So Happens It's Thursday

So happens it's Thursday....That's Gar's answer to T.G.I.F. Get it? S.H.I.T.? I kind of like it. Though I'm not feeling particularly smarmy today, I just thought I'd throw it out there since it was 'day appropriate'.

I've been fiddling around with headers for Mercantile Muse. And as you can see, I've gone with a simple white background as well. I think it shows everything off in a crisper,cleaner way. I really like the way it makes photos pop. Siss, boom, bang! (sorry, getting a little geared up for the 4th and the big losbta bake!)



Can you say lobster? But here are two experts on lobster bakes- G man and Cap'
(as in Captain', aka Ralph, who I've been best pals with since
1st Grade and is a Fisherman and Captain...hence the nickname).
  OK, I'll stop for now.  Back to the subject at hand........the blog header.


I designed the first header for our blog last night, and it looked really nice. I liked all of the components including some of our very own stone wall and roses, and a picture of a ship's masthead that I took in NYC's South Street Seaport.  In the end, it just wasn't working for me.  It seemed to be just a little too much- too much for this particular blog anyway.



See what I mean?

Then I designed one that incorporated a piece of one of my printable wall art designs, Three Feathers. Except, I only used one of the feathers (see bottom of this post for picture). This one I like a lot for it's simple, clean look.



Straight and to the point. Opposite of the first......not busy at all.

Then I woke to a new day and new eyes and thought, with all those neutrals a pop of bright yellow might be kind of nice- sans quill/feather. I edited the picture of our 'Pot of Gold' coreopsis in photoshop and included that in the design for the splash of color. After looking at it though, I kind of missed the feather because it represents the writing/talking/blog lovin' rants I'll be throwing out there on Mercantile Muse, as well representing my designs in our etsy shop.



Pow. Pop of happy yellow. Not to quill?

 Being the fickle gal I am and since I wasn't sure about the quill being missing, I worked it back into the design. First I faded the flower behind it a little bit more so they weren't competing so much. Somehow I still can't decide.



Or to quill? That is the question.

 Liking this one. Although, I think I'll have to walk away, and come back and look at with fresh eyes before I make a final decision. Then again, does the decision really have to be final? It's a work in progress, just like me.

Any thoughts, feel free to share them.  And as promised.........Three Feathers, available on etsy at Bates Mercantile Co.


Glory be, the sun is shining again and there is a lovely breeze. It's a great laundry day, as far as laundry goes. Perfect for line drying. I'm sounding more and more like my mother (not that that is a bad thing).

And since it's Mercantile Muse's first week anniversary, I'm adding to my good things list. Just because. Feel free to add your own good things.

Good Things

That lucan is sleeping soundly on the futon,

instead of running across the street and getting into a

tussle with a very nice Dobie Girl getting a walk on a

leash, the way he did last night. Bad dog.

Sleeping soundly is much better.

lovely breezes

blog followers and online friends- givin' ya'll a wahooli!

a screen tent/house

(someday a house/room, for now a screen tent.

the mosquitoes were vicious last night)

visitors to look forward to

checking things off of lists

work on my desk

SKYPE

(I know it was on the list last week, but last night we got to skype with our friend's

mom who we haven't seen in.....oh....say about 24 years! LOVE skype.)

Have a good one. Or as Walter Brennan says in Rio Bravo- have 'a goodn'.

We Knew Yew When

Yup, they’re gone! The yews that surrounded our entrance are history. Hasta la vista. Toast.

Neither G-man nor I liked them very much. The sparrows did, but the yews didn’t really float our boat. They’d been here since we bought the house, and they did give it some green and were pretty enough on the outside, but they were cut like hedges. Problem being, when you cut yews with hedge trimmers, once you cut back the top couple of inches, there’s really nothing but branch.  So each year, even though we were trimming, they were getting taller, causing wetness in the box that houses the phone lines, creating mildew on house, and looking sort of –bleckh. Gar took the hedge trimmers to them one last time while my pal Tina was here visiting from Ireland last week. Well, you should have seen the sight of them. We had to have a morning viewing and a damn good laugh. Just kept shaking my head saying, ‘Honestly, do you think he's finished? Does he think this looks good? It looks like Edward Scissorhands was a little angry when he trimmed these bushes.” 

