girl on a vine

i recently stumbled upon this truly amazing vintage shop - girl on a vine. there is just something that intrigues me about the vintage selection and upcycled looks. they are, in ways, just on the edge of being costumey but such restraint is exercised in most cases that the collection takes on a bohemian elegance with tones of romance and luxury. 


see a few of my favorite looks above and be sure to check out the shop. 

simple sundays

image from the amazing grassdoe blog

henri cartier-bresson

the father of street photography, and with an mfa in photography images etched in my mind. last night i went to see selected images from the life's work of Henri Cartier-Bresson.

it was like chicken soup for my head and heart. i find comfort in looking at a body of work made though most of the world's huge changes which can maintain a sense of humor about itself and its subjects or in the same scope be calm and intimate and reflective. the first photo of the couple on the train is my favorite of his. 

if you are in the bay area, you should go to the sfmoma and see the show. otherwise i encourage you to take a few minutes and look at his photos online or better yet - find a library with a few of his books and spend some time with them. 

interior inspiration : baskets

when i saw these images over at melongings i was struck by Sarah Vanrenen's, the designer of this little abode, use of big baskets on the wall. her home was featured in the feb '11 issue of Homes&Gardens

while the house is a bit to colorful for me. im a bit more of a muted fan - i really liked the use of these textured and patterned baskets to bring warmth and rich earthy tactility to the room. 

 what i love is how striking they are even in  a room filled with other loud colors and patterns. imagine how they would look on muted slate or grey walls with other warm wood accents and natural fabrics. something like this:

globatelier

i think it would be divine. 

i have a few similar ones in the shop at the moment. 

wine list wednesday : santa christina sangiovese toscana 2008

first let me make a little confession - i have a thing for the sangiovese grape. i spent a semester in florence and was captivated by the tuscan countryside. i spent as much time as i could on the rolling sun baked hills and loved every minute of it.


i think that this tuscan grape takes on the romance of its landscape. scrappy and minerally its also relaxed and calm and develops these deep dark fruit flavors. its a mouthful of wine i just want to hold onto for a minute -

& so. this week its a 9$ bottle of 2008 Santa Christina, in production since 1946, its as delightful as its price.


 really well balanced, very drinkable on its own or with food. i like the big mellow fruits present. so characteristic but always welcome. i even tasted a little hint of chocolate in there, but what i like about it (and another reason i like the sangiovese so much) is that its a great mouthful without being overpowering 


there is a little bit of merlot grape (10%) thrown in for good measure and it rounds out the whole thing perfectly. 


if you haven't tired a sangiovese or are unfamiliar with tuscan wines i think this makes. 




this would be a great friday night wine - get your friends around the table, a big salad and some pizza or pasta. perfect. 

around the house

just a few photos from around the house over the past few days- that harsh winter light is beginning to give way to softer rays. 

interior inspiration : the king's speech

 i hope you all had lovely weekends. i went to go and see the king's speech. if you are thinking about it, go! if you've seen it already then you know that its not only a wonderful movie, but ahhh the sets. the sets are amazing. I was captivated by the use of color and texture running through most every scene in this film. 

the sets were designed by Eve Stewart and she has done a simply spectacular job. 
the above photos of logue's office has the stunning monet like watercolor treatment on the walls. its sparely set with just a few beautiful old rugs and a leggy needlepointed baroque couch with gold trim. it reminds me of a toasthome set. 

i wish i could find photos for everything i loved, but i guess youll have to take my word for it and just go see the movie. 

in addition to these photographs here i was mesmerized by a large club chair in lionel's office. its got that classic men's club shape but is covered in a grey and black watercolor type fabric with texture galore. 

you can just see it in the back right of this photo!


I also love the scene of the logue's family living room. you believe that it is of the moment (early 1940's) and yet it has distinctly modern feel. the entire room is done in tones of Blue -damask wall paper, large tufted sofas- carpet. its spell binding and looks like it walked off the pages of elle decor. 

i could go on, a scene filled entirely of black and white patterns as the king walks up the church aisle, the textile filled room where he delivers his first wartime speech, the scottish castle filled with plaids- but instead i insist that you simply must see it all for yourself. 

In with the Mid Century Modern : the finished product

im so! excited to share the sequel to In with the Mid Century Modern 


you all may remember that i found this chair in the back of a salvage truck on the street in san francisco. literally sitting atop a mountain of junk being removed from a basement somewhere around hayes valley. after a brief chat with the driver of this truck and a few eye rolls from SOS the chair was mine. 

and then the dilemma began. what?! was i going to use for fabric, what style cushion, what size cushion, welting or no welting. i must have looked at 50 different fabric and changed my mind 200 times. you can see my progress in this post. and in the end i chose exactly what i thought i didnt want at the start and i couldnt be more thrilled with the outcome. THRILLED!

 i took a risk (well risk for me anyway not for some) on the fabric choice. one day it was just like bam! sitting there at the fabric store right in front of me and i knew that was it. from there i let the fabric and the line of the chair guide me as far as cushion style and size. im so excited. 

i hope you enjoyed this little series and i would love to hear what you think.


