Hello all, Welcome! I hope you all got your WILLARD (if you didn’t, don’t worry, you will, it’s going out today but it takes three days for them all to go). I wanted to have everything ready for you when you got here, so yes, in the vernacular of the day, I’ve been “tidying up!” I have lots to show you, but let’s start with the little things that make life sweet with background MUSICA perfect to energize us for the job ahead . . . 
I love this time of year! Time has slowed down, a lovely long January is gone . . . our Island outside my window is cold blue sky, leafless trees, old houses, quiet and colorless (except for the cardinals, our flying Valentines), and in complete healing-mode from the Summer onslaught. No cars going by, no one on our walk in the morning but us. 😁
If you read my last post, you’ll see my sideboard looks very different than it did over Christmas! I’ve been putting my house back together. It was fun decorating with all the holiday stuff 🎄, I was a little sad to see it go, but then felt huge relief to have it all gone! It’s usually around the 5th of 
January, when suddenly all the sparkly, pine-needly things I LOVED in December, begin to drive me crazy. The wreaths on the kitchen doors block the light and drop needles every time we go in or out, then leave a Hansel and Gretel pine-needle trail from the kitchen to the studio. Time to say goodbye to the old year, and hello to the new. The tree came down (we don’t drag it through the house because then vacuuming takes forever ~ Joe takes the branches off to keep the mess confined, and tosses everything out the window!), ornaments were boxed up, bows and ribbons are back in the attic, dusty mistletoe is gone from the doorways, my house is peaceful and quiet with only the sound of wood falling to ash in the fireplace, joy is sparked to the nth degree! 
So, in case you can’t tell, we’ve been watching Tidying Up with Marie Condo. Have you seen it? It’s about a woman who loves to organize, she wrote a book about it, I think more than one, and now has a show on Netflix where she comes to people’s homes and teaches them how to de-clutter their things. Watching someone else clean is inspiring ~ and it’s catching! It makes you want to jump up and get organized ! My eyes suddenly see the chaos around us. How can we live this way!!! If you need help getting going I highly recommend it. Even Joe’s gotten into it and that’s saying something!
She has all sorts of tips ~ she teaches people how to fold things into tiny packages (something I will never do because I choose speed over neatness), and file them on their sides in boxes in drawers to make them more visible. Which was thrilling to see, because it meant I was doing something right!! I’ve always done Joe’s shirts that way (except for the tiny-package folding!) . . .
. . . filed them in a row so he can see the logos and know what he’s getting into without unfolding. It’s not perfect or tiny, but Joe loves it!
I don’t know if it was Marie, or if it was because it was January, but as I was cleaning up the Christmas things, suddenly I couldn’t stand to see boxes or bags parked conveniently next to a wall, did not care for piles of books anywhere but in the bookcases, didn’t want to see folded market bags piled on my little red kitchen chair, or any little bits and pieces dropped here and there that added up to clutter. 🚫 I needed clean walls I could walk up to like a starving man needs a ham sandwich. I couldn’t even work until I got this house under control!
I did it! Everything’s in its place (well, not everything!) with sunshiny face . . . now it’s February (rabbit-rabbit💛) and I’m back to work! Of course, now my studio is a complete mess because as you know creating is not neat, but the rest of the house is heaven. All my best intentions fulfilled, lightheartedness returned!
Most of my table tops have barely anything on them! It won’t last long, but right now I see this and go “Ommmmmm.”
Candlesticks & votives, glass, wood and brass, are sorted and put away, Christmas 
books are back in the hutch, tablecloth and napkins are starched and ironed, on hangers, in the front closet, floors are swept and vacuumed, we’re dusted and ready for the next event. I think of my house sort of like a movie set . . . once Christmas is put away, everything is organized, I leave it smooth and plainly cozy until the next season or event, then I change the throw pillows, add flowers, bunnies, bunting, garden books, and voila! It’s spring!
There’s a big difference between clutter, and decorated. I do not see these shelves as cluttered! I think it’s because everything up there gets used on a fairly regular basis. I could never be a minimalist and hide everything away. Serious minimalism looks heartless to me. Life is too short not 
to set out my Beatrix Potter figurines, hang my teacups on hooks, fold cute dishtowels over the handles of my stove, or put a paper calendar on the wall in my kitchen. Real life is not going to allow me to hide away our family photos, or baskets of rosy apples, or old quilts just for some crazy fashion that will change in an hour anyway!
I wrote about it in my Girlfriends Book. How when I was 11 or 12 I would try and get my girlfriends to play, “Let’s go home and decorate our bedrooms.” A game I mostly ended up playing all by myself! I still redecorate the way I wrote about here . . . and put back one “joy bringer” at a time.
