June Home Decor Favorites

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In this post – Home Decor ideas for June – prepping for Summer and Independence Day!

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Fourth of July/Memorial Day/ Independence Day Decorations and Decor Ideas

Top row: Picnic Basket || Indigo Plates || camp stool

Middle Row: Blue Rimmed Plate || Cherry Print Napkins || goji blood orange candle || Pitcher -Outdoor Safe

Bottom Row : Chevron Blue Chair || Medallion Pillow || Ice pop pool float

For this months’ decor picks, I was inspired by the red, white and blue! Yes, I know Fourth of July is NEXT month, but we have to get our shopping done early! 

I have been looking for a reasonably price picnic basket and I found one!

I love the blue and white plates, the cherry print napkins!

I will be purchasing some chevron blue chairs just like above soon but in bar stool form!

 And last, how CUTE is the ice pop pool float?

Where I Party


Written at http://peoniesandorangeblossoms.blogspot.com

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How to Boost Your Blog Traffic Using Tailwind and Pinterest

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Pinterest blogging tips! How to Boost your Blot Traffic Using Tailwind and Pinterest
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How to Increase your blog traffic using Tailwind and Pinterest

 

I don’t usually talk much about blogging and tips for blogging, but I *love* Pinterest and most of my blogging traffic actually comes from Pinterest.

 

If you weren’t aware, Pinterest has awesome potential to grow your blog and increase traffic!

I get about HALF of my traffic to my blog from Pinterest!
When I realized this, I knew I needed to spend some more time in Pinterest!

Pinterest rewards you – the more active you are, the more followers you get!
The more repins you get, the more viral your pin will be! The more viral – the more views to your blog!

HALF of my traffic comes from Pinterest!

However, if you are like me, you can’t sit there on the internet all day and pin.

 

So what’s my secret? Enter Tailwind!

Tailwind is an automatic pinning scheduling tool and it is seriously AWESOME.

It is a paid tool (about $10-15/month) and totally worth it for serious bloggers or small businesses.

So how does it work? 

First, let’s get Tailwind for free.

Sound good?! If you create your account using this link, you’ll unlock a free month of Tailwind Plus!

Now, after you join Tailwind, the next thing I recommend doing is downloading the Tailwind extension for your internet browser. Find your download link under Publish > Drafts.

The Tailwind extension is great – you can go about your business on your internet browser and instead of pinning things, you just click the Tailwind button instead of the pin button.

Bulk Schedule Pins!

I can bulk schedule pins from my website or upload pins from my computer!

Such as below… I was on a post from my blog, and then just hit the tailwind pin on my browser and this came up.  I just clicked which pictures I wanted to pin, and hit “go schedule” on the bottom right.

Add to Multiple Boards All at Once!

This is THE BEST part of Tailwind.  Look at that. I can add to multiple boards with just a click (or two!)

This is *such* a time saver.

Oh, you can also pin from your iPad/iPhone as well!

 

Create Board Lists

Tailwind does save time in pinning but its boards lists make it even more convenient!

 Find yourself pinning to the same boards all of the time?

Just create a boards list.  Then when pinning, just pin to a list and Tailwind will automatically add your pin to all of the boards in the selected list!

Smart Scheduling

When you sync your Pinterest account to Tailwind, Tailwind will automatically create a smart schedule of the best times to post for YOU and will pin at those time.  You can add or remove time slots as you wish.

If you are mass pinning the SAME pin, you can use an interval so it won’t all drop at the same time and overwhelm your followers! You can set your interval as well.

You can also shuffle your queue below (see the bottom, top right?) or lock pins into a spot if you are launching something hot and want to go at the best time.

Analytics and a Pin Inspector

Tailwind has some great analytics too!  It will tell you your top Pinterest boards and amount of new followers each week! They also send out a nice weekly email about performance!

The pin inspector tells you which pins are doing well.  It will even give you the option to repin pins that are similar to yours to keep your curated content at a high quality.  It will also let you know if you are pinning from broken links, missing pin descriptions, or pinning from spammy sites.

