Category Archives: SHINY OBJECTS

GROWING ORCHIDS AT HOME – There is a myth that orchids are one of the most difficult plants to grow in the world of horticulture, and for some reason, growing orchids is thought of as a hobby only for the wealthy. Over two years ago we bought the orchid plant, pictured, at a supermarket and […]

“Angel” Date: 18th–19th century, Italian (Naples) Medium: Polychromed terracotta head; wooden limbs and wings; straw and various fabrics; silver-gilt censer Angels swirling upward on the tree to the crowning star. Usually, the tree is placed in front of a Spanish choir screen but was moved to a more open area this year for better air circulation. ART: Met Angel […]

Cosanti Bells – An assemblage: 68.5″ long from the top of the bell assembly to the bottom of the ringer fins & 23″ across at the widest point. (from the casanti.com website) COSANTI HAND-MADE BRONZE BELLS – I was at a friend’s social-distancing back yard party recently, when I noticed her collection of COSANTI bells. […]

Andre de Dienes (Hungarian photographer) used Norma Jeane Baker Mortenson (Marilyn Monroe’s birth name) as his favorite fashion model. After her 1st divorce, de Dienes was an intimate of Norma Jeane’s and photographed her privately in 1945, 1946, 1949 and 1953. His iconic photographs capture her transformation from sensitive and ambitious ingénue into the iconic […]

WESTERN WEAR (Photography ©John Land Le Coq, shot for Tempco Winter Coats and Jackets.) EDITOR’S NOTE: What a colorful life it is to be a working cowboy! A while back, I had the opportunity to live with working cowboys in New Mexico for about a month while working on a fashion (coat) editorial project I […]

Mary Ann Docktor-Smith is a Chicago transplant now enjoying the warm climate and beautiful scenery of rural Arizona. She is an avid collector of vintage costume jewelry, a historian and also sells the wonderful pieces she collects, just so she can search out even more unique collectable works of art. Docktor-Smith has been a speaker […]

e-Scooters are taking over… San Antonio and everywhere else! This has undoubtedly been the year of the electric scooter (the e-Scooter), investors have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into these scooter companies this past year. Uber has partnered with Lime, and Ford has bought Spin. e-Scooter economics, with so much competition, is very difficult, […]

  Shops, restaurants and vibrant surroundings make up Market Square. A three-block outdoor plaza lined with shops, and restaurants in downtown San Antonio, Market Square is the largest Mexican market in the United States. “El Mercado” and the “Farmer’s Market Plaza” boast more than 100 locally-owned shops and stalls. Enjoy the sights and flavors of […]