For Whom the Bell Tolls

On a warmer day, this pretty bell would ring for service from the roadside. Our wee cottage industry of selling cottage friendly furnishings sits, quietly, in it's various sheds and storage rooms.
Today, in the snow, the friendly bell waits for winter to pass, like the rest of us.
Our friends are going to Havana to stay in the same hotel that Hemmingway did. I don't know if they're going to drink loads of scotch and be belligerent, but I hope so.

Window on Winter

Weather not fit for man nor beast. The snow slapped the window as the wind rattled the bones of this old house. No tulips, no hammock, no fat cat stretching it's girth across a warm deck. Today is just for imagining.
Hey, imagine this bauble trimmed floor lamp standing on your floor....$50!

Sunshine and Dreams of France

http://www.lamadone.net/

...this is where I go on a sleepy, sunny Saturday...Viva Provence!!!
The same way a hot bubble bath can transport, Tongue in Cheek is a blog that brings new meaning to 'vicarious'. It's Corey Amaro's chronicle of her life in France, featuring all things French including the aforementioned hotel.
Go ahead. Google Tongue in Cheek. If you have a penchant for Provence, Paris, baguettes and brocante....you'll visit Corey regularly.

Thin Ice

Oh, he's a bonny little laddy!!! With the might and the will and the stick poised just so, a silly bottle of beer could ne'er defend it's net...unless, is it so?...is it just possible?...that the bonny little lad is intimidated by my sturdy guard??? He won't look me in the eye....he's fearful to be sure!!! Aye... the lowly bottle 'o guinness reigns over all!!! He doesn't shoot...he doesn't score....he shivers and quakes at my very presence!!! Does this ice make me look fat, then?

A Wiener Dog on the Hand is Worth Two Hounds in the Bush

Dance, weiner dog dance!!! The footprint of a 'dauchsy' is easily identified by the splay pattern of the toes. While taller, more regal dogs practically skip between the snowflakes, the inveterate wiener dog's huge, spongy pads don't hold him back, so much as launch him into his next step. If you should go to the woods today...and spot footprints that look more like a bouquet of upturned daisies...they would be those of the elusive wiener dog.

From another perspective...

In the dead of winter, antlers make a sudden statement...."I was here"perhaps? The haunted beauty of an old fence, dormant bushes, and cast off antlers. Same colours, same lack of movement...all very purposeful once.

Weathered Headboard

Ah yes, at first it looks like a sanding, painting project was left out in the snow, but alas, that isn't the case. A genuinely weathered headboard/footboard must be, well, genuinely weathered - then have a light white wash applied....
like pickling cucumbers, or marinating a roast....
yeah, like that. In May, we'll see if my rationale worked.

From Shepherd's Hook, to Plant Hanger, to Still Life on a Still Day...

The longer we endure winter, the more interesting it becomes to try and see it anew. Harsh wrought iron against the oatmealy look of two day old snow isn't everyone's cup of tea...but maybe it could be?

Cold Enough to Freeze Off Your Antlers

Actually, they're mounted on a tree in front of our house, left over from a summer sale. Antlers...they just don't get old...and certainly scream 'rustic country cottage', if that's your aim.
$25

A BOX OF ROCKS!

Laura likes it!!!
Foot massager? Door mat? Wall hanging? Table top? Way more than just a box of rocks!

Sometimes when you're putting away Christmas...

...you find things you forgot to put away before Christmas, and after summer....like three red geraniums in sap buckets, that are now frozen pails of twigs in the snow - but not without their own charm.

A Table by Any Other Name is...well....art

One man's tree trunk, is another man's vision.
A most meaningful Christmas gift, to be sure. My brother sanded and lacquered and sanded and lacquered all summer long to create this amazing, one-of-a-kind piece. It's a table, it's a planter, it's a stool...and now it's mine.

spectacular!