Places of Interest
Brenham, Washington County and the surrounding towns and counties are rich in Texas history, which is reflected in the local culture.

Washington on the Brazos State Historical Park
The birthplace of Texas… where the “Declaration of Independence” from Mexico was signed.
Check out their calendar of events.

Above: Round Top family library

Round Top Family Library
A unique library in a historic building, serving children and their families with a variety of programs and resources. Also houses the Round Top Library (a regular lending library) and the Bybee Texas Heritage Collection (focuses on local history, Texas history and folklore, Texas furniture and decorative arts, as well as Texas architecture.)

Antique Rose Emporium
A garden lover’s delight!  You’ll find roses of all types, as well as perennials, vines, trees, herbs, etc. Come for the inspiration and the enjoyment.

Above top and bottom: Views of the Antique Rose Emporium

Winedale Historical Center

http://www.cah.utexas.edu/museums/winedale.php

http://www.cah.utexas.edu/museums/winedale.php

The Winedale Historical Complex, located on 225 acres of land near Round Top, Texas, is home to historic structures and outstanding examples of early Texas furniture, decorative arts, and quilts.

Above top and bottom: A few artifacts from the Winedale Historical Center

Henkel Square Museum Village
Henkel Square is nationally recognized as an authentic restoration of Anglo-American and German-American 19th century culture where families may enjoy and experience the living tradition of Austin's pioneers. The Apothecary is the entrance to the museum village and has a wide assortment of gifts, books and displays from the Bybee Collection.
Open Wednesday-Sunday 12 pm-5 pm

Winedale: Center for the Quilt 
The Winedale Center for the Quilt (WCQ) is a Center for American History (CAH) program that works in partnership with the Alliance for American Quilts to acquire, document, preserve, and present information about quilts and quilt history. The nonprofit Alliance for American Quilts, founded in 1993, is a network of scholars, curators, quilt artists, librarians, archivists, and others from around the country dedicated to recognizing quilts as works of art and as pieces of history with stories to be documented and preserved. The Winedale Center for the Quilt is one of three regional centers with which the Alliance has formalized partnership arrangements. The other two are the Center for American Material Culture Studies at the University of Delaware and the Center for Great Lakes Quilts at the Michigan State University Museum.

Shopping and Antiques
Through out Brenham and the surrounding areas you will find an endless supply of antique and collectable shops. Many of these shops are frequented by other shop vendors from metropolitan areas because of the low prices. Below are a few of my favorite shops in the area...

Kellerhouse Antiques
A designer secret for great prices on English and French antiques. Open Thursday-Saturday, or by appointment.
E. Alamo at 201 S. Market
Phone: (979) 421-6808

Above: Kellerhouse Antiques

Kellerhouse Too
106 Saint Charles St.
Phone: (979) 203-4099

Beadboard Upcountry
Mary Anne and her husband Peter have created a delightful shop which attracts customers and designers from all over Texas.

Above top, middle, and bottom: Interior and exterior shots of Beadboard Upcountry

Ranch Antiques at Commerce Street
Hand selected from the owner's South American buying trips.
117 W. Commerce St
Brenham, TX 77833
Phone: (979) 277-0008

Leftovers
This is the place to go when you are looking for “country” antiques and collectables.
Open 10-6 Daily
3900 Hwy. 290 W Brenham, Texas 77833
Phone: (979) 830-8496

Above top, middle, and bottom: Interior and exterior shots of Leftovers

Festivals and Events
Festivals are a natural part of country living to celebrate the unique culture, qualities and gifts of the particular areas. The local chamber of commerce’s will have a complete listing of all events, as well as the individual websites listed below.

Round Top Antique Show: Semi-Annual Antique Market
As one of the most anticipated shows of the year, I can always count on the same vendors to be there year after year, spring and fall, with their best finds that they have acquired from around the world. 

The communities both en-route to the show, and in the area, have special antiques and crafts events timed to occur simultaneously with the Round Top shows either in local shops or at shared locations. This is true in Fayetteville, Flatonia, Bellville, Columbus, La Grange, Brenham and Schulenburg, to name a few.

Above top, middle, and bottom: Examples of some of the treasures
to be found at the Round Top Antique Semi-Annual Show

As one buyer said Marburger Farm is the destination show. Lots of people go to the surrounding fields, but the decorators and designers and real buyers go to Marburger Farm". This also happens to be the area of my choice as well, along with “Access”, which is about a mile up the road from Marburger’s.

Above top, second from the top, third from the top, and bottom:
More examples of some of the treasures to be found at the Round Top Antique Semi-Annual Show

A comprehensive guide to for sellers and buyers for the semi-annual shows at Round Top and surrounding areas: http://www.antiqueweekend.com/indexmain.html

http://www.roundtoptexasantiques.com/index.html

The International Festival-Institute at Round Top
This place deserves a story all it's own and is one of the places that you don’t want to miss when you are in the area! This fabulous cultural center and institution was the vision of one man that became a reality because of his passion for music. You must check out their web site for all the events and offerings, which goes far beyond the annual music concerts.

Located in historic Round Top, Texas, The James Dick Foundation for the Performing Arts and its sole project, The International Festival-Institute at Round Top, were founded in 1971 by world-renowned concert pianist James Dick. Begun with a handful of gifted young pianists in rented space on the town square, the project is now an internationally acclaimed European-styled music institute for aspiring young musicians and distinguished faculty.

Over a thirty eight year period, and with the help of its patrons and friends, The James Dick Foundation for the Performing Arts has developed superb year round education and performance programs. It has also created a unique 210-acre campus, “Festival Hill”, containing major performance facilities, historic houses, extensive gardens, parks and nature preserves. Through its singular collection of rare books, manuscripts, archival material, music and historic recordings, photographs and objects, the Festival-Institute is also known as an important center for research and scholarly study. 

