Good morning to you! By the time you read this, I will probably be in the air on my way to Maui with my sweetie :) And since I have travel on the brain, I thought it would be fitting to share some tempting new items from Amy Butler – all kinds of bags and luggage and even paper-organizing binders and folders to keep you pulled together on your next trip.
I am just so pleased that the talented Ms. Butler has expanded her offerings from fabrics alone to encompass bedding, towels, snazzy office supplies, and now even suitcases – because I don’t know about you, but her color palettes and nature-inspired patterns never fail to lift my spirits.
And these cushy wheeled suitcases may even sway me from my long-standing obsession with Orla Kiely’s travel bags – I mean, doesn’t that bag above look positively yummy? Let me tell you, I wish I had that beauty by my side right now instead of my ancient L.L.Bean duffel!
The lush and cool prints remind me of tropical getaways and carefree summer days…and the neat-freak inside of me really wants to collect all of the tidy little makeup bags, pouches (and a laptop case of course) so I can happily organize and reorganize my belongings as much as I like!
And then there are the notebooks, folders, binders, and files, oh my! Too much goodness, I tell you! You can find out all of the details on Amy Butler’s website. I have so much respect for this creative lady – tell me, do you share my love of all things Amy?
{images: Amy Butler}
Ready for a bit of travel inspiration? How would you like to go to the Italian countryside just in time for the harvest season, and learn to cook in a gorgeous old restored farmhouse in Umbria? Oh, yes? I thought you might be interested…
Ca’ Di Gosto is a B&B as well as a cooking school, and the owners will take us on trips to local markets to shop for ingredients (always with a stop for a perfect cappuccino along the way) and then return to the house to cook a delicious Umbrian feast. We can hang out in the fantastically rustic kitchen and sip wine as sauces and stews bubble away on the stove…
…and try our hand at making fresh pastas and ravioli, along with a few English sweets and treats (the owners are an English and American couple), mm. Feasting, lounging and exploring the countryside sounds like a plan to me!
And if it gets a bit too hot in the kitchen, we can always cool off in the lovely hillside pool!
Ca’ Di Gosto B&B and Cooking Classes
{images: Ca’ Di Gosto}
Would you like to dream a little dream with me? It begins with packing a gorgeous old leather trunk with airy white dresses, sun-faded scarves and exotic jewelry. Then we’re headed to a secret hideaway surrounded by thousands of acres of fragrant olive and orange trees, where the light filters softly through a canopy of grapevines. Are you ready? Away we go…
Our destination this week is the Trasierra Hotel, located outside of Seville in the Sierra Morena Mountains of Spain in Andalucia – land of the magestic Andalusian horses. Trasierra is the kind of place I thought only existed in the movies. Completely luxurious but in an easy, comfortable way – to say I would love to stay here is an understatement. I want to move in. Every detail has been lovingly tended to, from the colorful textiles draped over tables and chairs, to the stacks of books by the bedside and the little jars of house-made Seville orange marmalade at breakfast…
Flamenco guitar, local cheese and honey, afternoon siestas, riding horses through the fields, swimming in a mosaic-tiled pool…sigh. I’m feeling better just imagining it, aren’t you? I would love to come here with a small group of close friends and family, but this also seems like the kind of place where a solo traveler would feel right at home.
And in one of the bedrooms: fresh whitewash floor to ceiling (the better to reflect that magical Spanish light), cozy banquettes carved into the wall for napping and reading, gorgeous woven rugs and a perfectly made up bed…heaven! I think they would have to drag me out of there kicking and screaming.
Owner Charlotte Scott has poured endless love, energy, money and sweat into Trasierra, reviving it from the abandoned, neglected state it was in when her family purchased it 25 years ago – it is a true labor of love. Are you ready? Is your bag packed? When can we go?
Trasierra Hotel
{images: Trasierra}
Good Morning! Over the weekend, I finally made my first camping trip of the year. It was such a relief to get out of town and have absolutely no agenda, to be surrounded by gorgeous trees and blue sky and long, long beaches stretching out to infinity. I had never been to the Cape before, and the dunes and the scent of the pines reminded me of the California coast. I’ve loved camping since I was a little girl, and over the years I have been collecting little items that make camping more comfortable, beautiful, and easy. I took a few photos around the camp site, and I thought you might enjoy a little peek, so here you go:
In the top picture, you can see I’m peering into the tent through the window – I’ve laid down a pretty quilt beneath our Therm-A-Rests and sleeping bags, and my copy of Country Living is waiting patiently to be read. The newest addition to my glamping kit is this tiny knife, which I bought because it was cute and it comes with a little safety cover – but I was amazed at how sharp it is! It cut through a giant pile of vegetables like softened butter. Beneath that you can see a little smidgen of the floral tablecloth I spread over our picnic table, and candles lined up down the center to add an ambient glow as the sun sets.
What did you do over your weekend? I would love to hear. I’ll be back in just a few to start my first giveaway, which I am so excited to tell you about!
{images: Laura Gaskill}
Hello dear friends! Sorry for the late start this morning, I’ve just been setting up home insurance for our new house: only 25 days to go until we move in! Hooray!! Because we are buying our first house, B and I are not traveling much this year…but that means I have lots of time to concoct all sorts of travel plans for the future! With that in mind, I thought it would be fun to pick out one delicious destination each week to share with all of you; these are the places I am dreaming of going. Are you ready? Away we go!
First up on my list is Petersham Nurseries, located just outside of London. What’s this, you say? A nursery couldn’t be worth traveling for? Well, I beg to differ: Petersham Nurseries is not an ordinary plant shop. Offering up scrumptious fare and tea service in their cafe, loads of idyllic spots to picnic, fresh cut flowers, antiques and books; all in addition to their staggering array of plants – I don’t see why you would ever want to leave!
Their website has the most amazing gallery page, which leads me to believe that every square inch of this place is photogenic – I bet you couldn’t take a bad photo here if you tried! I mean my goodness, there are chickens and cows, rolling meadows and blooming flowerbeds, antique armoires and farmhouse tables thickly laden with cakes and sweets, glasses and silver lined up straight as little marching bands…
Even the garden tools look gorgeous! I think I could spend all day rifling through luxurious ribbons, burying my nose in flowers and herbs, caressing Italian silk scarves, and trying on yummy organic bath products. And I would certainly need to take home a pair of these amazing Ilse Jacobsen Wellington Boots, which are lined in cozy wool for gardening in the winter.
And when we get hungry, we can settle in amidst the flowers and enjoy a leisurely three-course feast…or perhaps simply a cup of perfect tea and a slice of chocolate cake with ginger caramel and Jersey cream? Before we leave, we will doubtless be tempted to carry off the whole place with us. But we will satisfy ourselves with a roll of pictures and full bellies and maybe just one more little trinket from the shop…
Petersham Nurseries
{images: Petersham Nurseries}
Interested? 
