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Exotic Decor at Our Dallas store

Exotic Decor at Our Dallas store

We are fortunate enough to go on several trips a year to such exotic locations as India, China, and South America. During our journeys we stumble across unique items that might be vintage, antiques, or even the last one left. So, every trip, we're sure to bring our empty suitcases to fill with these rare finds so we can carry them back home.

Our Employee’s Home: Paige’s House

Decorative table accent

What is your role at Wisteria? I am the Senior Creative Manager, I manage all the photography for the catalog and web. I direct and edit the photography at the photo shoots and the styling on set.

Handmade Books in Jaipur, India

Making Books by Hand

This company was started when three young friends rented a booth at a trade fair 14 years ago to sell books and bags made of handmade paper. This Indian artisan has grown great lengths since then and now specializes in handmade paper, bags, books, and leather products. They are located in Jaipur, India and also have a small group of designers and workers from a small village outside of Jaipur.

 

Meet Fat Cat!Meet Bat Cat!

Meet Fat Cat and Bad Cat! Can you tell which is which? These adorable kitties belong to our IT Senior Technical Analyst Edward. Let’s see if they live up to their names?

 

What’s your favorite pastime?

Fat Cat: Eating.

Bad Cat: Destroying everything in the house.

What’s the one thing that really makes your hackles stand up?

Fat Cat: When Bad Cat stares at me.

Bad Cat: When Fat Cat hangs out on my turf.

What’s your favorite toy?

Fat Cat:  Little toy mice my dad buys me.

Bad Cat: Anything I can get my paws on.

Who’s your favorite snuggle buddy?

Fat Cat: My dad.

Bad Cat: A large white rat toy.

Favorite treat?

Fat Cat: Extra dinner portion.

Bad Cat: Dehydrated Tuna Slivers.

What is your favorite kind of mischief to get into? 

Fat Cat: Eat all of my brothers food.

Bad Cat: Investigating anything that dad tries to keep in places we can’t get to… then destroying it.

If you had to describe your perfect day, what would it be?

Fat Cat: Unlimited meal portions, sleeping all day in the sun.

Bad Cat: Attack Fat Cat when he thinks he can sleep anywhere he wants, steal his resting spot, and then sleep the rest of the day.

Nikki
 

Featured Wisteria Product: Italian Octagon Mirror

Better  Homes and Garden's Real-Life Kitchens and Bath Winter 2012 cover.Our Italian Octagon Mirror was featured in the Winter 2012 issue of Real-Life Kitchens and Baths.

Nikki
 

Cheese plates from Wisteria.

 

It is officially entertaining season. Let the parties begin! It can be difficult to decided what kind of hors d’oeuvres to server at your event. I think one of the  easiest things to server is a great cheese and fruit plate.  Here are some ideas for putting together a well-balanced cheese plate.

1. It is a good rule of thumb to stick to 5 to 6 variety of cheeses and have 1 ounce of each cheese per guest.

2. Serve a variety of cheese from mild cheese, to different milk cheese like goat’s or sheep’s milk cheese, or cheeses from different parts of the world.

3. Pull the cheese out of the refrigerator at least an hour before serving so that it can be served room temperature.

4. Make sure to serve different types of fruit and crackers or bread with the cheeses.

We have some great options to serve your cheese plates with like these bone cheese serving set, our marble cheese board, or our adorable Three Mouse Cheese Set.

 

Nikki
 

Roatan, Honduras.

Stephanie, our Senior Manger of Product Design and Development, went on a 3 week long scuba diving adventure to Roatan, Honduras.  The water and scenery looks breathtaking,  I felt like I was on a beach after seeing all of her photos.  See what Stephanie did on her vacation to Honduras!

“My husband & I recently visited Roatan, one of the 3 Bay Islands of Honduras. We heard about the island when we became certified scuba divers and fell in love with the sport. Roatan is an easy island to access and lies on the southern edge of the 2nd largest coral reef in the world (the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef).  The island is surrounded by a coral reef with hundreds of dive sites.   A lot of the dive sites were so close to the shore that it took just a short boat ride out to the edge of the reef. We saw some amazing species of fish. Huge grouper that were about 4 feet long, eels, sea turtles and a 7-8 foot nurse shark. ”

 

Roatan, Honduras.

“This is a photo of the southwestern end of the island, a town named West Bay. West Bay is home to a lot of the resorts and restaurants on the island, and is the most popular destination for the cruise ships that dock on the island. The beach and water in West Bay was by far the most beautiful on the island. ”

Roatan, Honduras.

