Archive for the ‘Violets’ Category

April 24th, 2013 No Comments

flowers with michael george: a peek at the rewards of spring from michael’s very own personal garden

Last week every flowering tree burst into a profusion of blossoms. Dogwood, cherry, magnolia and lilac are all available locally or from your garden. More great news, peonies have arrived at great prices. The coral charms are a bit more expensive. As far as telling you what to do, c’mon, you know what to do. And if you don’t remember, think of mom or grandma and you will remember. Spring is here. For the more avid gardener, muscari, violets and blue bells are all up and with the cool weather the daffodils and forsythia are still fine.  –Michael George … Read more

April 18th, 2013 No Comments

interiors: spotlight on victoria hagan

When I’m talking about design and shopping for furniture, I am surprised that many people still don’t know about a great resource; So if you haven’t heard about 1stdibs.com, take time to check it out. It’s being able to sit in the comfort of your own home and see what intimate small shops have all around the world. Though since it’s start it’s expanded to vintage jewelry, clothing and even premiere real estate.  Today they have a spotlight on designer Victoria Hagan, here’s the link. I really enjoy reading their spotlights on designers. Above is a room Victoria … Read more

April 17th, 2013 No Comments

flowers with michael george: lilac is in the market, it’s spring!

Lilac is spring and it is in the market. Remove the lower lateral spikes from the branches, keeping those with buds. Keep the branch long, leaving a plume at the top- 10 inches or so. Buy at the market until local lilac becomes available. Use tall lilac branches in tall vases and the side pieces that you cut in smaller vases. To add a little more luxury mix a few peonies in with the lilac (shown above). Late spring is here and few warm days will reveal her glory, hurry up! – Michael George. Check out Michael’s amazing book, … Read more

April 16th, 2013 No Comments

salted cherry blossoms: a recipe for sakura tea from andrea gentl of hungry ghost food and travel

Oh my god, how absolutely beautiful…is what I thought when I saw these photos from photographer Andrea Gentl. If these photos don’t take your breath away this morning, then I think maybe a cup of coffee is in order. This week Andrea posted these photos on her blog Hungry Ghost Food and Travel along with the recipe to make Sakura tea. She explains that Sakura tea (or Salted Cherry Blossom Tea) is often served at weddings in Japan. Andrea graciously allowed me to share some of her post below (so keep scrolling down!) For even a few more … Read more

April 15th, 2013 No Comments

this week’s color palette: inspired by lilacs

This week’s color palette was inspired by our floral contributor, Michael George, and his garden in upstate NY (His arrangement on his table shown below). Once Lilacs are done flowering you should snip the blooms off. Then keep watering and fertilize so that each spring you will have very fragrant blooms. Lilacs need a period of cold to bloom. So if you live in a locale that is warm all year, you should stop watering after September to force it into dormancy. Note: As we do every week with our color palettes, the names and numbers above are from Benjamin Moore … Read more

April 11th, 2013 No Comments

interiors: 2 great paint color tools from benjamin moore

If you are planning on a renovation or just like to paint rooms, furniture etc. every so often, I find a very helpful tool to have on hand is the Benjamin Moore Color Preview Fan Deck. For $25 it can save you trips to your local store for swatches and keeps them all together by color family for years and years. Also available in Fan Decks are their Color Stories, Classics & Historical and Affinity collections. You don’t have to be a designer or set decorator to keep one of these on your desk! Another great tool is the … Read more

March 11th, 2013 No Comments

this week’s color palette: mint & basil greens

If you’ve been reading my blog you might know I love the Donna Hay cookbooks. Her book Flavors might be one of my favorites. It takes you through classic flavors and devotes an entire chapter for each one, like vanilla, salt & pepper, chocolate…and this week’s inspiration- mint & basil. She has so many creative recipes for these flavors, I highly recommend her books. The photography by Australian photographer Petrina Tinslay is gorgeous and the recipes are simple and clear. As I do weekly I select Benjamin Moore paint colors to coincide with our inspirational photo & color … Read more

March 8th, 2013 No Comments

vosges has…yes, bacon chocolate! Katrina Markoff was way ahead of the recent trend

In my quest for bacon food pairings this week, I found that Vosges Haut-Chocolat has a lot of bacon paired foods. So I went right to founder Katrina Markoff to get the inside scoop on this bacon frenzy. Katrina first paired bacon with chocolate back in 2007 with ‘Mo’s Milk Chocolate Bacon Bar’, followed by ‘Mo’s Dark Chocolate Bacon Bar’ in 2008, then followed the Bacon Toffee… and the line has grown based on popularity and customer demand. Vosges line now includes bacon baking mixes, caramels and truffles. And the website also offers unique … Read more

February 8th, 2013 No Comments

lynn’s picks: shopping for candy heart pastels

There are a lot of pretty pastels shown this spring, but I just picked a few favorites this week in our candy heart palette.  Alice & Olivia Arie Tied-Collar Blouse, $264, from Bergdorf Goodman, Featherweight Cashmere Shell in Microcheck, $178, from J.Crew, iphone covers from Bloomingdales, Cashmere long v-neck cardigan in pink, $39.90, from Uniqlo, Dior Beauty Cherie Bow Addict Lipstick in Charmante, $31, from Bergdorf Goodman, Tania High Heel Sandals, in Iced Coffee, $295, by Tory Burch, Set of 14 Pale Pink Pencils, $12, from Iomoi. (they have a lot of colors.. lavender, green, hot pink, etc. – … Read more

February 7th, 2013 No Comments

paint unexpected pops of color to brighten up your home this spring

Sometimes you might love a color but don’t want to commit to an entire room or wall. Painting underneath a table, doors, inside drawers, a closet… these are all unexpected places where pops of color can personalize your home. I painted the inside of our hallway closet in Benjamin Moore’s Calypso Blue 727 and it makes me happy everyday we open it to get our coats and bags. I also added a very inexpensive little lantern that hangs from the ceiling vs. the standard unattractive flush mount light that you usually find in closets. Our color palette this week … Read more