Here are the latest updates for rockbuny1010@yahoo.com
- weekly wrap up + a palm springs wedding shoot
- in the kitchen with: danielle tsi’s egg salad
- flowers a-z: o is for orchid
- sneak peek: paul & jordan ferney
- gerturude jekyll & the country house garden
- new: sweet paul summer
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Whether you’re engaged, married or happily enjoying single life, I think weddings can be a fantastic source of entertaining ideas. No rings are required to enjoy a great table design or beautiful food displays, so I love getting to share wedding shoots when they’ve got color schemes and decor that could span a wide range of events. This wedding shoot was created by Jesi Haack Design and shot at the Ace Hotel in Palm Springs, California. I love the vivid pinks and yellows- they scream “summer” to me and would perfect to carry through for a backyard BBQ or even a baby shower. Chiavari chairs are such a party staple, but they feel fun and surprisingly modern doused in a coat of hot pink paint.
My favorite part of the event design is contrast between electric colors and faded tumbleweeds- it makes all the decorations really stand out from the surroundings. If you’re looking for a fun idea for a birthday party, summer backyard bash or just a little get together for two, there are plenty of ideas to inspire here. Thanks to Melanie for sending this over. A full list of credits is after the jump (with more gorgeous photos) and all of the pictures above and below were taken by Gabriel Ryan Photographers.
I’m heading off for the weekend and will see you on Monday, reporting part of the week from San Francisco and the other part from gorgeous Portland, Oregon. I can’t wait to get a break from this crazy NYC heat. See you next week! xo, grace
Below is a summary of this week’s highlights:
- Must-Read Posts: Top 15 Tech Gifts for Fathers Day, Looking for: D*S Special Project Sponsors, Upholstery Basics: Tool Time
- New City Guide: Farm Coast
- Biz Ladies: Media Training 101
- Living In: The Young Girls of Rochefort
- The Sound of Your Morning: Can’t Get You Out of My Head
- Sneak Peeks: Ivan Hvam Hvam, Shaun Moore & Todd Caldwell, Myriam Balaÿ-Devidal, Paul & Jordan Ferney
- DIY Projects: Ikat Print Pillow, Farmers’ Market Bags, Droog-style Hanger Lamp
- Before & Afters: Mantel Bookshelf, Chalkboard Market Sign, Shutter Wood Embellished Dresser
- Treasure Hunting: Hangers (collecting and creative display ideas)
- Upholstery Basics: Tool Time
- Make It Yours: Caroline Gomez
- Past & Present: Anglepoise Lamps + Sources
- Flowers A to Z: O is for Orchid (history, care and arranging tips)
- In the Kitchen With: Danielle Tsi’s Egg Salad Recipe
- Artwork: Greece On My Wheels
- Misc.: Rooftop Gardens, Looking for: Great Summer Beach Houses, McMasterPieces: Alissia Melka-Teichroew, Four Eyes, World’s Smallest Post Office: Home Kit, Jaqk Playing Cards, Bookish, Country House Garden book, Sweet Paul summer magazine,
More beautiful wedding images continue after the jump!
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I really enjoy spending time going through all the finalists in the Saveur food blogs each year because I learn about new blogs and see many new perspectives on food. Danielle Tsi’s beautiful and well-written blog, Beyond the Plate, was nominated in two categories this year. It was nominated in Best Original Baking and Desserts Recipe for Bomboloni with Meyer Lemon Curd and for best food photography. We are lucky to have Danielle’s recipe for Open-Faced Egg Salad Sandwiches on the In the Kitchen With column this week. I haven’t had a good egg-salad sandwich in a while, and I’m taking this chance to add the recipe to my arsenal of quick and easy meals I can prepare when I don’t want to turn on the oven or dirty lots of dishes. Do you have a variation on egg salad? Share with us, please! -Kristina
About Danielle: Danielle grew up in Singapore, a tiny, food-obsessed island on the tip of the Malaysian Peninsula where every waking minute was spent thinking about what her next meal was going to be. Landing in the United States with her well-travelled Nikon, she turned her lifelong love affair with food into images and words on her blog, Beyond the Plate. She’s also a freelance photographer, counting BlogHer and San Francisco’s Commonwealth Restaurant as some of her clients. When not behind the lens or at the stove, Danielle can be found on her yoga mat perfecting the headstand.
See the recipe after the jump!
