Beach Week, Day Two: Tulip.

When I did my posts about Delaware, I didn't mention Bethany Beach. The reason is because the best thing about Bethany (IMO) was Tulip - and it had already moved to Rehoboth.

Tulip is owned by twin brothers Kurt and Wally Wode (that joke was for you, Wally). It is on Route 1 between Rehoboth and Dewey Beaches. It's an interesting mix of blingy ballgown gorgeousness and down-to-earth hand-craftedness. Let's browse and see what you like.

Sunburst mirrors suit the beach. And, of course, a carved deerhead (actually it's an antelope or something) fits in anywhere.

A lot of the local stores carry items that reflect beach life such as coral and shells but here they always manage to throw in some of the unexpected, like those interesting ceramics on the country cupboard.

Or this fabulous chandy.

The beauty is in the mix. Lodgy leather and transitional tortoise mix with translucent capiz shells to trip your light fantastic (I think I'm channeling Linda at Lime in the Coconut).

And texture. You can have an entire room of brown and white that looks interesting because of its varied textures. Silks and abalone, sisal and crackled ceramic contrast with shiny mirrors and polished chrome.

And just when you think you've got the place figured out, they throw you a curveball.

A well-loved, hand-hewn table shows up. Many items are one-of-a-kind, handmade pieces. And then there's a fun section of state pillows and glasses, another with soaps and potions and, oh, I almost forgot: The motherload of Vera Bradley. An entire room devoted to it.

But here's what I left with: A beautiful wreath for the front door of the beach house, the cutest little owl soap with a leaf soapdish and a gift for my daughter. And I found a few of my favorite Christmas Fir votives tucked in the bag.

Geography Lesson: DelaWhere?

Now that you know about Wilmington, it doesn't really matter if you don't even know where Delaware is. Don't feel bad. 99.75% of the population of the U.S. has no idea where Delaware is. The other .25% live in Delaware. When I first moved here someone from Chicago said, "Where is Delaware? It's in Rhode Island, isn't it?" Ah, yes, do not feel bad.

Delaware is like the hanging chad of Pennsylvania. In fact, it used to be the lower states of Pennsylvania until the Revolutionary War. It is the "First State," in reference to its being the first state to ratify the U.S. Constitution. It is the "Diamond State," because it is a jewel? I have no idea. Delaware is also known as the "Blue Hen State," referring to Blue Hen Chickens, the official state bird which some general carried around during the Revolution to entertain the troops with cockfighting. The tradition of cockfighting is still carried on in Rehoboth Beach. *wink* Also, the University of Delaware is known as the Fighting Blue Hens. Its state flower is the peach blossom because before Georgia, Delaware was known for its peaches until a blight killed off all the trees.

Delaware is divided into three counties: New Castle, Kent and Sussex. New Castle county is where I live. Kent is the middle of the state and Sussex is in slower, lower and includes the beaches. Delaware was originally settled by Dutch traders in Zwaanendael, which I understand to now be Lewes.

Delaware is located on the Delmarva (Delaware, Maryland, Virginia) peninsula in the Mid-Atlantic region. It is only 100 miles or so from tip to toe with a state population of approximately 850,000. No city has over 100,000 people.

Delaware is home to the famous annual Punkin' Chunkin' event which occurs the weekend after Halloween. People build catapaults, trebuchets and canons designed to launch their leftovers (pumpkins) to a win. Canons tend to be so powerful they turn pumpkins into pie. And ain't nobody winnin' no punkin' chunkin' with no damn pie. This event went from being a couple of drunken friends to an annual (drunken) event that this year drew 20,000 spectators and dozens of participants from all over the world. It grossed around $100,000 in ticket sales, the majority of which is given away as scholarships. The winners the year I went - oh, yes, I went - were from Britain. Classes of schoolchildren enter as well as adults from various walks of life. It is one of the funniest things I have ever seen.

Punkin' launchers.

Rehoboth Beach hosts an annual jazz festival in October and the Independent Film Festival in November each year. And, as you know, Rehoboth is my other hang. Both Rehoboth and Lewes have beautiful beaches and state parks, swimming and shopping. Oh, and there is no sales tax in Delaware.

