Remember

Happy Memorial Day

Summer Dining

I love to browse cookbooks by Julia, Sheila, & Ina, but my kitchen primer is Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything. I think it's changed how many people think & feel about cooking, and has become to my generation what the red & white checked Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook was to my mother's. A bit of a scatter-brain in the kitchen, I am calmed by its clarity & simplicity.  So I thought I'd share this 2007 New York Times article in which Mark describes 101 meals prepared in under 10 minutes. Read it, and enjoy your kitchen a little less this Summer.

Shades of Summer

Creamy white, washed red, wicker brown, faded turquoise, boxwood green. Aren't they amazing?

Pet-Friendly on the Vineyard

Vintage 1830's Farmhouse just across from a sheep farm in West Tisbury's Historic District, sleeps 6 plus the dogs.

Still available most of July & August here.

Newburyport

A quick hop from Boston is the amazing little coast town of Newburyport, where you can stay the night @ blue.  If you're not up for a plane to the Vineyard or ferry to Nantucket, this might just do.

Are You Ready?

Thursday can't come fast enough.

RL

I'm an American purist. I unabashedly drive a Ford; drink Bud Light, Dunkin Donuts coffee & original Coke; wear old 501's & my grandmother's charm bracelet; and love McDonald's fries. And these preferences influence every bit of my design esthetic. I prefer vintage to new, originals to knock-offs, American to Euro.

So given my (lack of?) world view, I guess it's not surprising I once worked for Ralph Lauren. And when he finally succumbed and introduced a mass market line, I was emphatically not a fan. Diluting the essence of Ralph, I said. But recently I've been eating words. Whole sentences, in fact. I found these 'mass market' pieces and think they're amazing. And at prices way more reasonable than Ralph Lauren Home, they make great adds to a beach house or ski condo.

Available to the masses here.

Outdoor Fun

Patiopalooza Day 1 -- complete with a hot dog stand, D.J., loads of plants, fun patio finds and a fantastic turn out despite a bit of rain. Today the action moves inside, with great stock at both Post & Gray and the huge warehouse next door @ 300 Rampart. 

Plus, confirmation that someone is actually reading this crazy blog. 2 HGL readers were live & in person @ the 'palooza. A fabulous Charlottean + her equally fabulous daughter (a Duke junior / Delta Gamma) came by just to say hello. And buy some goodies. How nice is that? Thanks guys!

Post & Gray Patiopalooza

Don't forget, this weekend @ S. Tryon & Rampart in Charlotte's South End

Scoop

Yes, it sounds like Eddie's coming to Charlotte, and a skinny blonde birdie also told me he'll very likely be hosting a super fun event @ Interiors Marketplace (Post & Gray's sister store) the evening of November 4th with Jaithan... I also heard mention of a book, with the possibility of a signing.  Exciting, no?

Guess who's idea that was?

Kelly, again

I've been away all weekend. The beach, lots of reading, wonderful food. No TV. Tonight I came home, unpacked, threw laundry in the washer, poured myself a glass of wine, and turned on TiVo. To the Real Housewives of NYC. The one on Ramona's rented yacht.

Really Kelly, again? Unless this is the result of some extremely creative editing, she's certifiable. I can't watch. I'm done.

Beach Weekend

The black star is dinner, the red dot is the destination.



More to come.

Chair Pair Love

{David Easton's Westmount Wall for Lee Jofa}

+

=

Right?

Guess Who's Coming to Charlotte? Maybe.

You know the ad campaign where everyone claims Windows 7 was their idea? Every time Eddie Ross posted about a show trip, I'd ask 'when are you coming to Charlotte?'

So Eddie's coming to Charlotte {maybe} and it was my idea. Get your butt over there and back me up.

tweet

I'm new to Twitter. And since I'm so opinionated, I love to hit the 'Reply' button -- it's Nirvana.

But it's probably a bad thing that one of my first tweets was 'RT' (or 're-tweeted' for those of you still ignorant in the ways of Twitter) by the tweeps @ House Beautiful (I've captured it here so I can view it in perpetuity). Because now I've got nowhere to go but down.

Follow me, we'll have some fun.

Charlotte Design Sale

This morning, in a little brick warehouse in the South End, a gaggle of dealers held a tag sale. The mix was interesting, and I took iPhone snaps as I made my way through so I wouldn't forget what I'd seen.

I picked out a little antique bergere (1st pic), a Scalamandre 'Millbrook' painted spindle/spool chair, a 1/2 dozen antique Wedgewood platinum + bluebell hand-painted porcelain plates (last 2 shots), a boho-fun John Robshaw hand-blocked shower curtain, and a pair of small vintage hand-painted benches. The plates, spindle chair & shower curtain are for me. The bergere & benches have already been picked up by the upholsterer and hopefully will be @ Post & Gray before the month is out.

Summer Porch (of Needleman, by Konig)

Former Domino editor Rita Konig's NYT design blog, Inside Out, is always wonderful reading. In her most recent post, she describes her transformation of Deborah Needleman's very sad country house covered porch from this...

to this.

Says Ms. Konig, 'I like to treat these outdoor rooms pretty much as I do the indoor ones:  furniture with soft cushions; dining tables with damask cloths and silver candlesticks; hurricane shades (and plenty of them) with fat candles that glow at night. For me, they are the chicest places to eat — and live — in summer.' To that end, her 2 primary areas of focus are 'seating with places to keep your drink handy, and warm lighting.'

I'm with Rita. There is nothing more relaxing than sinking into a comfy chair with a big sweaty vodka tonic, feeling the warm Summer breeze, watching june bugs flicker, and listening to Madeleine Peyroux. Am I right?

For more of Rita, check out 2 of my favorite books...

{this one is currently in stock @ estate}

Enjoy.

9

I was totally prepared to hate them. Truthfully, I really didn't like him very much after the first episode. But now I'm a fan.  A big fan.  I love her earthiness, his quirkiness, and their slew of well-behaved, personality-ridden children. And I can't wait to see what they get into next.

Moved!

My favorite NYC patchwork & knit shops just moved into a new space...

In the case of Purl, I'm positive bigger will be better.  Can't wait to visit.