Newsletter Archive

Buy in pairs! This is one of a pair of Herend cachepots, in the Chinese Bouquet Pattern in raspberry pink. They were given to us by dear, precious friends… somehow they knew I like pink! They grace our mantelpiece at Fox Hall and flank the English Staffordshire horse in the center. It is my favorite time of year when I can gather peonies and pink mountain laurel from our garden!   Lovely Living!  There is certainly cachet to cachepots! The French word cachepot, (pronounced as cash-poe!) translates to “hide a pot” and in particular, a flower pot. A cachepot beautifully enhances plants and flowers and is used inside a house versus outside, as they do not have any drainage holes. They are also referred to as planters and/or jardinieres, which are usually larger and placed upon the floor. To use a cachepot is tantamount to dressing up for a party,

This needlepoint eyeglass case once belonged to Mummy. I had the front encased with pretty Scalamandre striped silk fabric surrounding it, so that her case continues to be a sweet memory for me in the living room at Fox Hall. Remember, a pillow does not have to consist entirely of the needlepoint canvas. You can cheat a little by adding more fabric around the canvas! Lovely Living!  Here is an idea for the perfect antidote to the pandemic: create a needlepoint pillow! Not that you will ever forget 2020, but at least you will have a pretty reminder of how you survived it. I find that when I needlepoint, it creates a sense of calm and a quiet time to savor. And the best part?  There is a present at the end of your efforts that gives joy and brings back distinct memories of when and why you created it…

I imagine you must have some unique pieces of porcelain displayed or tucked away somewhere in your residence that you are not presently using? Or how about ones you can reconfigure in an exclusive and unexpected place? Let’s chat about how to present them in a uniquely, memorable way! Quiet and subtle, yet uncommon decorative details, bring a sense of individuality to your interiors, contributing to an inviting atmosphere. They also whisper your personality. My house, Fox Hall (c. 1803), has lovely wood trim, moldings, and historic decorative embellishments, which is precisely why I have an attraction and great appreciation for historic houses. Nearly twenty years ago, my husband and I purchased two French 19th-century porcelain urns. Initially, I thought I would place them on the Philadelphia chest in the front hall.  The radiant yellow was lively, and the cobalt blue hinted at the background color of our Chinese rug. Once

Placemat prerogatives!   My daughter Alexandra, who lives in England, adores entertaining and hosting dinner parties. Her lovely dining room table is always dressed for a party with a white damask or linen tablecloth, a timeless traditional choice. However, during months of lockdown with four children (including a set of four-year-old twins!), three meals a day take place in the kitchen on the lengthy wooden antique refectory table, sans a white damask tablecloth, avec placemats! She posed several questions to me about placemats, because now she only has contempt for them! In her words, “It is just one more thing to clean after endless meals… why do we even need them!?” Tablecloths have been adorning dining tables for ages, and are thought to have come to Europe in the first century A.D. Their Lilliputian cousin, the placemat, is a neoteric invention! In the twentieth century, bright colors and patterns began to

Let’s light some candles tonight!  I am certain that routine dinners are feeling rather monotonous during quarantine by now. Here is an idea for you… light more candles! Candlelight can turn a mundane event into a celebration! Mummy always said that a candlelit dinner somehow magically becomes… more memorable. Just the motion of lighting the wick transports me, for a brief moment, to a place of jubilee and gratitude. Candles have been an integral part of celebrations for centuries, from churches to dinner parties, and even atop birthday cakes; candles contribute to creating significant moments! So if candlelight implies a celebration, dress up for dinner!  If you have children, let them dress up or wear a costume. Three of my precious little granddaughters would adore being Elsa, in a “Frozen” second! Mummy shared another secret with me: Candlelight will make whatever you are serving taste better! Now that is something

A darling Southern friend recently posed the question, “What do you do when you are presented with passed hors d’ oeuvres that are HUGE? They either crumble as you bite them, drip, or you pop the entire “nibble” into your mouth, which makes you look like a chipmunk. All are dreadful options. Please, bring back the one-bite wonder!” My response has always been to  “pass” on any huge hors d’oeuvres being passed! This rule of thumb comes from my memory of a rather traumatic party experience. When I was notably pregnant, donning my only emerald green silk maternity cocktail dress, I tried to gracefully take a bite of a warm filo pastry nibble at a lovely Christmas party. It was a two-biter.  Big mistake. Butter squirted down the entire front of my silk dress. There was no hope, even when I attempted to douse it with water in the powder