I so appreciate and love reading all of the comments you leave on the blog and my social media. You are my inspiration! Up on the blog this week is a step-by-step tutorial outlining how to post a comment if you don’t already know how to do so. I can’t wait to hear from more of you! And if you need a little distraction this week, check out my favorite links from around the web…
Read moreImproving Our Communication: How to Comment Here
This post is not about politics! It has nothing to do with a divided nation or anything like that. This is about you and me and how we can better talk with each other. Recently I’ve received a few notes from you, my dear readers that leaving comments can be a bit confusing. And sometimes you can’t find my newsletter in your inbox. I love reading what you have to say, and I definitely want you to enjoy the newsletter each
Read moreProcrastination Links 11.05.18
Thank you to everyone who came out to the Bodrum trunk show at Past Basket. If you are on the hunt for stunning linens and tableware for your upcoming holiday entertaining, check out Past Basket’s impeccably curated selection. Past Basket currently has 20% off Bodrum linens through November 11. And if you need a little break this week, check out my favorite links from around the web…
Read moreA Milk Bath to Soothe the Way
The face of an angel in the photo above belongs to my friend, artist Linda Bleck. She is floating in a pool of milk. When I asked Linda if she would submerge herself in milk for a photograph, she said, “Sure!” (Which, incidentally, is the same answer she gave her husband when he proposed marriage.)
Why a milk bath?
Linda suffers from chronic pain stemming from congenital biomechanical issues. She has endured two hip replacements and two spinal surgeries. Part of Linda’s survival strategy is to float.
Read moreProcrastination Links 10.29.18
Happy Halloween! I hope your weekend was filled with trick or treaters, costume parties, haunted houses, and more spooky fun. Enjoy the last few days of this wonderful time of year! If you need a little break this week, check out my favorite links from around the web…
Read moreProcrastination Links 10.22.18
It was a magical weekend showing our kids and parents our new farm. It’s still surreal to say that we bought a farm! We are having much fun thinking of farm names and dreaming of the renovations and projects that are ahead of us. If you need a little break this week, check out my favorite links from around the web…
Read moreMy Styling Advice to You: Be Sneaky with Symmetry
I’ve been working with clients for a long while now and I thought I would share a little about what I do as an interior stylist. At its most elemental, my job is to solve problems. But did you know that when it comes to our homes, we all have the exact same issue? Can you guess what it is?
I call it unintentional blindness. We are immune to the shortcomings in our own space. Even if we know they exist, we get comfortable with them until they sort of disappear. Like my friend whose thoughtful husband reached over once and plucked one of her chin hairs with his fingertips. It took his fresh eyes to see what on some level she already knew was there. Problem solved.
Read moreProcrastination Links 10.15.18
I’m thrilled to have finally shared the news that my husband and I bought a farm! After many years of contemplating living on a farm we took the plunge and could not be more excited. While we won’t be moving in anytime soon, I’m giddy with anticipation thinking about raising chickens and making the most of this beautiful space. If you need a little daydreaming of your own, check out my favorite links from around the web this week…
Read moreWe Bought a Farm!
Yes! My husband’s lifelong dream of farming has become a reality. My lifelong dream of writing high humor about chickens is on the verge of happening. We just purchased the prettiest farm you can imagine!
The excitement has nearly killed us. We can’t sleep for our anticipation. We wake up every day, look at each other and giggle, like we are seven and it’s Christmas morning. The last time I felt this way was when we first met. So I guess I’ve fallen in love!
Read moreProcrastination Links 10.08.18
The leaves are changing to their brilliant color in Wisconsin and wonderful fall is setting in. After touring Mt. Vernon with my family last weekend, I’ve been getting more ideas about living on a farm. If you need a little daydreaming of your own, check out my favorite links from around the web this week…
Read moreHow I Do Color in 2018
I’ve always had an uneasy relationship with color in my house. Maybe I was traumatized by the purple carpet and pink, yellow, and green rickrack wallpaper of my childhood bedroom where flies congregated under my coverlet. Or the hideous sponged salmon pink bedroom in our first home where I once called the police at 3 am when a burglar outside the window sneezed. Or the putrid green bedroom in our second home that contributed to the argument between my husband and me that ended with my storming out and driving to my parents’ house where I accidentally set off their burglar alarm at 3 am.
I can’t do color. It keeps me from getting a good night’s sleep. It is impossible to get right.
Read moreProcrastination Links 10.01.18
October is upon us! I enjoyed a beautiful fall weekend in D.C. visiting son #3. I hope you are able to enjoy the wonders of fall this week wherever you may be. If you need a little distraction, check out my favorite links from around the web…
Read moreAudrey Hepburn's Hedgerow at Hidcote Manor Garden
Today’s post is a photo journal from a day spent at Hidcote Manor Garden in England. We toured this idyll in the middle of the Cotswolds last September and I never posted the pics. They’re simply too divine to sit languishing on my phone so pardon the year’s delay. As every procrastinator knows, and as I will someday tattoo on my arse, BETTER LATE THAN NEVER.
Read moreProcrastination Links 09.24.18
My husband and I just celebrated thirty-two years of marriage. I believe the key to a strong marriage is fairness. What do you think the secret is to a fulfilling, long-lasting relationship? I’d love to hear your thoughts! If you need a little distraction this week, check out my favorite links from around the web…
Read moreTales from the Trail
Did you know that first-time backpackers overpack? And do you know what they overpack? Their fears. They pack too much food, too many first aid supplies or extra rain gear.
I learned this truth while hanging out at a campsite for an evening of conversation with three women who, for the third year running, committed to backpacking a portion of the Appalachian Trail in September. I got to snap photos of their practice hike, which they did at Terry Andrae State Park up the road from Milwaukee.
Read moreProcrastination Links 09.17.18
A friend recently asked me how I find the links I share here. My secret? You! If you have something you think is interesting, you can always email it to me. In the meantime, check out my favorite links from around the web…
Read moreProcrastination Links 09.10.18
Thank you to everyone who joined me at Past Basket this weekend. It was great to meet so many of you in person and tackle some of your nagging design questions. I can't wait to put on my styling hat and help my new clients transform their homes. If you need a little distraction this week, check out my favorite links from around the web...
Read moreLet's Get Together!
This Saturday, I'll be at Past Basket, the beautiful home decor shop here in Milwaukee, from 11 am - 3 pm for a meet-and-greet. If you are local, do come make my acquaintance and sample my mother's delicious baklava. Enter to win a $100 gift card and a free styling session.
We can chat about interiors and if you like, bring along pics of your "favorite" problem spots, and I'll happily offer some free advice.
Read moreHow I Procrastinated This Week 09.04.18
Here in Wisconsin, it is officially back-to-school week. It feels strange because for the first time in twenty-three years, I'm not helping one of my sons get ready for a new school year. Instead, I feel like a student myself, giddy with excitement for my new styling gig and collaboration with Past Basket. I hope to see you at Past Basket on Saturday, September 8 from 11am-3pm for the kick-off party.
If you need a little break this week from the back-to-school blues, or conversely, you want to enjoy some quiet with good reading, check out my favorite links from around the web:
Read moreHourglass: A Memoir by Dani Shapiro
I've just finished the memoir, "Hourglass: Time, Memory, Marriage," by Dani Shapiro. It is a tiny book -- the pages laid out with shockingly wide margins -- but does it ever pack a punch. Which is surprising given that Shapiro describes what many of us are living: the vague blandness of waking up next to the same person every morning, years on end. She and her husband "M." love each other. There is no dysfunction, and the drama is the kind you can't escape in life -- accidents and illnesses, ailing parents, career disappointment.
Read more