We have a long and much appreciated Memorial Day Weekend ahead of us here in the US. I look forward to spending quality time with my loved one – and to smell the flowers!
I am signing off now (lunch time US west coast time!). I will be back on Tuesday.
Happy weekend to you all!
I love Fornasetti. But I am not all that interested in the classic plates by this legendary Italian designer (they are lovely but I must have seen too many of them). However, a table lamp or the wonderful wall paper below, can move in with me any time! They are such classic statement pieces.
Quick background of Piero Fornasetti (1913-1988) – the legendary Italian painter, sculptor, engraver etc. He lived most of life in Milan and created more than 11,000 items, many featuring the face of a woman, operatic soprano Lina Cavalieri, as a motif. Fornasetti found her face in a 19th century magazine. “What inspired me to create more than 500 variations on the face of a woman?” asks Italian designer, Piero Fornasetti of himself. “I don’t know,” he admits, “I began to make them and I never stopped.” Other common features in his work include heavy use of black and white, the sun and time. His son, Barnaba Fornasetti, continues to design in his father’s name.
More things on my growing (why is it never shrinking!?) wish list: The very adorable and creative Cape Town girl Lana over at the lovely design blog - Lanalou Style – invited me over to share my wish list as part o her weekly blogger series. What an honor Lana! Thank you so much for having me! Hop over and read my list here. (And find out what I am drinking a lot of right now. No, nothing with pretty, little umbrellas!)
Happy, happy dear friends! Hope your week is going well!
Happy new week to you all, friends! Hope the sun is shining on you!
I would like to think of myself as a pretty nurturing person. And I convince myself that the proof in the pudding is my great marriage, 3 happy, good hearted kids, 2 content cats and many wonderful and really close friend who stick with me. But when it comes to taking care of plants – I am pretty useless, in fact I would declare myself a complete idiot (even my husband shakes his head). I just seem to walk right by any plant in my house. I just don’t seem to see them. And they all wilt. It is actually very sad because I deeply love flowers and plants and anything living! Not having taken this matter to the “shrink chair”, I wonder if the actual presentation and placement of plants would make a difference? Maybe I need to find a new way, one that stops me in my tracks and encourages me to admire and nurture then. I don’t want anything complicated. Just something simple that magically opens my flower senses (or perhaps slows down my pace?).
Maybe this could be a start. Just one, simple plant, in a pretty bowl. I can do that, right?
Or some pretty yellow branches placed in a spot that is hard to miss.
Maybe place a planter on a chair? That is different. How could I possible not see this beautiful arrangement?
And everyone (including myself) should have a tall, clear, simple vase for impromptu hand picked branches. So simple. They do wonders for the heart & the soul!
This amazing living room has just the right amount of plants and branches for me to handle. Three uncomplicated displays. How hard can it possibly be to nurture these?
I have shown you this image before, I simply love this plant table. Hard to walk by without wanting to talk to and love these plants in weathered pots. I have even been cyber spacing for a while looking for a vintage industrial table like that. But they all cost $1500 and up. And until I really know if it would help me get a green’ish thumb, I question if it is even worth it. On the other hand maybe it would give me the push I so desperately need…
I just want to be able to open my eyes (and extend my nurturing side) when it comes to plants and flowers. I really would welcome that. It is such an on-going struggle for me. Any other ideas that you think would help me along? I am open for anything – as long as it is easy. We are talking the very basic and tiny baby steps for a person with so far not the slightest hint of green on her fingers.
P.S Actually, I am pretty good at displaying and admiring peonies. For the short amount of time they are in season… Maybe I should view that as a start.
Love to you all!
Hello friends! There are always things I go nuts for! Here are three of my latest obsessions.
First up is this bedroom via Roche Bobois (sorry for the poor scanning). I go absolutely nuts for white bedrooms right now. My master bedroom has been ready for a redo for a while – and all I know is that my soft light blue walls will soon be pure white. This room is so inspirational to me. It is simple, quiet, serene and not contrived.
Yep, I have to show a close up. I am crazy in love with that bed, its headboard and the striped bed linen. The lovely tall windows and hardwood floors don’t exactly hurt either.
I first saw a glimpse of talented Anna Spiro’s masterful dining room in the Australian Vogue some time ago and now it is featured in the latest issue of House & Home. It has been making its rounds in blog land – and rightfully so. I absolutely adore this room! This girl knows how to decorate. Anna’s dining room is unique without being contrived. Dining at this table must be such a fun experience daytime as well as evening (imagine this room with candle lights) and summer as well as winter. The room is chic, interesting, playful and inviting with is mix of chairs, vibrant art and different styles & textures. The balance among all the pieces is perfect. I go absolutely nuts for this entire room. It went straight to my heart.
This image is a teaser for the June issue of House & Home. There is no text to go with this, but it looks to me like a fine, little collection of pretty handkerchiefs in frames. What a great idea! Especially if they are hand picked over time and from different parts of the world. And how easy to bring one home with you as a memento - one, single, unique handkerchief, with a hopefully good story to go with it. How splendid! Talk about luxe for less. I will never look at a handkerchief the same way again!
This list could have been a mile long but I’d like to let it sit with you for a while! Happy rest of the week, friends!
Hello friends! Happy new week to you! Let it be a good one.
People who visit to my house see a lot of objects of round shapes. I apparently like things round! (Would almost like to have that analyzed!) When I recently glanced through the May/June Veranda magazine – I stared extra long at an image with round wood sculptures (above).
Remember this beautiful NY home which I wrote a post about a few weeks ago? On the floor an uneven ball (I also spy a few up on the shelf). But even more lovely that way!
So, it was no surprise to me when I realized I had unknowingly been collecting several images of round wooden balls or spheres! And almost all of them come from my dear friend Greet’s (yes, the lovely Belgian Pearls of course!) blog. Now, could these wood spheres be a Belgian trademark that is now adopted around the globe? I have never seen them in Swedish interiors.
This is what Greet told me when I asked: “A few years ago some great Belgian designers like Axel Vervoordt and Walda Pairon started to use them in their interiors. To me this is the reason why these wood spheres became so hugely popular”.
Greet tells me that she has one in her own greenhouse which she purchased from an art dealer on Brussels. She was told hers was from the Philippines.
Greet also sent me her favorite image, which I had not seen before. This one is taken from the home of Walda Pairon.
When I did my own research I also found this beauty at Gallery of Wood Art. The artist is Marc Ricourt and the sphere is made of Bleached Maple. It is hand carved wood people! Isn’t it stunning!
When I browsed Veranda (on-line), I also came across this stunning image. Simple is beautiful. And, well of course – see what also captured my attention!
I also found the source for the wooden spheres in the very first image (entry) from Veranda magazine. Bobo Intriguing Objects sell them here in the US. These are made of huge poplar trunks and are reclaimed from construction sites. They are available in two sizes - 23”-27” and 27”-31
I am going to see what the prices for these are. I sure am tempted to bring one home. I will convince my husband that it is functional art. A sculpture and something to climb on for the kids! Anybody else out there a lucky owner or have a great source?
Sweet Greet also gave me a Happy Award a while back – here. Thank you so much, girlfriend! You bring sunshine to the whole blog world, dear! (I will link to a previously written post, here, about what makes me happy).
Happy, happy to you all!
