burgeoning

Last night we were awoken by a theatrical thunder & lightening storm that sent down sheets of drenching rain & lowered the temperature to afford us a most comfortable rest.

The garden looked very happy this morning...

weekend DIY

This spunky little table is made from an old door; I like its simple construction, & the sunny yellow legs set at a jaunty angle lend it such personality.

how-to here via here

nice curves

I wouldn't turn this Finn Juhl sofa away from my doorstep...

Trained as an architect, Juhl designed the graceful & perfectly proportioned Poeten in 1941 for his own home. Available in the present-day here.

from here

la fête nationale

Paris in the 80s on Bastille Day, through the lens of my fabulous old rangefinder

I plan to faire la fête with a glass of wine or champagne this evening, & ponder ways I can topple the metaphorical monarchies in my life. Bonne fête!

on film

Recently I stumbled upon the delightful Tell Love & Chocolate's Girl with Camera series, & have been following the links & admiring the lovely, modern & creative work being done with vintage cameras.

i see you 

It took me a long time to abandon my luddite ways, but since I bought my first digital cameral I haven't shot a roll of film, eventually going so far as to purchase the digital version of my Canon SRL.

A few more vintage cameras have recently been added to my fleet, & I am inspired to buy film & start taking photos the old-fashioned way again.

Here is a way to perhaps satisfy both worlds, by taking photos with your digital rig through the view finder of a vintage camera, aptly named Through the View Finder photography, or TtV. All it takes, apparently, is a cracker box & some duct tape to create a light-free tunnel that spans the digital & film divide.

Stay tuned for posts chronicling a new photographic adventure in the near future...

hello, old friend

Ah, we meet again... I still have the issue of Marie Claire Maison that featured Fréderic Méchiche's loft in the Marais district of Paris, it made my heart beat so when I first laid eyes on it in the 1990s, so I was very pleased to have it appear before my eyes this week online.

1960s modern paired with 18th Century classicism? Now that's my kind of death-defying design feat, & he pulls it off so ably. A wall of books. Classic black & white softened by brown. Herringbone & beautifully aged wood floors. A museum-worthy art collection nestled so naturally & comfortably amongst chic yet livable furnishings - again, balance, so beautifully done. A decade later, & it still looks absolutely fresh to me.

from here

the bounty begins

I imagine my posts for a bit may be heavy on all things involving the garden & the meals it inspires; it is summer, after all, & it would be an understatement to say that I'm a little excited about growing our own food.

Today we harvested our first zucchini, a harbinger for many, many more to come, so it's time to pull out the cookbooks & start imagining a variety of possible recipes for future meals.

Tonight also marked the first fresh pesto of the season, as we harvested the rest of the garlic, 15 in all (two were twins)

& the first round of basil, which grew voraciously in the recent hot & humid weather. I made a rustic basil pesto with walnuts, which we ate on chilled pasta with a salad of fresh mixed lettuce greens, also from the garden, for the perfect summer meal.

And, of course, edibles are not the only wonderful things growing right now...

A feast for the eyes & belly alike.