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me & mrs jones

@meandmrsj

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retired decorative painter/studio owner in memphis, tn • currently chasing swans, tigers, & dachshunds • slow decorating

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first week with our gidget…@longbottomdachshunds she is the best puppy! 🌭🤎

#dachsundsofinstagram #sausagedogcentral #dachsundpuppy by @meandmrsj

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4 months ago

a p r i l … daffs & hydrangeas, peaceful easter, stitching & gardening, a weekend houseful of gorgeous girls, two lovely weddings and a concert, an antique silver roadshow & a trunk show, precious time with our kids. bonus: bucket list trip to sedona & that big ol’ canyon. covered in gratitude. by @meandmrsj

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5 months ago

memphis peeps - you’re invited! (yes, you!) come sip and shop special, small, women-designed, -owned, & -made. everything you need for spring & summer gifting and occasions.

dm me for the address (it’s my house if you’ve attended in the past.)

come as you are, grab a friend, and bring your list!

@debivincentart
@good_egg_jewelry
@larksomegoods
@laurenbrookjewelry
@jennifertwelvetrees
@modsmahal by @meandmrsj

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6 months ago

since many of you knew tillie from her shop dog career, i have sad news to share. after a long illness, tillie has gone over the rainbow bridge. she packed so much spiciness, scrappiness, and hilarity into her almost-five years, it seemed like she’d been ours forever. from her ridiculously petite ears to her XXL booty, there will never be another like her.

rest easy, my little t-bone/petite filet/tootsie roll/crunchwrap supreme/chocolate croissant. the whole pack misses you enormously.

(tag, you’re it, bb!) taken in Memphis, Tennessee by @meandmrsj

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7 months ago

“The soul of Memphis lives and breathes in its rich arts community, with the power to make us feel at home. The upcoming Art by Design weekend will have something for everyone to enjoy and appreciate, with its emphasis on creating beautiful, restful, energizing home spaces, and I can’t wait to breathe it all in!” - Stephanie Jones, Co-Chair, Art by Design Retail Marketplace | Retired Decorative Painter & Shop/Studiokeeper

Busy weekend for the arts! Check out Stephanie's guide! by @meandmrsj

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8 months ago

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8 months ago

j a n u a r y rang in with my best lovey howell tribute, and out covered in ice and wishing for an uncharted desert isle. in between: doggies, tigers, bears, swans, time with friends, vintage gifts, and seeking (& praying for) peace like a river. ♥️ taken in Midtown, Memphis, Tennessee by @meandmrsj

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9 months ago

what’s that saying? done is better than perfect? in another chapter of the-professionals-won’t-be losing-any-sleep-over-me (hear me, beloved frame shops!) i got a bee in my bonnet about finally framing this darling watercolor sketch.

my friend leslie, owner of @pippasbin, found it at a flea market in the UK last year (for £5!) and brought it home to me. it’s a treasure, and i was ready to upgrade it from just being propped up on the mantel.

so, right after i bought a piece of foam core board at @artcentermemphis center, i…(and remember - i was in the middle of rural cleburne county, so working out of my project supplies there…)

• cut up a ruined old linen blouse (then realized it was too stark white against the sketch)
• so, mixed the bit of leftover coffee in the morning’s pot with hot water and soaked the linen a few minutes at a time to mellow it out (i kept a bit of the un-dyed linen to see how dark it was getting)
• let it dry, and pressed it
• cut the foam core board to the size of a moulding i had from a trip to @southfrontantiques
• used spray adhesive to apply the linen to the board, and put it in the frame, securing it with little wire nails
• cut the brown paper that the foam board came home in to the size of the back of the frame
• pressed the paper with the iron because it was wrinkled
• glued it around the edges of the back
• used upholstery tacks and string because i didn’t have the proper hanging wire & eyelets (i know! but i’m i m p r o v i s i n g, people!)
• centered the sketch on the linen-wrapped panel (that sounds so fancy now!) and used glue dots to secure the corners.

say it with me, everyone: done is better than perfect!

*i think the moulding was actually a fillet meant to fit inside a much larger frame, as the edges are unfinished. but i do so love an egg & dart pattern, and love the patina it has. DIBTP!

(rug and cabinet via @metamorphosismemphis)

#ourlittleswancottage #littleredriver #collectedhome #newhouseoldthings #countingourblessings #vintagegoods #vintagefinds #cottagestyle #watercolorsketch taken in Little Red River by @meandmrsj

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a year ago

come on in. really. the front door is one of the first impressions of swan cottage you’ll have, and i really want it to be a good one!

we sourced ours at @gateslumbercompany, memphis. the door was a little grainy, so i started by skimming on a coat of swedish putty, and then brushing finish coats of hollandlac brilliant, both by @finepaintsofeurope (the color is tinted to match americana 770 by benjamin moore…a hard decision that took some sampling!) much sanding, tacking, and Dust Abatement Strategizing were also involved…but so worth it for this durable lacquer-like finish.

for the inside, i wanted a layered, aged look, so i used @saltwashofficial to texture up one of the base coats. the colors are farmhouse beige, gesso white, and swedish grey, all by jolie paints.

to bring the finish together and mellow it all out, i used jolie’s clear and brown waxes. the bonus is that the waxed finish is very puppy-paw-proof, (and honestly, a little authentic wear and tear won’t matter.)

i was wholly unable to resist splurging on the unlacquered brass egg & dart hardware from @charlestonhardware.

if i was ever lucky enough to have you visit any of my me & mrs jones shop locations, you’ve already seen one of my free-form plate walls, and know i’ve been collecting blue & white plates wherever i go. i have a few more to add, but it’s so good to have them home!

and i promise that ivy & tillie will wait patiently outside the powder room for you.

