May Kitchen Window 2014

May flowers...our favorite sunflowers fill my May kitchen window. Annie loves sunflowers so we were delighted to find these beauties at the market. 

They will keep our window cheery all month...of course we will have to replace them as they fade, but we love our flowers!

I bought the chart for this sampler on one of my trips to Nantucket. It is an historical sampler, stitched by a young girl who lived on the island. I did change the colors.

Perfect sunflower colors!

...an old iron sheep bank 

...dusk

Hope you are having a great week!

Enjoy the day,

Robyn

...a humble little house

We celebrated our twenty fifth anniversary in our little cottage this month. What began as our "starter house" turned into our forever home as the years passed and the memories piled up.

We grew too attached to leave, and though we outgrew this humble little house many years ago, here we stay. It is our home...our favorite place...our refuge from the storm.

I went house shopping years ago. I looked at larger and newer homes. I looked for several days. In the end, I liked my little house the best. 

Over the course of those twenty five years, we have made many improvements...wood floors, new kitchen and baths, new windows. We have replaced everything at least once...many twice....some even three times. We have stretched every closet to it's limit, and watched neighbors come and go. The memories of family no longer with us linger within it's walls. We are home.

Our front door got a new color to celebrate the big day. This door has been deep blue (when we moved in), black, Windsor green, red, mustard yellow...and now...back to black...Mopboard Board Black by Benjamin Moore to be exact. Our most recent roof is black...the shutters are black...the house is white...I like it.

Yesterday, I filled a basket with cotton and hung it on the door.

Every January I buy a few bunches of cotton when we go to Thomasville, Georgia for the day. I have displayed it in crocks and bowls, but always had it in the back of my mind to fill a basket for the door...a Southern welcome. 

Something different to kick off many more years in our little cottage.

Enjoy the day,

Robyn

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A good read on the subject of cotton is...

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter!

Enjoy the day,

Robyn

Easter Blessings!

Annie asked me to share our little Easter tree with you. We haven't put this tree up for a couple of years, so it's been fun getting reacquainted with all the bunnies and chicks...a flashback to the 90's!

Enjoy!

Momma bunny and her baby girl bunny.

My girl is getting such a kick out of this tree lit up at night!

Enjoy the day,

Robyn

TURN

If you are a history junkie...a Revolutionary War enthusiast...or simply love all things Colonial America, you have to watch TURN on AMC. It premiered on Sunday night, but can be viewed On Demand if your cable company provides you with the AMC Channel.

It is wonderful!!! The true story of spying during the Revolution, it tells the tale of the patriots who risked all for their country. The authenticity of the sets, the clothing, the buildings...it is a very well done endeavor! I spied lots of Windsor chairs, tin chandeliers, and the glow of beeswax candles! 

Looking forward to getting to know this cast of characters each week.

Can't wait for Sunday!

Check it out! It's filmed in my home state of Virginia!

Enjoy the day,

Robyn

I took these pics right off the t.v....hope I didn't break any laws! Google TURN for more info.

...easy like a Sunday morning

I know where I'll be this lovely Sunday morning...

... spring cleaning my patio...surrounded by lovely red!

Enjoy the day,

Robyn

April Kitchen Window 2014

My kitchen window for the month of April is very simply decorated. A bunny and his cart...and flowers...daisies for now. 

I took down the valance for a more airy, open look. It lets in more natural light and gives the whole room a lighter look.   

I'll change the flowers every week. Fresh flowers from the market are my weekly indulgence...tulips, hydrangeas, daisies...I love picking something different each week. 

The daisies above are in a sweet little cream pitcher that belonged to my grandmother.

It is etched with lilies of the valleys...I remember this tiny treasure from my childhood.

It has the most endearing mends on the handle...

...silver strips that have been soldered for strength...by my grandfather, who was an engineer. His knowledge served him well...the mends have extended the life of this little vessel for over fifty years. It is a reminder of a time when things were treasured and repaired, rather than tossed for their imperfections...I like that. 

This diminutive egg watercolor was gifted to me by the talented Steve Shelton. A mere inch and a half, by an inch and three quarters, the detail is wonderful. A speckled egg...the perfect symbol of spring!

The portrait by Anne Childs and the photo of my two loves are back after a month off. These two items are so much a part of my window, I miss them when they are not there to greet me every morning. Like the lantern on the small tiger maple stool, and the trammel candle holder, the painting and the photo are my window "regulars".

Hope warmer weather is finding you all. We've had a lot of rain and lower than normal temperatures and that's fine with me. It seems something is amiss...lots of rain in March has brought us April flowers! My red geraniums have dozens of hearty blooms! I'll take flowers any day...any month!

Enjoy the day,

Robyn