air plants and umbrellas

Did anyone else see this insanely amazing wedding from Feather Love? Not sure exactly where I stumbled on it yesterday but the air plants got me. It's creative in a way that only Flora Grubb could be (the groom is Flora's brother). I'm thinking air plants might be the new succulent? Which would be nice because while I love love love succulents to death and used them for my own wedding, I'm starting to feel that they are becoming a wee bit tiresome when it comes to wedding decor.

Don't get me wrong, I will love them for always in the same way that I love mason jars. But I want to see something new and inspired from time to time too.

Just look here and then go see the entire 4 day event including a HUGE party at Flora Grubb Gardens after the actual wedding in Carmel on Feather Love's blog.



How amazing is the huge Tillandsia bouquet? Gorgeouso. The bride is beautiful too, which always helps. Sometimes I want dark thick indie model hair with bangs too. But it would look real weird with my freckles I think.

Final thought: if your name was Flora Grubb, could you do anything EXCEPT open a beautiful garden shop? No. No you couldn't.

long weekend around the house

Shockingly we did nothing exciting for our long weekend. But I took some pictures of the nothing to share:

Cooking from the computer... which is always how I do it these days. Don't I need an iPad? I do. I could get a nifty stand (or the cheap version) and prop it up on the counter. It would be so modern and lovely.



That's Sprouted Kitchen I'm using for a variation on her peanut sauce.



We had stir fry



With kind of a Thai-ish peanut sauce. Which was DEEEE-licious. I never make a real sauce, but now I will. Gone are the simple days of soy, white wine, garlic and ginger.





We're on our second batch of peonies. GAAAAAHHH they are insane. They are way more beautiful when they're open. Have you seen peonies truly open? They are like 10 inches across and they fade to a pretty cream.



And while I was out back planting our veggies, Brock and Dashiell took a tour of the yard. They were so cute, I had to stage a dirty-handed photoshoot. I mean come on with the little camo hat. It's from Gap in case you need one.

peonies too beautiful...

to keep to myself. You can get them at Trader Joes at the moment. $5.99 per bunch. Insane, right? They are perfectly gorgeous and get bigger and more luscious every day. I literally watched them open on Sunday evening. It was amazing.

flowers because they are pretty

These were our brunch decor on Sunday.



They're still happy in our kitchen.





Have a gorgeous weekend. Things are looking up over here.

okay fall, maybe just one wreath

Yesterday evening there was a distinct, breezy chill in the evening air. And admittedly, I kind of liked it. Maybe it's nearing the time of squashes and apples and beautiful shifted light. And wreaths.

The terrain online shop is all over the blogs and frankly it's kind of ehh. I mean you should go look for sure, but it just doesn't have THAT much stuff available. And a good portion is furniture. I don't think I'd buy an $1800 wooden sofa for our front porch online without seeing it first. But I imagine the actual brick and mortar store is amazing. I want to see that amazingness available on the internet, for those of us who live approximately 3,000 miles from Philadelphia.

But I might buy one of these beautiful wreaths.



strawflowers!



millet - which smells really good when it's dried. I still have some leftover from our wedding arrangements.



magnolia leaves and poppy pods.


Now now protea wreath. I haven't made up my mind. You're still in the running.

pumpkin babies + fig update

Hi hi. I'm down in San Diego enjoying a morning of pure leisure as I wait for the big wedding festivities to begin this afternoon. I find that I'm exceptionally gifted when it comes to mornings of leisure and that I should have them more often than not.

First, look at this:




That's one of the pumpkins from our wedding last fall that my mom has had on the deck behind my parents' house since October. And look what happens to pumpkins when you leave them be. They make their own little incubator for sprouts! It's kind of rotting and decrepit but I thought it was too cool not to post.

Next, Brock and I went back to the fig trees yesterday morning (after I made that card) and ravaged them. Okay, not ravaged but we took a fair helping. No one seemed to mind? I'm crediting you all for the encouragement.



So now what to do... perhaps I'll go for a swim. And then I have to go down to Cedros to see if they have anything new and exciting since the last time I was here. It's a ridiculous ritual really, but I can't seem to break the habit. And then we're doing a practice session of the ceremony with Brock's younger brother (who is Melanie & Sky's officiant), and then... Mariachis and mexican food and rehearsal dinner.

