by studiotullia | Dec 23, 2022 | DESIGN & STYLING, MAGICAL MOMENTS, STUDIO NEWS
There is a layer of icy snow on the ground as I write this.
With the office closed today, I spent the first hour of the day in bed with a good book and a pitcher of coffee, followed by a hot, epsom salt bath.
It’s been a day of cleaning the kitchen and chatting on the phone. Each person I’ve spoken with today has his/her own version of challenging weather and circumstances. Old friends in Massachusetts, Washington, Vermont, and Alaska followed by family in North Carolina, California and the Oregon coast…it is windier and dryer than usual in some places and wetter rather than snowier in others. And some folks have lost their power…so there seems to be no norm this year.
I saw some neighborhood kids out sledding, while making batches of cookies today. And tonight, it’s chicken pot pies for dinner followed by a movie.
Now that’s quite delightful, while the weather outside is frightful, eh?
This is the least prepared I have been for Christmas in years.
A new job, lots of drama at my kids’ school (a shooting, yes, I said a shooting), and clueless over what to get teens, made it challenging. There are so few items on the shelves at many stores. I might just give the kids cash and fill their stockings with goodies. They are happier making their own purchases anyway. It is more about being together – sharing meals, hanging out and playing games.
Here are a few old pictures where I really pulled off quite the holiday splendor. It was easier than to wow the kids.
By the way, there are still lots of festive pillows at my shop, with a sale on through the end of the month. And a little heads up: there will be a HUGE SALE in January.
I want you to know just how grateful I am to all of the customers that support STUDIO TULLIA/A WELL LIVED HOUSE and other small businesses.
It takes a little more time to find and shop from small businesses. Your discerning eye for unique hand-crafted goods and willingness to”shop small” means the world to so many of us.
You are supporting a handful of diverse, strong and creative women who are mothers and grandmothers, wanting a flexible schedule and a fair wage, so they can work from home and be with those they love.
As we all know, family is what it is all about. Wishing you and yours a safe and joyous holiday season.
by studiotullia | Jul 14, 2022 | INTERIOR DESIGN, MAGICAL MOMENTS, STUDIO NEWS, STYLE TIPS FOR DIY
Citrus Garden by Josef Frank in primary is a favorite of mine. Red was the only color in my garden last week that worked with this latest batch of pillows. Almost looks patriotic with the blue and white chinoiserie thrown in, which was not really my intention, but pretty nonetheless.
With peony season behind us, which is always too short lived, we are moving into dahlia season, which is a personal favorite. It is always so unpredictable what will show up every year although with the deluge of rain this past Spring I am hopeful. At least dahlia season lasts clear into Fall.
I can never bear to waste any of the scraps from this fabric so we make all kinds of accent and lumbar pillows as well as gifts bags.
This timeless pattern is popular beyond words. Always on back order, I finally received the lime colorway yesterday that I ordered back in January. The next batch is not due until September, with this batch already sold out.
My insanely talented neighbor puts us all to shame with the display of flowers in her front yard. And if you are lucky enough to get an invite to her backyard you are in for a real treat. She recently redid her backyard with amazing steel box planters (over flowing with daffodils and tulips this spring), some cement-scaping that includes a sunken fire pit and a few grassy spots for outdoor dining. The covered shelter will be great almost year round. I particularly love the fence, stained in black, which adds such a great contrast.
She chose some outdoor pillows from STUDIO TULLIA including Citrus Garden in Pool, another long standing favorite.
And Schumacher has come out with a couple more colorways this year…
Reminds me of a tiled mosaic walkway I came across on a recent walk in our neighborhood.
Pretty refreshing, eh? Now I want a gin & tonic.
We’ve got lots of ferns in our garden in the Pacific NorthWest. Something out of character for our region that we find every year is this odd phenomenon of a flower, called the CORPSE FLOWER. It smells like rotting flesh, believe it or not. Hence the name.
Never fails that every year I catch a whiff of what smells like a rotting animal, and now I know, it’s back.
For a couple years, I tried to extract it from the garden and it has just kept coming back every year with a vengence. We were amazed to discover that it is quite a novelty, with crowds waiting in long lines at the NY Botanical Musuem to observe this annual oddity. I was shocked to discover that some variations are far taller than the human species!
We brought this flower to my brother in law for his fortieth birthday. With all windows down for the entire ride, we proudly presented it to him. We had to enjoy it from a distance, a good 20 feet from our gathering, LOL.
Not to be too morbid, but it does seem like a flower symbolic of our times, and having just gotten over Covid in the last couple weeks at our household.
All this morbidity and strangeness in the garden reminds me of my art history days and studying the famous painting by Spanish painter, BOSCH.
