Magnolia Plantation Lilacs

Walking around Magnolia Plantation is a step back in time.  The trails and gardens look much like they did hundreds of years ago.  The fragrance is captivating and lingering along these paths is a pleasure.  If you are interested in this antiqued image, please click HERE.  Thank you.

Magnolia Plantation Statue

I hope to visit Charleston, SC every year for the rest of my life.  I understand it has much history that relied on slavery, and that institution was horrible.  But there is a wonderful beauty there that seeps into my soul and truly relaxes and inspires me.  The above statue is weathered and worn and I antiqued it to lend a bit more of the old world feel to her - of which I feel she had plenty of to begin with. If you are interested in purchasing prints of this image, please click HERE.  Thank you.

Summer Beauty

I have a longing for color!  The trees here in NC are bare and everything is drab.  In the north, we would have a fresh blanket of snow on the ground by now creating a splendid unifying brightness.   I used to love the reflected light that would dance around the inside of my house - the drapes pulled back to allow as much as wanted to come in.  But here in NC, everything is so dull - the air is crisp and refreshing, but I have to get used to this "new" climate.  If you are interested in images of the above, please click HERE.  Thank you.

"The Pier"

Little Traverse Bay, Petoskey, Michigan.  A little jewel of a town tucked away in Northern Michigan.  Tourists and locals alike stroll these docks during the summer evenings, meeting up with friends to see the sunset.  A leisurely stroll back through town, maybe an ice cream at the local shop.  And in the soft shadows, some meander back up the gentle hills to sit in a rocker on their expansive victorian front porch enjoying an evening breeze.  If you are interested in purchasing images of the above, please click HERE.

Vintage Beauty

North Carolina still has lovely weather with the sun shining and the last of the orange leaves clinging to the tree branches.  Most are on the ground, crackling under one's footsteps.  Northern Michigan, although probably not quite as wintery as the above scene depicts, is most likely well on it's way.  If you are interested in purchasing images of the above, please click HERE.  Thank you.

Sand Castles

Listening to gentle waves lapping the beach, the cry of seagulls looking for food, and the sound of children building cities of sand is a perfect way to spend a summer's day.   Every summer we indulge ourselves with a trip to Lake Michigan, specifically Petoskey, a small, artsy town nestled around Little Traverse Bay.   This past summer, my girls laughingly shaped precarious sand castles just along the water's edge.  They carefully graced it with shells, feathers, sticks and a few treasured pieces of beach glass all of which was encircled with a moat, of course.  The finishing touch was sand drizzled wet and goopy-like over the top, the way Daddy had taught them years ago.   Careful, almost tedious work, playfully destroyed, stomped back into the sandy shore and washed back out into Lake Michigan.  If you are interested in images of the above, please click.  HERE.

The colors in nature were reproduced in natural dyes during (and before) the Renaissance period.  One could even argue that since dying had been going on for over 3000 years, the craft had been perfected by the time the Renaissance rolled around.  Granted, for the peasants, cloth quality and color were primitive, but for the status conscientious nobles and merchants it was quite important.  As I walked around the Carolina Renaissance Festival this year, I adored the detail and color the merchants displayed.  If you are interested in purchasing images of the above, please click HERE.  Thank you.