MY "MUST-HAVE" SHOES FROM OKA b!

Seriously, these are some of the CUTEST SHOES I've seen in a long...time!
Oh the colors, the "charms" on the toes, the details, the massage beads inside: they all make for a mighty cute shoe.

The arch support is:
"a gentle massaging arch .... finally a ballet flat suitable for every foot." 


The company is OKA b. Brands.


They are also (as if the colors weren't enough..) 100% recyclable meaning that you send back your old, worn shoes and they will be recycled into new products. Read about the program HERE.

They are MADE IN THE U.S.A. and they are priced under $45.00.
More details here.

So, go and buy some. Then take a picture of your feet in them, send it to me, and I'll do a post on everyone's purchase! I can't decide: I love that orange one below. But then again, the solids would be so versatile. Oh, and they're waterproof! 

Or, how about a slide? Just a hint of a heel.

Or a bit more heel:

Have fun shopping!

FRIDAY FLOWERS: BY THE BEACH

 

Beach roses.....

By the beach today, up in Rockport, Mass.!!

Back next week with more.

 

 

And this is what I had for lunch: lots of lobster...

a little whole lobster and a little of the fabulous meat in a roll: both made for a very fine meal!

 

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THIS WEEK'S EYE ON PINTEREST: 7.25.12

This week the spotlight is on

#1: Katie Rogers 

You can also find Katie at her blog: PaperFashion

Let's hear it for neon!

Her Graphic and Type Love board is great too: 

#2: Inge Falappino

For you "organization-challenged" people out there, take a look at this board and see if it helps!

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Planning a party? (of any kind at all...)

Just look at all these party ideas:

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For me, a visit to Pinterest just is not complete without a quick look-see at my own favorite board:

"Westie Sightings"!

Those of you who know me will understand this board.... for all the others, well, let's just say, that I can't get enough of Westies!!!!

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Hope you have enjoyed these new boards!

LAUNDRY ROOM: PART II

I have a lot to say about our laundry room... and laundry in general, so I'm breaking this down into several posts.

Actually, our laundry room is also a pantry. You enter it directly from the garage and then go to the kitchen via a few short steps in the hallway. 

Part I was really a preview of what we were working on here at the house.

Part II is all about laundry!

First, let me explain a few basics:

 I DO NOT USE a dryer. Well, maybe three times a year. At most. I hang up all my clothes and sheets and towels. Much to my disappointment, we are not allowed to hang any laundry outside here (home owners rules..) and I do long for my wonderful, long clothes line of former days. When I showed you the video "Memories of the Backyard Clothesline" I really felt that narrative.

My daughter, who lives in a not-so-big, i.e 800 sq.ft, apartment in Washington D.C. has become a believer! Oh yes, she uses portable clothes racks in the apartment. I am very proud!!! Her clothes go on a line. Her sheets and towels over the shower rod for the night. So, yes, it IS possible to go dryer-less in tight space. Like mother, like daughter, right??

When we bought this house we acquired the washer and dryer. While they were not new, they worked just fine and I'm a huge believer in NOT going out to buy something new just because what I have is old. (Well, I may ogle and long for such, but in the end economy wins out!)

So, we kept the washer and dryer in the "laundry room". But that dryer was just a waste of space. 

Out with it!

It now sits in our garage, unhooked and with no vent in sight, so is unusable. And that is fine with me. Good riddance!

Thus, the need for portable clothes racks/lines. This is always an option:

But then you have to either leave it up (using space) or continually fold up and put away, just to unfold and put it up again the next day! No, not an option.

I searched far and wide. These things are very difficult to find in the U.S. as everyone uses dryers, and only dryers. 

Finally, I spotted this one that is only available in the U.K. Yes, I ordered it from England and yes, the shipping was almost as much as the line, but do you know, it arrived in five days? Very efficient indeed. The total was less than $100.00 and worth every penny. 

This is from the catalog, Lakeland, U.K.

Here it is in action in the still unpainted room:

If you go to my Pinterest board , "Laundry Room Remodel" you will see other ideas I collected.

We all have loved the image of these portable racks from Ballard Design:

But I have to tell you, they are not very practical. Try hanging clothes up on the top rung without a step stool...and then try using the sink, or the counter, with wet/damp clothes hanging over your head. They also take up valuable wall space. No, they look great, but not for me.