The Garden of Earthly Delights
“As little is known of Bosch’s life or intentions, interpretations of his intent range from an admonition of worldly fleshy indulgence, to a dire warning on the perils of life’s temptations, to an evocation of ultimate sexual joy. The intricacy of its symbolism, particularly that of the central panel, has led to a wide range of scholarly interpretations over the centuries. Twentieth-century art historians are divided as to whether the triptych’s central panel is a moral warning or a panorama of paradise lost.” – Wikipedia
ANYWAY, back to Josef Frank, so we end on a positive note…
This is the sofa of my dreams.
Josef Frank, Austrian-born architect/artist/designer, became a Swedish citizen in the latter half of his life. Together with Oskar Strnad, he created the Vienna School of Architecture, and its concept of Modern houses, housing and interiors. If you want to explore his life and work further you can go HERE, where there is a comprehensive exhibit of his work.
Or check out this book, which features interiors, furniture, design, and architecture of the mid century in Vienna:
Enjoy your Summer, the garden and the occasional cool drink out on the patio…until next time.
XOXO,
Suzanne
by studiotullia | Jun 2, 2021 | MAGICAL MOMENTS, THE CREATIVE ENTREPRENEUR, TRAVEL & INSPIRATION
Hold onto your hats, people, Summer is here!
I made a vow to my dear friend who just lost her son to Leukemia, on Sunday, May 23rd, 2021: In memory of Sean, I would try to live the best possible year I could live. It has made me rethink how I spend each day.
Hopefully in another year, it will be habitual. Take more risks and seize life’s precious moments. You know how we all fall into our ruts. An event like this shakes your whole reality and wakes you up to the fragility of life. You realize just how precious each unique experience and memory with a loved one is.
So I picked up a pen and sketchbook recently and drew for the first time in years, just for pleasure. And I actually challenged myself to get in the cold water with my daughter, which felt wonderful.
1. A secret cove at FT COLUMBIA in Chinook, WA
INSIDER TIP: You have to park on the side of the road right before the entrance to the park and walk down to the right, through a field and then you will spot it on the right side, along the river.
An enormous tree floated down the Willamette River landing right in this charming cove that was a new discovery for us, just across the bridge from Astoria, OR on the Washington side at a park called FT COLUMBIA.
My daughter who loves to swim was determined to get in since access to pools has been non existent this past year. This is also where the Chinook Indians used to hide their canoes.
2. HISTORIC HOUSE RENTALS AT FT COLUMBIA ALONG THE WILLAMETTE RIVER
As you enter this historic park, you will soon drive up a hill to an overlook with bunkers and officers’ houses built at the turn of the century. This was once Chinook Indian Nation territory There are lots of trails and secluded beaches. Two of the restored buildings are available for rent – for reunions, retreats…the view is stunning, at Chinook Point, near the mouth of the Columbia River.
Favorite spots in Long Beach include OCEAN PARK and LONG BEACH ANTIQUES TRADING POST just down the road.
Long Beach is a town known for its beach and boardwalk. The Long Beach Peninsula has a continuous 28 mile sand beach, one of the longest “driveable” beaches in the world.
Memorial Day Weekend is a great time to go for “The Longest Garage Sale in the country.” You really have to hit these events by Thur/Fri at the latest or the sales are rather picked over.
4. LONG BEACH PENINSULA ANTIQUES TRADING POST
I love all the maritime themed objects you come across like buoys, paintings of old ships, shells, sea dollars, oyster serving platters. Astoria (and the surrounding area) is the oldest town on the west coast so there is some good loot to be found.
I got this embroidered linen, GATHER TOGETHER, which will go in my dining room.
Another fun spot is this little nursery in OCEAN PARK that has antiques in the back. The owner, Judith, is a character, adorned with Southwestern jewelry including a bear claw necklace and this amazing bracelet.
Such a whimsical and lovely garden.
by studiotullia | Sep 24, 2013 | HOUSE TOUR: Traditional Spanish Style House near Pto. Vallarta, MAGICAL MOMENTS
I just put my winter socks on as I am writing this and thinking the heat may have to go on tonight. I am not quite ready to bid adieu to Summer until I have reminisced just a little bit more about SUMMER. There is no better time to be in Portland. The weather is pure bliss. We enjoyed some lovely, quintessentially Summer days hanging out by the Willamette River, visiting Oaks Park, Manzanita, Mt. Hood, lemonade stands, barbecues with friends, flower festivals, swim lessons and so on.
I do want to share my brother in law, Lucca, and his fabulous bride, Rhonda’s Campground Wedding with you. The event took place at Barview Jetty County Campground in Tillamook County. We could not have had a more glorious day and warmer gathering of friends and family. The bride and groom really set the tone, which was casual, relaxed and fun with lots of good food and wine.
