Bienvenidos a la casita “LA MORADA" (the little purple house.) My “TEXICAN” home and garden is a fiesta of folk art and whimsy-filled with the work of many loving hearts and hands. Most of the artists, whether local or from south-of-the-border, are close personal friends, making their work even more meaningful! You may peruse my gardens and special points of interest on this virtual tour.
My gardens are personal vignettes-- "outdoor rooms" ideal for entertaining. Indeed, a room for every mood! By replacing the driveway that led to the detached garage of my circa 1940’s bungalow, I was able to create courtyards. This includes: a front cottage garden brimming with herbs, flowers, and native plants (a stacked limestone wall serves as a planter as well as a privacy barrier); a tropical fish pond patio with a “living wall”; a Mexican patio; a kitchen garden; a tropical deck for fiestas; an enchanting hand-crafted cedar cabin; and a tequila cantina garden.
To enter this “jardín encantador”, go through the side gate, salvaged from an old elevator in New Orleans. You will encounter an unexpected and magical wonderland: a tropical fish pond and patio features Melody Lambert's mosaic accents and seashell nichos encrusted upon a river rock grotto. Bare-breasted mermaids, Neptune, a mosaic fish with moveable fins, fish chairs and a table-for-two make this land-locked Pisces not feel like a fish out of water! Follow the stone walkway under the Mermaid Rose arbor, past cheerful Mexican pots and painted house trim to admire the “corn window”, fashioned from broken chards of Mexican pottery and handmade corn tiles.
In a Mexican courtyard replete with a tequila agave plant and lovely Oaxacan pots, you will find the protectoress of the garden, “Our Lady of LaTina” sparklin’ a plenty in her bathtub shrine (“tina” means bathtub in Spanish). A Santa Fe periwinkle-painted fence laden with fragrant vines compliments her, while mosaic prayer stones, native limestone, split-cedar, and a “palapa” arbor add to the Mexican ambiente. A bright yellow wall adorned with gaily-painted Mexican children’s chairs entices tiny garden guests.
Pinch and sniff from the kitchen garden, which provides fresh herbs and edible flowers for seasoning and garnishing festive recipes. Saint Francis watches over the garden, St. Anthony stands in a rose garden helping me “find lost things” and is surrounded by pottery cherubs and angels carried back from Tzintzuan, Michocacan. Admire the mosaic trim on the garden shed and the coral vine, which covers the “palapa” awning in all its glory.
The artisan “cottage fair,” graced by the Virgen de Guadalupe is my own creative cathedral with” little altars everywhere.” Aromatic cedar and a tin roof make the cabin reminiscent of the “trojes”--little “casitas” of the highlands of Michoacán. It is filled with family memorabilia and cherished belongings.
A tropical fiesta deck with rattan chairs, ferns and flamingo-colored walls and a purple umbrella invite a siesta....or salsa dancing! I designed the copper screen embossed with a crescent moon and agave to hide the barbecue grill. Artisan mosquito lanterns in animal forms and folk art adorn the setting.
"LA LUCINDA CANTINA" is found in a Texas split cedar "ramada" instead of one roofed with traditional palm fronds found on the beaches in Mexico. I often serve my tequila-laden libations here and set up cantina tables for fiestas on the stone patio. A "bottle tree" from Mississippi, a whimsical statue of Bacchus, whisky barrels planted with "mojito" mints, and garden beds mulched with wine corks and lined with tequila bottles add to the ambiance. Peek inside the outdoor shower fashioned by Richard Heinichen--a perfect respite after a hot afternoon in the garden (or to sober up a guest!) A living fence of cross vine allows some privacy!
Enter the house through the back door via the “stairway to heaven” with Celia Berry’s magical mosaic staircase with cat (or raccoon!) door! Explore my folk art room filled with treasures from my travels (many which were used to illustrate my book, TEQUILA! COOKING WITH THE SPIRIT OF MEXICO), a Day of the Dead altar, and desk painted by sister Criztina who lives in Pátzcuaro, México.
Inside the house, the rooms are painted in colors of ripe Mexican fruits: mango, mamey, and sandía...and hold more collections from my travels. Don’t miss my collection of SAN PASQUAL, the patron saint who turned bread and water into FOOD AND WINE!) The dining room holds my favorite collection of life-like dolls depicting daily life in Michoacán and the living room hosts a collection of mermaids from my godson’s town of Ocomichu, Michoacán and exquisite bark paintings by Oaxacan artist, Felipe Morales. Fredericksburg’s Finn Alban’s fish tiles swim in my mermaid bathroom while Melody’s shimmering glass window sparkles. “OUR LADY OF PLENTY” holds my personal altar in my gypsy-girl purple bedroom, reminding me of life’s blessings and abundance.
Muchísimas gracias for coming to celebrate my garden
May you find peace and beauty and be grateful for the blessings all around!
