Artful Whimsies

One Week and Counting----Round Top, Royers, The Prairie, Marburger

2011-09-19T21:41:00.001-05:00

Wow! I cannot believe it's only one week---time to rev the motor and head south to Round Top. Rachel Ashwell has the best post about her preps. I love the look of the Shabby Chic Couture Store. Here are some shots from Rachel's post.

http://rachelashwellshabbychic.blogspot.com/2011/09/home-and-play-on-range.html

Royer's Round Top Cafe

2011-09-14T19:44:00.000-05:00

Can't wait to taste Bud's pies plus everything else. Yummy Yummy food. Haven't eaten there for a couple of years. Wish there was a Royer's here in Dallas. http://www.royersroundtopcafe.com/ Royer's is catering the lunch at The Prairie on the 26th.

OMGS!!!! (Oh My God) Eats From Royers Round Top Cafe!

2011-09-14T19:35:00.000-05:00

OMGS!!!! (Oh My God) Eats From Royers Round Top Cafe!

"The Prairie" done with Shabby Chic Style

2011-09-13T18:32:00.000-05:00

The Ranger's Lodge at the Prairie is my kind of place. So chic, but oh so shabby! I absolutley love it.

Ranger's Lodge.

Rachel Ashwell of Shabby Chic recently opened the B &B. More to come later

http://www.theprairiebyrachelashwell.com/tour.html

Frisco Mercantile Suite/Booth

2011-09-12T07:45:00.000-05:00

I'm loving the choice to have a booth at Frisco Mercantile on Preson Rd., Frisco, Texas. Met so many nice people and has spurred me to do some great paintings.

Dwell with dignity

2011-09-11T21:20:00.000-05:00

Dwell with Dignity is a non-profit group of Interior Designers and volunteers dedicated to creating soothing, inspiring homes for families struggling with homelessness and poverty. We provide and install home interiors for families that include furnishings and art, bedding and kitchen supplies, and food in the pantry.

I'm one of 35 bloggers that will be having lunch with Shabby Chic's Rachel Ashwell at "The Prairie, Rachel's new B & B in Round Top, Texas. A portion of the lunch cost is benefitting dwell with dignity.

Nate recently had a segment on dwell with dignity. Attached is the link: https://webmail.lisd.net/owa/redir.aspx?C=023d570c834b4c9a8460dc25e5c184e4&URL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.thenateshow.com%2fvideos%2fdetail%2f2625

Lunch with Rachel Ashwell

2011-09-11T06:21:00.000-05:00

I am shocked that most of the people I work with at school or know in life do not know what shabby chic is or who Rachel Ashwell is. Katie and I are going to "The Prairie" (her new B & B) in Round Top to have luch with her and 33 other bloggers. Looking forward to it.

Frisco Mercantile Suite

2011-08-08T09:45:00.004-05:00

I now am selling my Susie Q paintings at Frisco Mercantile, 8980 Preston Road, Frisco, Texas ; suite 1405. You may see the paintings at facebook.com/susieqoriginals. We also have a shopping cart. If you like our paintings in August, we are giving away a 12 x 12 of your choice of theme in a drawing Sept. 1st.. Thanks. Susan Phillips "SusieQ"

Wisteria Store

2010-12-26T20:34:00.003-06:00

Went to the new Wisteria Store near Love Field in Dallas the other day. The store is set up in the most wonderful vignettes. It really shows their products off; the decorator/stylist is very talented. Here's a couple of pictures from their site. They had these fantastic large pinecones hanging from the ceilings--I want them.

Flossie New Wall Art

2010-12-26T10:17:00.003-06:00

Flossie, Patsy's Dog. completed 12/24/10

Eddie Ross going to Marburger at Round Top

2010-11-28T18:36:00.004-06:00

Picture from http://www.eddieross.com/

Eddie Ross and Jaithan Kochar are having one of their flea market shopping trips at Marburger Farm at Round Top on Wednesday, March 30th at 11AM. My daughters and I have signed up; don't know what my principal is going to think of me off on a Wednesday.

This is Eddie's profile that I cut and pasted from his profile on his blog. http://www.eddieross.com/ (Hope he doesn't mind.)

A native of Greenwich, CT and graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Eddie began his career working in television, first as a food editor on Martha Stewart Living and later as Associate Design Director for all in-house production at Food Network.
After a two-year stint running his own catering company, where he continued to refine his skills in decorating and entertaining, Eddie made the move to publishing. As Associate Decorating Editor at House Beautiful, he produced the popular “Weekend Shopper,” a monthly article in which he’d travel to flea markets around the country, giving new life to old things.
As the Senior Style Editor of Martha Stewart Living , Eddie continued to inspire readers with clever ways of integrating vintage furniture and objects into clean, classic design. From decorating and entertaining to food styling and flowers, Eddie produced consistently elegant stories that related to a variety of people’s tastes and budgets.
In 2008, after an appearance on season two of Bravo's Top Design, Eddie left the publishing world to start a lifestyle company, along with partner Jaithan Kochar, a graduate of Stanford University and the Rhode Island School of Design. Based in upstate New York, Eddie Ross, Inc. offers interior design and styling services, event production, and an online boutique for vintage tabletop and giftware. Together, Eddie and Jaithan also produce a daily blog at eddieross.com with inspirational tips and information on how to decorate and entertain both beautifully and affordably.In October 2009, Eddie appeared on the HGTV special Halloween Block Party in which he transformed the classic tale, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, into a beautiful, budget-friendly party. Shortly thereafter, he appeared on Celebrity Holiday Homes, another HGTV special in which he decorated Kathie Lee Gifford's house for the holidays.
For inquiries, contact eddie@eddieross.com and mailto:jaithan@eddieross.com

Sears: Tips for Decorating your Entryway for the Holidays

2010-11-27T19:16:00.001-06:00

http://www.eddieross.com/eddie_ross/

Eddie has done it again. He has partnered with Sears so that we have the chance to win $250. He created a wonderful front entry. Been a fan since Eddie was on Top Design and have followed his blog as a must read. He always has great ideas and is a very talented stylist. I don't know about you, but I need a new tree.

