Coastal Minimalism

As a stylist and Contributing Editor to New England Home magazine, I've traveled along mountainous roads and coastal regions searching for the most beautiful  homes to show you.  During a recent trip, I drove along rural roads through small towns to get to this stunning modern home by Eliot Architects!  The house is situated amidst a forest of tall pines along the coast of Maine.

Photos by Trent Bell

In the current Issue of New England Home magazine you'll read about this fantastic Maine home.  If you appreciate quiet minimalism, this article is a must read. By clicking this link you can get the whole story in a instant!
 http://www.nehomemag.com/article/maine-woods-modern

This was one of those shoots that needed many hands. We were able to get a lot done during this one-day shoot because of the great team working at Eliot Architects.  It takes many hands to hang beautiful art and pull all the pieces for each shot.

It took much planning to decide which exterior shots to photograph. The editing is often the hardest part. Oh, what a view!

This was one of those projects where I could have stayed to work longer than just a day!

Fun uses for vintage shutters

Vintage Shutters- 
An Architectural Table Runner

I'm always searching for fresh ideas and new ways to reuse old things. That's what I do! Last Spring, while driving past one my favorite antique and salvage shops, I saw a pile of old wood shutters outside and thought of a neat and fun project: 
Vintage Shutter Table Runners.

The dimensions and architecture of wooden shutters could be used to create a table centerpiece in addition to my Spring Branches assignment for Country Gardens magazine.

Vintage watering cans, a wood wooden shutter and spring branches; now that's a combination for a pretty Spring table centerpiece for entertaining dinner guests.

My friend, photogprapher Michael Partenio helps my projects shine.

"Inviting friends and family to gather around a pretty table is one a most welcoming pleasure. Going the extra mile will make your guests feel special."

Create the look:
1- Use an old, narrow wooden shutter. Make sure the width of your shutter works with the width of your dining table and will leave room for plates along its sides.

2- Place the shutter on a runner or directly onto the table. Place small watering cans on top.

3- Fill the cans with water and add a few Spring branches. Keep the flowers simple and sparse so guests can talk through and over the centerpiece.

Last spring, I provided 7 projects for Country Gardens magazine focusing on watering cans and Spring blossoms.  Look for more fabulous garden and floral ideas in the Spring 2013 Country Gardens Issue!

Calling All Designers/Architects - Portfolio REVIEW

New England Home Magazine: Portfolio Review

Do you have a project you think should be published?

If you do, New England Homes magazine editor, Stacy Kunstel and I would love to see it.

I'm excited to be part of the New England Homes magazine sponsored event "Designer Portfolio Review" at the Wakefield Design Center on May 8.  Bring  two of your favorite projects and we'll review them for possible consideration in an upcoming issue.

This is a great opportunity to discuss the ins and out of getting published, a great chance to meet see familiar faces again,  meet new friends and talk shop!

If you are wondering what to bring:  Professional shots are great, but not necessary,  pictures taken with your iphone or ipad are great, too. We can look at projects on your laptop or in a formal portfolio book.

Fabulous events worth attending include talk with Cindy Rinfret on her a book signing by as she introduces her latest book, "Greenwich Style: Inspired Family Homes".
                                                                     

If your looking to get a project published this is a great way to get the inside scoop on how to get published.

We are looking for projects in all corners of New England, from Connecticut to Maine.

If you want to share a project with us that is not fully completed, we will be happy to see this as well. If your not sure, bring it down.

New England Homes magazines is interested in all of the different styles of design and architecture that make New England so diverse.

Take a glance at this Wakefileld flyer and mark it on your calender, I hope to see many of you there!

 For more information, please contact 203.358.0818 or visit www.wakefielddesigncenter.com 

 

Forcing Forsythia Branches

Clip Early Spring Branches Now
If you can't wait for Spring, clip a few branches and watch the buds blossom into bursts of color

Two weeks ago I cut my first long branches of Forsythia and placed them in my kitchen window. In just 5 days, the little buds had turned from brown to brilliant bursts of yellow flowers. I've had a continual display ever since by replacing fading blooms with new branches.

While your garden Forsythia is just about to bloom outdoors, it's still a good time to bring branches indoors to add burst of screaming yellow to your floral arrangements. You can enjoy Forsythia  branches weeks ahead of nature's schedule by taking cuttings into your home and forcing the branches to bloom!

Dress up garden urns by placing watering cans filled with forsythia blooms 

on top. It's a great way to move color around outdoors as shown here in the current  2013 Spring" Country Gardens" magazine.

I used Forsythia to style this pretty breakfast room at my friend Maria Taylor's 

home for a Better Homes and Gardens story. Its perfect for adding a sunny 

accent with little effort. Make sure to have a tall container on hand to display it.

Forcing Forsythia
Forsythia is the easiest branch to force with guaranteed results.  Cut the longest branches from your Forsythia bushes. Bring them inside and re-cut the ends on an angle with a sharp knife. Add warm water into a tall vase and then add the cut Forsythia branches. Place the vase in a sunny window and watch the magic happen.

 Look for more  Great Garden and floral great ideas 

in the Spring 2013 Country Gardens Issue.

Create Impact With Cherry Blossoms

Blooming Branches: 
A wonderful greeting as you enter a room!

Nothing creates greater visual impact to a room than a tall array of flowering Spring-time branches.  Even displaying a single branch placed in a vase can be breathtaking and worth bringing indoors to admire.

A gathered selection of blooming single and double cherry blossoms 

combined with plum branches make up this display. 