Roatan, Honduras.

Roatan, Honduras.

“The island has a beautiful topography covered with lush forests, mangroves, and a mountain ridge that runs down the center of the 37 mile-long island.  Our last day on the island was one of the best. Two of our new friends, from the island, gave us the grand tour. They drove us on a scenic tour of the entire island telling us about the history of the island along the way. We visited some beautiful areas, picked fresh mango, ate fruit off of trees and had a lot of laughs. We saw a small fishing towns as we passed through.  The rest of the island is all mangroves and can only be reached by boat. This was the best way to end our trip!”

Stephanie is getting ready to scuba dive in Roatan, Honduras.

 

 

 

Nikki
 

Beautiful fall garden.

The first day of fall is approaching soon and now is a great time to start your fall planting.  The plants that work the best in fall weather are perennials, bulbs, trees, and shrubs. Here are some tips for your fall garden/yard.

1. Fall is a great time to give you soil some much needed TLC from the harsh summer. Clean out your beds and remove any rotten vegetables that went unpicked, remove any dead plants, and add some compost to your soil.

2. Broccoli, cabbage, carrots, lettuce, radishes, and spinach are all vegetables that  can tolerate frost and cooler weather. This makes them ideal vegetables to begin planting now.

3. Asters, chrysanthemums, and pansies are  flowers that  can give your yard some fall color and will be able handle cooler temperatures.

 

Image from Better Homes and Gardens.

 

Nikki
 

 

 

Yarn wreath made by Decor Chick.

My countdown to fall has begun. Only 10 days until the first day of fall.  The weather in Dallas this past weekend made it feel like fall was already here and it inspired me to begin getting my house ready for the season.  I decided to pull out my wreath from last year only to be disappointed in the new shape it morphed in to over the past year. After some internet searching, I decided to make a similar wreath to the one above made by Decor Chick.  It was very easy to make and I was able to make 2 wreaths in just a few hours.  I am not posting any pictures of mine now because I have not added any embellishments yet. But I also found some other great DIY wreath ideas from Apartment Therapy.

Nikki
 

Featured Wisteria Item: Round Pane Mirror w7261

House Beautiful September 2012 cover page.House Beautiful feature our Round Pane Mirror in the September 2012 issue.

Nikki
 

Leah, our Director of Customer Service went on a cruise this summer to Italy and Greece. She took tons of photos so that everyone in the office could live vicariously through her and feel as if we were there!  Here is what she has to say about her trip.

“This was my first trip to Europe so I was very excited to share it with my family.   We spent a few days in Rome followed by a 10 day cruise through more of Italy and Greece.   I was overwhelmed with the history and incredible sites.  I could not have asked for a better vacation.  We stayed at the Santa Maria Hotel in the Piazza de Santa Maria in Trastevere.”

Santa Maria Hotel in the Piazza de Santa Maria in Trastevere.

“Anyone who has visited Rome knows there is much to do and see.  We filled each of our days with plenty of adventure and history. ”

The Trevi Fountain.

The Vatican

“Seeing Ephesus in Turkey was incredible.  The city of Ephesus was built in the 1st century BC with a population of 250,000.  It became one of the largest cities in the Mediterranean.”

The Library of Celsus in Ephesus

“We saw the Parthenon in Athens, Greece and  the city of Pompei in Naples, Italy.  Each stop brought us more adventures and beautiful sites.  Greece was filled with beautiful blue water and friendly people.  In addition to Athens, Greece  we were able to visit Rhodes, Mykonos and Santorini.   Santorini, Greece is basically what remains after an enormous volcanic explosion. ”
Santorini, Greece is basically what remains after an enormous volcanic explosion.  

“After enjoying our day in the cities and islands we would enjoy a beautiful sunset from the back of the ship. ”

Sunset from the back of the cruise.

Nikki
 

Featured Wisteria Item: French Country Chest, w706. It’s on sale now during our furniture sale too!

Better Homes and Gardens August 2012 cover page.Our French Country Chest was featured in this issue of Better Homes and Gardens.

Nikki
 

A big thank you to Gladys and Maybelle, they performed at the Rue Launch Party last night. The two songbirds are from Fort Worth, Texas and perform in the stockyards. They perform their favorite old-school country songs but also have a full length album of their original songs.

 

Nikki