Sarong sized drip dyes pink through charcoal and pale grey, grecian wrapped perfect for the balcony. Along with a fringed pale grey scarf and Stella Jewelry’s triple pearl necklace were just the things to finish this emsemble off.

Even a Product of France.  Perfection, we can mix it with champagne and – Viola, KGP,  the signature drink of the evening.  So what could go wrong you might ask. So we purchase the $22 dollar bottle of 17% proof liqueur.

On a side note, I have never heard of a “liqueur” that has a alcohol percentage of only 17% thats a wine isn’t it.  European Standard may be required here.  Yes, they have regulations for that sort of thing.  If there were no EU designations, where would we be.  Well, folks might call lemonade whisky and then where would my beloved husband, Tony, be?  I will tell you, it would break him.  I would have to install him in a home, where he would weep away the rest of his life.  That would make us all very unhappy, so we won’t even think about it.

On a positive note – low alcohol is a good thing for an Open House.  Is it not?

That’s where things started to show signs that this might not be a good idea. But, on to the taste test.  I like it, neat over ice, it is good and flavorful, crisp and eventful.  This coming from someone that does not actually like the taste of booze.  Beer – I am very picky, Wine, not so much, if its red and not vinegar I’m in.  Liqueur, I like it, but it need to taste of something completely different.  Not a Martini but a Sour Apple Martini, not a tequila but a Margarita, salt lime on the rocks.  All fun for the first one.  Won’t notice after that, so don’t waste your time decorating the rim of the glass.

I am fussy about some things though.  I think might be is the Decorator in me.  I like some things done a certain way.  I have to have fabric pattern lined up, it upsets me, physically, if they are not.  Wall paper and carpet – visible seams, I go, not only postal, but nuclear.  If you are contractor and you think I won’t like it Don’t’ Freakin’ do it in the first place.  It’s not pretty.  But, back to the Tiffany drink, peachy, a little citrus, back splash of cognac, (yes, that was a decorator joke)

I like it, it’s fruity.  I like champagne too.  What could go wrong.  I am not snobby about interfering with tradition.  I would not however, spend more than $7 on Champagne (and France, please note that I use the term loosely) that I am going to adulterate with something.  All that said, I am feeling quite committed to a welcoming glass, well clear, plastic cup, of fizzy blue stuff for our guests.

So, I introduced the idea to Team Rose.  Roxy, my daughter, style consultant and custom Jeweler, says, immediately “THAT’S GHETTO”, who knew!  Certainly not the French, whom, I suspect created the blue stuff as an aperitif, unlike the green stuff (Absinth) which was created to provide a constant stream of inmates to the facilities of the rich asylum owners.  Anyway. Hpnotiq apparently should be mixed with Hennessy and drunk in cheap clubs.

Result – I am now drinking it with Vodka in the perfectly chilled martini glass.  Yes, shaken not stirred. I may be Ghetto but I like it.  I may watch a cheap horror film while I am home alone too.  So, what of it?  I am Ghetto this evening and Liking it.

The Open House will be March 7  – 6.30pm and it will be an RSVP event.  Boys can come too, especially if they are driving and packing plastic.  There will be a big Jewelry Trunk Show and I had a notion about ordering cashmere socks too, in a delicate shade of turquoise of course.

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Lanterns and Wreaths are amazing and almost, I said, almost as flexible as clear glass containers.

Lanterns – right through every season, change the candles, change the interior decor, carefull with all things flammable.

A little side note. Those electrical candles have come on a long way, we have them at the store in tapers and votives, the votives are wax and even have slight fragrance. The tapers are wax coated so they look great and have a 5 hour timer.

Lanterns are great for inside and outside, they are a little breeze resistant and Oh! So romantic. Buy carefully, and by that I mean ignore the season during which you buy them.

Think Flexibility. Select the size, style and scale carefully too. A variety of sizes, shapes and complementary colors can make a fine disply or just one on it own is awesome. Make sure not to mix your metaphors, stay within you homes style. By this we mean do not purchase very contemporary designs and mix them with a Shabby Sheek looking collection.

(Shabby Sheek seems to be having a more sophisticated resurgence. Glad about this, my clients will not be given trash at high prices, sold as the very latest in design.)

Wreaths, what can I say, don’t just hang them on the wall. We uses then all the time.  Love to use them around lamps, strung with lights, around candles, and yes! With lanterns. This wreath looks fresh, expensive and amazing. There are many faux, wreaths available.  Invest in some good blanks. If they are on a table like this one ready to have things added, hold the glue gun, things are not going to fall off. Use the wired stems (if available on the wreath or invest in some green florists wire) to twist elements into the floiage,  so that the basic wreath is not damaged and can be used many times. This is another blog I think.

So spend wisely and enjoy these fantastically, flexible home elements

If you can have a storage room area dedicated to flexibility, that is the most perfect thing. Thats another blog too.

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Nandina – Awesome and mostly free,

Look around the yard, add the clear glass, I keep nagging you about collecting, and we are saving oodles of cash.

We did these almost instantaneous arrangements for an event at the house, yesterday. We used the soft stems to hold the berries down by putting the berries in head first and resting the stems under the rim. Poured in the water, add a leafy bit and 1 minute later we have great impact for no time and no money.

So If you think you cannot do a little extra for each season, think again.

