A Novel Dinner

Come over for dinner at 6:30pm, we told our friends. That way, we can have as much time together as possible. With the kids back in school and everyone finally in the same town again, we can sit down properly and catch up on everybody's summer.

Who's ready for another cucumber martini?

(All photos by LBG.)

Here's the menu I taped to the front door. Did I mention the dinner had a literary theme?

(Created with my Bamboo pen.)

My friend Lucy hosted a wonderful potluck literary dinner recently and I was keen to come up with my own version. I made the same dish I brought to her house, my ridiculously easy "Thomas Hardy" salad, inspired by the wild, earthy Wessex landscape in The Return of the Native. 

~~~~~~~~

Thomas Hardy Salad  

by A Bloomsbury Life

1 cup cooked quinoa 

1 package wild arugula

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1 diced seedless cucumber

1 sliced avocado

1 package edible nasturtium flowers

Toss all ingredients with mustard vinaigrette.  

~~~~~~~~

I asked my husband Piero to come up with titles for his own dishes -- guacamole, roasted salmon and root vegetables -- and I love his choices, don't you?

For dessert, there were two options, one vegan and one decidedly not. For an egg-and-dairy-free friend, I made jam drop cookies that I dubbed "Walden Cookies" for their nutty simplicity (recipe HERE). The second dessert I named "Lady Chatterley's Cake" because it was a highbrow/lowbrow mix of chocolate and dark Guinness ale --  and it really did ooze with sensuality (recipe HERE). 

Listening through the window while getting dinner ready

Tantalizing bits of conversation wafted inside as Piero and I set up the kitchen for a family-style buffet. After a long summer of not doing much besides writing, it felt so wonderful to entertain again. Good friends, good food, good conversation -- as Sybille Bedford wrote in her novel Jigsaw, these are "the pointillist touches" that make life sublime.

  Boy, girl, boy, girl, please

What I treasure about having people over for dinner is the opportunity we get to actually look each other in the eye and talk about absolutely nothing in particular. There's no agenda, there's no plan, and for a brief moment in time, there's no hurry. There are a million definitions of living well, but to me, sharing a meal with friends is way up there.

"Wherever else our evening was spent would be a sense of elation,

 of being en fete, of sharing the pleasure of the moment."

Sybille Bedford, Jigsaw

Seven Cool Things to Happify Your Brain

Brains need to be nudged every now and then.
Otherwise, they're apt to wind up in front of the television watching god-knows-which incarnation of a housewives reality show.
Not good.

I confess I'm still operating under a slight summer hangover -- which I am unable to blame on caffeine or sugar anymore because I'm on day 16 of Clean. (Apparently, I was really toxic!) Below, a few things to clear your brain, jumpstart your imagination, and reinvigorate your soul.  


1. Watch it.
This video directed by Columbine Goldsmith will give you a case of the shivers in a great way. Starring the glamorous European owners of an enchanted country house in Virginia, it's a delicious manifesto to living creatively. I don't quite know how to describe it...  part Arcadian fairytale, part homage to eccentricity, it has to be seen to be believed. I'm just going to say it: Beatrix Ost is my new role model.
                  

(If the video's not coming up on your RSS feed, click HERE to see it.)

2. Drink it.

Full disclosure: Yerba maté can be an acquired taste. I inherited this cult favorite brand from a friend who thought it had the flavor profile of "front lawn." She's not totally wrong -- it does have an earthy green tea vibe that conjures up the countryside, but on third sip, I started to get into it. (Vanilla almond milk helps too.) Personally, I love that it's rich in antioxidants, gives you that caffeine "focus" without the jitters, and boosts metabolism by helping you burn calories more effectively.

3. Follow it.

I love Instagram, but find it overwhelming at times -- who should I follow? --  so I appreciate it when someone finds a great feed and then gets the word out. Emily Blincoe's poetic still-lifes on Instagram are nothing short of genius. Her encapsulations of candy, farm vegetables and people artfully illustrate that we are what surrounds us.  Someone get this woman a book. Or at least a major ad campaign.

