Merry Christmas

Many of you noticed I won the Christmas tree contest on Scot Meacham Wood's blog.  There was a panel of judges whose work I really respect so taking home my second award was really quite an honor.  But I'm actually quite surprised I won because it wasn't the tree I planned on entering. 

I just didn't have the time to get it done in time.

My initial thought was to have a tree centered under the Moravian star pendant

in the guest bedroom.  Since you weren't able to make it for Christmas this year, 

I would clean out the guest bedroom and set the tree up in the center of the room.

The stars being a guide for sailors, I thought a tree decorated with marine signal flags

would be the perfect theme and I would want them all basically the same so they would look

like a sea of stars on the tree.

I would use hang tags to make the ornaments and trim them

into the basic marine flag shapes...

...and use silver glitter to give them a little bling.

The tags would also be perfect to write a few 

prayers, dreams, wishes or messages to the universe.

I would add a little Love and Joy.

I've never had a tree centered in the room before; it would be a little unconventional.

But it would be a wonderful place to sit and enjoy the sea of stars.

May love and joy come to you.

Merry Christmas!

Happy New Year 2012

I'm just going to say it:  I don't love New Year's Eve.  

I never have.

For me it's more of a time of reflection than of celebration.   I don't usually review what I've accomplished in the last year; rather, I set goals for the new year.   

Tonight, I'm getting together with a few close friends for a casual dinner; in fact, a friend of mine said he will cook since I made Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner.  I couldn't allow myself to do nothing so I thought I'd make a baked artichoke dip -- basically chopped artichokes with a bunch of fat -- and some homemade crostini.

I love crostini.  They' so much better than any cracker.  I use a ficelle which is a skinny baguette and slice them on an angle which makes the perfect little shovel to scoop up a dip. I just brush them with olive oil, dust them with salt and bake at 375 degrees...

...until they're golden brown.

You got to watch them like a hawk to get them perfect.

These are perfect.

Hot artichoke dip with homemade crostini will be perfect

with a bottle or two of champagne before dinner.

I might even stay in my pajamas.

Whatever you do this evening, I hope you have a safe and happy time.  

And I wish you a happy, healthy and prosperous 2012!

Holiday Season Kicks off with Color

The sunrise nearly burned through my matchstick blinds this morning.

I'm so glad I was up to see this.

And as quickly as the color faded, Thanksgiving turned to Christmas...

...which meant hopping in the car and heading up to Wilson Farm in Lexington, Mass.

I don't know why I don't come out to this wonderful place more often.

It's a little bit nursery and greenhouse...

...a little bit farm stand...

....a little bit grocery store...

...with a whole lot a charm.

It's a great place to get your Christmas or pagan greenery, wreaths, Christmas trees...

...poinsettias in all the latest colors...

...and one of my winter favorites, winter berry.

I just hope it's hip to be square.

All of these colors...

...were a great way to kick off the holiday season.

I'm already in the spirit!

Dinner: Triumph and Tragedy

Everyone waited patiently for Thanksgiving dinner to be ready.  We all had a great time and, even though everything didn't go smoothly, new memories were created.

A friend promised to bring a bottle of Opus One, a special bottle indeed.  We uncorked it and immediately smelled the bouquet....of vinegar!  Fortunately we had a few backup bottles that were enjoyed with an appetizer of roasted fresh figs with gorgonzola cheese and walnuts. 

I'm not sure if you would consider my nut experiment a success or a failure but not a single nut was cracked.

Although the texting and internet searching was kept to a minimum, I had to capture this picture of technology in action.  My friends were able to use their phones to touch base with family and friends.  One of my friends even skyped with his family in California on his cell phone.  I thought that was pretty cool.

The roasted Brussels sprouts with fig balsamic (found at Wilson Farms in Lexington, Mass.) were a big hit.

But Martha's Maple-Glazed Carrots and Parsnips caused a little bit of scene.  In the middle of roasting, I opened the oven to shake the vegetables which apparently flipped a piece of bacon out of the pan on to the bottom of the oven.  When I opened the open a few minutes later to shake them again, the bacon grease burst into flames.  Smoke filled the kitchen until I was able to find a cake pan to cover the fire and extinguish it.  No one was hurt and we'll laugh for years about the Thanksgiving I started a fire.

I gave up on baking this year and consigned dessert to Flour Bakery.  It takes a little bit of work off my plate and they do a much better job than I ever could.  

(If you couldn't tell, I love taking these food photos.)

Today were all relaxing and enjoying an extra day off.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving creating some new memories.

And now the Christmas season begins!

Thanksgiving Memories



Flowers in vintage industrial mold from Bow Street Flowers



Holidays always seem to spark memories.  I have many more Christmas memories than I do Thanksgiving memories but I do remember my grandfather, who lived next door with my grandmother, going to pick up my great grandparents so they could have Thanksgiving dinner with us.  My grandfather, the son and grandson of Baptist ministers, was a very stern man.  He and my grandmother always ate dinner with us and there were strict rules.  Children were not to speak unless spoken to at the dinner table.  My father worked very long hours so my grandfather was the disciplinarian.  A few severe trangressions resulted in my brother and I having to go in search of switches which we subsequently received across our backsides. He was always gruff and barked orders like Rooster Cogburn in True Grit.  My grandfather loved the west and I'm sure John Wayne was a role model. 

My grandparents actually took me to see True Grit at the theater.  I was a young boy, probably too young to see it, and I had no interest in it.  I swear it ran for about 12 hours.  I would have fallen into the rattlesnake pit than spend another minute in that theater. 