Tailwind Tribes

The other great part about Tailwind is the Tailwind Tribe! Tribes are free for anyone to join even if you do not have a tailwind subscription!

What is a tribe? It is kind of like a group board on Pinterest except it shows how many pins each user has contributed to the board and how many each user has repinned! No more people just spamming their content and not sharing yours!

You repin others’ pins to your boards and help everyone else grow too!

When you are pinning in Tailwind, you have the option to “add to tribe”.

 

Tribes are great – there are so many different niches.

Make sure when you join a tribe you read the rules and follow them!  To find a tribe in your specific niche, I would suggest googling what tribe you are looking for, such as “home decor tailwind tribe”.

You can find a a list of tribes at Haley’s Vintage and also at Becky and Paula.

There are also two Facebook groups: Tailwind Tribes for Pinterest and Pinterest Tailwind Tribes.

I do have a tribe if you would like to join, but it is JUST for beautiful table settings.  If you want to pin only table settings, you can join here! I will delete everything that is not a table setting.

The secret to a successful tribe is keeping it in a niche.

So Does Tailwind Work?

Well, can you guess where I started using Tailwind??

Yep, right there at the flat line at the end of January!

Can you read those numbers?! I am up over 1500% in monthly views to my Pinterest profile!!!!
Now, the curve towards the end kind of flattened… well, April I cut back on my blogging a little bit and unplugged for almost two weeks so that explains that. But I’m back it now!

Well, if you are ready to try it out, I’ll give you a free month here – this is how I got hooked!

 

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Sip and Shop Saturdays

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Sit down, have a seat, grab a sip of your drink and let’s shop!
This post contains affiliate links.

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Fresh lemonade recipe... perfect for Memorial Day Weekend my friends!

via a Pretty Life in the Suburbs

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When life gives you lemons….

Lemon Tumbler
Lemon Jackie Cardigan J. Crew
Zest for Life Charm Bracelet Alex and Ani
Lemon Espadrilles 
Lemon Small Backpack 

Make lemonade!

A lot of great weekend sales for this holiday weekend!!

 Nordstrom Half- Yearly Sale:
Up to 40% OFF Designer Clearance – 5/24-6/5
Up to 40% OFF Select Clothing, Shoes and Accessories During our May Half-Yearly Sale – 5/24-6/5


Net a Porter 

up to 50% off!


J. Crew
up to 30% off with code SWEET


Shopbop
Up to 70% off


Anthropologie
up to 40% off


Ann Taylor

Up to 40% off


Macy’s
up to 20% off with code SUNNY


Old Navy
40% off Tees, Tanks, Shorts, Swimwear


http://peoniesandorangeblossoms.blogspot.com

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Friday Favorites – The Straw Handbag

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In this post – the straw handbag fashion trend for Summer

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The straw handbag seems to be having a moment right now and I am ALL for it!

Elle

These bags aren’t just for the beach!

fashion me now

I love how this classic bag is having a moment! 

All the “it” girls are toting them around!

I have several French market bags as well as a straw clutch.  

I love them all!

we the people

You can dress them up our down.

I love how it changes your outfit looks.

gal meets glam

Here are a few of my favorites… I had a hard time choosing!  

What I love about this trend is that it is affordable.   

And when the trend comes and goes… you will have a FAB beach bag!

straw handbag fashion trend favorites

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Top row, left to right: 
Mar y Sol Striped Tote (my favorite!) || Hat Attack Round Handle Tote || KAYU Woven Seagrass Tote

Middle row, left to right: Giani Bernini Straw Tote (steal!) || Embroidered Straw Tote || Cult Gaia Small Bamboo Ark Bag  (super popular with bloggers!)

Bottom Row, left to right: Samuji Circle Straw Bag  ||  Pom Pom Tote  || Hat Attack Handle Bag

Others:
MISA Los Angeles Marrakech ‘Hola’ Bag– love the tassels and blue handle!
Straw Tote With Pom Pom Trim – great bargain!
Hat Attack Embroidered Clutch – perfect for evenings and weddings, parties!
PARIS. French Market Basket, Natural – use this all the time
Merona Women’s Large Straw Tote Handbag – great bargain!
Eugenia Kim Flavia Straw Bag – total splurge but cute!
Olivia Miller Poppy Multi Striped Straw Tote Bag – good deal, perfect for nautical theme and prep!

