So Sylvie

All Aboard the Skunk Train!

March 23, 2010

We spent a few days in Fort Bragg, California recently. It was a birthday request of my Marcel's — to ride the Skunk Train. I imagined we would ride the train one day and be hanging out in bookshops and cafes the rest of the time, which is fine with me. Little did I know how much else there was to discover in this sleepy little fishing town.

The 47 acre Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens grows right down to the cliffs and is the only public garden in the continental United states that fronts the ocean. It rivals many big city gardens. I've been to some great ones over the years including Huntington Gardens in San Marino, California and Le Jardin des Paradis in Cordes-sur-Ciel, France and this one surpasses them in some ways — the specimens, the setting, the calm. It's gorgeous.

A precious cemetery is cloistered within the garden. You can read about it here on Kathryn Hall's site.

You walk through gardens of rhododendrons, heathers, conifers, magnolias, ferns and then pop out at the ocean!

We had dinner one night at Piaci, a pizza pub. They make incredible combos of pizza using local ingredients and feature a dynamic brew menu. We had the Genoa pizza – spinach, carmelized onions and mushrooms on a crunchy thin, light crust; here's nothing worse than getting full on dough after your first slice. I discovered a new favorite beer — recommended by Diane, our server extraordinaire — Old Rasputin Imperial Stout, brewed up the street at North Coast Brewing Company.

We had our morning coffee and our evening desserts at Headlands Coffee House which features live music nightly! What?! And they even have a payphone outside (note: this is important as I don't own a cell phone)!

There's more. Great small shops! A small city center; no chain stores, thank you. Next door to Headlands is a shop called Frame Mill Artworks that has the most finely curated inventory for a shop of this size that I've seen since, well since I was in Paris. How's that for a rave review. They have unique art gifts, letter press stationary, jewels, and design books that I haven't seen a hundred times already.

Some sweet shop fronts…

And don't let me forget about Glass Beach. This is getting long so I'll just include the Wikipedia link here. Some of my finds…

Wow. I forgot all about the whole reason we went. The Skunk Train! That was fun too!

Richard buying tickets while Marcel waits politely:

It's a four hour ride along the Noyo River. The narrative from motor man "Pepper" was so fascinating and rich in history. It's a great way to learn about a place. I really feel like I traveled back in time – to simpler times. There were small country camps with cabins — some dating from the turn of the century — nestled in the trees along the route. There were waterfalls and a 1,000 year old redwood tree. Here's a wonderful article from 1959 National Geographic if you want to learn more about the world of Skunk.

Skunk Train, circa 1959…

Click on the map to view the route…

Returning to one of the camps after grocery shopping in town (this lovely woman's daughter shared more details in the comments below)…

The thing is, I discovered exquisite elements of this small city (population 7,000) that I can't find back home (population 57,000). I really can't wait to go back to Fort Bragg and have some more of that pizza! some more of that brew! and good clean air! Did I mention that the people are incredibly charming? And with a streak of rugged individuality. Just like the food, drink, and landscape.
Design Freak – Soul Freak!

March 14, 2010

Two fun videos for your viewing pleasure:

Christopher Barson

Northern Soul

Northern Soul is a music and dance movement, originating in Northern England in the 60s, that’s being kept alive by enthusiasts from Japan, as well as other parts of the globe. One group – the Osaka Manifesto – are DJs and dancers who, from what I can tell (their web site is in Japanese) formed in 2002 and became involved in hosting dance manifestos in different locations around Japan, along with other groups from Tokyo.

If you like early soul music, snappy clothes, and slick dancing just google “Northern Soul” and you’ll find a feast of sites from all over the world.

Now go put on your dancing shoes!
Don’t Fret – Before & After

March 12, 2010

Just wanted to share a quick before & after from my current design job. $3 orange chair recovered with a pastel blue fret-work fabric:

Way before:

After!
One of these things is not like the other….

March 8, 2010

What do these things have in common?

Pillow:

Tom:

Paul:

It always amazes me when I read the Feedjit Live (the blog traffic cop in the lower right sidebar), how by way of my varied subject matter – it brings people here from all over the globe and from such diverse origins. A glimpse of the feed today showed a range of people looking for: my pillow project with placemats from Pier 1 Imports; Handsome Bob, the Guy Ritchie gangster (played by Tom Hardy); and English textile designer Paul Vogel. The readers who searched these three topics were from Kent, Cardiff and Birmingham, England, Salt lake City, Utah, and Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany.

Several times a day I get visitors searching for Danny Kaye's daughter. Go figure.

