We are HOME and happy to be here with darling kitties! I hope you will love this charming MUSICA . . .
Perfect music for nesting . . . which is what I did yesterday, our first day home; I waltzed around to this song putting everything back in order; kissing the kitties, hanging laundry, eating farm-stand Honey Crisp apples, putting the pumpkins we bought on the porch, hanging the wreath on the door. I dressed my stove in the two vintage dishtowels I found on the trip . . . cute eh? Look at those embroidered, appliqued apples! How come that was even THERE? Why hadn’t someone snapped it up before me? Lucky!!
I was all over the place trying to figure out how to do this post . . . I have too many different subjects/things from the trip to show you! But since I started with antiques, I thought I would continue that way . . . especially because we careened into every antique-store driveway we saw and found some really fun things.
“Was it open?” were the most-often spoken words on our trip.
This cute little barn was filled with wonderful old stuff.
But this one had the best prices! I found a 4′ x 6′ black, flowered, hooked rug here, for $49! For my pantry. Oh yes!
Some things struck me as perfect for Christmas presents . . . like this large embroidered towel with the title “Mother’s Little Helper” on the back. For some reason I’m weakest for embroidery, potholders, tablecloths, napkins, dishtowels, fabrics, needlepoints; the soft stuff.
And I found another vintage measuring cup! These are not easy to find! The shapes are softer than the modern ones, and they aren’t printed on, they’re embossed!
But this was the big one, and I do mean big. I walked into a wonderful store called Rustology in Stafford Springs, CT and just fell in love with this old doll house. It was almost four feet tall, and about six feet wide . . . and three feet deep.
The front of the house is on wheels and you can roll it away to reveal the wonderful rooms inside.
Wouldn’t Jack just LOVE this? The owner of the antique store said he found it in the attic of a Massachusetts house during an estate sale. It was originally built as an exact replica of the real house — It must have had a room of it’s own to live in, it’s so big.
What this must have looked like when it was furnished, I can’t imagine! That flowered piece on the floor is an actual carpet, a tiny petit point; and you can see the old wall paper. And the doors! And the doorknobs!
If this was my house, I would make everything for it. I would paint little paintings, and mold little clay, and stencil the walls. It would be so much fun finding the perfect pots and pans, making tiny pillows, looking for little dishes. Decorating it for the holidays!!! Joe could make beds, I could make sheets. Our real house could fall apart, but the doll house would be perfect at all times!
It definitely needs help, but it has great bones … and all the wonderful details; trim around doors and baseboards.
The shutters are perfect, and there’s glass in the windows, and through this window you can see two other doors with doorknobs.
The front door . . . Imagine it with tiny lights on it! The owners of the antique store love the doll house as much as me; they were showing it with so much pride. I don’t think they are in any hurry to sell it; they’d only had it for two weeks . . . they were asking $6,500 for it.
Anyway, I had a lot of fun in there pretending what I would do with it if it were mine. I considered which room in my house I might put it in, and came to the conclusion that it was too big for any of them. I also would have wanted it when I was twenty, so I could have done it the same way I did my charm bracelet, making and gathering one piece at a time, from everywhere, so each piece could have a story to go with it. Magical magical house. Lucky someone who will end up with it! But this house requires commitment, if you move, you have to pack it and take it with you which would he a true heck of a packing job! Maybe the smart thing would be to get it, give it to a historical society with the caveat that during your own lifetime, no body touches it but YOU.
This house was in the same store . . . . MUCH less expensive — $250 . . . and pretty darn cute, although it needs a lot of work. It opens like a little closet … how smart, hardly takes up any space at all; I really liked the original shape of this.
And it has lots of charming details too. . .
Inside, you can still see vestiges of the glory that it once was . . . but someone would have to start from the beginning to put it right again.
Sooo, while I’m at it, I thought I’d show you some of the pictures I took of REAL houses as we drove hill and dale around Connecticut and Massachusetts.
Because truly, one of the inspirations that motivated me into moving to New England was the charming houses I saw in books and movies. I wanted an old house sooooo badly; my life just wasn’t going to be complete until I got one.
Just look at these and you will see why. I would be perfectly ecstatic to have any of them! Look at that glassed in porch. Perfect for a tea party!
Obviously these people have another way to get into this very old house besides the front door! Look at those pumpkins!!! Wonderful, huh?
