Napa Part I
Allow me to paraphrase my adaptation of an Avett Brothers
song that played in my head during my trip… Napa, Napa take me in…
are you aware the shape I’m in? …ROUND now thanks to you
Downtown St. Helena. Maybe it was the
full belly and great shopping or just the lovely NoCal weather, but
I truly relished my time there. Another eatery I frequented whilst in
St. Helena was Cook.
Showing posts with label travels. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travels. Show all posts
Friday, March 15, 2013
Monday, March 4, 2013
Napa Part I
Whilst in the Napa Valley, this Farmer gave into a
deadly sin – no, not drunkenness in
the wine country…gluttony! There's no beating around the bush about my love for food - I write about
food, I photograph food, I travel to eat and relish in reading a cookbook like a good novel.
As the spokesman for the American Camellia Society, one of my duties was to deliver the keynote address at the conference. If I'm not talking about food, there's a good chance I'm talking about flowers. This trip to Napa gave me the opportunity for both!
Between design projects and book tours, I was able to squeeze in a few days in the Napa Valley proper after the ACS convention was adjourned. A dear friend from home said she would meet me there, and our journey through the aforementioned valley began. Without her I would not have known where all to go or have had a personal photographer either! Thank you LC!
As the spokesman for the American Camellia Society, one of my duties was to deliver the keynote address at the conference. If I'm not talking about food, there's a good chance I'm talking about flowers. This trip to Napa gave me the opportunity for both!
Between design projects and book tours, I was able to squeeze in a few days in the Napa Valley proper after the ACS convention was adjourned. A dear friend from home said she would meet me there, and our journey through the aforementioned valley began. Without her I would not have known where all to go or have had a personal photographer either! Thank you LC!
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Walking in Memphis…
One of my favorite things is to speak to garden
clubs. These ladies are a treasure trove for garnering a fine education
on Southern culture, fine entertaining, fabulous cooking, and, of course,
honing one’s gardening prowess. Many of the groups are a part of the
Garden Club of America
which is an amazing organization.
I started speaking to garden clubs when I was at Auburn, and I attribute my career’s start to my garden club patrons. The ink was hardly dry on my diploma before my garden club contacts began hiring me for garden and interior projects – that’s my kind of social networking!
Often, the groups meet in a member’s home. If the group is larger, then a country club, community center or church becomes the venue, but I relish the opportunities to speak in someone’s home.
As a lover of beauty, lovely homes and gardens, and nostalgic
nods to Southern entertaining, these garden club visits are quite a perk. And, being surrounded and doted on by fine ladies is
not bad either!
Primarily, I have spoken to garden clubs in the Deep
South, but also in St. Louis, Missouri such as The Ladue Garden Club -
and groups in Virginia. These Down Home Dixie groups are such a treat for me to visit and
give a lesson on flower arranging, gardening trends, tablescapes and
even cooking. From small towns to Southern cities, these ladies ask
me to speak to them and teach them, but I’m the one learning! I relish in learning how these ladies
(who often are a tad older than my junior) garden, cook and entertain. My latest trip was of no exception!
I have had the pleasure and honor of speaking
to garden clubs in Memphis three separate occasions. First, to the Memphis Garden Club and most recently
to The Little Garden Club of Memphis. The second time was a combination
of the two groups. This latest trip proved to be a delightful
time of food, flowers, book signings, food, garden lectures, fellowship,
food and some more food. Let me tell you, Memphis doesn’t play around
when it comes to food – this Farmer was extremely well fed and probably
gained some serious poundage on this trip. Memphis is more than ribs
and bbq, ya’ll!
I have to state the old adage that “it sure is a
small world.” Yes, any Southerner worth their grits is going to make
their familial and social connection in other Southern towns, but Memphis
proved to be a delightfully small world!
First connection was Alpine.
