"Cottage" to me isn't a decorating style, but a lifestyle - one that reminds me of growing up in the midwest. My home is informal and comfy - filled with weathered wood and slipcovered furniture, it's important to me that guests feel comfortable putting their feet up.

poppies was born out of my love for treasure hunting. I'm the girl who spends hours on the beach searching for sea glass and shells, and likens finding vintage linens at an estate sale to winning the lottery. Everything you find here has been touched by me - either handcrafted or discovered.

I'm a fledgling seamstress without prior crafting experience, other than a knitting spell in high school. My biggest challenge is creating a photograph that pleasures the senses in the way that touching soft vintage linen can. But give me an old grain sack with colorful graphics and I'm Edward Scissorhands. I believe my previous career in product development contributes to my design aesthetic.

I'll leave you with this: the products I craft and the vintage finds I add to the shop all stem from my love of this simple cottage lifestyle. Close your eyes, if you will, and imagine with me:

** Linens on a clothesline, flowing in the spring breeze ** Geraniums spilling out of a painted flowerpot ** Twinkly lights around a chippy white painted mirror ** Farmer’s market finds in the wicker basket of your bicycle. ** A bistro set in the garden, a candle in a jar. Impromptu dinner picnic. ** Curled up on an old daybed on the front porch reading the last few pages of a good book while waiting for the rain to stop.

simple. cottage. living

**********************