Chateau Country up north is home to the beauty that Andrew Wyeth captured in his paintings, some of which are exhibited at the Brandywine River Museum (actually in nearby Chadds Ford, PA), along with N. C. and Jamie Wyeth's art.

Now, just as you are starting to get comfortable with Delaware and thinking that you might like to visit or take a vacation here, I present you with this gem, found on the internet: Delaware. The Most Expendable State in the Union? An example of the hilarity: "Delaware blocks Maryland's view of the ocean." Have a look and a laugh. And come visit sometime. We'll keep a lighthouse on for ya.

Beauty and the Beach.

My favorite shop at the beach is the Shore Haus, owned by John and Chris. John worked in visual merchandising for Sak's in NYC before opening his own shop in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.

They have a well-edited selection of furniture from places like Oly Studio and Vintage Vagabond and beautiful John Derian decoupage and Fornasetti ceramics and textiles (both exclusive to them in Delaware). They have lots of gorgeous candles and accessories, not to mention the best selection of outdoor furniture and garden ornaments, fountains and accessories. There's no one at the beach like them - or anywhere else in the state for that matter.

If you're ever in the area, stop by and see them. I think I'll do that this weekend (off-season is the best!).

Quitcherbitchin'.

After the mind-bending events of the last week, I needed a break. So I went to the beach where I attended an event which shall remain nameless. I will say that said event was attended by a rather rednecky, McCain-loving crowd. It's okay, I'm from Illinois - I felt like I had travelled back for the day. And I will add that said event was not NASCAR. I was advised by one of my gay boyfriends at the beach not to inform blog people of the event because nobody (save my Midwestern posse) understands my love for this event and if anybody at all is reading this blog, they will question my sanity and stop.

Anyway, I am in this crowd of people, everyone drinking and having a good time when a guy stops me and says, "Hey, you look like Sarah Palin." His brother, standing beside him, concurs.

I must have looked so insulted that he said, "No, your glasses. You look like Sarah Palin." I said, "For god's sake, Sarah Palin? I am a woman and I am wearing glasses, but I look nothing like Sarah Palin." Although then I found the picture above and there's a picture of me that looks almost the same. *Cringe.* (Updo sort of included.)

He said, "It was a compliment, she's hot."

Now, this is not the first time this week I have heard that Sarah Palin is hot. My husband went to lunch with some clients earlier in the week and told me they were all over how hot Sarah Palin is.

How depressing is that? It's like when my former?/first? mother-in-law said Dan Quayle was handsome. Remember Dan Quayle? He couldn't spell tomato. And the Republicans keep churning them out. Although, in her beauty-pageanty defense, I think S.P. can spell t-o-m-a-t-o. With no "e," Dan Quayle.

So, after chatting with these guys (no amount of my talking was going to convince them that Sarah Palin was the scourge of women but one of them was a good sport enough to wear a "Joe" [Biden] sticker that I plastered on his shirt for most of the evening), I left to use the restroom.

While waiting in the doorway of the very crowded loo, I hear from behind, "Oh, no..." and proceed to get barfed on.

I was thinking, "Nice. Barfing already before 10 pm. And on me. WT..." Then she says, while trying to clean herself up and quit barfing, "I'm so sorry, I just started a new chemo this morning and clearly it is not going well." So, of course, I felt like shit for her.

I said, "Well, the last time I was barfed on was in college by my brother, so you're in good company. And it looks like you're eating well. Salad?" She laughed and said yes, she couldn't keep anything down. And because I had unfortunately had experience with ca from my first husband, I told her about those wristbands for seasickness and how they can help with nausea from chemo.

After she left, the woman who was tending to my hair (don't even go there), said, "Well, you handled that very well but I'm worried about your sweater." And I said, "Well, I can leave and have my sweater cleaned. She is still going to need chemo." Hopefully the ass-sucky chemo will help.

Anyway, if you're feeling sorry for yourself after the last week, it's time for a glass-half-full check. After all, tomorrow is another day. (Just promise me you won't read Bloomberg.)

Getting My Magnum On.

Holy Guacamole.

I just discovered (accidentally) the most awesome thing ever.

Our beach house was hit by lightning several weeks ago. We had to get a new TV. We had to get a new Sony Bravia 46-inch TV (had. to. *wink*). The beauty of this TV is not only that it fills the space above the fireplace but that it has the ability to get Netflix DIRECTLY TO THE TV!!

