Tuesday, May 26, 2009

~ The Stained Glass Windows of St. John the Baptist Church, Savannah

And the windows..... more beauty.
Just a few of the many to see.






The stations of the cross are stunning as well.

I am enjoying sharing the pictures with you all so much. And it makes me get them more organized and resized. A few more posts to go of Savannah. Come again. Thank you for the sweet comments on the pictures and the magazine article.

See Y'all Soon!

Thursday, May 21, 2009

~ St. John the Baptist Cathedral, Savannah

At the top of almost anyone's short list of things to do in Savannah is to see the magnificent French Gothic style cathedral church in Savannah. It deserves the honor. After the fire of 1898 the church had to be rebuilt. And as recently as 1996-2000, the church went through some major work and restoration. So what you see today is simply beautiful. If you love it as much as I do, please remember to leave a nice little donation. One church looks very nice from the outside, but you have to pay for a tour. And another is always locked up. We missed the time of the free tour at the oldest Baptist church. Maybe next time we'll see it. The cathedral is always free, for quiet time & prayer, or just for inspiration.

Cathedral St. John the Baptist, Front


Wonderful Old Side Door


There are 3 naves, the one on the right
is dedicated to the Virgin Mary



Be sure to look up!



The ceiling is breathtaking!

Still resizing pictures. Be back soon.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

~ Owens-Thomas House Savannah


One of the best tips for visiting both Savannah and Charleston is to take a tour the city as soon as you get there. In Savannah, that is usually by trolley, but they do have horse drawn carriages as well like they do in Charleston. We had hoped to go on the Architectural walking tour with Jonathan, but just couldn't work in to his times.

Once you go around the whole city, it is so much easier to figure out where things are. But I still got turned around a few times and wasn't sure which way I was going.

Now owned by the Telfair Museum, the Owens-Thomas House is a gem. It was amazing to see not only the house, but also the slave quarters above the gift shop, and where they cooked in the basement of the main house. A fantastic example of English Regency architecture with so much kept original. I have a special love for the peeling paint on the back of the house. Simply beautiful!

Front Owens-Thomas House, Savannah


The back gardens looking towards the gift shop, carriage house.


I'm trying to get things done around my house and Sweet Daughter's as well. We are planning a pretty paver patio for her small backyard. It takes so much time just to get to the stage of having the work done. What we all go through to get anything done, I know. It seems like I spend almost every minute each day making sure Cody puppy doesn't eat the sofa or everything off the counters. So everything is moving in slow motion these days! Just getting a post on the blog is an accomplishment.

See Y'all Soon!

Thursday, May 14, 2009

~ Let's Go Window Shopping .. Jones to Broughton St. Savannah

Strolling through the streets and parks of Savannah sometimes feels like Disney World or a movie set. You are trying to get so much in such a short time, and the buildings often look like movie set. Which of course some have been. But the parks always have a few homeless people which keeps you grounded that this is a real city afterall. Nonetheless it is a beautiful place to just walk and not be a hurry to make the next tour or whatever.

So what to do when it's just a half day and you don't want to run from place to place? Do a little window shopping. We were out by Jones Street so we headed the few blocks over to the Broughton. First stop Paris Market, Broughton.

The Paris Market, looking down Broughton St.

A huge, old bookcase stuffed with French books
from the earl to late 1800's.

What a beautiful haphazard display
(It might not have looked so "messy"
before I started looking at 100 or so books.)

A few shots from in the store.

And a downstairs area full of more & more!

Love this old piece. It was upstairs last time,
now resting downstairs until they
whip up another gorgeous grouping of treasures on it.


Just one small bag.





Marshall House.


I've always been drawn to this building. Then last time we went on a ghost tour and most of them include the Marshall House. Even though they had a great rate in April for their innkeeper's special, I'm not sure if the gorey beginnings of the ghost stories influenced the decision to pass on it this time.

Looking for the menu to the restaurant,
I snapped this picture of the sitting area near the lobby.


One Fish Two Fish sits on the corner of Jones St.
by Mrs. Wilkes (spells southern food.)
So if you go to eat at Mrs. Wilkes,
you might want to stop in. Cute shop.