Lo and behold the master plan that I was not privy to at the time. Hack ‘em down. Be rid of the beasts. That’s exactly what he did. Of course, there were roots left and neighbor Tom and his tractor took care of what he could, the others will have to be cut further and any remains, buried. We have electrical and plumbing to consider.
Now the fun part, well first clean up and then the fun part.  As you can see, the overnight rain added to the mess, splashing the fresh dug dirt right up the front of the house, but I digress. 




Copyright Roger Roley for Southern Accent magazine

Beautiful, just a little too froo froo for us.  I do like it as 'inspiration'.


Garden room dreams……..Along the front of the house (the side without the door, it faces the driveway) poor rose bush currently has nothing to climb on. The yews were at least for providing a lovely strong backdrop for our beautiful creeping rose (who knew when I planted it?).  I’m thinking some type of rustic pergola is the ticket.  It can’t be real deep or it may get in Tom’s way when he plows us with his tractor in winter.  Below the pergola and rose, a vintage or rustic bistro table of sorts, so the neighbor ladies and I have a place to sit and enjoy a cocktail while the neighbor hoodlums have a beer in the drive while discussing their latest duct tape project. 




Ston Easton Park in the book English Hideaways

Love this! But ours would just have the ends of pergola and not the sides.

 The other side by the door couldn’t be anything other than a Sunset Meadows viewing area, complete with a couple of Adirondacks, preferably wood because I won’t be lugging these ones around the yard. Due to the cost of wood Adis (ad-ees as we affectionately call them in my family), I may have to make-do with plastic ones until I can find some yard sale steals like my neighbor Lauren did.

Copyright Laura Halett Taylor

So nice! But we don't have as much room, just enough for
chairs and little table in between. At least I hope.

We’ll be lucky if we simply get it cleaned up for the big 4th of July lobster bake, but of course, that would be an improvement from what it looks like this morning.

That’s the plan Stan.  What do you think?

Live and Learn

As as a new blogger, there are many lessons to be learned.  I’ve been searching for tips on blogging and was happy to find my favorite post so far.  All thanks to Ree, The Pioneer Woman, who some may know as one of ‘the most successful’ bloggers and whose blog is visited by gazillions of people.

That said, what I like most about the post is that it is straight and to the point. No fuss, no muss. Not a lot of ‘business like’ advice, but it was rather like getting advice from a friend…….a friend who’s been there. 

I will take it to heart. Thank you Sister-Of-The-Blog (kind of like my Etsy friend/client Susie in Oklahoma City is my Sister of the Rock, but I’ll save that story for another time). For now, thanks Ree, much ‘ppreciated.

I learned more than that yesterday about blogging. I learned that if I format the font on my blog in white, that is the way it is sent and seen in email. The emails of this blog have a white background, which isn’t really conducive to showing off white text.  Yup. It became invisible to the naked eye. What a bummer, but at least the pictures still looked nice. Today’s post will be formatted in gray so I think we should be all set on that front, for those who are receiving post via email.  Chalk that one up to Post # 3.

Yesterday was sunny and warm here on the New Hampshire seacoast. Can I get a halleluiah? Seriously, it was a pretty wicked winter complete with lots, and I mean LOTS, of snow and a cold season that seems to have only ended in recent weeks. It was easy to relish the wonderfulness of Monday's weather, unless of course you were the G-man who worked outside in it all day. He was toast. Knew he would be. So prepared something simple for dinner…..antipasti. A little bit of this, a little bit of that- starting with the most perfectly ripe cantaloupe.  Did you know if you pick a cantaloupe at the store, sniff the dimple end where the vine came off of and if it smells like cantaloupe, it’s ripe! Well, that little trick worked perfectly at the grocery store yesterday. Plus, who cares if other shoppers think you're weird. It's worth the ripe melon you'll get.