Marie suggested that as we sort, we shouldn’t be looking for things we want to throw out, instead we should look for things we want to keep! It does make it easier! Gather everything into a pile, keep just the things you love and get rid of the rest! She sees organizing as a spiritual endeavor … believing there’s a divine spirit in everything. It feels like that to me. A sort of gratitude for all we’ve been given. It reminds me of a quote I put in my Autumn book by Joe Friday (respected elder of the Alaskan Yup’ik Eskimos) . . . who’s gone now but should should be remembered for this lovely thing:
So glad to the wood. Everything is related. Touch one thing, you touch it all. I say thank you as I oil my wooden cutting board, imagining the people who made it, remembering all that chopping for all those dinner parties, as I oil the wooden handles on my old pots and pans,
and my wooden cooking spoons (my dad made the one with my name on it 💞 ). I want them to last forever. I starch and iron my curtains, shine my windows, make my stove sparkle with plain hot water, refold my old quilts, and dust my bookcases. Because things we use every day have character. Makes me happy.
These things aren’t just merchandise, part of a throw-away world. They’re gifts. When my Grandma died, the only thing I asked for, since I had always gotten her very best when she was alive, was the old wooden spoon she used to scramble her eggs and mix her cookie dough. Because that spoon had her in it. That spoon and my grandma had cross-pollinated their DNA, while alone in the kitchen, beating brown sugar, butter, and walnuts, a long time ago.
It’s why I love old things and that includes this old house of creativity filled with kindly ghosts of the past. As I was tidying up, it was easy to know which of our things “sparked joy” as Marie says, and which ones made me sing out, 🎵 Yaaaard Saaaale 🎶 as I packed up boxes to go. Our busy lives and this modern world do not naturally provide us with the peace and sustenance we need to grow, space for creating, a gentleness for our families. But we can make it for ourselves. We have all the power. As the Chinese proverb says, “Outside noisy, inside empty.”
One more thing, in case you find yourself in a cleaning-emergency on a day when deep tidying and tiny folding is not going to be possible, with possibly just ten minutes to clean your house for guests, here’s what you do:
So, in-between the tidying up, what have I been doing in my studio? Lots. I guess I should say, “we.” We’ve been busy!
Here’s the other half of “we,” my partner-in-crime who plunks his righteous self down in the middle of my art table any time he wants and gives me this look. Like, “What?” Requires belly rub, many kisses. Petty pet of my dreams.
I made a soft little embroidered doll of Jack. Put his heart on the outside. Gave him a little quilt all his own. He’s only 6″ tall (extremely gentle, for children) ~ he and his quilt will come in a sewing/embroidery kit. We’ll have the kit in the web store soon, so some little child out there, maybe yours, can put Jack to bed someday. ♥️
And a quick update, for all of you who pre-ordered and are waiting patiently for your little vases, butter dishes, tea bag holders, and all the others, we are being told to expect them soon. I keep asking, when, when, when, they keep saying soon, soon, soon 😜 . . . so have faith and know the SECOND they arrive, yours will be first to go!! We won’t forget! Soothing MUSICA to make you forget. 🎵 And this:
And, despite kitty distraction in the Studio, new cups are on the way! At the end of the last post I asked everyone what cups they’d like to see and did the best I could to make you happy! So here we go: Four new cups, Fine Bone China, made in England, coming late March! This one, the large 16 oz, is “Bella Luna!” For all you moon-watchers like me! 💛
Every time you use it you can wish on a shooting star! I never painted a shooting star before!
The moon and constellations in a sea of stars . . .
And here is brand new Cup #Two, “Home Sweet Home” . . . this is for you who love the smaller, 11 oz. size, a bunting-draped celebration of . . .
Here’s the side, says it all.
Here is the other side…. a little house of my own . . .
And here is the cute handle! These are only paper mockups, I promise the real things will look much better!
And #3, You all asked, so Yes! A great big 16 oz. Birthday Cup! Because everyone has a birthday and what would be a better celebration than “Having your cake and eating it too?”
There is singing . . .
. . . balloons, a hat, and suggestions for fun!
And another perky handle! Happy Birthday Girlfriends! 🎈
And one more large, 16 oz. cup, due to popular demand, it’s the “English Corgi” cup . . .
With the perfect T.S. Eliot quote surrounded by blue forget-me-nots:
An empire of imagination!
And the side . . . complete with Union Jacks, lamb and castle.
And would not be complete without an English rose on the handle.🌹
And, extra exciting news, guess what? For the first time, the actual BBC website is going to carry one of my cups, this one! For their print catalog and web store! And also my book, A Fine Romance, Falling in Love with the English Countryside! So honored! Secretly extra-thrilled as it is one step closer in my diabolical plan to get to the National Trust. Would love for them to carry my book someday. At least now we’re in the same neighborhood! 🇬🇧 👍
They’re already in production in England, and up for Pre-sale now… as you know, I try to make sure there’s enough for everyone, it helps so much when you pre-order, that way, when I give the factory final numbers, I’m fairly sure everyone who wants one will get one! I usually add on some extra for those who forget, but sooner or later they’re gone. So if you have a special birthday coming in September, be sure to think about it now!
