Avolli

Summer Cocktails

2012-06-15T10:01:00.000-04:00

It is Friday. But not just any Friday. It is a summer Friday and that means that at the end of the work day, which is at the end of the work week, it is time to relax and decompress from the past five days of hard labor. So with all this in mind I thought it would be fun to try a new summer cocktail.

Del's Lemonade & Svedka Vodka,

Blackberry Mint Crush

Skinny Sangria

Give one or all of them a try and let me know which is your favorite.

Happy Friday!

Beautiful Image of the Day

2012-06-13T09:30:00.000-04:00

I love the intelligent blend of old and new, rustic and contemporary, classic and modern. The shades of blue, the pop of chartreuse and coral all mix to create a fabulous space.

Image via skonahem.com

Sommarhus = Summer House

2012-06-11T09:30:00.000-04:00

This irresistable summer house in the Swedish archipelago started out as a ramshackle mess but was transformed into a spectacular summer retreat. While most Swedish summer cottages are relaxed and informal, this a little beauty is the perfect balance of shabby chic and refined elegance.

Images via: skonahem.com

Wall Tattoos!

2012-06-08T10:00:00.000-04:00

Take a look at the fun, creative and easy ways to add art, or the illusion of wall paper, to your walls without needing artistic abilities or a paper hanger! They are wall tattoos by Benjamin Moore and I think they are just about the greatest way to add pizzas to your home without breaking the bank.

Aren't they just fabulous?!? And they have great names too like Portico, Hibiscus, Vineyard, Papillon and Lyric. I'm thinking one might need to find it's way into my home.

Beautiful Image of the Day

2012-06-04T09:30:00.000-04:00

Beautiful blue, fascinating art, light reflection, edgy furniture
with traditional grounding...
Elegance and pizazz all in one!

Interior by Steven Gambrel - Elle Decor

Beautiful Image of the Day

2012-06-01T09:30:00.000-04:00

Simple, Elegant, Clean & Bright = BIOD

Have a wonderful weekend!

The Brits and Their Hats

2012-05-30T10:11:00.000-04:00

This weekend marks the beginning of Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee. A full-out party that will be celebrated and watched the world over. The Brits, and especially the monarchy, are a fascination of the American people. Why is that? Is it their cool accent that seems to make everyone seem more intelligent? Or is it our desire to get back to our roots as they say? I'm thinking it's more about the HATS!

There are elegant hats...

And ridiculous hats...

Enormous hats...

And hats for ones furry friends...

But I think it simply boils down to those who wear them best...

American's just love the monarchy. They represent elegance, sophistication, our own country's history, and especially our romantic idea of princes and princesses. While their hats may fascinate us, it is the Crown that enthralls us. IT is the most beautiful hat of all.

Beautiful Image of the Day

2012-05-23T14:37:00.001-04:00

Such a bright, fresh, and happy space.

Hope your Wednesday has been wonderful!

Painted Brick Walls

2012-05-21T09:00:00.000-04:00

I love interior brick walls. They add texture and interest to rooms and, as a rule, I have always leaned more towards natural brick versus painted brick. Natural brick can be so beautiful, earthy, and warm and the thought of painting it has always seemed like a travesty. That is until recently.

This summer I will be working on a project that will transform a dark, garden level, brownstone condo in Boston into a fresh and updated living space. This space has a natural brick wall that is lovely but contributes to a darker and closed-in feeling. While doing some research to provide visual support for my painting proposal, I came across these images that show painted brick at its finest.

The painted brick is so bright and clean looking. It provides a wonderful backdrop and creates a visually interesting space while not being distracting. What do you think? Do you prefer natural brick or painted brick? Or, do you think the particular application should be the deciding factor?

Cowhide Rugs

2012-05-15T11:27:00.001-04:00

I am really dig'in cowhide rugs right now and how they are being used in both contemporary and traditional environments. I'm thinking I may need one...

