Turchin Center for the Visual Arts

Charlie and I have been to Boone, NC several times for doctors' appointments over the past six weeks, and I finally got to visit the Turchin Arts Center at Appalachian State University on our last trip.

The space is very lovely, right on King Street, very spacious.  The exhibit that I wanted to see was by Diane Kempler, who combines porcelain with seed pods and forms exotic shapes that mimic nature.

The tall spires were very striking, and these gourd-looking objects made an interesting display.

The next ones represent "Floating Microbes."

The next one is "Microbial Garden."

Several other artists had exhibits included in an upstairs gallery.  I liked this large piece by Bob Ray, which looks like an old quilt to me.  It is made of PVC, paint, tape, and collage.  It is named "A Room in Charleston."

Here is a detail of some of the crosses.

Bob Ray also created "Night Fence" from paint, wood, tape, and charcoal.

I liked this display by Barbara Hardy, which also reminded me of quilts in a way.

This one is named "The Other Color."  It is oil on wood.

After the art museum, Charlie and I met two of my brothers and my sister-in-law Debbie at Proper in Boone for a nice outdoor lunch.  

My brother Chris, myself, and my brother John

It is starting to look a lot like fall up here.  There's nothing like a blue October Carolina sky against fall color, like these towering goldenrods.

I like seeing the local businesses decorating with fall and harvest themes.  Welch's Produce is one of our favorite stops between Jefferson and our town of Laurel Springs.

And here is a family of wild turkeys, ignoring the "No Trespassing" sign to go for a stroll on a nearby farm.

Seeking Fabulosity

It has been months in coming, but we are just about ready to put our house on the market.  The POD is almost full, the rooms are painted, the closets and cabinets are cleared out, the windowsills are caulked.  Finally I began to look at decorating the rooms to make them very cozy, comfy, and inviting.  I don't really enjoy spackling walls, but I do like to make the rooms look pretty!

Here is my kitchen table, which received sunlight from three directions.  The glass hurricanes are 40% off the sale price at Coldwater Creek, a great find when I popped in there last weekend.

 

People who have been to my house would not believe my kitchen counters, all cleared off instead of covered with appliances, houseplants, and junk mail!  Staging the kitchen means removing stuff instead of adding decor.

 

 

We also have a small dining room that looks larger after removing a tall chest, a side table, hanging shelves, and my quilt rack.  This is the room where I had to remove all the wallpaper.

 

 

Our living room has the same type wall of tall windows as the kitchen. 

 

 

There is a screened porch behind the living room windows.  I added some branches with LED lights to the bouquet of silk flowers on the table.  They are currently on sale at Kohl's.

 

 

Here is a view of the deck.  I moved some of the rockers from the front porch back here, and moved the old adirondack chairs from the deck up to our mountain cabin.  Okay, Charlie and Dave did the actual moving.

 

 

Here is the entrance to the deck.

 

 

I have some terra cotta pots filled with mums marching up the steps to the deck.

 

 

We have a big front porch surrounded by flower beds and shrubs.  This house is perfect for nature-lovers like me who prefer the outdoors!

 

 

Last Christmas, someone sat in this little wicker rocker that belonged to Charlie's mother and broke the cane seat.  I hid the hole with a very realistic cat ornament, but my grand-dog Roo tore the cat to shreds one day while left alone inside.  Now the chair is a plant stand.

 

 

If you look on the other side of the front porch, you see the garden pond with fountain.

 

 

Of course, the real star of our property is the wooded back yard.  The leaves are just starting to turn.  On a sunny day, our yard is very inviting.

 

 

Thanks for going along for the virtual door.  Looking at these photos helps me to see what else I need to do before the realtor comes to take pictures.  Next time I'll show you the upstairs.