Lily Jane

Have a Lovely Weekend

Well, my dears, are you ready for the weekend?  I know I am!  Today my little boy and I are headed up north to do some apple picking.  He's ecstatic about it and I think it will be loads of fun, too.  Including finding the place; the instructions include things like "take the second jog on the highway" and "follow the yellow lines."  It will surely be an adventure! 

And remember all the canning I was attempting this past few weeks?  Well, I'm happy to say I've been able to do quite a bit.  And I can't say enough good things about this book.  I love everything I've tried in it.  We've done kosher dill pickles, peaches in vanilla syrup, raspberry jam with mint and lavender, tomato sauce, charred tomato and pepper salsa.  And I have blackberries just waiting to be made into the blackberry and lemon zest jam.  They really do taste as amazing as they sound.

Here are a few links for your weekend:

• Did you see my freebie for jam labels over on Black Eiffel?  Hop over and download some!  (Plus check out my posts about reading nooks, fall books, homemade brownies and a favorite vintage shop of mine.)
• Gorgeous fall interiors
• Another fabulous fall photo.  Its even a little bit spooky.
• Made these cookies last night for book club.  They were great with hot apple cider.
• Have to do this project: What to do with grandma bling

Have a lovely weekend, my dears!  Can't wait to be with you again on Monday!

{image via here}

 

 

Postcard from Provence

Some beautiful still life paintings by artist Julian Merrow-Smith.  His blog, Postcard from Provence, displays each of his daily paintings which are up for auction.  He's also made some of his paintings available as more affordable prints. 

I love their petite size (they really are the size of postcards).  They'd be lovely as part of a grouping.

{images via postcard from provence}

DIY: Chevron Pillow

The longer I live the more I want to learn how to sew.  I'm afraid even my straight lines aren't so straight yet.  But this chevron pillow tutorial gives me all the more reason to practice.  If I can just get the straight lines down I can make it!

I really love the seam lines down the middle of each point and the texture they add to the pillow.  Do you sew your own pillows, curtains, etc?  What projects have you tackled or do you dream about?

{via elephantine}

Guest Posting

This week I consider myself a very lucky girl because I have the opportunity to be guest posting on Rachel's lovely blog, Black*Eiffel.  Be sure to drop by and visit!  Today I've shared some of my favorite reads for the fall season.  Leave a comment and tell me your favorite books.

Interior Stylist: Clair Wayman

Every now and again my husband has to travel for work.  Whenever he does I always try to do something to the house before he gets back.  Reorganize/style something, buy a piece of furniture, frame some pictures.  Once I painted three rooms in the three days he was gone (ceiling and all)...while I was 7 months pregnant. (Shout out to the family who helped me with that feat!)  He'll be leaving again later this month and I'm already plotting my next decorating project.  These interiors by stylist Clair Wayman are giving me loads of inspiration.

I'd love for my entryway to be as pretty as the one above.  Digging the lamp, especially.  You can see more of Clair's lovely interiors in her portfolio. 

Do you enjoy putting surprises together for friends and family?  What have you done or are planning to do?

{images via Clair Wayman}

Slipper Season

Hello, my dears.  How was your weekend?  What did you do?  We had a lovely time in Disneyland.  It was our first family vacation where we weren't going to visit anyone and it was really so much fun to just be the three of us (although, of course, we always love visiting people, as well).  Our little boy was just the right age to start to really appreciate everything.  It was also my first visit since I was a child and I was blown away at how well done everything was.  It's amazing!  We stayed in the Grand Californian whose architecture and design is inspired by the Arts & Crafts era and everything was beautiful; Tiffany lamps, paneled walls, metal work.  I loved it.

Now that we're back home again I can tell that fall is finally settling in around us.  The thermostat has officially been turned on, I'm feeling urges to cook all the time (it's warm and smells good which is so fall to me), and I've been wearing socks all around the house again.  Which means that slipper weather has arrived but I'm afraid my last year's pair had seen one too many winters and was put to rest in the spring.  So I've been looking for a new pair and thought I'd share some of my favorites with you.

{animal sock slipper, $16; knit pom slipper; $25 cozy knit heart slippers, $100; suede moccasin slipper, $15; plaid slipper, $29; sweater knit scuffette, $72 button slippers, $39}

My little boy needs a pair of his own, too, so I've also been looking for him.  I tend to shy away from character slippers (and apparel, usually) but there are still some cute options out there.  The stripey ones below are available both for children and adults in quite a few colors.  I'm kind of in love with them for myself!

