colorful & summery scenes

Country Living UK July 2007

 previous two photos from Joanna Henderson

Though in no particular grouping or arrangement, I liked these vignettes because they capture the summer feel. The past few days in London have not been so summery, but today seems like a turnaround! I love laid-back and relaxed sunny rooms that look like they could have come from a country home. (top three photos from UK Country Living, fourth photo from Living Etc.)

The last three photos were from the April/May issue of Lonny magazine, from Deborah Lloyd's home in upstate New York- that was my favorite feature in this issue!

Home in the Kenyan Rift Valley + one of the coolest nurseries ever

the nursery: check out the lovely foldable baby crib!

I don't post dwellings like this much. Truth is, I don't often find them in the magazines I read. This is the kind of place that wouldn't work as a living situation for most people. But the few who could learn to navigate living in the wild would reap scenery like few people ever experience, along with other rewards that may come from putting your life at nature's mercy (you can tell I don't even know what those might be). This couple is Carolyn Roumeguere and Simon Douglas-Dufresne, who both grew up with rather nomadic lifestyles, so it suits them. She designs jewelry and he sells electrical fences to game reserves.  On the edge of an escarpment overlooking the Kenyan Rift Valley they live with their baby daughter. Their home is composed of a series of detached rooms, as opposed to one large building. They enjoy the contrast of open-air rooms, but they also have modern-day conveniences like the decent plumbing, hot water and the internet! Dreamy, isn't it? (photos by Simon Upton, from Vogue, year unknown)

En plein air

I hope these photos will inspire you to set a table somewhere surrounded by trees and sky and enjoy dining outside in these last summer days! photos: Penny Wincer in Living Etc.; Christopher Drake in Open Air Living, by Enrica Stabile; bottom four photos from stylist Brian Andriola