a little more farm tour...

The philosophy of Philosophy Farm:
"Beauty is not a luxury, it is a necessity."
SH Nasr

Another farm with a beautiful mix of flowers, vegetables and herbs. You won't find a straight row of corn here. You will find very kind and interesting owners that are happy to share their knowledge and garden with you.

And what about that cattle corral turned on it's side for the garden entrance?! Love it.

family farm tour

The Family Farm Tour stretched out over six counties but the ride through the mountains was part of the fun. Gorgeous. AND...at least ten degrees cooler than it was at home.

One of our first stops was in Barnardsville. Hawk and Ivy's organic garden was a beautiful mix of flowers, herbs, fruits and vegetables. The owner/gardener/artist/cook/bee-keeper is very active in the slow food movement and offers cooking and gardening classes at the B&B. They also host weddings and other special events on the property and in their terrific old tobacco barn.

So worth the trip and don't you know the breakfast part of this bed and breakfast must be healthy good and delicious?!

today at earlesdale...

The Hyder's are taking out old pitiful shrubs/stumps/roots and working on better drainage around the house. Not the most exciting part of a landscape project but one of the most important.

farmer's market

Can you see how many people there are at the downtown market?! The market has grown so much since my last visit. There were two entire blocks of Main Street full of fresh produce and people. Lovely. I bought my first local tomatoes of the season, silver queen corn, purple garlic AND an orchid. What a wonderful morning!

Also, thought you might be interested in the Family Farm Tour that's happening this weekend in western NC. It looks a lot like the upstate tour that we had a few weeks ago...only bigger.

Hope your week is off to a fantastic start!

first

The very first tomato in our garden.

Last year we had a row of zinnias and a few dill plants...this year the zinnias and dill reseeded ALL OVER the garden. It's not a neat and tidy garden because I just can't bear to pull up the happy flowers or the dill which also turns into a lovely flower.

Tomorrow morning we're going to the downtown market in Greenville. I'm hoping for some big RED tomatoes! We'll also be stopping by Mast General Store to see Lily Pottery's trunk show. LOVE her jewelry and wall pockets and magnets!

Hope your weekend is wonderful!

friends from A&L

Photo from our "Friends at Art and Light" show.
(leslie, laurie, jl and teressa)

T. came to Gowensville/Campobello this week for a little visit.
Love spending time with that girl...her creative energy is contagious!
You can see some wonderful photos from the trip on her blog.
Just wait until you see Laurie's house.
It's really nice in LaLaland!
Looking forward to some fun collaborations with these girls.
Have a terrific Thursday!

HAPPY birthDAY

Someone is turning twenty-one.
Now, she may have other (???) ideas on how to celebrate the day but her very smart and thoughtful mom decided that this was the way to mark the day.
Hope your day is happy!

Jay

Good morning!
This is our window sill at the kitchen sink.
Jay Owens pottery...makes me happy. LOVE his work!
The colors, shapes and drawings that he does on his pottery are wonderful!
He gave us a pair of the hot-dog cups after the Earlesdale Art Sale
because Andy was in charge of the refreshment stand. How nice was that?!
I'm sure to be showing you more from this fantastic fella because
I just can't get enough myself.
-enJOY your day!

Cola

We made it to Columbia for the Turner-Cezanne exhibit before it closed and I'm so glad that we did.
The show was magnifique!
And how about right outside the museum...super cool library and main street?!

Hope your Monday is magnifique!!

here's to...

DRU!
Our dear little niece graduated this week from high school.
She's off to Johnson and Wales in the fall.
She's going to be a pastry chef.
SWEET!
(just like her!)

forever...never

Could this handwriting be any more beautiful?! And what about those stamps?!
I found Jenna's website through the Lovely Morning blog.
I did a lot of practicing for the cursive J necklace but it's nowhere near as dreamy as Jenna's calligraphy.
I think she should write me a letter. (no, I don't know her)
I'm always hopeful that something good will be in our huge mailbox and I love it when people use fun stamps. I know the forever stamps are the smart choice but they will never be my choice.

farm tour

We went to the Barrioz Gardens and the Clemson University Student Organic Farm.

Clemson's CSA is definitely something to look into if you live anywhere near the campus! Their Campus Supported Agriculture is based on Community Supported Agriculture programs where a yearly fee gets you a box of produce each week. At Clemson, you receive whatever produce is in season that week PLUS herbs, zinnias, sunflowers AND free range eggs! They also have a farmer's market every Wednesday afternoon.

Maybe a Wednesday trip to the Botanical Garden AND the market???