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Welcome back, readers! Although typically I struggle to decide which beautiful treasure to feature in the “a-z” posts, this week there was simply no dithering. ”O” is for orchid (in this case, the cymbidium orchid). This flower has many wonderful, versatile properties – it can appear feminine or masculine, fragile or sturdy. Designing with orchids is great fun, particularly because you can utilize the glorious long stem in a tall and dramatic arrangement, or snip the individual buds and create something compact and chic (as I will demonstrate in this post).
Here is a perfect cymbidium specimen in white. Cymbidium orchids come in a variety of colors – white, yellow, magenta, brown and ice green. Sometimes cymbidium are referred to as “boat orchids.” They were first formally described in the botany world in 1799 by Olof Swartz (a Swedish botanist whose sub-specialty was the orchid family). Cymbidium (and most other orchid species) are native to tropical and subtropical Asia, as well as Northern Australia. They prefer warm, moist climates (although they can survive for limited periods of time at freezing temps) and the large cymbidium do best in more mountainous regions with some altitude. At home, they do best in a cozy, steamy bathroom, which can provide the humidity and indirect light they require.
As with so many things, orchids were cultivated in China for thousands of years before the European world got hip to them. They became very fashionable (especially for corsages and boutonnieres) in Europe during the Victorian Era. Meanwhile, in Bhutan, cymbidium orchids are considered a delicacy and cooked into a spicy curry. We will NOT be cooking them today, but I will be showing you a simple arrangement using only one, gorgeous cymbidium. Stay with me after the jump to follow along, step-by-step… -Sarah
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Just a couple of months ago, San Francisco-based party planner and letterpress printer Jordan Ferney of Oh Happy Day!, put all her furniture in storage and moved to Paris for a year with her two young sons and husband Paul. Living in Paris for a year had been on the couple’s must do list for quite some time, and they finally decided there was no time like the present. But before pulling up stakes, Jordan opened up the couple’s one bedroom for a little sneak peek. Jordan’s home is just as bright and cheerful as the parties she plans (one of my all-time favorite parties was the color fight party – I’m dying to have a color fight! {Thanks Jordan and Paul! And many thanks to Aubrey Trinnaman for the lovely photos!}
Image above: Style is very important but my first priority was that we utilized the small space efficiently. It’s a one bedroom apartment so we really had to edit things down. I feel like I’ve grown up a little bit with my style even since we decorated this. Jenny from Little Green Notebook helped me with some of it–it was my first time doing e-decorating. She is so good at finding fabric and helping me hunt down things on Craigslist. It is also great to have someone to bounce ideas off of. My greatest inspiration is Craigslist and Thrift Stores. If you spend time on it they are the best places to find really original pieces. The campaign dresser is a Craigslist find and the lamp from Anthropologie.
Image above: The bedding is from Dwell Studio and the drapes I made from some Paul Smith fabric Jenny sent me.
The full home tour continues after the jump…
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For a span of probably three years (before I became a teenager and everything hit the fan), I was a huge Secret Garden fan. Meaning that I basically wore out my copy of the book, and spent hot Arkansas summers dreaming of the moors, a rambling old house and an English maid to make tea. Which is why I was so excited to see this this new Gertrude Jekyll book. Gertrude Jekyll was, arguably, the most important garden designer of the 20th century. She was the gardener who popularized the informal, naturalistic look that we identify with English country gardens today like the one that Mary jumped rope through. Flipping through this book is probably as close as I’m going to get to my own Secret Garden but hey, a girl can dream. (Oh and if you’re also a Secret Garden fan, don’t miss Living In: Secret Garden) {Photographs: © Country Life Picture Library, from Gertrude Jekyll and the Country House Garden by Judith B. Tankard, Rizzoli New York, 2011 }
The garden photos continue after the jump…
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In the world of online magazines, I have a few favorites that I hold near and dear to my heart for their exceptional quality of content. Right at the tippity top of that short list is Sweet Paul Magazine. Paul Lowe’s commitment to gorgeous photography, interesting stories and really beautifully presented work makes his online magazine a must-read in my book. The newest issue just launched a few minutes ago and it’s packed with 144 pages full of delicious food and recipe ideas (including homemade dog snacks and an amazing salad story), craft projects (like transforming pillowcases with blackberry dye) and profiles on exciting people in the worlds of food and design (like Tamar Morgendorff and Elephant Ceramics). If you’re looking for a heavy dose of inspiration and eye candy this morning, click here to check out the full issue. Congrats to Paul as well, as Sweet Paul magazine is now being printed and sold on newsstands in Norway! xo, grace
P.S.: Thanks so much for all the sweet birthday emails, comments and Tweets. It was an excellent day full of food, friends and even some skateboarding.
More images from the magazine after the jump!
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