We did not stand in line for Mrs. Wilkes. Someday maybe. But so far the lines were either too long, or we are never in the mood to eat so much food. But the locals almost all say, skip the Lady and Son's (P. Dean) and go to Mrs. Wilkes for the real food.
One tip that the lady at the Dresser House told us was not to eat breakfast and just get there early rather than later in the day. They let in a huge group to begin with, so that long line moves fast. The same length line later in the day is waiting for tables to open up. Good tip! Thanks Sherry.

Thanks for your notes. I've enjoyed sharing the pictures and I hope all of you who wish to visit one day get the chance to do so.

Have a Great Weekend! See Y'all Soon.
(I'm behind on emails. But I'm tring to get to them.)

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

~ Savannah, The Dresser Palmer House, B&B

The Dresser Palmer House, Savannah, Gaston Street.
Built in 1876 as two separate homes (townhouses) and is 11,000 sq ft.
16 Rooms each with private baths

The Front Porch, Perfect for Afternoon
Wine and Cheese.

The Johnny Mercer Room
The largest room, suite at the inn.
The bed alcove is original to the house
and holds a king size bed,
very nice and not common for bed and breakfasts.

When touring these older cities, you can
see these beautiful tall windows.
 I've always wanted to be able to walk out one
of these floor length windows!
There was a private balcony there.

New furniture and paint.
Really so relaxing and comfortable.
And you can see a glimpse of the lovely new bath.


My pictures are after some updates in 2009. They had just finished a major remodeling so that each room now has a private bath, and they are all beautifully done. Each room we peeked at, was just a nicely done as the next. Just a difference in size.

Looking down Gaston St.

After staying in a few bed and breakfasts now, we are spoiled.  But since we stayed in the first one, each and every experience has been simply wonderful. There are so many advantages. Breakfast is served in the morning, the rooms are so "home-like" not like a hotel. And they almost always have free parking. This can add up in most cities where they often charge $20 plus for parking. Just be sure to check out places like TripAdvisor because you certainly can wind up some place not too good as well.

If you visit when things are slower, be sure to call directly and talk with someone there. We were so lucky to be able to stay in this fantastic suite at a much lower rate than it is during the busy season! (Thank you David!)

We would certainly stay here again. You might remember last time we stayed at the 1895 Inn. I did call there first since our last visit was great.  Ed was booked already. There are only 6 rooms there. We did miss his cooking. He is still at the top of our list for breakfast, although we had very good food here as well and so thankful for the cooking and the bed and breakfasts.

Click on any of the pictures below to shop art from The Decorated House 

Friday, May 8, 2009

~ April in Savannah

Mercer-Williams House

If there is a better time to visit Savannah than April, I cannot imagine when that would be. Yes, I know there are other months that might be just as perfect. As soon as we left the temperatures began to rise, and we know all about that. We have been there in August and October. Even October was meaner than April.
I rented the movie again of Midnight in the Garden of Good & Evil. Of course I found a few things that I had missed on the last trip. But I'm happy to say we ventured to the new areas I wanted to see.

If you have been to Savannah, or read reviews online, you no doubt heard to skip the tour at the Mercer-Williams house. Everyone who lives in the town told us the same thing each time we went there. Maybe the big difference is in who is giving the tour. I don't know. I think it was all more sensitive of an issue back in 2004 , when I think the house first was opened for tours. But when we went, you could not only ask about the "incident" in the house, the tour guide brought it up himself and said ask any questions you wish. But of course there is a time limit with the next group waiting to come inside, so that was kept to one question. And yes, we did go into the room where it happened.





I'm going to start on the last day of the trip. One of the reasons I rented the movie again was because of the foyer/hall floor in the Mercer-Williams house. The last time we watched the movie, I remember thinking that I wanted to see if that floor was really as beautiful as it was in the movie and if it was even there. It was. One hundred and forty year old English tiles.

John Cusak is one of my favorite actors. His work with the Lady Chablis in this one is fascinating. The beginning of the movie was more fun to see Savannah, the trial part wasn't what I wanted to see again.

