IT'S TRUE.....WE DO LIVE IN THE SOUTH....

PROOF......

What to my wondering eyes should appear but.....

BEAUTIFUL, GORGEOUS MAGNOLIA FLOWERS ON OUR TREES

What a sight!!! I happened to look out the window a few minutes ago, and there they were! Love, Love them!







A small bit of SERENDIPITY ....All good things happen to us on the 25th of months!

IT WASN'T FINISHED....

YOU SAW ACT 1.......
NOW YOU ARE GOING TO SEE ACT 2......

The other night, MC went to bed early and I was enjoying a movie on TV!!!!!
IT HAPPENED......AN EPIPHANY!!!!

Why didn't I think of this before?

Before MC could get out of bed the next morning, I was jumping up and down saying " Honey, you've got to listen to this idea!" Do I need to tell you the expression on his face??????

He listened as he was calmly walking into the Great Room, and said:

"I LIKE IT"......"WE'LL DO IT"!!!!

Before lunch, we were at Lowes getting the extra box of tiles. In three hours the job was done!

WOW

The simple addition of mirrors around the fireplace makes all the difference in the world!!!

NEVER AGAIN TO CHANGE...

CAN'T TURN BACK...............

I was asked by MC....."Now, is this your FINAL decision?"........

I didn't take a minute to say: "YES"....

After 4 different "looks", I finally figured out what is the PERFECT....#5 and Final, solution for the space over the fireplace! This has been a challenge since we moved in.

After every change to the room, that space required a different treatment. Everyone has voiced their favorites......not everyone agreed by the way. But each time I made a change, I certainly received feedback!!!!! No other aspect of the house has created as many viewpoints!!! AMAZING!!!

#1.....LADY OF LOVE AND HOPE

#2 COCKTAIL FIZZ

#3......THE CLOCK

#4...MIRROR WITH BLACK AND GOLD FRAME

If we went with this change..........SERIOUSLY..IT WOULD NEVER CHANGE, NEVER.... FOR THE LIFE OF THE HOUSE!!!! (That's MC speaking!!!)

I really had to be SURE.......

Have you figured out what I decided to put there???

YES...... YES......MIRROR TILES!!!!!.

FINALLY FOUND THE PLACE FOR THEM IN OUR BUCKET LIST HOUSE. No house of ours is complete without mirror tiles! It just took a few months to find the right place.

The design ......It went through many phases.

First the size....The measurement of the entire space .......... 66" x 48"

So our choices were:

3' x 5' ........3' x 4'......4' x 5.......or 4' x 6"


Did we want to frame it with one, or two frames?
..... What width......What color?

Did we want "Rosettes"?
and if so......what color?

For over a week we went back and forth discussing all the different choices.

Finally, we decided to position a row of tiles across the mantle and see what it looked like.
DECISION ONE SETTLED......IT WOULD BE THE ENTIRE SPACE.....66" X 48"

The width of 66", meant MC would have to cut the edges of the side tiles. The height of the space is exactly 48" ! Perfect, no cutting on the top and bottom!
The plan was in motion.

The tiles come 6 to a box ..... 4 boxes...... Exactly what we needed. We planned on a thin frame, in gold, to outline the tiles...and we would have rosettes in all the corners, in gold!

MC has been working with mirror tiles since the Norfolk condo. He's an expert!!!
He figured we might need another box. From past projects, he has found that there is always a broken corner somewhere in the box. He decided to use those for the side tiles that he was taking 3" off on each side....Hopefully he would not need to buy the extra box.

MC got off to a great start. He went through the first box, found one that had a broken corner, and proceeded to take the 3" off.....ONLY HE TOOK THE 3 " OFF BOTH SIDES OF THE SAME TILE !!!!!!

OOPS....................That economical plan went out the window! Back to store for the extra box!

He was able to put all the remaining tiles up without any more hitches. In fact they looked GREAT!!!! All the edges were even and perfect!!!!



IT LOOKED FABULOUS

Together .......at the same time........we said "That's it......NO FRAMING....NO ROSETTES
JUST LEAVE IT AS IT IS......


NOW.......
I see the mirror looks absolutely amazing .....BUT.......I think I can improve what it reflects by 100%......
We are in trouble......I'm having an EPIPHANY!!!!!!!

I have the great idea of adding Crystal beads to the chandelier!!!!!!!! Like I did in the Dining Room. Actually there is another chandelier from Ballard Design that is very similar to the one we bought, with a lot of crystals. I would have ordered it instead of the one we have.....except....it was $200 more !!!!!

I dragged out my "bag" of left-over crystals, but there weren't nearly enough to do the job!

......... It didn't matter that we had a date for an Event at the Golf Club in a few hours.....this had to get started!!!!

I am at a TOTAL loss in hobby stores. As much as I love to "design", I can not do crafty projects!!!!

We went from every "hobby" to "hobby" department of Hobby Lobby!!!! After walking through most of the store we finally found crystal beads that would work.... In the jewelry section. If I were crafty, I would have figured that out!!! We also found "wire" to string the beads. Oh this was going so smoothly.....in no time flat it would be done!

MC and I went to work....being CRAFTY!!! He cut the wire and I strung the beads!! MC then tied them into place..... The first string went up great, no problems!!! Again ....I figure this is going to be a breeze.

We start on the second string....... there will be a total of 12 strings of 33 beads.

Second string ready to hang.......


OOPS....First string BREAKS......WE NOW HAVE 33 CRYSTAL BEADS ALL OVER THE SPECKLED TWIST CARPET!!!!!!! On our hands and knees we find 29 beads......

