LA DOLFINA

Here we come! See you in a week or so...  ~XO

I don't know about you but lately I've become intrigued with old ladders.  Reichel over at Copy Cat Chic did a post today about ladders being used for display and found some great options.  Be sure and check out her blog. Image from Brocade Home via Copy Cat Chic I found this one a few months ago and have pressed it into service in our garage, the most popular space in our home since we turned it into a combination teen hangout, man cave, and home theatre! It definitely comes in handy and does double duty as a charming magazine rack! (This is the room where the pond yacht and shell type-tray are going to live just as soon as I get it cleaned up and photo ready!)

Many of you are familiar with my friend Steven Small .  He is the talented photographer behind the amazing photos that I showcase each month from The Alameda Pointe Antiques and Collectibles Fair.  Come to find out, his daughter Megan Small, is also a  gifted photographer!     She resides in Southern California where she has her own photography business, Megan Small Photography .  It seems she does it all... weddings, pregnancy, showers, babies, children, family, parties, dogs, life ~ you name it, she'll photograph it!  The Life of Riley Now, for the photo opportunity! Megan Small will be in the SF Bay Area between April 14th and April 20th. If you are interested in booking an appointment please visit her website at megansmall.com

Thought I'd share some treasures I've found recently.  The dolphin is a brooch that is made to sit on your shoulder. I've never come across such an unusual plant stand.  I wasn't too thrilled with the circle of finials around the top at first.  It wasn't until I got it home that I really fell in love with it! I found this pair of glass cubes with soldered copper edges containing these gorgeous butterfly specimens. I think they were originally displayed on tiny glass stems which have fallen down. They are still lovely as is. This is a classic brass magazine holder from Breuners. I love how reflective the shiny brass surface is. I found this cool burlap wrapped lamp at The White Elephant Sale. It features Picasso's Blue Period. I scored the perfect lampshade today at Marshall's! I need to find a smaller harp but it's the perfect size, shape and color! Another score of late is this tall bamboo & lacquer plant stand. I found this lar...

Do you remember your first ebay purchase? (Mitchel Robertson lll   1928    Hingham, Mass.) I'll never forget mine. I typed in chinoiserie and there she was!  It was love at first sight.  I opened an ebay account and placed my bid.  There weren't options like "maximum bid" or services like "bid snipe" then.  Looking back it was all so straight forward.  I kept vigilant watch over the auction for days.  When the final hour was at hand I sat in front of my computer with butterflies in my stomach as the final seconds ticked away.  Suddenly it was over and she was mine!  I was overjoyed!  The sweet smell of success was intoxicating.  The next morning I received an email asking me if I wanted to sell the monkey! I was confused!  I opened the email to discover that someone in San Francisco was offering to buy my chinoiserie monkey  that I had just won but had yet to receive!  I emailed back and a...

I'm obsessing over pond yachts . They keep popping up which is fueling my obsession. I found this gorgeous photo of pond yachts in Paris on the blog Reverie .  It was taken by Melanie's talented photographer husband, Sean Patrick McArdle.  While reading one of my favorite blogs, Starfish and Sundresses, I came across this post on India Hicks'  Hibiscus Hill Home on Harbor Island!  Right away I spied my beloved pond yacht!  I love how she placed it in front of the bookcase. It wasn't the first time I've been completely smitten with something in India's fabulous island home.  I've coveted this image of her desk area with the shell type-setter tray for years! A few weeks ago, I completed one of my own ! I will be hanging it soon and promise to post photos.  I guess what you focus on expands because as things go... I just happened to be browsing One Kings Lane a few weeks ago and there it was!  It arrived last week.  I've...

I'd like to thank Megan, the hilariously funny and always charming blogstress of 1 Funky Woman for passing on the HAPPY 101 AWARD to me.  She has one of the most entertaining blogs I've come across and her wonderful sense of humor might only be rivaled by Jenny of My Favorite and My Best .  I know it's going to be a good day when I start it off by reading her blog. She makes me laugh out loud... and that my friends is why she has received this award twice!!  And now 10 things that make me happy~ 1.  GOD 2.  GRATITUDE: (Joanny from The Dowser's Daughter left me this beautiful quote that sums it up perfectly.) Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, and confusion into clarity…. It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today a...

This is the start of my favorite time of year... when everything seems possible... even when you're sick with a cold like I am today :) (Please let me know who to credit the image of the mud maid to if you know, thanks!)