Is that enough for now? Just one photo...

Here we are in construction/remodel mode, with the lone washer at the end of the line. It used to sit just to the left (where the outlet box is) and the dryer to the right.

To be continued............. (so check back often!)

FRIDAY FLOWERS

We actually had one morning of cool drizzle!! Hooray!

I went out for my early morning walk and snapped these.

Belties grazing...

And then the sun came out.

My hibiscus has been beautiful, although it's just about over now.

And my Mandevilla "Alice Du Pont" is climbing all over the side of our front porch!

Enjoy your weekend: here's hoping it's not too hot for you!

A READING BY ROSECRANS BALDWIN

My Fabulous Find for this Wednedsay is a book.

Rosecrans Baldwin is the author of a brand new book: 

Paris I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down

Now, here is a book I read in almost one sitting. The next day I went to our local fabulous bookstore, McIntyre's Books, to hear, and meet, Rosecrans. Wherever did he get that name? I didn't have time to ask...

Rosecrans and his wife lived in Paris for 18 months in 2007-'08 where he worked for an advertising agency.This was not his chosen profession: he sort of fell into this job, they flew him over for an interview (very amusing anecdote in the book), and hired him.

I loved the chapter on "les bises" the air kiss for which the French are known. But how to know whom to kiss? With whom to shake hands?  When to do one or the other? "Les bises" can seem totally random at times.. so how does all this fit into office protocol? It was confusing to Rosencrans and he tells it to us in a way that will have you laughing out loud.

after he signed my book....

Salon.com has published several articles by Rosecrans, including an amusing one in which he describes how he and his wife moved back to the U.S. and lived briefly with her parents.

 Read more here.

Why did he and his wife leave Paris? They wanted to leave city life. Having lived in New York, and then Paris, they gradually longed for the country life. And so, they have come to live very near me, down in North Carolina! Lucky us.

You can buy the book either in paper or on Kindle. Trust me, you will NOT regret it and will learn some amazing things about the ex-pat life in Paris!

THE BEDROOM BENCH IS FINISHED.... FINALLY

Take a look at the basic bench I bought. Pretty basic, believe me. It cost me a little more than  $100.00 from Target. Awful, awful fabric! But that was ok: I knew I would be reupholstering it. The legs...well, I wanted something simple and dark. Not too turned, not too thin, and of course, just the right height.

 I also knew I wanted nailhead trim all around: nice and chunky!

Here are images from my Pinterest board (where you can find the original links and credits) that I had collected: 

None of them was right: no, I didn't want leather; no, two small ones was not right either.

Here is some of my "research" over the last few months

Evernote is the BEST system I know of for collecting and filing images (Pinterest can be too public at times)

top left; top right; bottom left; bottom right

The best part was that I had the fabric all lined up. My friend, Robin, had been a designer and stylist at Schumacher and would, from time to time, send me GORGEOUS fabric samples of discontinued items. Robin and I go way back... we sat across from each other, at our respective art tables, when we were both colorists at Greeff Fabrics. Yes, all you young ones, there was a time when colors were hand mixed, in small tubs and color ways were painted (yes...can you imagine, no computer??) onto paper. So, anyway, we mixed and we painted and, of course, we talked a lot! And that is how we became good friends!

So here were my fabric choices:

Mind you, these had been folded up and in a chest for several years just waiting for the right project and occasion. Their day had come!

this was the reject, so now I need another project. Ideas?

I went with the moire, the lighter and I think more interesting fabric.

The image above is the TRUE color. I took the photos below at night: yes, I forgot to follow through on this all day today and neglected to take "after" pictures! So, now it's dark and the lights in the room give a very definite yellow glow. So be it. 

You can see the wonderful trim!

Finally, we have a nice bench at the foot of our bed. We never had room for this in our old house; this one works perfectly. Happiness is......!

FRIDAY FLOWERS

Not much happening in the garden these days!

Oh the heat. Oh the constant watering. Oh the sun.

No, it's been rough on all my poor plants. The last few days have been cooler and even rainy/drizzly but not before I had to pull some of my annuals.

I DO have some Oriental Lillies that are doing quite well! This is the best of them: 

And then we come to the hydrangeas...

Blue/Cityline Rio:

Would you believe, that hydrangea above is the very same one I featured in my

 post of May 24th?

and the huge pink one: 

had looked like this:

Things do change, don't they?