Cool Weather Transitions

Cool Weather Transitions by bailey-gillreath featuring brass candle holders

DwellStudio brass candle holder / Dwellstudio

What We're Doing Lately: A Hike Down A Natchez Trace Trail

For the first time in my life, I have a fairly regular work schedule. Andrew, however, does not. Because of this, weeks when the stars align and we both have a day off together feel a little like a holiday.

A couple of weeks ago, this magical alignment happened, and we ended up with a Monday off together. There was lots of laziness during the early part of the day, but there was also a lovely little hike. It wasn't especially challenging or involved, but the weather was just crisp, and the woods were enchanting.

Woodland details

What a cutie pie

Andrew was prepared to protect us from whatever lurked in the forest depths

We like to use actual, tangible maps

I like to play Snow White. If Snow White had red hair. 

Inspired By: Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

One of my favorite things about this little town I live in is the move theater. The Franklin Theatre shows all kinds of movies, both  films recently out of theaters as well as old favorites, and tickets are only $5. We've already enjoyed many a date night watching Indiana Jones, Psycho, and Ruby Sparks, but most recently, I coaxed Andrew into seeing Seven Brides for Seven Brothers... and guess what! He enjoyed it.

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers has been one of my favorites for years. I have fond memories of watching it with my mother and two sisters. We like to - good naturedly - make fun of the melancholy song the boys sing while chopping wood; lines like "can't make no vows to a heard of cows" and "I ain't got no feminine pole cat..." have always elicited a giggle.

I never realized until this most recent viewing, how beautiful and stylish this movie is. The colors are vibrant and most of the movie takes place in and around a snuggly snow covered cabin that is filled with rustic wood grains, quilts, and Navajo inspired pieces. Millie, the townswoman who marries Adam, the oldest brother and head of this family of ginger men, carries a lovely, imitation worthy carpet bag. Adam dons all the fringe you could ever wish for. The boys sport divine woodsmen beards for the early part of the movie. The girls wear patchwork skirts and maryjanes, and have cozy Navajo print blankets thrown over their heads (just watch the movie).

The movie:

   

My interpretation:

Cabin front porch. The perfect place to sit and watch the snow; the pass that goes to town will be blocked until spring

Millie's carpet bag.

A giant earthy farm table to hold a large and growing family.

Navajo print blankets for wrapping freshly washed men (watch the movie)

"I'll work along side ya, Adam, but I won't sleep along side ya"

Lots of pie to take to the barn raisin'

Snowed in.

Lots of supplies are necessary when you can't get to town... for the next 6 months.

Spring time and new life after all those months of snow must be glorious.

You can take a look at my Pinboard with more pictures, if you feel so inclined. 

Otherwise, go watch this movie!

Images: Top,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14

What Makes Me Weak In the Knees: Touches of Copper

Every now and then I stumble upon a new obsession - often design related - that simply makes me weak in the knees. I have several of these little infatuations going at once, but today I'm going to share one of my most resent loves with you: copper.
Nearly a year and a half ago now, when my husband and I were picking out wedding rings, we happen to come across the perfect ring for him; it was an antique, hand-shaped, copper ring that had been found in the ground somewhere in Latvia (Eastern Europe). He is an archaeologist, so he fell in love with the idea of wearing a piece of history.
When the ring arrived from overseas, it was a dark, almost black color, aged to perfection. On our honeymoon, while meandering the seaside of Tybee Island, we noticed that his ring became tinged with a turquoise patina. The patina later faded, but the salty sea air caused it to reappear when we went to the beach with his family months later. Now, close to a year and a half after first donning the ring, wear has polished the aged piece to a bright, rosy, copper finish. It's so interesting to see how the metal changes overtime and in different conditions. I absolutely love it.
Not only does copper make for an intriguing piece of jewelry, but it looks stunning in a kitchen. Especially when it is used in moderation and allowed to shine against neutral colors (such as another obsession of mine, white).  Copper also looks lovely when paired with mint. It mimics the patina that copper sometimes wears, so the colors look natural together.

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9

Cacti & Succulents

Ever since planning my wedding over a year ago, I've been obsessed with succulents. I used them on the tables, as well is in my beautiful bouquet:

My sister took on the enormous feat of my bouquet and all of the floral arrangement at my wedding, and she blew me away with how amazing everything looked! I love the combination of a few traditional flowers with nontraditional non-flower flowers. There were succulents, billy balls, ranunculuses, golden rods (which my sis gleaned from the side of the road on the way to our venue), kale, another flower that I cannot for the life of me remember the name of, and not in my bouquet, but elsewhere at the reception, trick carns.

Succulents are gorgeous, and unique, and a non-flower flower that even my black thumb can manage not to kill! Cacti and succulents are in the same family, and both come in countless, spectacular varieties. BONUS, they can be found in the garden section of pretty much any home improvement store or supercenter, AND they're really inexpensive. Which is why I decided to make a lovely little centerpiece using multicolored cacti and various succulents, and an antique muffin tin I scored at the flea market for a mere $3. 

Also, some more pictures of my gorgeous bouquet. Can't believe it was already almost one year ago that I carried that arrangement with me down the isle...

The Best Guacamole That I've Ever Had (if i do say so myself)

I worked at a "Gourmet Mexican" restaurant during college and just after. An experience that left me with a taste for margaritas and a skill for making guacamole. I've adapted the restaurant's recipe to suit my tastes, and believe me, it's an unparalleled avocado experience.  

Settling In / Farmer's Markets and French Toast

Though we've been living in Franklin for about a month now, it still feels like we're still not really settled. It's amazing how long it takes to unpack all of the boxes and get everything set up satisfactorily, especially since we moved from a tiny apartment to an actual house... we didn't realize how many appliances we were missing. We just bought our very own washer! You know you're an adult when such a purchase actually makes you really excited.

One lovely part of moving to a new town is that we get to discover all new places; It was lovely to find that there is a farmer's market every Saturday within walking distance of our house! We scored some fresh, free-range eggs, yams, peaches, and some homemade Amish sour dough bread, which we transformed into french toast using  this recipe, with some minor alterations. In stead of all purpose flour, we used white whole wheat, we doubled the cinnamon, and added a dash of nutmeg. You should also know, that though the recipe says it makes 12 slices, for me, it only made 6... which is all we needed anyway! Add a sprinkle of powdered sugar and some real maple syrup and you'll be set up for impressive deliciousness! Oh, and some piping hot french press coffee doesn't hurt either.

                                                      Fresh eggs + Homemade sour dough

= delightful french toast.