SaveSaveI don’t know about you, but this francophile loves this trend!

Here’s one last look…

atlantic pacific

Where I Party


Written at http://peoniesandorangeblossoms.blogspot.com

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Freshen Up Your Decor With These Ideas! – TFT Features

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In this Post – Freshen up your home decor with these wonderful ideas!

Sheila at Maison de Cinq shares some tips on How To Freshen Up Your Outdoor Space for Summer

Summer at Raising a Farmhouse  shared her new Modern French Country Dining Room. I just bought this chandelier too!

Jaclyn at One Thousand Oaks shares a DIY White Wash Finish Tutorial.

The Dedicated House Shares her Spring One Room Challenge Makeover!

We love all of your posts and enjoy visiting you – there is something for everyone at this party!

Don’t forget to check out our Thursday Favorite Things Pinterest Board 


I pin my features for the week to our board as well as many others! Make sure your posts have a high quality pin that screams “pin me!”


The party is starts on THURSDAYS at 6AM PST! 

Please take the time to stop by ALL of your hostesses!

Thursday favorite things hostess

nina CollageThursday Favorite Things Blog Hop

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Thursday Favorite Things blog hop co-hostess 

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An English Society Wedding – Pippa Middleton and James Matthews

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In this post – the wedding of Pippa Middleton to James Matthews.

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Pippa Arrived with her Father in a 1951 Jaguar. Love this! 

Her dress was a lace dress by Giles Deacon.  She wore a tulle veil with pearls by Stephen JonesMaidenhair fern tiara by Robinson Pelham, and shoes by Manolo Blahnik with pearls.

 Here are the princes arriving for the event. 

Carol Middleton (Mother of the bride) and James (her brother) arrive.  I love Carol’s pretty pink outfit.

Princess Eugenie arriving below. I love her dress!

Roger Federer and Mikka arriving…

Pippa posing for photographers with her beautiful veil.

Here you see Duchess Kate and Princess Charlotte watching her sister get out to the car!

You can see here the heart shaped detail in the back.

Ah, here is the Duchess… apparently in charge of the pageboys and bridesmaids. 

 Pippa and James look so happy!  Her dress is so pretty.

How cute are the pageboys’ outfits!

Cute picture showing the backs of the bridesmaids’ dresses.

 And look at her arms! Someone has been lifting weights!

 Here is the little Prince George hamming it up for the cameras. 

 Prince George and Princess Charlotte holding a cute heart shaped bouquet of flowers.

 The Duchess is wearing a retro inspired piece, honestly not in the most flattering color for her, but it isn’t her day and kudos for her for not upstaging it! It does match the flowergirls too!

 I liked this picture as you can see the lace of her dress in better detail and her pretty hairdo as well.

Of course it’s hard not to compare the wedding to her sister’s! 

A vintage WWII Spitfire fighter flew over the guests. There are only 50 of these left in the world!

Her wedding looked beautiful.  

So I had no idea who James Mathews is! He is a former race car driver and now a hedge fund manager worth over $2 billion!  I see no expense was spared at this wedding!

Here is a look at inside her reception… WOW!!

I love this! 

 This is like a fairytale!

How cute are they driving away in a Jaguar E (apparently a priceless car!)

 So cute!!

Congrats to the happy couple!


Where I Party


Written at http://peoniesandorangeblossoms.blogspot.com

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How to Pick Out Tile Floors

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In this post: picking out tile floors for the house

We’ve been busy picking out tile floors for our house!

I’m going to go through what we are picking in our house and then I have a few tips at the end of the post for you!

Below is one of my favorite kitchens and is in an inspiration!

 

The main part of the house is going to be done in a cerused white oak wood floor as below.

In the kitchen, in between the stove and the sink we realized we splash a lot and don’t want to warp our wood floors.

So in between in the sink and stove, we are going to put an arto hexagonal tile in creme fraiche (like below, just not the right pattern)

how to pick out tile floors

Then the brick on the left goes in front of the fireplace in the same room and goes with all of the above.

