Queen Without a Country

And Finally, The Home Tour

The long-awaited moment finally arrived: the Benicia Historical Society Vintage Home Tour has at long last come...and gone. The sun-kissed, slightly breezy late spring day brought with it some surprises, some challenges, some priceless old friends, and many new friends.

Above all else, the big day brought fun times and some greatly needed funds for a very good cause. The Historical Society will be using the funds raised by the tour to rehabilitate and restore important Benicia and California State Landmarks - an effort I whole-heartedly support!

And now that it's over, I can share some of the projects I tackled and changes I made in the weeks leading up to the tour. I hope they give you tons of ideas and inspiration for your own home. Most, if not all, of the projects and ideas honor the Queen Without a Country philosophy of using handmade, homemade, hand-me-downs, and hand-me-overs. The ideas are also often dollar-wise and budget-friendly.

Please enjoy your private tour of the Henderson/Cullen Home...

Window boxes holding ruffly petunias were added to the dormer windows for a cottage-y look...

Sharing the original blueprints by Berkeley architect, Raymond F. De Sanno

A refreshed entertainment armoire...new paint; original doors reinstalled and sporting added mirrors instead of the plain glass; a thrift-store-find medallion replaces a run-of-the-mill wooden embellishment to provide a unique focal point...inexpensive Ikea curtains embellished by my talented seamstress daughter, Hilary...

Another thrift store discovery...a handmade, much-loved chair we affectionately call "the gnome throne"... one of my all-time favorite finds at only $50!... set off by the portrait painted of my mother by artist, Matt Decker (my favorite son-in-law!)...

New pillows found on clearance complete the reinvented throne...

A symbolic Mother's Day Tea to honor all mothers, grandmothers, aunts, and sisters - really, anyone who "mothers" a child...

... but especially for my Mom...thanks for everything, Mom!...

Believe me, these were not just for looks... they did not go to waste...barely made it until the tour was over at 4pm before digging in...so yummy!...

Layer a wreath over an existing mirror...add inexpensive, in-season flowers to pitchers...

Have a curtain rod that's too wide for your window?... fill the leftover space with a decorative element like a table runner or old pictures or interesting jewelry...

I included this project in one of my tour preview posts (QWC, March 5, '12)... I had pictures I took in Santa Fe printed onto art canvas...here's the final version of the room...

Mr.Greenjeans found this rustic cross at a yard sale for $2, originally green, I painted it brown and wired a "milagro" with similar patina to it for a custom touch...

Another sneak peek project (see QWC, April 16, '12)...Clare's room, no more dark knotty pine...I'll do a "how-to" post next week for making The Judy Garland (I'm so clever!) shown here adorning Clare's built-in bed...

A new sign for the covered deck by Bay Area artist, Georgia Hanson..."Boom-Boom" was an old high school nickname given to me by friends...another was "Slick Vick"...much better than my elementary school nickname which will forever remain a secret...

Three of our awesome helpers...all smiles while serving up delicious goodies to guests...

Refreshing Jasmine tea coolers...oriental rice crackers served in seed starters...carrot cupcakes (semi-healthy!) ordered plain so I could add my own custom decorations...

So thrilled to have dear friends come by...thank you, Theresa, for asking Helper Anthony to scoop up the squashed squirrel you noticed in front of our next door neighbor's house...definitely not so good for business...the kids gave him a decent burial...goes to show, you have to be prepared for anything during a home tour...with a little help from friends...

Daughter, Hilary's "Mrs.Roper" shoes (remember Three's Company?)...fancy!...

More terrific helpers...ready for anything, including squashed squirrels...

SO GOOD!!!...

Here's an idea for you...cluster mismatched glass vessels together (such as mason jars, jam jars, dressing bottles, baby food jars, bud vases, whatever you've got)...adding a single bloom or two to each...placed atop a section of bamboo garden fencing...

Wish I could say this sweet ride was ours - a definite "hand-me-over"!... borrowed from our generous neighbors, Dennis and Leone...a bonus for the men who got dragged along on the home tour by their wives...not that there were many of those, everyone seemed to enjoy all of the houses, everyone was having a great time!

Endless thanks to:

The Benicia Historical Society

Jerry and MaryEllen Hayes

Yolanda Calderon

Kathy and Butch Griffin

Bob Johnson

Hilary Aitken-Decker

Dr. Tom Campbell

Dennis and Leone Lewis

Christine T, James M, Anthony R (Squirrel Man!), and Caroline C.

Elena B, Carly C, and Clare C.

And most especially to my hero, Mr. Greenjeans...couldn't have done it without you, hon...

Couldn't have pulled it off without every one of you!

Posted at 08:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there,

and especially to my mom...your seat is waiting for you!

