Kansas City | Home | Studio Dan Meiners New Retail Space

It is official... STUDIO Dan Meiners new space is now open!

It is a true work of art - way beyond just a floral design studio.

He's created lounge areas, a gourmet kitchen, and space to host a fabulous party (wedding receptions, corporate events...). Click here to see photos of the event space.

You must stop by before any of your home entertaining adventures.

photo credit : jenny wheat
photo credit : jenny wheat

You can pick up a bouquet from the open flower market (think: build your o

wn bouquet from a french flower market), gourmet treats, candles, etc.

photo credit : jenny wheat

Or, stop by if you are going to a party... you'll find the most unique hostess gifts.

photo credit : jenny wheat
photo credit : jenny wheat

Not only is it a great resource for entertaining, in true Dan Meiners style it is a gorgeous space to visit.

photo credit : jenny wheat

Dan - congratulations!

Entertaining | Clambake 2010

We held the 4th annual (gasp!) Clambake at our home over Memorial Day Weekend. As always, it was a fun night full of great food, family and friends.

I set a long table in the back yard - using the "Clambake Linen" I made 4 years ago... it has been a feature every year.

I snipped some blue hydrangeas from my plants and used a lot of votives, pillar candles, sage green plates and white linen napkins.

I hung votive candles from our umbrella - it created great ambiance.

The hydrangea plants are doing well! I created this planter from stones I found around our property.

Samantha and her parents - her first clambake! We started the night with a bruschetta platter :

Chopped Olive Tapenade

Tomato & Basil

Artichoke & Goat Cheese Spread

Toasted Baguette Slices

She was dressed perfectly for the occasion - baby madras and her mizzou rattle.

Our friend Caroline... note the beginning of the navy and white theme - never planned, but always happens!

Katie and Julie... more navy and white!

Cocktail hour - Mr. Darcy is looking for any dropped bruschetta.

I found the white buckets at Target in the dollar spot - perfect for our shells.

Got Milkweed?

I'm STILL waiting for my formal decision letter from the Zoning Board of Appeals. They say it takes "about" 30 days. Today is Day 29. Once I get that letter, I can take the "Public Notice" sign off my door (which most people think means my house has been condemned) but then I have to wait 20 more days to allow someone the opportunity to appeal.

My contractor is going to see if he can get a demo permit so we can at least peel back the layers and see what's underneath. Until that happens, what lies beneath is anyone's guess and it would be nice to get a better idea of what I've gotten myself into.

In the meantime, there's not much I can do but enjoy summer. The garden is just about at it's peak. When I started the garden two summers ago, There were a couple of milk weed plants that kept coming up by the back corner of the garden.

I eventually kind of let them go and on July 4th, a woman walked down the little alleyway when I was sitting on the back porch and said, "Oh, I LOVE milkweed; it smells WONDERFUL! And how nice you leave it here for the butterflies." I thanked her and couldn't wait for her to leave so I could go get a whiff for myself. She was right. Not only does it smell great but it also seems to attract Monarch butterflies. So now I leave these two plants until after they've bloomed. I kind of like how the flowers look in contrast to the japanese maple.

I also like the white daisies in front of the dark red of the maple.

And here are those odd double daisies that appeared last year. I thought they were gone but I'm happy to see they're back. I'm going to try to save some seeds to see if I can get more to grow.

Behind the echinacea is yarrow "Cerise Queen." It spreads fairly vigorously but it pulls out really easily. It comes in this bright pink...

...this very pale pink, almost white...

...and this amazing deep ruby red. There are only two little plants that bloom in this color but I'm hoping to let this one spread so I can move it to a few other places in the garden.

This is one of my day lilies. It's a melon color--I can't remember the name--and the flowers are HUGE.

Here's a shot of the sunny end of the garden.

And check out the tomato plant on my porch!

You'll probably not hear too much from me until the house is being stripped so enjoy the summer weather and have a safe and happy July 4th.

A Trip Back Home

The images in my last post were taken around the area where I grew up in Western New York on Lake Ontario near the Canadian border. It's mostly farmland but there are also some lovely villages with old homes that are to die for.
This is Main Street in the town where I grew up on the Erie Canal. As you can see by all the hustle and bustle, there's no end to the fun!
About an hour west is Lewiston, New York, just north of Niagara Falls on the border of Canada. My family moved here when I was a teenager so I lived here through my college years. This is the Niagara River and the monument in the background is in Queenston, Ontario, Canada.

It's a quaint historic town where much of the historical feel has been maintained.

This is the park at the center of town.

The town was burned to the ground by the English during the war of 1812 so many of the houses were built in the early to mid 1800s. As you can imagine, there is where my love of old houses first started.
Even though we lived in a simple split-level ranch, the town has many enormous mansions overlooking the Niagara River gorge. This mansion is one my favorites and it actually started one of my OCDs. It's now several (gorgeous) apartments and if you live here, you can't touch the curtains--white cotton panels with white ball fringe--pulled back just so to ensure a consistent look. I had never thought about that idea but, to this day, all of my curtains have to appear white from the outside. Is that crazy or just good sense?

How's this for a front porch?

This 1837 colonial was for sale. Mom thought they should weed the stairs but I thought it was quite charming.

We're just passing through for lunch so it's time to move on...

...just to the north to Fort Niagara on Lake Ontario. This fort, built in 1729 by the French at the mouth of the Niagara River and was integral to trade between America and Europe. It was captured by the British and later by the American colonists.

But we're headed a little more to the east into the country where old farmhouses such as this one dot the landscape between corn and cabbage fields and apple and peach orchards along the coast of Lake Ontario. Notice how simple and spare everything is. No landscaping, no flower gardens. All the time is dedicated to the farm.

Here is a lighthouse on the edge of Lake Ontario just about a mile from my mom's and sister's house.

A few houses overlooking the lake.
And the little marina.
And finally to my mom's house. This antique tractor was on the property and she kept it there as a lawn ornament.
Mom collects (a lot of) teapots...
...and she's got some lovely antique pieces.
There are some great antique barns nearby that we were sure to hit.
They had lots of McCoy.
This dealer had everything organized by color which made a nice presentation.
And here's where I found the vintage light from an old schoolhouse in Niagara Falls. It was $40. I love when I find something for the house when I'm away on the trip. This light will always hold a memory of that trip home to visit my family.