Hendersonville, the epic jouney, part one.

On the last day of February my mom and i headed up the Mountain to Hendersonville NC (one of my favorite places in the world) to have a visit-my-grandparents-day trip. The plans included two of my favorite Mt. haunts. The Biltmore Estate (if you have never been and get the chance, GO!) and a stop in to my favorite store on the planet, Honeysuckle Hollow. But more about that later. In full on Ross family tradition, things did not go quite as planned. We began our trip with a stop off in Amelie's Bakery in Charlotte to have breakfast. Cakespy.com/blog jessicamcdougal.com cakespy.com/blog My mom had never been and she needed to try it. We bought a boatload of goodies and headed on the road. Totally on time (a rarity for us) Snaking on tea cakes and coffee, we were in excellent spirits when we hit the steepest part of our trip. The dreaded Saluda grade. Not 3 minutes into it and the check engine light began to flash and the car started chugging violently. the feeling compared to running over the rumble strips they put on the side of the road to keep you from falling asleep at the wheel. Let me tell you we were wide awake. We pulled off the road to give my mom a minute to work through her panic attack and to see if there was anywhere to pull the car in to investigate. I asked a cop for help and his super helpful question : "Did you ladies check te see if ye hayd gas?" Yes officer. we have gas.  So we finally get the courage to get back on the road. The car chugs all the rest of the trip and we arrive in Hendersonville just in time for it to begin snowing. Oh boy. Arrival at my grandparents was met with quick hugs and a rush out the door. We had to make our gate time. I wasn't aware Biltmore operated on a schedule, but there you go. Shows what I know. One we arrived it was like the earlier event had never happened. It was butt ass freezing cold and nearly snowing all day, but so worth the trip. They had opened four new rooms in the house I believe they were children's room by the size of them, and they were a little less over the top than most of the larger bedrooms. They were my favorite part this trip especially the porcelain mantle hand painted with flowers. I was really tempted to break out the camera and take some illegal photos. I snagged a few off the interweb, none do it any justice.Look at those flowers! OMG! Could have lived in this room. Seriously. One of the more entertaining parts of the trip was explaining to my Grandparents why I was snapping photos of myself. "Well, I do this online journal sort of thing..." I had to get one in front of the famous lions. It was taken in less than 30 seconds set up to finish, and almost caused us to miss the tram. My Grandpa wasn't too happy about that. This is my mom. Isn't she adorable! We were playing in the toy shop. Though neither of us bought anything. Rare. This one I took out in the gardens to show the friggin' size of the gates. Holy moly! I feel like i'm slowly getting better with my little point and shoot, if only I could stop making faces, (and post more often) this blog might actually gain some readers. (love the 10 i have dearly though!) I made this necklace specifically to wear with this dress, on this trip. Vintage faux pearls, AAA grade rose quartz, AAA grade garnet, Sterling Silver, Tiny resin, paper and wire side pendant, seed beads, and of course, the compass! Didn't want to get lost in the mountains! The dress is one of the most amazing pieces of clothing I own. Late1940- early50's (not quite sure which though I think 50's) I only had to hem it. the bodice fit like it was made for me (crazy because I am PETITE! From ball of shoulder to ball of shoulder i am only a foot across. This is why I wear so much stretch cotton jersey. Nothing else really fits me) I adore the paisley print and the red. The old steel zipper and the pleated cumberbun style waist just sealed it for me as my favorite vintage find ever. I've had it for years and this is the first time I've worn it in public because I had to hem it nearly a foot before it didn't look ridiculous on me. My dress matches the Hydrant! Forever 21 cardigan, vintage handmade dress, Target tights, Salvatore Ferrigamo shoes courtesy of Southern Comforts Antiques, Urban Outfitters leather lace gloves, SkwrrL Collective Necklace More to come! Yay! Vanessa*