Of course, I am a fool for picket fences with colored leaves falling around them.
Sunny cottage, little arched porch, dentil-work up top, and tiny windows.
Very old house, leaves swirling through the air.
Love this soft yellow house in Historic Deerfield, Massachusetts — if you ever get a chance to drive through here, you should do it…. the prettiest houses ever, so full of history, most of the houses are very old, pre-Revolutionary war!
The great thing about these houses is that no two are exactly alike and all so amazingly romantic … I always wonder what kind of thinking was going on that they added so much gingerbread; the wide porches, bay windows, columns, and balconies? And inside, with all the built-in little nooks and crannies! Some of the bigger houses have a cozy fireplace in every room! I think I would have liked those people!
So on we drove, past houses and barns, farm stands, graveyards, and antique stores . . .
The sunsets would light the mountains on fire with color . . .
In one little town, we saw they were having a Book Sale . . . So of course we stopped to see what treasures we could unearth . . .
OH BOY, look what I found!! My first book, Heart of the Home! Rescue secured! Book no longer lurking pitifully in cardboard box! I brought my baby back home. Pobrecito!
And then, while nesting all day yesterday; I put some Martha’s Vineyard sand in my new measuring cup; then I added a pear-shaped candle I found on the trip, and a couple of shells and some sea glass. I thought, how perfect for the kitchen table!
And then I set it on top of my book, and it all looked so cute together, I thought,
I already have one of these books, and I already have one of these candle holders; I should make this a give-away for the girls, because they stick by me through thick and thin. And so that’s what it is!
And then, guess what? My brand new Collector’s Edition Ornament was waiting for me when I went to get the mail! Isn’t it cute? This is the 5th year in a row for our dated collectible ornament (no, in case you’re wondering, we don’t have any left from the other years; we only get a few in of each design, and because they are dated, when they’re gone, they’re gone!) . . . . so, I thought, oh yes, I better throw this in with the book and the candle, right? They look so good together. ♥
I added a leaf I brought home from the trip . . . . and I’ll sign the book when I know the name of the winner and where its new home will be. Just leave a comment, and you will be entered in our drawing for all these goodies! And BTW, if my blog is being emailed to you, you have to come directly to my website (click here: www.162.240.10.175/~susanbs3/susanbranch/) to enter for the drawing . . . just scroll to the bottom of this post where you see the tiny word “comments.” Click there, and leave a comment and that will automatically enter you!
OK Girls, bye-bye for now … I have more to show you, but realized this would be the longest post EVER if I tried to do the whole trip all at once. So, there’s more to come! XOXO Love, me
Oh, my! What a beautiful post! I’m definitely overdue making a trip to New England in the fall! Such gorgeous colors! Love the architecture, too! Can’t believe the price on those dollhouses, though!:-( I’d have to leave them behind as well.
And – another giveaway! Of course I want my name “in the pot,” though my luck doesn’t seem to be very good lately.:-)
Wishing you a wonderful October day!
xo Nellie
Oh! i just love love going on your trips with you.. always a pleasure visiting your blog.. what a wonderful give away..
smiles and blessings, xxoo
Thanks a million for your wonderful fall travelogue. Our yard was beautiful this year but over tooooo soon! I can almost smell the fall fragrances in your pictures. Love the measuring bowl you found….love the shape.
Oh Susan, thanks for posting today. Feeling a bit under the weather here and get out today, to enjoy Fall, but your pictures…it was like I really went on a little trip ,today. Got to go antiquing, and seeing old beautiful houses, and Fall, FALL, FALL! Mmmmm. Three of my favorite things! :0) AND A GIVEAWAY!! Woo Hoo!!
(btw, you really got my creative juices flowin’ with all the little things we could make for that AMAZING doll house)
Thanks for sharing your trip, Susan. I thoroughly enjoyed it!
I thoroughly enjoyed your trip through New England. I have always been in love with all things about New England. Unfortunately I’ve never had the chance to see it in person– a goal for me. The doll house was magnificent. I can just imagine it in all of it’s former glory. Have a great day.
Thanks Susan, for taking us on another colorful trip! I too, am crazy for vintage linens and loved the kitchen towels you scooped up. It’s so nice of you to share your finds with us!