 

Oh here, I found the hexagonal in the color we are going to use.

 

This herringbone smooth brick below will go in our mudroom/laundry room. Woo hoo! Herringbone! I love herringbone, don’t you?

 

The master bathroom floor will be a carrera marble with a herringbone “rug” in the center similar to below

And then the master shower similar to below with the floor in the marble hex 2-3″ size.

One bathroom will be travertine or limestone like below:

A garden hallway area would be done in a travertine or limestone like below that matches the bathroom above.

from authentic provence.com

 

Then for a powder room I’m getting a little adventurous and going to use a fun cement tile pattern.  This powder room isn’t anywhere near the other parts of the house so I can do what I want.

I like the cement tile below, but haven’t arrived on a final pattern just yet!

So how did we choose our final floors choices?

Here are some tips:

1. Where is the tile going? Think about the floor texture.  Glass floors in a high traffic for instance would not be a good idea – they can break and the floor is super slick.  A super slick floor in the bathroom may not be great because people can slip so you want a matte or textured floor!

2. Budget – This determines a lot of what you can pick.  The ceramic tiles are usually your cheapest option but you can find natural stone at good prices too.  They have some great ceramic tile floors that look similar to marble these days. Glass floors are more expensive. Any thing that has a fancy pattern will be more expensive. That’s why we love herringbone – you can pick a cheaper tile and make it fancy just by laying it differently!

3. What is the style of your home? Are you traditional?  Are you hip and trendy? Are you farmhouse? Are you mid century modern? Knowing your style will help because if you are in the tile store and are wowed by their display but it is not your style… you may not realize like until you take it home and find out OOOH that does not go with my house at all. Go into the store knowing your style will save you time and money.

4. Choosing a size: A larger room should have larger tile. A smaller room should have smaller tile. A 1″ hexagonal tile will look stupid in a 15 x 15 room! And a 24 x 36″ tile will look bad in a little powder room!

5. Do not let the tile store people make you feel bad for going there a hundred times. It’s not your fault they don’t give you enough sample tiles (you need several of the same to make a decision) and their selection or tips on how to decorate suck.

6. Buy Local. Ordering online is not always a good idea. Sure, it’s cheapest per square foot online… but did they mention about shipping? YEAH. So moving rock is expensive. Moving rock across the country is expensive. Shipping rock from China is expensive… it’s HEAVY. I can barely carry a box of it myself, so we have to pay $$$ to have someone else move it.  So don’t be fooled into thinking online is cheaper. It’s always better to buy locally – one, shipping/delivery is WAY cheaper and TWO you can see the tile in person instead of making guesses online and know what looks good.

 

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Sip and Shop Saturdays

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Grab a drink, have a seat, and enjoy some Saturday shopping!

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Sip on this blackberry and sage flavored water. Get the recipe here.

source- Evermine

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Loving the collection from Aerin at Williams Sonoma right now! 

Here are a few of my favorite pics…

ice bucket

dinnerware collection

seashell cheese knives

scalloped edge plates – just ordered the white dinner plate! 

I thought I would start a new series entitled “Sip and Shop Saturdays”.  

Sharing a few favorite finds… something to start your weekend off right!

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Friday Favorites – Chintz and Rose Decor

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This week as I said it is rose week! The roses have been in full bloom all week and it has me looking at rose decor!

House and Garden
Chintz is making its way back into decor – as it has been gone since the 1980s.
This chintz decor is different though – not the high sheen fabrics as before but on linens.
Cathy Kincaid

Chintz originated in India and was imported to England in the 17th century.

It was manufactured in England and France in the 18th century.

The chintz today as opposed to the 1980s also has a more muted color palette.

a couch in a Laura Ashley fabric

I love the thought of a chair or curtains in a chintz fabric!

Alice in her Palace

 

House and Garden

 

Charlotte Moss

Of course an article about chintz is incomplete without Mario Buatta.  Below is the bedroom he designed for Mariah Carey.

Mario Buatta via Architectural Digest

I think the bed below is so cool!

