Gigi’s Little Cottage

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / June 3, 2014 /

  This is local artist and gallery owner, Georgie Hackford. Known as “Gigi,” she is a giant powerhouse in our local art scene, but her real house? More of a tiny blip in the world of cottages. But in true Gigi style, even when it’s a tiny cottage, she does it right. Click here to…

And now, he’s gone

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / May 20, 2014 /

They tossed their hats in the air. His Dad said, “I’ll bet you a dollar he doesn’t come home with his cap.” About twenty minutes later, we found him on the field with a big grin, diploma in hand, and no mortarboard or tassel. “It’s somewhere out there on the field.” “You owe me a…

Graduates, respect yourself

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / May 16, 2014 /

  On St. Patrick’s Day, Page and Palette Bookstore presented a lunchtime lecture with Jan-Philipp Sendker, bestselling author of “The Art of Hearing Heartbeats.” As Sendker addressed the large crowd at the Fairhope Public Library, he told of his time spent in Burma. One story was related to a sign he saw hanging on the…

Senior Awards and Rewards

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / May 7, 2014 /

The 2014 Senior class of Fairhope High School has been awarded $15 MILLION DOLLARS worth of scholarships! That is an all time new school record. And I must be a proud Mom for a moment and say that my son added a bit to that total. (Thank goodness!) As a reward for their Senior awards,…

A Southern Belle’s Favorite Words

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / March 26, 2014 /

There’s definitely an art to living in the South. Moss dripping from ancient trees and bright white cotton fields being ruffled by the breeze paint a fetching picture. So why shouldn’t our vocabulary be just as artistically resplendent? Last week, I had lunch with three precious friends on the outdoor patio at Wintzell’s, and I…

Tybee Island Vintage Beach Cottage

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / March 20, 2014 /

Do you think you can stand looking at another charming vintage beach cottage from Tybee Island? Welcome to Mermaid Manor, which was built in the 1930’s.  It is part of the Mermaid Cottages rental properties, so yes . . . you can stay here anytime! The photos above are from the upstairs, which was created…

Focusing Game

By Leslie Anne Tarabella / March 19, 2014 /

We were having trouble with teenaged boys remembering things. What a surprise, right? I sent Big-‘un to the store for three things, and he got all three things wrong. Lil’ ‘un kept forgetting his homework.  I didn’t panic, because that’s just the way boys are. I taught school for several years and happen to believe…