Earlier this summer we went to visit our friend Katie(cakes) in Philadelphia. She arranged for us to come and see the $25 billion dollar collection that is The Barnes Foundation. She works in the development office there and I couldn't be more proud.
The museum opened earlier this year and much has been written about it. I was first introduced to the Barnes in the documentary The Art of the Steal at the Charles Theatre here in Baltimore with our dear Katiecakes. I was so upset after seeing the movie. This collector had clearly put everything into his foundation and somehow the wishes and desires of his will were not upheld. It was strange going to this new location, knowing that the man who put together every detail would be flipping in his grave over the news of the move. And still, my heart was full with anticipation and excitement to see the pieces I'd heard so much about.
Introduction to the collection and arboretum in Marion.
I have tears in my eyes with excitement in this photo. My very first job in Washington, DC was interning at The Phillips Collection in Dupont Circle in 1992 when I was at American University during my museum studies in the arts program. I judge every (EVERY) museum I visit with the Phillips in mind. The thing I really appreciate from that experience is that the Phillips family built a collection from the perspective of the two brothers. The Barnes Collection was created by one man. He was so clear in what he liked and didn't like. Walking through the space with Katie was like having our own private curator. She gave us some insight into Dr. Barnes' persona.
Appreciation of works of art requires organized effort and systematic study. Art appreciation can no more be absorbed by aimless wandering in galleries than can surgery be learned by casual visits to a hospital. (Dr. Albert C. Barnes)
The art education experience begins outside as you approach the building. River rocks and calm water reflect the stone facade. It's as if you are walking in a Zen garden and about to enter a temple.
We got a behind the scenes tour of the staff offices.
The air plants in the restaurant were simple and elegant.
Katie had our tickets ready and wanted us to see where we could enjoy lunch at a future date.
The restaurant has a beautiful view of an outdoor garden with a significant drawing that Dr. Barnes created to show how the artwork should be hung. His groupings are legendary. I think Dr. Barnes was probably a little cheeky. While the institution is very serious with some of the heaviest hitting post-impressionist works of art, there is a great sense of humor in how some of the pieces are hung. If I could dine with anyone alive or dead it would be Dr. Barnes, Marjorie Phillips and my great grandparents, George and Nelle Tayloe. I can only imagine the great conversations that would take place around the dinner table at Stone Hill Farm. A girl can dream right.
The gorgeous limestone throughout the building is from the Negev Dessert.
The outdoor space is breathtaking. The open air "ceiling" has a lofty feeling and at night glows with soft illumination. The herringbone floor was made with re-purposed wood from the Coney Island boardwalk. The build is LEED certified.
The parking lot even has places for cars to charge.
I loved finding this time lapse video of the construction site. Makes me remember the Richard Scary books as a child. I know my (architect) Uncle Johnny would have loved everything about this collection and only wish he were still alive to witness it here in all it's glory.
If you live in or around the Philadelphia region, this weekend there is a cocktail party with live music in the court and DJ on the West Terrace for the Young Professionals. The main tickets are sold out, but you may buy $10 entry fees at the door to get into the party. This means you can't see the collection but you can enjoy the party, light fare and a cash bar. Thank you again Katie for such an incredible tour and your continued friendship. We love your face!!!
Our little village was just written up as one of the Hippest Hoods for Hipsters in Forbes Magazine last month. Any village that has an annual Mac-Off competition is alright by me. And frankly, I've never smiled so hard during The Toilet Bowl Races this year at Hampdenfest. Yes, friends, Toilet Bowl Races. Think box cars with potties...not Grand Prix with fast cars. I'm the farthest thing from hip so this news made me giggle as it was sent to me via Twitter by I very clever youth groupie from DC. Just recently a friend burst into laughter when I said I had a tennis match on Saturday. Is that funny? I guess in a Biff and Buffy sort of way it is. The fact that my preppy self lives up in this funky joint just makes it all the more hilarious, and I love you Hampden! Toilet races and all.
Our way stylish neighbor Paul was the official finish line judge. He was roped into the job by one of the "Mayors of Hampden", Steve Baker, I'm sure. But he had front row seats to all the action. Earlier that morning we were heading to the coffee shop and Steve offered up a spot on one of the "race" cars. Um...not this year, but thanks for the offer Steve.
A front moved over Chestnut Avenue just as the races began. I was expecting a "Surrender Dorothy" sky writer at any moment. It was dark, ominous, and the temperature dropped 20 degrees in 10 minutes. It was big scary. Rumors of tornado's were streaming the Internet and up and down The Avenue. But not even the Wicked Witch of the West could stop the hilarity that was about to ensue so we hunkered down and risked our lives for a great time.