{sock monkey slippers, $15; emu child slippers, $45; ugg scuffette slippers, $60}

Do you have a favorite pair you like to wear around the house?  Or do you prefer socks or leg warmers?  I'm a fan of the leg warmers reappearance and would probably own a few pairs if I didn't think my toes would get so cold.  But who knows?  I could be sporting leg warmers and socks before too long.  It gets pretty cold come winter. 

Things to Do This Fall

Holidays are always sneaking up on me.  Sure, I know they're coming but they seem so distant that I'm lulled into a false sense of having all the time in the world before they'll truly arrive.  Then, before I know it - BOOM - they're here and then they're gone again, leaving me in their dust with a bewildered expression on my face, having done hardly anything at all to celebrate them.  It's been happening for years now and my boy is getting to the age where I feel we need to have some traditions starting; he's going to start remembering his childhood soon! 

So, this fall I decided to make a list of the things that I want to do before the season is over.  We've already planned out his Halloween costume (he's going to be a pumpkin) and know the trick-or-treating activities we'll be participating in.  But there's so much more to fall than just Halloween and Thanksgiving!  Here's what we have planned:

 

• Go apple picking
• Drive up the canyon to see all the gorgeous fall colors
• Buy pumpkins and fresh-pressed cider at the pumpkin patch
• Make caramel apples, this candy bark and fall-themed sugar cookies
• Have a family movie night with blankets and stove-top-popped popcorn
• Celebrate Oktoberfest (even if it is a little late) with soft pretzels, mustard and bratwurst

As I've typed these all out I'm realizing that almost every one of them involves food.  Hmm, I suppose this reveals something about myself.  Perhaps I should add an exercise routine to this list as well...

{image via this flickr stream}

Embroidered Love

These little custom embroidered hoops by miniature rhino are so darling.  Each is made to order with the names of the two love birds.  Wedding information is typed and attached to the back.  Wouldn't this be the sweetest wedding gift?

 

 

 

I'd still love one and we're coming up on our 6th year anniversary!  It'd be so sweet hanging in the bedroom. 

{images via miniature rhino}

Decorating with Milk Glass

When I was restyling my bookcase a couple weeks ago I realized my need for some pretty things to fill the spaces with.  I love books and know that my library will expand over the years, but perhaps slowly because I only buy books I know I'm going to love.  I hate paying for something and then realizing that I'm never going to pick it up again.  So, instead, I borrow it from the public library first, then buy it later if it strikes my fancy.  That way I know that my collection will be full of nothing but amazing literature. 

Meanwhile, while I'm still building my library, my bookshelf needs something lovely to grace its shelves.  And I've decided that milk glass would be just the thing.  I've never been one for collections (I'm kind of a clutter freak) but I think milk glass is really gorgeous, has so many different forms and is functional to boot. 

{above images: country shelf, blue milk glass, dinner party, fruit bowl, on shelves with tiny pennants, against a blue wall, on bookshelf, piano bookends, hobnail vase}

I'm really excited to start my search for pieces.  I'll be looking for vintage finds in antique stores, yard sales and the like but if you're looking to start your own collection and don't want to hunt for pieces, there are also new bits of milk glass being made today.  Here are a few favorites, old and new:

{milk glass products: vintage: set of three vases, scalloped plate, cream and sugar milk glass, wide-mouthed vase. new: chandelier, lamp, jadeite dishes, cake stand}

Do you have any collections you enjoy?  How did you get started?  Where and how do you display them?

 

 

Handmade Furniture

Hello, again.  How are you this Monday morning?  Did your weekend treat you well?  Mine ended up being a little busier than I had intended, but was still fun nonetheless.  I did get to spend quite a bit of time with my family, which was nice.

Today and tomorrow will be busy, too, as we prepare for a trip to Disneyland later this week!  We're really excited.  My boy has been asking with bated breath, "How many more days?"  for weeks.  It'll be so fun to see him experience it all. 

I'll have posts here for you the whole week, even though I'll be traveling.  And I'd like to start the week out with the work of a local furniture builder, Ivory Bill.  Each of their pieces is handmade and they took my breath away the first time I saw them.  You don't often see furniture this beautiful and durable these days. 

One day I'd like to have them make a kitchen table for me.  Something large and sturdy with a little bit of farmhouse appeal.  It seems like the perfect anchor for family gatherings and a wonderful place to make memories. The kitchen is already where people seem to congregate in our home, even without any proper seating (it's the only room in the house that hasn't been touched since we moved in).  So it's only proper that we add a large, lovely table like this one to the mix.  Where do your favorite family memories happen?  What place in your home do people seem to automatically gravitate toward?

{images via ivory bill}