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As we kick off a new year and a new decade, it’s a good time to reflect on the state of barbecue we are leaving behind in in the 2010s and look ahead to the 2020s. Each year brings countless lists ranking barbecue joints, including the two we produce here at Southern Living. In 2019 both saw repeats at the top. Southern Soul Barbeque of St. Simons Island, Georgia, snagged the top slot in our readers’ poll for the South’s Best BBQ Joints for the third straight year....

Rocking chairs may get all the attention as the quintessential vehicle for front porch relaxation, but that’s only because “wicker furniture” doesn’t sound as good in a country song. Like haint blue ceilings and good conversation, well-loved wicker is a given on any Southern porch. Here’s everything you need to know about the summertime staple, plus why you won’t find a Southern sunroom or porch without it. What is Wicker? Wicker isn’t actually a material, like rattan or straw....

When Ree Drummond’s kids left home, her house felt a little too big. So the Pioneer Woman did what many empty nesters before her have done, she downsized. Unlike most people though, Drummond moved right next door. Drummond and her husband, Ladd, packed up and moved from their long-time home—the same one Ladd grew up in—to brand new digs on their property in Pawhuska, Oklahoma. It wasn’t just an empty nest that inspired the move, though....

“It looked like an overripe banana,” says designer Kara Miller, laughing, about the 1970s rambler she renovated in Tequesta, Florida. While the dated palette and disjointed layout needed a cohesive refresh, all jokes aside, it felt like home. “There’s a certain familiarity with a ranch,” she says. “Although I was renovating it, I wanted to maintain its original comforts and charms.” The designer is no stranger to a project (she’s done more than 40 renovations) and values preserving the past while incorporating modern-day functionality....

A neighbor stopped in front of our house and gazed at the porch. “Are those flowers real?” she asked. “Yep, aren’t they beautiful?” I responded. “They’re called amaryllis. Most people buy them around Christmastime, but they only bloom then because they’ve been grown in a greenhouse. “Spring is their natural time to bloom. I have about 5 or 6 different colors, all acquired around Christmas. Some have been in the same pot for 10 years and they bloom every spring....

Gatlinburg’s famous midnight parade, America’s “first” Fourth of July celebration, is back after last year’s festivities were canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. The city’s award-winning Fourth of July Midnight Parade will kick off at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday, July 4, and will honor first responders, U.S. Veterans, military heroes, and frontline healthcare workers. Revelers can enjoy a parade of red-, white-, and blue-lighted floats weaving through downtown streets, a musical performance by the 100th Army Band from Fort Knox, Kentucky, and an appearance by Former American Idol contestant, EmiSunshine, who will serve as the celebration’s official Grand Marshal....

Aretha Franklin’s interview is part of TIME Firsts, a multimedia project featuring 46 groundbreaking women. At age 75, Aretha Franklin is more than just a legendary soul singer. She’s an icon, advocate, and one of the most celebrated (and important) voices in pop history. A feat the standout vocalist and pianist attributes to her father and Deep South upbringing. Franklin’s musical resume is a long one, dating back about fifty years....

No matter the season, we’ll never stop dreaming of strolls through beloved neighborhoods in our favorite Southern cities. If vacations inspired your design sensibilities, the mirror collection from Fleur will delight New Orleans’ repeat visitors. The whimsical edges and cheerful colors celebrate the architecture and floral landscape of the city’s Garden District. Founded by New Orleans-based artist Natalie Erwin, Fleur’s mirrors are customizable according to your size and color specifications....

Loretta Lynn passed peacefully in her sleep early this morning, Tuesday, October 4, at her home in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee, her family revealed in a statement. The country legend was 90. Lynn was predeceased by her husband of 48 years Oliver Vanetta “Doolittle” Lynn, her daughter Betty Sue Lynn, and son Jack Benny Lynn. She is survived by her children Patsy Lynn Russell, Peggy Lynn, Clara (Cissie) Marie Lynn, Ernest Ray Lynn, and 21 grandchildren....

Country music’s biggest names are paying tribute to Loretta Lynn following the news of her passing this morning. The country legend died in her sleep at her home in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee. Lynn was 90 years old. Considered one of the most influential artists in country music history, ​​Lynn was inducted into more music Halls of Fame than any female recording artist. The four-time-Grammy-winner became the first woman to be named the Country Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year in 1972 and sold more than 45 million records worldwide....

