Details?

I do believe Thoreau had it right, "simplify, simplify", but I disagree with him a bit on details. 

This was the first version of my winter mantel - pleasant, yet something was missing.

You can see by the finished mantel that a little detail (greenery in this case) finishes off the look.

I spent the past week freshening up the guest room.

It all started when I found this scarf in the attic as I was "simplifying".

The wool scarf was joined by a wooden box and a knitted scarf found in the attic (saved from the donation pile)

 to add some interest to the guest room.

And you'll notice that just like the mantel, greenery adds a little interest.

The old door in the guest room got an update

and staying on theme, a little greenery dresses up the chalkboard.

A bag full of flowers

hangs on a cabinet door.

And an urn full of rosemary

is just what "Little Man" needed.

As I wrote this post, I decided (I hope Thoreau might agree) that flowers aren't details, they are essentials.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

I wanted to give a shout out to Ramsign for the cute Guest Room sign I won on a giveaway Linda of A La Carte hosted.

Walking in Circles

My life and my blogging have been random lately - odd bits of things I could write about, but not enough for a full post.

As I was walking around the house late last night (walking off a leg cramp), random thoughts danced around my fuzzy brain and I jotted things down on my phone.

I love our white walls

and am so happy that 2016 was the year the whole house went white.

Everything looks crisp and clean against the white backdrop.

I need someone living with us who will eat the mistakes when I'm baking for a party - I've eaten way too many smushed cookies this holiday season.

I would love to see 8 year old Sunny Pawar win the Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of Saroo Brierley in Lion -I cried from beginning to end of the movie.

Carmel is magical

any time of year

and especially at Christmas-

even in the rain.

The 17 Mile Drive is spectacular,

but I am content with my own home.

I would have been happy without any gifts for Christmas

 - being with our daughter and her boyfriend along with our son and his wife for a family vacation in Carmel was enough.

But, I really do love my new jadeite dishes,

 Fishes Eddy star plates

and colorful Moda towels my family gave me.

Holga arrived too late for Christmas, but I gave her a plant and a heart so I think she can hang out in the guest room through Valentines Day.

Not hosting a party on New Year's Eve made this week very relaxing-

just a little bit of decorating - the clocks are paper plates.

You're probably thinking, "she's really rambling now - we already saw that pic!", but I'm sure you didn't notice the ring on her left hand - KC is engaged!

With that, I'm done walking in circles and I wish you

a Happy New Year!

For the person who has everything . . .

This post has nothing to do with Christmas, but I did capture a few seasonal pics for an intro.

Steve and I recently had birthdays just 3 weeks apart and we are at the point in our lives when we neither need or want anything.

So, we were intrigued when our daughter-in-law texted to tell us to meet them in Woodland Hills last week and to wear clothes we didn't care about ruining - oh dear, were we doing a session of Paint Ball?

Truthfully, we didn't much care what we were doing because we were looking forward to a new experience and spending time with our son and his wife is always a treat!

I wonder if you have any idea yet what did?

First we met at a restaurant called Gasolina and I wish I had taken photos of some of the cool decor inside - we ate outside.

And then, we headed to a mall.

My daughter-in-law, Aylin, had planned an afternoon of throwing pots for the 4 of us.

The interior of Bitter Root Pottery is very cool -

this wall reminds me of something I would see in Anthropologie

and I'm in love with those lights.

I have wanted to throw pots since I was in college - I signed up for a class my senior year, but 23 units and a part time teaching job was just too much so I had to drop the class.

The whole process was far easier than I imagined.

and we were all such fast learners that we each had time to make 2 pieces.

These are my two pieces - the scuffed spots were caused when I used my fingers to make the scalloped edge and they were smoothed out right after the photo.

It was so fun to see what we each ended up with considering we all started with the same sized ball of clay.

We only had a 2 hour session so chose our colors (just a few color choices) - I chose white for the bowl and blue for the vase.

Someone from the studio will paint them once they are dry.

Aylin will head back to Bitter Root in a few weeks to retrieve our creations.

The entire afternoon was an unexpected adventure and I would totally recommend it as a gift for the person who has everything.