nest egg

Bo Berry Art

A while back I promised you all that I would share my secret resources and introduce an artist every month. Well, if you're keeping up with my promises I obviously skipped October. And you've also probably found that I have skipped 2 notes to months. Ahhhhh just give me some time- I'll catch up. 

This November I'd like to introduce you to another artist, one of my very favorites, and she just so happens to be... My mom.

Bo Berry

  

Born and raised on a farm in a small town outside of Greensboro, Alabama my mom began to paint the beautiful, rural scenery around her... And it stuck. Growing up I used to tell my friends: "My mom? She paints farm animals." 

 Drawn to the simplicity of that country life  her oil paintings reflect "the beauty of rural scenes, the farm animals and the bounty of the good earth."
I asked this talented-mother-of-mine some questions:

 

to get to the other side

 What is your favorite luxury in life? 

    Only one? There are lots of mini- luxuries that I appreciate more and more everyday... like summer tomatoes, heated car seats (she's being polite here- we like to call them 'butt warmers'), walks, thunderstorms, driving down a country road, working in my garden, coffee in the morning with my husband, my devotional and a dog or two at my feet. 

 

(She isn't lying here, folks. Cats, dogs, everywhere!! Each with their own bed!)

But if I have to say one, it would be the freedom we have to enjoy all of the above and more.

 

 

 

remember seeing this chicken in this room: ??

 

   What has inspired your artistic style?

 I have always been inspired by artists who have strong use of light in their paintings like Edward Hopper, some of Fairfield Porters works and many Russian artists in the last century. Of course, the masters inspire us all. I particularly like the rich colors of Pierre Bonnard. 

 

Goose Necks

Dont Cry for Me Vidalia

Who would you most like to collaborate with on a project? 

   I have collaborated with my sister in law, Murray Johnston, who is a wonderfully talented textile artist. She creates contemporary art quilts that are stunning. (that's for another month!) For our collaborations she will prepare a piece of canvas, I paint on it leaving a border of a few inches and then she quilts the border incorporating fabrics that blend with the painting. We appreciate each others work and have had a couple of "sister shows" together.

 

"Cowlaboration"- *double click on it for the full effect- you can see the perimeter is quilted on and the middle section is painted. Stunning in person!

 

What books are currently on your bedside table?

   I have a couple of stacks in different places but to name a few.. The Art of Racing in the Rain, The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, The Ragamuffin Gospel, Driftless, To Kill a Mockingbird...

 

Quality Time

What inspires your creativity and designs?

   Usually I am inspired when I see the subject and I visualize it on a canvas. It can happen when I am driving on a rural road (like I mentioned above) and I see a clothesline moving in the breeze or cows grazing in the late afternoon light. I love walking through the Farmers' Market surrounded by a plethora of colors and shapes.

 

 

Of all of your paintings which one is your personal favorite and why?

  I don't think I have a single one.. there have been lots of favorites over the years. Some of them have 

sentimental value and there are a few that come under the "wish I hadn't sold that one" category. I am not a hugely prolific painter so each one is significant and if I can't keep it, I want it to have a good home. :)

 

   

 

Since you've always painted out of your home have you ever run into any problems with that? 

 I have done pen and ink renderings of homes for many years. If is very detailed and tedious work. (see above) Years ago when our children were small I worked in our dining room. This one particular day I had been working long hours on a drawing and leaned it on the hutch to go into the kitchen. My son who was about 4 at the time was charging around the house in his red cape (his wardrobe staple for most of that year)...

 And as he swept through the dining room with his sword in hand (a magic marker) he took a swipe at the drawing leaving what looked like a Zorro mark straight across the middle. Luckily Dad was at home and stood between me and my son- who knew by the color of my face that he was in deep trouble.  Bless his heart! Lesson learned for both of us. 

Just in case you don't believe her- here's a picture of me and my brother Zorro at that age:

(Another one of our fine Halloween moments... do we look drugged or what?!) *And if you're wondering where I come up with these old pictures so fast- it's because most of them were used for our wedding video and thanks to my mother-in-law they are now on my computer!)

 

What is your most unusual request?

  I had a young woman ask me to paint her father's favorite pet...his chicken. She said she would take some pictures and send them to me.  Of course I expected to get pictures of her in the chicken yard but instead I get ones of the chicken sitting on the sofa eating spaghetti off her Dad's plate!  