Another thing I recall about Thanksgiving is sitting around a the table after dinner playing card games.  There were bunches of red and green grapes, all filled with seeds that my mother insisted would block your bile duct if you swallowed them.  My mother had her gall baldder taken out so we assumed she was an expert on things that would block our bile ducts. 

I also recall bowls of mixed nuts.  I have to wonder, in today's world of immediate gratification--cell phones, texting, Twitter and a movement of people demanding jobs right now--if nuts in their shells are an anachronism.  Are people still willing to crack in to a whole pecan and pick out the morsels from the broken shell?  It seems like a lot of work to go to when I can buy the same shelled nuts in a plastic container and just dump it in a bowl, ready to eat a handful at a time.

As I watched the 24-hour news station last Saturday morning while enjoying my Keurig coffee, I surfed through 900 some-odd channels of television shows and movies-on-demand and I saw a listing for True Grit.  I was curious about about the movie and I hit record on my DVR.  I watched the movie later that evening through different eyes. 

My grandfather died when I was a teenager so there are a lot of things I never had a chance to ask...or to iron out.  Seeing those panoramic landscapes must have been breathtaking on the big screen.  My grandfather would have really appreciated that knowing my mother has boxes and boxes of photographic evidence taken of scenery from my grandparent's trips out west.  I can't say I loved the movie but I enjoyed it...and perhaps I understand him just a little bit better.

I hope to make this Thanksgiving a little slower than usual.  I'll use my everyday plates mixed with some of my grandmother's transferware and other odd pieces I've found here and there over the years.

Carrots and Parsnips image via MarthaStewart, Brussels Sprouts via Pinterest

We'll enjoy a tradtional Thanksgiving dinner at the Urban Cottage. A four-day weekend is a vacation for me and I'll spend that time with family and friends with whom I can make new memories...hopefully better and more clear than the fading ones.  

And I have a bowl of mixed nuts.  They will just sit on the table waiting to see if anyone will take the time to slow down and enjoy them. 

* * * * *

This year I'm particularly thankful for the new friends, both local and worldwide, that blogging have made possible. I never could have imagined when I started this blog to document the process of getting a variance to add a porch to the front of my house, that anyone would be interested in what I had to say, or that I would make new friends, or that a magazine would want to photograph from my house in their decorating book.

For this new world of opportunities and for all of you, I am extrmely thankful. 

I hope you and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Happy Mother's Day

As a kid, we used to celebrate Mother's Day by cooking breakfast for my mom and then taking her to Lilac Sunday in Rochester.

I recall being astonished that the lilacs were always in perfect bloom for my mom.

In my typical style of honoring things from the past... 

...I thought I would bring all you moms to see the lilacs in on my street.

They're all in perfect bloom...just for you.

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Holiday

Today is Patriot's Day in Massachusetts.  To make a long story short, Patriot's Day is a holiday about running.  Paul Revere ran to Lexington and Concord to inform the Colonists that the British were coming.  The British Army ran behind him and started a little fight called the American Revolution.  As you can see, the news crews had also been tipped off and were waiting to photograph the scurmishes.  

And, wait, that's only part of the excitement.  This day also includes our own "running of the bulls," the Boston Marathon.  Marathon Day is the day that all the young folks run to the race route to get drunk and cheer the runners.  And all the old folks run the other way to avoid the noise and crowds.

I hope you have a wonderful Patriot's Day.  I've got to run.

A Little Red for Valentine's Day

I'm not making very much progress on anything.  This happens to me every winter at this time of year.  It's (self-diagnosed) Seasonal Affective Disorder.  I always feel better when the days get longer and the weather starts to warm.   One thing in particular that's holding me up is making a decision on fabric for the Louis chairs.  I've been looking for ways to bring some more color into my house and finding an accent color that works has been a really tough.

If you remember, my living room is all neutrals.  It's a look I'm drawn to in photographs online and in magazines but I always end up longing for more color.  I typically gravitate toward blue and green--my favorite colors--but when I've tried adding them into this room, they always seem out of place. 

This morning as I was doing my Sunday chores, I pulled the rug from the foyer into the living room so I could wash the floor and it all suddenly seemed "right."  So I pulled together a few more accessories with reds to see how they looked.  A wool throw in a plaid of browns, tans and reds, a paisley fabric wrapped around a pillow and a wooden bowl filled with pomegranates quickly came together to create an entirely new look.  I like it.  I really like it.  I think it's a great look for winter at least.  You'll also notice I hung some new drapes (Pottery Barn Peyton drapes in oatmeal).  They're a little out of control having just come out of the package but I thought I would hang them for a little while before I press them and train them. 

This makes me feel a little more comfortable bringing some of the same colors to the dining room.  So the search goes on for the right fabrics.

* * * * *

And speaking of accessories, Janet (everyone's favorite stylish vegan) from The Gardener's Cottage asked for photos of people's favorite accessories so she could post them; in fact, she sent me a personal plea.  Good Do-Bee that I am, I sent Janet a photo of my favorite accessory which, it should come as no surprise, is a piece that has a history.

This vintage Hamilton automatic watch was given to my grandfather as an anniversary gift from my grandmother in 1962.  It's a very humble piece of jewelry but it's one of my most prized possessions.   (I think the band is one of the most handsome watchbands I've ever seen.  It still seems modern.)  This was my grandmother's second husband and they married in 1960 so this was their second anniversary.  At the time of this gift, I'm certain they were sweethearts.

I hope you enjoy your day with your sweetheart.

Happy Valentine's Day!