Adding some green

Yesterday I used the sunny afternoon to visit the nursery around the corner to purchase first greens to decorate the house for the holidays. Just a couple of branches are enough to make it work for me. I do like simple arrangements best. Candles and all my other decorations take care of the rest.








There is a wreath with lights on the front door, greeting us in the dark when we come home. We will add and refresh the greens as the days go by, decorating the Christmas tree in mid December. I use a fresh evergreen garland over the mantel, but I will do it in the next weeks. This way it will still be fragrant by Christmas Day!

Do you use fresh greens?


xx
Victoria



Pictures by V.Zlotkowski

First fall decorations

This time of year lends itself so much for decorating and I always like to do it with something harvested, flowers from my garden, fruits and vegetables from the farm stand.


Candles make it warm and inviting, to sit and share a cup of tea!



As you can see I have been playing with my photo program on my new Mac! It's much fun!
Also today I found some great new books, fitting to my design philosophy to use things at hand, working with objects found in nature, the garden or around the house.
I will introduce them in the next few days on the Interior Design blog... I'll keep you posted!

Also as a little reminder, if you want separate updates from the design blog, please became a separate follower!

And just speaking of garden, look at this sweet visitor, even in the rain she came and ruffled her feathers, looking for last nectar! Perhaps click on the pictures so you can actually see the small hummingbird!






Much love to you all!

Victoria



Pictures by V.Zlotkowski

Arriving home

Here we are! What an amazing, happy and successful journey it has been!
From here to places in Bavaria, Germany. Then to Italy and last but not least to Berlin...and home...

With my mom in Volkach am Main, Germany.

Coming back home has been wonderful and somewhat slow. It took me a few days to get back to my regular life, not to talk of Euros and finally coming round to unpack every last bit and to part with stuff I carried around as souvenirs, like my weekly transportation pass from Berlin (a bargain at Euro 34,00 for one adult and all children for 5 days with endless discounts for all kinds of entertainments and places of interest)

All my children and my oldest son's charming girlfriend 'wired' on the small couch in the kitchen in Berlin...I miss you darlings!

Ach, I am still returning there in my mind. At home I have been showered with all my mail, catalogs, magazines and my emails, which I somewhat neglected over the last weeks. But we also have been awaited longingly by husband/papa too, which was lovely, returning to flowers and the knowledge to have been missed!

I am so curious to return to you all and see, what you all are up to at the beginning of September!
September 1st! I love September, it's the month of new beginnings, school, traditionally studies, a refreshing feeling of shortening days, apple picking and cooler nights. It helps that is also the month of the VIP birthdays in our family...
Beginning today, when I remember my grandma, she would have been today 109 years old. I still miss her. She died 2001, she was my soul mate and I recall endless memories.

I am back to gardening, small renovations in the house, some new clients and readying the children for school.

Southampton beach yesterday!

Yet we still enjoy those great summer days, last pool hours, yesterday a short visit to the Hampton's... The ocean was wild, but not cold and I love the comforts of soul calming whenever I am at one of the beaches of the Atlantic! I love that feeling of something so much larger then me, it puts easily all into a different prospective!

Are you all good? And thank you all for travelling with me and being patient!
I am working on sorting my pictures and there will be some I'll show you in the coming days!


XX
Victoria


Pictures by V.Zlotkowski

Thursday chat

Small changes sometimes turn out to have great impact and I felt this way after my lucky purchase of this jute mat for our music/living room...at Home Goods!
I love this room. We we had put down a cow hide in the winter. But what seemed lovely then looks too dark for my mood now in spring and summer.

Before...

After...

It's sheer coincidence that the window shades carry a similar striped pattern as the floor mat...


Suddenly the room feels larger and the cow hide moved over the ottoman, which is the sole domaine of Oscar, our dog. He now blends in so well that we have to look twice to make sure not to miss him...


Last night! It was rather a cool evening and we curled up to some reading and chatting...Do you barely see him lying on the ottoman? Perfectly camouflaged...


I added this pretty pillow with bird embroidery from Pier 1. Love it!

Yesterday I found this old calender leave from May 1962 at a tiny antique store for $4, depicting an old print of Sunnyside, the home of Washington Irving which is only a few miles from where we live. We love the house and gardens there and visit fairly often.



It's a lovely spot overlooking the Hudson. The print turns out to be a reproduction of a lithograph by Currier and Ives. They were a successful printing firm in new York in the 19Th century. I love to discover such stories and feel a deeper connection to artwork when I know such things...


By the way, right next to it sits Lyndhorst, another majestic estate now in the care of the the National Historic Trust, ones the stately home of the Jay Gould family among a few others.
And that small glass cloche next to the print? Do you see it? I found this as well a few weeks ago in shop in town...


It now protects my small Etruscan bronze figure, the one I brought home many years ago from my first visit to Italy in 1985...EXCUSE ME?
Can it be true? 25 years ago?
Which is amazing enough but this year will bring us back there, this time it will be a large entourage of us, the children, grand parents and friends...
A couple of weeks and we are off to Italy! We can't wait!


Oh, la dolce vita!
I promise, I will post on our adventures!

How did I get here from the small changes in my living room? Oh well....:)

XX
Victoria


Pictures by V.Zlotkowski, Italian landscape via google image.

Early summer mornings

I love the sun streaming through windows which have been covered with shades, the white gold filtered sunlight promises a day after my own heart. I love the morning sun on the brilliant dew drops on leaves and the early bird song too. An open door lets in the still cool air and a fan rattles somewhere in the house.


It has rained over night and the air is still full of evaporating mist in the trees...



My old friend is awake as well!


There is nothing lovelier than an early summer morning...except perhaps...


My new summer sandals!!! I love them! A little bling to pull me out of boring and give my outfits a tiny kick....

Happy day, darlings!


XX
Victoria



Pictures by V.Zlotkowski

Singing in the bathroom

This morning I woke earlier then usual. The sun was shining into our bedroom and I heard a concert of different voices outside my windows. Nobody stirred in the house and out I went, with my camera, stalking some birds and flowers in my garden...
She was grooming herself while singing happily along. I video taped her, but I could not upload the clip... :(



There was more then this as I slowly made my round along the well worn path along bushes and hedges. Mama or Papa bird tending the eggs...


The chipmunks running busily among the roses and peonies...


I love the picket fence across the street...and the lovely house behind!

And then this little guy caught my eye:
And I hear a "Good morning busy bee!" My husband calling out the window...Good morning, love!

And a good morning to you all!

XX
Victoria


All pictures and video by V.Zlotkowski

Little threesome

Three small glass canisters were sitting on the shelf in one of those bargain shops, where we sometimes buy the occasional school supply and they spoke to me...
They whispered clearly that they could be employed by me in various occupations, they would be easy to take care of and would need little maintenance... They sparkled and winked at me with their small etched faces!
They flirted with my vanity and took hold of me.


So I took them home and showed them to their new room. And since these three are a rather glamorous lot I assigned them to hold on to my semiprecious knick knack in the powder room!


They told me about their happiness and how life is good!


I am so thankful I listened! I did not know how much I needed them, but please do not tell them, they might get too proud of themselves...

Do you hear things talking to you on occasion?


And because it's Friday tomorrow I let you go with some newly blossoming garden glory...Aren't those so pretty? The peonies are in full bloom now! What a wonderful May we are having around here...





Happy Friday and a wonderful Memorial Day weekend to you! Here in the US we have a long weekend! Hurrah!

XX
Victoria



Pictures by V.Zlotkowski