(Mom, that's so weird. Please send pictures...)

Lastly, what are the things in life you cannot live without? 

 My faith, my family, my friends and the critters. 

 
And yet another one from our wedding slideshow (for kicks):

Whoa, Watch out for those cheeks!    Now if only I could only get Mom to find the picture of a chicken eating spaghetti...

 

Although many of the paintings above are sold works, some are unsold. {Contact her for more info}

To visit the Bo Berry Art website click here.

You can also email her at bo.berry(at)mac.com

Another one bites the dust...

Metropolitan Home is shutting its doors. :(

There are no words.

Just pictures...

 

 

 

 

I pray for all the people that worked so hard for this magazine and are having to pack up their belongings and start over. Especially my dear friend Lenora Jane- who wrote in an email today:

 " I know 'when one door closes another one opens', 

                                      but damn- I did not want this door to close."

Neither did we.

We will miss you, Met Home.

Tree Hugging Home

Recently I got an email from a good friend about a very interesting home featured in The New York Times this past week. Have you seen it?

 

Architect Roald Gunderson and his family (below)

 

Is it just me or does he look exactly like Liam Neeson? 

Anyway, this talented man has made a career out of working with trees.

 

He built his home and greenhouse using WHOLE trees for structure after many years of bending and pruning them...
 

“Curves are stronger than straight lines,” he explained. “A single arch supporting a roof can laterally brace the building in all directions.”
 

According to research by the Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, run by the USDA, a whole, unmilled tree can support 50 percent more weight than the largest piece of lumber milled from the same tree....(What!?? Crazy.) So Mr. Gundersen uses small-diameter trees as rafters and framing in his airy structures, and big trees felled by wind, disease or insects as powerful columns and curving beams.

 

Love this room! And love this fact:

“For every ton of wood, a ton and a half of carbon dioxide is locked up,” he said, whereas producing a ton of steel releases two to five tons of carbon. So the more whole wood is used in place of steel, the less carbon is pumped into the air."

 

<Talk about a railing design>

“I’ve taken 20 trees per year off one acre, for 12 buildings,” Mr. Gundersen said. “You can never tell that we’ve taken out that much wood.”

After he built the house for his family he built this solar greenhouse for his wife with thick straw bale walls...
 

and to top THAT off: Ms. Baxter manages a community forest project modeled after a community-supported agriculture project, in which paying members harvest sustainable riches like mushrooms, firewood and watercress from these woods.
 

I wish I had time to manage a project that cool. 

And I wish I had a greenhouse like the one above to nurture a garden. But as I look at my DEAD herbs I think I should wait on that...

via wide open spaces

Back to the amazing tree house...

"In architecture, how materials come together and how they are connected is really the god in the details," Gundersen said. "The connection is where things will fall apart," he said, adding that the crook of a tree "has been time-tested by environmental conditions for 200 million years."

 

If anything makes me want to GO GREEN, this article does. I have a heart for trees and it has always made me sad when I see one go. :(

 Powerlines, shmowerlines.

 Instead of knocking down trees why not build a house with them or around them?

For the Whole Trees Architecture website click here.

Click here to read the full article by Anne Raver

Photos by Paul Kelley for The New York Times

Hanging Advice

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. I saw this picture in the most recent anthropologie catalog and thought it captured my excuse quite well:

<except that I don't look near as cute as that little precious>

Switching gears....I've been wanting some sort of change in my home and this usually results in me rearranging artwork and pictures. Why? Because it very often requires no money, it is instant gratification, and it always makes each room feel brand new. It does not have to be artwork- it can be anything that hangs on a wall: mirrors, photographs, sketches, pictures, quilts, you name it. Here are a few things to keep in mind when hanging artwork or picture walls:

1. *One of the biggest mistakes people make is hanging artwork too high or too low. The center of the piece  should be 66" from floor. So basically it is hanging at eye level (on an average person).. if you are taller than the average person, hang it a touch higher. You're the one who will enjoy it every day so hang accordingly. 

 

via elements of style

2. Try to avoid hanging photographs (or anything with glass) in spots that get direct sunlight. You'll end up seeing GLARE more than anything...