Back to second string....which in reality becomes first string. It's UP.

I shouldn't tell you this, but.......we repeated this three times, before we had two strings up!!!

Now .....it's time to go to the Club.....We shower .....dress and leave!!!

We had a great time. We enjoyed a delicious buffet and then an evening of dancing to great music. We had a fun, fun time!!! Down to the YMCA!!!!!!

Back home by 10....we are Seniors......

The beads are all ready to work on...still many missing in the carpet.

ALL I WILL SAY IS THAT BY 1:30 IT WAS FINISHED AND DROP DEAD........

GORGEOUS

there are only 7 missing beads to find.................................. and the cost... under $10!!!!!

SERENBE

A FUN FILLED AFTERNOON...

Early this afternoon, MC and I decided to find Serenbe, Georgia. Melanie Turner, the Designer I met at the Atlanta Symphony Showhouse, suggested we take a trip to this Community!!!!

The drive, which took about an hour, was beautiful, going through small towns on country roads. Then ...what seemed like the middle of Nowhere..............sat SERENBE !

This community is like no other I have ever been to! It is on 900 acres with a master plan that calls for 80% green space."They base their approach on a belief that quality of life is more than simply a place to live. It is designed to be fully a part of its natural surroundings". The residences are certified EarthCraft houses within walking distance to shops and restaurants.

The housing styles range from townhomes to Grand Victorian homes. The property consists of a fabulous Inn, stables, fine restaurants, a day spa, art studios, unique shops, a working organic farm, an equestrian center, and a biological wastewater treatment system rather than sewers...the first in Georgia.! Unfortunately, most of the shops and restaurants are only open from Thursday through Sunday!!! We did find the Blue Eyed Daisy Bakeshop where I had the best scone ever!! MC and I will surely venture back to "Me..JANE", a quaint shop, selling wine, gifts and chocolates. Bloom, a shop filled with treasures for the home.....is also on my return visit. Oh, I can't forget there is also... the Serenbe Playhouse with an outdoor theater and a Farmer's Market with all the sustainable organic foods from their grounds!!!

We drove all over the property not wanting to miss a thing!! We pulled up to the parking lot for " The INN at Serenbe" and proceeded to walk around the grounds. As we started to ascend the stairs to the building, a man, friendly with a smile.....stopped us in our tracks. He informed us that there was a "Group" staying at the INN and we could not mingle with them. We asked how we could make plans for a group we were putting together and he graciously showed us the way off the Inn grounds, and directed us to an outbuilding with a sign reading..."Guest Information". A lovely, young lady, greeted us and handed us some pricing for the Inn. She quickly showed us away from the grounds, reaffirming that they had a "Group" and we had to respect their privacy!!!

MC and I thoroughly appreciated this fact, but I must say we started to imagine all sorts of intriguing scenarios about what this Inn, in the middle of nowhere, really could be..........That friendly man looked a lot like "Jack Bauer"!!!!

With visions of secret hideaways and who might be in the "Group" we continued our tour of the Community. Driving through the little neighborhoods of different home styles we came upon a Grand Victorian Home. Smack in the front yard was a sign that read......
OPEN............

Need I say more!! You know that I was up the long stairs and trying the front door in a second! It was OPEN!!!!!!!! I immediately waved to MC, who was cautiously sitting in the car, to join me. We walked through a newly constructed, gracious, Victorian home! Oh, the Kitchen was fabulous! There were three floors and an unfinished raised basement. Which would make a perfect "Terrace Level" a "term" I will try to remember when I describe finished lower levels! The third floor.............. a Grand Ballroom with a Stage. All levels were reached by a circular staircase with a grand chandelier at each level....all hanging on one continuous chain!!! .....(Wish we had three levels...that was very dramatic!!!!)

I immediately was reminded of my Grandmother's home. Grandma related many stories that she remembered to a "T", of the home she grew up in, which was in the "tony" section of Flatbush, Brooklyn in the early 1900's. Grandma loved to tell me about how she would sit, hidden from view, and watch the carriages approach the circular drive to their home. Ladies and Gentlemen, dressed in formal attire would enter the grand foyer and proceed to the third floor for the "Party"!

Can you just imagine .........




These pictures are from brochures we found at the bakery. They show the property much better than my camera shots.....especially since we couldn't get into some of these places.......................

You can get all the info at the website:

http://www.serenbecommunity.com/home.html

http://www.serenbeinn.com/

ENJOY

A CROWN FOR THE THRONE

YOU DIDN'T THINK I WOULD LEAVE THIS SPACE OUT............

THIS CHANDELIER HAS NEVER LOOKED BETTER!!!

THE REAL MC.......

AND YOU ALL THOUGHT YOU KNEW MC......

For all my loyal readers, please forgive me for deviating from the main subject of this Blog. But, I am positive you will enjoy knowing the REAL " MC" ..................

Yesterday, our Community had a huge Event ......." THE SUN CITY PEACHTREE DERBY ", which was a fundraiser for Relay For Life!!! Each neighborhood decorated a plain wooden horse, approximately three feet tall, and made "Jockey Silks" appropriate to the horse!!!!............................ We live on Satilla Court........

With that in mind, our clever, very clever, MC came up with a THEME.......OUR HORSE WAS ....."SATILLA THE HUN"....... We had tremendous help from our neighbor, Bruce Mason. Without his assistance, and the help of other neighbors, MC could not have achieved this momentous feat!!!!!

Now, without further ado .......let me introduce to you THE REAL MC.......




ps...........it was over 80 degrees!!!!!!!