Studios on the Park

 

                                                                                                             photo courtesy Studios on the Park

If you haven’t visited Studios on the Park you should stop in and take a peek. The Studios are the brain child of local (transplant) and artist Ann Laddon.  It was her vision to have an art center with working studios that would allow the community  to interact with working artists, take classes, and support the arts in the heart of downtown. The studio is comprised of ten studios with over 50 working artists. On any given day you can find a number of artists perfecting  their latest works. It also houses the Paso Robles Art Associations’ Gallery.

One of their more interesting exhibits , “ Who Do We Think We Are”, runs until mid October.  Twenty nine of the Studios’ artists reveal themselves through evocative self portraits in their preferred medium.

                                                              This one is titled “Life's a Trip” by Barbara Rosenthal.

 

                  

Jeanette Wolf’s self portrait,constructed  from mixed plastic, paper mâché, chicken wire, metal washers, metal pipe, driftwood, cork, plaster, and paint a  is entitled “The Good Ride”.  It stands 4’ 6”

                                I love this one ‘”On my way to becoming a Cat”  by Helen K. Davie in watercolor and crayon.

The studios are located at 1130 Pine St. and are open Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. and Friday from noon to 9 p.m. For more information, on upcoming exhibits and workshops visit studiosonthepark.org.

All photos courtesy of Studios on the Park

Technorati Tags: Paso Robles Studios on the Park

Upcoming Events in the Paso Robles Wine Area:Savor the Central Coast, Harvest Weekend, An Afternoon with Diane Worthington

If you haven’t explored the Paso Robles wine area you are truly missing out. There are a lot of interesting events in and around the area coming up. Savor the Central Coast is a four day food and wine extravaganza highlighting the foods and wines of the Central Coast. It is held at the historical Santa Margarita Ranch and other locales around the Central Coast. Join Sunset Magazines’ editors and celebrity chefs (including Tyler Florence)  for culinary tours and seminars.   For more information go here :

http://www.savorcentralcoast.com/

photo courtesy of savor the central coast

Enjoy an afternoon with Diane Worthington at Halter Ranch. Learn tips on how to develop your own recipes and expand your culinary talents. Begin your day at the farm and end it at the vineyard in their Victorian Farmhouse kitchen. For more information go here: 

   http://halterranch.com/events/events_at_halter/a-day-with-diane-worthington   

           

image courtesy of appellation america

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            The wineries of Paso Robles will host a variety of events throughout Harvest Wine Weekend, October 15 - 17.    Explore some of your favorite wineries and check out some new ones that you haven’t yet experienced.  For more information go here:          http://www.pasowine.com/events/harvestactivities.php  

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           This past weekend we revisted Adelaida Cellars.  Their wines have recently had some great press.    This is another winery that literally doesn’t make a weak wine.  Stop in if you haven’t been there in a while. 

Recent Accolades

Version (Rhone Style White) 2008: 92 points, Connoisseurs' Guide
Syrah Viking Estate Reserve 2007: 92 points, Connoisseurs' Guide
Viognier 2008: 92 points, Connoisseurs' Guide
Version (Rhone Style Red) 2007: Best in Class, San Francisco International Wine Competition
Cabernet Sauvignon 2007: Best in Class, Los Angeles International Wine Competition
Zinfandel Michael's Estate 2007: 92 points, Wine Spectator

                                                                                        photo courtesy of the delicious life

Read their post regarding the Paso Robles Wine Area here:    http://www.thedeliciouslife.com/paso-robles-cayucos-and-san-luis-obispo-unexpectedly-extraordinary-escape-to-the-central-coast/                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     We also checked out a couple wineries that we haven’t visited. Lone Madrone has some really nice wines.  We also stopped at our all time favorite lunch place Farmstand 46.  The boys had the irresistible “ goat” .  I tried another of their amazing pizzas.  WE LOVE THIS PLACE!!!   For years we had to drive to Templeton or Paso for lunch.  Sorry McPhee’s  ( we still love you) Farmstand 46  is just too convenient and amazing all at once.  If you are out in the Templeton Gap area tasting do you really want to leave?

 

We ended our day at Booker.  All their wines are beautifully crafted. Check out their recent ratings here at RobertParker.com. 

 

 

 

Sadly their wines are so good that they are being forced to close their tasting room soon until they have some of their new vintages available.

In my next post I will explore an interesting design aesthetic that seems to be popping up all over the Central Coast Wine Country.

Technorati Tags: Paso Robles Wine Country,Booker Vineyards,Lone Madrone,Farmstand 46,Adelaida Cellars

Technorati Tags: Savor the Central Coast,Harvest Festival

The Long and Winding Road….Paso Robles Wine Country Villa VRBO #313537

 

The stereo and sound system  are installed  (thanks Stan)  so we are  ready to rock and roll!  This project has been an adventure.  Steve and I could never have taken this on if it weren’t for our son and amazing daughter in law.  They are the reason we purchased Villa Cantina.  Colin realized the potential of the original design and Lauren envisioned what a wonderful  family gathering place it would be for us all. They essentially put their life (and their  uncompleted house!) on hold in order to finish this project.  They have worked tirelessly nearly every weekend since Christmas.    We love them and are so grateful they were willing (and  able) to take this on!

So here she is (Villa Cantina) in all her glory….

 

The View From the Entry

 

The Living Area

 

 

Upper Veranda off Living Area

 

 

Looking from living area into dining area

 

 

 

Dining Area Into Kitchen

Kitchen

 

 

 

Out the Kitchen and down the hall to Bedroom #1

 

 

Bedroom #1

 

 

Bath #1

 

 

 

Down the Stairs

 

To the Master Suite

 

 

 

 

 

 

The view from the master suite out onto the lower veranda

 

 

Lower Veranda View…Hills and Lake in the Distance

 

 

Bedroom #3

 

  

 

Bedroom #3 Bath

 

 

 

Bedroom #4

 

 

 

Bedroom #4

 

 

 

If you are planning a vacation in the Paso Robles Wine Country or know someone who is,  please check out VRBO #313537.  If you haven’t  ever used VRBO when planning your vacation, try it.  There are wonderful  private homes listed  from all over the country and abroad that you can’t find anywhere else.

