Saturday, March 28, 2009

Breeze Inn Progress Report

Boomerang Boy's crib
Home is where you hang your hat--on your hall tree
Andrews party? Table for six?
My eBay find--1920s bathing suit
The breakfast club--Tybee style
Screened porch---walking in a wicker wonderland
Yikes! Don't hate me because I'm beautiful.

We're almost there...After a long work week at Tybee Island, I came home last night for my signing at the Atlanta Junior League Kitchen Tour, just as Mr. Mary Kay and our son-in-law Mark were headed down to Tybee to build the picket fence. As you can see in the last photo, after a week of painting and fluffing, by the time Friday rolled around, I was tore up from the floor up. But here's what we accomplished--and by "we" I mean me--with the huge help/direction of friend/sidekick/savior Jacky, and Tom, the philosopher handman--and about a gallon of cheap chardonnay and extra-strength Ibuprofen: 1. Installed, primed and painted bookshelves in living room. 2. Got Savannah navigational chart hung in Andy's bedroom and 1920s framed bathing suit hung in stairwell. 3. Reinforced, sanded and painted octagonal wicker breakfast table. 4. Cupboard to cover hideous electrical box in utility room built, primed and painted. 5.Screened porch cleared of all construction debris (and auxiliary refrigerator), blown off, hosed down and arranged. 6. Victorian mahogany hall tree patched up, re-mirrored, primed, painted and screwed to wall in utility room. 7. Brimfield screened door retrofitted for front door, primed, painted and installed. 8. Wall brackets mounted in master bathroom. Oh sure, there were glitches. The original cabinets I bought to hide the electrical box were the wrong size and had to be returned to Home Depot. One whole set of shelves for the bookcase were an inch too short--which we discovered after I'd already primed and painted said shelves. The gate kit I bought for the picket fence was also the wrong size, and also had to be returned to Home Depot. And the post-hole diggers I bought for the fence-builders has somehow mysteriously de-materialized. But we're this close to being done. And Easter weekend, the whole family should be able to relax and enjoy our new beach house.









Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Dish with me tonight!

At 7pm tonight I'll be doing an online chat and podcast and discussing DEEP DISH with the very cool Book Club Girl. Follow this link to get the details.
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/stations/AuthorsOnAir/Book-Club-Girl/2009/03/26/Mary-Kay-Andrews-Talks-about-Deep-Dish

It'll be a relief to get away from the paint fumes. I'm down at Tybee, painting my arse off and fluffing the house. Pix soon, I promise.





Monday, March 23, 2009

Weekend Fun

Here I am with the two co-queens of the Lakewood 400 Antique Market, Lauri and Lulu of Chippys. And yes, those are vintage permanent wave pins that Lulu is wearing on her lapels and in her hair. It's workin', don't you think? My Saturday signing was so much fun it shoulda been illegal. So big thanks go out to show owners Ed and Barbara Spivia for letting me come out to play. My friend Cathy Blanco of The Book Exchange in Marietta sold what seemed like bazillions of books. I met loads of fellow junkers and dealers and fans, and even scored some seriously cool swag, including a little ironstone milk jug for my kitchen collection, and a sterling sugar bowl. It was my first time at the Lakewood 400 Antique Market since they moved to their "new" location nearly five years ago, but like Gen. Patton--I shall return, and next time I'm bringing the junk posse. The big-ass basket giveaway was a success too, so I think we'll have to do more of those. And oh yeah--Katie's birthday party that night was big fun. Stay tuned for pix. And also a giveaway. I missed doing a giveaway for my 200th post. So I owe you guys.








Friday, March 20, 2009

FREE STUFF AT LAKEWOOD 400 SIGNING


Okay, call me spring feverish--but the first five people who show up to my signing at the Lakewood 400 Antique Market tomorrow and mention they saw the offer online get a FREE paperback of DEEP DISH. And the first ten who buy a copy of DEEP DISH get a FREE copy of SAVANNAH BREEZE. Not to mention you can enter a drawing to win a big-ass basket of free MKA books and goodies. So what's keeping you home? See you there tomorrow, 1-3 p.m.