Alpine Camp for Boys in Mentone, Alabama, proved to be a summer job
to garner a lifetime of connections. Many Memphis boys have camped and worked at Alpine. The host home where I stayed was the home of one of my campers. That’s
Alpine for you - connections! I saw a picture
of the now grown camper and asked my my hostess, “How do you know…as
she exclaimed ‘He’s my son!’” What a time!
Secondly, Auburn came into play. Whether it was seeing friends from school, meeting friends’ parents or sharing Auburn memories, Auburn always paves the way in making the world a bit smaller.
But another amazing connection came into play while in Memphis – Bainbridge. My Mimi’s hometown is always finding some way into the conversation and this time proved notwithstanding. Another one of my hostesses was from Tallahassee, Florida, and her sister married a boy from Bainbridge –and they are dear friends with my Aunt Sally there.
That, my friends, is what I love about
the South – we share this tightly knitted culture and form ever-lasting
bonds with one another over great-aunts, fried chicken, silver patterns
and flowers!
From a dinner party of chicken curry surrounded by friends, to garden and floral arranging lectures, to a luncheon of fried chicken and amazing peach ice cream with pecan shortbread, to memorable moments with new and old friends alike – my latest walking in Memphis truly felt “ten feet over Beale” and I cannot wait to visit again.
Hope to see ya’ll at Garden Club soon!
I started speaking to garden clubs when I was at Auburn, and I attribute my career’s start to my garden club patrons. The ink was hardly dry on my diploma before my garden club contacts began hiring me for garden and interior projects – that’s my kind of social networking!
Often, the groups meet in a member’s home. If the group is larger, then a country club, community center or church becomes the venue, but I relish the opportunities to speak in someone’s home.
I have had the pleasure and honor of speaking
to garden clubs in Memphis three separate occasions. First, to the Memphis Garden Club and most recently
to The Little Garden Club of Memphis. The second time was a combination
of the two groups. This latest trip proved to be a delightful
time of food, flowers, book signings, food, garden lectures, fellowship,
food and some more food. Let me tell you, Memphis doesn’t play around
when it comes to food – this Farmer was extremely well fed and probably
gained some serious poundage on this trip. Memphis is more than ribs
and bbq, ya’ll!
I have to state the old adage that “it sure is a
small world.” Yes, any Southerner worth their grits is going to make
their familial and social connection in other Southern towns, but Memphis
proved to be a delightfully small world!
Secondly, Auburn came into play. Whether it was seeing friends from school, meeting friends’ parents or sharing Auburn memories, Auburn always paves the way in making the world a bit smaller.
But another amazing connection came into play while in Memphis – Bainbridge. My Mimi’s hometown is always finding some way into the conversation and this time proved notwithstanding. Another one of my hostesses was from Tallahassee, Florida, and her sister married a boy from Bainbridge –and they are dear friends with my Aunt Sally there.
That, my friends, is what I love about
the South – we share this tightly knitted culture and form ever-lasting
bonds with one another over great-aunts, fried chicken, silver patterns
and flowers!
From a dinner party of chicken curry surrounded by friends, to garden and floral arranging lectures, to a luncheon of fried chicken and amazing peach ice cream with pecan shortbread, to memorable moments with new and old friends alike – my latest walking in Memphis truly felt “ten feet over Beale” and I cannot wait to visit again.
Hope to see ya’ll at Garden Club soon!
Friday, October 7, 2011
The Marshes of Glynn
“…Of the dim sweet woods, of the dear dark woods,
Of the heavenly woods and glades,
That run to the radiant marginal sand-beach within
The wide sea-marshes of Glynn;-- …”
Live oaks, Spanish moss, myrtle, palmetto, sweet, Spartina and cord grasses woven with ephemeral sunlight that melts colors into muddy jewel toned hues – coastal Georgia’s marshes stir my soul.
Not the first nor the last to wax and wane on these storied marshes and not the first Middle Georgia boy either to do so: Sidney Lanier did, oh so eloquently, in a fluid body of words reminiscent of the marshes cadence themselves. “The Marshes of Glynn,” one of Lanier’s most notable works, is a love song to the swansong of Georgia’s rivers journey to the sea and the purely organic moment said waters meld, meet, swarm, sway, and thus lace together forming these storied marshlands.