The house is just one of the fabulous historic homes in the city. It is not what you would actually call a museum, although the tour guide did say that. It has been restored beautifully, but unlike some other homes, it is not decorated to the time it was built. Instead you see how Jim Williams decorated it. Which was great! The tour is overpriced in comparison to the other houses. The money goes to the owner who no doubt needs it for upkeep of such a huge place. You only see the first floor, which is about 3,000 sq. ft of the total 9,000 of the house. But if you are curious, go take a look!

Hope all you Moms have a wonderful Mother's Day!
See Y'all Soon~

Monday, May 4, 2009

~ 5 Star Hotel or 5 Star Breakfast?

Casa Monica in St. Augustine, FL


This is actually the side entrance.
Whenever you see pictures, they make sure that
the beautiful gardens of the Lightner Museum
looks like it is a part of their grounds.
Smart thinking.


Although we are only 5 hours away from Savannah, we were both tired out from the week before, so I decided that a little lay over in St. Augustine would be nice. Thanks to "travelzoo" email updates, we stayed at a beautiful 5 star hotel, Casa Monica. Every time we went to St. Augustine and walked by I thought about staying there. Of course everything was nice.

The Elizabeth Suite at the St. Francis Inn, St. Augustine.



More pretty things to see in St. Augustine.

So I asked Sweet Hubby to choose between the big 5 star hotel and the little St. Francis Inn Bed & Breakfast down the street where we had stayed before. That room was much bigger, but it had a noisy air conditioner near the bed. It was heavenly! Just like a sound machine so I didn't hear Sweet Husband snoring. I actually read a couple of people complain about the inn being not very new inside. Wonder why? It was built in 1791!! But it was such a lovley inn. I hope to stay there again.

I am working on some projects when due dates coming soon, so I'll be back with Savannah soon. Promise.

Thank YOU to ALL of you for your sweet notes about "Artful Blogging." It is available now (as of May 1st) at Borders, some Barnes & Nobles, and some Michael's and Joann's. Use a coupon if you find it. But take a moment to look inside. Some wonderful blogs.

I forgot to mention sweet Carol of Raised in Cotton last time. She has some great tips on photography in this issue. And she has a new post up with more tips!

Friday, May 1, 2009

~ The Decorated House in .......... Artful Blogging Summer 2009


A little sneak peek, pg. 84 & 85
of the wonderful 6 pages.





(Artful Blogging Summer 2009
Roses on Front by Me!)


A very special Thank You! to
the wonderful people at Artful Blogging
for choosing The Decorated House blog
to be in their Summer 2009 issue.

I don't quite remember the first time I picked up Artful Blogging. But I was impressed not only by the blogs which were featured, but by the beautiful editing and layouts as well. It is an eclectic mix of very colorful blogs and then more neutrals ones like mine and Sara of Sadie Olive. That's her picture of the man & baby on the front. Although Staci found my blog, and first asked if I would like to write an article for the magazine, I worked with Christen Olivarez to finish it up. Thank you to both of you and to the editor. They did a fabulous job with my blog and work. I think it turned out beautifully. Let me know what you think when you see it.

Thank you also for the very sweet notes here, and the emails. I appreciate them very much. It was so nice of you to take the time to write.

When my dear friend Kim of Daisy Cottage was in Artful Blogging last year I was totally thrilled. Although Kim is not a traditional artist in the way we might usually think of, she is an artist with her blog. And like many artists, what she creates for her blog comes from her heart. As more and more blogs are doing advertising to receive money each time you click on their site, Kim remains true to her guests. You always know she is welcoming you exactly as she would a guest in her home. Just for the pleasure of your visit.

The trip to Savannah was fantastic. Come by for the next few days if you would like to see pictures and hear about it. I'm am certainly no expert on the city or traveling, but I love Savannah and I know it was so helpful when I found blog posts about visiting there before we went the first time.


Were you wondering if I looked for my old friend, and maybe about how she was doing? (another photo) Sorry to say she still has not found love. The houses on each side of her are so beautiful. I wasn't sure if she could be still be saved. But Sweet Hubby said look up. She has good bones you know. I am still hoping someone will come soon and take care of her.


Look at the lovely haight blue porch ceiling still waiting to keep the old place happy.


This is the house next door. Doesn't that just call out to your heart?

See y'all soon!