Fairytale wedding

Photo by Wynne & Mintz Photography
from The Summer Nursery

What was your favorite part of the Royal Wedding? I *loved* the Queen in yellow and Princess Catherine looked understatedly elegant. Not sure about the red on Prince William (seems like it took away from the bride) but it was a lively combination. I only watched a quick recap, so if you saw a blog post that covers the wedding well, please leave a link in the comments. I saw a fun post recently on Katie Rosenfeld’s design blog Bogle Street which featured a guess at what Princess Kate’s royal interiors might look like. How would you decorate a space fit for royalty?

Collecting creatures ...

My bunny collection always looks great around this time of year. I have them in all shapes, sizes and finishes. I am not even sure how I started to gather them, but I know that most of them were probably bought around the time that I was designing my first-born’s nursery. Bunnies just seemed so cute – without being silly. They are definitely more serious than a duck and prettier than a pig and less country than a cow – although, to be fair, I have seen people who collect these other animals and their collections certainly make an impression!

Today as guest blogger for New England Home Magazine’s design blog, I present a parade of springtime creatures that would add an air of sophistication to any home or collection.
Take a peek by clicking here.

What do you like to collect?

Art in Bloom 2011: part 2

Last week I gave you a peek into the Art in Bloom exhibit being displayed at the Lynnfield Library. Here are all of the submissions from the Lynnfield Art Guild paired with floral arrangements courtesy of The Village Garden Club of Lynnfield. The show was hosted by the Library for an entire week, and visitors enjoyed a burst of spring along with some beautiful works of art.

“Covered Bridge” by Carol MacKendrick
Arrangement by Laura Thomson

“Autumn Reflections” by Dr. Frank Columbo
Arrangement by Tracy Drislane

“Leaf in the Dew” by Sarah Inglese
Arrangement by Maura Quinn

“Just Peachy” by Catherine Green
Arrangement by Mary Schwartz & Micki Trigilio

“Yellow House & Barn” by Marilyn Dresch
Arrangement by Wendy Keefe & Katerina Georges

“Surf’s Up” by Pauline Bacon
Arrangement by Ann Encarnacao & Yvonne Blacker

“Into the Wave” by Andrea Dalton
Arrangement by Jean Dalton

“Pillings Pond” by Kendall Inglese
Arrangement by Bootie Stevens

“Autumn Sunset” by Dotty Whittier
Arrangement by Karen Hathaway & Jan Lisacki

“Gloucester Coast” by Lorraine O’Brien
Arrangement by Greg O’Brien of Gregory’s

“Peaceful Glade” by Rita Carrabba
Arrangement by Northeast Nursery

Thank you to our artists and floral arrangers for sharing their talents! If you would like to be on the list to submit artwork for next year’s show, contact the Lynnfield Art Guild.

New England Finery: Issue Two

Click here to view Issue 2 of
New England Finery Magazine

In honor of this week’s on-going celebration of Earth Day (it is officially on Friday, April 22nd) we are devoting our second issue of New England Finery Magazine to green living! Going green has become a huge part of the collective consciousness. Take a peek inside and be inspired by some New Englanders who have come up with eco-friendly ways of doing business.

Making green choices isn’t all business though ... also included are some fun fashions, earth-friendly design tips, and great garden ideas that can easily be incorporated into our every day lives.

And don’t miss the section on what’s new at New England Fine Living the retail store.

If you are in our Middleton, Massachusetts neighborhood, please stop by! Shopping local is
another great way of “being green.”

Paris in the spring

Parisian-inspired home decor with vintage

charm designed by Beth Hylan of Studio B

This week I met up with my friend, Beth Hylan, at a fundraising event held for one of the local preschools (organizing kudos goes to Brenda and Jacqui for putting this event together – nicely done!)

It was great to see Beth again! When I was helping her out with her store in Reading, I loved being able to watch her come up with unique design ideas. Since she moved her shop to Concord (she shares a space with Nesting on Main) I have missed seeing her creative collections of pretty objects. Here is a peek at some of her new offerings:



I love what Beth is doing with vintage papers and stamped text. Typography lovers take note!

Her glittery stamped votives were a big hit (I took one home myself!) She always has attic treasures to choose from as well.

Her vintage bits and bobbles in see-through jars were a favorite of mine. The well-edited palette would look pretty in any space.



Look for Beth at Nestings the next time you are in Concord, Massachusetts. She will also be doing trunk shows this spring and summer (I will let you know where and when as I hear details.)




And if you need floral arranging for weddings, events or proms ... give her a call. She is still available to whip up something fresh and fabulous for any event.

