flowers

I love to have flowers around. Just a blossom or two. Roses, a single pansy or viola, any little bit of color and scent. G's favorite is the simple happy daisy. When we moved into our house, I was blown away by two things- the swimming-pool-sized fig tree in the backyard and the two enormous Perle d'Or roses in the garden. They bloom from early March clear through November- even at Christmas, this year. I always have a few clusters of these sweetly-scented (appley?) roses in the bedroom and bathroom while they're in bloom. Often, they are in tiny little bud vases like this one. I have at least a dozen glass, silver, and ceramic bud vases, all under 4" tall, around the house. Three or four are of my own design, two are my friend Katherine's work, and I bought two of Julie Thomas's from her etsy shop that I just LOVE. My own ceramic bud vases are canvases for my love of surface decoration: fluting or slip trailing. This one, glazed in deep celadon, is hand-carved with a dozen straight lines from mouth to base.

This time of year garden flowers are in shorter supply, but the early narcissus and daffodils are coming up, the camellias are still strong, and the lovely twiggy flowering quince and forsythia are in full swing. Yesterday I was given a cluster of lilies, liatris, and my favorite spider mums by a dear friend who provided altar flowers in memory of his family. The taller stems are in a vase together on our table, but I am especially pleased to have the smaller "filler" blossoms for my bud vases this week. During the winter, when the days are as likely to be grey as not, those spots of color can really make my day.