My 100th post…The Magazine Shoot and Everafter Farm for sale!

I'm really anxious to start writing about our new life in France, but before I do that, I want to show you the pix that Mark Lohman took of our house for FiFi O'Neill's new publication, Prairie Style. 

I showed you this cover in my last post, but I had not seen the magazine yet.  Now I have it, and from what I hear, so do a lot of you.  Isn't it a gorgeous mag?  I am thrilled to be a part of it, and to have had such a fun experience working with Fifi and Mark.  They are true professionals, but so laid back and FUNNY!  They had us laughing all day!  But we were also working…hard.  Running back and forth from the barn for props, moving furniture, cleaning behind things that I didn't even know could be moved, trying to avoid cables and tripods, and finding a lost dust bunny covered slipper!! Hey, I was just back from 3 weeks in France the day before!  Who had time to clean?

Fifi arrived with buckets filled with the most beautiful flowers.  I had my own flowers here, but they were sad by comparison.

Watching Fifi work with the flowers was an education in itself.  She can make a beautiful arrangement quicker than I can trip over the cat.

After Fifi arranges the still life on the tea table, Mark photographs it

Mark Lohman

and this is what it looks like

Mark Lohman

And from a distance

Mark Lohman

Behind the sofa

Mark Lohman

If you notice, the mantle is styled differently in this photo.  Fifi gathered all my little farm animals from the staircase in the hallway and "pastured" them on either side of a painting I had done years ago.

Mark Lohman

I just love the way this looks, and have left them right there. Thanks, Fifi!

Mark Lohman

This is the Dining Room that appears on the cover.  They photoshopped the word "Alleluia" off the front of the fireplace...

Mark Lohman

and Fifi swapped the two chairs.  Again, I liked her styling better, and have kept the checked chair in that spot.

Mark Lohman

it's kind of fun to see my stuff through Fifi's eyes. [ But where did I have that tarnished silver hidden?]

Mark Lohman

The guest room...

Mark Lohman

…used to be Mutti's room.  She would have loved the pink roses.

Mark Lohman

and I loved the red and purple hydrangeas

Mark Lohman

Fifi found my vintage Jadite canisters hiding in an old jelly cupboard.  They are still out, as I realized just how cool they are with the Farrow and Ball Dorset Cream paint.

Mark Lohman

And after all, it's the same color as our breakfast table.

Mark Lohman

I love the way she placed my polka dot rain boots on the checkerboard floor of the mudroom

Mark Lohman

With her stylist's eye, Fifi knew she needed another pop of red in this porch scene.  She sent me to find something in my closet.  And that's how my dad's 40 year old red flannel shirt ended up in this shot. He would love to see that.
It makes me smile.  

Mark Lohman

Gazing out over the beautiful peaceful view from this porch, I wonder how we'll ever be able to say goodby to this place.  But it is time to move on to France and let someone else live this wonderful life.

Everafter Farm is for sale.

If you want to know more about this farm in upstate New York please click here, or contact me at
iluvfrance@wildblue.net

I am so thankful to Fifi, and Mark, for their immense talent, and  for doing such a beautiful job on this visual record of our beloved farmhouse for Prairie Style.  And a special thanks to Barbara Jackseir, who wrote such a warm and personal story. 

And thus ends my 100th post. Time to start a new chapter...

A bientôt, mes belles,

dawne

Thank you, Francophiles!

I just want to say

thank you to all who visited me during Anita's Paris party!

I was delighted to visit you, as well.

 Blessings to Anita for hosting!

and welcome to Everafter farm

to my new friends!

Now back to the garden...

The boys got into the Peonies!!!

Au revoir,

Dawne

Silent Night...Holy night...

...all is calm, all is bright

May the Joy, Peace and Love that comes from our Lord and Savior be in your hearts during this Christmas Season.

Love to ALL of you, my dear friends who email me when you read my posts, 

and thank you, to all who have become my dear NEW friends, through the blogosphere!  Your comments and your blogs have given me so much happiness this year!
Bisous amies,
dawne

A wonderful week, despite the rain...

Tendre Charolais

Summer's in full swing here on the farm, with good times, sad times,[ and only the Lord hears about those] productive times, and some lazing around, just enjoying the fresh green smells of June.

