Pamper Yourself With a Day at the Spa and Shopping

Looking for the best of Lake Oconee has to offer the most discerning traveler?  From Madison to Greensboro and over to Eatonton you will be pampered and treated like a celebrity at deluxe lodgings, unique boutiques, and luxurious spas.

Image Source: VisitLakeOconee.com

Whether you're escaping for a weekend getaway or traveling from out of town on business, Lake Oconee has the accommodations you that will make you want to come back again.

ImageSource: ritzcarlton.com

Lake Oconee is home to two noteworthy spa hotels such as the Ritz Carlton Reynolds, Lake Oconee known for their 27,600 square feet spa overlooking the lake. The Spa at The James Madison Inn, a historic property specializing in southern charm.  Southern Laser Medical Spa & Healing Arts has been serving the Lake Oconee residents since 1998.  New Beginning Nail Salon & Spa is not your typical nail salon.  From the moment you enter the salon, it's clear by its upscale ambiance and friendly staff you will receive the royal treatment.

Boutique Shopping on Main Street

Shopping in the Lake Oconee area is like going back in time with quaint storefronts but once inside you discover the trendy boutiques, art galleries featuring local artisans,  gourmet olive oils and vinegars, and high-end brands from Frank Lyman, Chic Verte, and Vietri, with great prices. 

Start in Madison and do a little shoe shopping at Barkin Dogs Shoe Co. and work your way via Farmview Market and pick up some locally sourced goodies from trusted farmers and artisans and then on to Eatonton for some handmade gifts from 44 Marketplace and end your shopping journey in Greensboro.

Don't leave Greensboro without visiting both the Lake Oconee shopping area and the historic district in downtown.  What you will not find here at Lake Oconee is your typical big box stores and outlet style shopping.  Our stores are as unique as the people who own and manage them.  

Many Blessings,

Kathy

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Lake Oconee: A Year-Round Destination

With year-round events and abundant outdoor fun, Lake Oconee is always in season. Nestled between Greensboro, Madison, Buckhead, and Eatonton, this oasis of fun and relaxation promises locals and visitors everything they need for a memorable experience.

Lake Oconee charms with us 400 gorgeous miles of shoreline, great restaurants, quaint Mainstreet shopping, 19,000 acres of lush green golf courses, and so much more, providing an uplifting escape to both vacationers and locals alike.

The Ritz Carlton Reynolds LakeOconee

Lake Oconee’s busiest time of year is July Fourth weekend, when there is no shortage of ways to celebrate the holiday. You could play with the kids on the beach, leisurely bask in the sun, or rent a boat for fishing, waterskiing, or for the fun of simply touring the lake and making new friends. Tubing, wakeboarding and jet skiing are all popular here, and there are plenty of places to rent equipment if you don’t have your own.

You can stay at The Ritz-Carlton Reynolds, Lake Oconee, where you can enjoy a summer concert, then watch the fireworks sparkle over the water from the comfort of your room’s private balcony. Countless boaters from all over the South flock to the lake for the Fourth of July weekend—some of them falling so hard for the community that they call areal estate agent to check out available homes before they go.

Oconee Brewing Company

When fall rolls around, the crisp weather is perfect for hiking and biking and makes golfing, boating, and fishing even more enjoyable. With over 30 square miles of surface area, Lake Oconee is one of the South’s best bass fishing lakes and plays host to a number of fishing tournaments.

If you aren’t into fishing, renting a pontoon boat will let you leisurely cruise the water, drinking in the beautiful homes and the colors of the autumn leaves, while keeping an eye out for local wildlife, including the bald eagles that nest all around the lake.

Food Festivals, such as the Taste of Eatonton and Taste & Jam, are popular this time of year, as are indoor and outdoor concerts, like those held at the Oconee Brewing Company or the Eatonton Cotton Warehouse.

Lake Oconee is a great place to escape from a harsh, northern winter—it’s too warm to require a snow shovel, but cold enough to enjoy a wood-burning fireplace. Dedicated fishermen will still hit the water at this time of year, but there are plenty of sheltered activities for those who prefer indoor heating.