Can you say mmmmm good?

I don’t know about you, but I do know that we absolutely love cantaloupe wrapped in prosciutto. DiVINE.  Never had it? Do yourself a favor, get to your grocer, sniff out some fresh cantaloupe, have the deli guy slice some prosciutto nice and thin (and don’t order a pound unless you’re feeding an army, a little goes a long way), wrap prosciutto around cantaloupe slices and viola………..heaven.

I know. You want some, right?

In addition to the aforementioned ‘must try canteloupe’ I also made a nice biggo salad bowl of antipasti that included: freshly sliced zucchini, romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, pickled onions (thanks Pearl!), slices of capicola (Italian hot ham), some marinated mushrooms and some red potatoes that I roasted with olive oil and sea salt. It was also going to use some Pastene Garden Salad but when I opened the new jar, it opened much too easily and there was no pop. So I nixed that portion of the antipasti and will be returning that jar to the grocery store. But it would have been nice. Maybe next time. 

Wicked bummer.

Regardless, we were quite happy with the salad.  Obviously, you can tell that there was too much for two people, so thumbs up on lunch today.

Hello heaven.

Lessons Learned:

Take Ree’s advice

Smell vine end of cantaloupe to check for ripeness

Don’t use food that opens too easily with no pop

Antipasti rocks on hot summer days

And definitely don’t format text in white

It’s another sunny day today, the laundry is on the line and there is another ready to go out. Will have to get them dried early and thankfully there is a breeze, as we may get some spot showers later. That's it from our corner of the world.

Have a great Tuesday-

Pam

Pot Of Gold

Just look at these little nectarines! Unfortunately, there
aren't many on the tree this year, so
we'll have to baby them.

This weekend was FULL.  Saturday, as I mentioned, we were off to a 50^th Anniversary Party for a couple of wonderful people The Harrolds (who also happened to be our bridesmaid’s parents). We also celebrated our  anniversary on Saturday. Coincidentally, their anniversary party was held at the same hotel where our reception was 23 years ago. I kept saying we were ‘returning to the scene of the crime’.  We got to spend the afternoon with lots of great people like my parents, our ‘bridesmaid’ and her husband, and her parents (both of whom we don’t get to see nearly enough off). It was a very gray and ugly day outside, but it was sunny and happy inside at the party with lots of love flying around the room.  When we got home, we had a campfire out back and neighbors drifted in and out. It was a good day.

Sunday, the sun actually made an appearance and we were excited that we’d be able to work in the yard. Unfortunately, we woke up to ‘no water’. Oh the happy lives of homeownership in the country. Garrett got to hang upside down in the pump house for awhile troubleshooting why our pump motor wasn’t working.  Eureka, between the two of us- Gar hanging upside down and me searching the internet for clues, it was determined that the contacts were dirty. Gar filed them down and viola, motor worked and we got water! It's not always that easy.  After that beginning to the day, we were finally able to work out in the yard preparing for our BIG Annual 4^th of July Lobster Bake (1 week countdown!).

I was happy to see that one day of sun was all some of my flowers needed to ‘pop’.  Look at this beautiful Coreopsis- I’ve had Moonbeam Coreopsis for quite awhile, but this Coreopsis ‘Pot of Gold’ had only been in the garden for one year and I love it already, especially its bright color and raggedy edges.

Coreposis Pot of Gold

And, the dainty, Crown Vetch (Coronilla varia)

If you have vetch, you must already know that there is no fighting it. It’s a spreader. You have to put it the right place and let it do its thing.  We didn’t plant this ourselves, it was here when we bought the house. Though I’ve added it to many gardens since then, so I have moved it all around to new homes on the ‘back 40’.

I just learned that this pretty plant is actually a member of the pea family.  You may see it on the side of highways, etc as it is often used to fight erosion on hillsides and roadsides because it has a branching, creeping root system.  Don’t be afraid though, look at how pretty it is! If we get more sun this week (which is looking good), my lilies, the vetch, and even my bee balm will be in full bloom for the 4^th! It will be quite a floral fireworks display.


