Sunday, March 4, 2012

lovejoy














 on saturday...

in a 'midnight in paris' sort of way, i spent the day with someone i've long admired, author and illustrator, sharon lovejoy. the top photo shows a few of her books that i've collected over the years.
can i just say,

eeeeepps!

she came to my town to visit a friend that had recently relocated here, and i was invited to join them. riding
my bike to town, i could feel the butterflies developing in my tummy. but, as soon as i rode up and found sharon with a garden hose in her hand and a smile on her face, i was at ease. oh my friends, what a day we had, we visited here here here, and here and more. and in that same 'midnight in paris' way, i found a wonderfully kind, sweet, charming, easy to talk with and easy to love, person. (if you haven't seen the movie, it's partly about an ordinary person that meets famously talented people, and finds common ground, and a friend, it's brilliant).




and then on sunday...





a gift of painted lady runner beans

while we were shopping, i found this wooden spool in a basket. an old spool with aged pink thread, carefully wound and saved. a precious reminder to reuse, recycle, and to go gently on this earth.


 i spent the day looking through sharon's books. and then looking at my neglected garden, thinking what would she do? i decided on a spot to plant the painted lady runner beans she gave me, and i picked some freesia to bring inside. but. i am not the gardener sharon is, i wonder if she would like to trade gardening lessons for knitting lessons?    :)

to visit sharon lovejoy, you can find her here
and here, and her books here
xxx lori

p.s. my kids say thank you for all the kind words on the new zealand post!

39 comments:

  1. Lucky you, Lori! A visit like that sounds serendipitously lovely ~ is that a word? And to come away with seeds to plant is a treasure to endure forever...happy gardening.
    xo Jules

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  2. i hope i am the first to comment :^)

    oh how orgasmic to think about spending an afternoon with you and ms. lovejoy (I hope SOMEBODY is laughing at my choice of word) !

    i am especially fond of ms sharon lovejoy in the same way i am especially fond of ms. lori graham. both have enriched my life in small and large ways and i will use charm and bribes as needed to hold on to these two amazing inspiring talented joyful women.

    i have no doubt ms lovejoy has plenty magical to say about spending this time with ms. graham.

    and i, ms kj, look forward to another day when there is three.

    your photos tell such a fine tale, ms. graham.

    with love
    ms kj

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  3. How wonderful Lori!!
    I love her beautiful books, what a joy to spend a day with her.
    xo
    Linda

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  4. Here on my distant shores I have not come around to Her books, but will be on the lookout. With your pictures and words (those freesias! The lemons - everything!) you make me all itchy for gardening again, only we still have night frosts. But the sun climbs higher every day, so soooooon!
    You are too quick with your posts, I also wanted to comment on your fabulous son and the two other daredevils. Such a small pond to jump into! But I BET it is fun. What a lovejoy to be young and daring!

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  5. Sounds like a fabulous day. And those freesias are so sunny! xx

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  6. Sounds wonderful :) Freesias are my favourite flower, I adore the smell (and the yellow ones always smell best!)

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  7. Lovely images and words, as always. Useable gifts are the best kind, their presence always reminds you of that person every time you look at them.

    Also enjoyed the NZ-post, looked like so much fun!

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  8. It sounds Lori like you had the most wonderful of weekend's. I guess my reading and gardening knowledge has been lacking as I had not heard of Ms. Lovejoy until this post. I know judging from the stack of your books that she is someone I need to become familiar with so I will 'force' myself to visit Amazon and place an order! :)
    Enjoy this Monday!

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    Replies
    1. tracey, may i suggest starting with sunflower houses, it's her first, and a classic. i know you'll LOVE it!

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  9. I don't know her, Lori, but now I will try and find some of her books. I have to admit to being a much better gardener in SoCal than I am here. I think part of it is that everything DIES here each winter - lol! I just can't get used to thinking of geraniums as annuals! That being said, I want to plant a small (small) Victory garden this year. We'll see how that goes. :) I missed a post! I'm going back to read it. xoxo Pam

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    1. pam, sharon lives (and gardens) half the year in maine, i bet she'd have good advice for you!

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  10. I'm happy to hear you had so wonderful weekend! Your photos are again just amazing and so adorable! I like gardening if I 'find time' from sewing.
    Enjoy your week - perhaps in the garden with sunshine! x Teje

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  11. Oh, Lori, what a wonderful opportunity and day you must have had. I've seen her books about but never purchased any of them. With your glowing recommendation I may just do that. :)

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  12. What beautiful flowery images, and clearly an amazing weekend. Here in the UK I hadn't heard of Sharon Lovejoy's books, but a quick glance at Amazon tells me they are available. If only I could grow lemons and fressia in our climate!

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  13. Fantastic photos and I almost felt the butterflies as well. I bet you will never forget this weekend! I hope your beans grow :)

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  14. Gah! I love Sharon! She signed books down here once at a little cottage where I was giving a bookmaking workshop. She is so amazing - what a lovely day you must have had!

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  15. What a fantastic weekend you had! The photos are just so lovely.

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  16. What a weekend!!! Toad Cottages is one of my FAVORITE books; the grandkids and I have shared this one over and over and is a book I often give a new grandma! And can you believe I got my copy of Sunflower Houses from a library book sale?--they got rid of it!!!!!! Can't imagine!!! But, oh, to meet Sharon--and spend the day with her!!! What a treat you will relive over and over!! Yes, Midnight in Paris--you think maybe it was a dream....but it WASN"T!!!! And you'll be sure once those bean start growing--and flowering!!