Mario Buatta via Architectural Digest

Here are a few of my favorite chintz/rose fabric patterns:

Colefax and Fowler’s Bowood – began production in the 1930s

Mario Buatta pattern – although it is no longer produced it was the wallpaper in my childhood room.

 

Cabbages and Roses Hatley

Waverly Norfolk Rose

Colefax and Fowler Jubilee Rose

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I also had to include a few of my favorite rose scented candles. In fact, I’m burning “Baies” right now as I write this post!

In the Winter I burn pine-scented candles and the rest of the year I prefer rose scented candles!

Diptyque’s “Baies” candle smells of bulgarian roses and black currants.

Voluspa’s Prosecco Rose smells of roses and cassis and prosecco.

Henri Bendel’s “Black Currant” candle actually smells like rose and black currant. It smells extremely similar to “Baies” and is significantly cheaper!

Jo Malone “Red Roses” Candle – red roses with crushed violet and a hint of lemon.

Yankee Candle “Fresh Cut Roses” candle – smells like a garden of English roses. I personally have not burned this one but it has great reviews online.

 

 

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Healthy Eating Recipe Ideas – TFT

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In this Post – Healthy Eating Ideas from Thursday Favorite Things blog hop and link party!

Edit again – link party is now added! Link away!!

This week I’m looking at healthy eating… I find I eat healthier in the Spring/Summer/Fall… basically when everything is fresh and in season.

Erin from Delightful E made share this delicious looking kiwi strawberry smoothie!

Aluminum Foiled Kitchen shared a Quinoa fried rice bowl recipe.

Five Spot Green Living shared a healthy Mexican chicken salad.

 This AutoImmune Life shared a gluten free strawberry crisp recipe.

Hummus Pita Pizzas from Home Cooking Memories. 

Have you fallen off the bandwagon for healthy eating? You can start with the recipes above and check out this guide from Penny Pincher Jenny.


We love all of your posts and enjoy visiting you – there is something for everyone at this party!

Don’t forget to check out our Thursday Favorite Things Pinterest Board 


I pin my features for the week to our board as well as many others! Make sure your posts have a high quality pin that screams “pin me!”


The party is starts on THURSDAYS at 6AM PST! 

Please take the time to stop by ALL of your hostesses!

Thursday favorite things hostess

nina CollageThursday Favorite Things Blog Hop

angelina collage

Thursday Favorite Things blog hop co-hostess 

If the link party doesn’t load right away, just click “An InLinkz Link-up” Below.

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A Spring Garden Tour of David Austin Roses

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In this post – a Spring Garden Tour with David Austin Roses and Peonies

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The roses are in full bloom here this week.

I thought you all might enjoy a little garden tour!

bright pink rose – Heathcliff, behind is Mary Rose

 

Below is the Shropshire Lad climber. It smells good.

See that old bench? My grandfather made it.  He was making benches from reclaimed products long before it was hip and trendy – if he were still here today he could make good money on them!

Shropshire Lad Climber

I have forgotten the name of the rose below. It is actually a miniature rose.


The red carpet roses took off. Some of them are as tall as I am.

If we plant these again, they will begin a field far away from us as they grow so well here.

We all hate trimming them!

red carpet roses

Another miniature rose – I have again forgotten the name.  This year this rose looks great – honestly, every other year though it has just been ho-hum.

forgot the name!

I like this little corner of the garden.

shropshire lab climber

 

As I was taking pictures, this little hummingbird was zooming around me.

He (she?) always zooms by me when I walk on this path. I think it lives in the tree nearby.

I also frequently see it feeding when I’m looking outside from the house.

