FRONT PORCH

Wreaths on doors are difficult. Scale, color, quality. Oh no, The 'Cute' Factor. CUTE KILLS. Ha, another Tara rule. Wit, whimsy, humor. YES. Last week BOOK GIRL's door had it right.

Looking to the right of the door, above. Reality garden photography, I styled nothing.

Looking to the left of the front door, above, more reality garden photography. Nothing styled for the pics. BOOK GIRL does her own decorating.

.

Landscapes should be designed and decorated for the impromptu photo shoot.

.

Think of your landscape as it is, this moment, can I meander and take several shots to steal your heart?

.

When you look out the windows of your home, at your garden (Vanishing Threshold), does it steal your heart?

.

When your garden melts your heart you've got an endless stream of energy, joy, beauty, wit, serenity, peace to draw from for daily living.

.

Garden & Be Well, XO Tara

WHICH PICTURE WOULD YOU CHOOSE?

"...REFLECTIVE OF A RICH, WANDERING INTELLIGENCE LIGHTLY WORN."
AN AESTHETES LAMENT
The insouciance of my empty pot & French lavender.
.
Which picture from your life illustrates "...reflective of a rich, wandering intelligence lightly worn."?
.
LOL, of course I desire a rich intelligence wandering amongst myriad topics and most importantly to wear it lightly !! No energy to wear it any other way. Selfishly want to see pictures you choose. Why? To absorb your rich, wandering intelligence.
Garden & Be Well, XO Tara

TRIP TO DOUGLASVILLE

Wed. & Thurs. were spent with Susanne Hudson, Le Jardin Blanc, Penny McHenry Hydrangea Festival , & more, in Douglasville, GA. Her business & private garden have graced international TV & magazines.
.
Her home was begun in 1875 with an addition in 1915. She began the garden when she moved in less than a decade ago. The woman moves fast. And wisely.
.
I lived a happy month in those 2 days and will share with you sporadically thru the next many weeks.
.
Before bed, late, we talked books-gardeners-gardens-interiors-ideas in her library, below. She pruned the climbing rose, below, in my room. It had grown inside the room to the canopy bed. Why? I would have loved the rose as bunting.

Sunlight on the original plaster ceiling yesterday morning, thru my iron canopy & chandelier.

How did she have time to put roses by my bed? Again the original plaster walls. Delight.

Susanne's chandelier, below, was a bit larger than mine. Hmm.

A girl has to bathe during a work trip doesn't she?

Wish you could smell the soap, and feel the towels.

Oops, I slept late, 8am. Coffee was wafting up the stairs as I was turning the landing, below.

Can you believe the garden view from her landing?

.

More of these 2 days will be sprinkled in the weeks ahead.

.

Susanne's garden, ideas, and even pics of one of her client's house/garden. And, if I'm devious enough, some of the nitty gritty conversation.

.

Garden & Be Well, XO Tara

SHOOTING HYDRANGEAS & LOVING LEGS

How did the hydrangeas KNOW where to grow? This is not a 'styled' picture. It's viewed thru my kitchen & bedroom windows.
.
When it comes to focal points, just-let-it-touch. What bench, statue, urn, birdbath isn't improved with a hint of foliage just touching?
Shooting hydrangeas and seeing the table legs from a new angle, below. The legs have a slight curve from top to bottom, reeking of the 1950's. Aside from being a diminutive rectangular shape, perfection, I had to have those legs.

And the glass top with more hydrangea blossoms underneath. A hydrangea carpet!!!

And the blue/white ginger jar? It's a traditional Chinese wedding gift. The writing says, 'Double Happiness'. Of course I didn't know that when I bought it at the thrift store for $3.
.

Notes: Square or rectangular patio tables are the best, round tables aren't as flexible in usage. A pair of square tables can be used separately or pulled together for larger gatherings. If you find an old iron patio table, as above, don't worry that it doesn't have chairs. Find comfortable chairs or benches of wood or metal and paint them all the same color. The French have been doing this for centuries. Place an arbor over your table with a ceiling fan to keep mosquitoes away. ENJOY.

.

Garden & Be Well, XO Tara

SUSANNE HUDSON'S FRONT PORCH

Framed by 2 magnolias, Susanne Hudson's front porch is a masters class of design. Susanne created the Penny McHenry Hydrangea Festival honoring 2 loves, a plant & a friend.

In her town, Douglasville, GA, Susanne is proof, Build it & they will come.

Susanne asked me to speak to her garden club last year. That venue was her wildly successful wedding & events business, Le Jardin Blanc.

This year I spoke at the Penny McHenry Hydrangea Festival. It was last Saturday.

Trams shuttled visitors to speaking venues, tented vendors & open gardens.

After speaking it became pure garden fantasy. Seeing Susanne's garden.

Her front porch took 1/2 hour.

Her home is on the historic register.

Green, brown & white are Susanne's favorite colors to use in the garden.

Oh my, the timelessness of Susanne's design.

She creates realms of calm repose. Simply.

.

Garden & Be Well, XO Tara

HYDRANGEAS AT MY TOES

At the end of the day Tuesday, quilt & pillow were placed on wicker swing, the arbor ceiling fan turned on and I reclined with magazines. I felt the freedom of floating in water. With beauty at my toes. Hydrangea 'Penny Mac' from Penny herself. These were Penny's Presbyterian hydrangeas. Given when she downsized her garden. Wickedly, she embarrassed my friend, BIG BILL, who helped dig/transplant that winter day. Penny, aged 76, leaned into BIG BILL's arm and said, I bet you've got lots of women. Quickly redder than a radish, BIG BILL, a wise man, kept digging. But with a smile.

I'm a woman with a gorgeous dirty cloche, I like that literally & metaphorically. Gray Gardens is quite appealing. The monkeys are dressed for Penny's blossoms. I dallied on the swing twice last year, once the year before. Ridiculous. Will try to do it once a week.

The Lutyen's bench here too. Needing stain, to match the other teak. Can't simply bask must eyeball something to do.

.

And the magazines? What a bore compared to what was at my toes.

.

Garden & Be Well, XO Tara

WHY IS THIS PATIO SENSUOUS?

Oh, the sensuousity of each element. Why didn't I think to measure the table? Get its specs. This tiny spot accomplishes, even in a winter pic, what most large patios do not. An invitation to repose, take time, read, have lunch, dinner, a glass of wine or simply enjoy as a still life. Have you already heard the gravel crunching underfoot as you approach? Marvel at the wisdom of keeping the moss? Can you smell the gravel & moss; the morning dew on the tabletop? Can you hear the metal chair upon the gravel as you sit down? Have your fingertips felt the bricks, lichens & moss on top of the table? Did you peak under the tabletop to discover how it was made?
.
I took this pic last January, while lecturing in England, at Wisley the Royal Horticultural Society headquarters outside of London.
.
As perfect as it is I must Tara'ize it somewhat by adding arms to those chairs. Done.
.
Garden & Be Well, XO Tara

LANDSCAPE DESIGN AT BREAKFAST

A tray in the garden is quite common. Oh the delight of my impromptu breakfast & accidentally matching.
.
Seeking accidental still life in the garden is one of my pleasures. Tiny moments writ large.
.
Garden & Be Well, XO Tara