My husband and I offered to do “the cake” which evolved into a cupcake tower. Our dear friend, JoAnn Andriese, a super talented designer living in the Bay Area, was planning to do the flowers. She was unfortunately called away and unable to make it at the last minute. She already had a succulent concept going for the beach wedding so we took her ideas and reluctantly ran. I consulted her via text about purchases and concepts along the way and somehow, along with the help and inspiration of the groom’s parents, pulled it together for our dear newlyweds.
So here are some pictures of the campground wedding. Enjoy!
Cutting the Cake
Provided by Bayfront Bakery in Garibaldi
More cake shots
Aunt Judy made a refreshing lemonade ginger punch with a frozen whirling iceberg of sliced lemons, limes and orange raspberries. We used a vintage glass punch bowl and platter.
Italian chocolates and Jordan almonds were served in a vintage silver platter. In fact we brought all of the silver serving ware from our wedding for others to use as serving dishes. My husband and I collected a lot of silverware in preparation for our wedding almost ten years ago. Weddings are always the perfect excuse to get out your silver and punch bowls!
And here are some pictures of the newlyweds at a scenic overlook with a stunning view of the beach:
Bouquet was made of protea, bridal blush, sedum, beach grasses, and a few pink roses.
Rhonda’s dog, Pearl, with ribbon and rose. She was one of the ring bearers in the wedding.
Channeling JoAnn, we were able to somehow get the planters, bouquet and corsages done. Here is what we came up with.
It is not so hard to do this really, although I was intimidated at first. Find a silver punch bowl, urn, or other container…then place a liner, followed by dirt, then the plants, fill air pockets with more dirt, cover with Spanish moss and add shells if you want and Voila!
Hard to know where to start with all the plants and and planters. We also used roses for the individual table arrangements.
The succulents, orchids and roses we used were from Trader Joe’s and the Proteas and Bridal Blush was from Sammy’s Flowers (www.sammysflowers.com), the sedum was from my in-laws garden and (don’t tell) some pearly everlasting wild flowers and grasses were found growing by the beach. The planters were all reused existing household items like a vintage colander, a copper urn, a silver punch bowl, a Paul revere bowl, and a few other random planters. We used the mixture of silver with copper, which was a really nice blend of metals. We also added some found shells to the planters. Not too rustic and not too formal.
My dear husband made the cupcake tower out of plexiglass disks he found at a garage sale and attached them with a long threaded metal rod through the center, each tier attached by air duct adaptors! We made the cover out of natural canvas and burlap.
Here are some before shots.
Some foraging along a path to the beach resulted in a lovely assortment of grasses and wildflowers. We used a lot of lichen, moss and interesting branches we found also. All in all it was a fun, adventurous wedding for a great couple.
Oh, I almost forgot. I made the bride and groom a custom pillow from STUDIO TULLIA. Their initials were monogrammed in slate blue over a blueberry blue ticking and accented with the same cream grosgrain ribbon found in the bridal bouquet. The colors were inspired by their wedding cake choice of blueberry cake with butter cream frosting. A momento for a beautiful day. Congratulations Lucca and Rhonda!
If you want to see more images that I used for inspiration, feel free to check out the images I collected on Pinterest:
by studiotullia | Aug 28, 2011 | MAGICAL MOMENTS
On a recent trip to San Francisco I stopped by The Ribbonerie, a wonderful old world boutique shop for every ribbon you could ever desire. Paris has not been in the cards for me lately, but if you want to feel like you are somewhere else, for just a few minutes, step inside. They used to be located in the Design district downtown but the neighborhood has gotten pretty seedy and with their lease up recently…they moved to stylish Sacramento Street.
My favorite area of the store is the bargain bins, full of wonderful rolls I use for a variety of projects at a clearance price. My daughter had to have a little bit of many variations of pink, and she had quite a selection when she left. They also have a vintage cabinet full of velvet flowers, ribbon, pins, etc. that could keep a milliner entertained for quite some time.
I apologize for the quality of these pictures with my iphone. Here are a few more:
A fun stop next time you are in SF. There is a florist shop in the back that shares the space. I would imagine flowers from this store would be quite magical.
by studiotullia | Oct 23, 2010 | MAGICAL MOMENTS
Sometimes you just have to stop and take in the brilliant colors and beginning changes of Autumn.
Here is a close up of these fabulous prickly nuts that have fallen from the tree. What are these?
