I'm Featured in Romantic Homes Magazine!

It took all the self-control I possess
to NOT blog about this before now, but it's true!
You can find me in the January 2011 issue, on newsstands now.

I was approached by the wonderful folks at
Romantic Homes magazine the middle of October, 

and the conversation went something like this....

RH:  So, we discovered your blog and think it's fab!
We'd like to feature you in our January issue. You interested?

Me:  ***thunk*** ( picks self up off floor )

RH:  Hello? Hell-ooooo?

Me:  Uh, hmmmm, lemme think about it...

RH:  ( silence )...waiting...( more silence )

Me:  ARE YOU FLIPPIN' KIDDING ME???? YES!!!!

Okay.

That's not exactly how it went, but you get the gist of it. 

They told me that they wanted to feature Fiona and Twig
in the "Setting Your Sites" section of the magazine, 

where each month they select and feature
a handful of blogs or websites that they really love.

What an honor, I am humbled and so very appreciative!

Big thanks to the lovely folks at Romantic Homes,
especially senior editor Justine Lopez.
I am so proud and honored to be featured
by your fabulous magazine, and just hope that
I continue to produce content that you love.

Here's hoping that all of YOUR dreams come true!

xoxoxo,

P.S.

This was my secret!

One of them, anyway...

;-)

Linking with
My Romantic Home

 and
 Common Ground

House Sneak Peeks

Well, it ain't pretty in the slightest, nor is it the least bit "Christmas-ey",

but I figured I owed you guys some house shots, so here they are.

In case you're not up to speed, we are currently vying for the Guinness World Record

for the longest relocation from one house to another.

I think we have a pretty good chance to win!
We're still not moved in, so that would account for the sparseness of decor.

What you're seeing:

The Master Bedroom.

What's going to change:

Obviously, there will be bed linens. 

Still looking for window treatments.

And nothing has been hung on the walls yet.

See that circa 1990s Broyhill dresser on the left in the pic above?
It's going to be painted and the knobs will be changed out.

The little nightstand to the left of the bed
will move to the guest bedroom and be replaced
with something more substantial.

 Looking out from the Master into the entry hallway...

Moving across the hallway...

What you're seeing:

The Living Room

What's going to change:

There will be some rugs down.

There will be new window treatments.

The furniture placement will change, 

and there are several more large pieces coming in here.

 And this?

Just a little sneak peek at my dreamy
Carol Hicks Bolton sofa.

Back home in Fredericksburg at last, 

home of the original, iconic Homestead store where I purchased it

So that's it for now.
I can't wait for you to see
how it ends up all pulled together.

Shoot, I can't wait to see it, myself!

To see more of our charming little cottage,
click HERE.

Have a happy week ahead,
and this SHOULD be the week when I'm able to reveal my secret!  ;-)

Hugs,

Gratitude, Part Two...

It's time again for me to offer some long overdue thanks
to two very special friends...

First up, my beautiful pal Polly from Sassafras Stuff gifted me with

a veritable bounty of goodies.

As I opened the BIG box, I was delighted to see
that my prezzies had been packed

in vintage book pages. So clever, my Polly girl. :-)

First up?

Wanna know what's inside this pretty box?

These yummy smelling candles! The aroma is just heavenly.

Next up?

This darling little "A" nest and altered clothespin.

Love the #2 zinc pail!

But the pièce de résistance ?

Have a little look-see... 

This BIG, beautiful burlap wreath!

Is that not fabulous???

Thank you SO much, sweet Polly!

It was MY pleasure to feature you, and my honor to call you friend.

And speaking of friends, one of my dearest, Debra from Common Ground

spoiled me rotten with a very special birthday package...

The perfect vintage card!

LOVE this delicately lovely vintage tin box!

Just perfect for my jewelry.

A beautiful set of vintage napkins...

and these incredible altered bottles created by Debra herself!

Seriously, is there anything this talented lady can't  do? I think not.

I love it all, but as Debra well knows, the greatest gift has been her friendship.

She's more than a friend, truly, she is family.

And there's more!

I've been blessed and spoiled by even MORE bloggy friends,

and I'll be sharing my spoils soon!

Happy Sunday!

P.S.

Be sure to head on over to Beatnheart for a fabulous jewelry giveaway!!!

My Wonderful Husband

I'm not going to mince words here, or sugarcoat it...

