Blog

How much wood would a woodchuck chuck?

We were awakened Friday from our gluttonous stupor by the sound of two men in a truck, dumping a cord of wood on our front lawn. That's 4 x 4 x 8 or 128 cubic feet—plenty to keep our fires stoked during the harsh winter months. (Did I mention it snowed on Easter?) In my haste, however, I'd neglected to ask…
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Our Thanksgiving Table

While many of us are in the kitchen today, peeling and pureeing, blanching and baking, I thought I'd share a few images of our own Thanksgiving table. At the moment, good friends are en route from city to country for in intimate dinner in the dining room. The Oriental rug I found at an estate sale in Old Lyme, Connecticut, then…
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Precious Metals

Thanksgiving is upon us, and you know what that means: time to polish up the silver (and brass!) for a stylish season of holiday entertaining. But despite even the best intentions, antique serving pieces, whether found at a flea market or inherited from family, deteriorate with time. Silver can dull and surfaces pit, often leaving heirloom quality pieces bound for…
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In Woodstock, Entertaining with Ease

From Palm Springs, we flew to Chicago, where the weather wasn't so kind. After the quick drive to Woodstock, a quaint, little suburb northwest of the city, we settled into our digs at the Royal Victorian Manor, otherwise known as the "Cherry Street Inn" in the 1993 film, Groundhog Day. While in town, I did two presentations on holiday decorating…
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Desert Retreat

We hopped a plane to Palm Springs to visit friends, scour thrift stores, and kick back by the pool. Good-bye, snowdrifts; hello, sun!
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Join me in Chicago

It's not too late to join me for a glittering evening of inspiration and delight at the Woodstock Opera House in Woodstock, Illinois. On Thursday, November 17, for one night only, I'll be sharing my very best secrets to easy, chic decorating and entertaining that will dazzle friends and family from Thanksgiving all the way through New Year's! It's part…
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Trick of Nature

Saturday night's snowstorm felt more like some cruel trick of nature than a tasty Halloween treat. Jaithan and I had just settled into the library, an ironstone bowl of herbed popcorn between us and the Exorcist (Part 2) on the tube, when the lights began to flicker. At 10:58 pm, as though the swift, final good night for days, the…
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Glittered Pumpkin Pails

Here's an easy, inexpensive way to add style to store-bought pumpkin pails. Paint the eyes, nose and mouth with glue, glitter them a ghoulish hue, and replace the handle with ribbon. How spooktacular is that?
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My New Column in Southern Living!

Speaking of new ways to use old things, I'm thrilled to announce the debut of my new flea market makeover column in this month's Southern Living! I may be a Connecticut boy, but as anyone who's ever joined me at Scott's in Atlanta or attended a lecture of mine in Little Rock, Lafayette or Richmond will tell you, I'm a Southerner…

For You, Moms

Some things just get better and more beautiful with time, despite the occasional chip along the way. Life is full of surprises, isn't it? To all the mothers and grandmothers out there, including our cherished own, Happy Mother's Day!

Join us in Richmond!

We're in Richmond this week for Ivy Market, a lively and important two-day shopping event with a portion of proceeds helping to improve the lives of children battling cancer. Ever since our travel schedule compelled us to put our Etsy store on hiatus, I've been looking for new ways to share my growing collection of handpicked, personally curated vintage tabletop…

Our Easter Table

Easter dinner I served in the dining room of our new house in Connecticut, an 1890s Victorian with modern appeal. We moved rather quietly in December of last year when an opportunity arose that neither of us could pass up. The house we'll reveal in stages, I promise, but for now, here's a glimpse of the dining room with our…

Behind the Scenes of an Easter Shoot

Turquoise? or yellow? That was the question on all of our minds when photographer Mikki Duisterhof, Woman's Day editor Ayn-Monique Klahre and I compared cover tries during an Easter shoot at our house/studio in January.     The editors eventually chose turquoise, tweaking the color slightly so it popped on newsstands.  You'd never know it from the Easter egg workshop in…

Larger Than Life

When Jaithan sent the folks at the Washington Design Center a high-res version of a bedroom I once did, promoting our presentation on styling this week, neither of us would have ever expected this: It's actually the beauty shot from a story I produced for my old column Weekend Shopper at House Beautiful, photographed by Brendan Paul. The Quadrille fabric…

Capital Design Days

Attention, D.C. designers! Join me next Tuesday morning, April 12th at the Washington Design Center for a fun, informative presentation on styling interiors for photography. Sometimes, all it takes is a little thoughtful zhushing to improve your portfolio and make your projects camera-ready. As an editor for the likes of House Beautiful and Southern Living, I've got plenty of tricks…

Your Easter Best

Sorry for the silence, everyone! If you're following us on Twitter, you already know that we've been on the road again, shopping the flea market with readers and producing stories for magazines. Speaking of, have you seen my cover of Woman's Day this month?  For over a year, editor in chief Elizabeth Mayhew has been adeptly reinventing the magazine, freshening up…

Spring Forward

Despite the lingering chill, things are finally looking up. Delayed gratification, however, is not one of my strengths. As an editor, styling shoots for magazines, I'm always on the lookout for unusual vessels that might elevate even the most ordinary blooms. In a Chinoiserie transferware sugar pot from an antique mall in Ohio, I made a simple arrangement of grocery…

Setting Pretty

If you need a good pick-me-up, pick up the new issue of InStyle.  It's their annual bright-fest (aka the Color Issue), bursting with fun and easy ways to brighten your look and your home. Check out this cool, colorblock table I did!     Color, especially where it's least expected, is the fastest way to transform a room. But even…

Score: An Oriental Rug

Half-past seven and we're already late. Dealers had been there since dawn, we're told, hovering like vultures as the trucks roll in. It's load-in day at Scott's in Atlanta. We're in town shooting a story for Southern Living when I happen upon this pretty thing.      Not terribly old, but stylish nonetheless. Neutral, mostly, with subtle shades of coral…

A Spring Window for Carleton V

The days are getting longer, the weather warmer and I'm in the mood for spring! How couldn't I be when such a splashy floral takes center stage in our newest window for fabric house Carleton V? Growing Wild, it's called, a colorful hand-screen print from 1975 so wildly popular in its day, it was just reissued for the spring! Carleton…

Round Top, Anyone?

A couple of spots just opened up for our shopping trip to the Marburger Farm Antique Show in Round Top, Texas on Wednesday, March 30th at 11:00 am. A work day, I know. Hard to get away. Then again, this isn't just any flea market! It's one of the absolute best in the country with over 350 dealers on 43…

Stop! In the Name of Love

We're off to see my long lost aunt tonight! She's giving a rare appearance at the intimate, historical Bardavon 1869 Opera House in Poughkeepsie, the oldest continuously running theatre in New York State.     Follow us on Twitter for all the sequins, glitter and shine...

On Twitter: A Spin Through Scott’s

I know everyone's anxious to see the finished window (either that or a weekend in Palm Beach), but I'm afraid you'll have to wait just a little bit longer!   Jaithan and I are at Scott's in Atlanta, shooting another story for my flea market makeover column in Southern Living. The first one is due out next month! For all…

Palm Beach Chic

Here's a little taste of our next window for fabric house Carleton V, a pretty-in-pink jewel box for the Palm Beach set.  Beginning with a 1960s faux bamboo chair, plucked from a Goodwill...  I spray painted it yellow... ...made a template for a cushion...  ...cut and folded my fabric, filled it with batting, hot glued it together (a stylist's trick) and…