Summer Visitors and a Decorating Tip

Hi there!

I hope you are all having a nice summer!  We are having a stay-cation this year at our neighborhood pool, since we can’t be away from a few of our projects at the moment.  We’re thinking about heading to the mountains in East Tennessee for a short trip in the fall though.  If you have suggestions on where to stay or what to see in the Great Smokies, let me know!  We are thinking more like a scenery/relaxing/antique stores/coffee shops/air conditioning vacation rather than a hike/bike/sweat/bugs situation.  Anyway, here’s a scene from our stay-cation last week:

A summer at the pool wouldn’t be complete without a giant floatie that doesn’t fit in the car, right?  We got this as a present for our kids since we weren’t taking a summer vacation, and it turns out it’s bigger than expected.  It’s currently being stored on our lawn.  I would happily return it to Tuesday Morning where it belongs, but our kids have each thanked me profusely on their own and said it was the best present ever.

We’ve also been visited by exotic animals at the shop, so we don’t need to go to the zoo:

This is Chuck.  He is our resident woodchuck, and we have also been visited by a groundhog, skunk, and lots of lizards.  These critters have been entertaining except for the skunk.  That guy scared me to death and was dangerously close to getting in Dave’s car.

Also, we’ve had people come visit the shop from all over the northern hemisphere!  Here is our furthest-traveling guest, all the way from Canada.

This is the lovely Patty from Canada and the super-dude is (my) Hubs.  Patty ordered candles from us and came to visit when she was in the area.  Thank you so much for your visit, Patty!

That’s how good these candles are, y’all.  They are super-yummy, made of natural stuff, burn a really long time, and worth traveling far and wide to get them.

There are several great flavors, but right now Thankful is my favorite.  There are also fall and winter scents that I am waiting to burn until it’s fall.  The 8 oz. one above is $16 and the 12 oz. size is $22.  They sell out pretty quickly, so if you are coming for a particular scent, let me know ahead of time and I’ll order enough.  They’re handmade in East Tennessee.  I’ll do an Instagram post on all the options soon.

We also had another special guest from Texas, Jesslyn, who owns Jesslyn Dale Designs. I wish I remembered to get a picture with her! She promised to send pictures of her purchases in her space though.  She bought a few of my favorite vintage rugs and some fun accessories.  Designers are the ones usually buying the vintage rugs, I’ve noticed.  There’s a free tip!  If you want a designer-y house, shop like a designer.  Designers tend to see parts that make a good whole, rather than getting stuck on each individual item.

Million-Dollar Decorating Tip

Quick tip: if you want to decorate like a designer, get some vintage, handmade, high-quality rugs.  Even if you can’t afford a big one, get a smaller rug and layer it over jute or sisal.  It gives the space character, history, and a quality-feel rather than it feeling like the whole house is from Hobby Lobby.  Cheap rugs from big box stores do not do the trick in making a space look right.  Most of them are made of polypropylene or polyester and off-gas chemicals and don’t wear well.  You’ll know what I mean if you walk up to the rug section at Home Depot or Target or HomeGoods and smell the rugs even from several feet away.  Natural materials (wool, jute, cotton, sisal) are far better.

We have several Turkish and Persian rugs at the shop right now that I’ll probably make available online.  I’m not sure how much it costs to ship a rug, but at least if you’re local and would like one of ours, you could see them online and pick it up at the shop.  Here’s one of my favorites (below).  This one is so pretty.  It’s a vintage Turkish Oushak rug with pinks and blues.

I also really love this one (below).  It’s really soft and reminds me of a sweater. It was handmade in Turkey of really high-quality lambswool, and is vintage.  It’s a Turkish tribal pattern.

Here’s what it looks like in action:

That pink run under the table is also a vintage Turkish rug, and I’m currently using it in our house but it’ll go online when we get our online shop up, too.

We also had a visit from Holly Mathis, whose work I have loved for a long time!  She’s in magazines all the time and does what I would consider the best design work out there.  She lives in Texas but we’re getting to help her with materials for some of her projects.  It’s really exciting for me to get to work with her!   She and I are also working on making a curated selection of cabinet and door hardware that’ll be available on our website to purchase.  That way, if you are intimidated by the millions of options out there, you’ll be able to choose from the Holly/Holly-approved favorites!  I’m excited about it!

That’s all for now!  If you haven’t been to our shop in awhile, come see us again!  Lots of stuff has changed since we unofficially opened in April.  Now we have a lot more “hardscape” stuff displayed like sample kitchens, countertops, flooring, tile, and lighting, along with a mix of new and vintage decor.  Our staff is always there to help you pull samples together and plan your project.

If you want me personally for a design/decorating project, let me know the scope, budget, and time frame and we can discuss pricing.  I’m overseeing lots of big projects where our staff has the main role in choosing finishes, and have just a few slots a year for people who specifically want my vision for the space.  (This would be for people who want me to have a major role in making the decorating decisions.)  If that’s you, contact me using the website contact form or send me a message on Instagram or Facebook.

Thanks, y’all!  Hope you’re having a great summer!