OUT LIKE A LION

(Lipscomb County Texas)

so long March

see ya next year about this same time!

LITTLE BLACK LIBRARY FILLING UP

 Cute carpenter guy said

"you are two peas in a pod"

and I can only guess he's referring to the fact

that we both like 

STUFF

I do I really mean it when I say I love the clean look

minimal

zen

but what about all the 

STUFF????

These jars are filled with Mr. PV's little boy toys

I love how the Hot Wheels are so chipped and played with

did you know there was a Spearman brewery? 

Spearman Brewing Company

Pensacola, Florida

it opened May 8, 1935

I know you will believe me when I say...if I were to lower my camera lens just a bit

you will see there is no carpet...there is still so much to do but

I just had to see how it was all going to look...carpet Thursday...then desk which is in the hall

and then I will show you the rest of a collection that's taken a lifetime to grow into 

COOL!

• Family of missions--many trips oversees...where Mr. PV might have been known to trade his deodorant and toothpaste for carved animals
• Mr. PV is a Libra...scales, measurement and balance appear in so many ways
• Finally a place to hang the hard earned college diplomas 
• Books and globes and photos and vintage bar ware and rocks and history and memories and...well...certainly no minimalist vibe in this little space...there is and will be a lot of stuff...but there really isn't one single thing that won't have some kind of story to tell...

I look forward to showing you 

how far we've come!

DEEP ELM

We have known for 3 years this tree had succumbed to drought

but we also knew it was going to leave one big snaggletooth gap in our landscape

my argument was that 3 seasons out of the year it looked ok and during summer

the canopy of the surrounding trees disguised it

so imagine my surprise when I saw cute tree trim man arrive

and to find out I was not the boss of this tree

the day would not prove good...notice the drops of rain on the window?

you know?  it is pretty ugly...the tree I mean

 but it is (or was) nearly 90 years old!

Barkley Street is lined with great big old elms on both sides

are you seeing the weather decline?

yep....too windy to stack bb's again today

and it also got a little bit dusty...so much in fact we made the national news!

this is not a new thing for us...no wonder we aren't afraid of rattlesnakes!

great.big.sad.grandiose. 

SIGH

not only is tree trim man cute...his is strong!

hmmmmm....I wonder if he could have done this if I'd seen it before he started?

I remember things when I was six...not yesterday but.....

we do have a landscape plan to make us forget this tree was ever even here

so I was happy the wind and the dust settled long enough to snap one last bittersweet pose for posterity

WARDIAN CASE

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A Wardian Case

The Wardian Case was an early type of sealed protective container for plants, an early version of the terrarium. It found great use in the 19th century in protecting foreign plants imported to Europe from overseas, the great majority of which had previously died from exposure during long sea journeys, frustrating the many scientific and amateur botanists of the time. The Wardian case was the direct forerunner of the modern terrarium (and the inspiration for the glass aquarium), and was invented by Dr. Nathaniel Bagshaw Ward (1791–1868), of London, in about 1829 after an accidental discovery inspired him.

On our trip to the city we had such a great time browsing all the fun shops on

ROUTE 66

did you know that just outside of Amarillo is a town called 

Adrian that is the halfway point on the famous Rt. 66?

1147 miles each way between Chicago and L.A. 

 The Midpoint Cafe has the most delicious ugly crust pies...

(we didn't go there but I just wanted to tell you about it)

no...we were on a mission...to buy some cool stuff and have a delicious Golden Light Burger and ice cold beer lunch...and as often happens with me when I'm on a mission...I got distracted and made a purchase that I had not intended but I guess you could say the luck of the Irish was upon us!

At the Maryland House Antiques they did not have a brass bar cart but they did have

several book sets and just in from an estate sale....

this most lovely thing that would have haunted me forever if I had walked away from it

---I even learned a thing or two about it and wanted to share that with you

below are examples of Wardian Cases via google

this is a vintage glass aquarium via pinterest

PLANTING A WARDIAN CASE

I'm not sure how you feel about Martha Stewart but the above link is a "how to"

and here...is ours!

it is very rough and has a tiny crack in the glass on one side

I won't do the rock, the charcoal and the soil because I will change/move it too much

but when you do this it creates its own little rain forest

I'm no expert so I don't know if this is old or not..but it is certainly very used!

I love the patina!

Martha's friend and Dr. Ward suggest a specimen plant

my 4 year old poinsettia that I rescued from the grocery store has grown too big!

so I decided to put in some orchids and ferns in blue vases

I will change this and move it no telling how many times

I also added a blue Madonna chalk ware statue

If I were her I'd like to live here

this is how it is for today

are you wondering if we bought what we went to buy?

yes...we did...but that will be for another day!

THE LITTLE BLACK LIBRARY

Can I just say 

whoa

and 

W.H.O.A.

?

The is the carbon black plant in Borger, Texas

aka Smoky City

everything is covered in a heavy black soot

that is so dear to me we recreated it in our own home

NOT

As we near the end of renovations at 822

(of course we will never really be done...I still have a long punch list)

I'm realizing we saved the

hardest for the last

YIKES!

(this is an industrial fan that barely helped)

Mr.PV and his dad built the library shelves with a bit LOT of help from cute carpenter man

no this is not a bad camera shot

it's a cloud of black dust that reminded me of 

the carbon black plant in Borger

the poor painters had to wear hazmat suits and they both took ill from the fumes

we lacquered them in black and well....you know me

"the cheapskate do it quick the first time kinda decorator"

not that I will ever have to...but I will never make that choice again!

too many steps (sand, base, sand, lacquer, sand, top coat, wipe)

too expensive (see above vs. 2 cans of extra shiny black no fume water base enamel)

too long of a process (see above vs. 30 minute dry time x 2 coats)

I know you're curious

tomorrow...we are taking a trip to the big city

40 miles past Smoky City

to get 

carpet/rug

a library table

some kind of cool libraryish light fixture

a set of vintage law books (Mr. PV wants to be a lawyer now)

of course a brass bar cart to match the brass library lights illuminating each shelf

and another bottle of fine bourbon 

I know you're curious

after photos around the corner!!!

MARCH LUCK

If February is about 

LOVE

then 

March is about

LUCK

and where I live?

WIND

most days average about 17 MPH

but today...30-50

(this is when we say it's too windy to stack bb's)

so it's best to amuse yourself indoors and that means

playing 

in 

the 

dirt!

Lately I was inspired by my blog friend

DORE OF BURLAP LUXE

so I went to Target and bought a tray

that she shows at her blog 

(she's crazy talented)

I gathered up some soil and seeds and supplies

and planted a few fun things to make a day like today seem better

it happens almost right before your eyes!

Ruby Red Beets

to top your spring soups and salads

I filled my wooden tray with old jars to grow

moss and ferns and seeds

makes the blah March winds seem tolerable

Easter is just around the corner

I made these at my art gallery when I had a kiln

me and my kids made a rabbit patch!

FUN!

you can get away with a few nice fakes here and there

these are radish seeds

hmmm....peas to plant?

Go March!