All of a sudden, our little ham has developed quite an affinity for the camera. Whenever I take out the camera lately, she pops up and strikes a pose. That’s my dog –Sugar Magnolia Clark. Hope you’re having a wonderful weekend!
Best,
Stephanie
For some reason, when she poses, or wants something, that little paw comes up.
How’s this for a supermodel smile?
Work it, supermodel!
I am a lucky girl! I popped over to Hampton Hostess and saw that I won her giveaway! Looks like Deb at Paper Turtle started me off on a good luck streak! I am so excited! (I just realized this is all exclamation points. We’ve already covered the fact that I am like a four year old when I win something, right?)
So if you are not familiar with Hampton Hostess, first off, she is gorgeous – check out that profile photo. She reminds me of a young Elizabeth Montgomery. She writes about design and entertaining and has a beautiful site. I encourage you to go see for yourselves.
Now, as to lucky moi, I won one of the following four books: Weekend Utopia: Modern Living in the Hamptons, Michael S. Smith: Houses, Houses of the Hamptons, 1880-1910, or Barefoot Contessa, Back to Basics. How neat is that?
For those of you who know me well, you know I have a severe addiction to books, especially concerning decorating. entertaining, and travel. I have literally hundreds of them. And since I was very young, I always spent a part of the summer in the Hamptons. (If you’re not sure why, check google images for East Hampton’s Main Beach, South Hampton, or East Hampton. Sheer heaven.) Finally, I love me some Barefoot Contessa (I have all of her books.) So anyone of these books is sure to be a hit with me. Hampton Hostess, you are as generous as you are stylish!
Thank you, thank you, thank you! (Did I mention how excited I am?)
Best,
Stephanie
… at least from Planting Fields… Today, the orchids. Exotic, dreamy. These beauties can come home with me anytime. It has been cold and rainy here for days, and today’s rain is supposed to turn into a LOT of snow! So this little shot of color will have to be my sunshine for today. The first shot may not be technically great, and I had photos that were better, but there was something about it that kept pulling me back. We don’t have to be perfect, just happy.
By the way, the new Kindle arrived, and I am a very happy girl! I love it when a company not only stands behind their product, but goes above and beyond. I had the new one for about ten minutes when I downloaded a new book. Hey, a girl has needs…
Best,
Stephanie
It happened. I finally read too much. My Kindle is dead. But don’t be too sad for me. In a stunning display of customer service, Amazon is sending me a replacement Kindle, with a total turn around time of less than 24 hours since I called them. How is that for service? To up the ante, they already sent me a list of the over 300 samples I downloaded since I first got the device last May. A list that would have been impossible to recreate, even though I had read most of the ones I downloaded already.
And if I was impressed before, I am even more so now. They are sending me the newest version. About 2 months after I got mine, a new version came out which can be used internationally. (Don’t you just hate it when that happens?) I just realized today that they are sending the newest one. I love you, Amazon. I really do.
Happy Reading!
Best,
Stephanie
That these are all cacti? (A word that my brain always processes first as “cactuses”, and then corrects.) I’ve never seen a white cactus before. And I love the ones that look like flowers. So pretty, which is not a phrase you usually associate with a cactus. Only one more day of flowers after this. Even these prickly beauties warmed me up on a winter’s day.
Best,
Stephanie
I am inspired by the gorgeous colors, shapes and scents of flowers. My father used to say that plants come to my house to die. But I’ve been getting better. Some plants have now lived for years, with the all-time record breaker coming in at six years.
Some asked what I did in the last photographs. I went manual on my camera. I use a Canon DSLR, and have a variety of lenses. I used to shoot all on the automatic settings, which still gave me some nice shots. Last year I tried using some of the creative settings on the camera. Now, I went manual, where I adjust the individual settings on the camera. For example, for the fountains, the “trick” I referred to was setting the shutter speed to 1/4000th. That is how I got the individual droplets to show in the water stream. I am really enjoying learning more about my camera and photography.
These photographs were taken at the second greenhouse on the same property as the camellias from earlier this week. It was lush, tropical, and hot. Not bad after a cold snowy walk. Can you imagine having two huge greenhouses for your own private enjoyment, like the Coe family did at Planting Fields? The camellia greenhouse they called the “Little Greenhouse”. I’d take one little one, thanks. More photos follow. Hope you’re all having a great week.
Best,
Stephanie
If you’ve had it with flowers, now is a good time to click off. But I did throw in a fountain for good measure. Mostly because I learned a new trick with my camera. Hope you’re enjoying these. Your sweet comments make me smile as much as these flowers do.
Best,
Stephanie
Is there anything better than a greenhouse full of beautiful flowers on a winter’s day? I took so many photographs, and I didn’t even realize how many until I got home.
You can stop looking at any time. Me? I’m addicted! This is like candy to me.
Okay, okay. I’ll stop. Until tomorrow, that is.
Best,
Stephanie
