Les Fleurs

Hello, Sweet Friends, I do hope you are enjoying

this season of 'Les Fleurs'.

Today I am joining Riitta at Floral Passions for Floral Bliss.

Do you like my French? :)

I've always dreamed of having a little cottage 

in the French countryside. 

In fact, I follow a delightful blogger who 

actually does! 

You can 'meet' her Here . 

My Dear Mother loved all things 'Country French', 

especially the Provincial style and had the 

most charming little cottage right up the lane 

from me for over 30 years. 

Sadly, my parent's home was badly vandalized when 

they passed, and I can't bring myself to walk 

down the lane to see the damage once again. 

I wish I had taken more photos, 

and most of them are filled with family 

members with little of the background to see. 

Someday I will make some sketches of 

my memories.......

Someone bought the property and is renting out the 

little apartment over the barn, 

but the house that my Father built 

with his own two hands, and that my 

Mother so lovingly decorated, remains 

nothing but a shell. 

This is a continual sorrow in my heart, 

but I know that material things are not as important

as the love and memories that remain. 

My Mother loved flowers, and my Father loved to grow them,

 and I like to think that I inherited that gene, 

so step inside and I will show you 'Les Fleurs' 

that grace my space.  

The Farmer's Market Bouquet of Peonies and Queen Anne's Lace

faded away, but they have been replaced with some 

lovely blooms, generously sent to the house from Ramblin' Man's 

work-mates for his recent convalescence.

Farmer's Market Bouquet with Peonies and Queen Anne's Lace

I saved the Peony petals from the Farmer's Market

 bouquet to dry for potpourri. 

Peonies dry beautifully, if you hang them 

upside down in a dark room, once they are fully opened. 

But if you want to enjoy your Peonies in a vase until they start 

to fall apart, you can save the petals to dry in shallow baskets.

(Rose petals can be used, also) 

To make potpourri:

Add a few dried orange and lemon peels,
pulsed in a blender, a teaspoon of allspice,

a few bruised cloves, a handful of bay leaf,
some fragrant dried herbs, such as lemon thyme,
rosemary, lavender, - whatever is on hand,  

 and some essential oil ( I like lavender and vetiver),
 sprinkled over all, will give 

you a pretty way to scent a special corner. 

Potpourri makes a lovely gift, too, perhaps in a vintage 

glass container with a lid. 

A close-up of the new beautiful blooms. 

I saved the Queen Anne's Lace, from the market bouquet, too :)

Perfect to display in a pretty green bottle. 

I found a new 'pretty' at my favorite vintage store,

 to display on my Kitchen Queen shelf , too. 

Can you see it?

Let's look a little closer......

Now do you see it?

A green polka-dot tea-pot! 

My love affair with all things green continues :)

Queen Anne's Lace for my planning desk, too. xx

I saved the last of my purple pansies 

for my kitchen windowsill. 

A little bit of Queen Anne's Lace for the living room, too. 

This is the first time I've used my vintage vase

from the flea market. 

The heart is made of stone :) 

I've known a few people with hearts like that.......

I've changed my mantel to include some 

dried Roses and Baby's Breath. 

The wooden box is vintage. 

I've had it for years and it usually holds

art supplies in its sectioned interior. 

I always find it hard to decorate the mantel, 

for some reason. I fuss and fuss .....

Sometimes this takes weeks of trial and error,

adding this, or taking away that, until

I'm finally happy with the results. 

I found some pretty wildflower 'fakes' for 

'big blue' - my large 5 gal. glass carboy. 

My straw bag in the kitchen holds faux flowers, too. 

I like using a mix of dried, faux and fresh flowers

to add cottage charm. 

Paper roses even make it into the mix.

You can see how I made them Here.

Part of my feather collection is displayed in my tarnished 

silver baby cup. 

I love flower paintings, too! 

I've collected these over time and made a gallery wall. 

This one is a favorite. 

Sometimes the frames are the focal point. 

The tiny painting is of the French countryside.

This little painting with the green velvet border,
in my kitchen,

mimics the tiny flowers in the basket. 

Hand painted wildflowers on the glass of the hanging lamp. 

And flowers on the pillows. 

xoxo

What is it about flowers that so capture our hearts? 

Maybe it is their vibrant colors, their intricate designs,

 their lovely forms, or their exquisite scents.  

Or maybe it is their sweet innocence and perseverance

despite the harsh realities of this world. 

Who cannot say that a lovely bouquet of flowers,

given to a loved one or friend,

or even gifted to oneself 

doesn't brighten the spirits?

Flowers truly are one of the joys of life,

a  special gift from our creator and 

something we should never take for granted. 

Can you imagine a world without flowers? 

xoxo

'To be overcome by the fragrance of flowers

is a delectable form of defeat.'

- Beverly Nichols -

'To create a little flower is the labor of the ages.'

- William Blake -

xoxo

Thank-you, Dear Friends for your lovely visits 

and sweet comments. I so enjoy reading them. 

You are all so kind, witty, and informative. 

I know we are separated by space and time, 

but getting to know you, little by little, reading your 

comments and your wonderful blogs, 

makes me know that despite the distance, 

and varied lifestyles, we are all kindred spirits

in this great, wide world, and I am so 

very happy that we found each other. 

xoxo

P.S. Ramblin' Man is back to work and Rambling
once more......
All tests came back negative and we are
extremely happy to have this dark cloud lifted.
We have a renewed spring in our steps!
 Thank you for your kind well-wishes.

xoxo