Thursday, March 19, 2009

I want this...


Found today on Craigslist Atlanta: 16' Dunphy 1959 Vintage boat Very Good Cond Beautiful and runs great. Everything rebuilt. 1970 40hp Evinrude Lark Good trailer new tires,rims,bearings. Ready to cruise! email for more pics. $4200 obo 352-591-2372.
I picture Mr. Mary Kay at the wheel of this classic beauty, tanned, (he stays tanned), in an open-collar shirt, myself seated beside him, with an icy adult beverage, cool vintage Jacky O sunglasses, perhaps a flowing scarf fluttering in the breeze, as we cruise around the waterways off Savannah. Reality, of course, would be unlovely. I'd be sunburnt and swatting at the damned gnats, he'd be cranky if the fish weren't biting, totally unwilling to cruise just for the sake of cruising. Oh well, a girl can dream...





Monday, March 16, 2009

Wednesday Talk and Signing in Greenville, N.C.

If you're anywhere near Greenville, North Carolina, please join me for a luncheon event to benefit Literacy Volunteers of Pitt County on Weds., Mar. 18. The event starts at 10:30 a.m. with a book signing, followed by lunch and my talk. Later that afternoon I'll give a mini writer's workshop. Y'all come!





Sunday, March 15, 2009

A Very Junkriffic Weekend

Very old pressed board trunk and glass cake stand


Vintage luggage, ledger book and spatterware bowl



Walking in a wicker wonderland



The line to get into the Savannah estate sale



Okay, I'll cop to it---I totally junked all weekend long--and a little last weekend as well. But it's been what seems like a long cruel winter here in Georgia, and I really had a dry spell, what with signings for DEEP DISH and working on The Breeze Inn down at Tybee. Last weekend I went to the first estate sale I'd been to in ages, in Savannah, at the home of Herb Traub, a noted Savannah character who was the long-time owner of The Pirate's House restaurant. No kid who ever visited Savannah in the past few decades left town without a visit to the treasure chest at The Pirate's House. Mr. Traub passed away recently, at the age of 91, I think, and so the family was cleaning out the Ardsley Park home where he'd been born and lived his whole life. My friend Susan (she's the madam at Seaside Sisters on Tybee) and I left Tybee last Saturday at the ungawdly hour of 6:15 a.m. to be in line for the 8 a.m. start of the sale. The morning did not have an auspicious start. We got to Krispy Kreme for a pre-sale snack, only to find that--quel horror!--there were no doughnuts. None. Zip. Whoever heard of such? Turns out they'd cleaned all the machinery the night before and hadn't started the assembly line going yet. Who knew Krispy Kreme cleaned anything? I always assumed the grease there was vintage. We did settle for a couple of day-old doughnuts. Not the same thing at all. When we got to the sale, we were maybe 12th in line behind a whole slew of dealers. Still, we had a jolly time chatting, and when the doors opened, I managed to snag a few treasures, including a first edition autographed biography of Savannah native Johnny Mathis called Our Huckleberry Friend. After that I scooted over to a sale a few blocks away, this one run by a gang of affable gay guys who were totally into playing dress-up. They had racks and racks of cool costumes, but I managed to escape with only a retro 50s bamboo table and a couple old suitcases, which went immediately into my booth at Seaside Sisters. Tragically, I was unable to hang around at Tybee for this weekend's big St. Patrick's Day parade and doings. Mostly because Boomerang Boy and his gang were taking over The Breeze Inn for the weekend. Eight college kids. As far as I know, there were no injuries or arrests. There was a serious plumbing issue, but Roto-Rooter seems to have taken care of the problem. Oy. On the plus side, it was Scott's Antique Market weekend. I went three days in a row. I don't happen to think that's excessive. Besides, I was filming video for my upcoming film: Junking 101: Scott's Antique Market. Coming soon to a blog near you. Among my scores: two wicker planters, a wicker coffee table, a huge '50s rattan mirror frame, a pair of oil paintings of parrots, and a pair of framed seashell prints that were part of a vintage English teaching folio. In between Scott's jaunts, I managed to discover a cute antique shop in Tucker, Ga. called Main Street Marketplace, where I picked up three more pieces of vintage luggage for my booth. And then, finally, to top the day off, I visited an estate sale being run by an old college buddy, where I bought an old leather-bound 1900s grocery store ledger book, a glass cake stand, a sort of antique cardboard chest, some linens, a ginormous blue and white spatterware batter bowl, and a few other odds and ends. Ah. I feel so much better now.