Wellheads in the cool, clear mountain streams, then trickling from Lower Appalachia to, in turn, wind their way through magnolia strewn red clay midlands, through loamy drifts of southernmost Georgia even through sweet Vidalia soil, Georgia’s rivers carry their silt laden waters to the sea – offering their watery bounty to the ocean in caches of coastland and estuaries of evolution.
Smells, colors, textures, flora, and fauna all abound from the Low Country of South Carolina to the First Coast along St. Augustine, with Georgia’s Golden Isles as the epicenter of Dixie’s southeastern marshland. As I’ve been down on St. Simon’s and Sea Island this week for a photo shoot, I’m instantly inundated by my love, obsession, connection, and delight in these marshes – the indescribable colors, their soulful tidal lurches, the golden yet silvery yet copper toned light all at once – who’s very presence and palette are rejuvenating and inspirational enough to recharge my sense of being.
I’m wanton for wetlands and on par with Mr. Lanier’s love of the land and his exultation of Nature’s religious rhythm. On this very dawning of autumn, I’m finding myself surged with energy anew not only from nostalgia for pumpkins and mums, but for the crisp, cool breezes perfumed with sulfuric yet sweet aromas of the Marshes of Glynn.
“…And now from the Vast of the Lord will the waters of sleep
Roll in on the souls of men,
But who will reveal to our waking ken
The forms that swim and the shapes that creep
Under the waters of sleep?
And I would I could know what swimmeth below when the tide comes in
On the length and the breadth of the marvellous marshes of Glynn.”
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
The Farmer in the ‘ville… Nashville that is!
During the Nashville Antiques and Garden Show, some dear, dear friends were kind enough to throw a cocktail party in honor of yours truly… and a party they threw!
Not only did these fine folks open their homes, feed this Farmer and his team, and serve as my entre into Nashville society, but these folks also allowed this kid from Kathleen to “do the flowers,” as we say down here, for the party! Flowers for my own party… very fun my friends, very fun! And, very humbling as well, since some of the Music City’s phenomenal design talent and notables of the Antiques and Garden Show were also attendees. From one of “America’s preeminent interior designers,” (think JFK and Jackie’s White House) Albert Hadley to Ben Page, Bobby McAlpine, Jonathan Rogers, Julia Reed and Sarah Champier, this Farmer boy was in high cotton all night, meeting and greeting some of my social, design, and professional idols, let alone chatting with the delightful Nashville natives proper.
With a menu of “Lucky Money” soup, fried green tomatoes, sweet potato biscuits, black eyed pea hummus, red onion jam and crawfish cakes, the guests and this very humbled honoree were well fed with Southern comfort food in the finest form. The well stocked bars with cheddar cheese crisps and a wait staff that was quite attending and amicable made for an enhanced evening of lovely conversations and cocktails. Capers Catering did a fantastic job with the food and this Farmer would recommend them for any Southern gathering!
Lilies, amaryllis, amaranthus, delphinium, hyacinths, snaps, forsythia, quince, sassanquas, hydrangeas, orchids, fern fronds and fiddleheads all wove their way down the dining room table and onto other obliging table tops around the home. Upon completion of the long centerpiece railroading down her table, the hostess, and lady of the house, commented that her dining room table looked as if a “pall” had been draped across. We thus chuckled and concurred that it was “to die for.” Ha! She of course meant it in the highest of complements, so I was not appalled. Pun intended. I digress…
If one travels to Nashville, I envy your opportunity visiting. Granted, this Farmer is now rotten beyond repair after such a soiree, but that is just a price I’ll have to pay. I’ve heard there are stars, music folks, and glamorous celebrities in Nashville, but I was not privy to such this trip. As the honoree of a cocktail party in Belle Meade, I felt somewhat akin as to what a young singer must feel upon entering the Grand Ol’ Opry for the first time. That night amazed and humbled me, and I cannot thank my host couples enough! From this Farmer’s truly appreciative heart, I hope you all get to experience the graciousness of Nashville some time soon. In the words of Josh Bales from his song “If I was a Prince,” “it sure is a beautiful Southern city."