That doll house reminds me of the one in the girl’s bedroom in the movie Little Women. I have an old doll house that we found in the trash(!) when we lived in Houston TX. It is huge, too, with white antebellem siding and black shudders. It was signed by the builder in the attic and is awesome. I have had it for a number of years and haven’t done anything with it but all your ideas got my head zinging to get it out and work on it. It is hidden in an upstairs closet – how sad. But at least it didn’t end up in the jaws of a garbage truck!! I love your books and don’t have that early one and I would love it. I also love your dishtowels!
To celebrate our 30th wedding annversary, my sweetie and I flew from Utah last year to New England and did a week long leaf peeping trip ending in Niagra Falls (my bucket list). Your autumn post brought back all those wonderful memories of that dream trip. Thank you. It’s a beautiful country we live in. Jan Child
Susan, thanks for taking us on your trips. I have not been able to travel this year as my father is in hospice care in the home. We are blessed to still have him with us. I make miniature roomboxes and dollhouses. I have started using old breadboxes and have a vintage one that in which I recreated my great grandmother’s farmhouse kitchen. What fun it is. Thanks for the extra treats! Jean
Great post–loved it!
Thank you so much for sharing your New England journey with us! That is my idea of perfection….antinquing, leaf peeping, exploring with no agenda. Love the pics of the historical homes. That is my dream some day….to move to New England in an old home that I can fix up and call my own. : ) Thanks again for taking us along on another adventure!
Oh Susan, this darling ornament would look so cute on the Christmas tree I put in my kitchen every year. Thanks for the opportunity to win.
What a lovely trip – my family all lived in Windham CT – two of them in old, old historic houses with incredible gardens – my grandmother’s and an aunt from England who had one of those magnificent ones full of every imaginable perennials (my favorites the delphiniums). I lived there til after WW II and went back summers. I too love old measuring cups – imagine that!
Thanks for bringing New England home to me. I was born in Boston but live in Texas and don’t get back near enough!
Hi everyone! Susan~~~thank you for the wonderful ride & antiqueing extravaganza :0) ! The houses are adorable & just like I pictured on those quaint streets. Can you imagine the little girl who owned the dollhouse & spent hours on end playing & rearranging? Then maybe she gave it to her little girl & on & on. It’s so beautiful. Glad to see Petey on the lookout for buried treasure~~~My Susan Branch books would have to be ripped out of my lifeless hands before they would go in a yard sale though! The vignette you created is really cute~~~would love to have it in my country kitchen :0). Have a happy day.
XO~~~Linda
Hi Susan,
Aaahh, what a lovely trip! Our foliage here in NY is at it’s peak. Would love to travel to NE some day (but only in the Fall!) The dollhouses are amazing. Wow.
Have a great day!
I kept thinking I might see a photo of my Father’s childhood home, he grew up in a beautiful old home in Foxboro. All those photos so reminded me of it. Thank you for giving me recollections of wonderful memories this morning.
Susan…does it get any better than this?? Such a gorgeous part of the country – I now live in the south but am a Yank in my blood, so when I see photos of New England, I get homesick – at least until the snow starts to fall – haha. Even tho I don’t have a blog, may I still be entered in the drawing? (oohh…i hope so… 🙂
have a glorious day !!
p.s. Love the new kitchen color!
When I was a little girl all I could ever think about was being a ballerina. I wasn’t interested in dollhouses. All I ever wanted to do was walk on tipey-toe and twirl while wearing pretty, fluffy pink dresses. Then when I was 25……all I wanted was a dollhouse!! As life sped up and my homes changed, I knew a dollhouse would have to wait for the future. I decided one day to make “renovating” an antique dollhouse my old-age project. I figured at that time in my life I will be pleased to sit for hours painting little chairs and making petit point rugs. I don’t look towards old age (of course MANY years from now) with any sadness, I only think about finally I will get that dollhouse!
In the town where I live is the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley. A beautiful estate and gardens with much local historical significance. On permanent display is the estate’s Garden Designer, Lee Taylor’s, “Miniature” Houses. One is as big as the beautiful house you found Susan in the antique shop. Lee Taylor built the house naming it “Lee Hall” and it is AMAZING….working chandeliers, sterling silver appointments, handmade petit point rugs, handmade furniture. It’s breathtaking. I don’t recall how long it took Mr. Taylor to build his house but it certainly was a labor of love. But isn’t that what a dollhouse is all about? I do hope that charming dollhouse you discovered finds it’s own Mr. Taylor…..