Rainy Day Foot Fashion

2012-05-14T12:18:00.001-04:00

I've never considered myself to be an ‘early adaptor’ to fashion trends but I will say that about twelve years ago I requested, and received, a pair of Hunter rain boots for Mother’s Day. This was way before they became the ‘IT’ rain boot for every non-Englishwoman to have. And way before they came in pretty colors, glossy finishes, short heights, laces, heels or quilting. My Hunter’s are traditional green, tall, and perfect for gardening or walking the dog in the rain.

Still my ‘go to’ boots for the rainiest of rainy days, I have started thinking that it may be time to send my Hunter’s off to our country house and mix things up a bit for the city house. While sharing a mother-daughter pedicure experience last week, I was flipping through and extremely old issue of In-Style magazine and noticed these little beauties by däv.

Aren't they just fabulous!

I know that I am not on the cutting edge here but I just can’t understand why I’m not seeing more of these around town.

There are so many different styles and colors to choose from that it is almost difficult to choose just one.

The styles are great and the prices are right. And after the rainy days we have had here in New England lately, I may just have to start a rain boot collection.

Beautiful Image of the Day

2012-05-07T09:00:00.000-04:00

Happy Monday Everyone!

I am off to explore Boston today and hope to return with some images to share. In the meantime enjoy this gorgeous Swedish dining room complete with a spectacular chandelier, fabulous palladium window, and sparsely but intelligently selected furnishings.

This Place Makes Me Smile

2012-05-03T11:19:00.000-04:00

A mix of high end vintage, flea market finds, and Ikea work to take a circa 1970's flat into circa 2012 fabulousness.

A 1960's era Verner Panton Flowerpot pendant lamp and the original 1970's wallpaper couldn't be any fresher or up-to-date. I adore the pretty colors and fun pattern.

This cool mix of Ikea sofa, rug, and lamp with an original Hans J. Wegner's arm chair, CH29, fun art and bright white walls keep this space airy and interesting.

What a fun place for a 20-Something to live and enjoy...almost makes me want to be in my 20's again (ok maybe not!). Smile, smile, smile.

Image source: http://www.skonahem.com/inspiration/Inspirerandehem/Loppislycka-i-70-talshuset

Love, Love, Love

2012-04-30T14:43:00.000-04:00

Now, I know I am a little late to the scene when it comes to love, love, loving the Mattie Luxe product line but that doesn't make my admiration (and desire for everything on this website) any less. The Lucite trays and place-mats are fun, sassy, beautiful, and practical all rolled into one. Each order is customized with a fun graphic pattern, initial, monogram or name. Wow, there are so many really cool options that it is going to be so hard to choose!

I think I could be very comfortable here....and you?

2012-04-27T13:33:00.001-04:00

Images via http://www2.skeppsholmen.se

Have a wonderful weekend!

Day 2 & 3: The Past and the Present

2012-04-25T11:00:00.000-04:00

But let’s start with the present – Accepted Student’s Day at my student’s college of choice. Being the parent of one daughter already in college and the second nearly on her way has provided a perspective that I didn’t have three years ago. I feel like I’m an old pro at dealing with sending a child off to college. Thank goodness for that because I was a wreck the first time around. This time though I’m smooth sailing…

On Saturday we had the great pleasure of accompanying our daughter at her accepted student’s day. It gave us another look at the physical surroundings of her university and a greater understanding of the program she has been admitted to. Such a proud day to be her mom!

And the past – Holy Cross Cathedral & Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Two architectural gems that are a must see in Boston. I could do an entire post on the Gardner Museum (an may just do that sometime) but for now take a gander at this amazing and beautiful place.

Holy Cross Cathedral

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum - Boston, MA

So we have now completed day three of our mother-daughter bonding extravaganza and I’m a bit beat but loving every minute. T-minus four months until she spreads her wings and heads off to college.

