With Spring Right Around the Corner WHEN is the Best Time To Start Planting?

On By Barbara StroudIn Design Inspiration, flowers, Garden Center, Photograph, THOUGHTSLeave a comment
Colorful flowers at a nursery/design store

It’s been a cold harsh winter here in Charleston, SC 😉 – for us… BUT, absolutely nothing compared to other parts of the country – that’s for sure. A week here or there of brutally cold temps is nothing (and not even considered “brutally cold” elsewhere). Temps this week ranging from 70-80 degrees for the next ten days. SO, when is it safe to begin planting? It’s difficult to pass by wonderful nurseries and see GORGEOUS flowers and want to load up and get planting, right?

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Quick & Easy Banana Oatmeal Nut Muffins

On By Barbara StroudIn FOOD, HOME, Muffins/Quick Breads, RecipeLeave a comment
banana oatmeal nut muffins on pretty glass dish

Bananas. Love them, but really loved the back goods that come as a result of them sitting on the counter getting nice and full of little brown dots. You can smell the sweetness. Ahhhmazing! I’ve been on a banana bread kick, and thought it might be good to switch to something a tad healthier. More oatmeal than flour, less butter than the banana bread – this is a fabulous treat that freezes and reheats very well. Here’s the recipe…

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What does “mise en place” mean to you?

On By Barbara StroudIn cooking, Favorite Things, FOOD, North Carolina, THOUGHTSLeave a comment
Pop up cooking class took place in the bar area with Chef Josh Vilain from The Swag in North Carolina.
Executive Sous Chef Josh Vilain – 2025

This term is one of my favorites. I think about it often. If you aren’t familiar with this term please read on, it’s interesting and could enrich your life in many ways. It’s usually used in reference to cooking, but is an essential life skill that everyone should learn. Your life could be made far easier if so. Sometimes you just NEED things to be in place to facilitate whatever it is your doing to make it efficient with time not wasted looking for things because they aren’t where they belong. So what does mise en place mean?

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Where is one of the Freshest Meals in Charleston, SC Served? Answer below…

On By Barbara StroudIn Charleston, Favorite Things, Salad, THOUGHTS2 Comments
Fabulous and fresh salad with herbs, veggies and shrimp

Fresh, tasty and exploding with flavor. This salad was the perfect combination of silky lettuce leaves (they’re gorgeous and so delicious), the crunch of the peanuts and crispy shallots that adorn the top – ooooh! Truly a delight for the senses. We just recently started going to this restaurant (we like the Mt. Pleasant location for the seating, but takeout is available closer to us). Where is this wonderful restaurant? The food is as tasty as it is beautiful!

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Could this be Charleston’s last cold day this year?

On By Barbara StroudIn Charleston, Photograph, THOUGHTS, weatherLeave a comment
blue sky bare tree - winter

Crazy temps this time of year. Nice. Warm. Warm & humid. Cool. Nippy. Windy & nippy all in the span of a week or two. How crazy. We cannot complain (I’m not, I love colder weather!) with a high in the low 50’s and a low in the low 30’s – will. not. complain. Just look at this photo. The bluest of skies, the starkness of the bare tree. Our azaleas are budding and that’s no lie! Temps will be near and at 70 in the coming week…

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Performing now: The Broadway Hit & Juliet is in Charleston through the weekend!

On By Barbara StroudIn ART, Best of Broadway, Charleston, THOUGHTS2 Comments

What a fabulous show! & JULIET is in Charleston through the weekend. If you love high energy performances, where you sit down and 2.5 hours FLY by before you realize it’s over, well then… THIS is the show for you! Part of the Best of Broadway series, this was out of this world fabulous. It was hilarious, and the music was spot on. Each performer knocked it out of the park. Most so young, with this level of talent, it was jaw dropping.

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Book Review: BOOK LOVERS by Emily Henry!

On By Barbara StroudIn books, Fiction, THOUGHTSLeave a comment
Book Lovers by Emily Henry

Emily Henry does it again. Another good book to take you away from everyday life. Ideally read with your toes stuck in the sand while on the beach, but it was just as lovely reading it in the house, no sand… I always like a good setting (small town, North Carolina) – it makes me want to move to a place like that. Nice people, a bookstore, great small town vibe, etc. Add this book to your TBR list…

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The Old Pitt Street Bridge – Mount Pleasant, SC!

On By Barbara StroudIn Mount Pleasant, Photograph, THOUGHTSLeave a comment
View from Pitt Street Bridge in Mount Pleasant SC.

If you aren’t familiar with the old Pitt Street bridge in Mount Pleasant – you might want to take a peek next time you’re in the area. It is the perfect use of an old bridge. A new bridge was built and some had the forethought to keep a portion of the old bridge so people could walk out, enjoy the stunning vistas, fish, walk their dogs, jog, visit, etc.

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Take A Moment To Reflect…

On By Barbara StroudIn ART, Art Event, Photograph, THOUGHTS2 Comments
mirrored ball reflecting me pointing at a sign to take a moment to reflect

I took this photo at the Robert Lange Gallery in Charleston, SC. Owners, Robert & Megan Lange have created a space (from their very first gallery) that is cutting edge, draws excellent artists who’s work is so creative it’s wonderful to visit and take it all in. The gallery itself is a work of art and that’s no lie. So much creativity – and the gallery – wow, it’s a beauty.

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Book Suggestion: Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult!

On By Barbara StroudIn books, Fiction, THOUGHTSLeave a comment
Book by Jodi Picoult entitled WISH YOU WERE HERE

THIS. BOOK! I was looking through photos the other day and ran across an image that I posted “Essential Workers” that was painted on a parking garage at a Charleston, SC hospital. I was almost done with this book yesterday when I posted that image and wow, does it ever ring true. This book sucked me in and I couldn’t believe where it took me. Quite the ride…

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Charleston, SC Snow Pic Through the Window

On By Barbara StroudIn Charleston, HOME, Photograph, THOUGHTS, weatherLeave a comment

So many of you have experienced record snowfall in the past month or two – and more specifically this past weekend. There were varied amounts that fell throughout the area. We didn’t have a lot, but the road did look icy yesterday morning. I snapped this once it had been melting for a while. It was nice to wake up to fresh, beautiful snow. Especially knowing it won’t be there long…

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A Winter Walk Around Charleston, SC!

On By Barbara StroudIn Charleston, Design Inspiration, HOME, Photograph, THOUGHTS2 Comments
Charleston, SC street view with St. Phillips church in background. Window boxes. Winter.

It’s winter in the Lowcountry (and is actually going to feel like it this weekend with low temps dropping to the 20’s and the highs in the 30’s and 40’s). We have nothing to complain about compared to the rest of the country, that’s for sure! Walking in the sunshine feels so good, it can warm you right up, pop over to the shady side of the street and you’ll need a coat for sure!

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