HAPPY New Year!

spiked egg nog via pinterest

Happy Holidays from Pickwick House!  We've been out of the office since before Christmas due to a loss in our family.  Will's father passed away.  Thank you for all of your kind thoughts and patience during this time.   

With time and life being so precious, I decided to take some extra time off while all the kids are home. Taking my own advice about SLOWING Down from that last post.  I hope you have done some of the same. 

Starting mid week, I'll be back in full swing.  In the mean time, here are some sweet photos taken by Heather Cherie Photography, from a recent setup we did for KY3 about creating fun for the kids during Christmas, New Years, and winter break.  

We used our large chalkboard as a master plan for things to do over the break.  Here are a few things we wrote on the master task list:

SLOW DOWN  

Listen to the Music 

Dance at night by candle light  

Save boxes from Christmas to build and create things with {AKA:  Boxing Day...Make a doll bed, a dollhouse, a boat.}  Bake  

Host a game night  

Celebrate any time you can 

Laugh

Take lots of photos  

Go sledding  

Do something nice for someone  

Write Thank-yous    

Garlands are all the rage.  These gold stars are actually a ninja star origami made by my friend's nine year old son, Anthony.   I'd hoped to add that to today's post, but blogger is giving me problems.  Stay tuned for that!

We made our own gift wrap using black poster board and interior white wall paint we had on hand.


What are you doing for NYE?  We are spending the early evening with the kids and then we {Will and I are gussying up}.  We will head up to Pickwick House to ring in the New Year with family and neighbors.

I am so thankful for all of you.

I'm also excited to get started on a New Year.  I hope you have a wonderful New Year too!  May it be YOUR year.  One that's filled with peace, love, abundance, joy, and may it be full of promise!

Much Love to you All!

xx
sharon

KY3 TV Holiday Segment + Centerpiece DIY

The holidays are here upon us! I'm feeling WAY behind this year, but as I've gotten older and added a a few more children, activities, and blissful chaos, I've come to realize it's really just about 'being in the moment'.  Making memories.  That's what the holidays are about, right?  This year, inspiration for my table scape came from that motto.  'Slow Down'.  'Stick close to home'.  Create a warm and inviting wonderland that's simple, yet memorable.

My talented friend Heather from Heather Cherie Photography came by Pickwick House to photograph our latest holiday table scape we created for a KY3 segment.  Hop on over to her blog to see the post and you can see the KY3 segment here.

Clementines are a favorite at our house.  Not only are they such a juicy, easy snack for little hands to grab and peel, they have no seeds. And the skins smell so good as you are peeling the vitamin C goodness.  They also offer a juicy jolt of color for the holidays.  [We buy them by the case around our house.]

DIY Clementine Arrangement:

Materials:
Small wooden box.  {I used one I had on hand from a past wedding}
Nine fresh clementines {We call them cuties.  I like to look for the deeper orange colored ones.  They are my favorite.}
Small sprigs of evergreen {We used pine and rosemary sprigs from the yard}

How To:
Turn the box upside down
Lay the grid of clementines {I put three on each row}
Lay the sprigs of pine and rosemary in between each clementine

That's it!  You're done.  I placed ours over a bed of fresh greens that my friend brought to me.  So easy, inexpensive, useable, and beautiful!!

Add caption

Hope you are enjoying this time of year!   Let us know if you need me and my team to help warm up your home or throw an unforgettable party holiday party this year and into 2013!

xx

sharon

House Update

Well, it's the end of a productive week on the home 'front'.  Still a mess on the inside of the house, but I feel like it's time for a celebration because we finished the exterior front door!  Haha!  For those who live in the hood,  they will tell you that we've had a camping tent pitched outside for a while now.  We tell people that we live in the tent, not the house, which is sort of a running joke for those who like to tease us that we've been working more on the outside than the inside.  

I have been combing through my 2000 pictures on my iphone to try to find the original picture of the entrance to try to share it with you here, but I came up empty handed.  So, try to visualize that this paneled door was hiding behind a horribly flimsy, hunter green metal storm door {with a sliding screen attachment}.  Yes, very 80's and very ugly!  It was the first thing Will ripped off.  We wanted to  'let the inside door' SHINE, so to speak.  I just love the old paneled door, and original brass hardware and door knocker were worth keeping as well.   The outdoor lights that were on the house were a very small and bad 80's version of brass too.  Those are gone and we replaced every outdoor light with Robert Allen fixtures that were discontinued from Lowes.  Because they were discontinued, there were less than a handful of matching fixtures left at Lowes.  Not good, hence many trips to surrounding towns, {including into Arkansas} to pick up one and two here and there until we finally had enough to cover all the exterior lights.   