And today is my parents' 32nd anniversary. Happy Anni, 'rents!

grow things on your house

If you live in Alaska (which is where this photo was taken), I bet this is an excellent way to warm up your seedlings in the spring... you know from the house heat.



But it's also just super cute and a neat way to "farm" in small spaces. Even if you live in Venice (California) and have a teeny side yard of open space you could still grow lettuce in troughs along the side of your house.

I love green things.

via Urban Greenery

new york in the spring

Is pretty amazingly beautiful. Just the daffodils popping up all over the city are exciting. And the flowering trees. And running in the park. And eating at cafes on the sidewalk. And getting swept up in the throngs of people in the streets at midnight.






Never get tired of the people.

When it's warm. I do not enjoy it so much when it's cold and I have to wear things other than sandals.

It was so perfectly sweaty I lost track of time and missed my flight. And now I am blogging in the airport waiting for the next one. So yeah, lesson learned. Apparently you CAN miss your flight. I didn't think that really happened.

Also, when are they giving us internet on the plane? So many hours to catch up gone to waste. Or I could be thankful that I have a mandatory break...

an urban farmer blog

My mom sent me this awesome blog last week and though I'm not sure how many of you darling readers are actually turning your backyards into vegetable farms this summer, perhaps there are a few who would benefit:

Diggin Food

It's a Seattle-based vegetable garden and food blog written by Willi Galloway, and stuffed full of awesome backyard farming tips. Like:




How to make a super simple and inexpensive squash teepee. Making it this weekend, for sure.



How to grow your beans up the side of a fence.



Plus she posts an excellent backyard chicken resource. Did I mention we're getting chickens? I'm so excited. Sometimes I think we already have them, but really I just have their names picked out. We're actually waiting on our nifty modern henhouse to ship from the UK. Only a few more weeks...

ANYWAY, check out her blog. It makes me want to abandon all professional goals and dedicate my days to growing things up the sides of fences.

Vertical gardens = living patchwork quilts

So, it's QUITE obvious what I've been thinking about as of late. Plants and the yard and what vegetables to grow and anything pretty and green and living. It's spring... clearly not my fault.

And look what I just found to lust after:





Succulent art? I feel faint.

Gianormous concrete soaking tub on the patio under succulent art. I am coveting. Big time.

All from Flora Grubb Gardens in San Francisco. Gardens being a teasy word. I think they are more like landscaping artists.

new flower to obsess about...

and another flower that is reason alone to be married in the early months of the year.



Hellebores. I am a changed person. I now know that these flowers exist and can't possibly continue with my life in the same way I had before. Must find seeds and plant for next year. Thank you Saipua and Weeder's Digest for giving me yet another thing to occupy my already very limited and very crowded hobbying time.

More from google:



where I learned that these are an essential part of French gardens. Which mean that like striped shirts, I must incorporate them into my life very soon.

Bottom images from here, here, and here.

i've been distant...

I know. It's not you it's me. It's just that I've been slammed at work and have many obligations in life outside of blogger at the moment, which leaves little to no time for the posting of cute, interesting things. And this makes me sad because I love posting cute interesting things. So to cheer myself up while I design iPhone applications this week, I decided I deserved anemones on my desk at work,





whose pictures I took with said iPhone.

I would also like to make it known that I didn't care a lick about anemones until the wedding obsession started. I mean I've always liked them, but it's only in the last year that I've dedicated an entire research folder on my computer to their arrangement. And I'm still sad that I didn't get them in my bouquet. But I couldn't rationalize flying them in from some distant greenhouse so I could have them in the desert in October. Stop obsessing about the wedding that has come and gone. Just stop.

scenes from the weekend + signs of spring

mushroom and beet green scramble



chai tea from soap making extravaganza



a visit to dandelion ranch



pretty pink flowers on the peach tree



tiny fall pomegranates gone to seed



one of many... see below


Spring is not my favorite season. I like it in theory, the little buds appearing on fruit trees, weedy flowers and clover carpeting the otherwise untended parts of the backyard, artichokes, longer days, getting home before dark... that's all great. But isn't it just such a tease? It's windy and sort of warmish if you stand in the sun with a sweater on, but really it's still cold and my feet turn purple when i insist on wearing sandals to work. arrg. i need summer. now. and it's months away.

