C’mon Jax
August 26, 2015
Is it too much to ask? Just a quick pic to chronicle his birthday. Yep…Baby Hambone Jaxon 3000 is three years old. It might be easier if he wasn’t so black…or, if you were better able to distinguish one end from the other. Maybe if he stopped spinning like the Tasmanian Devil…or at the most basic, if he’d just look at the camera. Then it dawned on me. It was that Puli sense of humor at work, playing me like a Strad.
A Bushel or a Peck
August 23, 2015
Tomatoes, corn and summer stone fruit. Now that we’re well into August they’re ripe for the picking. Is there anything better on a hot summer day than a BLT for lunch or dinner? How about the simplicity of corn on the cob or maybe a new riff like a charred corn salad? Or, savor peaches and plums in a pie or crostata…maybe whip up something new like a plum caramel to serve over ice cream. The early gifts of summers harvest are waiting at a farm stand near you. Sounds like a little road trip to the country is in order.
Top to bottom:
Bushels of heirloom tomatoes waiting to meet up with bacon and lettuce on a nice chunk of ciabatta.
Sweetcorn by the truck load. While corn on the cob is nice, this Charred Corn Salad with Lime, Chili and Tomato knocks it out of the park. Really, I can’t stop making this. Photo via Food52 http://food52.com/recipes/17913-charred-corn-and-avocado-salad-with-lime-chili-and-tomato
A handful of late Summer plums, a little sugar and a vanilla bean is all you need to whip up a batch of Plum Caramel…simple. http://food52.com/recipes/37359-creme-fraiche-plum-cake-with-plum-caramel
All photos ( with the exception of the charred corn salad ) by gp
Road Trip!
August 2, 2015
What better way to spend a gorgeous Summer day than a road trip. A micro vacation if you will. With perfect temps, blue skies and an early start, todays destination: the Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I concentrated on the Sculpture Garden… 30 acres of meandering walkways, plantings, meadows and waterways. Around each turn and down every path I experienced another of the world’s most significant works of outdoor sculpture, each expertly presented within a site and plant environment specifically chosen to compliment it alone. A unique museum experience to be sure.
top to bottom:
“Cabin Creek” Deborah Butterfield
A cooling rock falls along the way.
“Plantoir” Claes Oldenburg
iPhone snaps: gp
Forecast: H O T
July 30, 2015
When the temperatures reach into the 90’s a pool looks awfully inviting. And, there are none more inviting to my simplequietmodern mind than this beauty…the work of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe for his 1929 Barcelona Pavillion. If you’re in need of a little modern pool inspiration, here it is.
Photo via Gardenista http://www.gardenista.com/posts/20-best-architectural-swimming-pools-minimalist-new-modernism
A Complete 180
July 26, 2015
You can’t get any further from Winter’s icy grip than the middle of July. A near ninety degree Sunday calls for a simple plan, spending as much time as possible outdoors. Maybe a little yard work, to bring that Spring clean-up back on schedule, followed by a big slice of watermelon. Perfect.
photos: gp
Cheers!
July 13, 2015
Congratulations to one of my simplequietmodern favorites, Heath Ceramics, the recipients of the 2015 National Design Award for corporate and institutional achievement. You might want to celebrate along as well with a piece of two from their 2015 summer collection
From top to bottom:
The modern cup set, bud vase set and pair of cafe bowls are available for a limited time only in these refreshing glazes of mint, pomelo and storm. photos: http://www.heathceramics.com/
A Little Privacy, Please
July 8, 2015
While a fence can provide a little privacy where it’s needed, sometimes something more substantial is required. A solid wall comes to mind. But, something with a bit more panache…something with a style reminiscent of early mid-century residential architecture. This example by Kennedy Nolan Architects elevates the lowly concrete block to another level entirely. That’s a lot of style, texture and pattern based simply on a $1 brick. Brilliant.
photo: http://www.kennedynolan.com.au/
Fireflies…Fireworks…
July 3, 2015
and a long full day of July 4th celebration. Phew! I can’t think of a better way to recharge for the rest of the long weekend than in a bed dressed in these crisp, summery cotton percale sheets and shams. Now, if you’ll excuse me…
Photo: http://www.parachutehome.com/products/percale-sheets?variant=4220118657
A summer breeze…
June 26, 2015
a great view and a tall cool one. The only thing missing is a place to relax and take it all in. That’s exactly what Thomas Lee thought when he set out “planking” together what would come to be an icon of Summer while weekending in the Adirondacks in 1905. Many incarnations of this classic design have evolved over the last one hundred plus years, but none compare tho the elegant simplicity of the original. The Westport Chair…inviting you to kick off those flip-flops and sit a spell.
photos via Gardenista and Remodelista.
Into the Woods
June 17, 2015
Or, maybe the edge of a lake. With a little planning , and these plans, you’re almost there. While it might be too late for a summer get-a-way this season, you can always start scouting locations for next years weekend destination. The “Trapper” model, by Form and Forest, is just 738 square feet of simplequietmodern vacation perfection.
Renderings: http://www.formandforest.com/default.aspx
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