Danny:

P.S. I forgot to celebrate my fourth blog anniversary last month! Could it be because I was in the hospital? Can't be my memory failing. Nah. You think that's bad, my neighbor introduced herself as Charlotte, "Oh no wait. I live on Charlotte Way. My name is Cathy." Hah. That one has been keeping me laughing for days.
It’s A Crewel World

February 28, 2010

Three years ago I had an embroidered artwork in my shop, Blossom Home. After I posted it on Flickr I heard from a sweet guy who reproduced it as a painting. I've continued to see other versions of it over the years. It's fun to see how a piece like this can connect people in different parts of the world.

The wool one I had in my shop:

Painted by GiveAwayBoy:

From Dottie Angel:

From MidCenturyJo:

From More Ways to Waste Time:

From Doe C Doe:

And sew on….!
Taken by Ambulance

February 26, 2010

I was in the hospital all last week (food poisoning from a health food store no less!) and the otherwise perfectly splendid nurses wouldn’t let me have any coffee. I snuck out of my room on the third day, clinging to my IV pole, in search of the cafeteria. I had already put in a call to a friend “on the outside” to sneak some coffee in to me but hadn’t heard back from her and I was getting head-achy.

There were security cameras at every turn. I always feel I’m the one who they’ll be watching. The one who stands out in some weird way, “Keep an eye on that one in the big brown fuzzy bear robe.” I found the cafeteria but chickened out. On the seemingly long walk back to my room I began to regret my hesitation, knowing that momentarily I would be back in that tiny room, whining. To my right I caught a glimpse of the nurses break room. “Oo, my radar is good.” And there on the counter were coffee urns with gourmet labels all lined up like obedient little servers. No hesitation this time. I hung a hard right, blatantly charging forth beneath the all-seeing black globe in the ceiling, grabbed a cup, filled it, and even took a little time for a splash of cream. Ahhhh. It’s the simple things. Where’s that Espresso Ambulanz when you need it?

I’m back home now and FEELING GOOD, “It’s a new dawn it’s a new day, it’s a new life, for meeeee.”
Interior Elements

February 8, 2010

Here are some pieces I may be using in one of my design jobs for a living room:

end table with a lamp

vintage art featuring yellow roses

fretwork fabric for window treatments

faux bamboo mirror to go above fireplace mantel

blue coral pillow

stencil pattern for an accent wall

cozy wingback reading chair

detail of turquoise lamp
Corbu’s Cave

February 3, 2010

Scott Waterman has a blog! It's called Corbu's Cave — a version of "The Painted Wall: From Cave Painting to Le Corbusier and Beyond"! If you don't know Scott you're in for a treat. He's an engaging writer and brilliant artist.

Just for fun I did a search of the word Corbu and came up with some entertaining results: a commune in Romania, an architecture blog, the name of a show dog, and the name of an announcer for the women's basketball team at the University of Minnesota. Of course Scott's is the best use of the name. Go check it out for yourself. Thanks Scott for making life richer. xo
Vintage Trays

January 28, 2010

I saw these sweet little green vintage trays in Drew's Etsy shop (4 for $10) and because I have a tray fetish — especially vintage trays from Pasadena — I liked them instantly but didn't think of a use right off. I have enough jewelry trays on the dresser. "Could I use them in the bathroom? No." They kept haunting me over the days and then it hit me. I needed drain trays to go under our miniature succulents. Parfait!

You'll find Drew's Etsy shop, Kitsch Café HERE. Here's a sneak peek at what you'll find there-

Paul McCobb Dessert Cups:

Humpty Dumpty Lamp:

Orange Fabric Covered Box:

Vintage Ice Bucket with Fabric Insert:
Green[house] with Envy

January 24, 2010

We’ve been having such a lot of rain this past week that cabin fever was setting in. Marcel and I took advantage of a slight break in the weather to venture out to the neighboring college horticulture department. We really had to get bundled up against the icy damp chill. When we arrived at the campus for our little stroll we were like moths to a flame when we eyed the little hoop house greenhouses containing the succulent collections.

It was so warm and toasty in there and the moist air was a welcome treat for dried out winter sinuses and skin. Ahhhh. Like taking a bath with your clothes on. Hmm, that doesn’t sound very pleasant. I’m making it a goal to someday own one of these enriching little pleasure domes (boy, that “someday” list is getting long).

We also visited the hydroponic veggie greenhouse. This place would make a great home!

Charts suspended from the rafters:

We ended our visit with Ernie the horticulturist sending us off with a bunch of freshly harvested Satsuma Mandarins from a nearby orchard. Little globes of sunlight!

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