A Colorful Condo

Good morning!

Hope you all had a perfect Easter weekend and were able to relax a bit.  I find the weekdays hectic, so look forward to the weekends.....especially long weekends.

I'm back today with another home from The Cottage Company of Harbor Springs.  This is a two-storey condo with an open concept on the main floor.  

You may have seen a couple of the photos on Pinterest.......now you can see what the rest of the condo looks like.

Enjoy!

The Cottage Company of Harbor Springs

Throwback Thursday - The Former Home of Annie Selke - Part 1

Good morning, Everyone!

Hope you are all having a great week!  

I'm running a little late with my post this morning, but I love this house and have had some of the images tucked away since I found them in Country Living magazine in 2004!  A lot has changed since then and Annie Selke no longer lives here, but her story continues.

First of all, I'll give you a bit of Annie's backstory.  If you are familiar with the retail shops Pine Cone Hill, Dash and Albert, Annie Selke Luxe and Fresh American, you already know that Annie Selke is the founder of all of these companies.

Back in 1992, Annie (who happens to be a graduate of Miss Porter's school in Connecticut) began designing textiles at her dining room table.   While a student at Miss Porter's, where all the bedrooms were decorated with Colefax & Fowler wallpaper, she became entranced with the floral designs.....and still loves them to this day.

In 1994, she founded the company Pine Cone Hill which, at that time, sold very traditional bedding designs - gingham sheets, traditional quilts and that sort of thing.  Loved the look and when you see her house below, you'll see how classic the look was and would still look beautiful today.

She eventually established Dash and Albert (rugs), Potluck Studios (pottery), Luxe (linens) and Fresh American and parlayed the businesses into a $50,000,000 annual business (and this info is from an article in 2010).  Sometime during this period, she and her husband were out driving one day when they came upon this 9 bedroom, shingle style Victorian home for sale.  And it was love at first sight for Annie.  She couldn't wait to get her hands on it and turn it into the home she had always dreamed of.

So, she went to work decorating her new home with a beautiful mix of old and new, her own linen designs and antiques from her favorite Brimfield Antiques.

Next Thursday, I will continue the story of Annie Selke.

In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this beautiful home and the updates she made over the years until she sold it after her divorce.

$25.00 side table from Brimfield Antiques

Country Living 2004

Kitchen dining

Master bedroom with Pine Cone Hill's 

Annette Quilt and striped linens

Colefax & Fowler  Fuschia wallpaper

Master bedroom sitting nook

Master bedroom updated with new furniture and linens 2008

Annie Selke bed, carpet and linens

Colefax & Fowler Fuschia wallpaper

Sweet Pea Colefax & Fowler wallpaper

Guest Room

Third floor guest room (formerly maid's quarters)

Pine Cone Hill quilt and linens

Polar Bear lamp Brimfield Antiques

Painted furniture

Living room 2004

Farrow & Ball stripe wallpaper

Same living room 2008

Farrow & Ball stripe wallpaper in a green colorway

Other end of living room 2008

Dining room 2004

Dining room 2004

Dining room 2008

Rectangular table with a demilune added to each end

Annie's collection of pink dishes 

Bath 2008

Loving the Art of Heather Millar

Good morning, Everyone!

A few years ago, I attended a solo art exhibition at one of our local galleries.  It was a series of large (36" x 36") oil canvases of vintage toys.  As a baby boomer, I was immediately transported back to my own childhood.  Do you remember the bouncing ball baby, the little cowboy or perhaps the raggedy elephant?  The paintings were a reminder of days gone by and the colors, detail, highlights, shadows and whimsy were mesmerizing.  I loved them all.

The exhibition ended and they were gone.

A few years went by and I started noticing similarly familiar paintings at another nearby art gallery, such as Grandma's Pigeons (below).  Yes, a completely different subject and look, but something about the style and technique looked familiar.  Later, a fox canvas, One Last Look, caught my eye. Then, Aries, the ram appeared and Predator, the owl.  Each painting stood out in a sea of paintings......all so very eyecatching.

Finally,  I opened our local newspaper last week and there was a painting of a large brown bunny that was being donated as a fundraiser for our own PEI Humane Society.  And the artist was Heather Millar.  I googled her.  And lo and behold, she was the artist of all of the above-mentioned works and many more.  I knew immediately that I wanted to share a sampling of her work with you.  

To see more of this versatile artist's work, please go to her site here.  If you have any interest in purchasing tickets on the fundraising rabbit, Becoming Real, (below) e-mail Heather here and she will be able to help you and answer any questions you may have regarding her artwork (dimensions, prices, etc.).

Enjoy, and have a great day......and thanks for stopping by!

Bouncing Baby Ball

Listen Closely

Grandma's Pigeons

One Last Look

Aries

Predator

Something to Crow About

 

And last, but certainly not least, Becoming Real, the fundraising rabbit.  It is a 30" x 30" oil on canvas valued at $1,600.00.  There are tickets available through Heather and the Humane Society would be extremely grateful for any and all contributions......

Becoming Real

Cottages, Cottages, Cottages.........

I think I'll do a series on cottages this week since it's that time of year again.

Normally, this long weekend in May is the unofficial start of summer in the Maritimes.  However, this year it was unusually cold (with snow in some parts) and instead of getting our gardens started and opening up the cottages, all of that has been put on hold for now.

Nevertheless, it has me thinking about cottages and I thought I would share some with you.

A few years ago, Coastal Living featured a group of small cottages in Maine that were privately owned and beginning to look run down.  So, a group of 16 interior designers were hired to refurbish the cottages and prepare them for summer rentals.

Each cottage is quite small and each interior is completely different........I thought it was a brilliant idea and fun to see what each designer was able to come up with in such a small space.

Today's cottage is called 'Sleepy Hollow' and was designed by popular Maine designer, Tracey Rapisardi.  Tracey uses pastel colors, likes to re-cycle and upcycle, loves florals and painted furniture and produced a delightful, cosy cottage anyone would enjoy!

Check back tomorrow to see another of these charming cottages!

Have a great day!

Coastal Living