 

via Elle Decor

3. When you are hanging mirrors on a wall make sure they are positioned in a way that does not reflect the ceiling... Who wants to see the ceiling??

4. Position them on the floor in front of the wall before you hang!! This is where most of the rearranging happens. When it comes time to hang I usually start with a middle piece and work out from there. For a quick tutorial on how to do it the right way: click here.

miles redd

5. Use a leveling device*- your eyes will undoubtedly play tricks on you. Which brings up my next tip- as much as hanging pictures makes you want to drink alcohol and curse at anyone who offers help, keep away from the glass of wine. There's nothing worse than tipsy pictures :)

6. Use picture frame bumpers to prevent your frames from sliding around every time someone slams the door or sneezes.  They are right next to the picture hooks at Target. You put two at the bottom 2 corners of each picture frame- (i like the clear ones)

7. Most importantly***- Find the style you like. There are many more tips when it comes to hanging pictures and artwork but it depends on the look you are going after.

Do you like this look?

 

or this look?

 

  

(1) Erin Martin (2) Steven Gambrel (3) via domino mag (4) source unknown

Let's do that again. 

Do you like this look?

 

or this look?

 

(1) via style court (2) via velvet & linen (3) via domino mag (4) via Southern Accents

To be honest I usually opt for the 'mix it up' walls... but this week I am really liking the more structured hanging style. There's something about that simple continuity that is speaking to me. 

So, what picture wall style do you prefer?

 

image via martha stewart

 

It's a Swing Thing

If you have been following the blog lately you probably know two things about me:

1. I have a THING for BARNS

2. I have a THING for SWING(s). Porch swings to be exact. 

I've been tearing them out of magazines, sketching up designs, blogging and daydreaming about a giant porch swing for YEARS.... just waiting for a client with an open mind and the right amount of porch space. Preferably porch space in or around a barn.

Well guys, my little dream has already come true. I've designed the unthinkable- A giant swing on a barn porch.       

 

<This photo was taken a few weeks back when the frame was finished and hung- The builders had me stand on it to illustrate the SIZE of this sucker. <insert Rachel for scale> 

Let me back up...

and give credit where credit is due. This could not have happened without several key players:

1. The client- for graciously letting me design my dream on 25 square feet of his porch. (thanks RD)

2. The builders- for creating such an awesome structure based on my really rough sketch.... amazes me every time.

3. the rope-  I had a hard time coming up with a rope resource (there are no giant ROPE stores in Nashville, Tennessee-- shocking, I Know!!!) so I did what any 21st century designer would do- I googled, ordered, and hoped for the best. The rope ended up coming from none other than Christian's Fitness Factory. (who knew?) And it could not have been more perfect.

 

5. The Knot Magician- this key player was one I did not see coming. (Meaning- I did not plan for him but looking back I don't know what I would have done without him) So one day I show up at the barn and a guy named Leo (a worker there who I hadn't met) was sitting on the porch weaving a fabulous knot into our christian-fitness rope. I gasped.... "Hi!! WHO ARE YOU? AND HOW DID YOU DO THAT??!!!"

Ends up- Leo is from Mexico and his grandmother taught him how to weave this perfect knot. Valuable team player? I think so.

 

Once again, <insert Rachel for scale>

6. The Workroom- for making these cushions in such speedy time.

7. And lastly,  The setting- What's a good porch swing without a beautiful view?? <I can't claim this part>

 

 
This swing has been the highlight of my month... and it might even carry over to the next one. It turned out better than I expected and I owe it all to our speedy team:

We drew out the design, found a spot, measured for scale, built the frame, found the rope, tied the knot, hung the swing, picked the fabric, chose the stain,  made a template, rushed the cushions, fluffed the pillows, tested it out, took a picture..... just in time  for Halloween.

<insert Rachel for scare>

Happy Halloween!

Feeling like Fall

Fall is my favorite time of year. 

These images always conjure up those 'fall' feelings- the crisp outside air and the warm, coziness of home... makes you want to grab one of those cashmere blankets, right?

 

via elle decor, photographer simon upton

 

via apartment therapy

dale saylor, elle decor

via martha stewart

via domino

via veranda

southern accents.... I want to go to there.

