Door Bucket Love...and a Giveaway!

One of the easiest ways to brighten up for spring is on the front door. Your front door sets the tone for welcoming friends and family into your home. Make it beautiful, welcoming, and friendly! Door buckets are a wonderful vehicle for changing the look of your front porch or stoop on a dime, and offer more flexibility than a traditional wreath. My all time favorite is my Willow House Flower Market Door Bucket, one of the first products I received when I became a Southern Living at HOME consultant. This piece is so hard-working! She’s been indoors and out, front door, back door, held fresh flowers and faux.

While seasonal door buckets are fun, I highly recommend going with one that can go from season to season simply by changing the filler. Choose a great finish that will complement any door color. And make sure it’s well-constructed if you intend to leave it outside for extended periods of time. Check your favorite home sites and stores for good deals. I use inexpensive door buckets in the garage to contain sunscreen, bug spray, dog leashes, etc. All the ugly stuff you need handy, but don’t want to look at!

A great look for fall…

And here she is for spring…

Door buckets make wonderful gifts, too!  Pop over to Houzz to view my Front Door Decor ideabook [again, only the tip of the iceberg!] and then come on back...

To help you jump start your front door makeover, my second Mondays in March Giveaway is this gorgeous Flower Market Door Bucket AND Must-Have Door Hanger! Here’s the scoop:


Comment here with where you’d display this lovely. {1 entry}


Tweet about this giveaway and mention @heidimilton, then come back here and let me know you tweeted. {1 entry}


Visit the Facebook post [Willow House with Heidi Milton] about this giveaway and comment there as well. {1 entry}

Contest is open until 7pm EST Monday, March 14th. Winner will be chosen by Random.org and posted that night. Good Luck!!

Provence Paradise by Michel Biehn

Have you ever been stopped in your tracks by a magazine cover?  This is exactly what happened to me in the airport a few weeks ago, when I caught sight of the August issue of Veranda.  I splurged and picked up a copy for my flight and I've been repeatedly engrossed ever since. 

The images of this stunning Provencal villa restoration are captivating!  The result of a ten-year collaboration between designer/antique dealer/author Michel Biehn and the American owner of the villa, the renovation became as much a restoration as anything.  Uncovering windows that had been covered for centuries and stone walls dating back as early as the eleventh century (the house began as a defensive tower back in the Middle Ages), opening up ceilings and doorways, rebuilding collapsed structures that connected different additions to the house were only a few of the challenges this dynamic team faced.  "The main family came in the thirteenth or fourteenth century...Each generation seemed to open windows but close others, create a staircase or build a tower.  Parts were destroyed in the Middle Ages.  There was a fire in the nineteenth century, and the other tower was destroyed.  The property is like an encyclopedia of French architecture," explains Biehn.  Not only is the finished product structurally magnificent, but the interiors are an inspired combination of antiques, modern touches in rugs, artwork, and fabric, and vintage finds that are the hallmark of Biehn's work.

Take a look at these magnificent photos that capture this labor of love and tell me you aren't longing to spend a weekend in Provence.

This is the image that "got" me. :)

Quite possibly my favorite space.

Can't you picture yourself enjoying your morning coffee here?

Interior Design by Michel Biehn

Landscape Design by Michel Biehn, Jean-Claude Appy, and Marco Nucera

Photography by Peter Vitale

Article by Jean Bond Rafferty for Veranda, August 2010

Grey Gardens

Yesterday I stumbled upon the 2009 HBO movie "Grey Gardens" starring Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange.  I could not stop watching!  The fashion in the film is stunning.  The story of the crazy mother and daughter, who just happened to be the aunt and first cousin of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, is riveting.  But it was the East Hampton mansion herself that absolutely captivated me.  And watching her demise before your eyes is compelling and heartbreaking, all at the same time, like watching a train wreck, unable to tear your eyes away.  Her scale is magnificent--10 bedrooms-- and yet, her exterior in its prime was a welcoming hulk of beautiful multipaned windows, exquisite millwork, airy front porch and grey shingles.  How did the architect capture that weathered grace--that of a dignified elderly woman-- in this summer home turned full time residence for Edith Bouvier Beale and her daughter Little Edie?

I had to do some digging to satisfy my own curiosity and came across a wonderful article in the New York Times from April 2009.  There I found a treasure trove of photographs of the house in her worst state of deterioration just after it was purchased by Sally Quinn and Ben Bradlee.  But I was also treated to photos of the newly restored Grey Gardens, including her magical gardens. 

I invite you to watch the HBO movie to get the full story of this eccentric mother and daughter living a free spirited life as their home literally crumbles around them.  But you will also delight in visiting the NYT photo gallery and details of its restoration. 

exterior in the 70's

the famous grey walls-- how she got her name

gardens restored and enhanced

All photos via New York Times online