Happy weekend, friends!
It’s officially summer, and we’ve got a heatwave to prove it.
It’s Saturday and time to rendezvous-vous with Elizabeth and Kim.
It’s Weekend Meanderings.
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Monica Vargas Photography
The Bay Area is in a celebratory mood.
Our Golden State Warriors won the Championship (again).
Sorry, not sorry.
In other sports news, the Stanley Cup playoffs are STILL going.
It’s bizarre to see hockey played in Florida at any time.
But in late June?!
This may surprise you but I’m a huge hockey fan.
Last weekend I recommended The New Design Rules by Emily Henderson.
I read through it again this week.
It’s an incredible resource for anyone working on decorating or renovating their home.
Ok, enough of that, let’s get to it!
MY SUMMER ENTERTAINING ESSENTIAL
Snowberry is ready for summer entertaining. And hosting a cocktail hour is my favorite way to have people over. Not being an effortless entertainer, cocktail hour feels easy, relaxed, and manageable. Mix a signature drink, pour some wine, make simple finger foods, put on a great playlist add a few friends around the fire table and it’s a good time. When it comes to drinks, I’m one of those people who follows guests around discretely placing cocktail napkins under glasses. And I like real napkins. The paper ones are fun, and I love a good saying as much as the next person, but if it’s a small group, or just me and Jim, I get out the cloth napkins. My blue and white set from Serena & Lily is dwindling and they don’t make them anymore. So, I’m in search of new options. I started looking and fell down a rabbit hole. Now I can’t decide what napkins to buy. Here are two of my favorites … these cute lemon napkins and these blue and white ginger jars. Look at these hydrangeas. It’s hard to resist a pretty monogram. Or a dog motif. And these are fun for 4th of July. See what I mean, so many great choices.
In the paper variety, Serena & Lily has a couple of very pretty options.
Coasters can work too, but they need to be made of something absorbent like these woven coasters from Serena & Lily. There’s nothing worse than picking up your glass and finding your coaster still attached. Ok, there are worse things, but you know what I mean.
SUMMER WEDDING GUEST ENSEMBLE NO. 5,326 (kidding)
Want to see another wedding guest dress option? Oh good …
It’s been three weeks since niece Sophie’s (and Chad’s) wedding. Their wedding photos are back and they’re so good. I can’t wait to share them with you along with all the wedding details, and Sophie’s tips and tricks for planning a small and intimate family wedding. Stay tuned.
Taylor Brooke Photography
Next up, niece Megan and her fiancé Greg. Their big day is about two months away. And I have my outfit planned. The dress code is a semi-formal. And the wedding will be outdoors in a vineyard. It will probably be blazing hot very warm. This is what I’ve got planned.
Dress / Sandals / Bag / Earrings / Bracelet / Ring / Nail Polish 1 / Nail Polish 2
The dress is lightweight and shear. And I think I’ll be fine in the heat.
You guys, Megan’s wedding is our last wedding of the year. I’m going to be so sad when it’s over. I love love love weddings and every day I walk to the mailbox in high hopes of finding a new invitation. Need additional guests at your wedding? Look no further. Have dresses, will travel.
SUMMER READING
Have you been to see Downton Abbey: A New Era yet? Shockingly, I have not. Maybe this weekend. And that brings me to summer reading. There are so many summer reading lists out there. But allow me to suggest something different. Julian Fellows (Downton Abbey creator) debut novel, Snobs. It’s one of the best books I’ve ever read. I don’t mean best like in the War and Peace sense, but in the most enjoyable lightweight-guilty-pleasure-fiction category. I’ve been raving about this book to anyone who will listen since it came out in 2004. It drives me insane that so few have heard of it, read it, or show much interest. What really shocks, and offends my delicate sensibilities, is that it has NOT been made into a movie or limited TV series. Hello Netflix? It has everything one wants in a summer read. Rich people in the form of the British aristocracy, an old manor house setting, a courtship between a Marquess’ son and a middle-class girl, a marriage, a shocking affair and, of course, a happy ending.
If you haven’t read Snobs, PLEASE do. And then let’s discuss! It should be a movie, right? Here’s my fantasy casting … Siena Miller as Edith Lavery, a young Dan Ackroyd as Charles, Earl Broughton, Holland Taylor as the Marchioness of Uckfield, and a young Simon MacCorkindale as Simon Russel.
BE MY GUEST WITH INA GARTEN
Did you know Ina Garten has a new streaming series? It’s called Be My Guest with Ina Garten and there are four episodes so far. (We need more.) She’s hosting a podcast too, of the same name, and there are currently five episodes available. Yay!
In each show Ina invites a guest to her fabulous kitchen and entertaining ‘barn’ in East Hampton to cook, chit chat and make cocktails. From Margaritas to Bourbon Sidecars, Julianna Margulies to Chef Erin French it’s as delightful as it gets. The four episodes can be found OnDemand and streaming (is that the same thing?). It’s so good and worth watching again and again.
Ina has a new cookbook coming out in October. You can pre-order it here.
I have every single Barefoot Contessa cookbook. My favorite Ina recipes are her Skillet-Roasted Lemon Chicken, Green Beans Gremolata (a Thanksgiving staple) and Chocolate Ganache Cake. What are yours?
DIRTY SHIRLEY, THE DRINK OF SUMMER
Described as ‘a syrupy-sweet nostalgia trip for adults’, a Dirty Shirley is a TikTok sensation and THE drink of summer. I loved Shirley Temples as a kid and felt very sophisticated ordering one when joining the adults for cocktail hour. My nieces loved Shirley Temples too, while Kyle enjoyed a Roy Rogers (check out the Twisted Roy Rogers on TikTok). Last night was cocktail night at Snowberry and I made Dirty Shirley’s. You can find the recipe here. I didn’t hate it. But I didn’t love it either. As the description says, it’s syrupy sweet. If you’re not into super sweet drinks try going light on the Grenadine and substituting Luxardo Maraschino Cherries for the traditional grocery store variety. It might help.
Watch my Cocktail Night at Snowberry Dirty Shirley video here.
Have you tried the Dirty Shirley? What do you think?
And on that note, let’s get on with the weekend.
But first, let’s see what Kim and Elizabeth have for us today!
In other news ~
- This week on the blog Snowberry’s traditional main bathroom reveal. A long overdue continuation of our main bedroom suite renovation including the walk-in closet. I know you’ll be on pins and needles.
- You won’t believe this amazing kitchen (and home) featured on the cover of the April/May House Beautiful. It’s here in Northern California, but I’ll be you think its a DeVol Kitchen in London. Swoon.
- I would kill for this Z.d.G. dinnerware created by Herbert de Givenchy’s niece-in-law inspired by the gardens at his home, Le Jonchet, outside Paris. Outrageously expensive but it costs nothing to look.
- Why, oh why, do people demolish beautiful, historic homes? The saga of this 1941 regency revival home on famed N. Roxbury Drive in Beverly Hills is a heartbreaker. Current owner, Stub Hub’s founder, Eric Baker, received the ok to bring in the bulldozers. Only one city council member voted to save it. Sad. Accordinging to Zillow, Mr. Baker paid $39,145,000 for the home in late 2020 and has been fighting to demolish it ever since. This is an old real estate listing, but the few photos evoke the glamour of Old Hollywood.
As always, I appreciate your visit and welcome your thoughts in the comments below.
Cheers from Snowberry!
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