Autumn continues to slowly start here in northwest Virginia. Some trees are early to the party wearing scarlet and gold, while many others are waiting to be fashionably late I suppose. It does smell like Autumn at every turn, damp leaves and woodsmoke and the skies turn a beautiful shade of cobalt blue in the afternoons. Maybe another week and the leaves will be in their full cloak of beauty.
~Jamie
Loved this post. My husband is retiring in June and we can’t wait to take trips like this!
Glad you found a copy of your book and I have a chance to win it. I don’t know the price of doll houses. Is the price of the one you liked over priced or is that a fair price? You can’t beat the color of New England in the fall.
Hi Susan! I have all your books but this one I believe! So had to jump on this offer! But I have no signed copies as yet! And of course I love all the bonus gifts too! I have been following you for many years and enjoy reading your blog daily. It’s my special alone time favorite thing to do! Thank you for your art. It always cheers me! I also have your wall calendars since 2005, where they hang in my little office and I can look right across at the beautiful pictures. I adore all the quotes, and am a big Gladys Taber fan also. I read your blog in the morning, and the last thing I read before I go to sleep is Stillmeadow Calendar! Both of these things relax me and make me happy!
Thank you for sending me to the right person to begin paying dues and be a part of her legacy also! Good Luck in all your future endeavors!
Thank you Susan for sharing your trip with us. It was like a vacation for me too. Loved the homes. I live in Arroyo Grande!!! It’s even feeling like Fall here!!
Our neighbor remodeled their daughters’ play house into a Christmas decorated house! They display it every year next to their gorgeous tree! I miss living in New England, especially this time of year!
It’s always a happy day when there’s a new Susan post. Thanks for the memories. The short video reminded me of the year I lived in Ayer, MA traveling down all those narrow roads in the fall, and stopping at the farm stands for apples. My kids are in their 30’s and 40’s now, but they still talk about how the year we lived in Massachusetts was the best fall and Halloween they ever had.
Wonderful New England houses – so wish I could just drop in to see them all.
Hi, Susan – Wow, look at all the responses! I was just wondering what you think about Pinterest. You have so many wonderful ideas and I was thinking that Pinterest would be a good place to organize the ones I’d like to try. However, I don’t want to do anything without your permission and I noted your side bar admonition. Can we pin and give you credit or would you rather we not?
Thanks!
Karen L.
I’m late reading your blog this time around! However it was worth the wait for such a gorgeous trip through Connecticut and Massachusetts. I’ve visited New England once in the Autumn all the other times have been Summer. (We have family in Connecticut.) Our next visit to the States will definitely be at this time of year, it is stunning. Susan, you are such a good ambassador for wherever you visit !
What a lovely way to” lose” myself for a while! Thank you, for all the hard work you must do to deliver each of your posts. I can barely imagine! I just got texting!! Woo hoo! I’m getting with it!
Oh Susan, Susan…it’s so funny how homesick I get for places I’ve never ever been to! I love the houses, they’re right out of one of my favorite story books. I wish I could visit there and maybe some day I will but in the mean time, I’m so glad you brought us along with you. And thank you for this lovely giveaway!
What a great post! Loved the doll house photos. I’m one of those “crazy”….make that “whimsical” ladies who has a floor to ceiling doll house, 3 floors…kitchen, parlor, bedroom….with 15 inch doll family living there. everything is about 1/5 scale. It’s so much fun to find “treasures” in the right size. The dolls live in the late 1800’s and over many years, have amassed lovely antique articles to fill their home. It does get decorated for the seasons/holidays ….it’s one of my delights to “play dolls” on occasion. Thanks for again taking us on a delightful get-away with you!
Just noticed in your first picture of your kitchen that you still have the old fashion wall phone!! Love it!! The fall driving trip was gorgeous. Thanks for showing some of the houses along the way. I always wanted to live in New England for the old houses and my house wouldn’t be like everyone elses. I think that would be grand. The farthest I have been north was to Cooperstown N.Y. with my baseball nut of a husband one summer. Thanks again for taking me along and maybe I’ll be the lucky one!!
What a fun little trip to see the East in all its SPLENDOR…its coat of many colors – just beautiful! I too love all things vintage and not because vintage is all the rage, but because it’s all about someone and their story. Thanks for sharing the photos of the houses and the treasures you found along the way!
