I caught the bouquet + Cates Ridge

First up...

If you haven't already ordered your copy of Historical Concepts' new book, "Coming Home: a southern vernacular," then you need to... now.  The book is beautiful... plus I took some of the pictures... so go get one already.  If you are feeling lucky, you can WIN a SIGNED copy of the book.  How?

Go to the Beacham & Company Facebook Page and check out our album of listings.  All you have to do is like or comment on a photo, and you will be entered to win a signed copy!  The agent who's listing gets the most likes or comments also wins a copy of the book.  How easy is that?

Good luck!

In other news... Beacham & Company got 15 new listings last week!  We also got 21 homes under contract.  It's safe to say the market is officially hot!  If you are interested in hearing the specifics of the Atlanta Real Estate market, please check out the latest issue of "The Beacham Insider."  It is packed full of the latest statistics and market information, so take a look.

All those new listings means I have been VERY BUSY.  Can you imagine?  15 new listings in one week.  They don't photograph themselves!  Thank goodness my uncle photographs half the houses, or I wouldn't be able to sleep!

One of my favorite houses I've photographed recently is Troy Stowe's listing on Cate's Ridge.  (Clearly I did not take this PARTICULAR photograph.  I don't own a plane.  Duh.)

This property has one main house and THREE additional houses... plus a lake... with fish in it!  That little house in the distance there is the guest house!  The guest house is basically my dream house.

See?  How cute is that?

You also get this amazing view...

and you can go the the movies whenever you want, in your own home!

Next?

I got a new family member this weekend!  My cousin Beau married Elizabeth, and my family is so happy!  It was a beautiful wedding in Hilton Head.  I just love family events, and this one was no different.  It's so nice when we can all get together.

One funny thing from the weekend... I caught the bouquet.

It was sort of by accident.  FOR REAL.  See those two girls in front of me?  The bouquet bounced off their hands and was flying in the air.  THIS IS NOT A JOKE.  I thought to myself, "the flowers are too pretty to hit the ground!"  So then I sort of lept for them in a very awkward/unladylike way, and BOOM.  I got the bouquet.

Believe it or not.

It was my very first time catching a bouquet, and I was THRILLED.

On the other hand, Jimmy looked terrified.

That's all I've got for now.  See ya!

P.S. Enter my contest by choosing your favorite listing!  Please.  I asked nicely.

P.P.S.

Charlotte's the cutest dog in the entire world.

To become a fan of this blog on Facebook, click here.

To receive this blog by email, click here.

To follow me on twitter click here.

To follow me on Pinterest click here. 

To follow me on Tumblr click here.

That Dog is Such a Ham. Aren't We All?

Hey kids.  Did you all have a nice weekend?  I sure did.  I went down to spend time with my cousins in Warner Robbins.  I always feel better after a little family time. Yesterday my good friend Katie Oblinger did a photo shoot with Jimmy and me.  She is an amazing baby photographer and trying to get into couples photography.  She asked if we would mind being her "test couple."  Turns out Jimmy and I are really Hammy with the camera.

So Hammy that I forced Katie to iPhone picture me a picture from her camera.  I am sooo excited.  A lot of times when I take pictures for people and they ask me over and over when they will be ready I'm like, "just give me a little time."  Well, now I AM one of those people!  I am just sitting around twirling hair waiting to see those pictures!  Ha Ha.

While I am twirling I thought I would show you some pictures from the home of another ham...  this puppy!

705 Norfleet, NW (Listed by Rachel Farmer) is home to one of the cutest dogs ever... and the fact that he loves being in pictures makes him even cuter.

Rachel asked me to come take photos of this beautiful newer (2008) home located in the sought-after neighborhood of Springlake.  I was immediately drawn to the large front porch across the front of the home.  I was also drawn to the little dog hanging out on the front porch.  Can you see him?  It's the little white spot right at the bottom of the front door.

This dining room opens right out on the the front porch.  It would be perfect for the type of weather we are having right now in Atlanta!

This living room/office also opens to the front porch.  The wall on the right pops out and reveals a work space behind them.  It is such a great idea!

There's my little friend again hanging out by the front door.  Don't you love that stairway?  The railings are beautiful!  I also like those stools a lot.