XOX

Posted at 06:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Benicia Home Tour

The welcoming porch of the graceful Italianate home at 141 West F Street...

As we enter the week leading up to the Benicia Home Tour, I thought you might like to see some of the other homes that will be featured on the tour with ours (plus a few worthy destinations to visit while you're here in town). Each of the other homes is gorgeous in their own unique way and it will be a treat to tour the interiors and gardens of homes that normally are only visible to most of us from the curb; homes that help give downtown Benicia its charm and character.

The lovely Hayes' home on West G Street...just down the block from the Old State Capitol...

Peeking inside other people's homes is one of my favorite things to do. To clarify, I am not a "peeping Tom", but whether it's by couch surfing with HGTV, popping into a realtor's open house, or purchasing a ticket to a home tour, my curiosity always gets the best of me. I'm drawn like a bee to house honey.

One of the adorable twin homes on West G Street...

I love getting a glimpse into other people's homes; to see what's esthetically appealing to them, to see what takes priority in their lives. It never fails to provide clues into the lives they lead.

The other twin...owned by the other Cullens...no relation...that we know of...

Pre-Rafaelite artisan and renowned interior designer William Morris is quoted as saying; "Have nothing in your homes that you do not know to be useful and believe to be beautiful." It's intriguing to see what tickles the fancy of a particular homeowner; what they consider useful and/or beautiful. Don't you agree?

A darling Craftman-style bungalow...

Many years ago, while on a Victorian Alliance tour of Alamo Square in San Francisco, what apparently struck the fancy of one of the homeowners was a mechanical chimpanzee dressed up like the Queen of England in a tiara and ball gown, whose job it was to wave to everyone from the top of the stairs...huge points for originality there!

While you're here, be sure to visit Honeysuckle Rose...over the last 20 years or so, I've collected at least one item in every room of my house from HR and its former incarnation, Kindred Spirits..

On a tour in the Berkeley Hills, my mother has never forgotten that there were dead bugs in the light fixture of one otherwise amazingly beautiful home.

After Honeysuckle Rose, stop in next door at Blue Goose Antiques for a great selection of primitive antiques and artifacts...

If you attend the Benicia Home Tour this Saturday, May 12th (and I hope you will!!), try to go easy on us homeowners. Trust me when I say, we're thrilled and honored to have you visit our homes. We're giving it our all to welcome you into a home that will be shown in the best light possible. It's also my goal to give tour-goers an idea of how we actually live in our home, that living in a vintage home in our modern world is not only very possible, it is, in my opinion, preferable!

Always a welcome stop for a spot of tea and delicious food, Camellia Tea Room (also the location for picking up advance-sales home tour tickets)...reservations highly recommended...

Try as I might to tick all the boxes on the to-do list, to get everything looking spiffy, my worst nightmare is that the day of the tour one of us will forget to flush the toilet or that a pair of my panties gets left on the floor. Inevitably, something will go wrong, something will be out of place, I will have forgotten to clean something or other, please view that as part of the fun! And heaven forbid you should run across a pair of my panties, just kick 'em under the bed!

Hope to see you Saturday!

For more information, please visit the Benicia Historical Society website at:

beniciahistoricalsociety.org/

Posted at 05:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

The Missed Opportunity

I am a huge admirer of Corey Amaro and her beautifully written, artfully photographed blog, Tongue In Cheek, about her transplanted life in the south of France. So I was thrilled when Ms. Amaro announced that an open house would be held in her honor at the Chico, California home furnishings/interior design store par excellence, Nantucket Home (a treat in and of itself). No question, I was up for the 3 hour drive to take advantage of this opportunity to meet an idol of mine who was visiting all the way from France! How could I not go? Clearly, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

Vive la France!

In my mind I imagined meeting her, introducing myself, my mom, my daughters (who accompanied me for moral support, knowing what a big deal this was for me!). Corey saying oh yes, I know you from Queen Without a Country, I read your blog all the time...quite a fantasy! I imagined taking pictures with Corey, my mom and daughters. We would all get on great. We would all become fast friends.

A perfect reason to have Caroline or Clare go to Chico State!

This is what really happened: My mom, my daughters, Hilary, Caroline and Clare, and I arrived at Nantucket (again, alone truly worth the three hour drive!) to find the place swarming with people looking to meet the venerable yet down-to-earth blogger - and Corey was worried that the only people to show up might be her husband and mother, ha! While I was happy for Ms. A, who deserves these accolades and more, I was a little bummed that we wouldn't exactly get the one-on-one chat I was hoping for. Not only did I not meet Corey Amaro, I never got within six feet of her!

There's Corey...the one with the blonde hair...

Somewhere in front of the large cabinet and crowd of adoring fans...

Behind the lamp...like playing "Where's Waldo"...