Friday, March 13, 2009

Lakewood 400 Antique Market Signing Next Weekend

Okay, how's this for one-stop shopping? Next Saturday, March 21, I'll be signing copies of the new paperback of DEEP DISH at the Lakewood 400 Antique Market in Cumming, Georgia from 1-3 p.m. You can junk and catch up with me (and buy books) in one sweet trip. All you folks in North Georgia who've been complaining that I never get up to your neck of the woods can now cruise on over to say hey. And junk. And buy books. We'll even have a drawing for a big, beautiful basket of autographed MKA books. Hey, Mother's Day is coming. All this because I was cruising around the blogosphere recently and came across the blog of Lulu and Lauri, two adorable dealers from Lakewood who call themselves 2chippys. Love their junk and their sassy style. The rest is history. Mark it on you calendar and see y'all next Saturday. For those of you who are still missing the old, dearly beloved Lakewood Antique Market that used to be at the Atlanta Fairgrounds on the southside of town, Lakewood 400 is run by the same friendly folks. Lakewood 400 is at 1321 Atlanta Highway, one mile north of exit 13 of Georgia 400. In the meantime, this morning I'm headed over to Scott's Antique Market. I haven't been out there since I met up with Eddie Ross , way back in January, so I've gotta satisfy my junkin' jones.





Friday, March 6, 2009

Come see me in Baxley and or Savannah, GA.

The weather promises to be beautiful in South Georgia tomorrow. Sunny and warm. Why not take a cruise over to Baxley to meet me--and buy books? Or come to Savannah this Monday night for my first book signing (and cocktails) at a restaurant? And stay tuned: I went to a fabulous estate sale in Savannah this morning and shot more video. Maybe I can get it downloaded, edited and uploaded before the end of March.

Here are the signing details:

Sat. Mar. 7, 2:00p.m.: Reading and Signing Park Avenue Lake Lodge, Off Buck Head Road, between Baxley and Hazlehurst, GA"Mary Kay Andrews at Lake Mayer"Talk and signing sponsored by Jeff Davis County Friends of the Library and the Appling County Arts Council Book sales by G.J. Ford Book Shop

Mon. Mar. 9: 5-6:3o p.m. Cocktail hour and Book signing at restaurant: Local 11 Ten, 1110 Bull Street, Savannah, GA 31401(404)815-9327





