Come July it's hard not to get a case of "garden envy" with friends showing up with heirloom basil they grew or bouquets made from their backyard bounty. Even Mom's taken to texting me pictures of her southern garden in its prime with gorgeous blooms each trying to outdo each other. "It ain't right!"
Well, with gardening on the brain I want to share my latest obsession which hails from down under. It's a terrific website called A Small Garden and they have the greatest tag line..."No space is too small for a garden."
Here's a few inspirations from their design gallery. If you just want a perfect pot full of somethin' somethin'... they got it.
Or maybe you need a chic ground covering for your backyard patio.... they got it.
Or need to add some curb appeal to your home with crawling vines, trees and shrubbery....they got it.
Their designs seem doable and manageable unlike the grand estates from my pinterest board which while gorgeous are utterly unrealistic. These guys break it down into four easy steps making me feel like I could have the garden of my dreams.
Got it? Ok, don't fret since you are in USA. They offer e-design as well. (Yeahhh!)
It's dawg hot and the city is quiet. Everyone seems to be seeking shade. I found mine at A Way, Way Back showing shot on the lovely Cape (that's Cape Cod to newbies) and made me hungry for lobster rolls, long sunsets and quaint, New England beach towns. This may be more Key West than PTown but I'm going with it. Here's some ideas for summer entertaining:
Things have kept me bound to the city but my heart, mind and passport beg to be jet setting. Here's a few armchair travel inspirations for those stuck put with me.
Top to bottom: Greece from thelane.com, Hotel Les Mimosas in Tunisia, Portugal from Elle Decor, Positino, Wales from T Magazine, beach scene from Vogue Living, lake from thatkindofwoman.tumblr.com, sleeping porch from remodelista.com.
"Baby, it's cold outside" croons Ella Fitzgerald. And man, is she not kidding. With my Russian hat and parka, am off to tackle the day but in my head, I'm wishin' I was holed up in Aspen or Asheville apres skiing, fireside with hot toddy in hand instead of billing paying, errands and hustling. It's a holiday, the city is cleared out and the temperature has dipped too far for my tastes. But for now, these inspirations will have to do.
I know, I know it's soo cheesy but I sure love Valentines. Maybe it's all the pink or the champagne or flowers being delivered but I am fully on board. Romance is a good thing and celebrating it is a great thing.
via Paris2London Tumblr
Here are a few things I'm inspired by this VDay.
People Making An Effort
A friend recently had a full on seat down dinner party in her two floor apartment overlooking Fifth Avenue. The apartment itself is so pretty but what was really great was how she went all out for dinner. There was a champagne bucket filled and good crystal out. We had name cards and candles were everywhere. She greeted us at the door with cocktails and sent us home with a treat bag including recipes from that night's dinner. It was truly rockin' awesome. She put it all out and gosh, did we all not appreciate it. It's fun to do dinners every once in a while that really are a lot of work. Yes, you heard me all you "lifestyle experts" who say it isn't "hard" or "time consuming" cause it is. So tonight, I am making the food myself (sorry, Citarella) and buying fun booze. I'm polishing the silver and ironing the linen napkins instead of using cute Caspari ones, even for cocktails. I'm going to some trouble in a good way. And for friends I love. So Pam Scurry, thank you for gilding the lily and inspiring me to step it up. We loved every minute of it!
Drinks Bar at Pam's very grown up sit down dinner party last night.
Beautiful Flowers Really Do Make It All Better.
I'm a sucker for flowers. Sucker. I won't have money to buy a latte but I don't want an apartment without flowers. Just doesn't seem right. Here's what was at the flower market this morning.
One King's Lane's talented floral designer, Meghan Guthrie, did a nice write up on how to get a better bouquet. Check it out here.
DIYers, here's a tip. Take a tight picture of a beautiful bouquet like this then blow it up on your copier and wrap around an inexpensive bunch of roses for a gift or wrap a gift in it.
People who dress up.
I don't want my table to outdrew me. T Magazine's video with Lee Radiwill made me want to run out a buy a real suit and white cashmere scarf. I mean, how great does she look?? It's worth watching this 12 minute video to learn more about this elegant woman. The dame oozes style.
** I once heard that being well dressed is the ultimate form of politeness. Love that.
Neon Art
Ahead of his time, my Dad gave my mom a neon heart that sits in the kitchen and has always made me smile so this sort of art has always held a special place in my heart.
Make Vday a month long affair and head to Times Square to see British artist, Tracey Emin, takes over Times Square with her cool neon art. Read more here.
Via Net-a-Porter
** Check out my first Houzz Tour. Thanks to homeowner, Lawrence, for letting me come talk it up and for designer (and dear friend) Richard Johnson for allowing me to feature it.
Real snow has finally come to NYC and the spareness of winter is feeling right. Inspired by Friday's blizzard, I'm loving all things cozy.....
and white....
and fur lined....
While I love nothing better than rich fabrics, loads of textiles layered up and oodles of life littering a room, there's something about the dead of winter with it's quietness and frozen beauty that makes me want to purge, build a fire and get down to the basics. Perhaps it's because life is spinning a bit wild that I'm craving nordic style-simple, edited, clean. Or maybe it's all those scandinavian cabins on tumblr and pinterest or the fur throws in all the catalogs on sale but whatever it is, I am seriously onboard. Here's a few interiors that make me want to jump a plane for Denmark.
And isn't this nugget of a kitchen so charming?? simple simple simple yet gorg!
The NY Gift Show just ended and it's been a week. This picture sorta sums it up. That said, happy to see small spaces in the news so much lately. In case you've been hunkered down too, here's the skinny.
Back in July, Mayor Bloomberg announced a contest called adAPT NYC to develop "innovative micro-unit apartment housing model." The winner of "My Micro NYC" has been announced. The winners? We all are as 40% of the building on 335 E. 27 St. will go to low and middle-income New Yorkers. (YEAH!) Read about it here.
Another contest that caught my eye is "Designing for Disaster Relief". It's a challenge to develop temporary 400 square feet housing for family of four. Love. Watching Sandy victims struggle in freezing temperatures makes this one contest worth getting involved in. Winning design announced end of Feb.
Good read onLife Edited. "10 Tips for Creating a Small Apartment You'll Want to Live in."
Good read on Etsy. "Little Houses: Small, Hand Built, and Mortgage free!"
You know I like to give you a new find so here's this week's favorite resource-CUSTOMMADE.COM!!
If you can't find the right size (insert anything in here) for your happy home, check out Custom Made. It's this cool website that hooks up furniture makers with customers who need something made to their specifications. With a terrific video that walks you through the process really well. All you need to do now is get started.
Enjoy the Superbowl Show (you GO, Beyonce!) Want to win "Most impressive dip" award? Make this 47 layer dip for the 47th Superbowl.