Above: Festival Hill

The gardens at Festival Hill are becoming known throughout the US for their extraordinary collection of herbs, the useful plants of mankind.

Unity Theatre
In the Brenham downtown historic district, within walking distance from dining, shops and lodging you will find professional actors, directors, designers, and technicians that have come together to bring stories and characters to life. Many of these artists are acclaimed in the Texas theatre community.

Official Bluebonnet Festival of Texas
April 18-19; Saturday 10 am-6 pm, Sunday noon-5 pm Texas Highway's #7 Most Popular Festival! 300+ booths, food, live music, fun in the heart of bluebonnet country. Free admission. Downtown Chappell Hill Texas.
Phone: (979) 836-6033 or 1 (888) 273-6426

Maifest
May 8-9, 2009

The Brenham Maifest, one of the oldest spring German festivals in the South, will hold its 119th celebration on May 8-9, 2009 at Fireman's Park in Brenham, Texas. The Maifest is a community-wide festival celebrating local German heritage through the youth of the community in light of the joys of springtime. Highlights of the Brenham Maifest include extravagant parades, elegant coronations, a children's carnival and culminates with the Maifestival. The "German Village" promotes the German Heritage of Brenham and Washington County.

The celebrations begin both days at 10:30 am in downtown Brenham with a parade. The Maifestival is held Friday and Saturday at Fireman’s Park. Beginning Friday evening at 5:30 pm you have events with music, children’s carnival, festival food and drinks. The Junior Coronation will be held Friday evening with young children participating in an elaborate outdoor ceremony, which provides entertainment and the presentation of the Junior King and Queen. On Saturday, the Maifestival will begin at 11 am at Fireman's Park with German Village and Kinder Village activities, along with German music, arts & crafts, and the Children's Carnival. The Senior Coronation will be held Saturday evening with former royalty and high school students providing entertainment for this outdoor event, the culmination of the Maifest Celebration is highlighted by the presentation of the Senior King and Queen.

Third Annual German Village - Sponsored By Mike Hopkins - Budweiser, Brenham, Texas

Maifest's German Village seeks to tell the story of the German pioneers who came to Brenham, Washington County, and the surrounding areas between the late 1840's to the mid and later 1800's. These folks came here from a number of different areas of Germany, bringing their particular dialects and customs, and ultimately becoming uniquely "German-Texans."

Shakespeare at Winedale
Shakespeare at Winedale is a University of Texas program dedicated to bringing Shakespeare to life through performance. This institution was founded by Professor James B. Ayres on the belief that the best way to study Shakespeare’s plays is to perform them. Shakespeare at Winedale offers a unique opportunity to explore these rich and complex texts through the creative act of play. Shakespeare at Winedale is a program of the Department of English in the College of Liberal Arts, but many of its activities are centered on the Winedale Historical Center near Round Top, Texas, where for more than thirty-five years, students and audiences have come to encounter Shakespeare’s living.

Above: Shakespeare at Winedale

“The Winedale Story” is a permanent exhibit on display in Hazel's Lone Oak cottage at Winedale. The exhibit features facsimiles of photographs, maps, manuscripts, newspapers, and artifacts drawn from the Center for American History's extensive Texas history collections. The display is divided into two parts, each occupying one side of the “dog trot” or breezeway that divides Hazel's Lone Oak Cottage.

http://www.cah.utexas.edu/exhibits/WinedaleStory/welcome/large1f.html

The first portion of the exhibit describes the natural setting and the history of the Fayette County area that Winedale now occupies. It features maps of roads and settlements in early Texas; entries from Stephen F. Austin's famous “List of Titles,” in which he recorded the names of settlers in his Austin Colony; and excerpts from narratives of immigrants and former slaves who lived in the area. Photographs and manuscripts also document the social and economic changes in the Winedale area during the periods of German and Czech settlement in the region, the Civil War and Reconstruction, and in the first half of the 20th century.

The second part of “The Winedale Story” explains the crucial role played by Houston philanthropist Miss Ima Hogg in the development of the Winedale property into a museum site. A noted preservationist and daughter of Texas governor James Stephen Hogg, Miss Hogg purchased in 1963 Winedale's historic Wagner House and the land on which it stood. Photographs and architectural drawings depict how Miss Hogg then assembled other area historic structures onto the property, renovated them, and then donated the entire Winedale property to the University of Texas in 1967.

Written by Terri Symington, ASID

Terri Symington, ASID is a Texas State Registered Interior Designer. Her design projects support an eclectic mix of styles and periods to create atmospheres that are original, inviting, and comfortable and do not look “decorated” or trendy; but rather seek a timeless style, which will maintain their appeal. 

“I don’t have a signature “style” that defines my projects, but I do prefer to keep my designs clean and sophisticated… you won't find “cute” in my vocabulary, unless it is in a baby's nursery. It doesn't matter if a project is predominately traditional or warm contemporary, I like to eliminate as much of the unnecessary “stuff” that gets in the way of the lines of the design. Additionally, I think most people can use less visual clutter in their spaces to simplify their lives. What ultimately makes each project successful is the application and attention to the details.”

Her designs are an interpretation of the clients' visions into uniquely individual spaces; integrating architectural and interior design solutions while remaining environmentally conscience in the design choices. Environmentally conscience design does not sacrifice style or quality, and is an essential principle used in creating eco-luxury spaces that fill the functional needs and desires of the client.  

T. Symington & Co. Interiors is centrally located in the rolling hills of Washington County and serving the Houston, Austin, Brazos Valley and surrounding areas.  

To contact Terri Symington:
E-mail: info@symingtoninteriors.com
Website: http://www.symingtoninteriors.com/
Blog: http://thecountrypolitan.blogspot.com/