Love Notes

Consider the corner turned.  Spring is in bloom, we are dancing with the daffodils and tiptoeing through the tulips.  How inspired is this arrangement of rhubarb and ranunculus?  Miss Rhubarb - look at you.  Stepping into the chorus line, center stage across the table - instead of a Pyrex into the oven.  Hat's off, girlie!

This is the moment when everything starts to show off a little bit.  Nature's own version of  fireworks.  

I love hearing what's doing in everyone's garden, and noticing how far apart we all are.  Here's what's going on in mine, in Alexandria Virginia (zone 7):  a second wave of daffodils,  lilacs just opening, mid season tulips and Carolina jasmine in bloom.  Camellias have faded as the dogwoods begin to pop.    The azalea buds sit with lips pursed, about to burst into a technicolor wave of pink.   READ MORE

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This photo is sort of like us.  A Love Note Reader's view of the world.  We see a beautiful blue sea with soft summery laundry billowing in the foreground.  We can almost feel the sunshine on our shoulders,  a breeze wafting through salty hair.  We ignore what looks like a platoon of icebergs passing by in the background.   This is our nature.

The iceman has already cometh, we're all done with winter.  We expect this last gasp of March to exit like an Easter lamb.   And off we go.   READ MORE

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Spring has sprung and I'm back in Virginia for a bit.  Gladly.  Not that I didn't love my time in Boca Grande with many dear friends (and thank you to all the ladies who came out for my best trunk show ever).  I loved relaxing in Longboat Key with my cousin Jennifer who's like my sister.  And yet, there's no place like home.  Especially when it's spring in Virginia.  As I'm fond of saying, that's why we live in Virginia - for the spring.

My daffodils welcomed me back, having mostly survived the wild swing from 84 degrees to a blanket of snow the very next day.  The parade of life emerging from my garden has begun in full force.  Camellias in bloom, lilies forcing their way up, and a goldfinch at the feeder.  Let the trumpets sound!  Limelights and tulips and birds, oh my!   READ MORE

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The studio has been a flurry of activity, getting me ready for my trip to the Gasparilla Inn.   It's a particularly fun show for me, because I can concentrate on designs that are all about shells.   My peeps will love them.  You see, I know their sweet spot, for it is one we share.  And I love visiting with so many regulars who by this point have become old friends.  The show is this Friday to Sunday, so if you're in the area, please stop in and say hello.  You can also get a preview of some of my new creations below.

These past few shell-forward weeks have gotten me wondering ... just what is it about seashells that keeps us utterly infatuated?  From the smallest child to that elegant elderly beachcomber in the slightly cocked hat (you know the one), each of us is equally smitten with shells.  Maybe it's because each specimen, from the humble coquina to the king's crown, feels like its own small miracle.   We grasp it as a keepsake, a reminder that Mother Nature is indeed the best designer of all.   When someone marvels at one of my modest shell creations, I like to remind them, "It was once someone's house".  And then I get to stand back and watch as a wide smile erupts, beginning in the corners of their mouth, rising slowly into an allover glow which peaks in the outside corners of their eyes.  (I think I just might sense a glow coming on in you?)  READ MORE

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March, we love you.  You are most welcome this year.  Not quite winter;  not quite spring.   A hinge between what was and what's about to unfold. Can you feel the shift?  Even the intrepid skiers and hibernating bears among us must sense a little lift, as we turn the calendar page to a new month.

Hats off to those of you who have survived power outages, limbs in the driveway, and doors that couldn't open because a snowdrift blocked the way.   Not to mention travel complications.  But today, we have our collective toes on the threshold of spring.

Inhale.  Hold it there.  Exhale.  Aaaahhhh ... beginnings.  Beginnings impel us to sit up a little straighter, as we turn our chins, gladly giving our full attention ... leaning into what might be next.

Which brings me to one of my own.   READ MORE

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