Design Challenge

Remember my poor despised front room that I talked about here?

I’m still working on getting a picture in my head of what I want that room to be when it’s all grown up!

Debra at Common Ground has agreed to help me out as part of her Design Challenge feature today.

I hope you’ll come on over to see more pictures of my now (mostly) naked front room, and help me figure out what to do with it!

Click here.

A Beautiful Summer

The pears are being harvested in the valley, marking the first taste of autumn. 

We had a beautiful summer. It was filled with our favorite summer things, but nothing compared to sharing it for the first time with our son and daughter. 

Here are a few pictures from our summer.  

The four of us. xo

A picnic out by the grape vines under the large fir tree. 

First bouquet of peonies. 

Out by the lilacs. 

Graham and Mike in the hammock. 

First green bean.

Out to the garden in the evening to pick tomatoes for dinner.

Evening light on the porch. 

A bouquet of hot pink peonies from the garden... 

... and all white shelves for summer.

First teeth. 

Margaret in her crib. 

A growing armful. 

Companions.

Father and son. 

Bombshell hydrangea - a new variety to love. 

Happy Fall! 

LEIGHTON HOUSE MUSEUM ..........

On Friday, we went to Leighton House Museum which is the former studio/house of the Victorian artist Lord Frederic Leighton ( 1830-1896 ). It is located on the edge of London's Holland Park with sumptuous interiors and paintings by Leighton and his contemporaries including John Everett Millais, Edward Burne-Jones and George Frederick Watts.

The museum provides an unforgettable insight into Leighton's private world and is a unique venue for the understanding and appreciation of Victorian art and architecture.

I started to take some photographs and all of a sudden this very angry woman came rushing up to me and told me off !! She told me that photography wasn't allowed and she followed me for the remainder of my time there !! At least she didn't take my camera and smash it ! The following are what I managed to take before I was found out. There aren't any of the upstairs, as she had got my number by then !

From the outside of the house, you would never guess how beautiful the interior is. Although the experience wasn't quite as good as my favourite house in Spitalfields ..... Dennis Sever's House ..... but, it is well worth a visit.
Also, it is situated in one of the most salubrious parts of London. Here are just a few of the wonderful houses that we passed .....

..... on our way to .....

but, that's another story .....

image 1: via gutenburg, image 3: via what to do, image 4: via The Gaurdian, all other images by me.