So, for the reading material:

-Borders has an awesome magazine selection (rivaled, at least in Portland, only by Powell’s books) where I found this fun wedding flowers mag. It’s aptly called “Wedding flowers: your expert guide to bridal blooms” for June/July 2010. It’s British, and is connected to this website (I recommend the “Real-life flowers” section). I loved their cute ideas, and that they included some ideas for doing things smaller and more affordable.

-While we’re renting and focused on potted gardens, we’re still a little obsessed with gardens and learning as much as we can about gardening before we have a yard of our own. My in-laws got wind of this and sent me a book they just found for my birthday. It’s similar to another one we’ve found, and I’m excited to actually read this one (I just got it, so I’ve only skimmed it) because we’re pretty sure this is a style/philosophy of gardening that we want to get in to. The book is “All New Square Foot Gardening” by Mel Bartholomew. His website is a little intense, so I suggest checking out the book.

Private commission tree houses. Oh yes. My obsession as a child with outdoor “play houses” and pretending to be Tiger Lily/Mogwli/etc has translated to

French company La Cabane Percheem can make your unrealistic grownup dreams come true – check this out:

http://www.re-nest.com/re-nest/green-architect/amazing-treehouses-by-la-cabane-perchee-120872

Please enjoy these details of a bridal and bridesmaid bouquet from a wedding I did earlier this month. Hopefully more pictures from the wedding, including corsages, boutonnieres, and reception to follow!

We’ve spent past few Saturday mornings at the PSU farmers market. While I fully intend to try out as many of Portland’s markets as I can… I keep going back to the Hollywood and the PSU market. The extremely convenient locations I think are probably part of the big draw, as well as the familiarity that the Hollywood holds. The PSU market is quickly becoming familiar, but I feel like I could visit there every weekend of the  summer and still have more to try.

With hours of 8:30 – 2, open March through October, you’d think it was possible to get a taste of everything, but not only the market huge, but the vendors are all so delicious looking! I just wander around looking and sampling and taking it in.

 The PSU Farmers Market is located at Portland State University in the South Park Blocks between SW Hall & SW Montgomery. After being a student at PSU, parking on a weekend in the summer doesn’t actually feel that terrible, and there are always lots a few blocks away if you dont want to parallel park

Highlights of the PSU market:

-Potted plants and LOADS of cut flowers in addition to delicious edibles

-Eccentric and surprisingly talented local musicians scattered throughout

-Food stands for those who want more than just raw veggies and hunks of cheese or a couple of pastries (I’m good with the raw foods and cheese, myself – just give me a baguette and I’m set for the rest of the day)

-No pets and minimal children

Lowlights:

-No pets and minimal children… I’m undecided on whether or not it’s a good thing :)

I’m so torn on this! Chocolate mint looks a little taller, but Habak looks possibly fuller? If we’re judging by which herbs are crowding out others, both mints win – I had to start harvesting just to keep the chives alive.

Who do you think’s the winner?

[I also had to post a photo of my apple tree... I have 5 apples just as beautiful as this! So exciting... I hope they are able to fully mature this season.]

We just dropped the stems, leaves and flowers in the wok with some garlic, soy sauce and oil – simple and delish.

The leftover buds I added to one of my favorite vintage vases. I particularly love the tiny curly-cues.

Thank you, Alyssa, for getting married …and for choosing excellent wedding colors!

Green, brown and burnt orange might not be the first colors you would guess a June bride to choose, but Alyssa’s not one to just go with the flow. These designs were inspired by her fresh, bold style and personality: fun, beautiful, and a little unexpected. I wish you could see the rest of the decorations, too! …brown and white polka dots dinnerware and gold sparrow silhouette cut outs… It all came together perfectly.

I have a tendency to want to buy EVERY herb at the nursery… somehow we managed to finally narrow it down to three: chocolate mint, habak mint and chives. (I like chives for their lovely petite flowers, especially.)

Not sure who’s bright idea it was to plant three types of herbs in ONE pot, but we did. Above are photos of what they looked like when we planted them. Below are photos of how much they’d grown in less than two weeks.

Yeah.

So we’re taking bets on which plant will crowd the others out and dominate the pot.  Who’s your money on?

On one of the first sunny weekends in May I dragged my husband to the gardens even though we were both pretty sure the roses couldn’t possibly be blooming. We lucked out and caught a few early blossoms.

Even if you think roses aren’t your favorite, the smell alone will keep you coming back.