Big blessings on your day today. 🙂
Next year the trip you took is definitely going to be on our agenda. I so want to see New England in the fall. Thanks for sharing your beautiful pictures.
I’m really glad you rescued your book. Some crazy person was parting with it?!
Just kidding. 🙂 It’s really sweet of you to share this neat gift.
It looks like your road trip was a lot of fun, thanks, as always for taking us along!
Welcome home…
Hi Susan, I want to win all those cute, cute, cute things!!!! They would be wonderful in my home!!!!
PICK ME!!!!!!
I enjoyed your post so much. I especially enjoy the ones where you show your kitchen and “nesting”. The post you did on “lighting” was so comforting. I like to get up early and light my little lamps and light candles, too. Fall is my absolute favorite time of the year!!!!
I love your post today with all the gorgeous New England houses and the fall leaves. I’ve never actually been to New England but your post takes me there. If I were you I’d stick with Martha’s Vineyard…you get the gorgeous houses, beautiful fall leaves, plus that salty air which I love. I live in central California and it is starting to get a little cooler here (in the eighties instead of the hundreds) with a few colored leaves. P.S. Your kitchen looks great!
Hi Susan,
I really enjoyed your post today. Fall colors, themes and ideas are my favorite. We are so lucky in our neighborhood as there is such a diversity of trees. People have planted so many types that we have a virtual rainbow of colors in fall. Its gorgeous.
You take such good care of us all!
xoxo Pam
I admire your lively spirit of living and appreciate the fairy dust that you sprinkle on your readers.
I do my best! So happy you are getting a bit of it! xoxo
What a wonderful trip, Susan! I felt like I was right there with you. I loved the doll house as well as the real life ones, too. I know I’ve said it before, but you are the best tour guide EVER. Oh, and I loved how you rescued your book. I rescued Christmas Joy several years ago even though I already had two copies.
The New England houses are my favorite, too, along with the vintage towels, embroidery, etc. Thank you for sharing that wonderful trip.
Thank you for sharing your lovely meanderings through New England. I needed to send my mind someplace peaceful for a little while. We brought a new kitty home from the shelter 4 days ago, and it has been a stressful time for this cat mom. Bella seemed sweet and loving at the shelter, but once home ran and hid under the living room furniture. She has now taken up residence in a tiny crawl space under our gas fireplace (the fireplace co says no danger to her or us!). We have only caught an occasional glimpse of her tail scampering under something, and evidence that she is coming out at night and eating and using the litter box. Any suggestions from any of you girlfriends? Bella is 1 yr 6 mos, was at the shelter for a week after being found, but was already spayed so must have been someone’s pet at one time. She is a pretty little thing (part Siamese) and the shelter attendant pointed her out as a very sweet but somewhat timid kitty (possibly an understatement!). Friends say they have had similar experiences, so that does make me feel a little better. This is a new experience, even though we have had cats for 30 years (you were all kind to offer condolences when we lost our old kitty last month). Help!
That’s terrible! I consider myself somewhat of a cat whisperer (mostly because I like to whisper to them), but this is a tough one. I kind of think it could be normal, with a cat of that age, getting used to a new home. I would think it will come out soon. Maybe someone else can help …? Good Luck Rosanne!
Rosanne…..Hi! I do have a suggestion for Bella…..we have had a similar situation with one of our rescued kitties, and the vet recommended “pheramones”….I dont know if that is how it is spelled, but you can purchase them at a vets in a spray or a plug-in. The plug-in is more effective because it works to fill the entire room with this very soothing and calming Pheramones….and the cat is able to calm down and feel good. We have done this a few times over the years whenever we had out of town guests, or when we moved. The spray is something we use for the kitty carrier. Some kitties are more skittish and nervous. Good luck and hugs to you!
Good Morning Susan! what a beautiful trip you had!!!! thank you so much for sharing!! ahhhh those houses!!!! I want the “green one” !!! I loved the ride….what a view!!!!!! What a nice start to my day!!!!! xoxo
Isn’t fall grand!
Off to buy mums and pumpkins for my front porch. Love the 2012 ornament. No chemo treatment this week. Hooray.
I’m with you Cynthia, HOORAY! xo
Enjoy your week!