Day 1: The Prom Dress

2012-04-23T10:00:00.000-04:00

www.rockcastleflorist.com

Ladies, you remember back to your high school prom shopping day’s right? Remember the stress, pressure, and sometimes tears that went with finding the perfect prom dress. Maybe your mom joined you on the prom dress hunt and, pulling a frilly, apricot and lime green colored, lace embellished atrocity from the rack proclaimed “oh isn’t this pretty!” And maybe you responded with an exaggerated eye-roll and a snarky comment that loudly proclaimed (and in front of other mother-daughter shoppers) that your mother had the lamest taste EVER! Well, that hell known as prom dress shopping visited my life last week…but fortunately it turned out to be a little piece of heaven for me.

Prom dress shopping is one of those mother-daughter rites of passage that can be a wonderful bonding experience or an ‘I want to dig out my eyes and strangle you at the same time’ experience. Some mom’s have been known to come home from the prom dress shopping drama and not want just a glass of wine to calm their frazzled nerves, but an entire bottle of wine with a straw! But when it goes well, it can be the most special mother-daughter time, one that offers a preview to the ultimate mother-daughter shopping experience of all time – wedding dress shopping.

Looking back to my own prom dress shopping extravaganza I remember being a giant pill to my mother. I had a vision in my head about what the perfect dress should look like and there was no changing my mind, no compromise on my part, and the most unpleasant of all attitudes – no consideration for cost. I threw a hissy-fit in the mall when my mom suggested the dress I wanted was too expensive and maybe we should keep looking. Considering all of my drama you would think that I had picked out something suitable only for the haute couture runways…but no….I picked out this little beauty!

Yup, that’s me circa 1981 with my dapper date – whom, by the way, I bumped into four months ago at an event and nearly dropped on the spot. But I digress. The dress! The atrocious dress! What was I thinking?

Fast forward to April 2012 and find me, now the mom, in the mall with a teenage daughter. She had a fairly clear idea about what she wanted and, unlike her bratty mother, was considerate of price. She carefully, thoughtfully, and conscientiously looked through the racks and selected a couple of lovely choices. I have learned to not show too much enthusiasm towards any dress that I like because it is certainly the kiss-of-death so when she came out of the dressing room in dress #1 I stood there with eyes wide open at my beautiful daughter. She carefully considered the dress and deciding it may not be the one, asked me to go back into the store to bring her a dress we had both seen earlier and had admired. She tried it on and we both lit up! It was beautiful. It was perfect. And it was on sale!

BCBGMAXAZRIA

For her there was no lace embellished, gunny-sack inspired, hoop-hiding hideousness. She had the good taste to select something timeless and classic.

As we lingered with the elegant image reflecting back at us in the mirror I realized that mother’s don’t accompany their daughter’s on this important shopping adventure simply to exhort their dress selection opinions (although that can sometimes be the case). We are there to witness the coming of age of the most important female in the world to us. Witnessing the prom dress selection process is nearly as important to us as witnessing their first baby steps. After all, in some ways it is their first steps…into adulthood. And, maybe most importantly it is a step closer to being more than just a daughter, but a friend as well.

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Did you enjoy reading this post? If so, please share it with your friends. Thanks so much! xo

Finally Friday…

2012-04-20T11:30:00.000-04:00

I’m exhausted. No really…exhausted. The kind of feel-it-in-your-bones exhaustion that comes from trying to keep up with 18 year old teenage girls. “Why in the world would you try to do that” you ask? Because being a mom of a soon-to-be college student makes one realized that time with her will be dramatically limited in just a few short months, and taking whatever time I can get with her now is of the highest priority.

So with that in mind I spent the last five days with my daughter and two of her girlfriends exploring Boston and reflecting on the value of the mother-daughter relationship. Next week I will blog about our adventures and will share some images from the places we visited, some laughs that inevitably came from spending time with my silly daughter and her friends, and some tears that were shed as we ended the week mourning the loss of a beloved mother/wife/daughter/sister/friend in our community.

But for now I will wish you a happy Friday and a wonderful weekend full of love and family.

