My daughter Tat and I recently attended the April Furniture Market held annually in April and October in High Point, N.C.
We were snarled in traffic most of the journey so our trip took longer than usual. It seems interstate highways never get finished.
One nice thing though: once in High Point, travel is a breeze because there are shuttle buses to take one everywhere at no charge . That's nice because this is the largest furniture market in the world and there is lots to see.
One of the most exciting events we had on our agenda was a visit to the French Heritage Showroom. The showroom is in a charming building that feels as though we had stumbled upon it in the French countryside. This fabulous company designed and built all of the furniture that will be installed in the newly built boutique hotel the Old Town Bluffton Inn..
We introduced ourselves and explained where we were from and what we had stopped by to see. Henessey Wayser, the charming CEO of the company, could not have been nicer and, with the help of Tara Turner, we were given a complete tour of the showroom. After our tour we were offered lunch in the french style cafe but we declined because our sojourn was over and there was a five hour trip ahead of us.
We had a hard time tearing ourselves away from all of the charm and so will you when you see the finished product.
The Old Town Bluffton Inn is the brainchild of builder Larry Leary, his daughter Danielle and her husband Vince Harrison. Mr. Leary had moved to the area to be near his family and thought perhaps Bluffton could use an upscale inn.
The French Heritage Company was the perfect choice to build and design what we think is a marvelous collection of furnishings inspired by Bluffton's colorful history . The collection is a mixture of sexy art deco and eclectic sassy french, with a touch of "satin doll" mixed in.
It all looks and sets the tone for a really swell experience for all who get to spend a night or two in Bluffton. The rooms in the inn are named after people and places in Bluffton that historically mean something to all of us.
There will be twelve rooms — we saw six of them — three that are named after the Cantrell family, The Heyward family, and a room named " Naomi" after Naomi McCracken.
The other rooms were not ready so we will get a real treat in mid-June when the company installs all of the furnishings. Can't wait!
Partying with a mermaid
Our granddaughter Campbell was invited to a very unusual birthday party. It was a "mermaid" party and it was adorable.
The Mermaid of Hilton Head takes children on an aquatic adventure all the while teaching them about nature conservation. The mermaid appeared as if by magic in the water and swam around in the marsh while explaining her life to them
One day while swimming around Hilton Head the mermaid noticed that the sea turtles and other sea creatures were having a little difficulty and seemed stressed. So the beautiful sea creature decided to dedicate her life to making sure of of her sea life friends are safe and happy.
The children loved their adventure and each one was presented with an autographed book "The Mermaid of Hilton Head."