This door was a complete son of gun to strip.  I think I bought like 5 things of all natural stripper.  Bless Will's heart!

Stripped finally!

House painted in Benjamin Moore's "Dragonbreath"

Layers and Layers of thick lead paint.

Door Completed yesterday!  Benjamin Moore's "Fields of Gold" in oil-base high gloss

Once the door was done yesterday, I drove the kids over to see it because I couldnt stop thinking about it.  Funny thing is, Sylvia checked the mail slot first thing, and pulled out our first 'real mail'....A Christmas card from our family in Boise, Idaho.  That it made this day so special!

We had a fancy sign made to promote the business.

Sweet old mail slot.  And it's at just the right height for Sylvie's reach.

This is our current kitchen state.  As you can see, no Christmas tree or any decorations to this point this year but I'm not complaining.  Just so excited and grateful!

So, what do you think and what are you up to for the holidays?  I hope you have a wonderful and happy weekend with lots of holiday merriment!

Thanks for stopping in!

xx

sharon

Holiday Party

Have you considered what you are doing to fill your time over winter break? Are you wanting to have a party, or family gathering during the holidays, but don't want the mess? Pickwick House can take the stress out of hosting your event! 

EXTRA SPECIAL HOLIDAY PRICE: 

For December and January ONLY we are booking event space for an amazing discounted price of $75 for 3hrs! Maximum capacity is 50 people! Call today 417-459-8988.

Hope you're having a good week! Be sure and come back tomorrow for a very exciting house update!

Merry On!

Via Pintrest

The holiday season is quickly approaching. Today we are very excited to be working on our Christmas cards for Pickwick House.  We are also very busy planning two holiday decor segments that will be featured on KY3 in the next few weeks. What fun, festive holiday activities are you partaking in?

On another note while attending a Design Camp in October I had the pleasure of meeting Maureen Stevens. I am excited to be featured on Maureen Stevens Blog discussing the
Top 10 Reasons to Attend Design Camp. It was an amazing experience and I am thankful to have had the opportunity to meet experts and fellow designers.

Well, I'm going to merry on my way now.  Have a great day!

xx
sharon

Recognize, Visualize, and Prioritize Stocking Stuffers!

Pickwick House is offering exciting stocking stuffer gift certificates for design services including 'refreshing after the holidays'.  For example, organizing and stylizing your home office or work place for the new year, and/or accessorizing any area in your home, or perhaps, helping you plan a private 'winter time' party! 

Let me and my team help you recognize, visualize, and prioritize to get your place in tip-top shape for 2013! 

Please call today to order your stocking stuffer gift certificate! 417-459-8988


xx
sharon

Guest Post: Maureen Stevens

Happy Tuesday!  I have an exciting guest post for you today.  Ready for some fantastic inspiration?  Well...Maureen Stevens, a talented stylist/decorator from Texas is here today on the blog to share a beautiful Christmas vignette.  I love her work and her uber-creative DIY projects!  And, not only is she super talented, she's really warm, beautiful, and funny.  We became friends at Design Camp and I will guest posting for her soon.  

Take it away Maureen!:

Hello everybody! I am so excited to be writing this post for such a creative interior designer and event stylist. Thanks so much Sharon! I've been stalking your designs which are chockful of ideas!

Today, I want to share one of my favorite color palette and vignette for Holiday & Christmas decorating. There are so many ideas and styles out there but if you ask me, I'm all about whites and golds this year. My style is modern with a touch of whimsy. Here's our inspiration image:

via

Pretty cute don't you think? And this is how it can be re-created:

I'm a Hobby Lobby shopper...can you tell? So, pretty much everything here comes from that shop {spray paint those leaves gold!}, except for the wreath which is by West Elm. Here is the reindeer head template. Scatter a couple of clear candle holders and antique mercury vases and containers and you have a festive and chic vignette!

__________

Darling, huh?

Hope you are having a great week!

xx
sharon

DASHING RUNNERS

I'm making mad dashes on rugs this week. Runners for narrow halls and large scale ones for dining rooms, in particular.  This week, I've been purchasing rugs for a couple clients and our new home.  So excited! Let me know if you'd like me to find you one or several beautiful ones for your home.  For a limited time only, I'm able to source really good deals for you.  Oh, and this Saturday's sale, I will also have a few rugs we are parting ways with from the old house!