I love arches with roses on them! Although I couldn’t walk through this one – need to trim back the roses!

shrobshipre lad climber

 

Here is the Eden rose – one of my favorites! I wrote a whole post about the Eden rose here.
eden rose

The eden rose always bows its head because it is so heavy and full of petals!

eden rose

This iris below is from my great grandmother’s garden! I think it is so neat that it is still able to grow despite being transplanted from the Midwest!

iris

The lavender is about to bloom too.  We trimmed the lavender back so much this year I thought it would not grow back – glad I was wrong!

crown princess margareta climber

This rose this year is really pink – it is interesting as last year it had more of a peachy color to it.

lady of shalott

This flower is a great bloomer.  Here in the hot California sun it usually fades to white during Summer so it is nice to see it live up to it’s golden name!

golden celebration rose

This rose below blooms for us from May through December! We do have to keep up with pruning but we love this rose! It smells great!

charlotte rose

Although the rose below is the most fragrant of all of them.

jude the obscure rose

As you can see, we like rose arches.

sombreuil

The sombreuil rose is a very old rose – from the 1850s. It has a pleasant scent and I think the bloom is very interesting and unlike many other roses.

sombreuil

The lavender is blooming elsewhere…

 

And my beloved peonies are blooming too.

These are my favorite flowers (hence the name of the blog!)

As you can see, the old English garden roses look similar to peonies and that is why I love them!

I love looking at peonies – how many layers are there??

More than you think – look, it keeps unfolding!

Peonies in various stages of bloom…

 

One last look at the garden…

sir john betjeman

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A Romantic English Garden Rose Table

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It is definitely rose week here in California! The roses are in full bloom.

When you drive up the driveway the scent of roses wafts through the air in my garden.

So I thought I would bring the fresh flowers in and set a beautiful table!

So with my rose clippers in one hand and a French basket in the other, off I went to the garden.

I must have picked a hundred roses (or more)!

 

The garden roses are all from David Austin’s variety.  I just love David Austin roses – I love the old world feel of them.

 

You can create a similar table too. Just head off to your garden and clip away!

 

Because garden roses usually have short stems, I would suggest placing them in bud vases or a container with short edges.

Here I used rectangle metal galvanized zinc boxes with floral foam placed inside to keep them moist and in place.

 

Each place setting has its own rose bud – when the guest sits down they can smell the rose bud so that way they don’t have to lean awkwardly over the table to enjoy the aroma of the roses.

The garden roses actually remind me of my all time favorite flower, the peony, with all of their layers of petals!

 

Using garden roses is an inexpensive way to add romance and glamour to your table.

the rose on the plate is the queen of sweden

If this were done by a florist it would cost $$$ – but for me, just the price of floral foam and containers!

 

Oh, and tender loving care on the roses all year.

 

The plates are from Juliska and the scene on them is that of an English country estate – so really, quite fitting for the theme of this table!

The rose on this plate is Heathcliff

The pink goblets are vintage French and the crystal goblets are antique American brilliant cut glass.

 

The following David Austin Roses were used: Charlotte, Lady of Shallot, Crown Princess Margareta, Sombreil, Jude the Obscure, Eden, Gentle Hermione, Queen of Sweden, Heathcliff,  James Galway, and Scepter’d Isle.

 

It is a rose candle – it smells so good!

 

A few new chairs were added too – got them for an absolute steal at Restoration Hardware outlet.

If you are going to recreate this centerpiece – just cut your flowers in the morning with as long as stems as possible.  I did a mixture of the varieties but it would look just as pretty to use one variety!

Sources – shop the post (affiliate links meaning I make a few cents when you click)

Dinner Plates

Pink Goblet (similar)

Charger (similar)

French Bistro Chairs (similar)

Rose Prosecco Candle (smells divine!)

Do you have your own garden roses?

The rose on this plate is James Galway

 

You know what else though…. this would make a GREAT wedding centerpiece! It is so easy to DIY and is romantic and cost-effective.

DIY Wedding Centerpiece Idea – using roses from your garden is cost-effective and beautiful!

 

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Friday Favorites – Toile de Nantes

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In this post – Toile de Nantes by Pierre Frey

I have been thinking about wallpapering a few rooms in my house and I cannot get the Toile de Nantes by Pierre Frey out of my head!

John Fowler and Nancy Lancaster

 

I want to use the pattern either as a fabric on a chair or curtains or as wallpaper! I cannot decide!

 

What appeals to me about this wallpaper is that it is based off of an 18th century design that originated in Nantes, France!

 

I love that it seems new and refreshing in the ikat pattern, but there is something very timeless about it.

