Corbels

The days of old definitely have a thing or two going for them in regards to architectural details. Back in the premodern era, homes were not the focus of the homeowners decorative attention, generally speaking. It was the church and community buildings that got the creative and ornamental focus. 

One such architectural detail that was introduced in Stone Age for a practical purpose (to help support buidlings) was a corbel. A corbel is piece of masonry that shoots out of wall and typically bears weight. They are used on the exterior and interior of buildings and were generally made of stone.

   

Corbels provide excellent sculptural opportunities as seen in these examples from Westminster Abbey.
Images by Julia Manzerova.

Click to read more ...

5 Ideas for Homework Areas

Here in the final gasp of summer, we're beginning to turn our attention to the new school year. Now some of you are surely back in school but, for us, we've got another few weeks to prepare and get our lives in order. (Where did we put that alarm clock?!) This year, my oldest will be attending kindergarten and where he will experience homework for the first time. Now, kindergarten homework is surely not going to require hours of effort and fifty pounds of books, but I'd to at least take this time to instill some good work habits that he can carry through his education. One of these is having a space dedicated to homework. Since I am not one to put together a space all willy-nilly, I've pulled together a few ideas for homework areas over on Momtastic. Take a peek and then let us know how you're preparing for the new school year!

Image by House to Home

Friday Favorites: Carla's Antique Bulter's Desk

And we’re back with every body's favorite column, Friday Favorites, after a brief hiatus last week while we were “on location” in New Orleans. Not only were we lucky enough to attend a great conference while we were there but we had the good fortune of peaking into the fabulous Southern home of Carla too! Read on as we take a look into Carla’s house to see what her favorite piece of furniture is from her superb collection of antiques.

Click to read more ...