In my next post I will highlight some upcoming happenings in the Paso Robles Wine Country.

 

Technorati Tags: Paso Robles Wine Country VRBO

Linne Calodo Love & VRBO

It is summer and we bloggers are becoming slackers.  Who wants to sit at their computer when they can be out enjoying the view and a glass of wine here:  

 

Sunbrella curtains constructed by the amazing Yvonne @ Soft Accents

Or having a cup of coffee here:

We did get out last weekend to enjoy a little wine. It was l04+. It was much more comfortable in the tasting rooms.  We stopped by one of our favorites  Linne Calodo  who consistently produces some of the best wine in the area.  “Linne Calodo takes its name from the rocky, limestone soil type of Westside Paso Robles, and it's this soil Winemaker Matt Trevisan sees as one of the essential building blocks for his wines... Producers of Rhone and Zinfandel blends... Supporters of sustainability... Experience the Linne Calodo wines daily from 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. 3030 Vineyard Drive, Paso Robles, CA 93446. 805.227.0797. ”
They are a family owned and operated winery. The winemaker and owner Matt Trevisan works closely with the growers from other noted local vineyards.  He is a strong believer in making wines that are “regionally distinctive.”  They have a beautiful new tasting room and they also have some of the friendliest and most knowledgeable staff working in the tasting room. 

We particularly liked the Rising Tides and the  Cherry Red.  If you get a chance stop by because they usually sell out.

                                 

We also spent a little time scouting wedding locations as we are going to have a wedding next summer! My head is spinning with ideas so you will probably see some wedding inspiration on this blog in the next year.

In the meantime we are buying a new camera so I hope to post some better pictures of the completed master bedroom suite.  Villa Cantina will be up for grabs on VRBO next week so if you are interested in renting check us out.   I think you will really enjoy yourselves!  We absolutely love this  place!  If you haven’t tried VRBO you are missing out.  You can find some of the best places almost anywhere you wish to travel.

 

Technorati Tags: Linne Calodo,Soft Accents,Sunbrella

What is Old is New Again

I apologize for my sporadic posting lately.  Houseguests and work have occupied my time of late.   Remember the shutters that I showed you in one of my previous posts that I purchased from Capitol Salvage?



Here is what the last guestroom looked like when we purchased Villa Cantina




Here is the room now with one of the shutters hung above the bed


I mixed and matched a group of these old ceiling tiles from Urban Evolutions to reflect the color pallet of the living area



Here is what the wall looked like before


Here is what the gallery wall looks like now!  Much more interesting don’t you think?



I think it provides a great alternative to expensive art.  You can find some similar ones here:  http://stores.ebay.com/urbanevolutions

Reuse, Repurpose ... Unexpected Objects as Art

When gathering information for this post I realized a theme was developing. My husband and I have collected antiques since we were in college.  In my own home I don’t have a single lamp that began its' life as a  lamp. I have a few nice paintings from my friend Pat Huber http://pathuberfineart.com/collections/9145.  You can read the post I did on her art here http://villacantinas.blogspot.com/2010/04/kitchen-completion-and-beautiful-art.html .  More often our “art” began it’s life as something else. If I find something that intrigues me it might end up a lamp, wall art, or something even different.   Steve and I were repurposing things before we new it was in vogue to do so.   Steve purchased old Pennsylvania barns for their beams and has used them in several homes he has built or remodeled over the years. I intend to do a post on that in the future.
In one of my older posts  I posted a picture of this fabulous grape gathering bucket that I had been coveting  from Barreveld.  I knew I wanted to use it somewhere I just wasn’t sure where.

 I also posted a picture of this area which was calling for a fabulous work of art.


Since the budget didn’t allow for a fab work of art I filled it with a mixture of gathered local sticks  and faux flora.  Now it is one of my favorite details.


The great oars in the picture above have made their way around Villa Cantina as well.  They look great wherever I put them!




I found these old french porch balusters at one of my favorite haunts  Center Street Antiques in Soquel.  I knew  when I found them they would make fabulous lamps.  Look what Colin created over the weekend.  Drum shades are from ballarddesigns.com. 








This area was desperately calling for something interesting.   This isn’t the most attractive stair rail.  I hope to give it a better finish at some point.  I think something old always adds character to an area that can be cold and unwelcoming.




On the wall a great pair of Oars that I found on Ebay here and  a fabulous pair of canoe paddles from Crawford Antiques in Soquel.

On the wall an old barn vent from a Pennsylvania barn that Steve purchased the beams for a home he did several years ago.



The end result is much friendlier and welcoming don't you think?



Reemember the cowhide rug that I bought from Shine Rugs.  Here it is in all it’s glory…love it!



I also bought these great shutters from Capitol Salvage on Ebay.  I am thinking headboards for these fellas!



As I was about to post today I came across one of my favorite blogs Acanthus and Acorn.  She did another fabulous post about a new book Monica Rich Kosann has written titled “Living With What You Love"
You can read her fabulous post here http://acanthusandacorn.blogspot.com/2010/06/living-with-what-you-love. 








If you would like to buy Monica’s book you can click on my favorite design books or go to Amazon or your favorite bookstore and purchase.  I am ordering mine today.
 
Technorati Tags: Living with What you Love,Capitol Salvage,Acanthus and Acorn,Crawford's antiques,Center Street Antiques,Ballard Designs