Peacock Blue

This past gorgeous Thanksgiving holiday weekend was the last of my wedding commissions for the year....it could not have been a more perfect fall day...crisp, sunny and perfect for a fall wedding...

I managed to snap a few quick photos with my iPhone before delivering the floral bouquets, requested in a jewel palette to co incide with midnight blue dresses of the attendants...

The above is the corsage for the grandmother of the bride and groom, a simple calla lily, Odessa, a touch of hydrangea, some beautiful blue veronica and gossamer French organdy ribbons....

...the perfect time of year for the use of hydrangea in bridal bouquets, plentiful and lush, this particular variety is called Pimpernel...

Silverstone roses, kale, trichelieum and millet echo  the fall tones requested by the bride.  She also requested peacock feathers as an addition to the bouquets. As a rule, I rarely use any adornments such as crystals, feathers and jewels, preferring to just show off the flowers in all their simple, natural beauty....

The bride's bouquet, Crystal blush calla lily, Akito roses, chrysanthemums and white feather collar to compliment the attendants flowers...

Just a quick little post to share this lovely event on this Thanksgiving week, here in Canada....so much to be thankful for!

I will be posting on the renovation soon....

N.xo

Last of summer....

You will have to excuse my long absence from the last post.  I dove into blogging a year ago with such enthusiasm, I surprised even myself, it seems! I do attempt to read all of my dear blogging friend's entries as I can, and often leave a comment.  But the summer has gone by so quickly, with all the tasks at hand and the renovation in full bloom, that my poor blog has taken back seat to everything else....

Our sketchy internet connection here, in our temporary home, and the sheer magnitude of what has to be dealt with everyday have left me somewhat overwhelmed!

However, I will endeavor to post a short one about a tiny bit of my world at the moment....

The above photo, taken yesterday of Cinderella fairy, inspired me to take on a little project for the new powder room bath....
I'm afraid I'm an incurable romantic!  I love gilt and baroque period furniture and painted pieces....so, I decided to paint a demi lune cabinet to serve as a vanity in this room.

Here is the finished piece, which I embellished with roses, with a transfer process I learned years ago in ceramics....remember when we all did ceramics?
Perhaps I'm really dating myself ???
It is a vintage print which I love....

I painted the piece with just white latex paint, after a good prime coat....
 I added the transfer, washed it with a lovely shade of green, added the lines for a little interest and a bit more sponging around the print and then distressed it lightly.
Varnish coat last....

I love the shape of this cabinet and the sweet little feet....

The colour is soft, with a garden feel.....

A piece of honed white marble will top it with a white undermount basin.....

I have decide to leave the hardware, although not original....usually I prefer to paint the hardware white and slightly distress it as well.  But I have a light fixture in mind that is antiqued brass, as an overhead light....

Here is a very poor photo...my apologies!  It was stored behind a large armoire with other furniture in the carriage house, and this is the best I could do....
I think this will work very well with it, as the hardware I chose  for the undermount sink for the vanity, is a tarnished brass faucet as well...
Love the little glass droplets....remind me of water droplets in the garden!

The last of summer in the garden....here white Cinderella fairy making a valiant effort
to preform one last time....

I shall try to post little bits as we get closer to the actual progression of the interior renovation...the part that is most fun!!!!

N.xo 

Kitchen Inspiration

While I'm honing my computer skills, (still can't manage to create a link for you!!),
I thought I would post this lovely image of what I wish my kitchen could look like...

I am particularily drawn to the ceiling and note the different hanging fixtures...so quaint and unpretentious....
and of course the best part of all, is the beautiful marble topped buffet, reclaimed as the kitchen island...

A little peek at what I am playing with here, for the renovation....

Hope you have a lovely beginning to your week!!

N.xo

Better than ice cream!!!

One of the highlights of my summer was the having the opportunity to view and hear the exceptional, Quartetto Gelato, through Music Niagara....

" Romantic tenor arias and gypsy pyrotechnics with breathtaking virtuosity..." was the order of the night!

Performing in historic St.Mark's Church in Niagara on the Lake, the evening for me was absolutely magical. Being a lover of classical music and opera, I was transported listening to the magnificent musicians in this group..

Nicola Salerno's, the tenor in the group, performance of Catari, an old Neopolitan love song, which my Dad used to sing, warmed my heart and brought tears to my eyes...
and
Under Paris Skies and La Vie on Rose, was almost like sitting at a cafe in Paris,
transcending!!

"....dry humour and occasional clowning are part of the quartet's arsenal, yet first it meets the requisite virtues of skilled music making....."
quoted from The Los Angeles Times

If you are afforded the opportunity to see and hear this internationally acclaimed group,
don't hesitate...you won't be disappointed!!!
The name Quartetto Gelato is truly indicative of the fun you will have...unlike a scoop of your favourite ice cream, only better!!!

Please excuse the poor quality upload...I give up!

Hope you are enjoying what is left of this beautiful summer!

N.xo

An Endless Summer....

Well it appears that Picasa and Blogger are extending me some co-operation at the moment..
I am really attempting to exercise some patience with both...it is either all or nothing with them it seems!!
Could it be that my nerves are somewhat a little frayed these days???
This past weekend my husband and I spent both days cutting back the ivy growing on our red brick house.
Don't be alarmed...I managed to convince all the males involved with the renovations that it was staying as it was!!!
We trimmed back just enough for them to work around the windows, so they could replace them and the shutters. As you can see from both the photos, above and below, the ivy, which has taken me approximately thirty years to grow was not going to be removed!
It borders the stone walkways and is even climbing up the stately old trees...

