A mixed bag

Budleia in Beaumont

Still returning to the realities at hand, my mind consists right now of a mixed bag of things.... Many, half digested impressions, inspirations and the somewhat overwhelming feeling to loose things in the crowd of it all. So, as always, I take pictures, to remind me, to smile, to inspire myself and I thought perhaps you might like them too!
There is so much going on right now, that looking back only two weeks ago seems a luxury!

I found these treasures above still in France, in a small but deliciously stylish shop in Montpazier!
Retro design is a big part of French decorating and thinking of it, I could not resist these little treasures curbside yesterday!

They have the typical musty smell about them, I do not mind it, but they will get a good scrubbing and then perhaps a little mending too. Not to much, I love the patina.

I still look at the clouds, and the creatures about, the things, which go unnoticed so easily....

How glorious is this? These are sights, which bring me back from any worries and pull me in, make me happy and grounded!

Yesterday, waking up early, I went downstairs to prepare breakfast and looking outside my window I could not believe my eyes.

I had to run to find the camera, hoping he would not take off before I could capture him....I was a little shaky though!

Hunting for good things I also looked through the bookstore nearby, hoping to find something inspiring. Of course I did! Here are my finds.

I hope you'll find something to inspire you as well! 
Happy weekend, I know, a little early, but time flies!


xoxo




All pictures by V.Zlotkowski

Simply summer

Summer window with garden flowers

The summer heat invites us to enjoy simple pleasures. 

Party decorations

Sitting by the water and just enjoying the breeze, summer evenings with friends and candle lit dinners with flowers picked from the garden, bike rides under tall shady trees, watching the birds and the bees, busily following their own paths...

Stormy sky over the Greenhouse

A storm rose in the afternoon, just to pass with lots of thunder but little to no rain.

The heat is unbroken. Maybe tomorrow.

And yet...

Playing tennis with Papa

Yesterday we went up to visit our youngest son (12) at camp, he is homesick and we felt a little sad leaving him tearful for another two weeks. There are surely great experiences to be made at camp, we hoped for him to have the best of times. But we felt his deep sorrow and the daily busy routine gets to him. He is a sensitive boy and the loud and permanent presence of so many kids and the strict daily regiment seems to be his undoing. 

Fueling the emotional batteries

We had no idea this would happen. He is a well rounded young man with good friends and an easy nature.

Additionally he was so severely sunburned, that I brought him to the nurse to have him treated. She had seen him before, but did not really follow through. I wondered a little about the boy's care up there. He has blisters on the back of his fingers and earlobes the size of a nickel...His nose was crusted over with burns.

We were shocked to see him like that! He still is not ready to take care of himself and there is clearly a lack of reminders at camp.

This being his first camp exposure, we all learned something new about him.

We decided to bring him home two weeks earlier then planned, making the camp four weeks long, enough for him and enough for us. 

I am secretly counting the days, surely just like him, to have him back.

A tiny hummingbird came to sit near me in the honeysuckle, just resting before the storm passed overhead, reminding me of every silver lining....

Black chinned hummingbird 

And it occurred to me, that these bittersweet experiences will also have their good, we just will have to wait and see.

Learning about oneself is not always easy.

And now it just begun raining, softly and steady! Welcome cool air!

All images by V.Zlotkowski

Boscobel

Boscobel from the South (garden)

Boscobel (Build 1808), a wonderful old estate and garden, also the summer home of a Shakespeare festival, sits high up above the Hudson, in Garrison, NY, near Cold Springs. The mansion once belonged to a gentleman and his family, who came to money, perhaps not in the most honorable way, which sounds not that unusual. He became one of the first millionaires. He build himself an amazingly large house, but  never lived to see it. After completion, his wife and son moved there and in succession the only granddaughter with fifteen children.
The house was eventually abandoned in the 1890 and stood empty until the Forties, when it was bought by the State of New York. Fortunately the house was saved by a Foundation, which secured the house, moved it to it's current location and restored the 
place in the most detail oriented fashion. 
The mansion today houses the largest collection of Federal style original furniture and brings an era to life from long ago. 

In the foreground the Constitution Marsh, behind the Hudson and West Point Academy

Not only this, the grounds have been build 1961 to complement the setting high above the Hudson with magnificent views, the former owners could have only dreamed of.
At the time of designing the gardens the trees and shrubberies were planted mature, so the impression of an old, settled in estate is absolutely perfect! 

The rose garden holds many beautiful species and this year, so I have been told, it has a record on rose blossoms.
The orangery is a charming addition and the herb garden a delight. 

The grounds are completed by an apple orchard and a lake with a large fountain...

The labor of love... Speaking of:
We are going to see Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost,  a pleasure I can't wait to indulge in!


When you're in the area, it would be a wonderful addition to any tour along the Hudson.




All images by Victoria Zlotkowsi