Love Notes

Oh my goodness I've had such an inspiring week.   It started off with a visit to Charleston to see my youngest son, all timed (by me, not him) around the Garden Conservancy's Open Gardens tour in that lovely city.    I was so lucky to visit five jaw dropping private gardens in the coveted South of Broad area (do I have the subtle linguistics on that terminology correct?  Probably not - please correct me.)    I've been hoping and wishing to get to one of these Garden Conservancy events forever, and words cannot express how outstanding it was.      READ MORE

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Have you ever heard of Eliza Schidmore?   Born in 1856, Eliza was a journalist and travel author.    She began her career writing a Washington society newspaper column.   She went on to become the first female writer for the National Geographic Society, and later, its first female board member.  In 1885, while still in her twenties, Eliza returned from a trip to Japan with a bee in her well heeled bonnet to bring the beauty of the Japanese cherry tree to Washington's tidal basin.   Her campaign began.   READ MORE

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What in the world is Mother Nature up to?  We arrived in Florida and awoke to a chilly 47 degree temperature with a hefty wind to boot!  And back in Virginia, half of my camellia blooms fell victim to frost.  This tricky March has proven itself to be a florist's refrigerator, and spring's mighty parade of endless blooms will just last longer.  And that's the topic for today - most especially, the magnificent tulip!  READ MORE

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My mother was a gardener, as was her mother.   In my late twenties,  my favorite garden-related activity was to read books where other people wrote about working in their gardens.   It all started with Dee Hardie's column for House Beautiful,  "A View from Thornhill Farm".   Each month, I'd find a quiet moment to savor the new issue's colorfully inspiring interiors, saving Dee's column to devour last - just like a favorite chocolate in a sampler box.  Read more

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What is it about the combination of lilac and green that soothes and brightens all at once?   Maybe the design scheme still seems a bit of a surprise, as opposed to say, a room decked out in soft turquoise and white, one which we all know and would happily move into tomorrow.   Or perhaps there's something wired within our brainstem - the part that knows without thinking - that recognizes the beguiling interplay of lilac and green as two of Mother Nature's favorite bedfellows. 

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