Simply Spring Gathering ...

That's right, friends ... even though it still feels like Winter lots of places,  according to our mantel, the warmer temps have arrived ... the bunnies are hopping ... the *faux* florals are blooming ... annnnnd, the fake eggs are out in full force!  

And, because I'm joining some of my blogging buddies and sharing Spring inspiration, I just know that our combined forces will chase Winter away once and for all!

Yes, certainly our Spring touches will grab Mother Nature's attention and encourage her to move the season along!

I mean, after all ... pretty, faux plants from IKEA should help scare the cold temps away, right?!

And, this sweet "bunny in a basket" ornament and faux flowers from Michael's should make old man winter go into hiding! 

And, naturally, these seasonal pastel malted milk balls will entice Spring to come closer, right?!

Look ... even our little bunnies have had enough by showing that they "shalt" not "hear, see or speak" of winter ANY more!

If that still doesn't send the cold away, hopefully, our egg wreath (from Home Goods) will help to do the trick!

If not, our banner (from Target) announcing SPRING will certainly let Mother Nature know that enough is enough!

I say that you join forces with us by pulling out your eggs, bunnies, florals and anything SPRING to help make winter disappear(!) ... whaddaya think?  No way will it want to stick around if we all ban together.  I'll be eagerly waiting to see all that you do!

Until then, I'll just stare at our mantel a bit longer and see what happens!  LOL

Be sure and take a peek at the others (links below picture):

Creative Cabin - Electically Vintage - Housepitality Designs - On Sutton Place - Savvy Southern Style - Stone Gable - French Country Cottage - Home  Is Where the Boat Is - Pariscope Home - Sophias Decor - Top This Top That

As always, thanks so much for stopping by!

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Contest Alert!!

Hello dear readers!!!

I have few news to share....

I am running a Facebook Holi Contest. If you are interested in participating then click here. There is nothing much to do to participate. Just click a colorful picture of your creation, your artwork or it can be a beautiful nook in your home where you have used lot of colors and post that pic here. To win the contest try to get maximum likes on your picture.

Below are the images of my hand painted and hand crafted products that you can win. (Any one of these).

Secondly I would like to share that I have created Google+ page of this blog. See it here, follow it and stay tuned as you can win something BIG. When I say big it really is very BIG. 

Want to know what I am talking about......well you can win this:

• A WEEK of designer wear with outfits from 3 big designers
• A full makeover by the Absolut Studio
• Complete access to the venue
• Celeb status on LFW social handles
• Cameras and VIP passes to shows and lounges
• 
  

What you have to do:

Just click a selfie (A photo that you have clicked of yourself) and share it on G+ with hash tag #styleselfie and #Lakmefashionweek.

Are you ready.. then just go click....click....click!!

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Part 1~Spring Decor In the Living Room!

Living Room Fireplace







With The Morning Sun Shinning In



Fun With The Urn and Orb



Nests Abound



Coffee Table Decor



Up Close



New Spring banner








Come back for more Spring Decor in the next post!



These parties I love to link up to or check out my Blog Parties tab
Monday
Metamorphosis Monday @ Between Naps On The Porch
Motivate Me Monday @ Keeping It Simple  
Make

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Our Refreshed Dining Room

Happy March !!

It's sunny and beautiful 70 degrees today here in South Carolina ... could Spring truly be on the horizon?

I'm continuing to add touches of the new season around our home, with our dining room being the latest "stop."

Because I love adding blue to my color palette in our other main rooms, I thought it'd be fun to add it to our dining room, as well, to mix with the yellow that I tend to keep bringing back in here:

Candlesticks that were once bronze, turned grey are now enjoying a layer of AS Duck Egg on the buffet!  I then took away bulky matching lamps and opted for a taller, skinnier lamp on one side ...

and, balanced it on the other side with a beautiful demi john filled with faux branches:

I spread the love of blue over to our shelves, as well ... these vibrant plates from TJ Maxx work easily with just about any other colors!

The tiny pops of "gold-ish" yellow in the plates work well with our "frenchy" yellow plates from Home Goods:

And, you know I'm a fan of "faux" because of my lack of a green thumb ... these "pretties" from Michael's help add a lovely touch of Spring to our table.

