A Day of Holiday Shopping

Sometimes holiday inspiration can be no further away than your local antique store or market. 

Shop owners are masters of staging and we can always pick up a few creative ideas from them. 

Even if you don't buy anything, the colorful displays are sure to inspire some clever ideas

and get you in the holiday mood. 

We just visited the Old House Vintage Market in Loveland, Colorado 

and saw lots of wonderful holiday goodies.

I may have to include some of these pretties in my letter to Santa.

After a nice lunch, we drove across town to peek in a couple of our favorite antique stores

where we ooh'ed and ahh'ed at their holiday displays. 

With Christmas just around the corner, this fun day was just the ticket 

to get the creative holiday juices flowing. 

It's not too early to start thinking about holiday gifts and decor. 

Have you been naughty or nice this year?

Oh, and Santa dear, I really loved those rooster pillows!

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French Country Cottage

French Country in the City

Yearning to go to France?
The breathtaking French architecture, street cafes, gardens, and markets?
Yeah, me too.

But guess what?
You don't have to travel to France to experience that French je ne sais quoi.
It's more accessible than you might think.

I set out on my bicycle, camera in hand, to see what I could find in the middle of Denver.
It had rained overnight and the air was fresh and cool.
By the time I was done with my ride, I could smell the fresh cafe' au lait and baguettes.

Here's a little sampling . . . 

Entryways with gorgeous French details, 

some with real gas lamps and winding walks.

Whether they're grand with a tower and a porte cochere . . . 

 or small and charming with an arched glass portico in a misty morning, 

their French roots are showing.

These beautiful balconies could be in France.  

Love the modified fleur-de -lis design on this one. 

Here's one more beauty with fancy wrought iron and blue shutters. 

Oh, wait! This one is in France. 

This amazing glass sculpture at a light rail stop in Denver could be in Paris.

To say nothing of the breathtaking gardens . . . 

or the tantalizing street markets.

Flowers at every corner remind me of Paris flower shops.

This little touch of France is right outside my own back door, my Cafe Bleu.
If you missed this post, you can read about it HERE.

And here's my Frenchy patio.
Want to read more. Click HERE.

So, look around your own neighborhood.
You might be surprised at the French touches here and there.
Now, let's have that cafe' au lait and baguette!

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A Mysterious Woman from the Past

Sorting through paperwork from a family estate, we found a large envelope filled with old photos. 

We weren't sure where they came from or who they were. 

As I sifted through them, I looked for evocative images on cardboard or heavy paper.

And here's what I found . . . Isn't she a beauty?

This photo of a mysterious young woman, probably from the turn of the century,

touched my heart but I wasn't sure why.

Was it the portrait's glimpse into the past --
another era gone by, a time before cell phones or video or computers?

It's hard to look at these old photos without wondering about the story behind them.

Was it the pose that drew me to her -- so unusual for that time period?

Is she dreaming about something, perhaps unattainable, but so very desirable?

Or maybe she's remembering a lost love, 

resting her elbow on the arm of the chair with her hand against her face,

imagining it's his hand.

What about her long, loose hair?

Most women in these old photos wore their hair pinned up or gathered in a tight bun. 

And her hands look smooth and soft. 

Was she a daughter of privilege? 

Or was she a governess, missing her family far away?

Although the photo is sepia-toned, I imagine she had red hair and green eyes. 

With that ivory skin, she must have been enchanting.

Her dress, while modest, suggests a sensuality and youthful desire.

You can't help but notice her teeny tiny waist. 

Is there a corset cinched up under that dress?

Sometimes there's a note on the back of these old photos

with the name of the person in the picture or a date like the one below.

Scrawled in flowery handwriting in ink or smudged pencil, 

these simple notes often tell you something about the people in the photo.

Unfortunately, the back of this photo is blank.  

So we don't know who she was, where she was from
or why she has that faraway look in her eyes.

There's something about this picture that haunts me and captures my heart.

So I tuck it into the mirror on my desk so that I see it every time I sit down to write.

This mysterious woman from the past sends my thoughts swirling
and inspires me to follow my dreams. 

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