Your holiday signature…
December 17, 2012
create it. It’s a simplequietmodern statement that will be fondly remembered year after year by your friends and family. It also simplifies the task of readying your home for the onslaught of revelers each Christmas in the midst of a carrying on with the rest of your busy life. It could be a signature menu for a Christmas Eve or Christmas Day supper that folks look forward to every year … vases of assorted Winter greenery and white tulips, narcissus or Amaryllis to usher in Midwinter…the offering of a signature cocktail like a smart Christmas Manhattan with a splash of Marachino juice…illuminating your Christmas Eve with candle light and a roaring fire exclusively or, simply keeping a bowl full of seasonal Clementines within easy reach. No matter the direction, when repeated every year it will not only become second nature, easily the first thing on and then checked off your holiday to-do list, it will signal the arrival of your Christmas and another season of memories you created simply…seemingly effortlessly.
starting at the top:
White Mink Protea with cut white Pine and Magnolia branches will last for weeks.
Clementines,traditionally the original stocking stuffer, for that blast of vitamin C and natural sweetness.
Nature provided Cardinal’s nest and a scattering of vintage glass ornaments.
“No Brainer” Gingerbread Brownies will kick off the season perfectly. You can find the recipe here:http://www.ohbiteit.com/2012/11/gingerbread-brownies.html
There is nothing like roast pork to anchor your holiday dinner. This lesson from Martha can be found here:http://www.marthastewart.com/920465/bone-pork-loin# My preference is to have the butcher tie two boneless loins together and simply season with garlic and caraway seed.
If you’re not able to secure white tulips you should have no difficulty finding white Phalanopsis orchids in plant form that will last well into the New Year.
Sorting through your collection of mid-century vintage ornaments and separating them in groups of like color can make a modern statement as you revisit and display them each year.
*photo of the roast from Martha Stewart Living
If you’d like to receive it…
December 5, 2012
chances are you know someone who would like to receive it as well. Small personal indulgences are a great start when putting together your gift list. Most of us have what we want or need but sometimes hesitate when it comes to purchasing for ourselves something small that is pure pleasure. These are exactly the items we need to help get us through tough economic times…or really just take the edge off, no matter how simple. When gifted, items like those I have selected here are really most welcome. And, to make a simplequietmodern exercise of it, see if you can select an item that crosses age and gender lines and purchase in multiples. That was easy…check , check , check and check… four down…
Small batch Ginger Syrup for a kick ass Moscow Mule.http://www.morriskitchen.com/product-lists/ginger-syrup
Something “green” for the skin touched with the essence of Winter.http://www.shopterrain.com/gifts-under-50/winter-greens-bath-collection/productOptionIDs/bd0459cc-8958-45c4-b120-330bd8a8856a
A holiday bud vase providing that great shot of red everyday of the year.http://www.heathceramics.com/cook-dine/bud-vase.html
The perfect ice cream bowl in a quiet matte glaze. http://www.heathceramics.com/cook-dine/cafe-bowl.html#p68
From where the craze started, Sprinkles, gourmet cupcake mixes.http://www.sprinkles.com/cupcake-gifts/cupcake-mix/
Modern wooden spreaders to spread it around.http://www.anthropologie.com/anthro/search/search.jsp?searchPhrase=wooden+spreaders
Bourbon barrel maple syrup to glaze up some bacon.http://mikuni.myshopify.com/collections/all/products/tonic-01-tuthilltown-bourbon-barrel-matured-maple-syrup
Purl Soho Learn to Knit kit. If they’re knitting, they’re not texting you.http://www.purlbee.com/the-purl-bee/2012/11/13/new-purl-sohos-learn-to-knit-kit.html
Flip a coin…
November 29, 2012
because you won’t be able to decide. Leucadendron and kumquat or Silvertree and succulent rosettes? Both of these magnificent creations designed by Flora Grubb and Susie Nadler of Flora Grubb Gardens will make quite a simplequietmodern statement this Christmas whether you’re keeping it for yourself or gifting it to someone special. How much fun to inject some of this modern California artistry into a traditional mid-west or east coast setting? With either of these choices it will be a Christmas you ( or the recipient ) won’t soon forget. I’ve got the quarter….OK , call it!