I'm fortunate to have a good friend like Shelley Holmes! Shelley invited me to cut several amazingly beautiful branches from her enormous and very old double cherry-tree.  I felt like a kid in a candy shop!

The oversized vintage copper watering can came from a favortie antiques shop in Woodbury, Connecticut, called the French Country Loft. It's great to collect one of a kind containers like this for your arrangements.


Photos by Michael Partenio

I like the simplicity of this white enamel watering can I found at the flea market. It's the right size for a few small cuttings of magnolia flowers.  Cut the end of stem with a sharp knife on an angle and place in warm water.
Here is the Best Way to Cut a Branch Stem:

Using a sharp kitchen paring knife, slice the bottom of the branch in a half vertically ( about 2") exposing center.  In the center of the branch is a hollow vein with small white particles that look like styrofoam. This the the part of the branch that drinks the water. You want to expose the center to the water.  On thinner branches you can also peel away some of the bark or woody material using a paring knife.
To learn more about arranging and forcing spring branches, look for my feature in the current 2013 Spring Issue of Country Gardens magazine.

Grace Your Door With Spring Blossoms

Blooming Branches
Take a few simple cuttings and bring Spring inside

Are you ecstatic when our Spring landscape of trees and shrubs starts to bloom with bursts of color? Spring is the perfect moment to collect cuttings to create Sping-time displays in your home. Last year, Country Gardens editor, James Bagget, asked me to do just that. I used vintage watering cans as vessels for all of the arrangements showcased in the current 2013, Spring issue of Better Homes and Gardens' Country Gardens magazine. I kept the arrangements simple by focusing on the beauty of single blooms.

Photo: Michael Partenio

I loved creating this idea: gracing front doors with decorative vintage watering cans and blooming pear. You too will find vintage, metal watering cans irresistible, especially when they have a painted patina. 

If you have a door knocker or a large nail on your door, this is very easy to make: If your watering can measures 10" in diameter, you will need between 8-10 yards of rope (1/4" hemp available at most local hardware stores).
1- Start at the very front and bottom of your watering can: hold the first 12" of your rope flat  and upright against the can front.
2- Now, while covering this first 12" to secure in place, wrap and layer the rest of the rope around the bottom 5 times (while winding upward) to make a wide band.
3- Finish by bringing ends together in front and knot, leaving long decorative ends.
4- Wrap rope around the side handle in the same manner while leaving excess rope for hanging.  Now wrap the other end of rope around the nozzle ending with a tie to hold in place. Place the can on the door. Then add water along with 1, 2 or 3 branches.  The weight of the water will keep the can in place.

Forcing Branches
You can cut  a several branches from your tree or shrub at any time once the branches have buds. You will have more success the further along the buds are. The closer they are to opening, the sooner they will bloom for you. After you remove each branch from a shrub, use a shape knife to cut the bottom of the stem on a diagonal. To speed up the blooming process, place the branches in warm water and then before a sunny window.

Look for more great garden and floral decorating tips and ideas in the Spring 2013 issue of Country Gardens Magazine!

Flower Show Centerpiece: Styling An Easter Table

Styling An Easter Table 
Inviting friends and family to our Easter table is the 
highlight of my Easter Holiday Celebration.

 The Easter Holiday centerpiece pictured below is one I created for next month's April, Good Housekeeping Magazine. It is an arrangement of decorated eggs with readily available Spring flowers. I used soft pinks and blush colors of peach stock, white hyacinth, coral sweetpea and soft pink tulips.

Collecting the simple mismatched vintage milkglass containers for the vases was so much fun. I found them all at local antique markets and shops. Fill each vase with floral foam before adding flowers.



Photo by Michael Partenio

 The table's overall pink hue with colored plates of hot of aqua blue creates a wonderful Easter pallette. I like to make my table runners from yardage bought at my favorite fabric store.  That way I can make inexpensive runners at lengths long enough to run over the ends of the table.  I layered two shades of pink runners: one measuring 16" wide, and another wider runner underneath at 24" wide.  If I have time, I hem the runners.

Here's a time-saving tip: just iron the edges under and use iron-on hem tape for a quick fix!

Photo by Michael Partenio

Adding real eggs to this pretty arrangement is a surprising element. The eggs are glued to shish-kabab spears and added as if they were flowers. 

Here is a simple way to add real eggs 
into your arrangements:

What you will need:
- Brown and white eggs (duck, quail, goose or chicken eggs will work)
- Glue gun
- Wooden shish-kabob spears available at your grocery store.

1. Using a small knife or sharp object, poke a hole into the wide end of the egg. Use the knife to enlarge the hole to 1/2".  Use one end of a wood spear to stir egg inside and help force it out of the egg by breaking the yoke. Then shake the egg to remove yolk. It can be stubborn but it will eventually flow out. Using your wooden spear, push a small piece of paper towel inside the egg to wipe and dry clean.

2. Use your glue gun to place a large blob of glue on the flat end of spear.

3. Place glued spear into egg until it rests against the inside bottom. Place large amount of glue on spear where it meets the egg at opening.  Let dry.  The bottom of the egg wil be hidden by the flowers so don't worry about any unsightlyness!

Hint: The small speckled blue eggs on the table pictured above are artifical and from my local craft store. If you can find large artificial eggs at the craft store that have foam centers, the pointed end of the spear can be pushed into the egg. Now you have an even faster application of eggs to add to your Easter Flower Show arrangment.