Café Design
Decorating Consultations

Spring Flowers for a Colorful Cottage Garden

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I receive a commission on all qualifying purchases. Thank you!

Today’s post is just as much for my benefit as I hope it is for yours. I’ve noticed a few things I’ve done wrong with my spring flowers and bulbs this year that I wish to correct in the fall, and I’m writing this as a reminder for myself. Despite some obvious setbacks, gardening in a colder New England climate (we’re zone 5b for cold hardiness, though it sometimes feels closer to zone 1) has its advantages. For one, you get 5+ months of rest from your toil, and plenty of time to learn, dream and plan all the wonderful things you’ll do with your garden come spring. Then reality kicks in and things perhaps don’t go as planned, but at least you tried. Gardening comes with a steep learning curve, but also many shortcuts and rewards.

Spring flowers in New England - Royal Star magnolia
Star magnolias in bloom
View Post

Create Academy’s 25% OFF Easter Sale

Hey friends, great news! Create Academy is having their Easter Sale right now with 25% OFF on all of their courses! If you’ve been tempted to try out one of their classes in the past, now would be an excellent time to go for it. With their exquisitely photographed and detailed courses taught by leading experts on a variety of topics that include cooking, gardening, landscape and interior design, upholstery, block printing, sewing, interior styling etc, Create Academy offers a wonderful learning opportunity to anyone looking to expand their creativity and skillset, or to just be entertained in the company of experts. Throughout this post I’ve highlighted some of my favorite courses but there are many more to chose from. You can access the sale HERE, or by any of the links in this post, using the code SPRING25 at checkout. The sale ends on April 11th.  Happy learning!

Grow a Spectacular Garden in Pots by Arthur Parkinson

View Post

Renovating a Cape Cod Style Cottage | Living Room | Choosing Paint Colors

Hey friends! Hope you’re enjoying a fun weekend, wherever you are. It’s a clear day with lots of sunshine here in Western Mass, though hats and gloves are still a must, and rosy cheeks and cold noses are pretty much the rule.  There’s a lot going on at our house and in our neighborhood these days. We recently joined a Buy Nothing Giveaway Facebook group and this morning participated in our first neighborhood event. We set up a station at the end of our driveway and pilled it high with things we were ready to part with, sort of. I gave away all my duck prints and decoys (reluctantly) and passed on my waterfowl obsession to a sweet old lady who took the whole bunch. Giving up something you really like sucks, but it can also be freeing (and creates room for new obsessions 🙂 ).

Our living room, and my ducks, two houses ago
View Post

Last Week’s Finds

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn a commission on all qualifying purchases. Thank you!

Last week was a sad one for the interior design industry, marked by the passing of Suzanne Rheinstein, the legendary decorator based in Los Angeles and mother of Kate Rheinstein Brodsky. The news comes just one week after the release of Suzanne’s book, A Welcoming Elegance, which features some of Rheinstein’s best and most recent work, including her Montecito home. Tributes have been written in all the major design publications and her friends and family have filled social media with memories of her gracious personality, kindness and immense talent. The design world has lost a great one.

View Post

Victoria Hagan x The Shade Store

Earlier this month, esteemed interior designer Victoria Hagan announced the expansion of her previous collaboration with The Shade Store – a leading name in the world of custom window treatments – with an exclusive array of luxurious materials that have a timeless sensibility rooted in tradition, yet feel fresh and modern, and relevant to a multitude of decorating styles. Hagan’s work has been inspirational for designers worldwide, and her soft and subtle approach to decorating have made her an excellent example of a decorator who can design both modern and traditional interiors. For today’s design story, I thought we could all have a peek inside her latest fabric collection.

View Post