Oscar Night 2011

My vote for best dressed: Natalie Portman.

Such a shame she's not more attractive.

This woman is drop dead gorgeous.  And, nine months pregnant too.

I thought the show bombed overall, but the dresses were pretty weren't they?  Mila Kunis and Gwyneth Paltrow were also two of my favorites.  What did you think?

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Our Trip To Savannah, part 2

the gorgeous green entry to the Circa Lighting annex

Ok, let's talk shopping. 

Savannah is FULL of interesting shops and antique stores.  We spent the majority of our days walking along the Savannah streets and stopping into the wonderful shops and boutiques along the way.  The Design District includes a great variety of home boutiques and antique shops, mostly along Whitaker Street (but there are some hidden gems off the beaten path).  Here is the map we used when shopping historic Savannah...

One Fish Two Fish was a favorite stop of mine (no. 17 on the map above).  First of all, the store is beautiful.  The staff is completely lovely and very friendly.  They have a great selection of pillows, mirrors, scented candles and even jewelry!

Across the street is Circa Lighting.  One of my ALL TIME favorite resources for lighting.  All time favorite, it's a great shop.  Circa only carries the best of the best, and their attention to fine quality is evident in every fixture.  Because their physical locations are limited (mostly in the south), I have only shopped their inventory online...  so, seeing the selection in person was a real treat.

I about DIED when I saw these black marble table lamps.  They are completely stunning.  These guys were located in the Circa Lighting Annex, which is full of discounted fixtures, discontinued lamps, and clearance deals.  I didn't buy anything, but was extremely impressed by the enormous selection.  If you're in town, and in the market for fine lighting, you must stop in!

I couldn't stop swooning over these quartz lamps in the Circa Lighting showroom.  I love the way the light passes through.

One of my favorite home boutiques in Savannah was The Paris Market.   Located closer to the river, on West Broughton Street, this shop is FULL of interesting things.  

you walk in on the top floor, and you're greeted by tables full of lotions, perfumes, and sweet smelling candles.  The light fixtures were my favorite.

Love the giant, illuminated letters spelling "Paris" on the upstairs wall.

an adorable display near the front door

more eye candy.  Loved the giant shell.

The Paris Market even features a tiny cafe,

complete with Parisian chairs and marble-topped cafe tables.

the gorgeous cafe counter.

  these ceiling fans were driven by antique mechanized belts!  It was phenomenal to watch.

Then, if you follow the steps to the downstairs basement, there was even more to see... brick floors and exposed beams.  While I went crazy over the decor, my husband was examining the ceiling beams above (comparing them to the ones in our basement).  For the record, the beams were huge and set very close together.  Impressive. :)

dining tables set under twinkling chandeliers

loved the Venetian style mirrors

cabinets full of curiosities

LOVED these giant green glass lamps flanking a table full of vintage photographs...

more lovely display areas.  Gorgeous chandelier and I loved the overhead string lights too...

large modern wall clocks with red dials.

me, posing in The Paris Market basement.

(please ignore the "sensible" shoes.  we did a lot of walking that day)

The antique shops in Savannah were also fabulous.  We stopped into MANY shops, but only took a handful of pictures.  Overall, I was so impressed with collections of vintage porcelain and silver servingware...

love these porcelain dogs in the window at the The Corner Door (no. 11 on the map).  For the record, this shop was lovely.  They had some steller collections of antique porcelain, and the sterling silver servingware was magnificent.  You must stop by if you are in town.

I can't remember the name of this antique shop, but it had a cute red door that led you into a basement full of interesting things...

UPDATE: thank you "Anonymous" for commenting! This shop is Limehouse Plantation Antiques.  It is located at 120 East Jones Street and it's no. 9 on the map!

loved the antique oil painting on the left, and this boar was wearing a captain's hat!

And, last but not least: if you're in Savannah you MUST stop into Alex Raskin Antiques.  Located on Bull Street (it's no. 4 on the map), you have to go there.  First of all, it's located in one of the largest single family homes in all of Savannah.  And, while the plaster is peeling and it's in horrible shape, the entire place is FULL OF ANTIQUES.  And, bonus?  It's a free tour of an extraordinary southern home.  We were so impressed by this place.  The pictures don't do it justice.

This is the only sign out front.  You would walk right by and never know this place existed...

To put this in perspective, the ceilings in this room might be 20 feet high.  And, there were chairs stacked on top of credenzas, beds jambed in with dining tables...  it was CRAZY.  Oh, and the rugs?  They were gorgeous too.

see the peeling paint?  here is my husband checking out an antique side table... Again, to put this in perspective, my husband is 6'5" and there must be another 10 feet of ceiling above him.  The scale of this place cannot be captured in pictures.  It was so grand, we couldn't get over it.