The kitchen in this home is amazing.  Those glass cabinets on the right are so cool.  I'm not sure I've seen any like them.  Check out the red knobs on the stove.  What a fun pop of color!

This family room is located right off the kitchen... and guess what's to the right?

This beautiful porch!  Is that perfection or what?  I know where I would be spending all my time!

The master also opens up to it's own private porch.  Can you have too many porches?  In a word, no.

Here we are on the master porch.  Since you all know how much I enjoy a glass of wine... wouldn't this be a perfect place for one?  I thought so!

To see more of this home, including the beautifully finished terrace level, check out the listing here.

See you guys later... I will be trying to find other ways to occupy my time while I wait for those pictures!!

To become a fan of this blog on Facebook, click here.

To receive this blog by email, click here.

To follow me on twitter click here.

To follow me on Pinterest click here. 

To follow me on Tumblr click here.

Farms are cool. So is Widespread Panic.

I've always fancied myself a little farm-ie...

Here I am in college with my rabbit, Napoleon.  I bought this little guy without telling my mom...  not smart.  Then he grew to be like 8 lbs and would chew up all the wires/hardwoods in my apartment.  I really loved him and was able to tolerate it, but as soon as I moved back in with my mom on Habersham we had to find Napoleon a new home.  Bummer.

Here I am holding a goat.  Classic.  If I had a back yard big enough you better believe I would have my own goat.  How cute is he??

And who could forget the great chicken experiment of 2010?

I got 8 of these little fellows... and 5 of them were... well, fellows.  That left me with three of the meanest hens you've ever met.

See, she's plotting to peck my eyes out.  Kidding... kind of.  It turns out chickens don't really love being raised in the city on a concerte slab.  They would much rather be out in the country...  like me.

If I had my own farm I could own all the crazy animals I wanted, thus I was THRILLED when Nan Haverty asked me to go shoot her new farm near Serenbe.  (Hey, you never know when the opportunity might present itself and you just NEED to buy a farm.)

8275 Chochan Mill was exactly what I was looking for in a farm property.  I love that wide front porch!

Here is the barn, which is located just steps from the main house.

Of course I had to get a peak inside.  Don't hate me, but I am not a huge fan of horses.  I had a scary experience riding one once when I was little and have never really had any desire to climb aboard...  that being said I do think they are beautiful and love watching them... from afar. BTW, there is an artist studio in the attic space of this barn, so go ahead and sign me up for spending time in there!

There are acres and acres of horse paddocks behind the house.  We walked back so you could see the home, barn and garage/guest house.  The homeowner told me that every night she pours herself a glass of wine and walks around the property checking the fences.  I'm sorry, but how pleasant does that sound?

I was really impressed by the inside of the house.  It was so bright and comfortable!

Isn't that great?

Digging this fireplace in the master!

This is the perfect place to cook meals for your family while they are out tending the pigs!

My favorite part of the house is the huge back poch overlooking the fields.  I would love to sit out here at night with a glass of wine.  Apparently when I move to the country I am also going to start drinking a lot of wine.  :)

I asked Jim-Bo if he could ever see himself moving to the country.  He didn't answer... but he did buy me a nice little ticket to Widespread Panic at the Tabernacle last weekend (wood tour, for those of you in the know).  

City Mouse + Country Mouse = Two very in love little mice.

To become a fan of this blog on Facebook, click here.

To receive this blog by email, click here.

To follow me on twitter click here.

To follow me on Pinterest click here. 

To follow me on Tumblr click here.

Phish... and a restoration???

Well, here we are in the new year!  Hi!  Are you loving 2012?

I had the nicest Christmas/New Years break with Jimmy.  (yea, I know... I talk about Jimmy all the time.  What are you gonna do?  I'm going to show you guys a house, so I get to talk about Jimmy as much as I want.  A deal's a deal! -- see the results.)