I worked on this digital painting above, using French cows and wonderful textures from Lenabem, Playing with Brushes and the ever generous Jerry Jones, all on Flickr.  It loses something when reduced to 660 pixels.

Good times were had this week as we saw the opening of our talented daughter's first solo show at Southern Vermont Arts Center...

the proud dad checks out his daughter's work...

Congratulations, Crickett!  Dad and I think that you're amazing!!!! And we love that you give God the glory for all your gifts!!!

And last night we finally got to see the best movie of the summer!

Don't miss this one!!!!


I posted the trailer to this several weeks ago and I knew then that this was a must-see.  As a former Art History teacher, I thought of how my  former students will love this, as well. 




 And there's another one I MUST see this summer...

100% Teenage Chick-Flick, But I am SO THERE!!!!

à bientôt, mes copines!
Dawne

March is the cruelest month

Old Barn on 59A

Officially it's Spring.  But the snow keeps coming.  And by the looks of our Mudroom, it is more officially Mud Season.  Little muddy paw prints all over the black and white checkerboard floor. Multiple pairs of Wellies lined up.  And still, those bulky coats on the hook. Freezing cold.  It all speaks to this ineffable sadness which lays over the earth today. The tragedy in Japan, another war in Libya, and the death of  Hollywood's most beautiful icon.
But there is hope. On the hills I'm starting to see the faintest blush of red as the Maples begin to set buds.  And my crocuses are in bloom by the driveway. And the water has receded from the lake that was our pasture, to once again become an obedient brook. On a walk down to the potager today, the Gentleman and I noticed that the Rhubarb were beginning to push their bright red noses up through the earth.  So all is on schedule, and I'll just have to be patient.  Spring will happen any day now.

Hydrangea Hill

Snow, sleet, ice, rain, gale force winds.  In like a lion.  Out like a lamb. Or so we pray.

Off to Mama Joan's 97th birthday party today.

Old Yellow Barn

It has been a wonderful winter so far!  I love snow, since I rarely have to drive in it.  I love looking out the window across the snowy pasture and up to the Gazebo, like an ornament on the frosted field. And I love feeling like I have to stay home and use this quiet time to get things done.  I have been working on my new iMac  quite a bit and I will share a few new pieces.  The barn above is part of the dearest farm down near Grandma Moses old place, and I drive by it every Friday on my way to Bible study. There are about 5 barns on two neighboring farms, so I plan to get more shots of this cheerful architecture....Like Lemonade in a snowstorm.

Wood Smoke at Dawn... one of the most comforting smells I know

And this one, from last fall...Seen Better Days

summer in washington county

It seems to happen every year.  We forget that church goes on a summer schedule and meets an hour earlier, so we arrive an hour late, see the full parking lot, and turn around and head for home.  Oh, we could go in.  People are used to our, shall we say, flakiness!  But this Sunday we decided to  get ice cream, listen to Charles Stanley and drive around our beautiful county, soaking up the rural beauty.  All of the fields have had their first haying, and these lovely hay sculptures populate many of the fields. I took a lot of colorful shots, but I tried to make this photo look as old fashioned as I feel when we drive through our unspoiled farmland.

Happy Independence Day!

We had a wonderful 4th of July, with company for the long weekend...lots of warm weather...tubing on the river...cookouts...s'mores...fireworks...small town parades...talking and rocking on the front porch...naping and reading on the back porch...and a Sunday morning promise to pray for our nation...
If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
2 Chronicles 7:14

Some of the Lovely Homes Near Us

I love driving around our beautiful county, and drinking in the bucolic sights. Or, as they say, I [heart] NY! [As much as the kids try to teach me how to make that heart symbol, it always comes out >3 for me!!] As much as I love France, I have to say that our little neck of the woods is just about as scenic as anything I've ever seen abroad. [ Ok. So France is pretty much equal.] Or at least it suits our aesthetic. I especially love the cozy little farms, with smoke curling from the chimneys, and animals hanging out in the barnyard or in the pasture. I've started photographing these country places and making prints to give to the inhabitants. It's a wonderful way to meet the neighbors!