You know this was right after I dropped the twins off at playschool so there is always a raised awareness of life around me. Deep breath. Beauty.
by studiotullia | May 18, 2010 | LOCAL PORTLAND EVENTS, MAGICAL MOMENTS
Love it when our dear friend comes to visit. JoJo has become quite the Auntie for the twins and if one photo could sum up who she is, it would be this one of her feet with new slippers. Of course, I went with the bright yellow and orange ones. Fun. The kids love her. She’s been coming up to Portland from the Bay Area since we moved about 5 years ago and has even come up to take an intensive Portland Flower School course to become a certified florist.
We visited a few venues while she was here that were loaded with flowers: The IRIS FESTIVAL and CYRSTAL SPRINGS GARDEN.
I had always thought the IRIS to be a bit frivolous. I mean how many more purple irises does one need in this world? They seem to grow by the 10’s, 100’s even just in my neighborhood alone. Well, I have been educated. The Iris Festival exposed me to hundreds of irises and I now have an appreciation for this charismatic and prolific bud. Just the names alone: Polished Manners, Again and Again, Spiced Custard, Ever Cool, Let’s Elope…inspire want. These kind of events feel so quintessentially OREGON. The festival runs through the end of May.
To top it off, it was Mother’s Day weekend. You can pick up a unique iris specimen for $15-$25. The real fun is with the cut flowers that are $6 for a dozen. Jo was in her element and gathered up enough irises to make a beautiful arrangement for me, my mother in law and my mother, not to mention a corsage for my mother to wear to church.
by studiotullia | Apr 8, 2010 | GREAT ESTATES AND NEW FOUND TREASURES, MAGICAL MOMENTS
I found this quirky beaded basket at an estate sale several years ago and I was going through a box in my garage and happened upon it a week before Easter. I was fascinated with it because it is held together with safety pins. The quick search I did on safety-pin art revealed that it was a craft that existed in the 50’s and there were kits available to the avid beady crafter. This was tossed into a box along with approximately 30 dolls also made out of beads and safety pins. The details of this basket are amazing as is the quality and variety of the flowers.
My in-laws were game to display this in a prominent kitchen niche adorned with azalea cuttings and little chickies. It was a big hit amongst the 50 or so relatives in attendance. I saw it as a sort of homage to the woman who crafted this with such care. Wait til you see the dolls!
by studiotullia | Apr 8, 2010 | MAGICAL MOMENTS
With the help of my father in law who had the almond flour sugar cookie dough already made up, the kids and I went to town the day before Easter cutting out tulips, bunnies, butterflies, and flowers. Once out of the oven, we decorated them with icing and sprinkles, laid them out on doilies, added chocolate eggs from the fabulous chocolatier VERDUN in downtown Portland and voila! We are destined to make this one a tradition!
FYI , visit www.verdunchocolates.com to enjoy not only a feast for your eyes, but delicious chocolate.
The same father in law delighted us with an even more beautiful tray of chocolates from VERDUN for our wedding reception. I strongly recommend this chocolatier.
by studiotullia | Mar 21, 2010 | MAGICAL MOMENTS
This is my first blog and I am happy to announce I have just launched my online shop STUDIO TULLIA on ETSY. If you need a Mother’s Day Card or a hand-crafted party favor please visit: www.studiotullia.etsy.com There are only 6 items for sale as of today, but when you have three year old twins and are able to find some time to yourself, husband willing, nothing seems trivial. It is a start. I am hoping this blog will motivate me to be creative, to wake up my mind, which has been in baby land since my children were born in April of 2007. I hope to share my thoughts and inspiration with a budding audience in exchange for insight, resources and great ideas. I chose the image of the flowers for my first post because they are PINK and because it feels like SPRING. And, I dedicate my new beginning with STUDIO TULLIA to my daughter. I shot this image the other day with my iphone while we were on a walk. My daughter, like many other girls her age, really loves the color PINK. She has been my biggest fan so far as she has managed to discover many objects that I had made a few years ago while I was developing the concept of STUDIO TULLIA. She has found three pillows that I made in the garage which are all very little girl-like. I am not sure who I made them for, maybe my two young nieces, but for some reason I kept them. Now it seems as if I had made them specifically for her all along. Maybe I had. Maybe they were the pillows I wanted to give to my daughter, which I had wanted for so many years before having, and I just never admitted it to myself. It has been quite awhile now since she has found them and she still seems quite comforted by them. She has come across some of the cards I have made in my studio and has been quickly drawn into the details and sparkle from the vintage glass glitter. She knows they are special, has been given a few, and seems to really enjoy them. From as far back as I can remember she has had a keen eye for fashion, color, and details and I actually really respect her opinion. So, thanks to my dear daughter, in part, I am reigniting STUDIO TULLIA this Spring. And we all know that Spring in Portland is a magical thing.