Beautiful Image of the Day

2012-04-18T12:00:00.000-04:00

Simple, clean, fresh & bright. Most definitely a beautiful image and place to call home.

(Image Source)

Charlestown

2012-04-16T12:00:00.000-04:00

If you read my earlier post, Avolli Anew, you know that there have been some changes in my life over the past few months. Some were good, some not so good, but none were really bad (thank goodness). One of the really good changes that I did not mention earlier is that we will be moving to Boston sometime in the next few months. There are a few major details that need to get worked out first but while I am waiting for that to happen I have been researching where we might want to live.

It has been a long time since I have had to consider real estate and I have found it extremely exciting to think about. Do we want urban or suburban? Do we want house or condo? Do we want big or small? How many bedrooms do ‘empty nesters’ need? These are all fun propositions that, for the most part, don’t have simple answers.

The one question that was simple to answer was urban vs. suburban. We decided that we absolutely want an urban experience. We want to be able to open the door and walk to great restaurants, the theater, shopping, and museums. Since we don’t need to worry about school systems, yards for swing sets, or streets suitable for tricycles anymore, we knew it was time to redefine how we live our lives. With that issue settled, the next question is which urban neighborhood is just right for us?

On Wednesday I took a small step towards learning more about one of the notable communities in the Boston area: Charlestown. Charlestown is an historic community that is famous for the battle of Bunker Hill, the USS Constitution, and most recently it was the setting for Ben Affleck’s 2010 film, The Town.

As I enjoyed a self-directed walking tour, I snapped a few pictures that capture some of the best of this beautiful community.

This next image is a 'two-fer'. The Bunker Hill Monument is in the background and a Freedom Trail monument is in the foreground.

Here are some images of the many beautiful doors that welcome people home...

This next image is of the building that was used in the movie The Town (we are huge fans in our house). This entire block faces the Bunker Hill Monument park and I would go crazy to live in one of the units. They are beautiful, well maintained and have an amazing view of the obelisk.

Remember the scene in The Town when Doug MacRay (played by Ben Affleck) pulls up outside his girlfriends house and finds a funeral arrangement hanging on the gate? Well, here is the gate...

To make my day even better, I met a nice young woman out walking her dog along the Bunker Hill Monument Park. But it wasn't just any dog...it was a Bernese Mountain Dog. If you've followed my blog in the past you"ll know that I am a freak about BMD's. His name was Charlie. He was 7 months old and was as sweet as they come. Seeing Charlie out for a walk gave me pause to wonder if it was a sign. You know, one of those divine interventions that tell you that you're either doing the right thing or the wrong thing. If it was a sign then it was definitely telling me that I'm doing the right thing...however, it may not be the right place. You see, as beautiful as Charlestown is, I think it may not be the right place for us. Time will tell...more exploring to do.

I'll keep you posted.

Exploring Boston

2012-04-13T12:00:00.000-04:00

I am looking forward to the next few days! We are exploring Boston and attending our daughter's 'accepted students day' event at her soon-to-be-university. We couldn't be more excited and proud to say 'We're with HER'.

Boston is a small big city. It is big enough to get lost in yet small enough to walk to many of the most popular and interesting venues. It is has fashion forward moments while still possessing Yankee practicality through and through. The weather is supposed to be in the 70's and I can't wait to take it all in. Here is what I think I'll be wearing...

Exploring Boston by swedantique featuring super skinny jeans

James perse t shirt, $129
Jersey knit cardigan, £18
Hudson Jeans super skinny jeans
Tory burch shoes, $227
Rebecca Minkoff leather tote bag, $595
Gold diamond ring, $99
Gorjana 18k earrings, $95
Oroton bracelet, 35 AUD
Persol sunglasses, $310

Free...Free...Free

2012-04-11T10:30:00.000-04:00

Have you noticed how gluten free, dairy free, fat free, sugar free, free…free…free diets are everywhere now. It is amazing how many people from all age groups and geographic areas are requesting, either out of necessity or choice, to have a diet that is ‘free’ of something.

