Summer Evenings

I love to walk on the beach on a hot summer evening...

I have a swim, do some beachcombing....

Lotta beachcombing competition in the summer! Some weekends the sand seems swept clean, lol...

I love to look at the big pieces that wash ashore. Wonder what this was? It's huge!

A pier or dock? A ship plank? The rusty bolts are almost as thick as my wrists...

And this wonderfully weathered big crate...

I see a chic beachy coffee table here: some whitewash, a glass top, baskets in the partitioned spaces.

So cool, right?

Lucky for me (and my living room) it weighed about 100 pounds.

Then I enjoy the glorious sunset! It looked like mother-of-pearl tonight.

PS Please remember! ONLY swim when beaches are open and there are lifeguards present! Never venture further than ankle deep as dusk approaches---and never take your eyes off your kids! Have fun, be safe. And please teach your kids to respect the shore birds [including gulls] and horseshoe crabs! It is their beach, not ours.

love

           lizzy

            ............gone to the beach

Havin' a Heat Wave!

Oh it is soooo hot! (No surprises there, right? It's hot where you are too, I bet.)

Too hot for  the flea market! Almost too hot for the beach.....

So instead of new flea market finds today, here's what I've been doing with that glass heart mold I got in the spring....

Here it is with a simple white vanilla-scented  pillar candle anchored in a handful of white beach pebbles...

...a few favorite sea treasures and old white ironstone platter and jug.

I love the way the white marble washstand top echoes the colors and graining of my beach stones. I hold the pebbles in my wet sandy hand and wonder where they come from? Are they marble too...or quartz?

And this is the heart and candle with a few nautical pretties, for a festive outdoor dinner....

and today it holds new beach finds...

and pocket gleanings from this hottest July day...

The hunt is fun...and the oh wow moment when a new old thing suddenly works is great too. Like---Ya knew you loved it, now what? And then...ah-ha!

Any ah-ha flea market moments in your summer? I want to know.

love

                         lizzy

gone to the beach............

Farmers market

Yum! Hot night, thunderstorms have come and gone...perfect for a light summer picnic on the Beach...

What could be yummier? Heirloom tomatoes picked this morning, still hot from the sun.

A wedge of fresh mozzarella. I'll slice it, drizzle it with olive oil, tuck in some fresh basil, sprinkle with black pepper. Serve it warm from the sun too.

Artisan breads: French whole grain sourdough loaf and tiny white peasant rolls. Both chewy and full of flavor.

The tomatoes: golfball sized little guys, brilliant red and bursting with sweet juice! And tiny bright orange "marbles"---tarter and so fresh.

I like to use my market tote made from hand-blocked, hand printed Provencal cotton patchwork. It makes me feel like I'm at the market in France...

And my blue transferware platters.

The squash is for the weekend. Deep golden yellow, just has to be full of vitamins and other good healthy things, right? Not to mention it tastes geat, steamed with the onions---or grill both---serve with a drizzle of olive oil and freshly hand-grated parmesan from the Brooklyn cheese guy.

Now I'll just pack up my goodies with a bottle of chilled white wine..or, perhaps a rose'? Hmmmm? Add a smidge of Genoa salami for extra pizzazz. And we're off tothe beach for sunset swim and dinner...perfectly July!

love

              lizzy

                           ... gone to the beach