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Just j’adoring these cute Scoop-Back Chairs from West Elm – particularly the cute yellow flowery one called Tumeric Bloom. I think it would be fun to mix this one with the silver stripes, the white, and the black around a white table (like the one in this house).
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I was paging through the March House Beautiful with all it’s beautiful blue rooms this morning just before I received an email from Paris about this cool “Ottoman” from Ligne Roset. I love it’s powdery soft blue matched with exquisite geometry – I’d would also love to see it in an installation to get a feel for the context of the design.
Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance designed the” Ottoman” – in the conception of the piece he revisits an Orient that has echoes in his own past – he once lived for a year in a fisherman’s hut on the beach at Rabat. Initially designed for a hotel in Marrakesh, the traditional motif is thrown into relief by a faceted effect that increases the comfort of the seat and accentuates the strong visual appeal.
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Much to my delight I got several bunches of pink and orangey hued tulips for Valentine’s Day – they’re one of my favorite flowers with the expressive way they bend and stretch so enthusiastically to the light. I always start out plunking them nearly up to their floral chins in a deep vase of water and within about 24 hours they grow and stretch to almost twice their original length so that they’re bending and bowing down and out like hungry swans reaching for bread crumbs. Here I took some photos before the growing set in. I adore the white tips set against the deeper purposeful pink of the petals. So amusing.
Depending on the way the light is reflecting and the angle you look at them, they seem to have so many moods.
Opulent or pensive…
As part of a symphony of color, or a solo artist with a many hues their expression is unforgettable.
They seem to match my love of vintage, romantic paintings and interiors.
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I’ve been reading Chandler Burr’s The Perfect Scent for the past few days – I’ve had it on my stack for about a year and have finally gotten to it.
If you’re not familiar with it, the book is about the creation of Sarah Jessica Parker’s fragrance line a few years back, and an Hermes fragrance, Un Jardin sur le Nil.
Chandler Burr is the fragrance critic for the New York Times and he really knows his aldehyde from his chypre. To be honest the chemistry element of the book goes way over my head, although I really appreciate the details that go into well known fragrances like Shalimar, Chanel No 5, and Joy.
Reading about the intersection of green mango, oakmoss, and amber expertly layered and presented in one little bottle got me to thinking about the true fragrance of our lives – the ambiant scent of our homes.
The odor of a dwelling rarely smells like something you’d find engineered in a bottle. I once lived in an apartment that smelled like apple pie – odd and delightful the aroma persisted for the 5 years that I lived there without my ever discovering where it was coming from.
I know retailers like Costco and Ikea figured out how to warm up the aura of their large impersonal warehousey stores with wonderful scents like fresh baked cinnamon rolls, cakes, and bread. But my house now (I call it Rose Hill Cottage) rarely emits that fresh out of the oven goodness – at least that I can tell. I was thinking about this earlier – what does it smell like? When you live inside a home you rarely sense what it smells like to others as for some reason or another you become immune to all the variations.
I keep candles, flowers and plants in every room – which I thought would be fun to photograph with a macro lens for this post (any excuse – I’m a macro hound). I’m sure the scent of hay must be here too since I track it in twice a day after feeding the horses. Alfafa most of the time – which has a lovely rich, sweet perfume to it.
The cats and the dogs must come up in this perfume equation too – but what else? This needs further photography and contemplation.
Wondering – What does your house’s perfume consist of?
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I was working late last night going through some media contacts and ran across a magazine I haven’t seen in awhile. Country Style is based in Australia (where its balmy and beautiful right now), and as you can see, its lovely. What’s really cool is that it’s offered in a convenient digitalized version so us Yankees and Canucks up here in the freezing cold can get some warm weather inspiration.
The editorial focus is on really stunning photography, and a modern vision of country style that incorporates an eclectic warmth appealing to a wide audience. It certainly appeals to me!
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I don’t know about you but I had a better than expected holiday – restful, restorative and inspiring! Maybe it was just having some time off but things feel much more optimistic and upbeat than they did this time last year – despite the fact that we’ve been enduring frigid temps coupled with a miserable wind chill over the past few days out here in my neck of the woods.
I just love this image of this gorgeous owl gazing out at a wintery landscape. It seems like I see owls everywhere lately – jewelry mostly – not real ones, unfortunately. I even found a darling jewel eyed creature in my Christmas stocking this year along with some other goodies we’ll discuss later!
I remember the owl trend was uber popular back in the 1970’s – of course I was in grade school at the time so perhaps it was just a great look for kids. But if I’m not mistaken grown-ups were known to sport white owls suspended from thick gold chains as well.
Birds have been so popular in graphic and textile design in years past – sparrows and songbirds mostly – that I can’t help but see the movement towards the owl as a sign of good things to come. Sparrows and songbirds are gorgeous flighty birds – nothing like the tough and wise old owls.
In ancient Greece, Owls were associated with the goddess Athena – and therefore were thought to portend wisdom and forsight. Their image was also used on coins and as a result they became a symbol of wealth and fortune. Many other cultures have found the same things.
In nature the owl flies by night - able to detect even the most subtle movement in the darkness and use it to its advantage. Of course the owls that I see depicted in jewelry and home accents tend to be of the cuter, friendlier variety – not unlike a Disney character – but we can still see them as a sign of good things to come in this new decade.
Below is a darling umbrella stand by Two’s Company – very Jonathan Adleresque I think. And below that a few different types of owls from Forever 21.
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I’ve been loving this book Weekend Retreats by Susanna Salk
Weekend Retreats features inspiring and well designed rooms ranging in style from modern country to rustic woodland – each seemingly more inspirational than the next. Below are a few pages to give you a feel for the warm and eclectic styling.
The launch of the book was celebrated with a fab party at one of my all time favorite florists, Floral Art in Los Angeles recently – below is a look at the event. I absolutely love the pressed orchid chairs and the shaded chandeliers.
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Take a spin around designer Kathryn M. Ireland’s site and you’ll probably put her new book, Creating a Home, at the top of your wish list. Love the beautiful saturated color and casual bohemian charm. Many of the photos in the book were taken at her home in Ojai which she just sold to Reese Witherspoon (including the cute kitchen below – that looks like a Reece room). The all white mixed with just a couple of red pieces looks so cool and a really great showcase for all the pretty dishes and cups. This is exactly my kitchen’s layout (sink and stove location) and I adore those open shelves. Big inspiration from this!
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