Last summer one of my daughters needed to make the switch to a non-inflammatory diet that involved removing all gluten, dairy, and non-hydrogenated oils from her diet. Shortly after, my other daughter (who is a vegetarian) was diagnosed with lactose intolerance. Going gluten, dairy, non-hydrogenated oil free was a huge personal commitment on daughter #1’s part, and going dairy free was an absolute necessity on daughter #2’s part. For me, it was a big adjustment when it came to food shopping and meal planning. I’ve learned to read all the microscopic print on food labels (necessitating the use of ‘readers’ on a much more regular basis than my pride would like) and to watch carefully for items containing all forms of oil. Do you realize how hard it is to find foods that do not contain gluten, dairy, and oil?! It’s a needle in a haystack exercise that we do on a regular basis.

Fortunately the growing population demanding gluten free foods has resulted in some very good options. We have some fan favorites in our house (King Arthur makes a fabulous bread mix that we all can eat and enjoy) and a wonderful bakery has opened up in our community that is absolutely fabulous.

This past weekend we had our family together for Easter and I wanted to make sure everyone was fed well, was happy and satisfied. To accomplish this requires planning ahead and allowing time for baking and shopping at specialty shops. Our all-time favorite place is Bam Bam Bakery in the Old Port. They make the best of everything. So I decided to make it easy on myself and buy what I could and make what I couldn't. We were not disappointed. Their bread is perfect for sandwiches, breakfast toast, Panini’s and I’ve even made croutons and little hors d’oeuvre toasts out of it. It is quite multi-purpose and yummy to boot! But really the choir singing, light-from-the-heavens moment comes when you taste their sweets. Just to-die-for. We’ve tried the many grocery store mixes and on-line recipes before but they are hit or miss and Bam Bam is always a full on bulls-eye.

(Images via: www.bambambakery.com)

When I do do the cooking at home, we have a few family favorites that have proven to be both easy and tasty. In the sweets department, ‘Oh Henry’ bars are fantastic. They are chewing and chocolaty and sooo yummy.

Find a great recipe for Oh Henry bars here

In the side dish department, quinoa is at the top of the list. It is quick, high in protein, and tastes sooo good. For added flavor I always cook it with “No-Chicken Chicken broth” to accommodate the non-meat eater in the family. We like to add sautéed veggies and spices as well. Toss in some cooked shrimp and it is a full-on meal.

The ever growing options in the gluten-free pasta department have made life a whole lot easier too. On a night that we want something quick and easy we just throw the noodles in a pot of boiling water, add a delicious and easy homemade red sauce and we are good-to-go. Here is my recipe for our family’s favorite red sauce:

28oz can whole tomatoes (undrained)
15oz can tomato sauce
1 tbl. olive oil (olive oil is an acceptable oil thank goodness!)
1 clove of garlic, minced
2 tbl. parsley flakes
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. dried basil leaves
1/2tsp. salt

Sauté the garlic in the olive oil. Add the whole tomatoes and break up into small pieces. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 45 minutes.

The aroma and the flavor is amazing. Enjoy!

Wanna go gluten free? Here are some great cook books to try out:

Simply Stunning

2012-04-09T14:49:00.000-04:00

In the past I have focused on featuring beautiful homes from Scandinavia. They have such a clean, crisp, bright and fresh feeling to them and often blend the best of both the old and the new together.

Going forward that won’t change, so I was thrilled to find this gorgeous place featured in SkonaHem. It has a somewhat American feel to the design while still representing the core of classic Swedish design.

The antique armchairs are Danish and from the 1800’s and the chest are Swedish and from the same era. The pop of chartreuse, along with the zebra striped hand tufted wool carpet designed by Christian Lacroix create an exciting and fresh vignette.

This is a lovely Swedish console table from the 1800's with cabriole legs. Isn't the sea horse lamp fun and adorable! The bright lemon-yellow velvet sofa is from Josef Frank but couldn’t be more ‘American’ in its overall design. I could soooo see myself living in this space and feeling very much at home.

