Blooming seed pod
All-time favorite - coneflowers
Palm tree beauty, great color and textures.
water colors
Not sure what this perennial is called, but it is lovely. Red and yellow painted flowers from the same bush.
Bunny planters greet me at the front steps
Posted in Decor, Home, Landscaping, Outer Banks, Southern Shores, Things to Do, Uncategorized
Tagged gardening, Landscaping, Outdoors, Outer Banks
Finished this book.
A New York Times Notable Book for 2011
Participated in the Wine Down 5K in pretty good time (for me).
Sanctuary Vineyards, Jarvisburg, NC
Finished 6 week training with the Steel Magnolia’s at Outer Banks Bootcamps.
At the Wright Brothers Monument
Blooming flowers in the backyard:
Purpole Coneflower "echinacea purpurea"
Hubs fixed the outside shower, It’s the best shower in the house. I asked him if he could make it a wee bit bigger; first he said no. But after his shower this morning, he agreed. I’m hoping he’ll make it big enough for a small bench, and then maybe we could get satellite tv and a microwave oven and I’ll never come indoors again #justkidding.
Posted in Books, Fitness, Home, Outer Banks, Things to Do, Travel, Uncategorized
Tagged Book Reviews, gardening, Outer Banks, Running
Lately I’ve been listening to upbeat, retro soul music, or R&B. A few of my favorites:
This tune by Raphael Saadiq with Joss Stone takes me back to Motown: Just One Kiss.
This song wins the award for the corniest lyrics, but Ray Parker, Jr., and Raydio will have you dancing around the kitchen! Jack and Jill.
And here’s a great tune by Mayer Hawthorne that takes me back to the after- school dance in 8th grade.
Nerdy in a soulful kind of way
Ultimate dance – Let’s Groove by Earth, Wind & Fire.
Greatest dance band ever
Posted in Fitness, Home, Music, Things to Do, Uncategorized
Tagged Dance, Outer Banks, Suitable for Work
One of my new favorite stores on the Outer Banks is The Loft, an upscale consignment store at MilePost 4 on the Bypass in Kitty Hawk. Proprietors Diane Fisher and Angela Brown have a great eye for quality and decor. Check out these beautiful items I found recently.
Richly colorful Asian Rugs
Solid wood farmhouse table and four chairs – not sure if the chairs are considered Windsor; whatever they are, they are well built and comfortable.
Posted in Decor, Home, Outer Banks, Shopping, Uncategorized
Tagged Furniture, Outer Banks, Rugs, Shopping
My last post inspired me to completely, no holds barred, head-to-toe empty my closet, clean, organize and purge. It was remarkably easy taking everything out, putting it back was a challenge.
I have a nice closet:
with lots of shelves
My plan was simple, based on tried and true advice. If it hadn’t been worn or used in a couple of years, or it no longer fit, out it goes. As a result, I took a huge bag of clothing and shoes to The Loft in Kitty Hawk for consignment.
Wine bottles in tall boots keep them from flopping over
For now, my closet is a warm, inviting place and I have a greater appreciation for the things I have and wear regularly.
Posted in Decor, Fashion, Home, New Year's Resolutions, Uncategorized
Tagged organizing, Suitable for Work, Women's clothing
Sniff, sniff. Baby needs a lot of things and a girl’s weekend shopping trip in DC or Charlotte is at the top of my list. It just isn’t in the cards right now, so sometimes the next best thing is to look at your clothes and shoes in a different light. Mixing them up, trying new combinations.
And that usually means its time to clean out my closet and organize. I have just gotten inspired from this:
The Glitter Guide: Style At Home: Krystal Of This Time Tomorrow. Take a look at the way her shoes are organized. For one thing they are up at eye level, which is way cool. And one shoe is facing front, the other facing back. You can see the toe and heel at the same time, it probably saves a little space too.
And I found this advice at www.kaboose.com: A Clean Closet is a Happy Closet
“Organize your wardrobe by type, and then by color within type. For example, arrange your closet as follows: dresses, skirts, pants, blazers and jackets, sweaters, blouses, long-sleeve shirts, and short-sleeve shirts.
Organize items within each clothing type according to color, such as: black, brown, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet.”
I know what I’ll be doing this weekend.
Closet cleaning and window shopping…
I love this dress, it’s timeless. Paired with this bag by Jimmy Choo, and neutral pumps, classic style.
Posted in Fashion, Goals, Home, Shopping, Uncategorized
Tagged organizing, Shoes, Shopping, Style, Suitable for Work, Women's clothing
I stopped by the big grand opening party at The Loft last Saturday. The Loft is a new upscale consignment store on the Bypass in Kitty Hawk (Milepost 4). I say consignment, but don’t be misled to think it’s a dreary place with piles of old broken furniture and grandpa’s old suits. The ambience at The Loft is inviting and comfortable, ala Pottery Barn.
I asked owner Diane Fisher to define her creative input. She said, “I have eclectic taste. I like funky and well-made items, and I like to mix this in with classic pieces.”
She has definitely created warm and tempting vignettes with high quality furniture, rich textiles, lighting, and fun accessories. I was enamored with a baby blue sleigh bed and bed linens.
Her partner, Angie Brown, oversees the clothing consignments and has collected some great pieces from designers like Marc Jacobs, Fendi, Vera Wang and Seven For All Mankind. A full-length fur coat graces a manikin next to a shabby chic china cabinet.
Over 300 people attended and enjoyed appetizers by Chef Wes Stepp of Red Sky Cafe and music by DJ Fresh.
Check back again – I am going to feature a weekly update on new merchandise at The Loft.
Posted in Decor, Fashion, Home, Outer Banks, Shopping, Uncategorized
Tagged Furniture, Jeans, Lighting, Shopping, Style, Women's clothing
As I was stumbling the Internet the other day, I came across a blog, www.thenester.com. The tagline is “It doesn’t have to be perfect to be beautiful.”
The gist of the current post, as with most New Year’s posts, is about setting goals. And the goals at The Nester are relative to house and home.
Which got me thinking. I live in a 25 year old reverse-floor plan single family home. We’ve made three major renovations, but it’s still a REVERSE FLOOR PLAN. For those of you not familiar with this layout, a reverse floor plan is a house on pilings (typically 8 feet above ground), with a drive under or carport and (hopefully) an entry on the ground floor, bedrooms on the middle floor, and kitchen, living, dining and maybe an extra bedroom on the top floor. A lot of homes on the Outer Banks are built this way to take advantage of views of the ocean or sound from the upper floors.
No Water Views Here
As the trees grew in our back yard, our views of the ocean dwindled. We haven’t had a view of the water for at least 10 years. We love where we live, but we are over the stairs. We want our main living areas – the kitchen, living and master bedroom to share the same floor at ground level. But tearing down and starting over is a major expense and not in our foreseeable budget.
So we’re stuck in a mode of not doing anything, except basic maintenance. But the post at The Nester made me take pause and think about making some goals of my own. Here are a few of her ideas (I won’t list them all here, just the ones that spoke to me):
Posted in Goals, Home, House Plans, New Year's Resolutions, Outer Banks, Uncategorized
Tagged Beach, Design, Floor Plans, Outer Banks, Style
