As of this week, I will have shared married life with the same man, for twenty eight years. In “real time”, we will have been together for over thirty years. I remember the exact moment we met. We were both in college and I was in the kitchen of a home owned by a physical therapy professor, who decided to rent rooms to ECU students. (That’s a whole other story . . . maybe I'll share that another day.) While I was chatting with a good friend, we heard someone in the basement level, singing to the top of his lungs, and to the Rolling Stones, no less. We began to giggle, which then turned into raucous, side-splitting laughter, and then my husband-to-be came up the stairs to see who would be so cruel as to critique his vocal prowess. Needless to say, it wouldn’t be the first or last time he would endure such treatment – but always with the best of spirits and intentions!
This is the table I created for “Over The Tabletop” – an event to benefit the Ada Jenkins Center
Fast forwarding, through those years, to the present . . . Just this past week I participated in a tabletop event and the idea was to create something very special, keeping in mind an event you would really L-O-V-E to attend. Whenever I’ve designed a showhouse room, or an entire home, I’ve found it easier to create the space around a fictitious family or scenario, as it gives me a set of parameters – just like a real client. In this case, I had decided to do a sweetheart table for a special couple’s event. It could be for a wedding or an anniversary celebration. The theme was centered around A Midsummer Night’s Dream, by William Shakespeare, but I must confess, the concept mainly came from a late ‘90’s movie set. I wanted to share visions of sitting in the midst of the forest floor, with fire lights, dragonflies, and the magical sparkling of two lovers’ eyes, as they gazed upon one another.
Hand painted details by Whitney Preslar Bayer, fresh floral scaping by David Wynn of Elizabeth House Flowers, Photography by Chanda.
Just previous to this tabletop gathering, I had quietly celebrated another anniversary, of sorts . . . my first “tweet” and foray into social media. Now before you totally tune me out, if you think Twitter is for the “birds”, or as my husband so fondly says, “It’s a cult thing!”, there is a relevance to this story. Had it not been for that evening, when I decided to find out what Twitter and social media was all about, I’m not sure I would have met Starr Miller. Starr is an interior designer who lives several cities away, albeit in the Charlotte, NC area. Starr and I, along with Maybelline Te, another designer, shared some tweets and after a small while, decided we should meet in person. A breakfast meeting, and several other “tweet-ups” ensued, with Starr joining an interior design organization, of which I belong, and she made an announcement about this event. Maybelline, or “May”, as I so fondly call her, has always captivated me in our conversations, with her wisdom, fearlessness, and generous spirit. When I shared with her about trying to create this special setting, she would have nothing other than to offer to me her custom chairs, which she planned to reveal in an upcoming NYC design show, this May.
This table setting was “touched” by many hands. The Snug Furniture chairs, have been, as well.
Were these connections left up to chance? I’d like to think not. Even in the big sea of chatter, on the web, we were destined to be joined, at first, by our common interests, but more importantly, by uncommon circumstances. I’ve enjoyed sharing the gift of these connections, with the other people in my life. This year has been a most special “anniversary”, as I feel as if I’ve morphed from being the hesitant butterfly, to the one who has burst forth from her cocoon . . . even a little later in life. I’ve enjoyed flitting about, all along the way. After all, when we spread our wings, we get to see so much more of the world and the people in it! This evening was so special, as I was able to share it with “my girls”,some from the past, some from recent meetings, but always who are present.
Special Table Top Connections– (left to right, starting at the top) – Starr Miller, Maybelline Te, Mary Santini, (I’m in the middle), Davetta Moore, Vicki Horton Roach – sister-n-law, Whitney Preslar Bayer – decorative artist, David Wynn – floral artist, and the ever fun Chanda Pope, our photographer, who made us laugh . . . no posing allowed!
And now, back to the beginning . . . Even though my tabletop was meant to be inspired by a story, right out of Shakespeare, I think, in the back of my mind, there would be another pair of sweethearts who would enjoy a magical evening . . . and . . . they did.
The End