Pleasantly while away the time browsing in our charming boutique shops, or at our museums and art galleries. In the evening, go out to a restaurant for some down-home cooking or elegant fine dining, then catch a show at one of the local theaters, such as The Plaza Arts Center in Eatonton, or the Madison Cultural Arts Center, where the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra puts on a holiday concert.

There are festivals for every season on the lake, and winter is no exception. Christmas in the Briar Patch takes over downtown Eatonton all day one Saturday in early December, with an arts and crafts bazaar, visits with Santa, and a lighted holiday parade in the evening.

Madison in May by Madison-Morgan Cultural Center

The weather warms up fast in Spring, bringing back all the swimming and water sports fun, but the lake has even more than that to offer. The Spring Tour of Homes in Madison lets architecture lovers tour the gorgeous antebellum houses and gardens within walking distance of the Cultural Center, and for families, the Fairytale Festival in Greensboro lets the kids enjoy fun activities like bouncing in an inflatable castle, eating yummy treats, and interacting with character lookalikes, from Frozen’s Anna and Elsa to Spiderman. You can also take the kids to the Seuss on the Loose Fun Run, where race participants are encouraged to embellish their running clothes with Seuss-ian accessories. After the race, head inside for games and crafts and a raffle benefitting the Ferst Foundation for Childhood Literacy.

Lake Oconee Food & Wne

The Masters Golf Tournament comes to nearby Augusta in the spring, and some fans choose to stay on Lake Oconee where they can challenge themselves to a few rounds of golf on one of the many award-winning golf courses, before driving a little over an hour away to watch the professionals play.

Spring is also the time to delight your palate at the Lake Oconee Food & Wine Festival at the Ritz-Carlton, a three-day celebration that brings together creative cuisine from stellar local chefs with over 200 wines from vineyards all over the world, as well as sought-after international liquors. An eclectic mix of visual artists and performers ensure that the entertainment is not limited to eating and drinking, while the lake provides a fabulous scenic backdrop for the festivities.

Whether you are a sun worshipper or the indoorsy type, a culture maven or sports lover, Lake Oconee can provide equal amounts of upscale sophistication and unspoiled nature at any time of year.

Whether you are planning on visiting for the first time or considering making Lake Oconee your new home, welcome!  Please let me know how I can make your visit a great one.

Many Blessings,

Kathy

Golf Communities

Reynolds Lake Oconee

Cuscowilla

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Land\Lots

Lake Oconee Area

Waters Edge

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Farmhouse Style: Blending the Best of the Past and Present

There are interior design trends that come and go, and then there are styles that endure, evolving but never becoming passé. Modern farmhouse style may be currently on-trend, but it also provides a classic look and livable appeal that won’t need to be overhauled a few years from now.

One of the primary assets to farmhouse style is that it is supremely family-friendly. Farmhouse décor is comfortable, welcoming, relaxed, and thanks to intentionally worn and chipped furniture and metal fixtures with dull finishes, an active family can really use their home without messing up this look.

So, what exactly is farmhouse style?

Farmhouse style is practical, down to earth, and adaptable. It features a lot of wood, both painted and unpainted, traditional furniture that is comfy instead of fussy, and salvaged and reclaimed materials that are both eco- and budget-friendly. Although it has a lot in common with country style, farmhouse sidesteps kitsch by keeping accessories to a minimum, and avoiding overly country elements such as farm animal sculptures, and wallpaper borders with flowers and fruit.

Farmhouse can also be easily blended with items in a range of different styles, such as period pieces or industrial design elements, which enables you to individualize your look in a way that is never cookie cutter. A farmhouse style living room can combine a new upholstered sofa with grandma’s shaker end tables. Pieces can be homemade, factory salvaged, heirloom antique, or brand-new from the furniture store. Imagine an industrial steel light fixture over an old harvest table surrounded by six different wooden chairs from the flea market.

