I’m dining with the butterflies~ enjoying this book~ with its beautiful illustrations by Maria Sibylla Merian (1647–1717), German-born naturalist and artist. At a time when few women were educated or literate, and rarely travelled, Maria Sibylla Merian was a pioneer, and made history with her studies of insects in Surinam. Trained as a copperplate engraver and…
Tag: HomeGoods
Daylight & Butterflies
As a lover of green, both indoors & out, Mikasa’s Daylight Dinnerware appealed to me when I first saw it, with its fresh, crisp design. I loved the vibrant green leaves. . . a shade that reminds of the first tender growth of spring. The leaves trail across the contoured plates, wind their way inside the generous soup bowls,…
Breakfast with the Chickens
Join me for breakfast~ it will be just us & the Chickens ~ What’s your pleasure? Are you a juice drinker? Orange or Grapefruit? Or do you prefer your vitamin C from fruit? Do you prefer coffee in the morning or a cup of tea? If it’s tea, are you traditional? English Breakfast or Earl Grey? Flavored coffee or just plain old…
Blue and White Table with Peonies and Menu inspiration from Gone with a Handsomer Man
Join me for a ‘Teeny’ bit of table inspiration from Gone with a Handsomer Man by Michael Lee West. Besides some table inspiration, this book provided me with lots of laughs from the cast of quirky characters, along with some major food cravings. Teeny Templeton, is an out of work pastry chef who cuts her own hair, does her…
Grandiflora
I picked a bouquet of flowers from Pottery Barn to bring the garden to the table~ I can enjoy Magnolia blossoms now instead of June. . . My Bridal Wreath Spirea is at the table again, this time woven around the handle of a watering can~ Ready to sprinkle on the delicate fields of flowers sprouting on this quilt~ Tulips are blooming.…
Flowers for Easter
My Bridal Wreath Spirea has been blooming with abandon despite a couple of years of drought & sheer neglect~ and was the inspiration for an Easter Basket. Its fountainlike growth, with arching branches that curve to the ground seem to beg to be woven along a basket handle~ So I set an Easter table for two,…
The Essential Tea Companion
Victoria The Essential Tea Companion: Favorite Menus for Tea Parties and Celebrations ****.* by Kim Waller and From the Editors of Victoria Magazine An Edible Book Review inspired by Jain at Food for Thought, a delicious blog for readers with an appetite for the written word. “Whether we’re enjoying a morning break, a quiet afternoon respite, or a soothing moment at day’s end,…
Remarkable Creatures
Remarkable Creatures ****.* by Tracy Chevalier An Edible Book Review inspired by Jain at Food for Thought, a delicious blog for readers with an appetite for the written word. “From the moment she’s struck by lightning as a baby, it is clear Mary Anning is different. Though poor and uneducated, she discovers on the windswept beaches of the English coast that she…
Harvest Hayride
I’m joining Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday. Inspired this week by some fall color on the lake and a neighbor’s hay bales in a field nearby, I set a table with Royal Stafford Harvest Hayride from Home Goods. I’m drawn to the pastoral scene on the plates with horses, hay, fruit & flower border, and…
Summer Whites on the Porch
We spent this past weekend visiting with family from out-of-town, enjoying their company and the water~ trying to escape the heat. While the calendar says the first day of summer is tomorrow, we have had temperatures 10 – 15 degrees higher than normal for a month now. . . I dressed my porch in Summer…