Meaningful Accessories

The older I get and the more I design for myself and others, the more I feel the necessity to accessorize not just with beautiful things, but with things that have a story or a special memory. It's easy for us to make a room stylish or glamorous or rustic. It takes experience to be able to get the scale, color and texture of accessories spot on.  But I really believe that finishing touches that are artisan crafted, repurposed and brought back to life, lovingly passed on thru generations or purchased on a special trip really make a home interesting and cozy.So I'm kinda proud of the way I've cleverly accessorized my kitchen. I recently had the luxury of two wonderful trips and was able to expand my collection of "journey sand".I got this idea years and years ago at a Cottage Living Idea House I went to in Southampton, NY. It is my perfect way of preserving memories in vintage mason jars. Who knew there were so many colors and textures of sand? In St. Kitts the sand was a light tobacco color but as I kept walking down the beach, the sand turned black.

I love my Montauk jar because I couldn't believe the thousand of rocks glistening on the sand in such a maze of colors. Truly a gift from nature.  We drove from my family's home in Westhampton, NY to visit a college friend I hadn't seen in 15 years. We had a complete blast with our husbands and kids and stayed on the beach until the sun was setting. It was a memory I will cherish forever.My Grand Cayman jar is special too because there was so much coral on the beach and the sand was so soft.  The water was a crystal clear turquoise I'd never seen before.The little pebbles in my Westhampton jar will always remind me of the day my six year old nephew Dylan and I chased the receding ocean water to collect handfuls of these tiny stones. The water was really cold that day and our hands were frozen but we didn't care because we really wanted to fill our blue pail with these cool little stones.  We went back to the beach the next day but all the pebbles had disappeared.

I look forward to preserving memories like this for years and years.....