Sunday, February 28, 2010

Design Tip - A Recent Project

These clients enjoy extreme simplicity and clean tones, but have a relatively small space... We created this master bedroom for them. The whole thing is calming and serene, and the antique botanicals held by gilded cherubs are amazing, right?

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Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Entertaining - Kumquats

Sure, this post could just as easily fall under the gardening label, but since kumquats now appear the garnish du jour for a number of drinks (sometimes even replacing the olive in a martini), this post is all about entertaining.  You may have seen the small fruit trees at local nurseries or garden centers.  At first glance, the fruit is often written off as merely ornamental.  Not so fast... the beauty of the kumquat is that it is the only citrus meant to be eaten with the skin; simply pick, and pop in your mouth.  Kumquat varieties range from sweet to spicy, and lend themselves excellently to a number of recipes, but are often simply candied or made into marmalades or jellies.  Native to China, they've been grown in Europe and America since the mid-1800's, and they are much hardier than other citrus varieties.  As a smaller citrus variety, they also do quite well as indoor container plants in colder climates.  In Florida, our tree has produced ripe fruit since October, and the last fruits of the season are just ripening...
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...and yes, there's a lot of it

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Our recommendation is to enjoy them straight from the tree, but if you're inclined to enjoy a cocktail, try the "Angelina Jolie": 2 oz single malt Scotch mixed with 1 oz elderflower liqueur (such as St. Germaine) shaken over ice for 10 seconds in a cocktail shaker, strained into a martini glass and garnished with kumquat slices.

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-last image via Gourmet.com

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Design Tip - Slipcovers

Is it possible to be ubiquitous and under-appreciated at the same time? The answer is a resounding yes. The example - slipcovered furniture. Never has another style of furniture been so universally malleable in the world of design, and yet so potently grounding a presence in each. Whether you have a modern penthouse in New York, a shabby-chic beachhouse in Malibu, or a simple traditional home on Florida's Gulf Coast, you can lay the framework for an entire room and command the theme of an entire home with a few great pieces. A few examples:
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(Shameless plug - in relatively short order, The Cobbled Path will be presenting its own line of slipcovered greats in more amazing styles and patterns than you can shake a stick at.)

-images via Southern Accents and Coastal Living.
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