Good - Bye 2010

2010 was the birth of my baby.

Well...not a real baby but my virtual baby - A Room Without Walls.  She ( I call her she because it's my blog so...I get to decide ;-)  ) was born out of a need and desire to have something of my own.

On one hand, I love working with outdoor design.  On the other hand, working in a limited environment for other people and not having the ability to explore all the amazing vendors the outdoor world is producing was altogether too stifling.  I would constantly find things that excited me and I wanted to share them. However, I was severely limited by the products at hand on the showroom floor.

I am glad I took a chance and started this blog.

This blog is a labor of love.  My research efforts have illuminated me to some of the most creative and forward thinking designers in the outdoor world.  Even so, last month I struggled with a massive case of blog envy.

Let me explain:

When I started my blog in June of 2010, I fully expected to have a huge following and vendors begging me for advertising space by December of this year.

Ummmmmm, can you say. "Reality Check!?"

Of course, neither has come true and it caused me a great deal of concern as November faded and entered a cold and damp December.  The budgetary concerns are never ending and while I certainly love what I do, bills have to be paid.  Trying not to let my concerns descend into a an existential crisis, I struggle with trying to maintain a brand new business and giving in to seeking another job in a showroom where I can sell the same thing over and over - never being able to use my talent or vision beyond the showroom floor and following the vision of another person.

For the better part of December, I cocooned myself deep inside the Christmas holidays with all the requisite decorating, shopping, wrapping and preparing.  Christmas has passed, the tree is drying out and the ornaments are ready to be boxed up for next year.  As much as I wanted to hide and find other tasks to keep my mind from having to make a decision, this past week I thought and I thought myself crazy.


and then...

I came to the conclusion that I need to "Go Big or Go Home."  So, moving forward into a new year and a new decade, I am devoting myself to introducing and learning about new collections, the latest and greatest  designers and coming up with as much information on outdoor furniture and outdoor living as I can possibly and exhaustively find.

I want to be the Julie McCoy of the blogosphere.

I want to be able to take my readers on a voyage around the world so we can discover new manufacturers, new designers and new ways of creating the ultimate outdoor retreat.

About this commitment to you, I'm hugely excited.

On a bit more personal note - I know my blog is unique and that blogs about outdoor living are few and far between.  I'm not going to fill in a few pages here and there between Memorial Day and Labor Day.  Instead, I am going to dedicate every day to finding the new, the creative and the unusual.  I have the desire to continue on this journey and want to bring you along.  I accept that this journey has just begun and that six months in the scheme of things is just a blip in time.

So going forward, let us raise our glasses to a new year, a new decade and a renewed committment to making A Room Without Walls the best source for all that is outdoor living.

Cheers!

Jane

Staach

I found these great pieces while looking for some updated and eco-friendly products the other day.  I fell head over heel in love!  The simplicity of the table and chairs and the beauty of the furniture thoroughly impress me.

I  see a design similarity between the Cain chairs and  the Eames Herman Miller "Plywood" Chair.  That perception makes these chairs all the more fabulous in my book because I love mid century modern.

Designed for Staach by Seth Eshelman, the Cain collection is hand crafted out of eco-friendly red and white domestic maple. The finishes are all lead free.  Formaldehyde-free non-toxic wood glue is used along with water borne clear and colored lacquer.  Indeed,  an eco-friendly product that can proudly say it's been approved by the FSC.  ( The Forest Stewardship Council ) 

All fabrication for these pieces is simple and done completely in-house with a limited use of only two tools. This extreme reduction in tool use has helped achieve an even higher level of sustainability by not using more human energy.  The colours are great!  Mix and match the table with some bright chairs.  The possibility of cushions is left to the buyer.  However, I would leave this furniture without cushions so as to not hide the beautiful lines!

More than Twinkle lights ...

The tradition of using Christmas lights actually originates with ancient people that feared the long, dark days of winter. During the winter solstice, large bonfires were kept burning to "lure" the sun back. This tradition continued throughout the ages but, like many ancient traditions, it evolved and mutated so much that its origin is not readily clear.

A house with lights looks amazing but adding a few additional touches can take amazing to fabulous!  Wreaths, window boxes and tree's are incredible additions to you outdoor space.

This front-door decoration brings to mind an elaborate bell-pull. The badge consists of dried flowers, fruits, pods, pine cones, and fresh greenery. The badge was created on a styrofoam disk and the fresh greenery is layered in burlap. The designer constructed the bottom tassel and attached it to the medallion.

To create this look, use pine boughs as a base and then add seasonal produce to the mix.  For even more holiday flair, try weaving outdoor ribbon throughout your arrangements.

Cold winter days are an asset for this display because they allow produce to stay fresh longer. You can replace the fruits and vegetables as needed, or set up the display right before a holiday event.

Decorate your loggia ,add a tree to your  Outdoor space.  The boat house, Gate house or Studio located on your property should be dressed in it's holiday finery too .

Winter outdoor decor

Hello.

I've been very busy working on various projects around my own home for the past two weeks.  Getting ready for the holidays and doing a massive overhaul of all things at Casa Bassi.  I have noticed that with all the catalogs and magazines to which I subscribe, many are recently including displays for the outdoor room.

I have no sense of urgency to sell off outdoor furniture and be done with it until spring rolls around.  In fact, I am noticing many periodicals and websites embracing the outdoor lifestyle and creating vignettes to showcase the outdoor room in a winter theme.  Not everyone lives in a environment  that lends itself to the use of the outdoor space in the winter but you can still decorate the space to reflect the season.  Many of us have at least a few pieces of outdoor furniture in a location where they can be seen from the indoors.  I love continuing my holiday decorating onto my patio.


I found a lovely collection of pillows and accessories, each containing a bird theme.

Twelve days of Christmas, the partridge and pear tree from  Pottery Barn  This pillow makes an elegant statement.

Or if you wanted to go with something red, the Cardinal and pine cones is also avalible from Pottery Barn .

This little light could be hung over a dining table or a outdoor seating area producing a soft glow.  Just enough light to showcase your outdoor seating group  Yet another fabulous find from Pottery Barn.

Perhaps, adding some string lights to the trees in your backyard space would create a festive addition to your holiday outdoor space.

















Or decorating several trees and adding presents to the scape would be a fun way to highlight a porch or outdoor space.


















                                                                                                              

If you choose to decorate the trees in your outdoor space, what could be more appropriate than getting ornaments made from bird seed?   Pine Tree Farms  has an excellent collection of pre-made ornaments that you won't have to worry about storing for the next year.


Each ornament is made of bird seed.  Not only are you going to be decorating your outdoor space but you will be feeding the birds in your area.  They have many decorative styles to choose from as well as bird houses and other styles of feeders that could easily be incorporated into the decorating of some trees.

  

Pine Tree Farms, Inc. is proud to be a key financial supporter of a pioneering scientific study sponsored by the charitable WBFI Research Foundation (www.projectwildbird.org). As a supporter of the WBFI Research Foundation, Pine Tree Farms. is dedicated to the promotion of responsible feeding.








Over the next few weeks we can look at other idea's for creating a festive holiday space in your outdoor room.