Another Try

After a bit of a panic attack on Wednesday I took down my privet post because I found out the berries are poisonous. Well, they will make you really, really sick if you eat them. Apparently, so will poinsettias. So given the fact that our Thanksgiving group was comprised of no one under 14, I decided to go ahead and use them and be very careful. Here they are combined with some pears, pomegranates, tiny blooms from my mother's garden and olives from the tree in my garden. I create almost all of my arrangements from whatever is around or what I can "requisition" with permission from the gardens of friends and family. The pots are from my $10 Rule collection.

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Sour cream coffee cake

 Last night at 8 o'clock I remembered that I needed to bring a coffee cake for an event at my daughter's school at 7:00 this morning...after I finished digging through the refrigerator and throwing away half of what I found the holy grail of last minute cooking showed its blessed face.. sour cream! The expiration date was remarkably far off so I pulled this old recipe out of my notebook and got to work. I have no idea where this came from, but I  know it well enough that mutiny was inevitable if I didn't have some for the family at home. I made two.

 

"Old School" Style coffee cake.

3/4 c. butter 

1 c. sugar

2 eggs

1tsp vanilla

1 c. sour cream

2 c. flour ( I use some whole wheat,about half a cup it helps redeem a total health disaster in this recipe)

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

topping:

1 c. brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/3 c. chopped pecans

1/3 c. chopped walnuts

1 Tbsp. melted butter

Mix topping together and set aside. 

Preheat oven to 375

Cream butter and sugar until light. Add eggs and vanilla and beat well. Stir in sour cream. Sift together dry ingredients and add to butter mixture, stir just to mix. Pour half of batter into prepared tube pan. Spread with half of the topping and cover with the rest of the batter. This is challenging, the batter is stiff so put small amounts in like drops. Sprinkle with the rest of the topping. Bake 45 to 55 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

I am headed out to clip some greens from a neighbor's house for Thanksgiving arrangements that you'll see tomorrow. Have a happy fall day!

Some Tole

 Yet another of my recent design fascinations has been with Tole ware. I first recognized it in my neighbor's house. (No, not the artist of the bookcases and the studio tour, another neighbor. Have I mentioned what a terrific neighborhood I live in?) A fabulous piece from the 70's that her mother purchased through an expensive designer in Atlanta. A penetrating but not obnoxious terra cotta color double lamp with switches  that control both sides. Sometimes when I am over there I switch it on and off, back and forth. The metal shades push all the light down, it is a fantastic trick. Anyway, I love the look. 

 On yet another of my Thrift forays I recognized the pierced metal shade and odd coloration and picked up a few mid-century tole ware lamps of my own. A little research revealed that tole is actually a generic term for paint on metal.

 When I searched on 1st dibs I found quite a variety of wonderful tole pieces. Mine are but a mid-century interpretation of an old and highly evolved decor style.

  

Tole trays, another post!

Great Garden, Great School

 When I volunteered to provide transportation for my daughter's high school dance tour of elementary schools I had no idea that I would happen upon a beautiful garden. Borton Primary School already played a large part in our lives, both of my daughters attended the school and we remain friends with their kindergarten teacher and many of their classmates. I heard there was now a vegetable garden and chickens- but I didn't know it would be so inspiring, even in winter. I plan to get back at harvest time and take some more pictures but here are a few.

A beautiful mural, installed with the help of the Ben's Bells Project . The chicken coop is on the far left.

Harvested gourds and mosaic garden art.

Gourd vines climb a sculpture/fence of re-purposed bicycle parts.

Late tomatoes on the vine.

A terra cotta bird bath outside a portable classrom.

The chore board.

Beautiful work from small hands

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The farm stand where the vegetables are sold, farmer's market style, to local families. This garden is an excellent lesson in many ways for these very young kids!

To read more about the garden, click here and here .

Tile and Soapstone

 I will be on the road all day today, but wanted to share my finds from last week. I am working on counter and backsplash for a client's kitchen and found these gorgeous options:

This is Metropolitan Soapstone, from Brazil. Its surface is a lovely, matte finish that needs to  be oiled to see the color and figure of the stone. The guys at the yard put water on it to show the color.  I had to go to Phoenix to find it, but it was worth the trip. It is hard, heat resistant stone that will last a lifetime in style and function. I always  visit the stone yard and physically view any stone slab under consideration. There are many different names used for the same type of stone and I don't want any surprises! If we select this stone, I will need to examine these photos with the stone fabricator and decide exactly where each piece will be placed within the kitchen plan.

This is the fabulous Rohl farmhouse-style sink we will use in the kitchen. The front of the sink will be exposed, with the faucet set into the soapstone top.

My clients is are avid bakers so we planned their kitchen with a section of marble for rolling out dough. This is fine, statue grade marble. Hers will be different grade, Carrara Marble that displays a lot more gray tones and has a honed (matte) finish. This slab is so shiny you can almost see my reflection!

Hand -formed, hand painted terra cotta tile from TABARKA. A thick, organic look perfect for the kitchen backsplash or walls in the bathroom.

SZYZGY tile, from New Mexico, are some of my favorites for color and textures. All handmade tile in imaginative patterns and colors.

More SZYZYGY tiles -- these come in a pre-set pattern.

Love this Moorish pattern.  Although I am considering lots of tiles for the kitchen backsplash but this one in various shades of green is probably going to win out.

More TABARKA Classic  -style tile, with an updated twist. It almost seems like something you might see in a villa in Pompeii.

I can see this TABARKA tile with a tonal grout used as a wainscot treatment in the hall bath.  I love the edges of terra cotta red peeking out.

Open Studio Tour

 Saturday afternoon I had the pleasure of visiting the studios of several Tucson artists through the Tucson-Pima Arts Council Open Studio Tour. I try to see at least a few every season. This year 138 artists participated, and if the eight or ten that I saw are any indication, there is high quality art being produced in this city. I was thrilled to make use of the QR scanner on my I phone for the first time, the maps, websites and contact information provided by the council was helpful in finding studios located all over the city and county.

First stop was in my own neighborhood, at the Goldman/Phinney Studio where Jackie Goldman and Martha Phinney live and work. I have followed Jackie's work for several years, ever since I spotted a few pieces while helping design her bookcases.

A note about my photos in this post:  I tried to stay out of the way and let the artists deal with interested customers, so bear with my quick shots.
  First, Jackie Goldman:

This guy came home with us.

 The open studio concept, in my opinion, is genius. Not only are the paintings available for sale, but the visitor gets to see a more personal view  of the artist through their working (and often living) space. I am fascinated by their collections and possessions and artwork from other artists that they own.

Jackie's wall of talavera.

Beautiful, , moody watercolors by Martha Phinney.

Next we headed downtown to the Citizen's Artists Warehouse. I love walking into the strong scent of linseed oil, and this location did not disappoint.


First: Joe Hatton : Heavily textured and kinetic pieces with a wonderful, exuberant use of color. I would own any of them!

Gavin Hugh Troy:  The dark, moody lighting in his studio set off wonderful shadows in the wood collage pieces. The work table, filled with wood blocks, prints and tools is a lovely microcosm of his work.

 

  Titus Castanza 

 Excellent, emotionally charged portraiture in a tidy and spacious studio.

Take some time to visit and purchase from artists in your community-and if you visit Tucson, plan to come during one of our bi-annual Tucson Pima Arts Council Open Studio Tours.