Hi, If I look at these pictures one more time my computer will faint. I was in my dream world. Will you ever post the route you took? Thank-you again for taking all of use along.
Oh, what a beautiful trip! Love the colors and what fun to stop in little shops for treasures! My husband and I would take little trips like that on the spur of the moment. Your trip makes me think of him and our fun together. Tks for sharing. Sure glad you were there to save your book! Hugs, Marie
OHBOY!!!…another wonderful travelogue…thanks Susan…my sister just got back from your neck of the woods…she went with two of her friends…they have been friends since kindergarten and when the turned 50 they took a trip…this year they all turned 60 and they trekked to New England…I can’t wait to hear all about her travelogue…snow has been falling here in northern Michigan!!!…I haven’t seen any yet, but they have had it on the news…only three more nights without a furnace…my hubby arrives this afternoon and then we take off for MN on Saturday…
What a wonderful blog post to sit and read today! We just got back from a wonderful fall trip up to Washington Island. I am glad to be home to my own snugly kitty and am so happy to look out my kitchen window at the trees that just seem to glow in the sun, they are such a beautiful rosy color! Washington Island was just beautiful and was so much fun, but it is always so nice to be home and nest! I enjoy your blog so very much and how fun it would be to have a signed book! Time to hang my sheets outside! Let’s all enjoy fall!
You made my morning with all the wonderful autumn photos–feel like I just went on a trip through New England! Thank you…..love your new purchases and the rescued book would be welcome in my kitchen.
LOVE this post! I hope my daughter wants a doll house when she is older so we can play together! 🙂 Would love to win the beautiful treasures you found on your journey as I am in the process of redoing my 1945 kitchen in a more “vintage” feel!
That will be a fun project!
Dear Susan,
How I LOVE that dollhouse! Also, your charm bracelet is wonderful; I wish to build one for myself and my young daughters and yours is an inspiration! I’ve been enjoying your blog so much since I found it a few months ago (through a link on Pinterest about how you clean your down pillows) that this week I ordered six of your books and today got three in the mail! I just had to let you know how amazing and talented I think you are, and that you bring me joy 🙂
Also, I love the way you love your kitties — my boy Spike is my heart, and I feel sorry for those who have never known the special love of a sweet kitty. One day I hope to throw a bridal shower like the one you gave your friend recently, I enjoyed that party tremendously vicariously! I could go on, but you get my point.
Thank you for a wonderful trip through New England in the fall. A visit to this area in the fall is one I MUST make (and hopefully sooner rather than later). Please enter me into your fabulous drawing!
Happy Autumn, Susan! Thank you for the inspiration to do some serious October nesting of my own!
I loved your road trip! You would be the perfect traveling companion for me because I love to stop everywhere and my husband does not. I wish Joe would give lessons!!
Love, love, love the “candleholder.” Would I have to keep it as such, or could I return it to its original purpose? It is so cunning, much more character than modern day pyrex.
It would be yours, to do with as you wish … 🙂
Hi Susan~~~ It’s always good to be home once again isn’t it? Glad that you had such a good time, but then, you knew that you would! All those old houses were just great to see. I always wanted an old home and was so happy when we got to be able to buy our Queen Anne. We are blessed here in Eureka to have soooo many Victorians of all makes. By the way, have you ever been through Eureka when in California? I often wondered.
It will be fun to see who gifts the book, etc this time. I’m always hopeful that one day it will be my turn 🙂
<3 Carol M
Hey “Me!”(that’s what my dad used to say when I was younger!!) I loved this post so much, and want to run right there and buy that doll house! I always wanted one as a little girl! I want to visit New England,(right now!) too, and see all of the beautiful homes there. Thank you so much for sharing them, your fall leaves, beautiful stores, and wonderful finds with us!
Hello Susan,
I too LOVE old linens! Chenille spreads are among my favorites.
Inspired by your antique shops tour and thinking I need to get
out to New England myself! Thank you for sharing your trip with us!
Susan,
It’s finally getting cooler in San Diego, and your field trip was perfect for this morning of cooler weather! Would love to receive all your special treats!!!
Hugs to you!
Maybe someday I will get to do a leaf peeper trip, till then thank you for taking me along! Love the driving movie! I would surely give the cup and book a GREAT home!!
My house is all fixed up for Halloween, I even wear my halloween jewelry and decorate me for the whole month! Love the fall! Thanks again for the trip!