Movie News: I keep promising you an update on the “movie” ~ the project in the works to get my book Martha’s Vineyard Isle of Dreams onto the big (or even little) screen … and every time I think I will just blab what I know, the person working to make it happen sweetly warns me not to!!! 🎬 Grrrr. So all I can say is that it’s still a possibility. Which is better than saying it isn’t! Seems so easy! Movie about starting over, woman and three cats in darling cottage in woods? What could be better? Just say Yes!
Okay, back to the drawing board, 🎨 but before I go . . . I was thinking, what would be a really special giveaway for today? I thought of the perfect thing, then another idea popped up, then another, I didn’t know which to do! I finally gave up and decided to do all three! It’s almost Valentine’s Day! 💖 All you have to do to enter is leave a comment at the bottom of this post (click at the tiny word “comment”), and you’ll be automatically entered for all three gifts! In a few days, Vanna, our resident “Random Number Generator” will draw the names of three lucky winners and I’ll announce them here. So, here’s giveaway number one, very rare . . .
A brand new copy of Girlfriends Forever! When I find out the winner’s name, I’ll personalize it before I send it. They’ve been out of print for a long time, but during my “Tidying Up” phase, I found a small pile of these books in the back of a closet! Buried treasure! And timely, because what could be better for a Girlfriend’s Valentine than a book about best friends! You may have one, but perhaps a special Valentine girlfriend of yours doesn’t! So anyway, this one’s for YOU, and Sheri put the others in our web store for however long they last!
And then I was walking by my newly decorated stove shelf, and was suddenly reminded of this timeless Valentine . . . charming old words I found carved on a stone on a dovecote in England.
Here’s a closer view! Giveaway #2, Love Stays!
And, last but not least, this luv-lee 16 oz, fine bone china cup that asks, “Have I told you lately that I love you?” Is there a better Valentine Message? This one will be going out to some lucky winner in honor of our Girlfriend Dee Lamphear and her husband Brad 💞, to celebrate their forever love and happy marriage.💖
This is the back . . . it says it all, cup-wise, winter-wise and love-wise.
So don’t forget to leave a comment! Remember, you have much better chance of winning here than if you played the lottery!💖
Last but not least, here’s a delicious recipe to help keep your house warm . . . I wish I could send out smells from my computer, so when you opened my page on a freezing cold morning you’d find the cozy smell of baking biscuits. That’s how you would know it’s me. I wish someone would invent that. Unfortunately, under the circumstances, you’ll have to make them for yourself!
Make them in heart-shaped pans and they’re the perfect Valentine gift.
Cut them in half, toast them, add orange marmalade or yummy Christmas Jam and bring them to a lucky Valentine near you. For more Valentine’s ideas, plus a link to get a Valentine Bookmark, go HERE.
If you haven’t signed up to receive my Blog in your mailbox, and you’d like that, or you’d like to surprise your mom, sister, grandma, or best friend, please go HERE.
Winter is king of intimate delights, Enjoy the quiet, light the candles, make a fire, pull on toasty socks, feed the birds, eat hot biscuits. Life is good. Have a wonderful day Girlfriends, kindred spirits. Bake and stay warm! More surprises in the next blog!
How sweet that you refer to cardinals as “Our Flying Valentines”……I watched and smiled at a couple right outside my bedroom window today. I agree with the thought “When a Cardinal appears, an Angel is near” and I felt as if I was being visited by my loved ones. It was a hug from Heaven! Perhaps they were my Valentine greetings!
thanks for brightening my day–I love your stuff!
Happy February!
Thanks for a chance to win!!!
Oh Susan! You’ve got the Marie-Condo fever! I need to try the method but with my 4 month old baby I’m in survival mode. No wonder my house is messy!
I love the new mugs! So precious! And Jack’s pillow is adorable! I may try to get one for my older child, who loves cats. Thank you for the chance to win and good luck to everybody 🙂
You are BUSY, Gaby. In the best way. There’s a wonderful little poem I put in my Baby Love book,
Cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow,
For babies grow up, we’ve learned to our sorrow;
So quiet down, cobwebs,
Dust, go to sleep!
I’m rocking my baby, and babies don’t keep.💖
It’s that time of year; just took a big box and a bag to the thrift store. More to come!
Another enjoyable post, especially your “Quick Clean” list! And the mugs! Be still my heart!
Dear Susan, I love your new cups. And I enjoyed your blog about tidying up. I just recently did one drawer in my bedroom, hooray for me. However, my Christmas tree is still up and putting all decorations away will be a downer. . But next, Valentine’s and then St. Paddy’s and Easter. More fun. Kiss Jack for me.