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  17. How exciting! I have one of her books and was just pulled it off the shelf last week to look through for inspiration. Good luck with your scarlet runners!

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  18. Hello Lori Ann

    We share the same love for a wonderful friend...I have visited Sharons blog for quite some time now and I have got to know the most special kindered spirit. She oozes love for the very Earth we all live on. Her writing and her knowledge of flowers and outdoor gardening is inspiring. I was fortunate enough to have won her signed copy of the Tasha Tudor cooking book last year. I was over joyed as Tasha Tudor and I share some heavenly connection too. I would have loved to have joined you for tea then.

    Your photographs always make me want to pass by and sit a while...

    Love to you
    Suzanne
    X

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  19. What a beautiful post Lori (as always ;)! Anyone who would title a book "Toad Cottages & Shooting Stars" would just have to be a delightful person. I'm going to hop over to Amazon and look at her books.
    I'm not much of a gardener either, but I did harvest a cauliflower from my 'garden' (ahem) yesterday, and we had it for dinner last night! I planted it last Sept. thinking it would be ready to harvest by first frost, but 6 months later, we have a cauliflower -- who knew ;)?
    Happy week to you Lori,
    G

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  20. wow! what beautiful freesia though! how fun to meet an inspiration to you. i'm sure you'll do something cool in your garden this spring now.

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  21. Aaaaaaaahhhh! You had a most perfect weekend! How wonderful! Those photos are stunning. Love the sleepy kitty. And oh my goodness, the vases with the painted trees are exquisite! Enjoy your freesia. I can almost smell them from here.

    xoxo

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  22. I ♥ the idea of bartering knitting lessons for gardening lessons. Lovely photos...I didn't know freesia was YELLOW.

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  23. Dear Lori,

    Saturday was wonderful. I am so happy you finally met Ginny and that we all had a great time together. If I lived in Carp, or if Carp was just a bit closer, I'd be signed up for one of your upcoming classes at fabulous Roxanne's.

    Thank you for your caring and dear words about our day. Let's have tea (a necessary splurge) at The Rose Story. Wouldn't that be great??

    Love,

    S

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  24. What a lovely post. Are those bright pink, blossomy branches redbuds? I love freesia too and your pictures are heavenly.

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  25. It looked like an absolutely perfect day, so glad you enjoyed it, thank you for sharing !

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  26. It is alway wonderful to meet someone you admire and find they are a kindred spirit.xoxo

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  27. Oh my! What a special few days for you, Lori. I have several of her books too and love them. Can't wait to see those runner beans blooming! Such bright and cheerful freesia. And I love the wonderful sun shining in many of your photographs. Really lifts the spirit!

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  28. Oh dear, Lori, please leave a silly comment for me because I feel like I invited myself for next time

    Plus maybe I said a bad word... :-)

    Xo

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  29. What a special time. The flowers, the beans? Ahhh... lovely!

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  30. Thank you for sharing about your day with Sharon Lovejoy. What a wonderful way to express how you were feelings by comparing it to the movie A Midnight in Paris. Lori, I had a similar experience when meeting Sharon at the Kindergarten Forum -- a small gathering in Saratoga at the home of a kindred spirit, Betty Peck. I, too, had read Sharon’s books, magazine columns and blogs. When I arrived early at the Forum and came face-to-face with Sharon, I found her to be extremely friendly and personable (also her husband Jeff was equally genuine). Lori, thank you for your informative and heart-felt writing, accompanied by the most beautiful pictures. I thoroughly enjoy reading AND seeing each of your blog entries. xx

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  31. Dear Lori,
    Any friend of dear Sharon is a friend of mine. How lucky you were to spend a day with she and Jeff...I also had the immense pleasure of meeting the two of them on Cape Cod two summers ago in June when she was doing a workshop on her last book tour. Like you, I have many of Sharon s books... They are signed by her and I treasure each one. Lovely, down to earth Sharon...Lovejoy indeed!!!
    Nice to meet you here on your lovely blog. I am your newest follower and I was happy to * meet * you at Dandelion House! Thank you! Have a wonderful day!
    Deb

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  32. What a wonderful thing, to meet someone you have long admired and to get on so well! Such an amazing experience. Your sunny photos look so happy, the beans, the books and the flowers all look wonderful! Thank you for sharing such interesting posts, Lori.
    Have a happy day!
    Helen x

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  33. What a joy! I love her writing and if she is half as wonderful as she writes, you must have had a wonderful day. I hope your runner beans grow big and tall, attract lots of mini beasts and provide you with wonderful beans.

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  34. What a dreamful (is that a word? if not, I just made it up) weekend, Lori! I'm so glad that meeting one of your heroes went so well (that's always nerve-racking) and your pictures are so inspiring and gorgeous (the cat is my favorite... but then, pictures of cats are always my favorite pictures.)

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  35. It's so nice to meet an author and find them just as charming in real life as they are on the page.

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  36. Oh my, I can just feel your bliss from here! I know meeting YOU was just as magical for her ;)

    Special times Lori. I'm happy you had this day which made new memories for you.

    xo
    Lo♥

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xoxo lori