I can’t imagine giving up my Heart of the Home cookbook…even for a good cause. I’m glad you snagged it.
I love living in New England and Fall is the reason why. It’s so picturesque and colorful, it just warms the soul.
So excited about this giveaway I just love that measure cup.
Love this post, thank you for letting us go with you.
Susan, if I had an extra 6,500$ I would give you the dollhouse just for the pleasure of watching you make a real home out of it. Imagine the little people who once played with that house and how delighted they would be to see it come alive again!
Your blog is the perfect way to start my day, especially today when I am home sick. A cup of tea and Susan’s blog make everything better 🙂
L
Oh how I miss autumn drives in New England – can’t wait to be able to do that again. Thanks so much for taking us along on your wonderful excursion and sharing your discoveries with us. The doll houses were simply amazing!!!
Greetings from Canada… the west coast! How I would love to visit the New England coast at this time of year! The houses all look so loved and welcoming!
I read each and every blog entry and so enjoy hearing about your life and adventures! My fingers are crossed for your giveaway! All good wishes to you and yours…
xo
thank you, dear Susan, for taking me on your leaf peeping venture. i look at the pictures and the detailed writings, i close my eyes and i am there. is it a little unsettling that i am living vicariously through you?
What a delightful roadtrip! I have vacation envy right now!!!
My favorite time of year is Fall. My Bucket List contains a trip to New England. On the West Coast Fall doesn’t show up till Nov. I’m so looking forward to it.
Oh, Oh, Oh! Pick me Vanna!!! I would LOVE to have all of that neat stuff! My daughter and I went around the yard yesterday gathering beautiful leaves~ She’s a toddler so it’s a fun way to teach her colors.
Susan, are you following the Moby Dick big read in England? Its wonderful and I think you would like it.
I love the colors of this season and it’s a treat to see what other parts of the country are looking like right now. Thanks for your views as you travel- it’s our mini vacation to enjoy. Memories came back to me with the dollhouse photos of the one I had growing up and the tiny furniture I had and all the fun, too!
You will NEVER find one of my ‘Susan Branch’ books in a box for sale. After I bought your books my favorite thing to do was sit and read and re-read and read them..over and over and…well you get the idea. And now I’m afraid to open them because I’ve seen how much their worth to replace. (I MISS them!) I am a ‘purist’….your blog is the only one I read and check and re-check every day. (I sound like a stalker huh.) I wish there was two or three of you so you could do your books faster….but I guess I’ll just settle for you…..
I wish there were two or three of me too! I have so many projects I’d like to do, but it always has to be one at a time!
I love coming along with you on your trips!
Susan, thank you very much for sharing the trip with us! I was quite excited as I read the blog. The scenes in the pictures and the video clip were all so familiar, as our family lives in the very area that you drove through. In fact, the picture with the red barn on the left in the backround and two white houses on the right of Route 10 is right down the road from us. My son boards his horse at the farm where that red barn is!
So glad that you had a beautiful get away.
I would love a chance to win the giveaway. The ornament is darling…the candle so sweet…and I would love to add to my collection of Susan Branch cookbooks. 🙂
Thank you for the love, beauty, & joy that you bring into all of our lives, Susan!
Blessings,
Selina
Susan, I have enjoyed the fall pictures and articles so much, I just had hip surgery and am house bound, you brought the outside color to me. Thanks!
Would LOVE to win your giveaway. I have recently found two of your books in antique shops. They are my treasures! Thank you so much for sharing your autumn trip. I love reading your blog on my lunch hour. It’s my daily aahhh time! Have a wonderful day. Anne
Thankyou once again, Susan, for bringing New England home to me!!!! I grew up there and miss it so. Deerfield was always a favorite fall stop for us, love those houses with the double front doors!!! Love your shiny new kitchen too!!! Would love your special give-away gift, so YOU!!! Fondly, Kim D. from Dublin, OH
Hi Susan,
That picture of the mountainside with the sun shining on it is gorgeous! Looks like you had a great time. I’ll bet it feels different being on the mainland. I just have to share this about my cousins from Bellingham,Ma—I happened to be with them one Fall and they kept talking about the leaves but they called it the foilage not foliage. I just got the biggest kick out of them. But, nowhere beats a New England Fall that’s for sure. Thanks for sharing with us.
