It began to rain after my last facebook post. Love it! A perfect late spring weekend afternoon. After posting I meandered out into the kitchen and began cheffing up scalloped potatoes melting the butter and flour first, then added milk, seasoning and added in grated mozzarella, Colby, jack cheeses. Poured onto the potatoes and added grated cheddar and parmesan cheeses, sprinkled some red chili flakes on top for color and placed in oven.
I was able to add a last coat of paint to the interior of the bookcase-- completing that portion of the project. I feel like I've accomplished something today and that's a good thing (shades of Martha Stewart).
I've finished staging the living room bookshelves, mantle and wall space above mantle. It's funny how this always begins with a small item and then branches out from there. I really hadn't pre-conceived how I wanted to do this and usually I can envision a layout.
When Jeff and I were discussing the way of which the living room will go... the only things I told him were that for the current design I was leaning towards a retro Coffee House funk which would embrace all of our fav objects, art and books. I'm long over the traditional, matchy-matchy furniture set up; you know... the sofa, love seat, coffee table arrangement. It's just not for me. As Jeff and I were saying to each other 'the kids' own their own homes, their families are growing, it's just us and we can decorate however we want, so why aren't we? The only prerequisite is that the art, books and objects have to be pieces we love or make us laugh, a whimsy element is important to us.
I should preface this with... having grown up in Santa Clara within a stone's throw of two early California mission churches; St. Clare's (where David and Tara were baptized) and Mission Santa Clara De Asis (on the grounds of Santa Clara university) as well as the Carmelite Monastery has had a cultural as well as a spiritual impact on me.
I love ALL things Old California, like Spanish pueblos and hacienda's with clay roof tiles. Wooden crosses that crown church tops, eucalyptus trees that line both sides of old 2-way highways, groves of oak trees clustered on hillsides, historic San Juan Bautista with it's roosters roaming it's old streets, the seaside town of Santa Cruz, California Impressionist art....
So, while I hadn't intended for this influence to make itself known this is the vibe that the living room has captured.
Let's begin with the first piece I put together:
The living room is blue and white so this was an obvious choice. I love the wood bread bowl but was not using it. I love the blue ceramic ball collection, but they needed a home to be displayed in without being able to roll about. The solution was to add moss to the base and then place and arrange balls. The rough bark trim and color of the smooth wood bowl with the moss remind me of eucalyptus. Don't ask... it just does.
Then I needed artwork for the very large paneled wall above the fireplace. This wasn't as easy as you'd think as we have so much art to choose from.
This was the first art piece that Jeff and I purchased together for the master bedroom of our 3rd floor master bedroom when we lived in Forest Meadows (Murphys). The artist is our friend, Diana Boyd. Love her artwork!
So then I needed something to balance opposite of the ceramic ball collection.
A mantle needs candles and I needed a place to display my cross collection, you'll see more in a minute.
Well, what about more art to fill in the space beneath the large acrylic cat painting?
Jeff and I love Sutter Creek, Jeff grew up there and has boyhood memories which we've expanded into great family holiday/vacation get-away memories with our family all these many years later. So, this artwork was a given. The photographer/artist is our friend, Laura Faye Mah.
Well, what about something organic to place on the mantle in front of Laura's artwork?
When Amanda was in elementary school her class went on a field trip to Indian Grinding Rock in Volcano. She carved her name of this rock and created Indian hieroglyphics on the upper side of the rock. One of my fav childhood gifts from her.
What's better than a rock? Two rocks.
(A few years ago) Landie gave me this rock to pair with her mom's as she thought her mom's rock needed a friend. She was right.
So, what about something to place on the fireplace wall above the ceramic ball collection?
Yep, another cross candle holder. I like to have a collection of the same items grouped together, instead of one piece here and there. It's more of a visual impact.
So, what does ALL of the above look like together? Glad you asked...
I just happen to have a few pix to share with you.
That's the fireplace. And now for the adjacent bookshelves. We'll start with Jeff's side.
This is an overview of what it looks like. In color.
Jeff loves all things eclectic (you'll lose him in a salvage yard) and he loves jazz. So, this little African musician holds special appeal.
Jeff is and always has been a HUGE fan of Opus by cartoonist Berkeley Breathed. It so happens, I'm going to mess this up, Berkeley's uncle or grandfather, I think it's uncle, Jeff will have to correct me, is a client of Jeff's. When he learned of Jeff's admiration of Opus, he surprised Jeff with this wonderful gift of Berkeley's , Opus, 25 years of His Sunday Best. A wonderfully thoughtful gesture and so very appreciated gift. This book holds prominence on Jeff's book shelf. Especially, since Berkeley autographed it especially for Jeff from one cartoonist to another. He refers to Jeff's political cartoons in a local newspaper.
Then, of course, we have Jeff's original artwork of two of his fav guys; Mark Twain and Teddy Roosevelt. This pretty much completes his book shelf.
Moving over to my book shelves... well there's a whole lot going on here.
Now in color.
This is my Kindergarten pix that Jeff painted in a pop art style for me-- love this!
Top shelf book display of one of my fav stories.
Chopsticks from our first dinner date.
Meet Ferd and Zoe.
2 of their children: Angus and Maude
An Infinity shell sculpture that reminds me of long ago days playing on the Santa Cruz shoreline.
Organic garden art that reminds me of my grandmother who was a master gardner. I miss her beautiful flowers and garden.
The complete bookcase.
There ya go, now you can't say I haven't shared.
To finish off this California themed blog, thought I'd close with my fav ever Eagles song.
I started out of the gate like I was on fire this morning... and now, I think, I'm traveling at about the pace of a herd of turtles slogging their way through peanut butter.
Painted the living room fireplace/wall. The living room is coming together slowly. I can't wait for it to be finished-- it's not that big a job, but at the moment, I am just not into it so it's really laborious and I find that I am forcing myself to step it up and get it done. In it's current state it looks like it's stepped off the pages of Architectural Caves Digest, Bedrock celebrities edition.
Opening/closing scenes of the Flintstones
Taking my mind off of the living room, it's not so much the living room really, it's the flooring, we need to order new flooring, but I don't want to do that yet, so I am working my way around it... I am looking to our master bedroom for inspiration. This spring I will be touching it up, keeping the same glossy forest sage green-- the walls look lacquered, I love this green, it soothingly embraces me... the feel I get from it is that of summertime when it's so very hot and the air is still and you look ahead to a grove a shaded trees and sense the coolness of the sheltering shade that awaits beneath it's green leaves. Every time I walk into the room it's like I exhale and immediately relax.
While out and about yesterday afternoon shopping, I came across the perfect drapes that will go into the master bedroom and frame the bamboo matchstick blinds that are already hung. The draperies are a silk linen--love them!
While scrounging about the garage yesterday morning before work I came across one of my fav art pieces that we have been storing. It's very large and will go above the bed in the master bedroom. The girls remind me of Tara and Amanda when they were the age of the girls in the print. And the seat is identical to the bench that my dad and I and Dave, Tara and Amanda would chillax on so very many years ago-- it's heard a lot of great conversations and laughter. And now Zach and Emma chillax on it. Here's a pic of the actual bench taken from inside the house.
Here's the print:
I am really excited about gathering all my fav pieces and having them in the master bedroom. It's the smallest of the bedrooms, but I love it because it's so very 50's with it's eyebrow window, double side by side closet doors. Jax loves this room too, he'll hear the lions roaring and will jump up on the bed and peek out the high eyebrow window towards the hills of PAWS and then after he's satisfied himself by barking, yeah, they're afraid, he'll jump down.
Subject change. Our rosemary and Lilly of the Valley are beginning to bloom.
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