Your blog is just the perfect pick-me-up, and it came today when I really needed it! Thanks so much for putting your whole self into everything you share with us out here in the sphere!
I love your blog. Your words and photos make my day brighter. And your new cups! Just beautiful. I think for birthdays, holidays, whenever gifts are given one should buy a gift just for themselves also. One of my traditions. Thank you for wonderful give-aways!
Great to hear that ‘AFine Romance’ is on the BBC site! The Home Sweet Home cup is my favorite, very sweet! Happy Valentines to you and yours🌹
Love reading your blog
Love all the new mugs. I too have embraced tidying up this year. I’m half way through my side of the closet. The plan is to slowly work my way through the house.
This is the happiest blog in all the Internet! I hope I win! Fingers crossed!
I love the new cups! I always tell myself I have enough, I don’t need anymore. Then I see the new ones and all that fine talk goes out the window! Thank you for sharing your cheerful joy with us! We love you for it!
What a joy reading your blog brings to my day! I thought I was the only one who absolutely loves loves loves Christmas decorations but then sometime in early January I can’t wait to put it all away and clean the entire house. Thank you for the idea about how you get rid of your Christmas tree! Just brilliant! My fingers are crossed that Isle of Dreams will become a movie! How could it not?! I hope you are enjoying the quietness of winter on the island. As always, thanks for sharing your ideas, experiences and creativity with us!
Dear Susan,
Yes, I agree that from time to time it’s freeing to thin things out a bit and it feels so wonderful to get organized, but your photos of your home and decorating are so beautiful, cozy and homey and give a lot of JOY and I know Marie Kondo says to keep things that spark Joy in you and you continue to give us JOY !
Your new items that will be available on the horizon are BEAUTIFUL !! Thank you !
Always good to see some color this time of year!
Susan, I love reading your blog,it is like spending time visiting a special friend. I say “Susan Branch makes life sweet”! Thank-you xoxoxoxoxo
I’m reading every one of these comments. They are so wonderful and dear, I think everyone should read them to see what beauty there is in this world. Thank you Denise xoxoxoxoxoxo
Inspired to clean and enjoy the treasures (and they are) I keep. And….love your comments on Twitter. Similar minds!
It IS a wonderful time of year! None of the holiday stress just love in our hearts and thoughts! Thank you for a luv-Lee post!
So fun to see all of the new products on their way! The “Love Stays” stand quote is from “For Katrina’s Sun Dial” by Henry Van Dyke – one of my all-time favorite quotes. It was used as the epigraph in the final book of the Betsy-Tacy series by Maud Hart Lovelace – Betsy’s Wedding, which is a wonderful story of two people very much in love beginning their marriage in the early 1900’s – a great read for Valentine’s Day!
Thank you, Susan, for always reminding me that in this world, old-fashioned is not necessarily old and out of style, that charming and cozy are still good things.
Wishing you and Joe a wonderful Valentine’s Day – it’s also my beloved hubby and my 17th wedding anniversary – can’t wait — but with this amazing man, every day is a celebration and a blessing! ( Oof — too mushy?)
All the best to you always–
Susie :o)
As you know, that quote was carved in Cotswold stone when I found it, hanging on a very old and wonderful dovecote . . . with no attribution. You just gave it more story, thank you Susie!
I always love your mugs and the new ones are all so special! Love them! I may especially love the moon one as I just love a full moon so much. I always print and laminate your moon bookmark each year. It’s going to be hard to beat last month’s super blood wolf moon!
Always love when a new post shows up in my email. Thanks for the giveaway…I’d love to win any of the three but really love that cup.
Wonderful giveaway, Susan! And your descriptions of de-decorating for the quiet and peacefulness of winter—ahhhhhhhh! I could almost breathe easier after reading!
Will be hoping to will a treasure from a soul friend. You, Susan. Your art work is tender and dear!
Dear Susan,
Today was a gift, I was able to spend the day with my adult daughter who has is disabled…we had a wonderful time!
Thank you for your constant enthusiasm and joy of living.
Take good care.
Yayyyy, Joe, for cutting off those Christmas tree branches and throwing them out the window! What a great idea!❤️
Dear Susan … Today is Chinese New Year, Year of the Piggy🎋🐷🎋
Wishing you health and happiness .. it’s been a tough couple of years:
losing my brother and sweet mother within 14 months .. PBS has the program Queen Mother:
an amazing quote from her as she was asked about losing the King, the Love of her Life,
Does it get.better? She replied, No .. but I am getting better at it… quite profound don’t you think? As she told me .. Lost is a part of this amazing thing called Life💝
Aloha-ha … Xo Evie in San Diego, CA
So right. The year I lost my dad, I also lost my brother. I haven’t been able to even say that out loud before. Tears still fall. But I’m getting better at it. Blessings on you Evie, always wonderful to hear from you.
