Highlights From The Land of Boxes

Oh my goodness you guys, I'm so sorry, it's been WEEKS since I posted here last. In fact, the last time was in Morocco several weeks ago... I have been so busy but a very good and productive "busy" so you'd be proud of me. For one, after I got back from 8 days in North Africa, I flew to Istanbul with my husband and darling friend Esra Celik, we had such a great time and we just got home earlier this week. What a fabulous trip. Esra showed me to all of her secret places where we found vintage textiles, antiques, gorgeous patchwork and over-dyed carpets, sequins and embellishments by the thousands and a special district where you can find new clothes from Zara, H&M, and other brands (all are made in Turkey by the way) for 2-5, Euros per garment. I bought two pairs of leggings and 6 shirts for about 25, Euros!



Don't look to closely, this is not organized or arranged but here is part of my entry room, it's a mess like everything else but at least I know that I like this entry table from House Doctor on this wall. I'm putting a large mirror over it soon. The rug and stools will not stay, I just have them for now.

I loved being there and felt really inspired when I returned to get started on decorating my house. And GREAT NEWS! Today the kitchen is being installed -- I can hear the sawing and smell the wood (love that fresh cut lumber scent) and I can't wait to show you when it is finished.... I am very excited to see things starting to come together though the house is a disaster at the current moment with boxes still everywhere.




This will be the dining room opening up to the living room which has a wintergarten attached to it.

Between Africa and Turkey, I have also been working on all of the critical bits for my book because there was still some writing to be done and additions to the directory in the back, errors to correct -- you name it! A book is such a big project -- especially a decorating book because you don't have just straight text as in a novel to deal with but also captions, credits, quotes, imagery, drawings... but it's nearly finished and I'm very excited.



This room will be my work room/sitting room where I want to find a vintage sofa to reupholster and place in here with a small table, too. You can enter the dining room through this room or what you see in the distance, the entry room and front door.



Here is another view of the same room. Notice the glass doors, they are 110 years old as this house was completed in 1900. Two rooms have these doors, there are 4 and you can open them accordion style to completely live open concept if you like, shut them partially and use only two doors, shut one door and lock it using only one door to enter/exit the room, or shut all doors and just have a completely closed off glass wall so to speak. It's fab.

Now that I'm back home for now after traveling since the beginning of the year, on average, of one week each month to a different country -- I'm happy to be home for awhile. I'll be local this month and next, though in January I'll be in Paris for a week and then home in February and most of March to teach my next Blogging Your Way e-course online with Leslie Shewring. After that, my book will be released in London late March so we'll have a launch party in London and then end of April it rolls out in the states so I'll most likely do a signing in NYC, LA, San Francisco and Boston. We'll see if I can budget it.

And then the book will release in Germany in the Fall so I'll most likely do a signing in Hannover, Hamburg and maybe Berlin or Munich or something. We'll see. I'd like to get to Vienna and Zurich but I don't know so we'll see. THEN the book was just purchased by another publisher, a BIG one, in another country (I cannot say yet) so I will no doubt be traveling there for a signing too and perhaps to do something else that I have up my sleeve so I'll tell you more about that later. 2011 is going to be a very busy year with lots more travel involved... but....

I'm hoping in 2012 I can have a baby (oh I hope so!!! We are going to start trying soon) and start my family and see how it all goes from there. I want to do more books and such, and I have another project idea that I want to partner with a dear friend (we are currently in discussion) so life is absolutely very, very busy right now.

OH and I am going to start hosting workshops at home and working with some local artists and designers to teach with me in my house. HOW FUN!

And, after planning since August of 2009, the handmade market that we are planning for Hannover will take place in 2011, most likely in the Fall to coincide with my book launch here since it will be translated and published in German. We originally named the market Hallo Handmade, bought the domain and everything, but then someone used the name for their market in Hamburg instead so now we are thinking of another name for ours  -- we have lots of great ideas and I'm excited to do this since I've been hoping to have a market here in Hannover since 2006 but I needed to wait until we moved here full-time in order to do it -- and now we are living in Hannover (yeah!) so finally I can plan it all out. There are many other great handmade markets starting in Germany, it's like how the US was with markets back in 2006, so the newness of it here is very energizing and fun for me to see, I feel like I am re-living history!

Those are my updates for now... how are you doing? Are you well???

With love,
Holly