Beauty

"The power of finding beauty
in the humblest things makes
home happy and life lovely."
                ~Louisa May Alcott
  
    Whenever I see a decorating book that has the word 'romantic' in the title I gravitate towards it. Romantic decorating seems to encapsulate everything that I love about objects and design. I am drawn to softness, a palate of pastels, floral details, old and fine things, and when you put them all together somehow the beauty of simple combinations becomes romantic. Why? Because romance is a word that takes in so many different things - an appreciation for the picturesque, a sense of wonder and idealism, blissful positivity, beauty, sentimentality, and love. To embrace romance in your own personal style and in your home for me means that you strive to make the world around you a bit more idyllic, and that you celebrate your own romance with beauty, with life and love, and with the softness of home. 

I am linking with:
Show and Tell Friday
What's It Wednesday

Bella Blog Feature

"Live in the present and make 
it so beautiful that it will be worth
remembering."
         ~Ida Scott Taylor

    I have posted about the stunning Bella Notte Linens before - it is the most beautiful and elegant line of bedding and accessories that I have ever seen! It is the bedding that I dream about when I fantasize about my ideal, luxurious bedroom. (I am saving my pennies to make that dream a reality!) You can imagine how thrilled and excited I was when I was contacted by a representative at Bella Notte who had seen one of my previous posts about their company and wanted to do a feature on their brand new blog: Bella Blog including two pieces of my artwork! So thrilling! Here are the two pieces of artwork included in the feature - the first is from my past post featuring Bella Notte and the second was especially done for my feature on Bella blog. Please visit this gorgeous blog and peruse some of the beauty that is on display there. To whet your appetite I am also posting some photographs of their new collection. Enjoy! 

Click here to visit the Bella Notte website. 

Pretty Little Things

"The French girls would tell

you, to believe that you were 

pretty would make you so."

               ~Elizabeth Gaskell, 

                  Wives and Daughters

    I am still without a computer of my own but I'm trying not to let it slow me down! 

    I have pretty well used this blog as a confessional to announce my inherent, undeniable, utterly girly personality to the world! I love to see pretty things, make pretty things, and feel pretty. It could be considered an addiction but I am not convinced that it is an unhealthy one. The world can be a beautiful place and I think that we are meant to admire it and to make it more beautiful through our everyday actions and the things we love. My love for beautiful things is inspired by my Mother and her creativity. My sister and I didn't have rooms full of toys growing up - we made our own games and spent a lot of time together as a family. Our best and brightest memories are of girly outings with my Mum and Nana. I remember buying my first bottle of perfume - I liked it so much that I was afraid to use too much of it and have it be all gone! It lasted a decade or more until the scent had all but faded away from the tiny glass vial. My pretty little things have pretty memories attached to them and, more than that, they tell a story about the kind of girl I am. Shy, romantic, old-fashioned, neat, fussy, and a hundred other things. Here are some pictures of a few of my pretty little things...