We camped out in front of the Roland Park Deli after having a fabulous hot dog and complimentary cupcake. I love this place. Thank you Nancy Hinds for introducing me to it. If you haven't been you must try their Chicken Pot Pie Soup. Perfect for a cold fall day.
The names of the "race cars" were the absolute limit. "Stool Running", "Holy Crap", "Flush Gordon" to name a few came two by two in about 5 heats. They had to be powered by gravity only. No engines, no manpower.
The closest race and most exciting of the day was between @mobtowngeorge riding in a monk's costume on "Holy Crap" and Team Wholly Terra (not sure of his team name). You can see the intensity on Steve's face.
This speed and intense focus resulted in the first crash of the afternoon. The crowd oohed and gasped. It was fantastic. No one was hurt and they made it to the second heat and added a much needed flare to the event.
The street was lined with people taking photos.
These guys were my favorite of the day. I love the nod to the Flamingo on the handlebars. Their team name was Gorilla Finger Racing. The wrestling masks made the pit crew uniform in my opinion.
E, Viv, and our best bud Brad.
The sky was a close second on the entertainment factor.
@mr_pistol won the whole shooting match with Flush Gordon. Little did I know I was following him on Instagram. We've never met but someone tagged him and I mentioned I took a few winning shots. Hope you enjoy the photos Shawn! Well done.
The pride in this team just makes me so happy.
Will from Luigi's on The Avenue and our great neighbor Viv again gave much reason to smile. Luigi's has the best Italian Deli Sandwiches ever! Ever. The bread is so fresh and all the meat is cut to order by Will. Oh my gosh, my mouth is watering just thinking of my favorite sandwich of all time. Thankfully it is just blocks away from our hip home. We can walk off the calories.
There was only so much dark sky Vivi-anne and I could take so we high tailed it back home to Stone Hill just before all hell broke loose in the atmosphere. E stuck around on The Avenue and got stuck at his favorite coffee house and no tornadoes touched down anywhere near us so all was well in our hood.
Thank you Hampden. You are beyond weird, beyond wonderful and we love you more than our luggage.
If you have graced the halls of any fine, independent coffee shop on the East Coast you have most likely been tempted by the seductress that is Mast Brothers Chocolate. I had my first bar at Shot Tower Coffee in Philadelphia a few months ago. The mouth feel is like a French kiss on a cold day. Seriously, this chocolate gives a new meaning to the food porn craze that is sweeping the nation. The flavor isn't too sweet (soft food porn) and lets the marriage of chocolate (74% cacao), almonds and sea salt come to the forefront of your palate like any good and solid partnership.
The company is based out of Brooklyn and was started by two brothers. This video celebrates everything I love about all things old becoming new again. You can sense these founders love of art in every detail from their bars, the shop design, and to their personality in this video. I'm convinced you can taste love in their chocolate. The flirtation begins with their hand wrapped packages. The artwork alone is like a coquettish wink. Rip open the butcher paper and memories of winning the Golden Ticket flood your childhood chocolate factory tour fantasies.
If you have yet to experience this small batch pick me up, Artifact Coffee in Baltimore carries the little devils. Thank you Mast Brothers for hitting on so many childhood memories, while making a damn near perfect bar of chocolate. I look forward to visiting your chocolate factory. And as the beloved brat Veruca Salt demanded, I want one now!
This morning my tennis buddy Vaughn and I played early at the Druid Hill Park tennis courts. We have been such geeks about our game and were texting late last night about the joy of pink tennis balls and if we should wear matching outfits to play this morning. I swear the joy of using fresh, pink balls is what motivated us to get up at 7:30 am on a Saturday. I had to snap this shot of our cute new balls and of course posted it to IG and FB. Eric wonders why I take so many photos. I seriously don't know. I'm social. I guess I put everything out there to share in my zest for life and geeky preppiness. I'm not sure. Is that weird? Probably, but I don't really care. It's like a game to me and I enjoy it. I need all the joy in my life I can get right now and posting photos is FREE and super fun. I love following friends that I haven't seen in years, friends I love but are too far away, and random people that have great taste and fun food obsessions. The preppiness factor of this photo was just too wonderful not to post. My @girltuesday created the hashtag #PFP for Preppy Fist Pump. I don't know @girltuesday in real life but I love her. I send out these photos to the universe and find other like minded people. Isn't that what Twitter is all about? And aren't pink balls just the cutest thing of all time? Someone Tweeted with the question of where I got the monogrammed water bottle. Two Augusts ago, almost to the DAY, EAS from Let the Tide Pull Your Dreams Ashore posted the cutest decal giveaway. Alice from Summer is a Verb posted the DIY decal water bottle project. I was hooked and ordered my decal from 2 Preppy Girls and had a water bottle from Target that I affixed it upon. Enjoy the links and keep posting the wonderful, random, funny, foodie, garden-y and joyful photos that you do, oh friends of the universe!