(via)

(via)

(via)

4. Bookmark it.

Taking photographs has never been easier, so there's no excuse for poorly composed, out-of-focus shots anymore, especially if you're beaming them to the world. A Beautiful Mess has some great tips on using a flash vs. natural light, finding a color story or composition, when to crop, shooting vignettes and more. Below, a few of my favorite tutorials: 

Tips for Lifestyle Photos
Tips for Food Photography
Tips for Indoor Photos
Photographing Your Home
Ten Things Not to Do

(via A Beautiful Mess)

5. Read it.
I bought this book for myself and then made my eleven year old son read it too because I think you're never too young to look at the world through a different lens. Basically, it's a joyful exhortation to dream bigger, try new things, take risks and ignore the herd. (If that's not 6th grade, I don't know what is.) What makes it different from the rest of the books in this genre is that Paul Arden is an ad guy so his examples are short, creative and powerful -- like a quick shot of espresso rather than a carafe of French drip.  Read it in an hour and see how differently you feel.

(Available HERE and HERE)

6. Upload it.

Fancy having a free personal trainer who tells you how far you've run, how many calories you've burned and keeps track of all your workouts? Did I mention it's free? I uploaded Map My Fitness onto my iPhone this summer and have developed quite a soft spot for the kindly woman who gives me an update every time I run another mile -- in fact, sometimes I think I keep on running because of her. Map My Fitness also has a GPS tracker that shows you your real-time route, and seeing that little red line get longer and longer is strangely satisfying.

(Map My Fitness app HERE)

7. Make it.

Chances are you know about this blog already -- Food 52, the brainchild of cookery writers Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs  -- but if you don't, today's your lucky day. Loaded with beautiful photos, well-thought-out recipes and nothing too hard or complicated, it's a hands-down inspirational approach to the pleasures and passions of cooking. I love their "Not Recipes" section where they teach you how to make things without -- you guessed it -- recipes.

(How to Make Sangria Without a Recipe)

(How to Make Quinoa Salad Without a Recipe)

 (How to Make French Toast Without a Recipe)

Letting the Days Go By

How on earth did it get to be September so quickly?

Below, a recap of how I spent my three weeks of blog vacation.

*entertaining*

*Our new garden pergola is slowly becoming a chic new destination for sunset cocktails and lazy Sunday breakfasts. Still on order: French cafe chairs, lanterns, cushions, and some trailing bougainvillea vines.

*Our dining table was a gathering place for some serious quality time with friends. 

*Our formerly-scary garage has been reinvented as a combination yoga/sewing studio (for me) and Playstation nerve center (for Luca).

(All photos by LBG.)

*travelling*

Actually...I did zero travelling this summer; instead, I edited my book and spent my time wandering through over sixty classic novels. But the hills around my house are an architectural treasure trove -- in an hour's hike, it's amazing how many countries you can convince yourself you've visited.

*nesting* 

Since so much of my attention was firmly rooted indoors, I couldn't help but update a few things in my immediate sightline:

*The living room daybed is sheathed in a new French ticking stripe made by Sunbrella -- so I can't wait until the first person spills a glass of wine on it and I can sincerely tell them not to give it a second's thought. 

*My $50 flea market chair received a similar striped facelift -- along with a few vintage concert buttons so it doesn't feel too serious.

*The hall bench was recovered in a heavy gray-blue linen and then tufted to add a bit of come-hither appeal.

*exploring*

I didn't read all these books in the last three weeks, but I did read most of them this year.  And oh! the places I've been from my chair in the corner!

Note: If you ever decide you want to read Proust (and FYI,  it's worth it -- the characters are so comic with all of their gossiping and social-climbing and anxiety about being chic and cool -- it's very Woody Allen-ish, actually), I highly recommend these companion volumes:

*A Reader's Guide to The Remembrance of Things Past by Patrick Alexander -- Alexander is the super cool professor who makes sure you don't miss a beat (or theme, symbol, and motif). If you didn't read Proust in college, then you need this book.

