The Ultimate Sliding Barn Door

Let's find this place and have our July 4th picnic in front of the Flag Door.

Yellow Stepback Kitchen Love

I love the look and feel of this farmhouse kitchen with the sink area resembling an antique stepback cupboard. via Architectural Digest.

Babington House | Somerset UK

Today is the longest day of the year and the first day of summer. The light here at the cottage around 8pm looks about like it does in this photo of Babington House.

Set in 18 acres in the heart of Somerset, Babington House opened in 1998 for those who wanted to enjoy the countryside but weren’t prepared to compromise on urban luxuries. Be sure to click on the link for more photos of this delightful place.

Happy First Day of Summer.

Magic Shelves

How.Are.These.Shelves.Suspended?

I've dealt with a number of tile men in the past and I know these shelves were added after the tile was in place. But how? Invisible brackets drilled into the tile? What do they look like? I really want to know because I love this look and the old chalkware chickens too.*

Berry Blue Breakfast

You might want to spend some time today looking at lovely photographs by Victoria Pearson. I'm up with the birds this morning wishing I had a transferware bowl of berries to eat but alas there are none in the house. The wild berries here at the cottage haven't ripened yet either. I think I'll make some French toast and eat it outside. See you later after my office meeting and broker open house tours.

Sliding Barn Door for Bathroom

Here is yet another lovely interior sliding barn door to delight and inspire you. 
My other blog posts on interior sliding barn doors.

Farm Family Portraits

“I take the conventions from the fashion world and apply them to the underclass barnyard animal,” Photographer Rob MacInnis told the New York Times.

There are many more photos to see in the NYTimes article. You will definitely want to go the website of photographer Rob Macinnis too. Click on the drawing of the "farm animals" to see more large photos. Then go back and click on the TV screen to watch the fascinating video description of how he worked on this project. It's very long and so interesting...I still haven't finished watching. He said the goats were the easiest subjects and sheep were the hardest. I discovered all of the above via My Modern Met. I'm so glad because I completely missed this writeup back in 2009.

Feeling Crabby?

Have you cracked a crab yet this summer? I love anything served on newspaper, don't you?

Reflected Columns, Rome, Italy

Sometimes there is beauty to be seen while walking with your head down. We are supposed to have a stormy week with lots of puddles. Enjoy the week whatever the weather. 

Eventide

Day is done, gone the sun. 
I had a great weekend. Hope you did too.
Wouldn't this be a great place to end the day?

Can You Hear The Ocean?

 

This looks like a really big shell. I can almost hear the ocean just by looking at the photo. Wish I could hold it up to my ear.

Bookplate for Your Gardening Books

Faux Bois Balcony and Door Surround in France

St Guilhem By Tivan Haghighat ~ Faux Bois (from the French for false wood) refers to the artistic imitation of wood.

Winding Woodland Path Through The Ferns

So lovely, isn't it? via
Enjoy the rest of the weekend.

King of The Cats

Isn't this the sweetest thing ever? Cat lovers everywhere will adore this painting.

Cornhenge

Cornhenge: A strange field of 109 eight foot tall concrete ears of corn -- a quirky and eccentric roadside American landmark in Ohio. I hope there is a corn stand nearby in the summer months. Have you driven past it? Read more about the history via Life at Willow Manor.

Sweet Cottage at Dusk

At the end of a busy day, isn't it great to be home? I can't think of any place I'd rather be.

Let's Walk Down The Garden Path

It's unbelievably beautiful, isn't it? I hope you have a wonderful weekend with time for a little gardening if the weather permits.*

Cargotecture Architecture | Recycled Shipping Containers

You have to read this article if you find this cottage made from shipping containers as attractive as I do. The cost was $59,500. You could really seal it up tight when you were away. This would be the perfect vacation home for me. The interior is stunning.

Cargotecture by HyBrid Architecture: The term cargotecture is used to describe any structure built partially or entirely from recycled cargo containers. The c-series consists of five models ranging in price from $29,500 to $189,500. The home featured at the Sunset show was the c192 nomad which costs $59,500.