Wednesday, March 4, 2009

There she is: Miss America...And me




There are lots of perks to being a published author, but one of the nicest ones is meeting so many fascinating people. Today I was a guest at a coffee given by some of the board members of Georgia Women of Achievement. Next Thursday, I'll have the privilege of speaking at the organization's annual induction ceremony at Mercer College in Macon. My hostess's mother founded this organization--and guess what? She just happens to be Georgia's first and only Miss America--Neva Jane Langley Fickling--Miss America 1953. The photo above doesn't do me any favors--but even in sunglasses (and a stunning Miss America-worthy full length fur) you can see that Neva Jane Fickling's beauty hasn't dimmed a bit over the years. She is charming, witty, and she plays the piano like a banshee. Just a little coaxing had her sitting at her daughter's baby grand belting out "Has Anybody Seen My Gal?" After chatting with Miss Neva I learned that we are both Florida natives--she grew up in Lakeland, with a father who was in the orange grove business, and while she was a music student at Mercer College in Macon, she was recruited to compete in the Miss Macon, Miss Georgia and of course, Miss America pageants. A classically trained pianist, she won the talent competition in the pageant, but gave up performing after marrying and having four children, only returning to playing in public again after she became a grandmother. Today Miss Neva is a community activist, performer and adored mother and grandmother. After googling her, I learned that among the prizes she received in 1953 were a custom-made wardrobe, nearly $100,000 in appearance fees--and a white Nash Ambassador with leather seats. Who wouldn't love to tool around town in a full-length mink in a 1953 Nash? I learned that 1953 was the last year before the pageant began being televised. But as a little girl in the 1960s, my sisters and I never missed watching the Miss America pageant. We would have a sleep-over with our friends, and argue and pick our favorites. I can even remember one of the sponsors: Miss Tonette home permanents. Tragically, since I had tightly curled hair, I was never the recipient of Miss Tonette's beauteous bounty. In later years, I became an enlightened cynic/skeptic who scorned the idea of beauty pageants. But now? I must bow down to the beauty, talent and charm of Neva Jane Fickling, our OWN Miss America 1953.







Monday, March 2, 2009

Watch out Spielberg...My first movie!

I'm just learning how to shoot, upload and edit video with my new Flip videocam. Geez--I need a second grader to teach me this stuff. Seriously, my friend's third-grader son can do this backwards and forwards. video





Sunday, March 1, 2009

Check me out in March Coastal Living..Sorta

I was thrilled to see my friends Tad and Erica Wilson's gorgeous Tybee Island home, called Amazing Grace, featured prominently here in this month's COASTAL LIVING. The house, in my opinion, is the most beautiful on Tybee, situated on a large lot on the Back River, and preserved and restored by the always amazing Jane Coslick, and furnished with love by Erica, who, like me, has a serious jones for junking. I met Erica and Tad through Jane a couple of years ago, and eventually scammed an invitation to go down to Tybee and stay in their guest cottage and meet with Erica's book club. In the history of MKA scams--and believe me, I've pulled some scams, this was my personal best. I got to stay in the cottage, do a little writing, and hang out with this warm and friendly couple and their three adorable children. I even got to meet Erica's sisters and mom that weekend. That's Grace, for whom the house is named, sitting on the floor looking at a storybook in the photo above. And what's that on the shabby chic chest to her right? Schnikeys! It's a stack of books by...Mary Kay Andrews! And the funny thing is, I'd been poring over the CL story and photos, admiring again the loveliness of what Jane and Erica have created, and totally missed seeing my own books in the photo, until I was clued in by an alert fan. What a treat it is to read and re-read this feature on a blissfully beautiful summer beach house--especially on a day like today, when we here in Atlanta are being treated to a rare snowfall. So glad to be cozy and warm at home today. I had a blast meeting friends and fans during my signings over the weekend in Nashville and then Memphis. I even took a sidetrip to the Nashville Fairgrounds Flea Market on Friday. I guess because Friday is setup day, and it was cold and rainy, pickings seemed pretty slim. Still, I did manage to snag a vintage porcelain flamingo for the Breeze Inn. By the time I finished my signing at DAVIS-KIDD in Memphis yesterday, it was raining. I got in my rental car, hoping to do a little junking, and immediately the rain turned to sleet. Five minutes later, snow was creating a near white-out. I junked the junking plans, sped (carefully) to the airport, and hopped an earlier flight out. We had to get de-iced before take-off--a first for me, but I made it home safe and sound, just in time for the snow to follow me east. Thank GAWD Mr. Mary Kay made a pot of chili for us already. Maybe we'll even have a fire in the fireplace today. Stay warm and dry, y'all.















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