*Paintings in Proust by Eric Karpeles -- In Search of Lost Time is such a visual odyssey and this book is lavishly illustrated with all the paintings Proust writes about. It's the next best thing to being there.

*Monsieur Proust by Celeste Albaret -- the tell-all memoir by his personal maid -- and she knew everything.

(And yes, I know Alain de Botton's book on Proust is there, too, but ehhhhh...it didn't move me.)

*living*

You know the Talking Heads song that goes:

Letting the days go by, water flowing underground,
Letting the days go by, Once in a lifetime...

Well, that's what I tried to do. Our summer involved a whole lot of nothing that somehow added up to everything.

*and paying for it*

Oh, but there were a lot of desserts this summer: home-made berry crumbles, blondie bars, trifles and more. I'm pretty sure I didn't say no to anything. Now I'm on day seven of Alejandro Junger's twenty-one day Clean cleanse and feeling -- dare I say it? -- as strong as a warrior princess from Game of Thrones. My sluggishness, foggy head and predilection for midday naps has vanished -- maybe because caffeine, sugar, white flour and dairy have too. *sigh* But to be honest, it's all good -- there's no question that my venti black coffee habit needed an intervention.

It's nice to be back.

I missed you.

What's going on? 

Are you getting ready for fall? 

x/Lisa

See the UK On Ten Dollars a Month

My Inner Voice: Explain to your readers where you've been.

Me: I've been in England.

My Inner Voice: No, you haven't.

Me: But I kind of have.

My Inner Voice: No, Lisa. You actually in point of fact have NOT.

Me: Fine. I'll explain.

I've discovered My Expat Network, the service that allows you to watch all your favorite UK shows from abroad. (Am I the only one who didn't know about this? Have you guys been holding out on me?)

(Click HERE to find out about it)

My friend Lucy told me about it last week and I've been a little bit (okay, a LOT) sidetracked ever since. For the longest time, I've been under the impression that it was impossible to stream the full breadth of UK television programming from overseas, mainly because when I try to do so on BBC's iPlayer, I get a message telling me I can't.

But not anymore.

It took all of three minutes to set up an account and get it working. And it's not expensive -- less than the price of two fancy coffees a month.

Download the program and  a red globe icon will appear in the top right-hand corner of your computer. 

Click on it, and then click "Connect" on the pop-up menu, and the globe will change to green, at which point you can are free to watch whatever BBC programs you want.

So last week I went house-shopping for a traditional farmhouse in North Devon in "Escape to the Country."  (P.S. I found one.)

(HERE.)

I let Raymond Blanc teach me a deliciously simple way to stir-fry a salad in his wonderful series, "How to Cook Well." (P.S. Raymond is fantastically enthusiastic and trés charming--even my husband was besotted.)  

(HERE.)

I took a fascinating tour of the pleasure gardens of the Taj Mahal in "Around the World in 80 Gardens." (P.S. If you're horticulture-minded, this show will slay you.)

(HERE.)

I got under the covers with Lucy Worsley to explore how the rise and fall of the royal bed has mirrored the rise and fall of the monarchy itself in "Tales from the Royal Bedchamber."   (Interesting tidbit: Chaucer weighs in.)

(HERE.)

I found why trailer vacations have captured the hearts of generations of holidaymakers in  "Caravans: A British Love Affair." (Hint: It has to do with the allure of the open road.)

 (HERE.)

I went grocery shopping with Nigel Slater and learned easy ways to make delicious food every day of the week. (Hint: Buy what catches your eye and use a little creative thinking.)

 (HERE.)

I found out what artists do all day in "What Do Artists Do All Day?" (Hint: They are endlessly curious.)

(HERE.)

Oh, the sheer joy of a discovery like this! You work hard all through the summer, you plug away at your projects and commitments, you don't take any time off to travel like you usually do, you steel yourself to deal with the dog days of August and then -- OUT OF THE BLUE -- something like this lands in your lap and makes you feel like you've been abroad since June.