vintage bamboo shelves: @pippasbin • rug & blue hobnail vase: my MIL’s attic • ‘hello’ plate: @bridgmanpottery • vintage grain sack runner & wooden bowl: @blueoceantraders • lantern fixture: fb mktplace • powder rm door: @palladiomemphis • walls: jolie paints gesso white • floor: jolie gesso white & swedish grey • outdoor sconces: @overstock

#swancottage #countingourblessings #littleredriver #cottagestyle #vintagefinds #newhouseoldthings #collectedhome #vintagegoods #beforeandafter taken in Little Red River by @meandmrsj

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a year ago

memphis-area friends, please join us for sips, snacks & some fantastic shopping. lovely mod black of @modsmahal is coming to town with her fabulous daughter maya. they’re bringing tons of clothes, bags, throws, and more, so we’re getting the mod squad back together for a party!

pop by my house on wednesday 10.22 from 4-7, or thursday 10.23 from 10-2, and see mod & maya, plus beautiful pottery by melissa bridgman @bridgmanpottery, (whom garden & gun will NOT stop bragging about!) the famous charm bar by kristen keegan @good_egg_jewelry, original art, prints & cards by jennifer balink @larksomegoods, and the most amazing illustrated silk scarves by debi vincent @debivincentart, too. (btw…the ‘love letter to memphis’ scarf is back, and there’s a pocket square size, too!)

so if your plan for seasonal shopping is to find gorgeous, unique, locally made/designed/sourced goods from woman-powered businesses, we are offering you all that, plus a glass of something yummy while you shop!

just dm for the 38111 address. see you then! (brought to you by @creativecoteriememphis.) taken in Chickasaw Gardens by @meandmrsj

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a year ago

pairing up with my talented friend @mlavenderinteriors for perfect pairings was, well, pretty perfect. mark & i had a grand time designing a table for the event benefiting the @decorativeartstrustmemphis & @brooksmuseum.

PP meant designers’ tablescapes paired with chefs, but for inspo, we decided to pair ourselves with a favorite painter and his garden, and envisioned a picnic in claude monet’s garden in giverny.

here’s what we used:
• burlap underskirt (from my dining room table)
• sage toile overlay (@tableclothsfactory)
• water hyacinth placemats & white fleece throws (@ikeausa )
• battery-powered bamboo table lamps* (amazon)
• venezia candle holders & london hurricane/vase (@crateandbarrel)
• footed green glass dishes (vintage, mark’s collection)
• @by_spode fleur de lys blue (@memphisgoodwillinc, my collection)
• green glass shrimp cocktail glasses (vintage, my MIL’s bequest)

with fabric from mark’s remnant trove, i sewed gingham napkins & lumbar pillows (w/ tassel trim from @samuelandsons.) using his bits of asian scenic from @thibaut_1886, i was able to squeak out 8 smaller napkins, which tied the palette together (and features a bridge just like claude’s.)

placeards? ‘faux-nays’ i made by decoupaging bits of the water lily series onto tiny canvases, lettered with sharpie. i painted the tiny easels (from @artcentermemphis) with @benjaminmoore juniper - mark found the exact color that matches monet’s bridge.

another bit we wanted to add was, obvs, water lilies. @eppsjones gamely kayaked on to the lake down the lane from swan cottage, returning with a bucket of lily pads. which - spoiler alert - smell t e r r i b l e !! (even after rinsing a LOT.) he had collected several lily buds, too, which kristin canfield @everbloomdesignmemphis tucked in to her design at eye level. she did such an incredible job of finding flowers that were actually *in* monet’s garden, and adding curly willow as a nod to the willow trees there. her lush floral design brought everything together!

(another detail edited out: vintage blue goblets & pink coupes. the staff needed their glasses set on the table…ours got bumped.)

every table was fabulous…swipe for some other faves. taken in Memphis Brooks Museum of Art by @meandmrsj

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a year ago

it’s been a year since i bamboozled/hornswaggled my amazing daughter-in-law parker into helping me with projects at the river while will was on a bach trip. (we were prepping madly for his birthday weekend with guests, the inaugural swan cottage house party.)

the first thing we checked off the list was installing a length of vintage grain sacking as a stair runner. a youtube video, roll of padding, electric staple gun, and us…what could go wrong? (as it turns out, not a lot.)(thankfully!)

i had been browsing online, but on a picking trip to @blueoceantraders, found an entire roll of grain sacking WITH A BLUE STRIPE among all their incredible textiles. (similar is available on @etsy.) the woven flax (or hemp?) is super heavy-duty, and surprisingly soft on feet & paws.

according to vintage-hunting lore, the colors & patterns of stripes on grain sacks were designed to identify a farm in a particular region, ensuring that the ground grain would return from the mill to the correct family. (it’s similar to the colorful stripes you see on antique steamer trunks - servants were able to quickly identify the house’s luggage at the dock, even if they couldn’t read.)

the project was pretty straightforward, other than the tricky bit of the riser on the turn…that turned out to be kind of a geometry problem. (i realized that in my inspo photos, the steps with turns are pictured from the top. hmmmm.) we marked the steps the width of the sacking with tape and cut and stapled padding to the treads. then, starting at the bottom, we worked our way up, pulling tight and stapling in the nooks. it’s definitely a project for four hands.

it’s held up amazingly well so far, and vacuums up beautifully. watch out, though, because all the pups can now zoom right up the stairs to check on you, even tillie.

#swancottage #littleredriver #collectedhome #newhouseoldthings #countingourblessings #vintagegoods #vintagefinds #paintedfurniture #cottagestyle #grainsackrunner #cottagedecor #beforeandafter taken in Little Red River by @meandmrsj

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a year ago