festive times in the playroom

festive times in the playroom
Originally uploaded by lakbdesign/fergusandme
or, another day, another decorating cliche ... ;)
but seriously, i made bunting for the fergusandme shop, and since my lifelong hopelessness with mechanical objects has now resulted in the disastrous snarling of the thread on the sewing machine, i was forced to conjure a no sew method (always the best, find) ... also, i'm prominently featuring a really sweet little vintage folding stool that i bought at an estate sale a while ago for a client -- it was in rough shape, but we cleaned and sanded and painted it yesterday, and it looks splendid, i think. and it has that fabulous folding action (this one's for you, amy, if you're reading ...)

x lynn-anne

in the playroom

in the playroom
Originally uploaded by lakbdesign/fergusandme
this sofa's slipcovers have been washed a million times (henry and fergus, our dogs, like to lie across the pillows waiting for people to walk up the stairs behind pillows; plus, people who shall remain nameless sit here wearing mud encrusted cleats and soccer kit .... anyway ..) and rips and holes were starting to appear .. all of this meant time for a sofa revitalization project. so i got some of those recycled indian sari quilts that are pretty much everywhere right now, as well as some pillow covers, and i took off all the too-stuffed original down back pillows, then wrapped the cushions in some bigger quilts, et voila! newly fun sofa! (the longest & most tiresome part of the project was vacuuming under the cushions - yuck).

here's hoping the next project you dream up is just as easy ...

x lynn-anne

in country living may 2011

in country living may 2011
Originally uploaded by lakbdesign/fergusandme
our house, with thanks to photographer extraordinaire lucas allen, stylist natasha louise king, and country living

in june, and july

in june, and july
Originally uploaded by lakbdesign/fergusandme

hello!

i thought i'd resurrect a fun little thing i've done in the past, where i make a bighugelabs mosaic captioned, for example, "at home in june". so i started trolling through my flickr uploads from june, and although i found lots of "at home" shots, very few of them were of my home (they were mostly the homes of clients that i store, marked private, on flickr so that i can easily access them from any device) ... and in fact, most of the shots were of anywhere but home ... i guess we haven't been here much this summer. we've been at the lake, visiting museums, zoos, and all manner of odd places, having a birthday camp out, going to auctions and estate sales, shopping the Atlanta market and stocking our shop.... busy days indeed, and probably the best way to spend this rather fleeting summertime. i hope yours is just as full of fun and love and silliness ~

x lynn-anne

little c. 1960 vintage cake topper & candle holder train for a little one's birthday cake. sweet!

little c. 1960 vintage cake topper & candle holder train for a little one's birthday cake. sweet!
Originally uploaded by lakbdesign/fergusandme

we found this yummy little beauty at an estate sale - it was in its original box, and in perfect condition (except for a smidgen of presumably ancient chocolate frosting stuck to one of the tiny wheels .... love it :) i've been finding and giving special vintage-y things as presents for a while now -- seems more meaningful (certainly more meaningful than a gift card) as well as more compelling and interesting, and sort of responsible, as it's reusing old stuff.... what do you think? isn't this the perfect thing to wrap prettily and pass to a friend or family member whose little boy is in the throes of typical toddler and preschooler train mania ? i like the idea. i love that things that were once a treasured part of one family's celebrations can live on in usefulness, bringing a little bit of retro, non branded sweetness from the past into our modern lives -- silly, but that's me ;)

x lynn-anne

in the shop today - fergus&me

in the shop today - fergus&me
Originally uploaded by lakbdesign/fergusandme

life is quite mad at the moment -- i've been very busy keeping the shops stocked and the design clients happy (not to mention keeping the kiddos happy, too) ... hoping your summer is full of color and crazy-good stuff so far -

x lynn-anne

sunset silhouettes, avila beach, california

sunset silhouettes, avila beach, california
Originally uploaded by lakbdesign/fergusandme
last week, my oldest son (nathan; that's him on the right) graduated from high school. while i'm excited and proud (and i still have three more at home, including a rising first grader), i'm feeling a little nostalgic for some earlier days, and this image, taken at avila beach on the central coast of california, sort of says it for me. it's a very special place.

happy thursday,

x lynn-anne

these moments: that priceless summertime backyard discovery

First blueberry harvest that the wild bunnies didn't eat - he can't wait! nothing tastes sweeter than berries you grew all by yourself ;)
Originally uploaded by lakbdesign/fergusandme

..yesterday, we found the very first blueberries that we've gotten to before our sweet wild bunnies nibbled them all to bits. teddy was thrilled, promptly gobbled them (all three!), and pronounced them delicious. hooray for summertime, and blueberries. here's hoping we get some more before the bunnies do ~ !

x lynn-anne

WIP: we often make these tree-stumps-on-casters stool/tables (esp when we have to have a tree taken down;( but this is the first time I've gotten creative with the finish ...
Originally uploaded by lakbdesign/fergusandme
WIP: we often make these tree-stumps-on-casters stool/tables (esp when we have to have a tree taken down ;( - recycled right off the ground into something cool .... but this is the first time I've gotten creative with the finish. even if it was just some random pie slices (wish i'd thought to make them represent some piece of the proverbial pie, but i didn't).

anyway, nest time one of your trees has to come down, remember that you can make yourself a quick and easy log stool on castors ... love it.

anstruther seafront, scotland

#anstruther #harbor #Scotland
Originally uploaded by lakbdesign/fergusandme

don't you love the world of easy artistry in photography that iphone apps have opened up? and yet, maybe like me you miss the effort in post processing that used be required to turn a pretty shot into something really special?

happy monday!

x lynn-anne

mum and me, somewhere in Scotland, late 1960s.

mum and me
Originally uploaded by lakbdesign/fergusandme
i meant to post this on mother's day or thereabouts, but it didn't happen for one reason and another. my mum gave me this photo a few months ago, and i must say, i really love it - her pretty sixties self, the pretty scottish hills in the background, the suggestion of a picnic, the feeling of beginnings - that silver cross pram!- and the fact that this was probably taken by my dad, gone far too young. ... it's a beautiful image. the old adage is that a picture's worth a thousand words, and to me, this one sure is.

i'm wishing you lots of lovely afternoons with people you love ...

x lynn-anne

wythe blue room on a rainy afternoon.

wythe blue room on a rainy afternoon.
Originally uploaded by lakbdesign/fergusandme
this little sitting room is right off our kitchen -- together these two rooms form the hub of our very busy home life.
as our family changes and the children grow, and we need more of some things and less of others (like more craft table space and less toy storage) ... so i change this room little by little, or sometimes a lot, to suit our needs. right now, we've got a big old farm table for crafts and writing and building lego starships, two small vintage settees for sitting and talking and catching up, and a lot of extra chairs for the inevitable friends,
i think the point is to go ahead and make your space reflect your family's loves and needs: move things around, find new uses for old things, and celebrate the now, rather than getting stuck with what worked last year, or what will work next year. speaking of which, i've got some revamping to do in our all-purpose entry/living/laundry/play room .... ;)

have a happy saturday!

x lynn-anne