My husband has put up with a lot of crap from me in recent weeks,

and I just wanted to publicly thank him for sticking by me and

loving me through it all.
I can be a bear to live with at times, especially lately.

I'm re-posting this from over a year ago, please meet my 

amazing, long-suffering, altogether wonderful better half!

*****

Meet my Handsome Husband...

I felt a bit guilty that I had no photos of my own 

from Warrenton which featured HH, 

but Theresa Cano of Garden Antqs Vintage came to the rescue! 

She was gracious enough to snap this pic 

of HH and myself in her beautiful space, 

and doubly gracious to allow me to use it here on my blog.

Now let me preface this bio on HH with this disclaimer: 

He is not really in any way shape or form into the whole 

antique-vintage-flea markety-junking-Warrenton thing.

Not a bit.

But boy oh boy, is he ever the go-to guy 

when you need someone to either push your 

Wonder Wheeler all stinkin' day long, cart heavy furniture to and fro, 

repair a wonky drawer so's I can sell it in my booth,  

listen patiently while I prattle on endlessly about all my bloggy friends....you get the picture.

Heck, he was an avowed lifelong cat hater 

who has grudgingly come around 

to loving my girl, Winnie (although he'd be loathe to admit it *grin*).

So yeah, in many, many significant ways, 

he truly is the man behind Fiona and Twig.

But he is an astonishingly accomplished gent in his own right.

He was a world ranked swimmer in college, 

and made it to the Olympic trials twice. 

At one point, he was ranked 10th in the world!

{swimming a triathlon a few years back}

He is an accomplished thespian, having performed community theatre for years 

(and with the awards to prove it).

He has tirelessly taught High School Chemistry and Physics for many years, 

as well as coached swimming. In fact, 2 years ago 

he was named Coach of the Year for his region.

But his greatest achievement? 

It might just be putting up with me.

{grin}

Love ya, HH!

Anticipation

So, how was your weekend, lovelies?

Mine was cold.
Hella cold, as in 20 degrees on Saturday morning.
Yep sports fans, it really, truly gets cold in Texas.

Let's see, what else?
I worked, worked and then worked some more, but hey...

the old man was in Houston visiting family, and with the overtime I raked in, 

I'm that much closer to affording my pricey new camera lens.

And that much closer to something....

exciting !

I can't tell you just what it is....yet.

But soon !

 Have a wonderful week!

Giving Thanks

It is a couple of days early, but that's okay...

I'm in a mood to give thanks, anyway.

to all of you, who have left comments and

sent me private messages

who have encouraged

uplifted

and

rooted for me

and to one very special long-distance friend and mentor...

I thank you.

Happy Early Thanksgiving!

P.S. all images snapped in my lovely friend Marta's former shop

P.P.S. I'm leaning towards stepping out in faith and going for the photography gig!!!

A Clarification and a Thank You...

Where better to begin than to say 

thank you 

to each of you dear souls who have taken the time

 to lift me up here and send me words of support.

I love you all, and thank you seems like such an inadequate word sometimes.

In my previous post, I communicated
the frustration I have been feeling,

 with the pressure I have placed on myself of late.

I realize now that due to omitting some key facts,
I mistakenly led you to believe that

 it was blogging which was taking a toll on me.

Not so.

Without divulging too much just yet,
I am being presented with opportunities to take my

 photography to a much higher level.

There are very real opportunities available to me which

 could lead to something big.

But....

{there's always one of those....}

I am acutely aware that right now,
I don't have the proper equipment to get
the job done on a professional level.

When you are shooting interiors for editorial work,

you need more than just an entry level DSLR and kit lens.

And right now? Can't afford to upgrade.

And renting equipment?
A viable option, but only if it comes with a helper
to come along and help me figure it out.

Remember what I cryptically alluded to in my last post?

Do you ever feel like your opportunities and ambitions
exceed your talents and abilities?
( or in this case, equipment)

Hence my dilemma.

Lots to think and pray about.

I tend to believe that if I'm being offered these things now,
that the opportunities

 will likely be available once I upgrade my equipment.

Or maybe not.

But that's where trust and belief comes in.

Trust in God and belief in myself.
And some days, I don't know which is harder.

Usually the latter.

Back to work now.

Have a beautiful week, my beautiful friends!