Cecelia
Thanks for sharing the beautiful pictures of your treasure hunting and start of many Fall adventures! I have been enjoying your blog so much and look forward to all your new posts. Autumn is my favorite season – I am enjoying our cool crisp mornings! The crockpot is going to be busy this season with lots of yummy soups and ciders filling the house with wonderful scents! Time to try out some of your posted receipes – Corn Chowder is on my list of ones to try!
I just love your blog!! Thanks for taking the time to share such sweet things.
Thank you for sharing your trip. Loved every picture! I can’t resist an antique store either – it’s the size of my car that keeps me from buying treasures that there really wouldn’t be room for in my house anyway. We’re just beginning to think “FALL” is Southern California. Finally cooling down. Someone brought a plate of pumpkin cookies to share at work today and it’s cool enough for a light sweater. I think the Fall recipes are coming out at my house –I’m looking forward to soup!
What a nice little break you provided for me this afternoon. The music was relaxing and all the houses are so special. I am in the process of buying a house on a lake for scrapbooking retreats and I just love the ideas I get from you and all the other girls in our “club”.
Thanks so much!
Oh, I am living vicariously through you! You make me long for so many things.
Georgeous! Sounds like you two had a fun trip. As I was admiring the beautiful homes and countryside I thought of how New England reminds me of “old” England. Eye candy everywhere you turn and history (though still very young we are). The only difference is the roads are wider! 🙂 Thank you for the little side trip. I had fun and am now enthused about putting out all my Autumn finery.
What a totally wonderful trip you and Joe had! I just loved all of the photos of the houses decked out in their fall finest. The doll houses were true treasures for someone into miniatures too. There is something magical about New England in the fall for those of us who don’t live there. That is why I have enjoyed your photos of the trip. A virtual tour for those of us who live so far away. Please add my name to the hat for the drawing. I can’t think of anything better than one of your books signed by you to keep!! Give Jack a scritch from this adoring log fan!! Oh, I just love those new dish towels on your stove . Perfect for fall!! And that one you found in the antique store that is embroidered red on blue is beyond fabulous!! What a find!!!
Dear Susan…What memories you evoked with the beautiful autumnal pictures..having grown up in the Boston area ,vacationing on the Cape and later living in Vermont where my children were born,Autumn was ,and still is ,my favorite season…..I can still see my dear Mom sitting on the back porch peeling the apples for her famous apple crisp..mmmmmm! I now live in South Carolina and the lack of beautiful colors and crisp mornings are certainly lacking!!!!! But your wonderful blogs bring back wonderful memories and I am able to feel the leaves crunch under my feet and smell the apple crisp baking in the oven,if only for a few minutes!! Thank you so much for the memories!!! Hugs and kisses…GB
Thank you so much for the beautiful fall tour! Sadly our town in Montana has been on fire and raining ash since the middle of August (we’re having a drought) so we are missing our beautiful fall colors!
OHHH Shannon, so very sorry. I’ve been through that in California. It’s like the sun’s turned off … this too shall pass!
What a lovely way to spend time; beautiful scenery and a wonderful companion. Thank you for taking us along!
awww lovely as always! thank u for sharing another adventure and taking us along!
Hi Susan. I love seeing what fall looks like in different parts of the us. Its all beautiful and brings the same kind of feeling. I’m going to go eat an apple now =)
I loved seeing the photos of your trip! And I’m very envious of all the antique shops you visited along the way. The photos of the dollhouse were a real treat, thanks!
I love your quotes from Gladys Taber, she is one of my favorite authors.
Happy Fall!!
Thank you Susan, for taking us along, I think this will be my only trip to see the fall countryside in New England this year. Very Sweet to see it through your eyes!
Love the fall tour-you bring a little bit of heaven to those of us who live farther inland. Thank you, Susan!
Looks like a really lovely trip. “Heartaches” is one of my favorites. I like it by Ted Weems Orchestra best. Check it out on youtube!
Love that doll house! See we really can have the house of our dreams, even in miniature! Wouldn’t that one be so fun to play with? The staircase was so perfect and so was the little doors with doorknobs. Love the measuring cup, book, and ornament! Maybe this time!!!!!
I love New England in the Fall. My family and I were there last October and loved every single second we were there. Driving through the back roads with the leaves tumbling around you is so perfect.