Although these days you could decorate in farmhouse style by one-stop-shopping at a big box furniture store, you would do yourself a disservice by taking that shortcut. Not only can it result in a look that’s a little too catalogue-cute, hunting around for the perfect farmhouse pieces is part of the fun of this eclectic style. You can spend an afternoon tracking down a gorgeous antique armoire, a collection of old metal signs, and an ottoman made from an old apple crate, and come back feeling triumphant.

Classic Farmhouse Design Elements

44 Marketplace Antiques, Decor & More

1. Exposed wood:  All those wood support beams and wall and ceiling shiplap that we used to sheetrock over can now be exposed and appreciated. The look is not only desirable, but if you have an old house, it can also be more affordable. Instead of bringing in new materials to make over a room, you may just need to strip away a layer or two to expose what’s already there.

2. Barn board and barn doors: Reclaimed wood from old barns can be used on floors, to make shelves, for furniture, and so on. Sliding barn doors are not only an attractive design element to change the look of a room, they can create the feeling of more open space. 

3. Change it up: Whether you use slipcovers, paint wooden furniture, or strip the paint off the furniture, farmhouse style encourages you to remake and redesign pieces you already have. With some milk paint and glaze, you can transform an old dresser into a one of a kind farmhouse piece in just a few hours.

The flexibility of farmhouse design can keep the peace by blending family members’ divergent tastes into one, effortless look that is actually compatible with real life.

I hope you enjoyed this blog post today on Farmhouse Style.  Please let me know what you think below.  If you are new to the area and looking to decorate your home in the Farmhouse Style, please comment below or give me a call so I can share my favorite shops with you.

Many Blessings,

Kathy

Kathy Daniel

706-473-1707

If you are considering purchasing a home in the Lake Oconee area, please visit my site by category.

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Three Ways To Organize Your Home Life in 2018

Moving our belongings into a house is one of the major ways we turn it into a home, but over time, too many belongings can migrate inside, creating clutter that starts to make our lovely home feel like a big storage unit.

Almost everyone but the most dedicated minimalist could benefit from decluttering their home for a more organized life, but what works for one person may fall flat with another. What you need are options. Look over the following list of three decluttering philosophies to determine the optimum approach for you.

Marie Kondo’s KonMari Method

If you’re into lifestyle magazines and home organization tips, you have no doubt already heard about Marie Kondo’s bestselling book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, but you may not really know what it’s about. The KonMari method is both revolutionary and simple. You take out all of your possessions in a certain category, like clothing or books, and spread them out in front of you, all over the floor if necessary. Then you go through the pile one item at a time, holding each one and asking yourself if it “sparks joy.” If it doesn’t bring you joy; get rid of it. Kondo advises to start with clothing, then move through other categories, saving your sentimental items for last.

Hygge

Hygge (pronounced hue-guh) isn’t strictly an organizational method—it’s a Danish word that basically represents savoring coziness—but the best way to feel peaceful, cozy, and comfy is to have a welcoming, visually pleasing living space that reflects who you are. To declutter the Danish way, you should start by focusing on the areas of your home that are most important for Hygge. If you want to cuddle with a loved one by the fireplace, then you should probably clear away the books and papers on the coffee table, and recycle the towering stacks of newspapers, saving just a few to help you light the fire. If you want to indulge in a day of curling up in bed with a good book, sorting through the clothes that are overflowing the bedroom closet first will create a more peaceful space for reading. Basically, try to get rid of anything that will get in the way of the home life you truly want for yourself.

The 90/90 Rule

Following the 90/90 Rule is a direct and practical path to minimalism, and one of the simplest approaches to decluttering. Just go through all of your belongings, and ask yourself two questions about each item. Have I used this in the last 90 days? And, Will I use this in the next 90 days? If the answer to both of these questions is no, then you don’t really need it and can let it go without regrets.

It isn’t always easy to get rid of our excess belongings, but clearing out the home has a way of clearing the mind and allowing us to refocus our priorities to better suit the life we want to be living.  

Happy New Year,

Kathy

Algin Realty

706-473-1707