Not only did these fine folks open their homes, feed this Farmer and his team, and serve as my entre into Nashville society, but these folks also allowed this kid from Kathleen to “do the flowers,” as we say down here, for the party! Flowers for my own party… very fun my friends, very fun! And, very humbling as well, since some of the Music City’s phenomenal design talent and notables of the Antiques and Garden Show were also attendees. From one of “America’s preeminent interior designers,” (think JFK and Jackie’s White House) Albert Hadley to Ben Page, Bobby McAlpine, Jonathan Rogers, Julia Reed and Sarah Champier, this Farmer boy was in high cotton all night, meeting and greeting some of my social, design, and professional idols, let alone chatting with the delightful Nashville natives proper.
With a menu of “Lucky Money” soup, fried green tomatoes, sweet potato biscuits, black eyed pea hummus, red onion jam and crawfish cakes, the guests and this very humbled honoree were well fed with Southern comfort food in the finest form. The well stocked bars with cheddar cheese crisps and a wait staff that was quite attending and amicable made for an enhanced evening of lovely conversations and cocktails. Capers Catering did a fantastic job with the food and this Farmer would recommend them for any Southern gathering!
Lilies, amaryllis, amaranthus, delphinium, hyacinths, snaps, forsythia, quince, sassanquas, hydrangeas, orchids, fern fronds and fiddleheads all wove their way down the dining room table and onto other obliging table tops around the home. Upon completion of the long centerpiece railroading down her table, the hostess, and lady of the house, commented that her dining room table looked as if a “pall” had been draped across. We thus chuckled and concurred that it was “to die for.” Ha! She of course meant it in the highest of complements, so I was not appalled. Pun intended. I digress…
If one travels to Nashville, I envy your opportunity visiting. Granted, this Farmer is now rotten beyond repair after such a soiree, but that is just a price I’ll have to pay. I’ve heard there are stars, music folks, and glamorous celebrities in Nashville, but I was not privy to such this trip. As the honoree of a cocktail party in Belle Meade, I felt somewhat akin as to what a young singer must feel upon entering the Grand Ol’ Opry for the first time. That night amazed and humbled me, and I cannot thank my host couples enough! From this Farmer’s truly appreciative heart, I hope you all get to experience the graciousness of Nashville some time soon. In the words of Josh Bales from his song “If I was a Prince,” “it sure is a beautiful Southern city."
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Nashville Antiques and Garden Show
The 2011 Nashville Antiques and Garden Show lived up to its reputation as a perennial hit, and this Farmer was honored to be a part of the event. Great designers, authors, antique dealers and landscape architects filled the Downtown Convention Center with booths chocked with treasures, displays of fabulous flora, and educated the masses on the art of living well. With the likes of Charlotte Moss, Alexa Hampton, Veranda’s, Carolyn Engerfield, Albert Hadley
As for my part proper in the show, I procured a ten foot by ten foot booth to display my floral, landscape, and interiors panache with a mélange of flowers, antiques, and photos from gardens I’ve designed. With some fanfare and much excitement, I was also able to promote for the first time my upcoming book, A Time to Plant, due out this September! Gibbs Smith Publishing is publishing the book and I could not be more thrilled! A whole post on my book is coming soon!
For my little space, I bedecked all I could with the color theme of my Antiques and Garden Show song – coral, salmon, and pink! Grapefruit, tangerines, and navel oranges filled a fantastic planter from Amsterdam. The inside color of the fruit’s flesh is truly remarkable, thus slicing the fruit gave texture and exposure to the sumptuous color hiding beneath the rind. “Delight” amaryllis, “bronze” snapdragons, quince, forsythia, lilies, antique and hot pink hydrangeas, and greenery from sassanquas and magnolia poured, spilt, and sprang forth from containers and planters, thus making my booth a blooming homage to the coming spring. “Crushed Orange” having been named the hot color by many designers and trendsetters, many folks asked if that was my inspiration for the booth. “I simply love orange!” I would answer… “Salmon, coral, peach, and apricot to be exact!” Being en vogue and a la mode was just, as we say down here, “a blind pig finding an acorn" or," lucky” for those needing a Southern translation.