Dolly Parton was one of countless celebrities who paid tribute to Naomi Judd this week in the wake of the country legend’s tragic and untimely death. “I was so shocked to hear about Naomi’s passing,” Parton wrote in a statement shared to her social media accounts Monday. “Naomi and I were close. We were very similar. We were the same age and both Capricorns. We loved big hair, makeup, and music....

Whether it’s served in wedges alongside a barbecue spread or cut into cubes and mixed into a fruit salad, watermelon is one of the most popular summertime fruits for Southerners to enjoy. But because watermelons are big, heavy, round, and covered in a thick rind, they can prove challenging to slice, especially if you’ve never done it before. That’s why we’re providing a step-by-step guide to cutting a watermelon into triangles and into cubes, complete with advice from chef de cuisine Karl Gorline of The Woodall in Atlanta, Ga....

Around the country, most of us keep our eggs in the fridge. That’s because eggs commercially produced in the U.S. need to be kept under refrigeration in order to minimize the potential risk for food poisoning by Salmonella contamination. But when it comes to using those same eggs in many recipes, they should be brought from fridge-cold to room temperature first. So what’s the best way to get eggs to room temperature?...

Hand mixers come in, well, handy. Portable, though still plugged in, these electric mixing tools give you more flexibility than a bulkier stand mixer and more power than working by hand. You may have kept the decades-old mixer you bought when you moved into your first apartment or maybe you’re shopping around for just the right baking tools for your wedding registry. No matter the make or model, when it comes to elevating your baking and cooking, it’s important to know how to use your hand mixer correctly....

Joanna Gaines admitted to struggling with some big emotions as she celebrated her oldest daughter’s milestone birthday this week. The HGTV star took to Instagram with a video of her living room decorated to the gills for daughter Ella’s 16th birthday—an occasion that elicited feelings to which most mamas of teenagers can relate. “My sweet girl turns 16,” Joanna captioned the video from October 19. “I’m trying my darnedest not to cry like a big fat mama baby when she drives off by herself tomorrow....

Hallmark’s latest festive offering from their annual Countdown to Christmas is Next Stop Christmas, and it’s a whimsical, magical ride from start to finish. The story begins with successful surgeon in NYC, Angie (Lyndsy Fonseca), doing what so many of us do, wondering “what if” when she sees a photo of her ex-boyfriend, Tyler (Eric Freeman) in an advertisement for his national sportscast in the train station. She boards her train home but with the help of a magic ticket she receives from the possibly enchanted ticket taker (who later turns out to also be the conductor) played by the legendary Christopher Llyod, she doesn’t end up back in her apartment in Yonkers....

Is it the people or the place that creates a neighborly community? Residents of The New Town at St. Charles are discovering that you need both in order to build the idyllic neighborhoods that seem to be part of the American psyche. Traditional Neighborhood Developments (TNDs) aren’t a new concept, but New Town is one of the most successful large-scale New Urbanist communities built on the edge of suburbia. “If you just want to drive into your garage and stay in your house, this town isn’t for you,” says resident Elizabeth Kinney....

Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban aren’t just a power couple. They are power pet parents. In all seriousness, though, the duo sure love their animals, as we learned in a recent deep dive on the topic from country music outlet Taste of Country. In their brood—which also includes their two daughters, Faith Margaret and Sunday Rose—they count several cats and dogs among their members. First, they’ve got two cats, Ginger and Snow, along with a dog, Julian, a....

Country music superstar Eric Church is teaming up with legendary pitmaster Rodney Scott to bring a taste of the Carolinas to Music City. The duo has partnered with real estate and hospitality entrepreneur Ben Weprin to bring Chief’s, a large-than-life new bar and restaurant, to the corner of 2nd Avenue and Broadway in downtown Nashville. “I remember driving through downtown Nashville over 20 years ago with a pawn shop guitar, riding shotgun in a beat-to-hell truck just trying to chase a dream,” Church, who hails from Granite Falls, North Carolina, said in a statement....

If you love that chicken from Popeyes, the chain is celebrating its 50th Anniversary with some very retro pricing with a modern twist. The chicken chain was founded by entrepreneur Al Copeland on June 12, 1972 when he realized that KFC was spreading outside of Kentucky and decided to get the jump on serving chicken and sides in New Orleans. He opened a “Chicken in the Run” in Arabi, according to Popeyes’ origin story, but it wasn’t a hit....