Eye Candy of the Week – Tortoise Lamp by Jonathan Adler

 

 

PRODUCT
Tortoise Lamp

DESIGNER
Jonathan Adler

MATERIAL

• Translucent porcelain bisque shell
• Polished nickel base
• 15" wide x 25" high

DESCRIPTION

A modern and glamorous take on the classic tortoise light fixture.

YUMMY FACTOR
C'est exquis !

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My Favorite Weeds

It's that time of year (depending upon where you live, this post could be a little early!) when my favorite weeds, Queen Anne's lace and Wild Chicory, are popping up alongside of roads, in fields & generally anywhere there's untended dirt.


One of my favorite flowers (if not favorite ) is Queen Anne's Lace. It was named after Queen Anne, who was adept at lacemaking. Many of the flowers have reddish/ purple blooms in the center and it's said that it's a drop of Queen Anne's blood from pricking her finger while making lace.

Queen Anne's lace is really special to me & reminds me of summertime, visiting my dad in Illinois, where the sides of the roads are covered in Queen Anne's lace & wild chicory. The field across from our family's longtime summer cottage/ lakehouse is filled with them & I used to pick them when I was little with my grandma & cousins. My dad actually moved into the cottage about 10-12 years ago & so we still go there every summer. (This is the house I'm always working on, kitchen here.) Here's the table set last summer with some fresh Queen Anne's Lace & some of my Grandma Maestranzi's china:

It doesn't last long when you bring it inside, but it's worth it to me. And, my other favorite "weed" is wild chicory (below).

I can't get over its color & again, it just gives me this nostalgic feeling whenever I see it. An herbal tea of it, taken a couple of times a day, is said to help your metabolism according to old herbal lore. I used to love picking the flowers & drying them out for the tea, but to be honest, I wasn't really into the tea & enjoyed making it & the pretty packaging for it more than I did drinking it. I think I still have a a 15-year old homemade box of it somewhere. hahah

(image from here)
Anyway, if you haven't glanced at the roadsides lately, take a look. There are so many beautiful "weeds." The best part is, we're going to Illinois in August for a couple of weeks and just as the flowers start to fade here in Virginia, they'll be in full bloom there. Can't wait!!

And don't forget how much of life this quote can be applied to:

"What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have never been discovered."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson.

xoxo,

lauren

4th of July & Giveway Winner!!

Well, our first party at the new house was a success!! My family came over for Christian's birthday party/ 4th of July party.

Below, my grandmother painted this cute sign for the event. (The realtor left the 'For sale' sign at our house when we moved in and after calling & leaving messages for her to come & get it & not hearing back for a couple of months, we figured it was ours- I think it'll be fun to repaint for parties/ events)

The kids had a great time (below) and my mom pushed them around in a Power Wheel Jeep. (It was being trashed on the side of the road so we picked it up but the battery's dead ;) How pretty is Natalie in her princess party dress?!!

Here are some [repeat] photos of the tables (below). It cracked me up when a guest was carrying a bunch of drinks in her hands and asked if she was allowed to set them down on this table or if it was "staged." hahahah uh-oh, have I gone tpo far with this?!! hahah (ps- I think EVERYTHING should be used- even pretty tables!!)

And the plaster of paris flag holders my grandmother made:

And how cute is Christian's mini wheelbarrow-turned-bar? (We used our big wheelbarrow too for the rest of the drinks but this pic is so much better :)

And here is the birthday boy (below)... He had the best time!!! We sang "happy birthday" twice so he could blow out the candles 2 times. He loved it.

And finally, we have a winner for the rug giveway!! It's Kristen Foster from falls Village, CT. She has her own fabric workroom & makes everything from curtains to bedding. Kristin, I sent you an email, so as soon as you get the chance, can you send me your mailing address at lauren@thepurestyle.com?

I hope everyone had a great weekend & thank so much for participating in the giveaway & for joining Pure Style Home!! :) I had SO MUCH FUN reading everyone's favorite smells & wanted to change my favorites a million times!!!

xoxo,

lauren