These jeweled napkin rings remind me of the big ol' jewelry I love to wear ... when I spotted them at Pier One, I knew that they'd be a fun addition to our table, as well!

Thanks so much for stopping by our refreshed dining room ...

Come back soon, as I'm sure bunnies and birds will be popping in, too!

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Let's go on a pilgrimage. A Chai Pilgrimage.

I got to know about Jenny Kostecki-Shaw and Patrick Shaw (a.k.a. The Masala Chai Wallah) way back in 2008 when I had a series on my 'A Cup of Chai…' blog called Tea with friends and they had sent me a photograph of their chai.

I became aware that they were in the process of compiling a book on their many tea adventures in India and being a Chai-lover and a design enthusiast I kept updated on their blog, website and subsequently their Facebook page.
In August 2013, they used Kickstarter.com to fund for their beautiful book Chai Pilgrimage which they have self-published.
It was but obvious that I ordered my copy of the long-awaited book as soon as it was available for purchase!

So today I am going to share about this delightful piece of art and it's creators!

Jenny is a freelance illustrator and national award-winning children’s book author and illustrator.

Patrick teaches Ayurveda, Ayurvedic cooking and Ayurvedic herbology at the University of New Mexico in Taos and has been making homemade masala chai for over 20 years. Their daughter, Tulsi, has boundless patience with her publishing parents even though she doesn’t like chai.

 In their own words they tell you how this idea took shape and resulted in a book…

'We LOVE chai! The aroma of simmering spices fills our home each morning as the sun rises over the mountains. We also love India—her people, spiritual traditions, music, food and art have become woven into our lives. 

One morning while sipping chai, we had this crazy idea to fly to the chai motherland of India, spend four months steeping ourselves in chai culture and collaborate on a book. So we did! 

Chai Pilgrimage is our way of sharing our adventure and discoveries with you! It is our experience brought to life in a full-color art and photo filled travel journal, where we use chai as our compass to discover the people, places, spices, traditions and gods of an ancient culture. 

We also wish to share everything we’ve learned about brewing up a deliciously healthy cup of homemade masala chai with beautifully illustrated recipes and chai wallah tips on the art of chai making. 

We hope it offers a soul-nourishing vision of human connectedness and an opportunity to sip chai on the other side of the world!'

I have been so taken in with Chai Pilgrimage book, I have been devouring the visuals, the heartwarming narratives and beautiful illustration techniques.

Jenny has used various mediums to illustrate the book. Here is a video that shows us how she uses these techniques.

She also shares this frame from her studio:-)

Reading the book has been 'soul-nourishing' indeed. Especially for me sitting in sub-zero temperatures in Minnesota:-)

The book has so many interesting Chai recipes, I tried the Elaichi Chai yesterday…

Today I plan to try the 'Chai Guru Chai' taught by Patrick's friend and teacher Hamid Drake.

So do drop by their website Chai Pilgrimage  and their Facebook Page to read more about their book or order this beautiful, visual book. A great gift for yourself or to anyone who loves chai, spices and India! 

Go on a virtual pilgrimage. A Chai Pilgrimage!

( Images from Chai Pilgrimage.com and styling by Arch. Copyrighted Materials)

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It's All In The Family

This post is being written from my heart to my son.
                      This is about his family,
                                                 his ties,
                                                          his family history.



And...
            It's about these quilt blocks!


Back in 1981, when I was pregnant with my son, my husband's Grandmother, Eva Jackson Kelly asked me to

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I Won!!

Yay!! I won a very beautiful and intricate Kalamkari art print. 

The moment I saw the print I just wanted it. It's beautiful.

Wanna see the print. Here it is...

Image Source: Hues n Shades

Deepa of Hues n Shades is running a series of amazing giveaways. In case you haven't participated yet please hop over to her blog and check out the beautiful stuff that she is giving away. Three giveaways are already done. Don't miss the fourth one click here to participate.

Thanks Deepa for beautiful GajaLakshmi kalamkari art print. I am loving it!!

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