Visitors from most all the Southern states perused the show, attended lectures, and bought antiques to feather their nests. Nashville itself is an amazing Southern city, and this Farmer was wined and dined by locals at the best restaurants and even a cocktail party was given in my honor by dear friends. The party may have been in honor of yours truly, but I was honestly more humbled by the graciousness and generosity of these fine Nashville natives. Many, many thanks my friends!
So after nearly a week of toasting, antiquing, learning, and experiencing all that the Nashville Antiques and Garden Show had to offer, this Farmer had to head back to Kathleen, which leads me to the topic of most discussion during my tenure in Nashville. “Where is Kathleen?” was asked a million times at least, but the best answer I can give is that this bucolic hamlet of Houston County is a suburb of Wonderful Robins, Perry-dice, and Hawkinsville… it is my home as are those said towns. The common ground among said towns is Kathleen proper. I too share the common ground among those small Middle Georgia towns, and though it is always grand to see and visit afar, it always just as lovely to return home. From Nashville to Kathleen and everywhere in between, this Farmer hopes you find antiques, garden, and fun shows wherever you can!
As for my part proper in the show, I procured a ten foot by ten foot booth to display my floral, landscape, and interiors panache with a mélange of flowers, antiques, and photos from gardens I’ve designed. With some fanfare and much excitement, I was also able to promote for the first time my upcoming book, A Time to Plant, due out this September! Gibbs Smith Publishing is publishing the book and I could not be more thrilled! A whole post on my book is coming soon!
For my little space, I bedecked all I could with the color theme of my Antiques and Garden Show song – coral, salmon, and pink! Grapefruit, tangerines, and navel oranges filled a fantastic planter from Amsterdam. The inside color of the fruit’s flesh is truly remarkable, thus slicing the fruit gave texture and exposure to the sumptuous color hiding beneath the rind. “Delight” amaryllis, “bronze” snapdragons, quince, forsythia, lilies, antique and hot pink hydrangeas, and greenery from sassanquas and magnolia poured, spilt, and sprang forth from containers and planters, thus making my booth a blooming homage to the coming spring. “Crushed Orange” having been named the hot color by many designers and trendsetters, many folks asked if that was my inspiration for the booth. “I simply love orange!” I would answer… “Salmon, coral, peach, and apricot to be exact!” Being en vogue and a la mode was just, as we say down here, “a blind pig finding an acorn" or," lucky” for those needing a Southern translation.
Visitors from most all the Southern states perused the show, attended lectures, and bought antiques to feather their nests. Nashville itself is an amazing Southern city, and this Farmer was wined and dined by locals at the best restaurants and even a cocktail party was given in my honor by dear friends. The party may have been in honor of yours truly, but I was honestly more humbled by the graciousness and generosity of these fine Nashville natives. Many, many thanks my friends!
So after nearly a week of toasting, antiquing, learning, and experiencing all that the Nashville Antiques and Garden Show had to offer, this Farmer had to head back to Kathleen, which leads me to the topic of most discussion during my tenure in Nashville. “Where is Kathleen?” was asked a million times at least, but the best answer I can give is that this bucolic hamlet of Houston County is a suburb of Wonderful Robins, Perry-dice, and Hawkinsville… it is my home as are those said towns. The common ground among said towns is Kathleen proper. I too share the common ground among those small Middle Georgia towns, and though it is always grand to see and visit afar, it always just as lovely to return home. From Nashville to Kathleen and everywhere in between, this Farmer hopes you find antiques, garden, and fun shows wherever you can!
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