The store dog...maybe she (or he, I didn't check) can introduce me to Corey...

To be fair, this was not only due to the crowd. I was suddenly feeling shy, more comfortable hanging back, waiting for an opportunity that never came. Corey spoke to the group and I was completely enthralled by Corey's tales of her life in a new country where she not only did not speak the language, but initially knew only one person, her new French husband - a daunting situation for anyone! She told funny stories about her transition from small-town California girl, she grew up in Willows, Ca, to brocante (French flea market) expert extraordinaire.

In the end, I was happy with how things went, though I would've loved to have met Corey it was simply not meant to be. We enjoyed delicious French treats (macaroons were served in Corey's honor), enjoyed being in Nantucket Home, enjoyed hearing the stories of a life lived by taking a tremendous leap of faith in the name of love, and enjoyed just being together, my mom, daughters and I. Sometimes it's best not to force things into being. Sometimes it's best to just go with the flow...

Corey Amaro

Tongue In Cheek

www.willows95988.com

Nantucket Home

www.nantuckethomeinc.com

Posted at 04:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Studio

Back at the beginning of April, I did a post about our family trip to coastal Westport, California. I gushed about the vacation rental (an historic 1872 Victorian cottage), we were lucky enough to find and its dramatic location on a bluff overlooking the sea.

The mystery building...

You may have noticed a small building even closer to the ocean in some of the pictures. I purposely avoided mentioning the tiny mystery structure because, though it is located on the Westport House property, it is not normally included in the rental of the house. Did it stop me from nosing around what turned out to be the owner's studio? Oh, no! I admit to pressing my nose up to the glass, clicking off a few photos through the window panes.

the Studio...

I mention it now because we just booked another trip back to Westport House in June and Bill, the owner, graciously offered us use of the Studio in addition to the main house! Not only am I thrilled to have the extra space (apx.12o sq.ft.) since our older girls are able to join us for the upcoming trip, but because, like the main house, it's such a dramatically cool space.

Looking up at the Studio from the beach...

I had no idea just how cool the studio is until Bill explained...

Clare at the beach..

During our visit in April, Mr. Greenjeans marveled at the engineering feat necessary to site the building on the face of the sea cliff. The girls and I appreciated the romantic, cozy bird's nest nature of the studio. But when Bill offered the teacup of a house to us, he shared the story of the it, too.

Interior of the Studio...

You see, Bill built the studio 38 years ago for the jaw-dropping, miraculous sum of $180. Bill is my handmade, hand-me-down, hand-it-over hero!

I {heart} the plumbing fixtures...very steam punk!...

Even more impressive is what Bill told me next: He, his wife, Julie, and their young daughter, Erin, actually lived in the studio for two summers while they rented out the main house. Bill shared that the three of them lived there, dangling 20 feet or so above the surf, quite happily. He kept a boat on the beach below, fished for their dinner, grilling it each night! Bill and Julie are obviously the coolest parents on the planet. What kid doesn't dream of living like a comfortable Robinson Crusoe? Lucky girl, that Erin!

The waterfall tumbling down to the shore...

June seems far away at the moment but it'll be here before we know it, and I can't wait for our next visit to Westport House and Studio. I look forward to how it seems to weave a relaxing, restorative spell on each of us. In the meantime, Mr. Greenjeans is trying to figure out how he can get a dingy up there so he can go out and catch us our dinner every night...sometimes he scares me...

Clare makes the climb back up to the house...

Mr. Greenjeans could tie up his dingy to one of these rocks...

TheWestportHouse.com

Posted at 07:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sneak Peek

One of the jobs we (I use that word liberally) decided to tackle before the upcoming Benicia Home Tour was to paint Clare's room.

The entire room is clad in knotty (aka; naughty!) pine, and while I'm aware that there are people out there who believe it is a sin to paint wood (including Mr. Greenjeans), I am not one of them and neither is Clare.

It took a fair share of sweet-talking on Clare's part to convince her dear old pop (and a promise that she would help with the job) for him to finally agree.

Turns out, Clare is an excellent house painter! She and I applied a coat of primer, followed by three coats of paint (!), with a caulking step to hide seams in between (Clare and Mr. G did this step together). And voila!

Clare's room before...

Clare's room after...lighter and brighter...bigger!

One of the four new things we purchased for the room...the others being...

Crystal lightbulbs (from Lowe's, $4 ea.)...to give the effect of a chandelier without changing out the fixture (we just painted the existing one and changed the bulbs)...we also purchased a small rug ($30 Target), and, lastly, the chair (Ikea, $109 - including the cover)...everything else we reused, repainted, moved around, or went "shopping" for in our house...

To see the rest of the room, you'll just have to come on the Benicia Home Tour, Saturday, May 12th (11am - 4pm). What a tease!