Ripples of Gold

Golden Shores by Jim Patterson. A beautiful photo for a dreary Friday morning with no sun at the cottage. It's more like a jungle here after a dark and stormy night. 

Midnight in Paris was a fabulous movie. I give it a 2 thumbs up. The characters were all perfect and the story and direction by Woody Allen did not disappoint. The real star was Paris, the city of lights. Make sure you try to see this one in the theater. You could have heard a pin drop last night. I don't think a single person got up or made a peep. It was perfect. 

Wonderful Open Shelves + A Movie Tonight

I like the simple cutout shelf brackets used for these open shelves, don't you? They look very strong and sturdy too. [via] I'm going to see Woody Allen's new movie Midnight in Paris tonight. Have you seen it yet?

DIY Table from A Reclaimed Door

Everyone knows you can use saw horses to make a table from an old batten door. But I want THESE saw horses and the links don't even mention them. Boo Hoo. Let me know if you know where to find them. Thanks.

Never mind, I found them myself at Ikeahttp://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80130776/ for a super reasonable price of $15.00 each. Available in white and gray. Hooray.

How can I get rid of the +1 Button?

A while ago this strange button appeared on my blog. I didn't ask for it, I don't like it, and I do not want it. Does anyone know how I can get rid of it or 'opt out'? After watching this video on YouTube I now know what it is...but I'm sure nobody else does. Is it on your blog too?

A Follower on Twitter sent me the instructions and I edited my template and removed the +1 Button without taking away the nice share buttons. Instructions here. So happy now.

*

Poppies | Watercolor by Marney Ward

I love this poppy watercolor by the talented Canadian artist Marnie Ward discovered  here. Finding lovely things is one of the best things about the Internet. I was so happy this morning when someone finally found a photo she had spent two years searching for on my blog via one of my pins on Pinterest. 

I mowed grass until 8:15 last night and I must do some raking now. See you later.

Breezeway Love

Don't you just love this summer house with the wonderful breezeway overlooking the ocean? *

Giraffe Under A Tree

I guess this is what you do when you are a giraffe. Eat all the leaves you can reach and then stand under the tree until someone takes your picture. I love the mist in the background.

Another Small White Kitchen to Love

Oh my, I do love this kitchen too. The slate farm sink, backsplash and countertops are wonderful with the black stove and nickel hardware. Love it a whole lot. It's so well thought out.

White Kitchen to Love

I like it, don't you? Just white and stainless steel with natural wood. Splashes of color via the rug, cookware, food and spices. I could cook up a storm in this room. Image via Architectural Digest.

Zen Yoga Dog

Ha! This is so great!

Prince Philip Then and Now

Prince Philip with his mother Princess Andrew of Greece and Denmark (Princess Alice of Battenberg).

Prince Philip was 90 a few days ago. Doesn't he look great?

Prince Philip breaks into his sandwich box for a snack in the shade of a stone house built by Queen Victoria for Prince Albert at Balmoral. Everyone likes to sneak off and eat a sandwich alone it seems.

All images borrowed from Lotie Tea where the kettle's always on.

Flag Day

First US Flag ~ There are many theories surrounding the birth of the first US flag. According to the one that seems most probable, Betsy Ross, an American seamstress, was called upon by three members of a Committee from the Continental Congress in May 1776. George Washington, Robert Morris, and George Ross, asked Betsy to sew the first US flag, for which they had a design.

At the time, George Washington was the head of the Continental Army. Robert Morris was a very rich man, due to the large amounts of land he owned, and George Ross was an all around, well known man from Philadelphia.

Supporting this theory are records from Betsy Ross giving the exact sequence of how things took place. As mentioned before, in May, she was contracted by the Commitee and within a month or so, she completed what is now known as the first US Flag. The flag consisted of thirteen stripes and thirteen starts forming a constallation, which stood for the first thirteen states of the Union.

A month later, the Declaration of Independence was read aloud for the first time. With the new flag and the Declaration of Independence, a new nation was born.

Happy Flag Day.

The View From The Top of The World

Pulpit Rock, Norway Are all the people up there rock climbers? They say you should do something every day that frightens you. Just looking at this photo triggers my fear of heights. 

I'm off to my weekly office meeting this morning. See you later.