hello Monday and thanks for celebrating my style....

Hello Monday and hello happy summer days.

The kids are finally out of school.

SIGH.

Hello long, hot days.

Goodbye schedules.

This is happy stuff.

And Hello to nice press...

Thanks so much to the wonderful editors at 

Romantic Homes magazine who believe in me. 

I am grateful to them beyond words for the feature they've done on me in the "Favorites" column of the August issue...that's the fun, last page that features a personality in the industry and their favorite objects, places and/or products...

Hello to feeling appreciated and I hope I can give this appreciation in turn to the many others who inspire me.

Hello to great press and getting the 

word out on what you believe in.

Hello to deciding what you like and sharing it to enjoy it even more...

Hello to you all and have a wonderful week whatever you are up to.

xxoo Jen

Magnolia Pearl...a discovery

 

For so many years I'd seen and admired the textiles and hand of 

 Robin Brown's "Magnolia Pearl" clothing...

...the lush natural textiles, the small flourishes...

Then, at the breakfast table in Round Top at Spring Antiques Week, when Jo Packham and I were both guests of Holly Kuhn and her Old Glory Antiques grand opening, Jo suggested I try wearing the clothing to really discover the "Magnolia Pearl" experience...

It was so interesting to put on these soft and loose garments, 

it felt utterly feminine...

So, Jo arranged for us to host a Magnolia Pearl Showcase at The Country Living Fair in Rhinebeck...

If you were there, you might have attended some of our chats at 11am each day where we explored the garments and had 2-3 of the 

Earth Angels' Art Girls RoadShow members model the clothing.

Here are some pictures of the days, the outfits, the fun we had in them...

off to the Fair where I worked in them and loved them made this a very wonderful experience...

I was unprepared for how wonderful the garments felt on....

how I could move in them...

And then Allie took over the box and played dress up ...

 

 

We really had such fun trying them all on...love the one size fits all...

...the clothing is like nothing else I have worn, and I have a much deeper appreciation for Robin's style and artistry now that I have experienced wearing the textiles, working in them, layering them with love and a reverence for texture.... 

thanks to Jo for making this possible...and thanks to Stella Show Management an Hearst for allowing us to show case these glories at the Rhinebeck Fair...

 And if you are interested in learning more about Magnolia Pearl, 

please visit their site...

 xxoo Jen

we've been spotted...

...I have so many images of the Fair to share...and I will in a blog post thanks to Richard Traub our ace photographer!

...but in the meantime...take a peek at the blog posts and articles out there...some mentioned here feature Earth Angels...

Lots of bloggers spotted us and a long-time friend to Earth Angels and writer, Mary Shustack of WAG mag wrote a wonderful piece on the fair with lots of kudos to Earth Angels' Art Girls's Road Show...

Read it here.http://www.wagmag.com/a-day-at-the-fair/..

And there's a fun blog post at  Country Design Home.

Thanks to all for the nice press for us...

xxoo Jen

hello Monday...I need a cuppa...tea and travels

Hello Monday...

It's time to greet the week with a peek at what's going on here

 and say hello to all of you...

This week I want to talk tea and travels.

We all know I love tea...I drink it all day long by the pot, hot or cold, and my fave restaurant here in town is "Charlotte's Tea Room" 

(owned by my sister-in-law Joanne) and I get there every chance I can...

it is a perfect lunch, every time and the perfect cup of tea...

But when I am on the road, I am forever in search of another good cuppa...

If your feet find you in Canandaigua, NY please visit Rob O'Brien's new tea shop "Good Life Tea" where he sells fine, loose teas by the ounce.

 If you can't get there, fear not...his website is fab...
here's a link www.GoodLifeTea.com
and if you order with code EA20 at checkout...you get 20% OFF ...sweet!

 I was there recently for his wife Nancy Wiley's event "Tea at the Castle" (where yes, Rob did fabulous pot after pot of tea...)

and it was a true treat to experience his new store...

I came home with several new teas and a cold brew pot for the counter that has me enjoying them in the warmer weather. 

I am glad to know they also do mail order ...a good option for me

if I run out before I get back to Canandaigua this summer...

Congrats Rob, and hope all goes well! And thanks too, to Rob for all the wonderful samples he's sent us to include in our boxes...if you order form us in the next few weeks, you will find a sample of his wares tucked in our boxes with that 20% off coupon...love that!

Hello Monday...

Hello to road trips with friends and hello stops along the way...

this shop among them!

Hello Sue of Skippy Doodle Designs fame, love that you are up for anything!

(Sue has the dubious honor of having driven through the night with me on various Art Girls' RoadShow adventures and she makes the miles sweeter...)

Hello Canandaigua...and sweet shops and restaurants and amazing lake.

I cannot believe it took me this long to get there, 

and now I cannot wait to get back again!

Hello to the chores small and tall, tea makes them all more bearable.

Hello simple joys, like sipping tea as I work away...

Hello to trying new things... it's the best way to learn and I am all for that.

Hello summer, love that you are looming...

maybe they'll be some more road trips in the works!

Hello to all of you and hope the week is a good one for you whatever you might be up to...

xxoo Jen

Never Stop to Think if I Have a Place for This...IN HUDSON!