An incredible antique chair sitting in the second floor hallway.

and the chandeliers!!

I think that this was the second staircase(!!!) leading you up to the third floor. 

antique furniture everywhere...

It's a phenomenal store.

Alex Raskin Antiques, at 441 Bull Street, Savannah, Georgia.

(In case you were wondering, the pieces in this place are not cheap.  We thought we might score a few deals but, ha!  This guy knows what everything is worth.  Don't let the peeling plaster fool you)

Happy Monday, my dear friends.

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Our Trip To Savannah, part I

We're home from our Savannah adventure!  Thank you all so much for your helpful comments and suggestions... I printed them all out and they served as our personal travel guide.  Thank you!  You might remember that our original travel plans called for two days in Savannah and one day in Charleston.  But, I have to confess: we never made it to Charleston!  Seriously.  We booked an extra night at The Gastonian and spent all three days in Savannah.  I hear that Charleston is completely wonderful...  so, I guess we'll have to go back and visit.  Oh gee darn.  :)

It goes without saying that I completely fell in love with Savannah.  Love the architecture, love the history, love the parks, restaurants, shops, and I love their entire Southern attitude.  I said I wanted to move there, but I think that a yearly visit might be in order (that way, I can stay at this fabulous hotel once a year). 

This city is just SO PRETTY.  Here are a few snapshots from our trip...

Forsyth Park, developed in the 1840s and named after Georgia Governor, John Forsyth (1780-1841).  The park was expanded in the 1850s to include ornamental plantings, walkways, iron fencing and of course, the idyllic fountain stands at the center.  The park is just gorgeous in person and there were lots of people walking around, riding bikes, and enjoying the scenery.

me, in front of the fountain in Forsyth Park (husband behind the camera)

oak trees with silvery Spanish moss...

our charming Bed & Breakfast

a set of front steps near our hotel, and a gorgeous hanging light fixture in the same neighborhood (while this one is electric, many of the outdoor fixtures were gaslight! They created the most woderful flickering light in the evenings)

Savannah has the most beautiful collection of well-kept historic homes.  Everywhere you looked there was another townhouse with large shutters and iron railings.  And, the color schemes were so inspiring!  This one was a lovely olive color.  And in the same neighborhood, the antique cast iron fish downspouts were fabulous!

More stunning homes with iron railings (love the giant pots with the topiaries)... and, on the right, I loved this cast iron dog sitting outside the front door!

standing in Chippewa Square and looking at Gallery Espresso (a hippy dippy coffee house that also serves food, and wine in the evenings).  Six Pence Pub is across the street.  We grabbed an outdoor table and ate dinner there on Thursday night.

The Green-Meldrim House

We toured this historic home on Thursday morning.  While they don't allow cameras inside, you can take a glimpse of the grand interiors HERE.  It was built by Charles Green (a wealthy cotton merchant) in the 1850s for $93,000(!!!) and it's pretty incredible.  During the Civil War, it served as the Union headquarters for General Sherman.  Charles Green moved into a few upstairs rooms while the Union officers occupied the rest of the property.  It was here that General Sherman sent the telegram to President Lincoln, notifying him of the fall of Savannah. 

Saint John's Episcopal Church (which is the building next door) owns it now. 

Pretty front doors, in glossy black and red.  Love the brass door knockers, love the letter slots...

another beautiful home (this lantern was gas powered)

One of the many properties own by SCAD (Savannah College of Art & Design).  You almost feel like the city of Savannah is their campus (there were creative looking people everywhere!). 

LOVE the black trim on this building.

goregous ironwork, brick sidewalks, and grand entrances.

We loved this sweet garden entrance with the bright red door.

one of the many landscaped squares, scattered all throughout the city.

a walk down on River Street...

cobblestone streets, homemade praline candies (that you could smell a few shops away!), and riverboat rides!  We didn't get on the boat this time, but might take the tour on our next trip.

The Paris Market (loved this shop!), the Savannah Bee Company, and of course Paula Deen's "The Lady & Sons" (didn't eat here this week, but we'll make reservations the next time we're in town).

we took a trip to Tybee Island,

saw the lighthouse and ate chicken fingers (with yummy honey horse radish sauce) at Spanky's.

The Gryphon Tea Room was delightful.  I loved the tiled floors and bright orange windsor chairs!  Plus, look at that ceiling.

Thank you for indulging me and letting me share my Savannah vacation with all of you.  We had such a fabulous time and can't wait to go back!  We also came home with more enthusiasm for our own home renovation... while gas powered lanterns are out of the question, we do feel inspired in other ways.  New home projects will resume this spring! 

I still want to post about our hotel, and the FABULOUS Savannah shopping (antique stores and gorgeous home stores).  More to come.

I hope you are all enjoying your Saturday. 

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