I'm currently in love with multi-colored, faded, low-piled, natural fiber, afghan rugs that wear well w/animals, children, and heavy foot traffic.   They stand the test of time and don't ever lose their value.

Feel free to give me a call.

xx
sharon
417-459-8988

Pickwick House Holiday Prop Sale!

Don't forget we are having our exciting Pickwick House {One Day Only} Prop Sale this coming Saturday 1st December at the store.  We have a great round-up of beautiful things including lots of props from previous events, beautiful hand-made items by some of Sharon's very talented sisters and also some fresh Holiday baked goods from Tea Bar and Bites.  We have lots of vintage pieces, glassware, accessories and miscellaneous items.  Very special bargains including some of our remnant fabrics which always get snapped up really quickly! 


xx
sharon

GIVING TUESDAY

As most of you know, I'm the mom of five, and the middle of nine kids.  My life has been full from the very beginning with little time for pauses or pocketfuls of money.  One thing I find of great comfort is the soft drive of taking my son to high school in the mornings every now and then {when he lets me}.  That drive happens to also be the very exact route my mom would take me.  To the very same school.  A soft drive through our old neighborhood and past the old park.  She would turn on NPR every morning on that drive.  It was one of the few one-on-one moments I had with her.  I know I didn't probably appreciate that time much back then. But I wish I could tell mom now that I very much appreciate her ritual she shared with me.  It was a gift.

Yesterday, on my drive there to school, we listened to a piece on NPR.  You can read the story here.  #GIVINGTUESDAY. It moved me.  Quite a lot.  It reminded me of years past.  It reminded me of a Christmas when us Arnolds were given special gifts by a generous 'giver'.  That one time.  I don't know what mom and dad were going through back then but 'that gifting' has stuck with me ever since.

I am hopeful to make a difference in some other people's lives on this very first #GivingTuesday, as they call it.   I'm grateful that it doesn't have to be a big check signed off at the end of the year.  It can be however big I am able to give. Maybe it's just time.  Maybe it's just a soft drive.  Maybe it's listening.  What is most important this holiday season?  What will you give?  

Much Love,

xx

sharon

Cyber Monday: Modern Lantern

Happy Cyber Monday!  Thought I'd share another something fab I was exposed to at Design Camp.  A fab line of lamps introduced recently by Modern Lantern.  These are cordless lamps! Genius and beautiful too.  {Who likes being dictated by cords and plug-ins?  NOT ME!} CUT THE CORD!!

Modern Lantern has just launched their first line of many more series to come.  Peruse their first collection, w/free shipping, plus an extra 10% off {today only}.  And please tell them I, Sharon Taylor, sent you!

While I was chatting with the founder of Modern Lantern over dinner, she told me that she is currently working on a plan for a future release of outdoor lamps/pendants as well....which to me, is another, just hugely brilliant idea.  {Think outdoor chandeliers for outdoor parties and events.}  I can't tell you how big that is and will be for wedding planners/designers/homeowners/clients.  Makes me happy as cricket!  

Here are my top three picks from Modern Lantern.  And believe me, when I saw them in person, they not only gave off a good light, but their presence was pretty stunning too!

Have a great week!

xx

sharon

Living Thankfully

Hoping you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We certainly did! I documented my day on instagram. (Instagram is my favorite.) It's my personal locket.

This past week, Martha Stewart Living encouraged instagram users to post pictures of what they were thankful for and to use the hash tag #livingthankfully alongside their picture. I loved that title. We can all say we are thankful. But do we 'live' it?

Here's what I'm #livingthankfully for.

Mostly, as you can see it's family, and family time. My kids. Will. A roof over our heads. But I'm also thankful for YOU!

My work, a storefront that is right up the street, my vendors, my clients, my projects that end beautifully as well as my difficult project experiences that dont go so smoothly and have taught me things. Friends, and my interns who donated their time this past year. Stormy, the contractor who has fixed all of our doors time and time again.

Last but not least, the beautiful Ozarks, and the best neighborhood in the Midwest--Rountree.

Sorry if I overloaded you on pics or doubled up on them. (I'm blogging on the go!) But I will tell you...My heart is SO full. Thank you again my dear ones!!

What are you living thankfully for?

Hope you eat lots of pie today!

xxxx
Sharon