Thanks and love to my sweet EAS who I have gotten to know in real life this past year. It has been so fun meeting someone, as I've said on this blog before, that I met via the blogosphere. It is so weird, but I love it. To Alice and MKO'G I know we will meet in the real world some day too. Looking forward to it, and until then...I'll see you on Twitter. Vaughn, as always thanks for motivating me to get up SO early, run lines, and for pink tennis balls! Preppy Fist Pumps, Nelle xoxo
After enjoying breakfast and champagne in the Presidential Suite at the "Center" in Kalamazoo, E. and I drove north on our first journey as husband and wife to Mackinac Island on 7-8-07. We parked the rental car, loaded seven (seriously, seven) bags of luggage onto the ferry and enjoyed a five minute journey to the most incredible vacation I've ever experienced.
We spent our honeymoon at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. It is an idyllic destination where cars are forbidden. This video shows it off beautifully. Anyone who has been to Mackinac Island understands it's magic. Bikes and buggies are the only form of transportation. Even the UPS truck is a drawn horse and carriage.
Our story begins a bit further back, however. When I was the Director of Catering at the George Town Club in Washington, DC I planned many events for a member from the Great Lakes state. Mr. R. D. Musser, III is the President of the Grand Hotel and his family has owned it for the 125 years it has been in business. They just celebrated their 125th this year. I planned a few events in the fall of 2006 for Mr. Musser at the GTC. I worked often with his Executive Secretary, Sarah Finn, and wrote her a note checking if the hotel had any availability the week of July 7, 2007...an extremely popular date. I had no hopes of availability. Sarah wrote back immediately and said that Mr. Musser not only had the date available but that he'd like to extend a special rate to us. We were overjoyed and couldn't pass up this opportunity. I had been dreaming of a trip to the Grand Hotel since I was in high school. My dear DeNooyer family went often and always brought back stories of great joy. This trip was beyond my WILDEST dreams.
A carriage for the Grand Hotel met us at the docks and we clip-clopped all the way up the hill. Our bags met us later. When we checked into the front desk, the manager's face lit up and said, "You are in the Woodfill Suite." We had been upgraded. The most cherished word in traveling.
We learned later that this was Mr. Musser's uncle's apartment during the depression. The family moved back into the hotel to save it from being closed back then. When we got to our room I nearly fell out. Not only was the view incredible, but we had a gorgeous fresh flower arrangement, a huge Grand Hotel box of Mackinac Island fudge, wine, cheese and a card from the Musser family welcoming us. It was incredible. Our precious friends, McCall and Tyson, also had a card waiting for us with an extremely generous wedding present, a gift card to the Grand Hotel. What a smart and glamorous present! My face hurt from smiling and even E. agreed this was not at all what he expected, but a thousand times more.
The Woodfill Suite is the curved area with windows, above the large porch columns. The sky was this blue each day of our visit.
There isn't a filter on any of these photos. The water in Northern Michigan (cue Kid Rock) is simply just this beautiful and crystal blue! This is the area where Lake Michigan and Lake Huron meet.
I loved everything about the Woodfill Suite. The view of the water was simply off the charts gorgeous and the weather in July was mid-seventies. We left the windows wide open and wore sweaters during the day. No wonder my great grandparents summered in northern Michigan!
We had a foyer, for heavens sake, with a piano. The decor is so bright and cheerful. Hopsy wrote a perfect description here about the visionary interior designer, Dorothy Draper, who decorated the Grand Hotel.
We had a great view of the carriage topiary below our window.
We had seven bags of luggage! This was due to the fact that each night you are required to dress for dinner and wear a jacket and tie on the historic porch after 6:00 pm. I was in heaven! E. was not that thrilled. I thought it was a blast to dress up for my new husband each night and experience fabulous service and five course dinners for five nights in a row! E. actually got into after a while. Hell, the man has more pocket squares than anyone I know.
Dinner was an experience in itself. Our first night there was a line out the door of the Salle a Manger. The servers gave us complimentary wine as we waited in line to be seated. We lucked out and were given a porch view, window seat with a view of the water. The next morning we received an early morning call asking if we had joined them for dinner the night prior. We confirmed that we absolutely had dinner and enjoyed it immensly. The maitre d' instructed us to "jump the line" and check in with him on our second night. He said that the Musser Family wanted us to dine at their private table for the rest of our stay. This is the equivalent of the "Captains Table" on a cruise I'm guessing. We were honored and floored by their hospitality.
