The front door to our home is original to the 1910s. At four feet, it is wider than most entry doors. With the side lights, the entire entrance is almost 8′ wide. Getting a properly scaled wreath is a challenge. Most wreaths are 24″ to 28″ inches as measured by the outside tips of leaves…
I am not sure why we hang stockings by the chimney with care, but it appears to be a long standing custom. Since 1823 when Clement Clarke Moore wrote “A Visit from St. Nicholas”, Christmas stockings have been an essential part of Christmas traditions. We have 5 handmade stockings for our family and multiple ones…
Being on the receiving end of a visually gorgeous gift is exciting. I have always appreciated someone taking the extra time to make the outside of the gift as thoughtful as the inside. When we were restoring Bella Terra, I designed a gift wrapping space in our mud room ~~a place to hold all the…
I love the longevity of fall decorating~~you can start in September, adjust it a bit for Halloween and keep it until Thanksgiving. With a few small touches, the house feels like autumn. It helps that we’ve been enjoying such gorgeous cool mornings and evenings. Don’t you just love the light lately? The yard looks so…
As you know, I have been on a cleaning, sorting and organizing whirlwind. Starting at one end of the house, my goal is to go through every drawer, closet, dresser and attack it with the mindset as if I am moving in 2 weeks. Expired makeup, business suits with shoulder pads, miscellaneous paperwork – GONE!…