Girl talk, kolaches, antiques & a wedding

One of my cousins got married in Houston a few weeks ago and my Mom and I decided to make it a mom-and-daughter quality time trip so we could finish a few conversations we had been trying to have for the last three and a half years. We got so much talking accomplished in such record time that by Schulenburg we ran out of things to talk about so we stopped for a kolache. It was almost as fun as stopping for a "cup of coffee and a piece of pie" like my Mama always liked to do.


We struck out early Saturday morning, armed with a list of must-see shops recommended by Joni on her Cote de Texas blog. We were inside Loop 610 and on Dunlavy by the time shops were opening at 10 a.m. First thing, I fell in love with these lamps at Boxwood. They would be perfect in our bedroom because the ceilings are so high and everything always seems so out of scale when anywhere else it would be fine. Actually, I fell in love with quite a bit in that store.



See what I mean? I love it when I find something as clever as this fabulous chair. If I was to buy this chair, it would make me happy every time I walked by it. It's hell having La Crema taste on a St. Genevieve budget.

In the same shopping strip is The Country Gentleman (3829 Dunlavy), where I spied this yummy little green chest. The owner there, Larry Bahn, is delightful and the store is crammed full with fabulous antiques from all over the world. If you love religious artifacts and statues and crucifixes like my little old Catholic self, you will love his shop.

This corner piece was so fabulous. I think someone I know needs to buy this for her new house.

Back at Boxwood, I loved these glass apothecary jars and this rustic brown cocktail table. If anyone is interested, I know a crusty old Kingsbury craftsman who could make this for you, so strong you could dance on it.

As luck would have it, my camera battery crapped out and I had to run next door to the Fiesta Food Mart to buy a disposable camera before I could venture on to Antiques and Interiors on Dunlavy. So you'll just have to wait until I get the pictures back like we did in the old days. As a consolation, just take a look at these two little cuties:

Our spiral staircase freaks out a lot of people. We installed a baby gate at the top, but once C&C got reasonably steady on their feet we figured it was safer to teach them to maneuver it. So far the only ones to almost break their necks have been much older (say for instance me).

Disturbingly visible

My brain is really cooking today. I can't do anything but paint, and think. While I wait for my last coat to dry on a triptych I am painting, I decided to bounce around my fave blogs. I just had to write that. A triptych: did I even spell it right?

I realize this is confusing so try to follow along. Lavenderchick turned me on to the Hill Country House blog, which I love and will now visit every single day. In her latest post, Hill Country House Girl laments that the homes featured in the latest issue of Veranda haven't blown her skirt up as usual because they seem to lack personality. They're beautifully designed, but does anyone actually live there? She mentions Habitually Chic's post about Rose Tarlow, a designer and author of "The Private House." I haven't read it yet but I'm going to order it as soon as possible.

In that book, Rose writes: "There are those who spend lifetimes in houses that have nothing to do with who they really are. They may be perfectly designed, yet if they fail to reflect the personalities of the people who live in them, the very essence of intimacy is missing, and this absence is disturbingly visible."

I could not agree with that more. But I say the lack of intimacy that is missing in the house is missing in the person. In fact, maybe the house does reflect who they are. It's obvious in beautifully designed homes in fancy magazines and it's obvious among normal people that you and I know. A very smart friend and I were talking about this same thing just yesterday.

The flashy McMansion looks good, every square inch is decorated from some dumb store, with some design element: the last sale at Hobby Lobby, a stop by Kirkland's, that trip to Laredo, a late night of shopping online. It doesn't matter how bad, how cheap, or how expensive and well thought out, you can spot the lack of imagination, lack of personality and yes, a lack of intimacy that is disturbingly obvious. These houses have that model home or Parade of Homes feel and you wonder how do real people live here?

Other homes have such great energy and it's because of the people who live there. Their homes reflect their passions, their tastes, their travels, even, shockingly, their kids.

And here's where my theory gets really interesting. When these smart women mention an absence of intimacy, I agree, but I would add we're also seeing an absence of God that is disturbingly visible both in the home and in the person. It's all connected.

