Friday, May 8, 2009

My Apartment -- Pre-Raphaelite Inspirations III (and Final!)


Well, here we are at the end of our tour. I tried to get through these three posts quickly so that those of you saying to themselves "darn it, I don't wanna see her house...where are the posts about art??" don't get restless ;)

As you walk up the stairs past the Beauty and the Beast banners, this is what you will see at the top of the steps. The artwork, Seraphel, is by me.

A close-up of the other artwork on the wall above. Tom found this image on Worth100.com, and it so succinctly summarizes the merging of our two personalities and tastes, we had to frame it. Based on this artwork by Bouguereau
A print of Waterhouse's The Soul of the Rose is on the wall opposite the bathroom:
And yes, the bathroom is filled with Water...house. In the mirror, you can see two framed artworks...Vanity, and a study for The Mermaid.
Also in the bathroom is this plaster painting of Waterhouse's Danaides. I bought this years ago at a going out of business sale for a favorite sculpture gallery in Columbus. Sadly, it cuts off the very important image of the vessel's spout at the bottom of the painting, but I still love it.
Into the bedroom! On the left wall is, again, Waterhouse...Hylas and the Nymphs. Below the art, a quote from my favorite poem, La Belle Dame Sans Merci, reads "I met a lady in the meads, Full beautiful - a faery's child, Her hair was long, her foot was light, And her eyes were wild." in a gold paint that shimmers in the light. Two Mucha tapestries are on the bed wall, with an art quilt made by my mother in the center. The pillows on the bed have images of fleur-de-lis and lions rampant. The comforter on the bed has been christened the "Velvet Fog" as it is soft velvet, and extremely comfy. Eventually we'll get a bedframe for in here, but so far my search hasn't yielded something I love enough in the right price range.
A vintage nightgown too lovely to hide away currently hangs from the curtain:
The other view of the look-down. Two mirrored hooks hold beribboned Moroccan lanterns. The picture between them is one from a recent photoshoot with my friend Tess.
The dresser holds a heavy garden statuary bust adorned with a headpiece made for me by Linden Sidhe. (See first picture above for a close-up) Below it on the floor is a portrait sketch I need to reframe! (And Tom and I are suckers for stuffed animals, I have to admit)I call this my "shrine to beauty"...a lovely folding Ethan Allen table I found a few years ago, with amethyst glass goblet & bowls, silk leaves, figural candlesticks, and a small statue of a bronze-colored faerie, who holds high my wedding Relic with reverence. Also, can you tell I love khussas?

And last, my bedside view, with a wall shelf to hold and display more of my Parrish Relic treasures, a pre-kissed frog prince, and a calendar of Kinuko Craft art.

I hope you enjoyed my house tour! We will return for your regularly scheduled blog posts very soon.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I have LOVED all of these glimpses into your beautiful home! You have done such a fabulous job and it is obvious how much time and care have gone into decorating a home that truly reflects who you are.

Castles Crowns and Cottages said...

OH MY GOSH! O.K. Grace, I am speechless. I just showed my husband your blog posts and he is blown away at your art. You are amazing. I just love those tapestry banners that you made...so medieval and beautiful. I don't know where to start to comment! I adore the harp that you made, the wall hangings, your pillows, your everything. Hey, you love stuffed animals too! My husband and I joke around and make stories with ours!!:)

Well, you are marvelous. Your ideas are captivating and Waterhouse captures the tone of peace, beauty, royalty, you name it. Bravo. Now, I am going to try to weave photos of my home into my blog tomorrow called "hands." It will be a mother's day tribute, but with photos of my home. Stay tuned! Oh, I don't know how I missed the second post. I saw everything and I will be musing on this tonight during my tea time.

Take care out there in Ohio...we are expecting rain here in Minneapolis. Ciao, Anita

Hermes said...

Really beautiful home - such great taste.

Grace said...

Thank you Stephanie! It means a lot to know you feel that way!

And thank you Anita and Hermes as well!! :)

Castles Crowns and Cottages said...

Dearest Grace,
WOW...you and I came from the same time period and planet! I want to send you some photos of some of our (stuffed, shhhhh.....) friends that have literally given us many laughs in the 27 years of this silliness! We want to write stories based on their antics. I seem to remember corresponding with you via email; let me know. I also want to send you pictures of my tapestries. I didn't post them on the blog because the angles to take the pics of some of the things you would be interested in seeing are not good angles or do not have good light sources. But I will give you a special viewing! I think that is just remarkable that you and your husband have the same creativity and imagination for creatures! We also have a bunch of rabbits (real) in our gardens and we often make up dialogue...well you understand what I'm sayin'?
If you have noticed on my sidebar, I have a little fairy door and if you click on it, it will take you into my third blog but I haven't started it yet. It will be reserved just for summer and stories involving our little velveteen friends!!!!! Thank you as always dear Grace, for visiting. My mom's name was Grace!! Have a wonderful day and a cozy evening in your medieval abode. Anita