Easter

The celebration of Easter is only a week away...I love this time of year....love it when Easter comes early...the afternoons are warm now with cool evenings...perfect for having friends & family over for the hiding of the eggs & for delicious Spring vegetables...baked ham & a delicious Easter cake....Sharing with you a few faves from this week at Rue 27 Maison as we prepare for Easter weekend...Wishing each of you a beautiful & joyful Easter!

Rue 27 Maison

Table at Rue 27 Maison...

Easter menu...

Beautiful moss eggs...

Easter blue & white table at Rue 27 Maison...

Beautiful & simple Easter table...

Until next time...Cheers & Happy Easter!

All things...Irish

When I first visited Ireland...I fell in love with all things...Irish. Ireland is stunningly beautiful and very charming with a gentle and a feisty spirit at the same time.  Each part of Britain has a different feel and Ireland is definitely a country that dances to its own music...The thatched cottages...the pubs..the green beyond green rolling hills and the castles are all in abundance & will draw you in...as does the people of Ireland.  I always think of Ireland as the country of great poets, wonderful music...Celtic lads & lasses.. and of course the luck of the Blarney stone at Blarney castle. I love shopping for antiques in Ireland, the markets are not as large as other European ones but are always fun & full of beautiful finds. 
St. Patrick's Day is tomorrow...I will celebrate wearing green with my hubby at a local Irish pub...we have a wonderful & authentic Irish pub right here in southern Cali...I am part Irish, my husband is half Irish, he has that shamrock right there on his family crest...Sharing with you a few of my faves about this gorgeous & inspiring country and wishing each of you...Happy St. Paddy's Day 

Gorgeous & enchanting...Glendalough, Ireland

Traveling down an Irish lane...

Irish pub...

Charming tearoom in Ireland...

Antique Irish table & tea caddy at Rue 27 Maison...

Beautiful Irish linens...

Irish country cottage...

Beautiful dining with Irish Belleek China...

Blarney Castle...

Irish Lamb Stew...

Beautiful Fitzwilliam Square, Dublin

Dublin's Jamestown Distillery...

Ashford Castle...county Mayo...Ireland

Flower market...Grafton Street, Dublin  

Four leaf Clovers...

Celtic lass...

Ross Castle...county Kerry

Malin Head...County Donegal, Ireland

Until next time...may the luck of the Irish be with you...Cheers!

May the road rise to meet you,
May the wind be always at your back,
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
The rains fall soft upon your fields and,
Until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand...

Herbs...Potagers & Spring Gardens

Last week the weather was perfect here for shopping the local farmer's markets for fresh herbs...Since we had a very cool February, my herb pots needed to be replanted...I was able to find every herb you can imagine and planted them in my small herb garden and in an old fruit crate...I also found the herb spoons which I love, to add to the charm of the garden. I have always been fascinated by the kitchen gardens or potagers in Europe. A "potager" is a French term for an ornamental vegetable or kitchen garden. The historical design precedent is from the Gardens of the French Renaissance and Baroque Garden à la française eras. Often flowers...edible and non-edible...and herbs are planted with the vegetables to enhance the garden's beauty...the goal is to make the function of providing food aesthetically pleasing.
Plants are chosen as much for their functionality as for their color and shape and most are trained to grow upward. A well-designed potager can provide food, as well as cut flowers and herbs for the home with very little maintenance. Potagers can disguise their function of providing for a home in a wide array of forms—from the carefree style of the cottage garden to the formality of a knot garden. I love the look of a knot garden of herbs...I also would love to grow edible flowers. I am working on creating a small potager this Spring...In the meantime I would love to share with you some of my fave ways to use herbs... my fave gardens & potagers....and I also want to wish each of you an early Spring...

Potager in the countryside of France...

Fragrant bundles of rosemary & sage...

Beautiful with flowers & herbs...

This week at Rue 27 Maison...

Herbs de Provence...lavande...rosemary, thyme & more

Garden cloche, herbs & vegetables...

Beautiful country knot garden...

Love the glass garden cloches in this garden...

Simple pots of rosemary look stunning on this burlap runner...

Love the herbs & flowers by the door to welcome guests...

A basket full of herbs for the kitchen...

An English manor garden from Clive Nichols...

Love this formal knot garden of herbs & flowers in the courtyard of a London townhouse...

This simple zinc carrier looks beautiful with the rich greens of the herbs...

Vegetables...herbs & edible flowers...

A charming English knot garden at the rear of a country chapel...

Thyme...simple & beautiful in a vintage pot...


Until Next time... Cheers!