So we have decided to donate 50% of the profits from every item we sell in June to the Central Texas flood victims.
Every little bit helps.
]]>Everyone has heard of Davy Crockett or Jim Bowie. While such men are very much classic “Texas Legends”, it is the unsung men and women of modest stature that make Texas what it is today.
I grew up in the Hill Country on a beautiful "ranch" in what I liked to call the “middle of nowhere”. It was an idyllic childhood. We had miles between ourselves and the closest neighbors. One neighbor in particular, changed my idea of what a “Texas Legend” could be.
Ellen White was a real life cattle woman (only black angus would do) and prominent figure in town. She was a gracious, kind, god-fearing woman: an educator, leader and most of all Texas friendly. I have many memories of long exploratory bike rides through the back half of her property scouting new trails, searching for armadillos with our dog Belle, and peddling as fast as I could go to feel the wind in my hair. Ellen let my Dad take me fishing for catfish in her stock tank, and during the summers she would invite us down to swim in her pool while munching on wild mustang grapes.
When she left town for any reason my folks would look after her animals and cattle. Some of my favorite memories where feeding her chickens, collecting fresh eggs, and having the cattle chase after our truck as I threw out feed pellets for them.
In those moments I felt a strong connection to the legendary cattle history of Texas. As a girl there was something awe inspiring about watching a woman take on the role of such a male dominated lifestyle. She was tough, strong and yet still exuded the grace of a born lady. It is women like her that are “Texas Legends” for a girl like me.
]]>Our hats are off to all the farmers, ranchers, and people involved in any aspect of the agricultural or livestock industry today. It has to be a labor of love to get up before the sun rises and not hit the hay until long after the sun has gone down. It is a job filled with a lot of what ifs.
What if it doesn’t rain today?
What if the price of feed goes up?
What if that sick calf doesn’t recover?
What if I can’t get those grasshoppers under control?
What if...?
One can only control what they can based on their experiences. The rest comes down to hard work, luck and faith.
Agricultural life, particularly the small farms and ranches, are not spotlighted enough in this country. With most consumers shopping at mega grocery stores, people do not think twice about where their produce and meat comes from, or how much work goes into bringing food to their local stores.
We still have my parent’s garden to raid for fresh veggies and fruit, but we also love to go to our local farmer’s market to see what is new and in season.
Where we live the farmer’s market is taking off. You can find several in the San Antonio metro area now. The largest and closest to us is the Pearl Market, but it is not the only one in town. Nothing compares to what truly fresh food tastes like. And meeting the people producing the food I serve means I know I am offering my family quality food. I also know that I am putting my hard earned dollars towards well deserving, hard working people who love what they do.
We hope you have the benefit of your own local farmer's markets or your own backyard garden to enjoy.
]]>
Everyone has heard the line “ As fresh as a daisy”, but have you ever thought about how that originated? Well, if you’re anything like me, you have. But if you haven’t here is the story behind the idiom. Daisies are considered the freshest of flowers because they “sleep” at night. They actually close their petals when the sun goes down, ergo, they are well-rested and fresh for the next day.
Mom's favorite daisy here in Texas is the ox-eye daisy. The bright white color pops and given time they will reseed and spread into waves of white under the oaks.
As much as I love the story behind the phrase, urban dictionary has the best definition in my opinion. They define “Stay Fresh” as
"a phrase said to only the coolest people to acknowledge their coolness and to tell them to stay cool"
That pretty much sums up the design thought behind the Stay Fresh shirt and what it means to wear it.
]]>Dad always says “ Rays, rays come on down, make my body golden brown.” That phrase has stuck with me. It is quintessential summer, bringing to mind images of the sun brightly shining down, the feel of a cool Texas coastal breeze, the sound of water lapping on a lake shore or against your tube as you float down the Guadalupe, Comal, or Frio rivers in the Hill Country. Summer means that it is time to escape to the nearest cool water you can find and bask in the long, warm days that turn your body into that perfect shade of bronze, (just remember the sunscreen please).
If Texans know anything besides BBQ and how to make things bigger, they know HOT. As a child you are baptised into the long tradition of weekends escaping the humid and muggy cities and towns and getting yourself into that cool water as soon as heavenly possible.
The Right to Bare Arms shirt is our manifesto to summer and the memories of cooling off in the salty waters of the Gulf of Mexico, water skiing for the first time on Lake LBJ, or smelling the familiar smell of hot, old, rubber inner tubes as you float along the cypress and pecan tree-lined limestone river beds of the Hill County.
