Sunday 13 May 2012 by admin |
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Remembering Mom
This is a picture of my mother Joanne Stewart at age 18! I loved her sweetness. She made us feel loved, cared for, and supported as my siblings and I grew. My Mom was one of the original muses for this coastal preppy blog. While she was in the Navy during WWII she met my father Ben Stanley (who was in the Army). They were both in uniform on a bus and she asked him to save her a seat. How else does a girl from Massachusetts meet a guy from California? The rest was history – they kept in touch, started dating, and were married in 1946!
As my father was promoted they moved across the country first to Missouri and then New Jersey. They took to spending summers off the coast of Maine and we bought the grey shingled cottage there that you see in my masthead. Mom was an inspired cook and among many creations – her blueberry pie was legendary!
My mother was polite, gracious, and never held a grudge. Her tendency was to bring out the best and brightest in people. She encouraged me to read, draw, paint, and enjoy a picnic or a bike ride! Mom had a great sense of humor and loved to sing. She taught us to be thrifty. It ran in her blood as my mother was Scottish and Dutch. I loved her tea parties – the list goes on & on!
Joanne or “Jo Jo” as so many knew her passed away on April 25th, 2012. It’s hard to imagine life without her. I am planning a tree planting/tea where I encourage you to remember more about her with us on August 4, 2012 at the Stanley Cottage on Hancock Point, Maine.
Monday 2 Apr 2012 by admin |
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Easter Crafting
When I bought this Jellicat bunny it was cute but but plain white. To make it a more festive Easter present for my Mom I went to Duane Reade and found this egg shaped basket and some multicolor pastel paper grass. For the fabric bow I used sku # 30901-2 from my Juliet collection for www.windhamfabrics.com ! I can’t wait to send it off to her today!
Tuesday 27 Dec 2011 by admin |
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Entertaining
For Christmas this year our dear friend Michael Smith of Adelaide ( a fab 30’s & 40’s antique store in the west village www.adelaideny.com )had the fun idea of decorating Addie’s farmhouse as something out of Dr. Zhivago! Richard, Mary, and Carol decorated this lovely tree for us all to enjoy!
My husband Marty & I got to spend most of our holiday at Addie’s. Nothing spells cozy like a fire here!
Michael devised these comical “post revolution” decorations using a variety of vintage trees, cut glass vases, and ornaments!
In addition Michael made us all faux fur hats! Here’s our delightful hotess Addie in hers!
Here is Michael with his dog Paco – not to be left out of the festivities 
!
As you can see Davey got a kick out of his as well!
For the dining room and kitchen Michael thought of the scene in Dr. Zhivago where an interior is encrusted in icicles and snow.
Where he found this polar bear with a moving head remains a mystery! When we weren’t looking he stole Mary’s hat! Many Thanks to everyone for a truly inspired celebration and feast! By the way in Manhattan Dr. Zhivago is being made into a musical..
Friday 6 May 2011 by admin |
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Discoveries
It’s been so fun to meet all the visitors to my blog this week and I’m so impressed with everyone’s thoughtful comments! Wanted to let you know that the first winner is Susan Wheatley from New Hamphire. She has one lovely and very young grandaughter named Juliet. This and her enthusiasm about my block inspired me to make her an honorary winner. I also did a drawing and the first name out of the hat was Marie Abernathy from California. I mailed her a copy today. Thanks again to everyone for all your encouragement and for helping to get the buzz going for 1oo Blocks Volume 3 which will be on newstands May 10th!
Friday 29 Apr 2011 by admin |
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Baby Quilting
I’m so excited that my Juliet Garden Star was chosen for http://www.quiltmaker.com/100blocks.html ! I would really encourage you to pick up a copy – they’ll hit the newstands on May 10th. Volume 3 is jam packed with instructions like for the block above and many others. And if you leave a comment you may win a free copy.. Here is my photo of the original that I designed using fabrics from my Juliet collection for Windham Fabrics http://www.windhamfabrics.com/cgi-bin/fabricshop/gallery.cgi?Category=421. It was sewn for us by Jane Fried Sheinfeld of The Pieced Palette.
