Black is Black

Were you one of those kids who begged your mom to let you paint your room black?  (It worked better with the black lights, right?)  Like all good moms in the 70's, she probably said no.  Mine did.  But guess what?  I want one again.  I love dark rooms.  They feel cozy.  And with so many designers and trendsetters putting it out there and making it look fabulous, I say why not? 

 

Then again, maybe just an accent wall to start is the way to go.  We'll see.

All images are from our "Black is Black" pinterest board. 
To see more, click on the link below.

http://www.pinterest.com/vignettebrtn/black-is-black/

 

Post written by Lisa, owner of Vignette

 

www.vignettebrentwoodtn.com

 

Love...

"Unless you love someone, nothing else makes any sense."  e.e. Cummings

Have you ever tried to verbalize what love is? 
Poets and writers have tried for centuries.  
My favorite description ever came from
 a post I saw on tumblr (of all places!)

She asked, 
”you are in love,
 what does love look like?”
 to which I replied,
 “like everything I’ve ever lost come back to me”.

Swoon.

Valentine's Day is this week.  Time to give your special someone a token of your love.  Here are some of our favorites:



Vases with heart openings -- because flowers 

are always the right gift.

Alex and Ani Valentine's bracelets

Pillows with love notes -- rest your pretty head on that.

Illuminated Lipgloss.  (For those dimly lit romantic dinners.)



Handmade hang tags with the sweetest of sentiments.



These just in!  Block letter initial necklaces, rings and heart rings.  Stack the rings using the initials of 
the people you love most.

Love the "love" necklace and the heart lariat necklace.

And if you're at a complete loss on what to get your true love, how about your own special note? (wink, wink, nudge, nudge)  But you're on your own for those.  

 And if he's at a loss for what to get you?  Send him over.  

We'll make sure he gets you something you want.   

Post written by Lisa, owner of Vignette

vignettebrentwoodtn.com

Open the Book

How was your Christmas?  Everything you wished for and more?  I hope it was.  We pin such high hopes on that one day.  We dare to think that since it's Christmas, only the good side of our human nature will show up for the celebration.  And when it doesn't - what a letdown.  We sort of forget about the real meaning of Christmas.  We know - but that part is so quiet and the other parts are so loud and so demanding.

It's as if we thought the gifts, the lights, the decorations, the cookies and the fun could fill the holes that are in us during the rest of the year.  Only grace, hope and love can do that.  We humans are messy little spirits.  Oh, how we need grace and the promise of new beginnings. That's why I love New Year's Day.  All those resolutions to change this or that because we really do want to be better, don't we?  Even if we don't keep them, I love the hopefulness of them and the fact that we just want to try.

Here are some of my favorite photos that embody grace, hope and love.   Nothing to sell here, just the belief that C.S. Lewis was right when he said,   "There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind."  

(image sources noted in blue beneath photo)

tumblr

youtube

tumblr

google 

Imgfave

tumblr

Maciej Grzegorzek

Martin Harvey

Louie Favorite, Atlanta Journal Constitution

So open the book.  Live your truth.  Express your love.  Share your enthusiasm.  Take action towards your dreams.  Walk your talk.  Pray your prayers.  Dance and sing to your music.  And above all, embrace your blessings.

Welcome to 2014.  Happy New Year.

Post written by Lisa, owner of Vignette

vignettebrentwoodtn.com

A Christmas Prayer

A Christmas Prayer

"Loving Father, 

help us to remember the birth of Jesus, 

that we may share in the song of the angels, 

the gladness of the shepherds, 

and the worship of the wise men.

Close the door of hate and 

open the door of love all over the world. 

Let kindness come with every gift and 

good desires with every greeting.

Deliver us from evil by the blessing 

which Christ brings, and teach us to 

be merry with clear hearts.

May the Christmas morning make us happy 

to be Thy children, and the Christmas evening 

bring us to our beds with grateful thoughts, 

forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus' sake. Amen."

Robert Louis Stevenson 

American Author 

(1850 - 1894)

Merry Christmas, everyone.  

Poem by Robert Louis Stevenson. Post by Lisa, owner of Vignette

vignettebrentwoodtn.com

Christmas Decorations

So... how's the decorating going?  Are you finished?  Or are you short on ideas, time or motivation?  Here are a few ideas I found while surfing the internet.  I chose them because they all utilize things we have in the store.  Lots of clever, creative people out there...  Hope you get some inspiration.

Decorated tree branches in demijohns

Wired pearl garland

Antlers as a rack for stockings

We really like anything sheep-y

Clever - a tray as a backdrop 

Hides as a tree skirt.  Love that!

We have tiered trays in gold and silver

I keep saying I'm going to hang our mounted antlers on a

fabric wrapped board like this. 

We have trophies and cloches too.

Look how they've used upholstery webbing -- as tree garland and

napkin holders.  We have that!

I hope that everyone is having a beautiful holiday season and that you feel great joy and hope in this sweet, wonderful, magical time of year.

Post written by Lisa, owner of Vignette

vignettebrentwoodtn.com

Chalkboards

I have a confession.  I'm not much of a newspaper reader, but my husband reads the Wall Street Journal from cover to cover daily and he is always clipping articles for me to read.  Most of the time, I politely read them and say, "uh, huh.  Cool."  But one day he clipped a great article about a Texas-bred, Brooklyn based artist named Dana Tanamachi who was making a name for herself with her art.  Her medium?  Chalk.  Nowadays, she's kind of a big deal and she has ushered in a wave of corporate branding using her large chalk lettering installations for national marketing campaigns.  Ace Hotel, Ralph Lauren and O Magazine are a few of her clients.

I can't help but think that she has played a role in the current trend of incorporating chalkboards in interior design.  Following are some of my favorite examples of design using chalkboard art.

The pictures below are of chalkboard merchandise we have in the store...

Nothing like being able to express yourself any time, then erase it when you like.

Wine barrel stave chalkboards

slate bottle tags with chalk (we have lots of versions of tags and place settings)

table top tablet

Message board

I have to give props to Dianne for all the beautiful lettering she did on the featured pieces.

Also, if you want to see more of Dana Tanamachi's art, here is the link to her website:  tanamachistudio.com  The time lapse videos are amazing!

Post written by Lisa, owner of Vignette

vignettebrentwoodtn.com