Beth Hylan Design
978.369.4133

Guest post for New England Home

Loomis Stix Ceiling Mount Pendant available
at The Bright Group, Boston Design Center

Back in January I mentioned that New England Home Magazine had just launched a new design blog. I also mentioned in my post that I would love to be one of the guest bloggers that they call upon to write design posts from time to time (why not just put it out there?). Well someone was listening/reading and this week I have my first post on New England Home Magazine’s daily design blog! Pop on over and take a look at some of my favorite sparkly and shiny items seen recently at the Boston Design Center and in my travels.

See something you like? Let me know. I love helping clients add sparkle to their homes!

Lynnfield Art in Bloom 2011

Arrangement donated by
Gregory’s of Wakefield

It is that time of year again! The annual Art in Bloom collaboration between the Village Garden Club of Lynnfield and the Lynnfield Art Guild is now on display at the Lynnfield Library.

Stop by and check out almost a dozen creative floral interpretations of fine art pieces (watercolors, oils, photography, etc.) now through Friday, April 15th during regular library hours.

“Surf’s Up” by Pauline Bacon
arrangements by Ann Encarnacao
and Yvonne Blacker

This year, my mom (who is also in the garden club) and I thought it would be fun to work together as a team. I may have mentioned to the group that she was a little bossy ; ) but truthfully, we both think a bit outside the box – which is why I admire her – so it was just a matter of combining our separate creative impulses to come up with an end result that looked like both of our styles. We had a fun day shopping the flower markets together and we are both pretty happy with how everything turned out.




What our individual design styles have in common is resourcefulness. Sand and shells from visits to the beach, inventory from design shows, twigs from past arrangements, and even fabric from an evening gown were all woven into our display.




We chose the painting of one of our favorite artists, Pauline Bacon, who we both have interpreted solo in previous shows. My mom and I both responded to the colors and movement in the painting above, plus my mother really loves the ocean so it was a perfect match. The artist, Pauline, spoke about her work at opening night. We were surprised to discover that she is not a big fan of the water. In fact, it scares her. Looking at her painting, one feels the strong surge of the surf and can easily imagine being engulfed in the foamy waves.

There were other mothers & daughters at our event ...

This time, the artist (Andrea Dalton) is the daughter, and the mom (Jean Dalton) is the flower arranger! Jean actually had these flowers dyed blue to match the vivid color in her daughters paintings (stop in to the library to view the other two paintings that are included in this series titled “Into the Wave”).


Photographers were also well represented in this years show ...



Above we see an image captured by Sarah Inglese titled “Leaf in the Dew.” Maura Quinn of the Village Garden Club chose a large scaled “Swiss cheese plant” adorned with droplets of yellow freesia (which were inserted into the holes of the leaf) to represent the dew on the fallen leaf. Palm fronds in the water represent the blades of grass in the photo.

Click here to learn more about Sarah Inglese

This final sneak peek shows the work of Village Garden Club President Bootie Stevens with another photograph, this time by Kendall Inglese (mom of photographer Sarah above!) This beautiful photo was taken sometime during the not-too-long-ago snow-filled winter, which looks picturesque now that the warm air of spring has returned.

I will show more pictures from this event after the week is over. If you live close by, pop in and enjoy a tour of our local version of “Art in Bloom!”

Black and white on Alluminare

Busy as a bee this week! Visit my latest
guest post at Alluminare.com!
Have a happy weekend : )

Secret tip for my readers ...

I am still working away on the second issue of New England Finery Magazine. There was so much good content to include that it is turning out to be bigger than we had originally thought it would be!

This boho-chic Big Buddha hobo bag (the JCourtny) is one of the items you will see on the pages of the soon to be released issue. As you are one of my dear readers, I will let you in on a secret ... the price at New England Fine Living is well below the major department stores that carry this line! Our resident fashion stylist Jenny Scala has brought in a bunch of new spring-to-summer pieces that are all pretty cute (and well priced). Stop in soon to get the best selection of bags, sundressses, tunics and more.

And remember to subscribe to New England Finery! The subscription is free and it will put you on the email list to be notified when the next issue is released. I can promise that it is chock full of great New England finds and talents!

A warm welcome to The Write Expression!

Formerly located in Topsfield, MA, The Write Expression has now joined the New England Fine Living family! Stop by and get to know Linda and Michelle, a mother-daughter team who create beautiful custom invitations for any occasion. They will be in the store during regular business hours. I dropped in today to take a look at their inventory and it is gorgeous! Not only do they have a great selection of designs to choose from, but they can also take care of most orders in just a few days time (extensive print requests like wedding suites take a bit longer). Keep them in mind for your next big event or intimate party.

Open Wednesday – Friday, 10am to 5pm
Saturday 10am to 2pm

106 South Main Street, Middleton, MA