Building that clear glass container collection is the key to great seasonal decor.  This is a continuation of the theme for the Power Room, Simplicity and Repetition, always my rule. This piece stays right where it always lives, just added the nandina and a little water - 2 minutes tops. No excuses. I do paint the base of this piece occassionally.

I have a few of these vases that I use for events so being able to ring the changes on the wooden base, makes this a type of display piece a great investment. I think we have one left in the store too.

We are working on a number of design projects at the moment, one of them being staging an historic home in preparation for its sale. This home and a factory I am looking for lamps for led us to Black Dog Salvage.

In high expectation of finding artwork at reasonable prices. Items such as English hunt scenes prints and landscapes in reasonable quality frames. As most of you know Black Dog has changed over the years and now has more of a design center with a multiple vendor booth feel. For me, this visit confirmed my feeling that a little of Black Dogs charm has been lost, but there was plently of people wandering its floors. Many of the booths were similar in style.

Well Yes, you might say they are with the current trends in design. Not really the case but as uptodate as we can be in this neck of the woods.

That being said, we were in the wrong place.

Staging a home can be a costly expense, but a lot of care need to be taken in purchasing items as the future home is at this point unknown. We do not want to spend a ton of cash on items we may have to put in a moving sale. Black Dog has always been overpriced, but has now become the overpriced cousin of a New York salvage design center. We were more than shocked at some of the prices of things that were nothing special, but pleased to see local artists like Mary Bullingtons work on display.

We left with nothing and needed a beer, here lies the rescue of the afternoon. ‎1906 Ale House – 5 stars on a first visit, love this place, hope the next visit doesn’t disappoint us.

With a promise of beer we ventured in. Pleasantly greeted, we headed to the bar. We sat down in the comfortable and not overly done bar area. The beer selection was good and samples were offered.  I needed the healing power of Martini so went for a sour apple, not the best sour apple martini i have ever had, but more than adequate and welcome none the less.  Hubby selected the Big Daddy Dark Side Porter from the list on the wall, produced by Growlers micro brewery at Towers Mall.  The beer, a porter definately consistent for its type and definately worth drinking.

We ordered and shared an appetizer from the menu as we were already booked to eat elsewhere, later that evening.  We choose the Sausage and Rye squares.  This was remarkably good, 6 chuncks of rye bread topped with a hearty conglomeration of crumbled sausage meat with hints of fennel and cayenne, bound together with melted cheese; it was a pleasure, next time we will not be sharing this, it was the perfect snack for a chilly and weary afternoon. Reed, our Bartender, was very knowledgeable about everything on the menu and the drinks list, struck up fine but respectful conversation wilh all the guests at the bar, few, but as expected at the long dark tea time part of the day.

Following my martini, i choose a pear cider called Fox Barrel, a lovely choice for a lower alchohol, chuggable beverage.  Crisp and refeshing with a slight fizz to keep the patate cleansed, can’t wait for mid summer to sip on this fine offering.  On discussion about this, Reed suggested a special cocktail they make with Fox Barrel called the Fox Force Five, of course I had to try it, with a basis of gin and lemon juice it delivered a special treat.

Can’t wait to bring many friends to this establishment, mid priced and high quality, lets all work on keeping this ale house in business and consistent in terms of service and quality.

A great place to just stop in for a quick beer, too.

We love this pretty centerpiece with candles. The Credit

It’s all about the cool colors this year for some, but not for all.

If you want warmth, this is not the way, add reds and peaocks and golds and more greens.

But good news for mercury glass collectors. mercury is not going away just yet. So keep adding to your mercury and of course your clear glass container collection.

The Credit Image From Homesthetics.net on Pinterest

Just a few words about this image, as it is almost winter here in Southwest Virginia, well it feels like it today, anyway. Hard to think obout the Spring greens that are seen here.

Sunrooms are a perfect place to start thinking about “Given Greens” isn’t that the very reason we build them.

If you are going to build one, build it strong and make it fourseasons. A Sunroom needs to be part of the home, not an add on.

We choose this example, because having one wall mostly solid, makes the room usable and looks a lot more permenant than an all glass version.

Set you sunroom palette to be in line with the Given Greens and of course the “Natures Neutral” browns and silvers that will come as part of our darker seasons.

We have expanded our Fall Accessories to include this seasons favorites – metallics in champagnes, platinums and bronzes.  Perfect for Fall Fabulous, right through to all those Holiday Parties.

We have the Bling and we have the day stuff too.  Ruanas and Pashminas will keep you warm and stylishly timeless.

Credit

A Beautiful Photograph from Red Zena.

The title is “If it works in Nature…”

Well it does. Very rarely, if ever, do we see any color combinations. that seem to be a bit off in nature, unless it’s the fault of the Gardener.

So, look at this photograph with that in mind. Strong colors yes. but the proportion is there. It works when Nature does it, so allow Nature to guide you in your choices.

Cream, soft and stronger oranges, a little red, and a medium sized splodge of purple. On a backgrop of what we refer to as “Given Greens”  If you need more info on “Given Greens” there are more blogs on that, here.

Using strong colors is all about balance and proportion. If we were to consider a room in these colors, we would have paint in a soft cream with the soft orange under the chair rail or on a feature wall and the rest would be in fabrics.

That way you can ring out the changes in pillows and accessories.

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