The home lacks soul and the person lacks God.

Ultimately the McMansion and everything we fill it with doesn't satisfy. The husband (or wife) can't make us happy and meet all our needs. Nothing we search for fills the empty hole. There's really only one thing that can fill it and if it's disturbingly absent, it's disturbingly visible.

And that's my witnessing for today.

From drab to glam: The lesson comes in the strangest of places

Once they go faux they never go back, at least that's what I'm finding out. Since last fall I've been working my way around this grand house on a beautiful lake near Seguin. I first blogged about it last fall in "why my neck hurts."

To refresh your memory, here's a few pictures:

In the kitchen just off the glam great room where these ceilings reign is this poor little white island. We can't have that now, can we?

This is the really cool light fixture over the island. When the lights are turned off they look black. But when you turn on the lights, voila! So you can see my client needed a little red in this kitchen.

Here you go: from drab to glam. This picture doesn't show that the red actually has an antiquing stain over it. And there are little distressed edges as well. But not so much as to appear country.

I went over there today to discuss a few more little projects, and now my client is considering a red quartz countertop just on the island. It's a perfect match for the Metallic Red Setcoat I used. That's certainly going to be kind of sexy in the kitchen, don't you think?

Here's the thing I love today about my life. I get to meet the most amazing, wide-ranging people. Usually, each one of them adds some sort of wisdom or knowledge to my life. I never know when it's going to happen or what they're going to say that impacts me but it generally always happens. Maybe it's because I'm paying attention and want to learn from people who I assume have something to offer.

The fabulous woman who owns this house worked hard all her life. She had a job before and after she married. At one point in her life when she "got sick of corporate America," she decided it would be fun to sell cars. Don't you just love her already? Anyway, her husband worked himself to death and she lost him suddenly. She told me one day when I was working in her home that she bought this house so maybe she can have a little fun and relax a little bit
"before she kicks the bucket."

And I think that's something we can all learn from.

Back on Task

Remember the little potting shed I painted for a powder bath. The sink was to be a bucket and the faucet a pump. Well there it is, installed. My client Susan certainly is clever, isn't she?

Sadly the walls in that powder room are still builder beige, but I have plans to transform them one day....

Here's the finished result of a brand-new cabinet that the painters mistakenly painted white. This cabinet was constructed to hold a Mega TV on top and other electronics behind the center doors, which will have glass. It was a brand new piece, but she didn't want it to look new. The top is Faux Effects' Venetian Gem in Tiger Eye. You can't see it very clearly in this picture but the front face has a very subtle stencil design that is raised over a background of Venetian Gem in Sage Green, which looks more blue than green if you ask me.

The insets on the drawers are the same Tiger Eye. Someday they'll probably feature hardware but my client is one of those thoughtful people who likes to live with pieces before deciding what they need.

Here's a closeup:
Once they move into their wonderful home in the country, I hope to be able to take some photos showing the rooms all set up. This TV cabinet is going to live to the right of a grand fireplace.

The Reason I'm Getting Botox

The fact that I can look like this without even meaning to look like a mean, hagard shrew is enough reason for me to get Botox. I have informed my husband not to dare get me one other gift. I only want cold, hard cash for my Botox.

What's so shocking is that when this photo was snapped by my three-year-old daughter Catherine, I was happy. I was getting to babysit my sweet little niece Piper and was sitting on my porch in paradise. See that crease in the middle of my grouchy forehead? It's permanent. I don't even make it on purpose. And yes, I realize I could use a little lipstick -- again.

Lavenderchick, can I please join you in making this the year of my face? I know you have been sandblasting yours but I think mine needs to be paralyzed into a happy face that appears to be interested. The face above is horrifying.

I promised myself I was not going to dwell on this any longer, but maybe this is why people don't naturally assume immediately upon seeing and/or meeting me that I am warm, loving person. I promise to reveal my warm, loving, nice and interested-looking face as soon as it's paralyzed into existence.