Romantic Country - The Cover Story

OMG, I made the cover. Somebody please pinch me. If you would have told me a year ago that not only would I land a feature in one of the most inspiring decorating magazines, but that I would make the cover of the magazine as well, I would have never believed it in a million years. But that's exactly what happened. I've dreamed of this day for longer than I can possibly remember, and I'm still walking on puffy white clouds just thinking about it.

When I found out I was going to be featured, I didn't tell many people about it besides my close family, and a small handful of friends. Believe it or not, I am incredibly modest. Adam just peeked his head in here and shook his head at that sentence. Okay, so maybe around my family I'm the biggest ham there is..but family loves you unconditionally, so you know you're safe with them, silly antics and all.

This photo confirms why we painted the previously bare white walls. Truth be told, we painted the entire living room 2 days before the photo shoot. I think it still smelled like fresh paint when Mark came to shoot. It's called Bone White, (made by Glidden) but looks much more like a soft taupe. So yumm...

I love these two shots on this page...that's my boy Skylar sitting on my love seat. He is without a doubt one of the great loves of my life. And I adore that photo of me because I match my living room for goodness sakes! And I also love that Adam took that shot of me...

My sweet dining room. I so love that farm table...

This is a story to be saved for another day, but I'll just tell you that my bedroom looks nothing like this now...I've totally redecorated it. Stay tuned for details...

It was the most perfect breezy morning when we took this shot. Nothing like dining alfresco outdoors. I made those curtain panels myself, using all weather fabric and large silver grommets..

Who knew a photo shoot could be so much work, yet so fun? I was so fortunate to have the very talented Mark Tanner photograph my home. I just adore his work. He allowed me help with the photo styling, and worked on many of the shots together. He was open to my ideas and suggestions. And in turn, I learned so many valuable lessons from him. Plus, he put things in places I would have never thought of, and some of them still remain where he placed them to this day!

Thank you to the editor, Mary Vinnedge, and Mark Tanner for all your hard work and incredible talents. I also wish to thank Sandra Sheperd and Kathryn Bechen who heard that the editor was looking for a Southern California home to feature, and both thought of me as a perfect candidate for the feature.