Some other things that come to mind when it starts feeling like FALL: 

1. Hot apple cider

2. Bedknobs and Broomsticks (I dont know why)

 

3. The brilliant colors that about make me wreck when I'm driving down the street...

4. the ESPN sportscenter tune 

 

 5. This little halloween dog costume I saw the other week. Makes me laugh every time. Look at the expression on his face... 

"I. am. miserable."

6. Candy Corn,.... massive amounts of candy corn.

 

7. And lastly, that one Halloween I dressed up as an old lady.

  

It was a exceptionally great costume. DIY, I might add. (thanks mom)

*Did my new face in the sidebar scare you??! Hope so. 

**If you are new to reading nestegg and are wondering what kind of freak you have stumbled upon, WELCOME. And I'm actually a dracula- thank you for asking. :)

Throw a Punch

  

With the cold weather approaching I find myself coming home from a long days 'playing Rachel' and all I want to do is plop on a comfortable chaise lounge and curl up under a cashmere throw.

via oyuna

Throw blankets not only add instant comfort to a room but they also can be a key design element. Which brings me to my lesson of the day:

Do not underestimate the power of a throw.

Sometimes, it is all you need to add a punch of color to your room! 

To sum it up: Throw a punch. 

And why not make it cashmere? 

 

Ever since I saw this Bobby Mcalpine bedroom in House Beautiful I have been wanting this bright baby blue cashmere throw. This particular brand is Yarnz and it's a little too pricey for me. So I've been on the lookout for the perfect blue throw ever since. I am YET to find it...under $100.

 Mcalpine tends to throw punches in many of his rooms... 
Example A: *LOVE*

Example B:

 

*that actually might be someone's shirt. Oh well....

 

That throw needs some fluffing!!

james michael howard via things that inspire

 

via country living

 

I love the purple color here. This particular blanket (on the bench) is a beautiful Sferra cashmere and runs around $400 a throw. Yikes... but Yummy. 

via Veranda

 

via cote de texas

 

 

Williams Sonoma has a popular collection of cashmere throws for $268- and as you can see they have every color of the rainbow.

Restoration Hardware's cashmere throws are on sale from $300 to $103.99 

Pretty good for 100% cashmere- might be my best bet! Has anyone been able to find a good one for less?

"A good home should gather you up in its arms like a warm cashmere blanket, soothe your hurt feelings, and prepare you to go back out into that big bad world tomorrow." - Ina Garten (the Barefoot Contessa)

 

first image on post- via coco and kelly

just a couple of kitchens...

by Amy Morris, via AH&L

via things that inspire

darryl carter via elle decor

via SW design

Happy Weekend!

I SPY... Pumpkins

If you haven't gotten your pumpkin yet.... it's time. 

And if you're bored with the usual jack-o-lantern theme here are a few ideas...

via good housekeeping

 
fun displays via country living and BHG

drill hole pumpkins, BHG

 
**glitter pumpkins** via martha stewart, and tracery interiors

pumpkin stripes, and pumpkin candles via good housekeeping

I saw this alot in New Hampshire, pumpkins over the door. If you have the house to pull it off, DO it! It looks really cute.      via katy elliot

Pumpkin House Numbers! Another great idea. via apartment therapy

Or you could add a little harmless humor to your decor...

 
via apartment therapy

 

And if you have all the time in the world you can try to pull off Martha's pumpkins. (If you do, please send me pictures!)  

lace patterned pumpkins, via martha stewart

 pumpkins as flower pots, via martha

flowery vine pumpkin via country living

pumpkin tower via country living

 
polka dot and patchwork pumpkins via BHG

LAST BUT LEAST $ (and amount of effort)

  

pumpkin candle and pumpkin placecard, via country living

If these ideas aren't enough you have a REAL problem you can check out martha stewart, better homes & gardens, and country living- I found most of these images on their websites and they include tutorials for each one. Just google the title I gave for each picture and you'll find it.

Happy Carving!

Cheryl Tague

Last week I (somehow) stumbled upon the work of New York designer Cheryl Tague. Her website only contains 3 different homes- each one beautiful in their own way.  Her work is simple and edited, a good mix of old and new, and reflects her impeccable attention to detail...

 

 

 

 

 

All images from Cheryl Tague's website, click here for more info.