Heavenly Hellebores

Today, a little inspiration from a lovely little flower called the hellebore. A.K.A The "Christmas Rose". I am in love with these flowers. They are so pure in their color and form, so graceful, with their little nodding heads. Each little face is different from the next. Some have freckles, some do not, but they are all beautiful. Try growing some in your garden...I'm going to!!!

Hellebores with ranunculas, pieris, passion vine, dusty miller and tulips in a vintage vase





Hellebores in a delightful mix of poppies, jasmine, muscari, anemones, sweet peas, and cut phalenopsis orchid. Strange palette...but so vivid.


Hellebores as a tasty little boutonniere.

This Little Girlie Went to Market

Starting a new habit is not so hard when it is a habit of pure pleasure. Every week I plan on visiting the local markets to bring you a snapshot of what's in season and readily available to everyone. Lush, local, small carbon footprint etc...just good old fashioned beautiful flowers from your backyard - so to speak. This week we visited the quaint but plentiful farmer's market in Studio City, just off Laurel Canyon and Ventura Blvd.
Here's what gorgeous now in the last weeks of March. Just on the tip on spring's fingertips:

Ranunculas! sooooooooo soooooo puurrrty


sweet peas...an all time fave of mine. I could stare at their ruffles for hours.

Daffodils...I always think of the singing daffodils in Alice and Wonderland when I see these, and they are quint-
essentially SPRING! Purely sweet, simple and demure.

and, what's this? The season's first flush of Lilac?











Maybe 6 more weeks of Lilac and then it will be all gone so grab a bunch or two for the house and just enjoy its breathtaking scent.

Sunday Harvest - Jasmine

I've been out walking lately, and I noticed something really wonderful....Spring is almost here! The first clue was the Jasmine in the air. Late evening strolls are the best way to notice this intoxicating scent. Yummy!!!!



So Ken, Alice and I had an adventure Sunday morning. The task at hand was to collect some of the wild growing Jasmine from the River bottom and bring it home. Nothing better than a room with a little hint of it on the bedside table. I collected the vines, Alice collected rocks, and Ken documented it all. Fun times.

Stay tuned to see how I use a little bit of jasmine and other foraged vines to bring some levity and fragrance into the house.