Alex Hitz

 

Sarah Bartholomew has a love affair with the pattern as well.

Sarah Bartholomew

 

Sarah Bartholomew

 

Sarah Bartholomew

 

Sarah Bartholomew

 

Sarah Bartholomew

Sarah Bartholomew

Aerin Lauder

It seems the blue color way, Bleu Ancien, is favored by the designers.

 This is the Rose Ancien. I love it in this color too – in fact I would consider putting this in my office!

Beverly Field (Veranda)

It seems it did come in two other color ways as well but I cannot find the names of them!

I have some color ways of Toile de Nantes below and some similar copycat patterns I found in my search.

Pierre Frey

Kirtan Stripe by Lee Jofa

Brunschwig & Fils ZHEN VELVET TURQUOISE

Pierre Frey

Do you love toile de nantes as much as I do?

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Beautiful Tables and Travel Destinations -TFT

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In this post – beautiful table setting ideas and travel destinations

I was inspired by these beautiful tables which are perfect for Mother’s Day this weekend and also some very beautiful travel destinations!

Janet from Rosemary and Thyme shared this beautiful Mother’s Day Brunch. I love the salad cups!

Timeless Creations shared this beautiful Al Fresco Spring Table. 

 

Christina from Organic Garden Dreams shared a trip report about Blockley, a storybook town in the Cotswolds in England.

 

Fotogeograf shared a trip report to Kutna Hora, a beautiful Czech town outside of Prague.

 

Shannon from Sunny Coastlines shared a trip report to Nara in Japan. The buildings are beautiful are a UNESCO world heritage site!

 

We love all of your posts and enjoy visiting you – there is something for everyone at this party!

Don’t forget to check out our Thursday Favorite Things Pinterest Board!

I pin my features for the week to our board as well as many others! Make sure your posts have a high quality pin that screams “pin me!”

The party is now on THURSDAYS at 6AM PST! 

Please take the time to stop by ALL of your hostesses!

Thursday favorite things hostess

nina CollageThursday Favorite Things Blog Hop

angelina collage

Thursday Favorite Things blog hop co-hostess

If the link party doesn’t load right away, just click “An InLinkz Link-up” Below.

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A French Strawberry Cake – Fraisier Recipe

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In this post: a Fraisier recipe which is a French strawberry cake. This post contains affiliate links.

I made a Fraisier once again this year!  The Fraisier is my favorite French dessert… what’s not to love about a strawberry cake?

 

We took the cake outside and ate it next to the blooming lavender!

On to the recipe – adapted from Laduree and Cakelets and Doilies.

This recipes makes either one 9″ cake or eight 3″ cakes.

This recipe has to chill overnight so you need to make it ahead of time. (Or make it very early in the morning so it can chill all afternoon)

Here is the printable version of the recipe.

Almond Génoise Cake

50 g (3 1/2 tbsp) butter , unsalted

200g (1 2/3 cup) cake flour

  6 eggs

200g (1 cup) granulated sugar

50g (1/2 cup) ground almonds or almond flour

1 1/2 tbsp butter

Making the Génoise cake

  1. Melt the 1 1/2 tbsp butter and using a pastry brush, butter your cake pan.   Place the cake pan in the fridge to allow the butter to harden.(notes – if you are making mini cakes, you will want to bake your cake in a 12×8 rectangular cake pan)
  2. In a small saucepan, melt the 50g of butter over low heat.
  3. In a large heatproof mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs and the sugar.
  4. Preheat oven to 340F.  Place your heatproof mixing bowl over a pan of gently simmering water and whisk until the mixture is warm, thick and pale, and the mixture has tripled in volume (approximately 122F).  Then remove from the heat and keep mixing until the mixture is cool (notes – I could not get this thing to triple over the simmering water. So I just heated it, while stirring constantly, until it was 122F and then attached it to my kitchenaid mixer and let it whisk until it tripled in volume and the mixture was  completely cool).
  5. Once completely cooled down, fold in the sifted flour into the mixture.  Then fold in the ground almonds.  And then the melted butter.
  6. Lightly flour your cake pan and tap out an excess. Then immediately fill with batter and place in the oven. Bake for approximately 30 minutes.