Skirting the issue…
November 26, 2012
here is never the answer. Neither is an old bed sheet tossed around the base of your Christmas tree. Enter this woven tree skirt. It does the job of camouflaging the tree stand, and it does it with simple quiet style…especially if you are going the natural route. Around the base an untrimmed fir as illustrated…you are done and done. Or, if you must, dress it in simple white lights and a sprinkling of cones. Lovely.
Double Duty
November 17, 2012
Thanksgiving dinner. The plates are barely cleared and the Christmas decorations are already being hung. That said, my suggestion for an effectively decorated Thanksgiving table are well thought out to provide not only the right look but shift into double duty in the following few days. Here I’ve started with a study in brown and white. Shapley Bosc pears with their rusty sueded skins… an assortment of walnuts, hazelnuts and brazil nuts providing their varied shades and texture and oak leaves and pinecones scavenged in the yard round out a simplequietmodern fall story. Perfect whether you’re dining in the afternoon or later into the evening with the addition of some candlelight… a couple of handfuls for a table of four or a couple of arm loads to deck out a larger table for 12 or more…this look is very accommodating. Then as the weekend progresses, the nuts are for snacking when set around in bowls with a conveniently placed nutcracker and the pears can be poached or roasted and served up with gingerbread for an additional sweet treat…while you’re… umm…setting up the tree?
There’s no getting around it
October 21, 2012
The Fall Clean Up. In order to get the maximum beauty and enjoyment from your outdoor environment next year you have to extend a little effort now. Turn that afternoon of raking and picking up fallen twigs and debris into a little creative exercise. If you need to adjust things…remove a tree or overgrown shrub, come up with an effective plan to keep the deer from tearing the place up or plant some new tulip variety to usher in next spring… take the opportunity to make those adjustments or additions now. If everything seems to be in good order why not give some thought to your holiday decorations. A bit of well spent time now will make the whole process much simpler once the holidays kick into gear. Need a little incentive? How about whipping up a sample batch of this Boiled Apple Cider Bourbon Cocktail by Lillie at Butter Me Up Brooklyn…just a smart little something to add to the special blend of sights, smells and tastes that are Fall.
http://buttermeupbrooklyn.com/2012/10/boiled-apple-cider-syrup-bourbon-cocktail/#more-4166
If you’re lucky,
October 18, 2012
while out for a country ” color tour” this month you might just happen upon some of these. What appears at first glance to be the remnants of a tennis ball “spill” along the roadside turns out to be one of my Fall fovorites…the Osage Orange. I look forward each year to collecting them for use as a seasonal decoration, filling bowls or vases with their bright chartreuse color and appealing texture. In a temperate interior they can easily last for 2-3 months providing not only a great burst of color but naturally repelling spiders in the process.
It’s not too early
October 15, 2012
to get those holiday plans committed to paper. Lists for invitations, cards to be sent, ingredients to be purchased or projects around the house to complete…it’s all easier to accomplish once you have committed it to paper. That makes it real, do-able…and you have a punch list to strike off as each task is complete. By the time December 1st comes you’ll be so far ahead of the game you can easily roll with the punches of a changed plan, or relax with a smart cocktail as you await the magic. 
Summer, looking back
September 21, 2012
OK, now it’s official…the solstice is upon us and we are moving into Fall. I tried to stretch this summer out as long as I could , so that I could enjoy more simple pleasures and not forget some special simple moments. As I look back I am grateful for each juicy bite, each bright ray, each conversation, each quiet walk, each project…each gentle nudge and nuzzle. I will welcome Fall differently now…more simply, more quietly. Let’s see what it brings.
Summer Rocks
August 26, 2012
And, that is the inspiration for this simple “assembled” floral display…a found object…a rock. Well, that and the white-hot sunlight that August brings and lush green lawns. What could be more refreshing on a hot hot day than crisp white and the cooling effect of mossy green? interpreted in Ornithogalum and Dianthus barbatus cultivar…simply arranged in an assortment of clear and frosted glass cylinders, this grouping can stand alone on your dining or coffee table any day of the week or, with a little further augmentation, create a quiet, elegant presentation for some occasion more special. Perhaps grouping the parts on a white lacquer tray or natural log slice, adding more egg rock or river stones and some simple votive candlelight to compliment the star-shaped blooms? Any way you rock it you’ve got simplequietmodern that lasts and lasts ( these flowers in the photo are in week 3) and won’t break the bank.
simplequietmodern 