Lucan, supervised our work all day and stands
guard over it while I take a dip in the pool. Obviously,
I was a little more focused on getting in
aforementioned pool, than getting a great shot.

We were ready to put our feet up at the end of our day of yard work, but first I had to take a dip in the pool. It was HUMID.  Then, the sunset didn’t disappoint. My brother didn’t dub our place ‘Sunset Meadows’ for nothing you know.  It was a perfect end to the weekend.

Happy Monday. Here’s to the start of a great week.

Does anyone else miss Domino Magazine the way I do?

I used to wait for it to arrive in the mail, read it cover to cover, ogle at the pictures, drool over the designs, dream about how I could make a design work in my own home………the list goes on. I still have them all, which will have to suffice I suppose, since Domino suffered a quick death in 2009 when Conde Nast shut it down, along with other longtime favorites like Gourmet.  Apparently, Domino now appears- incognito to say the least- under the Brides online masthead, but I think the publishers would be smart to start……well, publishing it again.

I mean, just look at this built in bench!! ***Design Love***

As an ode to the now defunct Domino magazine, I’ll take a cue from one of their regular features 10 Things That Make Me Happy.

I now present to you on this first Friday of our blog....

5 Things That Make Me Smile:



Our lounge could nearly count for a few of the things that make me smile, including: a great spot to play dominoes; flokati rug;- LOVE;  the beautiful painting we bought from a wonderful artist, Nicola, in Piazza Navona and had one of my high school teacher (Rob Devantery in Newfields, NH) frame, a chaise that actually fit the way we needed it too;  my $1 bargain dishtowels that rest on the back of each couch cushion and served as the inspiration for the room. I warned you this picture alone could
have been the entire 5 Things That Make Me Smile post!



New York City's Grand Central Station (officially Grand Central Terminal).
Simply magnificent and awe inspiring.

Warning: Gratuitous Stanley Cup Post!! Michael Ryder, holding the Stanley Cup above
his head and my Boston Bruins going all the way when nobody
thought they could or would (except me).
Sorry Vancouver-ites. It was a great series.
That bunch of guys REALLY know how to make me smile!

Our new living room curtains........ah, burlap.....full of texture,
earthy good looks, and yes, VERY inexpensive. 
Beyond that, I didn't even sew these. Just cut,
strung some lovely ribbon through them and hung them up.
This was partly out of necessity as my sewing machine
was killed in a basement flood last spring.

Have a great weekend all. We are sure to.......we celebrate our 23rd anniversary tomorrow, and we get to do it in fantastic style, as we are attending the 50th Anniversary celebration of a couple of wonderful people - The Harrolds!

Raindrops on Roses

It’s a gray day here in New Hampshire. I’d prefer sunshine, but at least it means I don’t have to water the vegetable garden or the flower gardens.  And, the way a rose holds raindrops on its petals is one thing to cherish about this kind of gray day in June.

Who can't be happy, despite a gray day, when channeling Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music?

On the subject of gray, I just love it more and more in all sorts of design. How about these dandelion screen printed napkins by Giardino. So lovely-especially paired with bright yellow to balance its muted effects. Just brilliant.



Copyright Giardino

I fell in love with these whimsical cylinder hanging lamps with silvery gray flowers from West Elm- and they were the only ones left. Score one for me. If I remember right they ran me about $25 each. Classic color paired with fun and unexpected floral design. What else could I ask for? I had the perfect spot for them, hanging over our night stands.  I came to love this accent piece even more once they were hung, realizing they gave us a lot more room for books on our bedside tables.



Copyright Pamela J. Bates

Bates Mercantile Co.



One of my own designs is what I would deem ‘elegantly gray’. My ‘96 Step’s design was inspired by the scrolling ironwork on the terrace of the apartment we stayed in while in Rome a few years back. Sitting on that terrace was simply sublime. A dream-come-true.

Copyright Pamela J. Bates

Bates Mercantile Co.