Oops .. as you told me … Lost is a part of this amazing Life❣
How always hearing from you .. lifts my heart and spirit!!
😘
Thank you so much for all the joy you spread !
After a week filled with doctor appointments and taking our cat to the vet (she’s okay), it was a real treat this evening to sit down at my computer with a cup of tea and some Myer Lemon cookies and read (and LOOK at) your blog just now. Thanks for transporting my spirit to a magical, heart-warming place.
Love your girlfriends book! I met my best friend, Jan, at the doorway to our kindergarten classroom in Mankato. Even though I moved away, we kept in touch, were college roommates, life long friends for 77 years. We have shared life joys and sadness,and many good laughs.
Love the organizing and putting away of all things Christmas. It’s like having a clean slate to do as you wish! Thank you for posting the giveaways – I would love any one. So thank Vanna if I’m a winner! Looking forward to Willard to arrive in my in box:)
Hello Susan!
There’s nothing more fun than your giveaways—except reading your blog posts and Willards, and reading about your new projects!
Happy Winter, and God Bless.
,
Hi Susan!!!
Your blogs are always the highlight of the day! I truly treasure ALL of your books and they always bring me pleasure – so they will always be kept!!!!!
Hi Susan! I always look forward to your blog post in my email. It’s a fun and lovely read. And, as for minimalism…what a silly notion!! 🙂
My evening is complete. I’ve gotten my Susan fix…relaxing and just spending quite time reading your blog. If it wasn’t so late I would clean the house…smile!
Thank You, Susan. For all the inspiration & fun. Its such a breath of fresh air! 🙂
I’ve missed your musings of late–then here you are! Just what I needed for these busy days. Our skinny Christmas tree is still up plus a few other things, but I won’t apologize. It’s waiting for a Heartie party with my girl pals to watch our favorite show’s Christmas movie before the new season starts in a few weeks. I did add a few little Swedish hearts for Valentine’s Day just because. It’s not a real tree, so I won’t be cutting off branches and stuffing it out the window! Your disposing of your tree cracked me up!
Thanks so much for a chance to have my name in the bowl as Vanna dives in to choose the lucky gals!
This lovely chatty post today, and perhaps a Willard tomorrow or the next. What could be better! Tidying up is so satisfying. A neat house releases creativity for me. Have a most lovely February. Thank you for the giveaway opportunity!
As always a wonderful blog. I, too, have read Marie’s book and have put some of her tidying up into practice. I haven’t seen her show since I don’t have Netflix but it sounds fun. Back to cold temperatures here in the Midwest , but looking forward to Valentine’s Day .
So..winter came to the central coast! I am ready for spring. Our bulbs are confused and are almost blooming. I am a sunshine kind of girl! I am looking forward to the new items getting to Apple Farm. I am always inspired by your decorating, but can never quite pull it off as you do!!
Yes, to the movie! Yes, yes, yes! ♥️♥️♥️
I loved your comments on tidying up and sorting through our possesions. I sold my home of 43 years and moved to a one bedroom apartment and took with me the things that bring me the most joy. Sure its a little crowded in here but I daily get to look at my favorite things. One shelf in my bookcase holds your books which I open often. I would love one of your beautiful cups to place alongside.
Beautiful new cups!
Thank you for taking the time to send out your lovely emails, full of so many good things. I’ve been learning from Marie Kondo too. Thank you for sharing! You bring me joy.
Happy Valentines
day, Susan!
I read the Marie Kondo Tidying Up book two Januarys ago, and it inspired me to clean out my whole house….then I did my mothers house…..and it seems to have worked, as it hasn’t gotten all cluttered up again…..just in a few spots like kitchen drawers and the desk mess. As well as reminding me of how many lovely things I do own, it also made me more conscious of buying more stuff I don’t really need….unless it brings me joy. I was wondering if a Willard newsletter is the same as the blog or is it something different? I think I might have signed up for it before, but never received it?
They WERE two different things, but they’re now being combined. If you wish to receive it in your email, you’ll need to sign up via the link I put at the bottom of the post. Hope that helps!
Been away and have missed your postings! They always make me smile and brighten my day! Thank you so much for sharing your joy in life, in people, and what I call “feel goods”. I have more than I can count, but every single one of them makes me happy when I see it or touch it or even think about it. Won’t ever stop being grateful for your presence in my life; I share so many things with you, was even born the same year. Could we be ‘Irish twins’?? Thanks for all of the joy in life that you so wonderfully share with your girlfriends!!
I love your work!
Your current post could not have better timing. I’m at home sick today and your pics, messages and mugs were the best medicine ever! So excited for the new mugs and more movie info!