Feed it forward

2010-11-27T05:38:00.004-06:00

Restaurant.com is letting us give free $10 gift certificates every day until New Years. How often does this happen? I've always been happy with our restaurant.com restaurants. It gives us the chance to try places we wouldn't otherwise try.

Give $10 Restaurant.com Gift Certificates to your friends and family. You can give up to 40 every day through December 31. It's a great holiday gift for everyone on your list. And the best part is - it's FREE! Giving big starts with you

Laptop Sweeps

2010-11-19T05:36:00.002-06:00

CHECK THIS OUT!!
There will be FOUR (4) laptop giveaways going on at BlogHer, so don’t miss that too. You will have plenty of time to sign up for all during the sweepstakes period.
Go here to enter ALL the giveaways and for more information, check out the Blogher.com round-up page: BlogHer.com exclusive offers page.
Which of these Intel features would benefit you the most??
Please follow these instructions for entering TWO times only:
No duplicate comments.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
Follow this link and provide your email address and your response to the sweepstakes prompt
Sweepstakes runs from 11-17 to 12/22/10 and ends at 5 PM PST on December 22, 2010
This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older.
Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail.
You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
The Official Rules are available here.

2010-11-10T14:11:00.002-06:00

5 must have trends from editor of LONNY MAG

Michelle Adams of LONNY MAG http://www.lonnymag.com/ was on Nate’s show today http://www.thenateshow.com/. She says that true style is not about the price tag.

1. organic tea towels

2. hi gloss paint

3. affordable art

4. marbleized papers used in home accessories

5. metallics
They showed some dishes from West Elm that I’ve see and must agree they are wonderful.

My Favorite Blogs.

2010-11-10T12:32:00.006-06:00

My favorite blogs, and there are 5 at the moment, are great. They are full of inspiration, information, and DIY. They are the first things I read every morning. And the pictures are the best. They are Chez Fifi, Paint me white, Made by girl, and Centsational girl.

Below are the links:

http://www.paintmewhite.com/

http://fabulousfifi.typepad.com/chez_fifi/

http://madebygirl.blogspot.com/

http://www.centsationalgirl.com/

The picture above is Fifi's book coming out in the spring. I hope she doesn't mind that I borrowed it. She is an inspiration.

Autumn at the Arboretum

2010-11-07T21:51:00.005-06:00

Pumpkin Village

Today we took a trip to the Dallas Arboretum. I've lived in Dallas for almost 32 years but had never took the trip. It boosts to have the only Pumpkin Village in the world, however, the thing that interested me most was "HOW IN THE WORLD DO THEY GET THE PLANTS TO GROW SO BIG"! They must use mega fertilizer.

Life as We Know It (2010)

2010-10-27T05:19:00.002-05:00

Life as We Know It (2010)
114 min - Comedy | Drama - In theaters now

Enjoyed it. Sad in parts, but perfect chick flick.

Repro Men

2010-03-19T15:22:00.003-05:00

I think I need my head examined. I went to see Repro Men this morning and WHEW!!!!!!!!! What was I thinking. The idea is starteling to say, but a movie dedicated to reproing organs. It was bloody to say the least. What was FW thinking?

Off to paint the bedroom. A much better use of my time.

Wisteria

2010-03-19T03:45:00.002-05:00

Yesterday we made the shopping circle. First, the Tuesday Morning Last Call on Inwood. I bought a bathroom rug for $2.00 and some kitchen towels for $4. Then the cutest lamp store on Lovers Lane. Have to go back there. Next, to the most unforgetable fabric outlet on Harry Hines--it was not good. Large, but not good. Now I know where I can get a large selection on spandex. Finally, the last stop was the Wisteria Outlet. I love this place. I've never bought anything big, but I absolutely love everything that I have bought there. I bought some pillows similar to these but in greens and turquoise for $5 each. The colors were perfect for me as was the price.

Junk Yard Madness

2010-03-17T19:53:00.002-05:00

For the last two days I've carted my son to some bizarre junk yards. He's looking for a car hood for an art project---just the right hood. What we've found out is these junk yard guys don't want to sell their junk. I thought this would be an easy experience but no.

ETSy

2010-01-03T15:18:00.001-06:00

New Moon

2009-11-21T04:55:00.005-06:00

Yesterday I went to see New Moon. Actually I had taken off from work because my dog, Bear, was geting fixed, and he doesn't know how to drive. Seemed like a good excuse to see the movie.

I was a little shocked by the $12 price tag for HD but well worth it. The storyline is basically true to the book, and I, a true movie freak, loved it. There were a lot of teenagers skipping school there, and what I found most surprising, quite a few adult males sitting alone very engrossed in the show. Bet they didn't read that book at lunch.

Looking forward to the third movie already. I don't know how they made great movies before computer graphics.

2009-11-01T08:46:00.001-06:00

2009-09-27T16:42:00.001-05:00

Betty's Birdies--Finches. This past summer I was in Fulton, NY for a family reunion, and my aunt Betty had tons of yellow finches eating at her bird feeder. Inspiration.