Kirsch Syrup

100mL (1/2 cup – 1tbsp) water

100g (1/2 cup) granulated sugar

40mL (2 1/2 tbsp) kirsch liqueur (see notes below about kirsch)

Making the syrup

Combine the sugar and water into a small saucepan over medium heat.  Stir until the sugar dissolves. Allow to boil for just 5 seconds. Remove from the heat, let it cool, then stir in the kirsch liqueur.

Crème Mousseline

350g whole milk

100g granulated sugar

1/2 a vanilla bean, split lengthwise and scraped for inside beans/seeds

4 egg yolks

35g plain flour

200g unsalted butter, softened

1tbsp cherry liqueur (optional)

Making the creme

  1. Place milk, vanilla bean and scraped seeds into a saucepan and bring to a boil.  Then remove from heat and set aside.
  2. In another bowl, whisk egg yolks and sugar until mixture is pale yellow.  Mix int the flour until well combined.
  3. Remove vanilla bean pod from milk mixture.  Then pour the hot milk into the egg mixture, constantly whisking to combine.
  4. Then pour the whole mixture back into the saucepan and place over high heat.  Whisk constantly until it is thickened, smooth, and glossy.  Then remove from heat and transfer pastry cream to a plate. Immediately cover with plastic cling wrap and place into the freezer to cool but only for 10 minutes.  Do not allow it to freeze (If you don’t put the cling wrap on immediately, the pastry cream will get a film on it that’s lumpy and gross and you will have to strain it out later, so don’t miss this step)
  5. While the cream is in the freezer, beat your butter until creamy.  Then when the pastry cream is about room temperature, add the cream to the butter and mix until while combined.   Add the liqueur.
  6. Spoon the mousseline into a piping bag with 1cm piping tip.

Strawberry Gel

250g strawberries, washed and hulled

2g agar agar (or 1 tsp)

Blend the strawberries to a puree. Strain to remove the seeds – Place puree in sauce pan and sprinkle over the agar agar. Heal until boiling and stir until agar to dissolve.  Pour onto parchment paper and spread evenly. Place in fridge to set.

Assembly

1 pound of strawberries, cut in half and with the green tops removed.  (Save your cutest strawberries for the top and set them aside.  Also, smaller strawberries look cuter in the cake and are more sweet.  When you cut the berries, you want them to all be the same height).

Cake mold(s)

Assembling the cakes

Take your cooled sponge cake out of the baking pan. Optional – you may cut it in half so that you can have a layer on top and a layer on the bottom. I did not do that this year but I preferred it better so next time I will do it!  Now find your springform pan and place a circle of plastic cake wrap.  Then put the sponge cake.  Brush the cake with the kirsch syrup.  Arrange the strawberries around the edge of the cake ring with the flat edge facing the outside.  Pipe or spread the creme mousseline over the strawberries.  Then place another layer of sponge cake on top.  Put the gel on top.  Place in the fridge overnight. The following day, dip a strawberry into the kirsch syrup and put on top just before serving. Confession – I ate this cake several hours later after it had cooled. I am unsure if it really has to wait overnight.

Assembling the Fraisier: line your springform with strawberry halves. The pour the rest of the strawberries in the center. Then spread the mousseline cream evenly.

Materials I used to bake Le Fraisier (affiliate links)

Stand Mixer

Hand Mixer (I did not use it this time, but I will next time!)

Plastic cake wrap

Scale

Food coloring

Cake Sheet pan

3″x3″ Cake molds

9″ spingform

9″ cake pan

 So I’ll admit how I messed up.

The strawberry gel did not set how I wanted. I placed it on the foil and then it stuck to the foil.

Next time I either recommend placing in on parchment paper OR if you do the two laters of cake, just pour it directly onto the cake. I could not pour it directly on the cream here as it would have melted!

 But that’s okay. It still tasted pretty dang delicious!

We had a nice little evening here enjoying our cake al fresco.

Do you ever eat in your own garden?

My Baking Favorites:

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