As always, reading your blog is like a mini vacation! I love all my Christmas decor too but it always seems so clean and neat after everything is put away. Spent some time just being cozy with the snow and polar vortex we have had recently. I made some snuggle blankets for my two kitties while enjoying a hot drink.
I just re-read A Fine Romance, ( I think that was the third time, but who’s counting!), and found it just as delightful as ever. I’ve also watched Tidying Up and found it quite inspiring but I’m still trying to find the courage to dump all my clothes on the bed! Oh my! Love the new mugs, I think it’s time to add another to my collection, they DEFINITELY spark joy!
Dear Susan:
I love the “flying Valentines” comment and thought that you might take that creativity of yours and make a little banner of flying Valentines in the shape of birds with some of your GREAT artwork on them. I, too, love Cardinals. We don’t see them in CA. I grew up in MI and they always came in the winter. Thanks for your wonderful blog. I just love it!!! and your fur babies too!!!
Happy Valentines to you and Joe!!!
Joyce in Northern CA
Aww, this is perfection! Such a lovely update; I’ve been hoping for one. It’s always a joy to read something beautiful and hopeful in such trying times.
I adore that England cup! And it’s so fun that you have new ones coming. And a movie. And your darling house and clothes folded in the drawer sparking joy everywhere! Have a great day.
What a lovely read on a chilly, snowy day…thanks!!!
Always look forward to your posts. You are so inspiring. Thanks. Enjoy the rest of the winter. I am looking forward to Easter as I was born on EasterSunday April 21, 1957 and this year it’s on April 21 also. It only took 62 years to happen again.
Solomon good to hear from you. I love that you are tackling some spring cleaning, what better time than a chilly February morning. I love to get in and accomplish something homely. I loved my Grandma very much and was the last to be given a keepsake. I chose her rolling pin and the drop coffee pot that she and gramps brought out at every meal. Susan, I love the way you spark my memory about the true treasures in life. Looking forward to a new Willard.
Love how your writing captures the essence of each season! So genuine & heartfelt! And I’m going to borrow some of your good points to debate my husband who prefers minimalism rather than my treasure trove of teacups, antique bowls, books, etc, etc!!
Your blog brightened a very dreary winter day and inspired me to do some tidying up of my own. I love the new cups, can’t decide which is my favorite!
Love those mugs!
My Matty gave that Tidying book to me awhile back. It has since disappeared in the stuff lying about. I have the toughest time throwing away my treasures. If not for him I would probably also disappear under my stuff. Should it be found, I’ll try reading the book again. Thanks for this blog entry! 💕 Teri
Thank you for brightening 2019!! Your blogs are always uplifting and a gift from heaven!!
Hi, Susan. I loved what you said about your grandmother’s wooden spoon. I have an old triangular shaped aluminum pan that has a separate handle that fits into a slot on the side of the pan. It was used by my mother to make our cocoa and to heat tomato soup. It’s a funny looking old pan, but it evokes the same feeling you expressed about the wooden spoon. I’m almost 80 and my mother died when I was 17. It helps me keep her memory close. Thank you for the awesome giveaway. Maybe one of these years I’ll be lucky enough to win something. 😉 I treasure all my books you have signed.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Nancy (from Bakersfield)
Loved that Nancy! Thank you! xoxoxo
Love the new mugs- so creative!
Hi Susan,
I always look forward to your blog posts, they are the perfect pre-bedtime, turn off the TV quiet read. So relaxing! And I have a lot of experience with decluttering. I belong to a support group that deals with that situation exclusively. Has done wonders for me and my household, to say nothing of my sanity!
Anyway, please put me in your drawing, if you don’t mind. I know my chances are infinitely better than the lottery, but you have a LOT of girlfriends, so I won’t hold my breath!
Have a good evening,
Your delightful blog always inspires me. Thank you for this one. I’d love to be entered in this drawing for a chance to win.
“This is my quest, to follow that star
No matter how hopeless, no matter how far
To fight for the right
Without question or pause
To be willing to march
Into hell for a heavenly cause”
😀✊🏽The little voice said post some lyrics, so here you go.❤️
Just the right note!
😀👌
Good luck all. My phone usually won’t let me comment on blogs anymore, but I’m giving it a shot anyway. Fingers crossed. 🤞
🌷❄️🌦🕯🌟🐑💐🕯thank you for the shower of kindness & beauty Susan✨🌷lovely new mugs & I’m totally going to look for Marie Kondo!!🌷✨💚
Love the Corgi mug! I too am an Anglophile with deep ancestral roots there. I was lucky enough this past summer to be taken to England and Wales by my sister and sister-in-law. Heaven. I was just a couple of days behind you in some of our Cotswold adventures as well. Hope to go back someday and do some more ancestor hunting in Tewkesbury and Devon. Enjoy the quiet of winter. I am loving our rain.