]]>The Texas Two Step is the go to dance for anyone on a saw dust dance floor. It wouldn’t exist today without the legendary dance halls of Texas. Growing up I heard stories of my parents in their tight fitting wrangler jeans and boots dancing the night away in Panna Maria, Kosiusko Community Hall, or Hobson Hall. They still hold dances at many small town halls including Twin Sisters just up the road in Blanco County.
If you ever heard of Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, or George Strait then you probably know they started at small dance halls across Texas. Some like Gruene Hall or Luckenbach might be slightly more famous, but they all have the same vibe. They represent a golden era of family fun, a place to go within the community and socialize, congregate, and bond as a town. Dance Halls are the backbone of Texas society and dancing the two step was just another way to communicate.
]]>
Remember the days when you use to sneak into your mother’s closet and try on all her clothes and shoes? My mother had a pair of baby pink leather stilettos that I was obsessed with. As much as I am a clothes horse, I am an even BIGGER accessories lover! Nothing brings me more pleasure (other than my family) than shopping for over-sized sunnies, big bright shiny baubles, and the next must have purse. Accessories make an outfit. Take one pair of jeans and a t-shirt, add different accessories and you can create a month’s worth of new looks. So rifling through my mom’s jewelry box is still a fun way to update my look today.
As a child I would try on every piece, imagining the day I would wear that special set of pearls or diamond necklace around my neck on my wedding day, or hoping that every charm on my own bracelet would have as many stories to share as hers. Why would anyone ever want to stop with their mom’s jewelry box? Not me! I talked my way into both grandmother’s and great grandmother’s treasured pieces too. Luckily for me, they love jewelry as much as me and way more than my mother. I admit I was spoiled by all the beautiful and rare pieces the women in my family collected or inherited over the years. I still relish all the stories behind every piece. Accessories are more than trinkets, they are memories, adventures, and pieces of your own personal heritage to sift through when you’re feeling a bit nostalgic.
To be fair, I did not come by this obsession without influence, my great grandmother Etta must have passed this trait on to me through genetics. Therefore, I am justified in my disease for shiny objects. Etta was a real fire-cracker. She was a flapper, who loved to dance, drink an occasional sherry, but never got too wild. She was full of life, opinions, and sage advice. I can only hope that people will say the same about me some day. Etta knew who she was and what she liked. She LOVED only a few things in the world: first and foremost family, she always wore blue, collected elephants (with the trunk up only), wore jewelry the size of your head, and a pair of 60’s era stained glass sunglasses that every woman in my family coveted. As a child I was in awe at the size of turquoise in her jewelry box. The woman could layer massive pieces of jewelry perfectly. That old saying by Coco Chanel, “ Before you leave the house, take off an accessory” did not apply to Etta. Some people might have called her gaudy, but I loved her for it! I love the individuality that comes with wearing as much or as little as you like. The point of getting dressed each morning is to show the world YOU, whatever that may be.
So don’t forget to search out your families’ jewelry boxes and see what pieces speak to you (with permission of course). My own jewelry box is mostly costume jewelry or trendy things that go in and out of style, but I always rediscover some piece I’d forgotten about. I also encourage you to find local vintage and antique shops. They are an accessories lover’s best friend. Reasonable prices and guaranteed to be unique finds to add to your own jewelry box.
Like we always say here at radXdesign “Everything old is new again.”
]]>
The X chromosome is found in both males and females. Every one of our family members has their own unique X combination which is passed to the next generation. So while we are all unique, each generation carries a bit of the past with them. And of course the X chromosome was discovered before the Y.
X is the roman numeral 10, and 10% is the amount we donate to charity.
X marks the spot, we don't know where that spot is, but historically it is associated with buried treasure. We'll let you know if we find it.
X is the 24th letter in the basic Latin alphabet. 2+4=6 which is divisible by 3 which is Tony's luck number.
In math x is the name for an independent variable and we tend to find our work varies and is independent from the "flash in the pan" fashion moments.
X also signifies multiplication and as our family has multiplied so have our "multiple personalities" when it comes to design styles, themes, and interests.
X also represents the unknown, person x, place x, or as with some of the images we have found, the authors and subjects are unknown, but so worth remembering.
The x-ray is so called because their discoverer had no idea what he'd found and sometimes we have no idea what the results of our finds will be until they end up on a canvas or shirt.
The X-Generation. We missed the X-Generation, but we cover the era before and multiple eras after.
X sometimes refers to the end of a conversation...we're not sure how this is actually used, since we love to converse and some of us (we won't name names) never shut up.
X was once used as signatures for those who could not write, which is why one of the causes we donate to relates to education.
XX for kisses dates back to the middle ages-see I told you we look backward for inspiration.
X for cartoon eyes mean lights out, but you may have noticed they always come back in one form or another.
X is found in ancient Etruscan, Greek and Roman languages. It has never changed its always an X.
]]>