Surroundings...

While playing beach bum for a couple weeks last month 

and enjoying this view every single day.....

I also met a celebrity.

A sweet celebrity.

Have you heard of Melinda Graham

from 

Surroundings by Melinda?

She owns a charming shop on the island where I was vacationing.

"Melinda first opened Surroundings on Sanibel as an Interior Design consulting firm in 1994 shortly after graduating from West Virginia University. The business quickly evolved into a retail shop featuring the “marketable version” of her every day life. The shop is filled with all of the lovely things that Melinda has cultivated into her own signature style…casual opulence."   
-Sanibel/Captiva Daily

I first heard about Melinda in Romantic Homes sometime last year.

She is an extremely talented interior designer and lifestyle expert who has starred
on The Today Show, shared a series with Willard Scott, been on the Discovery Channel and HGTV, featured in numerous newspapers and magazines like Woman's Day, Budget Decorating Ideas, and Where Women Create, is a contributor to Romantic Homes magazine, 

met and worked with Fifi O'Neill, created a wedding gown made from seashells that was featured in multiple media venues, and continues to consult with her interior design business as well as keeping up her blog and online shop.

I vowed that this spring I would make the effort to locate her shop while we were on vacation

to see the beautiful treasures she had there,

and hoping to possibly meet her.

I was beyond excited as we drove into the driveway one afternoon, wondering how receptive she would be....being so famous and all.  :)

My husband and I walked up to her charming shop located on the first floor of her home.

Is this not the neatest island beach house?

The entrance to her shop is on the right where the yellow French doors are on the first landing.

We walked through the doors into Melinda's world of glittery seashells, soft, handmade tee-shirt dresses, found and repurposed treasures, paper parasols, and easy elegance.

Dulcimer music played softly in the background.

She was standing at the counter tagging some items and when I introduced myself saying, 

"Hi, Melinda?  I'm Laurie....."

She said, "....from Heaven's Walk, right?"

I just about fainted.

"You know me?"

Smiling, she said, "Well, I don't have a whole lot of followers on my blog yet,

but I do know each and every one of them!"

I loved her personality from the get-go.

Melinda is the daughter of a Presbyterian minister,

a man who still voluntarily pastors a tiny church in the foothills of West Virginia

where Melinda spent her childhood.

He is Melinda's webmaster.
Her mother loves helping her with her design business.

Experiencing a scare with possible breast cancer
which turned out to be non-cancerous invasive stromal cell tumors ~

she is a true warrior through and through.
The Susan B. Komen Foundation was with her every step of the way.

♥

Between sharing our life stories, beliefs, and loves, 

she waited on various customers while I wandered around taking photos

while the husbands chatted in the garden.

This is what you see upon entering Melinda's shop.

I loved the paper parasols hanging from the ceiling.

These little clam coin purses were only $6, I think.

Charming hand made hat pedestals were created by an elderly friend of Melinda's.

He rescues the wood from rivers and streams.

Lacy paper lanterns were tucked under hydrangea blooms.

Starfish snuggled with balls of angora yarn.

We chatted and chatted and chatted like we had known each other for years.

I am humbled to consider her a new friend,

blessed to call her a sister-in-Christ,
and can hardly wait to see her again next spring.

Take a few moments to visit her beautiful blog and online shop.
You'll find them places of serene grace and eloquent design.
And be sure to like her on Facebook, too.

She would love to hear from you!

~  Blessings  ~

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