Thank you for this! Somehow, I’ve been missing these and I enjoy them so much.
OK, pepper? in the biscuits for real?
I think I want to make these for Valentines Day… do I leave out the pepper or will I be sorry if I do?
It makes them more interesting, but it’s not mandatory! 😁
Love this blog! Very similar to what I do after de-decorating Christmas! I am drawn to the moon and night sky so LOVE the new cup! It will have to be an addition to my breakfast nook hutch! Thank you!
I read Marie Kondo’s book sometime last year and have to admit I didn’t think she was a very nice person because she got rid of things that belonged to her family members when they weren’t home. She did admit that it was the wrong thing to do but I still had a hard time with that because I don’t believe in throwing away anyone’s things unless they give the okay. Well, then I saw one day that she was on Netflix and I made myself watch to see if she was as bad as I thought. Wow! I am happy to say I was totally wrong about her what a sweet and kind person she turned out to be. A goal for this year is to go through each room of my house and decide what to keep and what to give away.
I had to laugh at your Quick Clean list as I have done all of those things at one time or another when I have had guests.
Happy February Susan,
Walking outside in winter takes a special kind of navigation, but it is worth it. Nothing quite like it. . . the brisk air, the hush of snow, the sparkle.
The classic movie channel has so many good movies on lately! I always think of you when I watch them. Cheers For Miss Bishop was my favorite this week.
I’m going to see Holiday Inn at a dinner theater tomorrow – it’s my Valentine’s Day gift to myself. I can’t wait to see how they do the firecracker number and of course to hear, Be Careful, It’s My Heart.
Thanks for the tidying up tips and such a special giveaway!
Love to you all!
Now I’m singing!
Hello Susan,
Happy CHINESE NEW YEAR to you and Joe and Jack! We wish you all good health, happiness in everything that the year brings and the blessing of good fortune.
Yesterday we took our Emily to the vet, to check on her teeth….They had to take out a few, and had stitches, and will need to have the soft food for a week. She was still a bit drowsy when she came home, but this morning she is happy and perky again, and was VERY HAPPY to get her portion of our breakfast eggs….She loves a soft boiled egg, but only the yolk, haha!
Thank you for the wonderful chance to win 3 lovely things!! You are a darling to share this with us!!
Lots of love from across the pond
Nicoline
XXOO
LOL, only the yolk! Dogs! 🤣
Haha, Emily is a cat, a pretty ginger one, and very sweet!
I think a dog would gulp up the whole egg…..
nicoline
xoxo
Ha ha ha, I should have known!!!
Isn’t it so easy to clutter? But straightening up feels so good. Thanks for the encouragement to begin in my home. CA has had a lot of rain lately so it has been so easy just to curl up and watch the wonderful rain we need.
Susan, I absolutely adore your blog posts! I’m only 21, but reading about your adventures and everyday life on the island reminds me of my childhood in Connecticut and summers on Cape Cod. I live in Europe now and often find myself homesick and wanting to move back in a heartbeat. Your posts are like a warm, comforting cup of tea 🙂 I was so happy to hear that BBC will be carrying some of your merchandise, looking forward to the orders I will be making!
I will be homesick for the rest of my life, I accidentally fell in love with 2 places, where I grew up in California and Martha’s Vineyard, and now . . . England! Starting to think it might be normal! Nice to meet you Celina!
Always nice to see a new post from you Susan, and there is so much to look forward to with the new cups, new book, etc. I have been doing a lot of tidying up here also. Tis the season and all that. I always hate putting Christmas away, but love how clean and tidy the house looks when it is done. Sadly I lost my mother, very unexpectedly, on the 21st of January so my year has not gotten off to a great start. I am still trying to figure out how to go on without her and at present just putting one foot in front of the other, in a great fog. Somehow it still doesn’t seem real and I still find myself going to the phone and thinking I need to tell mom this. Learning a new way to live without my biggest fan and supporter and hoping that it gets easier with time as they say. Nothing in my life could have ever prepared me for this. Nothing. Sorry to be a downer. On the bright side, I always love the music you attach to your posts. It reminds me of both my parents, and playing clarinet duets etc. with my dad when I was growing up. We were/are a very musical family. In a world where oftimes nothing makes sense, what with Brexit and Trump, etc. your blog is an oasis of nice. Thank you, thank you, thank you! ♥♥♥
So much to read, so much to take in, love the new cups, thank you for everything!!
Happy February! ! Your tidying up is very inspiring. I must watch that show because I really need help and motivation. It can be so overwhelming.
Hope you are warm and cozy all winter.
Have a lovely Valentines Day.
Yet again……your words make my day…week…month! In these times of such great division in the world……your words and uplifting and are all about people coming together, being grateful for what we have and taking joy in “the little things”. Niceness matters!!!….and you remind us all of that. Thank you…..wanna run for president??!!??
