Welcome to my online world,
celebrating all things beautiful for the home. If you are looking for a place that talks about iconic chairs, this is not it. I don't think we need things in our homes because they made it into the Design Hall of fame, but rather because they suit us and our lifestyle. To paraphrase William Morris, I think we should surround ourselves with things of beauty which are also useful. I like old china, but not if it's museum quality and irreplaceable. (There is a place for those things and it`s called a museum...) And I like silk cushions, but not if you won't serve red wine to your guests. I must admit here that I am a recovering type A person and this is not coming naturally to me. I am working on it...
I really like the relaxed philosophy of European interiors. They are not styled to within an inch of their lives. Some finishes are chipped, some glasses don't match, the carpets are sometimes faded; but they reflect a life well-lived, which is what I aspire to. I am also slightly uneasy with the perfectionist trend I see in design - I know things are styled for magazine shoots but the rooms, no matter how lovely, all look like model homes where no one comes in, tosses their coat and pours a glass of wine at the end of a long day. On top of that it seems every item in the house must have a pedigree and a name attached to it. I think my reaction to the now cliche term ``iconic`comes from the fact that really most of the furniture pieces to which the word is applied have been around for less than a hundred years. Sorry folks, that is not iconic. The pyramids are. And maybe the Klismos chair.
Getting off that awfully high soapbox and on to this website... this is an ongoing chronicle of the thrilling hunt for an old piece of silverware, the process of lovingly refurbishing well-made furniture, the display of modern art... quite the mix. I will happily share the great sources I fortuitously stumble upon, the lessons learned (yep, I expect more bumps in the way, like our continuing debate about the best upholstery choice for our shield back chairs).
The Papercrafting Blog, as its name implies, follows my (hopefully) progress in paper craft which I discovered a few years ago and pursue with passion. All Things Beautiful is a chronicle of our efforts to renovate, decorate, and otherwise make work projects for my husband... who luckily is handy, patient and loving. Finally, I like to keep track of the beautiful things I discover, and that`s Lovable Things. I also am an avid FB and Pinterest user and at this point I don`t even want to see another application or social network unless it can take over cooking and laundry from me.
Everywhere I can, I try to make selections that are gentle on the planet, as I find that it matters more and more to protect what we have and leave it for our children to enjoy.
As a final note, I now recognize that a home is never quite "done". It is a labor of love and it is always changing, adapting and growing with us. Here's to enjoying the journey, wherever it may take us.
I really like the relaxed philosophy of European interiors. They are not styled to within an inch of their lives. Some finishes are chipped, some glasses don't match, the carpets are sometimes faded; but they reflect a life well-lived, which is what I aspire to. I am also slightly uneasy with the perfectionist trend I see in design - I know things are styled for magazine shoots but the rooms, no matter how lovely, all look like model homes where no one comes in, tosses their coat and pours a glass of wine at the end of a long day. On top of that it seems every item in the house must have a pedigree and a name attached to it. I think my reaction to the now cliche term ``iconic`comes from the fact that really most of the furniture pieces to which the word is applied have been around for less than a hundred years. Sorry folks, that is not iconic. The pyramids are. And maybe the Klismos chair.
Getting off that awfully high soapbox and on to this website... this is an ongoing chronicle of the thrilling hunt for an old piece of silverware, the process of lovingly refurbishing well-made furniture, the display of modern art... quite the mix. I will happily share the great sources I fortuitously stumble upon, the lessons learned (yep, I expect more bumps in the way, like our continuing debate about the best upholstery choice for our shield back chairs).
The Papercrafting Blog, as its name implies, follows my (hopefully) progress in paper craft which I discovered a few years ago and pursue with passion. All Things Beautiful is a chronicle of our efforts to renovate, decorate, and otherwise make work projects for my husband... who luckily is handy, patient and loving. Finally, I like to keep track of the beautiful things I discover, and that`s Lovable Things. I also am an avid FB and Pinterest user and at this point I don`t even want to see another application or social network unless it can take over cooking and laundry from me.
Everywhere I can, I try to make selections that are gentle on the planet, as I find that it matters more and more to protect what we have and leave it for our children to enjoy.
As a final note, I now recognize that a home is never quite "done". It is a labor of love and it is always changing, adapting and growing with us. Here's to enjoying the journey, wherever it may take us.
