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Nolefunn1
May 7, 2006

Dogwood

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For a challenge.

Embellies: had to be old type embellies. used: Old style copper numbers, antiqued metal hinges,old fasjined "5" paperclip, small tea-dyed shipping tag, antique gold metal photo corner.

Extra 10 pts: Foofala buttons, 7 Gypsies photo turns

Technique: Dying. Used: Tim Holtz dye/ink in vintage photo, walnut. Also used color washing (white) on the photo mat on 2nd page and on the letter "G" which I later tea dyed on top of it- very cool looking IRL!.Tea dyed teh newspaper article and photo which aged them nicely (smudged a bit though).

Bonus 10 pts: Extra distressing: On top of the 3 different inkpads and 2 different dyes I used, I also burned the edges of the newspaper articles and the letter about Dogwood (hidden inside large photo on first page). the same letter was crumpled and tea stained. I also Sanded around the letters in the title. I just couldn't sand on my photos!

Super Sweet embelly: Chipboard. Used: Bazzill chipboard pieces under letters in title, and for circle of flowers on first page. (used rectangle, 1.5" square; 1.5" circle)


Please bear with me while I explain my journaling:
Visible: Newspaper article from 7/5/88 explaining the lodge had burned down and a brief background about the lodge, famous visitors and a brief retelling of the story of how my grandma got it built during the depression.

Hidden:
Under the charcoal sketch (done by my 2nd cousin) is a list explaining my Top 10 list (handwritten).
1)Family. Dogwood has always been about Family first and foremost.
2) Dogwood taught me: "The Key to Life= Simplify Everything." No Tv does wonders for a child's imagination!
3) Bathing in the waterfall and slipping/swimming in the shale-bottomed pool.
4) The Artwork: I'll always wish I had pictures of all those originals.
5) Skipping Rocks. Dogwood has the thinnest, most flat rocks anywhere! Perfect for skipping!
6) Crickets chirping. You always knew you were at Dogwood when night fell.
7) Fireflies. The biggest, brightest Lightning Bugs you ever saw!!! seriously!
8) Sleeping on THIS porch! This was the one I claimed as mine! It faced the driveway and towards teh waterfall- it had the best breezes in my opinion!
9) Long Walks on Country Lanes were the best! Just walking and picking blackberries and eating til your mouth and hands were purple!
10) Exploring and Discovering EVERTHING! The house was a maze of treasures!

Additional hidden:
VERY long letter just telling about my memories (most briefly touched on in my Top 10). Just the stuff I'd like my kids to know about how special a place it was for me! Too long and boring for anyone else to read- but here is teh last 2 paragraphs:
"And the wonderful place that was Dogwood Lodge was burnt to the ground a mere 2 years later. It broke my heart! Some people may think I am crazy, but Dogwood was like a beloved family member- and not just to me, my whole family felt the same. It was our escape, the place we could go if we needed to just get away, whether it be from the heat of summer, or horrible marriages. It was the place where we kept in touch with our family. Every reunion was held there. It was the place that held such wonderful mementos of our ancestors. It was the depository of our family treasures. The beautiful original oil paintings- by Mother Laurie, and Sue and Len and so many others! And so many other wonderful, unique, and irreplaceable treasures- all gone now- wiped away in one night. I cried when I heard. I have never been back.

It has taken having my own children and wanting to share a little bit of our family history to make me consider going there now. A gazebo was built incorporating the chimney and what would have been the living room. My mother and Aunt visited a few times- camping out where we used to spend time in such simple luxury- but they both admitted the magic was gone for them. But they- like me- knew how it was, how wonderful it had been! I now have begun to wonder if my own children would be able to enjoy Dogwood as it is now. They never knew how glorious it was, so maybe they will be able to see how special it can still be. And maybe through their eyes I will be able to recapture my own feeling of joy at the carefree simplicity of life at Dogwood."


ADDITIONAL HIDDEN:
An adaptation of the original story of how Mother Laurie (my great-grandmother) had Dogwood built. It is excerpted from Helen F. Blackshear's (my Great-aunt) published book: Mother was a Rebel (very obscure- don't worry if u have never read ;)). This excerpt is taken from pages 126-131, the chapter is titled: "Dreamhouse for a Dollar a Day". It is a very interesting story but will just give a short excerpt here:
". Daddy had become unexpectedly busy at the office during these weeks and wasn’t around to restrain her. When he at last came out to check on her he could only stand in amazement. “Ye gods, Laurie!” he exploded, “do you realize you’ve made this living room 30’x40’? I don’t see how a wall of logs that size can be braced and supported, and how in the world will you heat it?”

Mother was undismayed though, and her enthusiasm was contagious. Daddy was a civil engineer after all, and the problem of support became an interesting challenge. Indeed, it was Daddy who contributed the crowning glory of Dogwood Lodge- a rock chimney so enormous that it would probably last for centuries.
The soaring log walls and huge fireplaces of Dogwood Lodge became the showplace of the local countryside. The men who worked on the house would often bring their families to gaze in wonder at the cathedral-like arches of the living room with its log steps and balcony and its massive sliding log doors. A country carpenter proved to be a genius at converting hand-planed cedar logs into furniture. The great round dining table built around a large cedar stump was his masterpiece. Members of our family, their relatives and friends have gathered around that table each summer for more than 40 years, as Mother and Daddy would move to Dogwood Lodge early in May and stay until the frosty nights of late October sent them regretfully back to town.
In later years countless visitors recalled those days at Dogwood Lodge as unforgettable experiences in a uniquely beautiful setting."

Unfortunately that great chimney is all that remains of teh original Dogwood :(

thanks for sharing this memory with me. It was a very hard LO for me to do- and I left additioanl pockets of space for me to add more letters to. I know my mother wrote a poem about Dogwood (written before it burned), and I want to include that with this LO :)


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Cheer sent!

Thanks for spreading positivity!

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