You just need a little wireless doohickey (similar to a flash drive) that plugs into one of the USB ports (I know!! How far has TV come?!) and you can instantly stream movies and TV shows right to your television for $8.99 per month!! You can tell how excited I am by the number of exclamation points I am using. !!!

So, not only have I watched Steve McQueen sent instantly to my TV in the form of Bullitt (The Getaway was only available through mail and is on its way to me as we speak, as is Sex and Lucia, The Philadelphians and the original Thomas Crown Affair) and The Paper Chase (who remembers this movie which was subsequently made into a series?), Barry Lyndon (before Ryan O'Neal was loony), Amelie, It's Complicated...I have just streamed in two seasons worth of Magnum, P.I. God, I was in love with Tom Selleck in college and "dated" a guy who reminded me exactly of him. Sigh. Yes, dated in quotes. Don't judge.

Netflix should be paying me is how much I love this service. Check it out. The picture's so excellent, too.

Beauty and the Beach, Part Deux.

I got a new camera a couple of weeks ago. So, last weekend when I arrived at the beach, I went to the Shore Haus, which you remember from this post to take new (and more and hopefully better) pictures. When I got there, I discovered I was beaten to the punch by a fellow blogger, My Notting Hill.

It's a small world in blogland and to have met My Notting Hill was especially coincidental since I won her contest for a Canadian House and Home magazine and she had seen a post about Shore Haus on my blog.

So, go take a visit to My Notting Hill and see what new beauties John and Chris have to offer. (David, this means you.)

Book Giveaway!! Plus Home Tour Porn.

The awesome folks at Boxwood Home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, had such a great time with our last giveaway that they're doing another giveaway.

An oldie but a goodie...no, not Kelly Wearstler, but her fab book, Domicilium Decoratus. It's over the top with style and Kells Bells is a'posing in all manner of fabulous frock - it's a must-have for decor libraries.

Leave a comment below and I'll randomly select a winner on Friday. And don't forget to visit Boxwood Home's store here to get 20% off* beautiful merchandise like the Isabella chest from Bungalow 5 (use code BLGD):

(it's covered in lacquered moss green grasscloth, y'all)

And now for the home tour porn part: John, the beauty brains behind Boxwood Home, lives in a perfect little historic home in Lewes, Delaware, which was on the Christmas House Tour on Saturday. He was kind enough to share photos of his gorgeous house from the tour.

The perfect little kitchen. Wait, it gets better:

Look up. That's the kitchen ceiling.

This photo is not from the tour but earlier in the fall.

It's the eating area off the kitchen.

How perfect is that? House Beautiful was right when they asked "Is Small the New Big?" So, go visit his shop here, his blog here and leave a comment below to be entered in the book giveaway. I'll meet you back here on Friday.

*From now through Christmas Day

Beauty & the Beach: Shore Haus Update.

Owners John Raines and Chris Berg are pictured here in front of some of the new bird prints in store. John is leafing through a Natural Curiousities book that comes unbound so you can frame the pages.

If you happen to be in Rehoboth Beach for the holiday weekend it's the perfect time to stop in and see the beauty in person. Shore Haus is located just after the Rte. 1 split at700 Rehoboth Ave. Or if you can't visit in person, you can always take a trip via their website and their new blog.

And, now, a bonus - the boys of Shore Haus:

Dennis

Alex

I'm thinking of doing a calendar.

UPDATE: Well, what do you know? Shore Haus is in the Washington Post today! Click here for the link.

Beauty & the Beach: Boxwood Home.

Another gorgeous shop has opened on beautiful Baltimore Avenue in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware: Boxwood Home at 39 Baltimore. Those chairs with the octopillows are meant for my family room. In addition to being beautiful, they are sooooooo comfy.

The Oly bed above about kills me with its raffia and nailhead upholstery.

An Oly sofa upholstered in a DDG (drop-dead gorgeous) fabric with white leather chairs.

The barrelback chair is upholstered in burlap with nailhead trim. The blue baby alpaca octopus throw is by Thomas Paul.

You can see one side of the Bungalow 5 Calista mirror and some of the John Derian collection of decoupage. It hasn't even been open two weeks yet so they're getting new things in all the time. They have a brand new blog here which you can keep checking for new info as well.