Weekend!

After picking the first fresh flowers from the garden I felt I have arrived at the weekend, the dog tail is wagging happily and I am so looking forward to some unstructured time!



Wishing you all a relaxing weekend!

XX
Victoria


Picture by V.Zlotkowski

Small investments

I love finding treasures to freshen things up around the house...and it is amazing what can be found for way less then $20.


The candles came from a blow out sale at a Smith & Hawken store in the neighborhood and after discount I got them for $12.00.
The small bird paperweight is from Pier 1, $7.95. The same source for the tea light.



These happy dish towels came from A & P (!) and are just the thing needed in my kitchen. $ 3.99 a double pack. Hard to beat!


Cute flip flops for my daughter at Pier 1, $ 6.95, they are available in Kelly green and hot pink as well, and you could get matching polka dotted woven straw totes for $14.95


Gorgeous azaleas now on my window ledge and going to live in my garden for long: $ 6.50 at the local market.

Fresh flowers from Trader Joe's $6.50!

I did not actually buy these, but they all would fit right in my scheme...

Right in time for the Easter bunny: egg crate from Anthropologie $14.00.

Spring scented magnolia candle $18.00

New favorite tea cup $10.00

This list could go on...
You do not have to break the bank to get some small lovely things, which will bring a breeze of fresh air into your house and lift your spirits at the same time. And it will last much longer then the small investment might suggest!

XX
Victoria


Pictures by V.Zlotkowski and Anthropologie web site

Stepping stones

After this winter I am in such a need to reinvent myself. I try to refocus on the way I live now, try to regain a foothold into healthier living, away from bacon and egg breakfasts and push myself to do some exercise. This is hard for me, since I absolutely loathe the gym and I haven't set foot in it in years. But I like to walk, ride my bike and play with my kids. Does this count?
I will have to take some steps. I just read in the Wall Street Journal this morning that now the general recommendation for daily exercise for middle aged woman is 1 (!)hour per day! Hmmm...well?
Stepping stones like these might help! They were made by my younger son and daughter, then 9 & 12, in our summer vacation in Gloucester, MA last year.

They tell me to take a breath of fresh air and to see the bright side of things!

To let the sun warm my heart and soul!

To be in harmony with myself!

To be playful and to smile!

And to be at peace with myself!


Here they are now, on our deck after the storm has passed, waiting to be laid in the ground! Which reminds me that gardening is wonderful exercise too! I do a lot of it!

Not only are these stones beautiful and a reminder of one of the most wonderful summers we have had together, they now also become ground stones for my spring renewal! Thank you children to help me find my center again...
Now I can go the extra mile(s)!

I wish you all renewed energy and a sunny outlook for this season!


XX
Victoria


All pictures by V.Zlotkowski

City Mouse & Country Mouse...

Today I came across Doryn Wallach's new blog. Well, there is absolutely nothing mousy about her, I just played a little with the title of the children's book...


She is currently renovating her own family apartment in NYC. Expects her second child and is happy to have made the move from suburban Connecticut back to the city.
To be an accomplished interior designer surely helps! Check out her site and blog here! I am sure it wont take long for her to have a stream of followers to see her making progress!
It is so exciting to see our community grow! How much talent is out there everywhere!
And since she is expecting her second baby I found some baby quilts I loved...


via Etsy (tiptoe studio)


via Etsy (pwackets)


In the meantime I saw a couple of nice things and think you will like them too!
Remember this mirror (via Anthropologie) from a few post's back?


I found this...


It looks great!

And this chair prop in the latest Anthropologie catalog?


It is Tord Boontje's Shadowy chair...
He also designed these fixtures:




All through here.



Ups, I am running out of time....
Ten to Three! Good bye! I am off to school!


XX
Victoria


Pictures via Etsy shops (quilts), Traditional Home magazine, Unica home(lights and chair), amazon.com (book), cb2.com (clocks) and my own at Anthropologie.