...nice news to share...

The long anticipated opening of The Hudson Mercantile is hear...my friend Stephanie Lloyd has worked her magic in this renovated 7,500 square foot space in Hudson, NY...and my oh my it will be worth the trip...

Take a peek at Stephanie's blog post for some sneak peeks on this new space. She's got me drooling over cabinets, cupboards, hot air balloon baskets, big letters, small loot, ephemera and more...and 

...if you need an excuse to make the trip...

how about coming to the Book Signing party on 6/21?

  

I will be there to celebrate the opening of the store and wish my friend Stephanie Lloyd and Jennifer Lanne (who will have her paintings in the space too, woo hoo!) many congrats on being featured in this gloriously lush new book about adorned spaces and treasured objects...

Hope to see you there...

xxoo Jen

it's two decades today...

 20 years ago, Micah & I got hitched...

June 11, 1994.

It was a fun day and a great party 

(thanks again Jo & John for sharing your home to host it!), the priest (Hi Father Jim) was 45 minutes late, the caterers dropped the cake, and, in the middle of it all, a demo crew started working on the house next door...it was perfect, to me.

(You know when the DJ has to stay overtime because no one will stop dancing, it's a good party!

 Really, I loved every minute of it all, knowing there was really no perfect wedding, and no perfect marriage, but there was a way to make it work and be there to enjoy the ride!

 It's been a wonderful adventure...

 It's been full of love...and I am a happy lady, 

and for this I am grateful. 

How lucky I am to have found the fella for me?

Thanks to our friends and family for sharing in it all, for being there, for being a part of our life. 

There would be no us, without all of you.

Happy Anniversary, Micah...

here's to us and many many more years together.

I would marry you all over again.

 

xxoo Jen

Hello Monday and hello Torquay and Friends and Pots and more...

Hello Monday, my name is Jen and I am a collector. 

Through and through, since I was a little girl I have loved pretty, hand made things and many a love affair, adventure and pursuit have come my way with my special treasures and things.

You really are a collector, or not. You are born that way...

Among my oldest and most treasured collections is Torquay (said Tor-key) Pottery....as ceramic folk art, it has had my heart for many, many years, and the story of how the potteries were started in Devon as rural economic redevelopment effort during the industrial revolution speaks to my interests as an urban planner...

I got my first piece when I was 17 on a trip to England with my parents...

It was this lovely lustrous pot with a deep blue glaze and had -- 

in a folksy, sgraffito writing this quote:

"Life is mostly froth and bubbles,

Two things stand like stone.

Kindness in another's troubles,

courage in your own."

Can you see how this spoke to me as a teen...

well, I fell in love and then as I learned more about this type of pottery 

and how and where it was made, I fell deeper...I needed to know more, needed to learn about the various patterns and potteries....

Without getting to much into that now (we'll save some for a later date), I am just happy to share how an appreciation for British Ceramic Art has brought these wonderful folks into my world.

 I had a wonderful visit from Kathy Collins and Brenda & Ian Kimber...

what a great morning we had...

Hello friends!

The North American Torquay Society (NATS) is the US enthusiasts club and organization....the folks are great fun and I am hoping to steal away to TN in late September to join them for their annual convention, but we'll have to see what time allows....

You can visit the NATS site for more info on domestic events and such...

The British Society -- of which I am also a member is TPCS...their site has a wealth of info on the history of the potteries...

I will be blogging more about the history of this fabulous ceramic art...I have a photo shoot scheduled at Kathy's house for this week and I am hoping to share more image of her collections here and via some of the mags you read.

I adore and respect these lovely ladies and

 I am grateful to know them and share a passion...

 

Hello Monday and HELLO Shelby and Charlotte!!!

Hello to friends near and far, it's wonderful to find something in common with folks out there...

Hello to getting on the road, heading to Boston soon.

Hello dusting, ummm you see this cabinet, yeah, well it needs it!

Hello to the summer, it's looming large and the list of summer projects is looming larger!!!

Hello to my dear friend Anne....this wonderful Aussie is coming in soon...she loves Warwick! 

xxoo and hello Monday and a good week to you all

Jen

finally...catching up with Cinderella...

...oh my where has the time gone?

As you recall, Cinderella felt the same way 

in her famous evening and I surely do now...

We had a stellar, lovely and oh so charming event in Canandaigua last month and it's taken me this long to share some images on the blog...

Here's a peek at some fave images from "Tea at the Castle" hosted by Earth Angels and Nancy Wiley to celebrate the launch of her thirds book from storyland... "Cinderella" (..it's incredible by the way!!!)

 

Note...we're offering Free shipping on all orders for Nancy's books and doll with code STORYLAND  at checkout until 6/15/14.

You can see them all on Nancy's page...

Thanks to all who made the special day possible...

Nancy, Marion Ferrer, Sue Parker, and helpers Jane Gyulavary, 

Charlotte O'Connor and Elizabeth O'Brien...

These are some very special and talented ladies.

Thanks too to all who came to share in the day...

We're already thinking about how we can do another event in Canandaigua...I am simply in love with the town and smitten with the little gem of Sonnenberg Gardens where we hosted the tea...

xxoo Jen