Today when I checked up on the progress of the framers, they had sheets of plywood and 2x10's
laying on the ivy border near the front door...I gently and quickly reminded them, that it was not to be!!
Am I the only one who thinks about these things????

I can't really imagine being so oblivious to something so obvious, is it a man thing, or just disregard for something living and growing???

Grrrrrrrrr.....I thought I would post something beautiful to obliterate that knot in my stomach...
This is Cinderella Fairy rose, planted last Spring amongst the Limelight hydrangeas in the garden,

so pretty and delicate and looking lovely with the chartreuse colour of the hydrangea buds about to pop....

Here it is in full bloom after just two seasons in the garden....loving its performance so far!!!
I also planted a white one as well, alongside....you can see how floriferous and abundant they both are.

White Cinderella Fairy has a touch of soft creamy yellow as it blooms...

I may plant more in the fall if the budget permits!!!

The hydrangeas have been spectacular this summer...I have been going back home everyday to water them and they have come along in spite of the hot and arid conditions, but perhaps the high humidity has been beneficial for them....

Wish I could cut them and put them in some lovely container, but everything I own is packed up and stored away!!!!

I have been referring to this summer as, the endless summer....every day has been hot and sunny and really gorgeous, except for the high humidity, which I can deal with....I love to wake up to the sun shining every day....
The roses have loved it as well....

Trying to keep occupied in the midst of making decisions about the renovations and running back and forth to both locations to oversee and ponder and hope they are the right ones...
I am reluctant to post about it...so many people in the world don't even have a roof over their heads...
It seems frivolous...

This beautiful cover is the Summer issue of Rowan, the glorious knitting magazine from England, it keeps me inspired.....

Some dried peony petals from this summers blooms in the garden are the perfect palette for some new decorating plans...What do you think?

In the meantime, small bits of what is old and familiar keep me grounded visually and otherwise...

N.xo

Time lost....

I am missing my garden......today, and everyday I have been going back to water the beds and a few pots which hold some of the more mature plants near the foundation of the house, some newly planted lace cap hydrangeas and a new Iceberg rose. I dug them out temporarily to save them from the construction battle zone !

I can feel its neglect....

You know when something loved and cared for is not quite right.... Although we have had very little rain the entire month of July, my thorough soaks with the garden hose can never replicate the rain showers from above..

or my constant hovering, like a mother...

I have felt like this is a lost summer in the garden. I hope and dream of next season and what the new changes will bring to both me and it....always grateful for the beauty it gives....

N.xo

The above image is from my coveted, archived Victoria magazines.

Revisiting the potting bench and a year has come and gone!

Coming up for air, after not blogging since the end of May, has been a relief as well as frustrating to say the least...my blog anniversary would have been celebrated July 6, one year of pure pleasure and self discovery mostly....about the rewards and insights gained by connecting to a vast world of brilliant and talented, and extremely kind people, unknown to me prior to that date...the move from our home to commence renovations after many years of living in the same house has been over whelming...I have been packing, editing and sorting and distributing since January! We are now situated about fifteen minutes away, and darting back home to Jordan every day to water the gardens...the heat wave has hit here as well, to check up on the demolition which began last week....the entire first floor is gutted to the studs, kitchen, dining, living room, two baths and three bedrooms..the roof, windows, doors, interior and exterior, trim, and design layout reconfigured..a garden room is being added to one end of the house...new trim and doors are also being replaced through out and the entire house painted inside and out...a bit of a quick update! 

Making the right decisions is quite amazing and causing both my husband and I a great deal of angst!!

.....the real reason for this belated post, is in celebration of my blogging anniversary which I missed due to the move....we actually moved out July 6th!!

I don't check my stats often, but when I have over the past while, it seems that my Potting Benches post is the most viewed by visitors...so I have decided to repost it for those of you who are not familiar with it....

I made this potting bench, about twelve years ago as a work table for our wedding flowers in my shop, Acorn Lane....it became a well used and loved
piece, made of recycled windows, doors and anything else I felt would add to its function as well as beauty.
When I closed the store in 2008, I used it for potting plants outdoors in the garden, as well as arranging flowers for our wedding designs.  It has been invaluable to me.
You can see it is starting to acquire a lovely, mossy patina from being outdoors in the shade....

The zinc tub serves as a sink for conditioning flowers....the peonies are from this year's harvest from my garden, peony Sarah Bernhardt...

The window boxes which I have perched on the top shelf are vintage, and often filled
with maiden hair ferns....the wire forms of the geese, I use to grow creeping fig...
stuffed with moss, they are really interesting topiary forms when full grown....



The dimensions are really adequate, it is approximately eight feet long, and thirty inches deep, just like a counter top....

I prefer old garden tools, and rusted wire ware, it looks great with green and white....

 

 

This rather large zinc tub, which has been painted, is great for conditioning dozens of roses pior to arranging...



I added the two white wire window cages, to the back of the bench for holding ferns or other flowers to add a bit of green and colour.....

...you can still see the soft rose transfer on the front of the tub, faded after so many years of use.....

....it is interesting to me that this post, about an idea I brought to fruition several years ago, is still causing some interest out there....
I love to upcycle wonderful, old worn treasures, loved from another time and place...

'' I have a vision for living. It is about elements of style. It is about all the things that I love, that I believe in....I'm about things that you keep, that you own and cherish..."

....from the master designer himself, Ralph Lauren....

I have missed all my blogging friends, and hope to be able to visit all of you soon during this time of transition and change....

N.xo