to kill) and always look so cheerful!

I like to add herbs like thyme……

and rosemary……the fragrance is wonderful wafting into the showroom when someone opens the door.

I already have Stella  d’oro lilies successfully inhabiting my boxes now so these new additions should make a pretty mix…….if I can keep them alive!!!  They must survive full sun and hot conditions off a black top parking lot, but we water them faithfully every morning, even making a special trip down on Sunday morning when the store is closed (or I should truthfully admit I send my husband down to water them!) 

I would dearly love helpful hints as to the proper fertilizer to use for flower boxes and these types of flowers or any suggestions as to a better choice of flowers to plant……and, NO, I will not  use plastic or silk flowers!     (…….though I have in the past when a gapping hole is produced by an occupants death)

Suggestions welcomed…..

Bread feeds the body, indeed, but flowers feed also the soul.  ~The Koran

To Puddle or Not To Puddle……

We design and prepare numerous draperies and inevitably the client will ask “the question”.  How long should the draperies be?

Now is that a loaded question or not?!  You can examine all the aspects of the room’s style and design, take into consideration the fabric and pattern, contemplate the client’s lifestyle and room’s function, and then look them square in the eye…………….smile…and sweetly say “that is totally up to your preference….but let me give you a few suggestion".

Three hundred pictures later and an hour of  “drapery lengths 101” you hopefully have assisted them in finding the look and length that they’ve envisioned in their room. 

It is a agonizing decision that can supersede choosing the fabric pattern or pleat style.

When all else fails, I suggest a nice “trouser break” with the option of  shortening if they find it isn’t quite what they imagined. 

After all….in the grand scheme of things, it is one of the few things in life we can adjust and alter.

“In a minute there is time for decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse.”  ~T.S. Eliot

What is your favorite length?

La Vie En……Lavender et Phlox!

I have been meaning to post for days…..you know the feeling when you have so much you want to share but NO time!!!!  I am glad things are so busy in our lives…. don’t get me wrong, it is just that I feel I am neglecting my blogger friends with my silence. 

I would like to share that my “gamble” to plant my flower boxes early did pay off as (to date) we have not had any extremely cold weather to harm my “preciousssss” (as Gollum would say).

Today was an pleasantly warm day here for us time of year and the phlox and lavender are thriving!!!

Anyway, this will be short and sweet!  Very sweet, really as below are tantalizing  fabric samples of the new Hunter Douglas Luminette  Modern Draperies! 

Marvelous colors and textures!

Dramatic design statement!

With new hardware selections in very sophisticated tones to finish off this spectacular look!

You simply must stop by to see this collection and soon we hope to get our display sample up to really impress!!!  However, in the meantime…. you can stop by to check out my flower boxes and share a cup of tea or coffee with me.  I’d love that too!!

“Happiness is a journey not a destination.” - Souza

RapidBlog: My Life As An Artist In Grand Rapids by Georgia Taylor

A must read for all you creative people.  Very inspirational words!!

RapidBlog: My Life As An Artist In Grand Rapids by Georgia Taylor

MOTHER…..

This word almost always, first and foremost, brings the image of our own mothers to mind.  Of course!  And the idea that we all (with the help of Hallmark) would set aside a special day to honor Mothers is sweet and loving!

Along with this, however, I would like to suggest two additional thoughts:

1.  Let us keep this mind-set of honor each and every day throughout the year for these women who’s every thought is consumed with family and their happiness.

and….

2.  We keep in mind all women, whether they have bore children or not, who embrace people around them with the heart and soul of a mother, who gather the lonely and lost, homeless and broken into their bottomless hearts for care, respect, and tenderness that only a “mother” could share.

Whether good or bad mothers, happy of sad memories, take this coming Mother’s Day and come to terms with the frailty and faults, beauty and the burdens of any impactful women in our lives.  Whether it’s a time of honor…. or of releasing a painful past, make this coming “Mother’s Day” and every day after special in someone’s life.

 

“WE SHALL NEVER KNOW

ALL THE GOOD THAT A SIMPLE

SMILE

CAN DO!”

Mother Theresa

BEAUTY….Inside and Out!

What a glorious day in West Michigan.  Magnolias are bursting forth and I ventured out and planted creeping phlox and lavender in my flower boxes……just because I HAD to get my fingers in the dirt!!!

The soil smelled so rich and the lavender so fragrant

I know it’s early and always a gamble here in our climate zone as we know we could receive more cold, snowy weather……but today I was willing to risk!
It’s been a week of focusing  on spring from all angles; not only weather and flowers but fabrics and new window treatment products from Hunter Douglas.

This week started in the windy city – Chicago!  I love it!!!!!!!  Unfortunately, we did not stay in the downtown area (which kept me from spending too much money shopping on Michigan Ave.).  We  stayed out in the west suburbs at the Chicago Westin Northwest.  Superb hotel and superb dining!


One of the most exciting products shown this weekend was the Silhouette and the new sheer shading fabrics due to be introduced this May.  This Silhouette fabric has a dupioni silk appearance that is absolutely elegant in color and texture!

We all love the beautiful way it softens light entering through the window.  It’s not only beautiful….but smart too!!  By providing ultraviolet protection, reflecting solar heat, it’s a perfect marriage of function and aesthetics. 

There is so much too share…….but this is it for now because, you know, it is just tooooooo beeeeeautiful of a day outside.  I keep glancing over my shoulder to the window and nature’s sunshine is beckoning.  I can always blog later….when it’s raining.  Please stop by to see me and let me tell you more!
“Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson