Tag Archives: beautiful

Apr24

Barbara Nell

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Alison

Barbara Nell

this post is a

A Tribute to my Mom-

Barbara Nell George Cain,

who passed away on March 8th

She was an Elizabeth Taylor

look-alike back in the day

I LOVE this photo of her and my Grandaddy on the

streets of Fort Worth-

she reminds me of Scout Finch from

“To Kill a Mockingbird”

Mom and Daddy on their Wedding Day,April 22,1950


Me and the siblings (I am in the middle)

Mother sewed a lot when we were kids, she

probably made my dress,

my sister’s and hers in this photo.

(That hat would fetch a pretty penny today at a vintage clothing shop!)

In her later years,she took

up watercolor painting-and WOW

was she ever talented!

Here she is with one of her Cowboy paintings-

she went on to be a signature member of

the American Watercolor Society

love the loafers and rolled-up jeans!!

I will miss her and my Dad (2002)

so very much!

On a related note- my Etsy store has changed names-

it is now called Plum Creek Art and Antiquities.

We are going to be selling prints of my Mom’s

retro/vintage fashion illustrations,which

she drew for various department stores

from the 1940′s through the 1970′s

And they are amazing and FABULOUS!!

will keep you posted…

Apr11

Saying Goodbye to Grandma…

Posted on April 11, 2013 by Alison

Saying Goodbye to Grandma…

I know it has been a long time

since anything ‘s been posted…

We have had some losses this year, so I

decided to write a little about them.

In late January,my wonderful

Mother- in -Law passed away after a

bout with pneumonia

You might guess by looking at her picture

that she was always smiling!

Vivian Rosemeta Frederick Piantanida

She was so beautiful as well as her name, but she never thought so...


 the first time she met my oldest daughter-in North Carolina 1981.

My three girls on her back deck,

all dressed up for Church!

She was a nurse who loved sailing

and married a sailor who built her a house!

 Grandma and Grandpa on their honeymoon

We will miss her SO VERY MUCH!!

She was a prayer warrior & hugger,

a letter writer,needle-pointer

cat lover ,treat cooker ,Mom, Grandmom,

Great- Grandmom and all around Amazing Lady!

Will miss her slight British accent saying “Wee”

“dear-dear” and ” A gain”

Just one day  after getting back from her memorial service,
my Mom passed away...
Will post about her next time.

Feb6

Rooney Claire…a baby shower

Posted on February 6, 2013 by Alison

Rooney Claire…a baby shower

Now that sweet little Rooney has arrived-

it’s time to show off her Baby Shower!!

The shower spread was in my dining room and

hanging from the chandelier over the table are

beautiful satin ribbons with tiny silk balls

I can’t really give the look a name, per se-

its just ROONEY

the color palette was a bright and sweet array

of pinks,limes,yellows and Tiffany blues.

Her parents might want to start discouraging anything

with the word Tiffany in it right now.

Can you believe it? PINK burlap!

paper hearts

Emily,one of the hostesses,made miles of scrapbook paper heart garlands to hang @

the windows and little twig heart wreaths were put in the center of each one.

maybe there is a name for this look…Rustic Baby

twig heart

Mason  Jars were wrapped with twine and lace and filled

with white rannuculas and hydrangeas,pink baby roses

queen anne's lace, kermit poms and sticks-then

placed on a log "platter" with a tiny stone urn & camdle

rooney flowers

And oh MY!! the FOOD at the shower was Amazing!

  
   green apples and nut-topped fruit dip

Better than Crack Dip...*not my recipe or name

Mom’s favorite little cucumber sandwiches

and a pickle/relish tray

and Last but not least…

the Amazing & Yummy

Pumpkin Cheesecake Cupcakes!

And on the sideboard buffett...

  more pink burlap,log circles,flowers,sticks and a BIG yellow " R"

rooney invite

the chalkboard inspired invitation- so cute!

And I will leave you with this-

our thoughtful hostess gifts from the Mommy-to-be

potted red and white amarylis plants!

Will try to post a photo of little Miss Rooney Claire soon

(need to check with her parents first)

Cucumber Sandwiches

2 8 oz. pkg. cream cheese 1/4 tsp. salt 2 med. cucumbers (peeled,seeded,grated)

1 small onion grated 2 tsp. dill weed 3 tbsp. mayonnaise

Combine cream cheese(softened) cucumber, onion salt, dill weed and mayonnaise in bowl. Mix thoroughly.

Spread on your choice of bread with crusts removed.A thin coating of butter on the bread is recommended

if not serving right away. Cut into shapes with electric knife.

  Happy Eating!

Read the rest of this entry →

Nov29

then God Gave the Ginkgo Tree

Posted on November 29, 2012 by Alison

then God Gave the Ginkgo Tree

There is this tree in my town…

it leaves me speechless…almost

it nearly defies description!

when the late afternoon sun hits the leaves,

it's as though they had been brushed with gold leafing

this ginkgo tree has delicate fan shaped leaves,

which are beautiful all alone,

but are captivating by the thousands

depending on the lighting, the leaves

are anywhere from buttery yellow to

antique gold…

it has become a tradition for us to drive by this tree-

it's in a older neighborhood, on a corner by a plain

 little house...now part of our every Thanksgiving

so I want to thank you God-

for the golden Ginkgo tree

knowing it is just a tiny glimpse of

your GLORY and the Glory that awaits us in Heaven!

stay golden, pony boy…

Nov1

Sticks & Ironstone

Posted on November 1, 2012 by Alison

Sticks & Ironstone

Here’s a look at the latest

Thursday Teacart-Scape!

I have dubbed this one

sticks and Ironstone

I  started by placing this powder blue runner on the teacart-

love the brown and white toile-ish floral pattern!

then I added in brown and off white touches…

this divided dish is a yard sale find…

the colors in it work beautifully

with the browns and blues,don’t ya think?

I really like the little white Boo pumpkins

and that funky cone/pod deal!

Love this ironstone tureen….

Another yard sale find!

and it’s sitting on its matching plate

AND another old ironstone plate!

Look at  the detail on the lid-leaves and swirls...

Next, some brown sticks in a tarnished silver

pitcher for some height and texture

a few more touches in this color pallete-

There will probably be one more fall

scape for the teacart …

a Thanksgiving one

and then on to-

CHRISTMAS!

Come back tomorrow when

I will announce the Hand/Bag Winner!

And as always-

thanks for your readership!

At least these sticks and (iron) stones

won’t break your bones….or the bank!

Aug13

Traveling Teacart

Posted on August 13, 2012 by Alison

Traveling Teacart

I was sorta stumped after the Glorious Fourth

decor came down and not sure how to dress

THE TEA CART

What to do???

a a few ideas were floating around in  the 'ol brain

the Olympics... the beach... vacations...  the mountains... blues

well, I nixed the Olympic theme pretty quickly,

I was DONE with the red white and blue

and you can’t do the Olympic Games without the U S of A…

So- while looking through my postcard collection,

It came to me-

A Traveling Theme!!…exotic, lotsa countries

and it kinda folds in some aspects of

all the ideas I had

 so postcards of far-off lands went on the post card holder-

and this one in particular was the color inspiration…

It gave me a chance to display this cool

Persian vase/pitcher

and this Chinese footed planter

I had some perfect cocktail napkins,

which echoed the blues

and far-off lands designs…

I added in this small cut glass dessert stand

from England

with just dried hydrangeas from my yard

in a darling short Dutch vase

Crepe-y dried roses in apothecary jars -AND-

yummy peanut butter filled pretzels!

A touch of home -my two rose candle holders

and vintage blue floral tablecloth

most of the postcard collection was from

my Grandmommy

and I have not been to any of these places!!

Maybe someday…

More photos of the Tuesday Tablescape Teacart!

this was a fun tea cart vignette to pull together!

 the postcards are from France,England,Africa,Ireland,Russia & America:)

Thanks for stopping by on your internet travels!

Aug9

August Flower Give Away- Olympic Bouquet

Posted on August 9, 2012 by Alison

August Flower Give Away- Olympic Bouquet

at The London Games -

each medal winner also receives

a Bouquet of flowers!

 like this one, made from all English-grown flowers and herbs

 So for this month's Give-away- a Flower Girl take on the Olympic Bouquet

the elements

three yellow or orange roses, these are Circus

then three pink roses…

these are Priceless (the name)

last rose is a pale green rose,

called Jade…3 of these

(you could add 3 more of yellow or orange)

Lovely lavender-either fresh or dried-this is dried

I used Lady's Mantle for the other two "herbs"

(the Olympic one has Apple Mint and green wheat)

and finally- Rosemary from my yard

all laid out getting read to assemble

the roses grouped in threes by color…

the finished product-

the flower girl’s take on a

medal winning bouquet!!

from another angle

to win this bouquet, just comment on your favorite

moment so far at the London Olympic Games!!

My little blog buddy will draw a local winner on

Sunday night- You’ll just need to be lucky

…you can’t train for this one!

Jul25

Summertime Blues

Posted on July 25, 2012 by Alison

Summertime Blues

This Wedding Wednesday post is from

Sandra’s BEAUTIFUL BlUE wedding!

Blue and green hydrangeas, white snapdragon,belles & astilbe

The Venue was the Wonderful Elmwood Gardens

 Oak leaf  & deep blue hydrangeas, white Proud roses in Elmwood's urns

the couple had such a sweet love story

and these Lunchroom cans were a part of it!

 another Designs by Dee Ann cake!

 love love  the hydrangeas...and the Cake!

Vintage bottles with wild stems

the reception tables…such a COOL look!

More photos coming later from the Professional-

Brandi Burkett (I hope!)

Just wait ’til you see her Bouquet!!

Thanks for stopping by this Wedding Wednesday!

 a big Thank You to my daughter Lindsay Long for the nice photos!

I am featured in Feathered Nest Fridays @ French Country Cottage!!

Jul25

The Answer to Sheba’s Question

Posted on July 25, 2012 by Alison

The Answer to Sheba’s Question

A couple of weeks ago I asked you a Question-

Which was…

REAL

or Fake??

The ANSWER!!

In above photo, the vase on the right and the

green pot flowers on the left

are the REAL ones,

which means the other two

(small cube in front & Bouquet @ back)

are FAKE.

Thanks for playing Sheba’s Question with us!!

Jul19

Caitlyn’s Country Wedding

Posted on July 19, 2012 by Alison

Caitlyn’s Country Wedding

Caitlyn’s Colors were pale purple,

smokey taupe and ivory

she had an absolutely breathtaking reception

in her folks front yard…high up on a bluff

lots of white table-clothed tables in the trees, with beautiful sunset views

Each table had a unique crystal container of

her Mom’s filled with fresh flowers

the flowers were the PERFECT match to the bridesmaid’s dresses…

Ah! the smokey purple Amnesia rose…

 they used all types of vintage china on the tables...such a neat idea!

Her Dad built a set of doors for the Newlyweds to make a Grand Entrance

such a beautiful and peaceful setting…

the gate to the reception venue

 and more photos of the tables...

Thanks for visiting this Wedding Wednesday (on Thursday

I only had reception photos, the bouquets were amazing &

when I get them from the professional, will do a post.