Next life! Only if I can find Hollyoak and write Heart of the Home first.
Love this blog. The thought of “flying valentines” brings such a smile to my heart. The new cups are a delight- you have been one very busy soul! Thank you for a breath of whimsy😍
Thank you, Susan, for a breath of fresh, warm air in February! I so look forward to your nice, comforting and beautiful posts. I am particularly in love with your moon and stars mug and am going to ask my wonderful husband to order it for me 🙂 Thank you for making us all feel like we are right there with you! Hugs!!
Love all the new cup designs! Thank you, Susan!
Good Morning Susan
How I love when I see a new blog post from you* Love seeing what you are up to and I adore all your photos.
Organizing and decluttering is one of my favorite things to do****
happy day Susan
deezie
Wow what a lovely long awaited post! Such a joy on a cold murky February day!
I too love the thought of a good declutter after Christmas has been put to bed! I seem to be able to function better with no clutter.
Thank you so much for the chance to win a super duper treasure
Gill Devon UK x
Thanks so much for the mid winter lift! I needed a bit of reorganization motivation.
I always look forward to your posts, Susan, and this one doesn’t disappoint. Beautiful as always! Your Aussie friend, Natalie. xx
I’m inspired by your words to bring more joy into my home.
Loved your post, always inspiring. Moon and stars mug is beautiful, my favorite!
Hi Susan!
Was so excited last night to see you posted a new blog I naturally wake up early this morning and broke my own rule (I usually save all your blogs for Sunday, my day off) and devoured the whole thing quickly, then went back and reread slowly enjoying each picture and the content.
I just discovered Marie Condo too and love her show. She’s changed our drawers and closets for the better and she is so inspiring and gosh darn adorable! It’s funny you mention her philosophy of thanking items, from a small child I always felt items had “feelings” and spoke to them with respect which I continued as an adult but in my head since as appealing a few days rest at our local mental health facility sounds, I’d go nuts in there. Your quote from Joe Friday says it best! I am having a garage sale (haven’t done one of these in 20 years) with our community in March and between Marie Condo and the program “Hoarders” which also gets me cleaning my house in a panick, I have lots to sell.
I love all your beautiful cups but I keep going back to the Starry Cup so I’m going to pre–order though I love the Birthday Cup and it’s size…the little vase and the plate are so sweet, ugh I love them all!
So fun you’re having three give aways, all the prizes are wonderful!
I can’t believe I’m awake this early, I stayed up to watch the State of the Union (OMG was it lonngggg!) only so I could listen to Stacey Adrams afterwards. She has such a wonderful spirit and I thought her address was inspiring!
Well this note to you is starting to babble on like our President so I’ll wish you well until next time. See you on Twitter! Love, Ginette XOXO
Dearest Susan, Joe and Jack,
So glad you’ve sent a new blog out…and so soon after the other! I’m so happy just to see your beautiful home and that all is calm, all is bright, clean and just where it should be! Marie K has taken off everywhere! My daughter Sophie has been following her principles for months now…and was surprised when I said that I have been clearing out my cupboards and drawers like that for years! I don’t fold things though, I like to hang shirts, t shirts, trousers etc so they stay crease-free. Probably lucky to have enough hanging space!! It’s only underwear, socks, tights etc that get folded and put in drawers.
Each time I buy something for myself I do try and get rid of something else to keep the wardrobe status quo!!
Beautiful cups, beautiful ideas Susan, you are so creative and I love it that you use other people’s quotes that mean so much.
Thank you.
Love 💕
Karen Williams x x x
Cambridgeshire
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The birthday cup would be perfect for my granddaughter’s birthday in September! And the Love Stays will remind of my husband whom I lost this past May. Little loves for my heart.
Linda, I am so sorry about your husband. I did not know. Sending hugs and love. What a bad blogging friend I am. ((((hugs)))) xoxo
Beautiful blog! Thanks Susan 🙂
I love everything about you cooking, cat, quilts, walks, food, and art!!! Thank you for being you!!!
That’s the saddest looking tree ever but the sweetest kitty to make up for it!
What an inspiring post! My house definitely needs a bit of spit and polish at this time of year. Thanks for the lovely visuals and inspiration! ( And if you’d like to send along one of the giveaways that would lovely too!)
I like what Iris Apfel says, ‘More is more and less is a bore!’ 😉 However, that being said, my wife & I are tidy devotees who believe in the value of lovingly curated & edited collections. I think if you are fortunate enough to surround yourself with the people and things that you love the best, your very life sparks joy. 😁
Best wishes for a joy filled Valentine’s Day!♥️
Dear Susan, your blog musings and pictures make my heart sing. Thank you for being you.
I love Willard, I have all your books and I have been a fan forever. Thank you Susan.