The 96 Steps to get to the ‘penthouse’ apartment, in roasting Rome September weather, perhaps not. I’m lucky Garrett survived coming up those steps after roaming in the Rome heat for close to two hours (I opted to stay put and deadhead the flowers on the terrace, sip espresso and watch our neighbor hang out her laundry). We did learn from his experience however, to leave with all we needed in the morning and not come back until we were done exploring.  My husband's face after that first climb was something similar to this (of course, it may have had something to do with is inability to breathe at that point):

Copyright Pamela J. Bates

Bates Mercantile Co.

But I’ll leave red for another day.

What’s your favorite way to see gray used? Classic style on its own, with another neutral, or with a pop of unexpected color? I’d love to know. I'm not sure I can even pin myself down with a favorite way to use gray, but one of the other reasons I like it is because ‘nothing is black and white’ and gray is the perfect example of that- it’s somewhere in the middle.



A whole new world

Welcome to Mercantile Muse, the blogging extension of Bates Mercantile Co.  I am very happy to finally be blogging, as it's been a long time coming.  I'm obviously new at this, so I hope you'll give me some lee-way.  I hope to share inspiration with you and a little bit of daily life at the 'Mercantile'. It's certain that I will touch upon many subjects including, but not limited to: interior design, graphic design, gardening, writing, pr, food, art, advertising/marketing, and the good life in general.

First off, a little bit of background. I've had my own business, Speakeasy, for 17 years. I work with my clients to grow their business through a combination of public relations, marketing and advertising. Any given day can find me writing a press release, designing a logo or ad, planning an advertising or marketing campaign, among many other things. As a one girl show, I wear many hats.

That said, I was hankering to be able to do more 'creating' for the sake of 'creating'. So I, along with my other half, began Bates Mercantile Co. We launched our etsy shop in December 2010 and have really been enjoying meeting other etsy shop owners, as well as people from all over the world who have like our stuff enough to buy it (yay!). 

Here's the the two of us - otherwise known as Pam and Gar:

Here we are in Cashel, Ireland on our way to visit friends in Blarney. 
We travel to Ireland as often as we can, since that's where Garrett
is from (he's a Dubliner) and most of his family is, and
also where my best friend has lived for 17 years.

At Bates Mercantile Co. you will find original printable wall art and stationery, and must-have-vintage items.  I do the 'creating of the printables' and Garrett helps with researching our vintage items and acts as Chief Sounding Board & Cheerleader.

We've learned a lot over the last few years as we doubled the size of our little cottage with an addition we built ourselves with a LOT of help from family and friends.  We're getting there but still have final touches to tackle.

Our new bedroom still makes me happy everyday, especially in consideration of the fact that for 12 years I had to turn sideways to move around the bed and couldn't open my dresser drawers all the way.

Al (our brother in law) and Gar putting up sheetrock in the
 new master bedroom. I hate the entire sheetrock
 process and I don't mind saying so. What a mess.



But I do love my bedroom, so I guess all the sheetrock dust
 and hard work was worth it. And in case you're wondering, I was a full fledged crew member-
from tarring the foundation, insulating and yes, even mudding and sanding sheetrock. 



We're still decorating, and what that means is there is a lot of editing going on. We had a LOT of stuff. Keeping what we love and losing the rest.  I love browsing magazines and the internet for design inspiration, but honestly, I find it just about anywhere!

Good things in no particular order: 

friends and family
our hound dog Lucan

creating

inspiring and eclectic interior design

food prepared with love

all kinds of music

laughing

margaritas

dancing

nature

Dublin

sunsets

a cold beer and steamers

singing

M*A*S*H

entertaining and parties to remember

NYC (where we met)

reading
Skype

old movies

South Street Seaport on a beautiful day

dreaming of our second visit to Rome/Italy (once was not enough)

living on the New Hampshire seacoast

I reserve the right to add to this list whenever I want.

So, I hope you'll come along for the ride and many thanks for stopping by.

BEFORE YOU LEAVE..........the first 25 followers of Mercantile Muse will be entered into a drawing for one of our printable wall art designs (your choice)....so follow, won't you?