Gardening – Gardenias

 

Perhaps the single most beloved flower in the South, gardenias are prized for their warm scent—said to be a mixture of jasmine, vanilla, and nutmeg.  Gardenias grow well throughout Florida, but are not especially salt-tolerant, so don’t attempt them if you’re right on the coast.  Prune them only once per year (right after the blooms fall), and fertilize 2-3 times per year.  As for light, we’ve always had great luck with either full East or West exposure so they get intense sun for only half the day.  Obviously, if you’re going to add them to your landscape, place them near a breezy front porch or a window you love to keep open….  

The Goods – Our New Slip-Covered Line!

After weeks of waiting, samples from our new slip-covered line have finally arrived.  We’ll post more about the furniture—available in hundreds of styles, tons of fabrics that can be mixed and matched, and which is as heavy and solidly-built as any you’ll find—but after a busy night of getting it settled in… how about just a few quick pics?  If you want quality, unique furniture for your home at a truly reasonable price, you’re going to love this stuff.

The backside of the chair above is covered in the same printed linen as the ottoman – gorgeous!

This couch is one of many available, and is over eighty inches wide.  We have headboards, dining chairs, and plenty of other goodies in this line… but we’ll cover that later. 

Lifestyle – Support the Locals!

It’s blueberry season here in Tampa, but no matter where you are, something good is probably growing nearby.  Do your community a favor, and skip the big-box retailers and support your local businesses and farmers. 

The Goods – Bella Cucina Goodies!

We are by no means a gourmet market, nor do we pretend to be; however, we do like to help our customers add the finishing touches to more than just a beautiful room.  That said, we offer a number of selections from Bella Cucina, namely antipasti appetizers, bruschetta spreads, and amazing sweet dessert sauces… If you happen to stop by, give one a try.  They’re beautiful, delicious, and inexpensive.  A couple of our newer favorites are the Chocolate Hazelnut Sauce and Roasted Sweet Balsamic Peppers, shown below. 

Lifestyle – Spring

- Italian statue “Spring” located on St. Armand’s Circle.

Only about six weeks until the sweltering summer arrives, so get out there and enjoy.

Lifestyle – Le Macaron

Turning fresh ground almonds and soft meringue  into little bites of heaven… Le Macaron is a wonderful French pastry shop located on historic St. Armand’s Circle in Sarasota, Florida.  From chocolate to lemon, the flavors of their signature Parisian macarons are many and wonderful.  If you happen to be traveling Florida’s Gulf Coast, do yourself a favor and stop in. 

Gardening – A Thornless Rose

This is the Zephirine Drouhin rose.  It was bred by Bizot in 1868 and is a completely thornless climber (10-12 feet is reasonable to expect) with a strong, old rose fragrance.  Takes about three years to really fill in and bloom like mad, but it’s worth the wait—not to mention, the whole thornless thing is great around kids and pets.  Give it a try.

The Goods – Great New Mirrors

Just a quick update here with a couple of beautiful new mirrors we’ve added in the boutique.  We think they’d look great with any number of styles, but hanging on a distressed white wall in a shabby-chic room or beach cottage might be ideal… 

Happy Monday!

The Goods – Exquisite New Pots from Campo de Fiori

With spring upon us, consider adding some great planters to your garden or patio.  Some of our favorites come from Campo de’ Fiori.  We have several new in the boutique, and all are hand made terra cotta.  The pots are sculpted, seeded with moss, and aged in a greenhouse.  Once “harvested,” they ship to our boutique and we can offer them to you.  You’ll find none of that fake moss here.  As seen in the photos below, these pots are already covered with moss that reawakens after you plant them and water.  Of course, you’ll still have to pick a proper spot if you want maximum moss to grow, but you won’t have to wait years for it to happen. 

We have several new options at the boutique.  If you’re local, stop by!