First day of spring

Very Early Spring

The fields are snowbound no longer;
There are little blue lakes and flags of tenderest green.
The snow has been caught up into the sky--
So many white clouds--and the blue of the sky is cold.
Now the sun walks in the forest,
He touches the bows and stems with his golden fingers;
They shiver, and wake from slumber.
Over the barren branches he shakes his yellow curls.
Yet is the forest full of the sound of tears....
A wind dances over the fields.
Shrill and clear the sound of her waking laughter,
Yet the little blue lakes tremble
And the flags of tenderest green bend and quiver.

Katherine Mansfield


Happy spring!

XX
Victoria


Picture by V.Zlotkowski

Early days of spring

How we all welcome those early days of spring, when the green leaves of daffodils and tulips, hyacinths and snowdrops, crocus and iris show their willingness to bloom again, make the dreary backyard new and beckon us to come outside...
We had our fair share of clean up, but now it's done and we are planing the new plantings of shrubs and evergreens.








Have a lovely weekend of early spring! (at least around here... :) )

XX
Victoria


All pictures by V. Zlotkowski from her garden.

Suzanne Kasler

Suzanne Kasler has been for a long time on my radar and - of course - I know I am not alone. A few days ago I spend a good part of an evening looking through her book
'Inspired Interiors' and was again captivated by her enormous talent, her sense for colour combination and in particular scale and proportions. Her rooms not only come to life with the right choice of colours, but the relations between architecture, the drama of furniture in the space, the tension between circles and squares, the size of each piece make them such success!


Here the almost monochrome palette of creme and white gets a wonderful lift out of the ordinary by being punctuated with chartreuse, blue and bronze accents. See how the colour and size of the urn and the branches play off the size of the fireplace, highlight the art work and emphasize the scale of the room. The parallel arrangement of windows, sofas and stools is taken off balance with the side table near the fireplace and the lovely wingchair and the floor lamp!
Circular elements - stools, lucite tables create a nice counterpart to all the rectangular ones: windows, painting, sofas...! Ahh!


I love this room! Look how clever she plays with the arch outside the window and how she brings this element inside with the swirls in the mirror frame, the back of the dining chairs and the round shape of the table and yet she emphasizes the window panes in the large rectangular pattern of the curtains. Subtle, but stunning!


A very restrained palette, but all the right elements make this room anything but boring. Even though you may go to sleep here, it will not put you to sleep looking at it...Texture and pattern are set in motion in a calming and relaxing way!



Perhaps a Southern elegant home by the sea... look at the wonderful elements in this dining room, wood and shells, stripes and leaf pattern, the right scaled artwork in contrasting frames, the large, rather plain table and yet nothing looks plain at all . An elegant symphony of forms and light! The punches of turquoise are the icing on the cake!


The same room, from the opposite side, actually showing it being the large hall of this home. Genius! Just look at the wonderful arrangement of the turquoise vases on the sideboard!



She must love the over sized ottoman, she has used it in these two very different rooms in a slight variation of legs and pattern. Proof of the versatility of such a piece. Just see how repeated pattern create interest. May it be window frames, book cases or art work. The principle is the same.


I am so in love with this library! The blue behind the leather bound volumes, the height of the room, the modern leather chairs repeating the pattern and colours above, the small gilded mirror and the classic lines of the deep wood trim. Delectable!


The light, the light! It's all about these windows and the soft palette of the bed and it's surroundings. Quiet and pretty! Nothing gives me more comfort then these classic lines and calming tones of blue gray, soft white and taupe. Small details like the French gilded wood carving above the bed and the trim on the pillows make it perfect!



Two sides of a bathroom! Absolutely adore this one, can it get any better? Given the enormous space I assume there must be an anteroom just for towels and the necessary bathroom equipment...



This room sings eternal spring. From the windows framed by the curtains, throught flowering branches and large table to the slipper chair all is a melody of freshness. The scale is lovely and the eye wanders from the glass base of the lamp to the hurricane beneath! And she does it with three colours!


Even though my own palette is stronger and I love a quirky mix of furniture I cannot but adore her elegance and the perfect composition of her rooms. I am indeed inspired! I hope you are too!


Have a sunny weekend, it looks great out there!


XX
Victoria


Pictures by V.Zlotkowski from Suzanne Kasler's book 'Inspired Interiors'.