 P.S. i picked up a new project last night and will be starting another little series on that. 

a pottery preview

recently i have been very attracted to pottery. its always something thats been on my radar screen but not much of it has make its way to CottageFarm - in the last few weeks im loving big heavy old rustic piece with a utilitarian nature. 


much of my craving for this style pottery is inspired by those big provincial kitchens you see filled to the brim with every size and shape of simple but elegant pots, vases, jugs, pitcher, crocks....and well you get the picture. 

 here are a few pieces that will be coming to the shop soon - 

wine list wednesday

sorry for my little absence - the end of last week was a bit crazy what with last minute flowers needed for a wedding and the holiday. but im back with my second installment of wine list wednesday. 

this week its a red its much more refined and sophisticated that the one last week - the 2005 bottle of the St. Supery cabernet sauvignon.


i was expecting a big napa cab but is delicate and light. I let it breath for about 40mins. before tasting - pretty yummy. light with rich black fruit flavors. juicy at the front and good dryness at the end. i would even through the word velvety in there.  overall very well rounded. 


18$ at safeway (thought it was on sale. i think it usually retails for about 25$)


it would be nice with lamb or even a spicy pizza. 
i would get it again. 

chair obsession. ch07

im slowly coming to terms with the fact that i have a chair addiction. I just find them irresistible  today im obsessing over this sleek beauty. the Carl Hansen CH07 shell lounge chair.

wine list wednesday : Ruston

im excited for my first wine list wednesday post. unfortunately im less excited about the wine i chose for this first post : 


Ruston 2008 sauvignon blanc. 6.99$ at trader joes. 

a plus for this wine is that the vineyard was certified organic in 2008, but it was a bit unbalanced for my liking and tasted the best on the 3rd night after i opened it.


it did have bright citrus fruit and was crisp as you would expect from a sav. blanc.  but right out of the bottle all of this was lost by the overpowering acidity. on the third night after opening however this overly acidic and slightly tart aspect of the wine had for the most part died away and it had a richer more honey based flavor. 


moral of the story. i might sight this guy on the shelf another 6 months and see what happens. 

Hans Wegner at auction.

yesterday my mom called me to share an article my gram had clipped from the newspaper. Skinners auction house, boston ma. recently had an auction filled with 20th century furniture and decorative arts. 


one of the lots included 8 hans wegner cow horn chairs. here is the auction houses description for the chairs 
Eight Hans Wegner Cow Horn Chairs
Teak, rosewood, leather
Made by Johannes Hansen, Copenhagen, Denmark, c. 1958
Cow horn shaped backrest with rosewood finger joints, black leather dipped seat raised on four tapering legs with front and back stretcher, metal label, some wear, back ht. 29, seat ht. 17 1/2, wd. 20 3/4, back wd. 23, dp. approx. 18 in.




 and they garnered a dazzling 57,000 dollars when the hammer dropped. I wish i could have been present for this event - can you even imagine. I bet the energy level was so high!! 57K for eight chairs - thats a little over 7k per chair. HOLY *%$! 


i just find the whole thing so amazing. and of course there is my long standing obsession with the wegner wishbone chairs. better snatch some up soon i guess. 

flea market round up.

my first flea market of 2011....smmmmmmmmm !!! i couldnt sleep, got there by 7:30 and came away with just a few choice pieces. As some of you know im in the middle of a little design scheme overhall at my house. 

a pice of pacific pottery in a matte white finish. great art deco lines

a stig lindberg vase from the Karneval collection. its swedish and im in love. 

and last a cool drawing with an architectural bent. im so smitten, but i think ill be changing out the frame on this one. it deserves something a bit more chic. 


these 3 pieces will get incorporated nicely. I cant wait to see how its all going to come together. 

simple sundays

via the sartorialist 

for the love of : irisschwarzart

the new decorating scheme is falling into place nicely. yesterday i sold 2 chairs to make room for the one that is coming from the upholsterer next week. I also sold my living room rug. - may i just sing the praises of craigslist for a moment, without which this would not have been possible.



Im now starting to think about bringing in some new art work - and im in love with the simplicity of her lines and how she is able to create such beautiful and almost haunting figures. I think a lot of the attraction lies in the imperfection of this work.

there is no striving to master the subject only the acceptance of its organic formation. this work is by the artist irischwarz. 

she has also been working on a project called SEVEN. it is a weekly edition with a new addition every Sunday. find it in her etsy shop : paulette edition  

i think three of them together would be divine, or perhaps clustered together with my vintage egg lithographs. now my only problem is which one to choose.