Simply stunning don't you think?

Easter Sunday Fashion

2012-04-06T09:58:00.000-04:00

Fashion has never been a part of my blog in the past but I thought it would be a fun topic to include from time-to-time on Avolli Anew. Fashion is something that I have always enjoyed but have never felt I could indulge in to any great extent because there were always other demands for our disposable income. Don’t get me wrong, I haven’t been wearing rags. It's just that when it came to serious fashion I always found other more practical uses for our dollars, especially while raising our two daughters.

As time has gone by I have found myself at a lovely stage where the fashion universe is coming into alignment. I am freer to allow myself a fashion indulgence and I am more comfortable (on several psychological levels) when doing so. It’s rather exciting. With this in mind I thought it would be fun to put together my ideal Easter outfit. I want to be classic yet up-to-date, age appropriate yet not ‘old school’ (wait a minute…did I just inadvertently call myself ‘old school’? jeez!). Here is what I came up with.

The trench is necessary where I live because it is still cold and rain is predicted and I can't decide if the handbag is something the MY grandmother would have carried or if it is a classic trend design. What do you think? Be honest…I’ve been out of the fashion frame of mind for so many years that I’m a little rusty. Help me, guide me, and coach me. I want the bold, honest, truth. My fashion awareness is a bit rusty and I think I have some catching up to do.

Easter Sunday by swedantique featuring patent leather platform pumps

Akris cap sleeve dress, $2,690

MICHAEL Michael Kors michael kors coat, 350 CAD
Rupert Sanderson patent leather platform pumps, $705
Dolce Gabbana dolce gabbana handbag, $2,245
Stella Dot clover jewelry, $39
Zadig Voltaire gold plating jewelry, $1,680
Bright jewelry
Kate Spade chain jewelry, $148
Oliver Peoples gradient sunglasses, $365
Jil Sander paisley scarve, £330
DONKEY PRODUCT Set of 3 Easter Candles Bunny, €10

Avolli Anew

2012-04-04T12:31:00.000-04:00

Two months ago, on February 1, 2012, it felt like it was the first day of the rest of my life; a cliché but an accurate sentiment of how I felt on that day. It was the first day that I was completely unemployed (in a paid position) for the first time in nine years. While the decision to close my business of nine years and offer my notice to a small paid position at my church was both saddening and uplifting at the same time, the physical steps that were required to execute that plan were gut wrenching and frightening.

Back in May of 2011 I made the painful decision to close my beloved Swedish antique importing business. The process of going public with that decision, liquidating the merchandise, and taking care of all of the administrative loose ends was humbling, emotionally exhausting, and freeing all at the same time. But in February, nearly nine months later, I closed that chapter, resigned from the position at the church, and found myself standing at the gateway to an exciting and new existence.

While completely unexciting but entirely satisfying, the first month was spent organizing the home and life I have created over the past 47 years, 13 of which have been spent in the same house. That’s nearly 28% of my life lived in the same house…not a long time by some standards but an eternity by others. It is 13 years of acquiring, collecting, and storing. Thirteen years that have included the many stages of my daughter’s lives (pre-school, soccer teams, music lessons, art classes…) and 13 years of additions to my husband’s tool collection (sigh!).

Organization of this magnitude required more than one month, and included countless trips to the re-sale shops, to the local Catholic Charities organization for our ‘donations’, the recycling center, and yes even the community dump. The transformation within our home has been symbolic of the transformation going on inside of me at the same time. It has been freeing.

Going forward this blog will stand as a testament to the transformation and evolution taking place in my life; both my personal life and my professional life will be changing and growing in wonderful ways…I have faith. With that in mind, the name has changed to Avolli Anew, a fitting title to reflect the new direction of the blog content and the ‘new me’. To those who have followed Avolli in the past, thank you for your loyalty, for your patience, and for your kindness! To those of you are who are new, welcome! To everyone…I’m so happy to be back.