Tickets are available for purchase ($25 in advance/$30 day of the event) by visiting:

Camellia Tea Room

828 First St.

Benicia, CA

~OR~

Bookshop Benicia

856 Southampton Rd.

Benicia, CA

Advance tickets can also be purchased by phone through:

Camellia Tea Room (Tu-Sat 11am-4pm) at (707) 746-5293

~OR~

Mr. Jerry Hayes, Benicia Historical Society at (707) 746-6689

For more information visit this site:

www.beniciahistoricalsociety.org

Hope to see you there!

Posted at 10:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Happy Easter!

"Easter spells out beauty,

the rare beauty of new life."

S. D. Gordon

Happy Easter!

Happy 50th Birthday, Mr. Greenjeans!

You make everyday a little greener and a whole lot brighter!

XO, V

Posted at 07:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Northern Exposure

Instead of heading south for spring break this year, we decided to head due north. A series of happy accidents led us to the quaint coastal hamlet of Westport, California, and specifically to the 1872 Victorian beach house, known officially as The Westport House.

Owners, Bill and Julie Brazill, have created a charming vacation rental that exemplifies the Queen Without a Country motto of "handmade, hand-me-downs, and hand-me-overs". The Brazills have curated their home-turned-vacation-rental over the last forty years, allowing it to evolve organically, artistically, and authentically - and most of all, beautifully! Modern, comfortable furnishings co-exist happily with pretty antiques and one-of-a-kind works of art...and being situated on a bluff over-looking the ocean doesn't hurt either!

Since we couldn't pack you into our suitcases, we'll have to take you on our journey to the North Coast this way....by sharing tons of pictures!

Enjoy!

Up Highway One ...

to Westport...gateway to the Lost Coast...

Highway One runs right through it...

The Westport House...our home away from home...for spring break,anyway...

A breath-taking corner of paradise...

Can you believe this back yard?!...

The view from the dining room...

A sun-drenched reading spot in the kitchen...

Touches of spring...

The cozy living room with fire blazing...

The "Whiskey Wall"...creative and beautiful reuse...

Handmade mugs...

Rare blue sea glass...

Toast on a wood-burning stove...

Just like my Grandpa Downstairs used to make...

The view from the kitchen sink...I didn't even mind doing dishes...

An intriguing memento...

Waking up to the sea every morning from this window...

Antique iron beds...chenille spreads...morning light...

Behold the sea...

We have this book, too...kindred spirits...

Flowers to further brighten our days...

Treasures from the sea...

A walk around Westport...the postage stamp size post office...

The gathering spot and life blood of Westport...

The newly renovated and re-opened Westport Hotel...

The pub/restaurant...

I {heart} the water carafe...

A day with hollandaise is a holiday indeed...

Another stunning Westport home...

"The Landship"...

Welcome home...

Westport was once a bustling lumber town with a population of 25,000 - the largest coastal town between San Francisco and Eureka...now-a-days about 300 inhabitants make it their home...

Love the seafoam green door...

I want to adopt this one...

So simple...so sweet...

The town's mansion...I want to adopt this one, too...

Graceful Italianate features...

The light house...at least to me...

Highway One swerves around this house...

Mossy fence...

This is the BEST...notice the little sign to the left..."this ain't vegas"...nope, it ain't, thank goodness...

Actually, THIS is the best...hanging with Mr.Greenjeans and the girls at the beach...

Caroline doing her happy dance for the ocean in her Wonder Woman socks (from the worlds best sock store in Fort Bragg) complete with mini capes...just makes me smile...

We're gonna miss this...luckily, there's always summer...

Book your own visit at...

The Westport House

Thank you Bill and Julie Brazill for opening your lovely home to us!

Posted at 10:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Inspiration

In need of inspiration? Check out the newly redesigned and greatly expanded Souvenir Magazine (formerly Souvenir Gazette).

Souvenir is the creative baby of super-talented Southern California photo-stylist/magazine contributing editor, Heather Bullard, and her posse of top-notch contributors like Pam Garrison and Amy Hanna.

Souvenir serves up a wide array of topics from home design, simple craft projects, places to visit, and recipes to try - all presented by way of the most delectably gorgeous photography! One of my favorite articles featured in the premiere issue covers the topic of cheese and creating temptingly delicious cheese boards. Who knew cheese could be SO beautiful? I admit, I had no idea...happily, I do now!

The spring 2012 issue of Souvenir is offered as a free 10-page digital preview or treat yourself to the whole 118-page enchilada for a waaaayyy reasonable $3.95. A print version is available for all us old-school types at the "ouch-but-worth-it" price of $25.95 (plus shipping).

Give it a whirl at:

Souvenir Magazine

Posted at 07:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)