I just returned from a business trip to Boston and thought I’d post some thoughts I had on discovering design inspiration as you travel on business, or pleasure this summer.

Many times when we travel, we get so rushed and distracted, we miss the beautiful ambiance around us that makes a trip so pleasurable. We know we “feel good” in certain places, hotels, restaurants etc. but why? Making a conscious effort to look at, and feel the mood of the setting will enhance the enjoyment, and inspire you to recreate that mood and feeling at home.

I am especially fond of Cottage Living Magazine. During the summer months it makes me think of getting away for a relaxing weekend with family and friends. At any time of the year, I find the quaint design of organized smaller spaces, decorated for hospitality to be extremely inviting.

I thought I’d post a few more ideas on dressing up ready-made drapery. I wrote about borders in my previous post. This application is called, banding. Thin contrasting bands of fabric or ribbon that give the drapery its graphic custom appeal, and ties in the fabrics or feel of the room to the drapery.

I promised to give you a continuation of the post about my daughter’s new apartment. She has now lived there for a couple of months and tells us that it is starting to feel like home. As you will see, her little dog has found herself very much at home there, and I do believe there will be no looking back!

A blogger by the name of Debi commented in a previous post about an idea she had, adding a border to ready-made drapery to customize them. This reminded me of some I’ve seen before. So, I thought I’d pass along this idea that Debi and I think is great. Hope you agree.

This dish has become one of our family’s favorites. It is rare for me to be completely creative, leaving all cookbooks in the cupboard, but this veggie combo came out of my dislike for most plain vegetables.

I’m always looking for easy and inexpensive ways to dress-up things I already have for holidays.

It seems we all have a bunch of these white plastic stacking chairs we use for extra seating for casual get togethers. I have at least 6 of these. I wanted to add some temporary color to them for a 4th of July bar-b-que.

I love Shadow Box Wall Art!! It’s so interesting and quite intriguing wall decor. I’m often fascinated to see what object is being highlighted in this shadow box design and how it has been artistically transformed into this piece of art.

Look at this beautiful ceramic horse that is mounted in this shadow box art. Note the decorative form of matting and the dark background that highlights the horse.