I had always wanted to make a baby quilt with my Juliet fabrics and thought a 36″ x 36″ using 3 by 3 blocks would be a natural & nicely portable size. I’m fortunate that Laura Jaquinto of Windham Fabrics suggested I contact Jean Smith to work on the project. Not only did she turn it around in record time (especially for The Quiltmaker gallery) Jean came up with this yummy long arm stitching pattern which if you ask me really is the icing on the cake!
And how sweet it is! Jean said when her husband saw it he said “Now that’s a baby quilt” – wouldn’t you agree?
Tuesday 26 Apr 2011 by admin |
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Giving Back
Just received this sweet note from Marcy Divers, the leader of a Girl Scout troop in California who contacted me about donating some fabrics for their projects. I was happy to send her some of my Juliet and Bon Vivant fabrics from Windham. I told Marcy I was a brownie and a junior and we were blessed with a creative leader. Her name was Vesta Bailey. I’ve heard this troop is really into modge podge. Am really looking forward to seeing what they come up with!
Tuesday 19 Apr 2011 by admin |
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Creating
I still love Easter and all the efforts my parents made to make it a festive holiday! My Mom hid candy and little toys all over the inside of our house for us and there’s even a story about my Dad who got caught flinging jelly beans at the big bay window alcove in our living room! You may want to organize a hunt and to save money and customize the baskets, why not cover your own (or repurpose one you had)? Here we used my Juliet fabrics from Windham (see tutorial for Creating an Easter liner in an earlier post) www.windhamfabrics.com/cgi-bin/fabricshop/gallery.cgi?Category=421. Instead of Easter grass which just gets thrown away I put some of my green rattan textured fabric in the bottom which can be reused in another project. Since dark choclate is my mother’s favorite I headed to Jacques Torres on Hudson St. and found this funny lamb! They always have such an amazing selection! If you’re short on time just pink the edges of some generous fabric squares and layer them into the basket alternating the colors of your choice with enough to hang over the edge a bit. Enjoy!
Saturday 13 Nov 2010 by admin |
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Giving Back
A dear friend of many years is having a milestone birthday today! Eva Wirth (a sometimes lakeside preppy) has been an amazing currency trader for the Bank of New York for many years and in her spare time she has done an incredible amount of volunteer work for organizations like God’s Love We Deliver and more recently for Young Survival Coalition. She’s avid biker and has survived breast cancer. For three years Eva has been riding in the Hershey Tour de Pink and my husband and I have been so happy to sponsor her!
Tuesday 2 Nov 2010 by admin |
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Discoveries
It was such a pleasure to meet one of the newest Windham designers in Houston this weekend – she is Tracie Lyn Huskamp! Above you see her “All a Flutter” Quilt using fabrics from her “Nature Inspired” collection. It was beautifully designed and sewn by Marinda Stewart (including 3D butterflies)! Tracie & her mother-in law are amazingly talented artists and will be staying on for festival to teach painting on fabric classes!
I went over to visit Bari Ackerman (Bari J.) who had her own booth this year! Windham Fabrics made her Country Lane collection and she has a book called Inspired to Sew (by Stash Books of C & T Publishing) coming out in January! Bari continues to publish her own patterns and grow her handbag business. Go Bari!
Monday 4 Oct 2010 by admin |
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Entertaining
In August my lovely niece Laurel married her longtime sweetheart Brian at our Chapel on Hancock Point in Maine! What a great wedding, we so enjoyed the celebration!
Laurel and Brian’s whole wedding party was stunning including my nephew Michael and his wife Barbie! It’s hard to believe they’ve been married over a year – still look like honeymooners to me!
Here’s a shot of Laurel right before she entered the Chapel. My husband Marty was asked to play chauffeur which he was happy to do in his Ruth & Wimpy’s baseball cap!
Check out their flower girls in dresses made from my Juliet Collection for Windham Fabrics http://windhamfabrics.com/cgi-bin/fabricshop/gallery.cgi?Category=421 and their friend waiting outside the chapel!
Rewinding to the rehearsal dinner so graciously hosted by Kirby and Karen Juengst! Here are Robert, Hayley, Gareth,Troy, Brooke and Dennis. It was a great evening also on their lawn with the sun setting on Frenchman’s Bay and an eagle soaring in! Many Thanks to Richard and Anne Hirschorn for encouraging the Juengsts to summer on Hancock Point!