We started out our visit in North Carolina where his mom's family lives.  We went to his aunt's house for lunch.  You may remember her from the kitchen she designed in Jimmy's grandma's house.  She has a great eye for design, and I was really looking forward to seeing her house.  Her home used to belong to Jimmy's grandmother's sister (great aunt?).  She lovingly restored/renovated it and did an amazing job!  There were so many unique things about the house I had to take pictures so I could share them with you.  I found out later my camera was actually on the brink of death, so forgive me if these pictures are not my best.  One more side note...  Jimmy's aunt had an awesome lunch for us.  It was so great that I got distracted and forgot to take a picture of the kitchen.  #totalfail  Don't blame me though, I was on vacation and didn't have my head totally in the game.  Ha.

This is the foyer, which I love.  Why?  I love a glass front door.  It's nice to be able to open the wood door and see out to the front yard.  I also like the wood floors.  The man in the picture is Jimmy's grandfather.  Unfortunately he died before I got to meet him, but everyone in the family raves about how kind he was.

This is the other side of the foyer.  I was really drawn to the bronze wallpaper.  I tried to get a close up of it...

Aren't those pretty imperfections?

This is the formal living room.  I love those bay windows.  They looked like iron to be, but I am not positive.  You may notice Jimmy's sisters in this photo :)

This is the fireplace in the living room.  I loved the carvings on the mantel!

I really like the dining room a lot!  The China Cabinets probably had the most space of any I have ever seen.

See?

Here is the solarium.  Loving the oversized windows and brick floors.  You guys know I am a sucker for brick floors.  Duh.

His aunt told me that she chose these Christmas decorations to echo the bronze in the foyer.  How clever is that?  I would never have thought of it and really admire the fact that she did.  The decorations look amazing.  Let's walk outside.

This is the other side of the window we were just looking through...

and here is the back patio.  Is that flagstone?  Or maybe bluestone?  It looks great.  I love the size of the stone.

Here is a view of the home from the pond in the back yard.  They put in a lot of landscaping that all looks so natural and lush (even in December!).

More landscape and the pond :)

Lets head back in show I can show you my favorite room!

We are heading up the stairs.  I put in this picture of the window seat because that's Jimmy's favorite place in the house.  He said he would hang out there a lot when he was a little boy.... awww.

We end in my favorite room.  She vaulted this ceiling and added the beams, which really opened up the space.  The recessed lighting is such a nice touch because it really lightens up the room.  We had such a nice time sitting and talking in this room, and before we left we even got to have a fire in that great fireplace!  Jimmy's sisters hung out on that bench seat in the corner.  I love it now, but wouldn't that have been such a cool nook as a kid?  Jimmy's family has been visiting this house for their whole lives and were kind enough to share all their childhood memories with me.  I can imagine this would have been quite the place to explore as a child.

Here is a closer look at the craftsmanship on the ceiling.  They even had a stained glass window made and put up in the corner.  If my camera had not been failing every other shot I would have had a picture of it for you.  Sorry!  Just believe me that it was beautiful.

Here is the other side of the room, which had great buil-ins!  If I were in high school/college I would have done all my studying here... it just makes me feel studious.

A close up of the fireplace where we had the fire...

This is the coolest balcony off the room.  It was warm enough to open the doors and go out there for a little while, which was so pleasant!

Finally we have Jimmy just doing a little hanging out in the room.  Can't you imagine him there as a child?  No?  Let me see if I can help you out a little...

How's that?  I KNOW, RIGHT!!!  CUTEST BABY EVER!  Thanks for letting me use that picture :)  And thank you to Jimmy's aunt for having us over for a wonderful holiday lunch!  I love your house!

Moving along...  What did we do the rest of the break?

Phish MSG night 1...

Phish MSG night 2...

Phish MSG night 3...

Phish NYE and MSG...

And my new years dress!!!  Success! And see how I am trying to make my arm look skinny?  Success.

Did I have fun?  Yes.  Am I glad it's over?  No.  What was my favorite song they played?  46 days.  What song got stuck in my head the most?  Quinn the Eskimo.  What was my favorite set?  NYE set 3.  "How were you able to make it through four nights?  Didn't you get tired?"  Yes...  but it was totally worth it!   Am I glad Jimmy took me?  Absolutely.  Thank you so much honey.  I had a wonderful time.

HAPPY 2012 everybody!!!

Let's sell some houses this year!

To become a fan of this blog on Facebook, click here.

To receive this blog by email, click here.

To follow me on twitter click here.

To follow me on Pinterest click here. 

To follow me on Tumblr click here.