Sure, it's summer and it's beautiful here in California and many people would rather be digging their toes into the sand in Malibu, or body surfing off Point Onofre, or driving up the Pacific Coast Highway on their way to a bed-and-breakfast in Ojai, but I honestly could not be happier sitting in my shady little dining room expanding my brain cells as the world unfolds before me. 

It's the little things!

x/Lisa

Editor's Note: If you live outside the United States and would like to watch US shows, click HERE.  Also, Cameron from Canada emailed me to say he's a big fan of a similar service called Tunnelbear -- thank you, Cameron!

How To Live Glamorously When You Feel Anything But

If for some reason the video below doesn't work, you can also watch it HERE.

Ten Life-Changing Lessons You Can Learn from Good Design

Good design is powerful. An artfully arranged tablescape can feel profoundly satisfying. A certain color or pattern can make your heart skip a beat. A beautiful room can make you feel that all is right with the world.

Why is this?

Is it because our brains are programmed to react emotionally to visual stimuli?

Or does good design makes us feel good for reasons that go even deeper?

I think beautiful images fill us with deep contentment because on some level they act as visual paradigms for how to live better. They have a message that goes beyond beauty alone. 

Below, some examples. 

Lesson #1: Life is too short not to get along with others.

(Interior design by Ilse Crawford. via.)

At first glance, this ornate copper tea kettle would seem to have nothing in common with the minimalist glass jar and rustic wooden chopping block. Separately, each represents a different aesthetic but together they achieve a harmony of elevating proportions, and each object is cooler because of what's next to it. 

Lesson #2: Be prepared.

(Samantha Boardman's bar. via)

You never know what life is going to throw at you.  All the more reason to not let it catch you unawares. Whether it's getting that first-aid kit together, keeping an extra jug of water in your car or stocking up on light bulbs, it pays to think ahead. 

Lesson #3: Focus on what you have. 

(Bea Pollen's home. via)

It's easy to complain about what you don't have. We've all done it. But nobody gets everything on their wish list. So gather your passions together and rejoice in what surrounds you. 

Lesson #4: Go deeper.

(via)

In your lifetime, there will be a few subjects you feel passionately about. Arts and Crafts architecture, say. Or Victorian women explorers. Or the poetry of John Betjeman. Dig as deep as you can into those points of interest. Curiosity is one of the most powerful motivators to keep one foot moving in front of the other.  

Lesson #5: Embrace darkness. 

(via)

Not everything in life can be sunlight and daisies--and that's a good thing. A little darkness now and then is essential for personal growth. It throws what's important into sharp relief, and can often be the quickest path to clarity. 

Lesson #6: Don't be afraid to be different.

(from the Instagram feed of Philip Gorrivan)

When you're young, the world is full of rules. But when you get older, you understand that a lot of them don't really mean anything. What's important is following your heart. Case in point: Matchy-matchy is overrated. 

Lesson #7: Pause along the way. 

(Hidcote Manor. Photo by Joe Wainwright.)

You've heard it before: It's the journey, not the destination that's important. So don't be in such a hurry to get somewhere that you forget to notice what's around you. You'll get there eventually, and if you don't, at least you'll have appreciated the rest stops.

Lesson #8: Create a safe place. 

(Interior design by Susan Jay. via.)

We all need a sanctuary far from the madding crowd. It doesn't have to be extravagant--a cozy chair in a quiet corner will do the trick. The point is to have a place you can rest and recharge when the world is too much with you.

Lesson #9: There's always another way to look at something.

(Interior design by Miles Redd. Photo by Jeffrey Hirsch.) 

Sometimes you can't see a way out. You're backed into a corner and you've run out of options. But there's always another approach. You might have to alter your own perspective slightly to find it. But it's there.  

Lesson #10: Never reveal everything. 

(via)

I'm a firm believer in the importance of preserving a little mystery in life. It creates intrigue, fans the appetite and keeps people wondering what's next. Just because we live in an age where everything is available at the click of a mouse doesn't mean we have to act that way. Show but don't tell. Or tell but don't show. See what happens.