I do love snooping around neighborhood gardens this time of year though. And smelling orange blossoms at night when the bedroom window is open. And figuring out what to do with the colony of baby artichokes forming outside the kitchen door.

Any ideas? I need easy baby artichoke ideas.

spring protea family blooms

I've mentioned before my love of all members of the protea family. Remember that cool wreath from christmas? well my same friend at the farmers market has a whole mess of spring pretties right now, in bright flaming colors and textures. Which means that I could not possibly walk away yesterday without buying an entire armful of spiny flowering things.









I love them in the vintage french flower bucket.

If anyone is looking for DIY, or should I say buy-it-yourself, wedding ideas these can be purchased at flea markets very inexpensively. Mine are old and ratty, but you can find really beautiful ones with flaking paint and pretty patina too.

chamomile flowers and sparkly vintage tulle

At least I think those might be chamomile flowers. and I think that might be some sort of netting. But chamomile and tulle sound so much better for a title.



Summery wedding attire? But don't wear those exact sandals. I don't like them with their monogram C's. I'm, in general, anti obnoxiously branded apparel and accessories. There are certain exceptions of course, but these sad little C's are not it. And there are many lovely flat sandals that would do perfectly in their stead.

I'm sorry Coach. I like your supple leather and occasionally your handbags, especially when I purchase them at your outlet store in Mammoth, but right now I'm just using you for your photo stylings.

Also, I'm digging that pinky nude polish.

new flowers from hoot & heart

If anyone out there is looking for an LA florist, you should definitely talk to Hoot & Heart. Something about opening a flower shop that sounds so romantic and fun and idyllic. Like you'd never get tired of going to work because it would be just about the same as skipping through a meadow on your way to a picnic every day. I'm sure this is how florists would describe their jobs as well.



They did a beautiful job with our wedding... which I will post soon, I promise.

garden stalking

I have (yet another) mildly unhealthy obsession to share. SURPRISE! I like to cruise neighborhoods peering into people's gardens, snooping their ideas for plant combinations and ogling particularly impressive botanical specimens. Is that so weird, really? It's like unorganized garden touring...

Brock and I dropped into Del Mar for a moment over the weekend to have dinner with my grandpa while my parents are out of town, in Africa (ahem, jealous) for 3 weeks. And we fit in a little moseying around the old 'hood. Del Mar has some beautiful tangly gardens and overgrown alleys for interested parties like moi. Beautiful in the old, neglected, fed by sea air sort of way.



It was so beautiful in San Diego over the weekend I could barely take it. One of those mornings that makes us consider moving back down sooner than planned. The light, I'm telling you, it was all about the wintery clear light.

Also, the 2nd picture... current object of particular affection for me: Two. Story. Cactus. I want. It lives next door to Brock's dad. But that is not good enough. No.

flowers from sweden

many flowers on the internet today. these are quite seriously, shockingly, almost sickeningly beautiful.

I don't speak Swedish, but I do understand pretty pictures... so I think I get the gist.



Seriously? Gasping. That last one... geez.

As if Saipua doesn't come up with enough petal laden content on her own, she posted this:

59Buketter.se

love flowers from rose & radish

First, rose & radish is rad. I love them. And I especially love their floral arrangements. If we lived in San Francisco, I would be doing some SERIOUS hinting with regards to receiving flowers from their little shop when the occasion calls. Like, say, today.



Second, for Valentine's Day, they have this neat idea where they pair design objects with flowers, which of course makes the most perfect gift of all time.

does domino do flowers?

just checking because seriously, these are so great. yes, we love Zooey. But i think i might like the weedy flowers better? Is that bad?







I love them because they are rustic but just sophisticated enough. and they look like they would be easy-ish to replicate on your own... i mean, as opposed to balls of roses or 4 foot tall centerpieces, if you know what i'm saying.

Hoot & Heart did a few similar arrangements (similar to the first one, that is) for us and they were just beautiful. I still have a ton of dried pieces I salvaged before we left for Australia. I'm kind of a nostalgia junkie that way.

ANYWAY, point is: you could make something similar to these yourself if you were doing your own flowers.

And also, if you haven't seen The Go Getter starring Z.D., you should. It's a beautiful little road movie (shameless plug coming up) produced by a friend of ours. And M. Ward does the soundtrack. Which is perfection.