We hung up and not two minutes later received another call. The front desk informed us that the Musser's wanted to offer their private carriage for a tour of the island that morning. It was hands down the most romantic ride ever. We learned about Arch Rock and had a great introduction to the island. This carriage has carried presidents as far back as Truman. We were blown away and so appreciative of their hospitality.
Afterwards, the Irish driver asked if he could he could do anything for us. I asked what they did with the horse shoes when they changed them? He was a farrier actually and had a shoe waiting for us when we returned to our room. It was the nicest gift and we have the horse shoe catching luck for us at our front door at Stone Hill. It is a daily reminder of our honeymoon.
That evening we were seated at this very special table. The Musser's table had a phone, at the ready, I'm guessing to call the White House. We felt like royalty. They spoiled us rotten with a fantastic view, the best waiters, an amazing white Burgundy one evening, and champagne to boot. The food was also extraordinary. Each night we were treated to a five course meal with choices. I saved the menu with our choices from our first night (marked by our initials).
Menu
APPETIEZERS
Wild Mushroom Pate en Croute
Celery Root Slaw
Cranberry Drizzle
NTAS
Smoked Duck Breast
Hazelnut and Parsley Oil
CES
***
SOUP
Black Bean and Merquez Soup
Cilantro Oil
NTAS & CES
***
SALAD
Crisp Romaine with Garlic Croutons
Parmesan Dressing
NTAS
Spinach with Caramelized Pecans and Strawberries
Thyme Honey Dressing
CES
***
ENTREES
Pork Tenderloin with Crispy Bacon
Roasted Corn Souffle, Velvet Chile Sauce
CES
Black Angus Prime Rib of Beef with Parsnip Puree
Natural-Beef Jus
NTAS
***
DESSERTS
Grand Pecan Ball
Fudge Sauce
NTAS & CES
Their larger family table was next to us and had three generations of Musser men seated one evening. My favorite is that Dan Musser calls his son Quatro! How cool is that?
Their "normal" table is the first one to the right of the main entrance that they let us enjoy. The Salle a Manger seats 900 guests. Each night there was a small line and they insisted we jump it as this table was being held for us. Can you even imagine? It was a little embarrassing but oh so divine. You can see the signature red geraniums outside of the window.
Every meal was more wonderful than the next. Each night there was a full band playing in the restaurant, music in the lobby and then a full orchestra playing in the ballroom. For all of you darlings who feel like you were born in the wrong era, this destination is for you. The traditions are held so firmly, and yet it didn't feel a bit stuck up. It just felt like a place you wish you could stay forever.
After dinner, a harpist played over cordials in the parlor each evening.
We retreated to the porch for cigars and after dinner drinks most evenings.
The ballroom featured big band sounds and there were couples dancing who looked like they could win ballroom competitions. We were way to newly married to know how to dance with each other but loved watching the varsity on the dance floor.
Our days were filled with tennis matches, long walks and searching the island. You can bike 8 miles around it.
We played tennis almost every day. Health and fitness is so important to us. Starting our marriage off right with this sporty routine was a huge blessing. And as I've said, tennis is my love language.
It was the most relaxing trip. Seriously, can you believe the color of the water?
Each day you have the choice of breakfast in bed (or casually served in the dining room) and dinner included in the room rate. Lunch was on our own. There were tons and tons of restaurants to choose from within the Grand Hotel campus, as well as the restaurants down in the main village on the island. We decided to take a carriage ride to The Woods for lunch one day.
This was the typical view of the streets of Mackinac. The golf courses don't even have carts.
He had a burger and I had a steak salad, which were both out of this world.
There was even a duck pin bowling alley at The Woods.
On our walk back we saw a teepee as a nod, I'm sure, to the Indian heritage on the island.
The nightly sunsets brought rainbows, lots of photo opportunities, patriotic music, and the striking of the flags.
I was taken with the Audubon's and the art galleries on property.
You can dress casually at breakfast in the main dining room. We loved having breakfast and enjoying a game of Scrabble on the historic porch.
We had the most wonderful time and I had fat tears in my eyes when we walked down the hill for the last time.
I couldn't get over the printed menu cards, business cards and details on every bit of paper printed.
Even the postmark has a carriage from the island. I wrote thank you notes to Mr. Musser and Sarah. The hospitality we were shown was beyond our wildest imagination. Everything was done perfectly. We are hotel snobs. We met while working at a five star hotel in DC. We were blown away by the service.
We were so appreciative of receiving letters back as well.
Thank you to all the staff, the Musser family, and the good people of Mackinac Island. We look forward to returning on our 10 year anniversary.
