Monday, March 30, 2009

In the orangerie...


I was potting up a few small plants (from cuttings) & thought for the millionth time since I was a child, oh wouldn't it be lovely to have a small greenhouse, conservatory, l'orangerie? Whatever you want to call it, that's what I thought immediately upon seeing this vintage Vogue 1949 photograph with the palms & other plants in the background. The provenance of the peasant-type top is uncertain but let's say she discovered a bit of Fortuny silk in her steamer trunk & used it for this...(it's 1948 & she's been separated from her belongings during the war). The photo of the old Italian pots reminds me of the smaller ones I have from Washington Cathedral's now-defunct (boo!) greenhouse & potting shed. They made their own pots (I know!)...started by the original Italian stonecutters who moved here to build the Cathedral. It will be awful the first weekend of May without a real Flower Mart since it began in the 1930s. I do worry about Katherine of Tarragon, the resident Cathedral herb garden/greenhouse cat. She must miss her run of the Cathedral & grounds. Poor lamb.

(second photo from Domino Deco file)

1 comment:

The Clever Pup said...

Catherine of Tarragon - you crack me up! That's so cute, and I only use that word once or twice a year.

I was in Regensburg where they have their own amazing masonry shop at the Cathedral. I love discovering these gorgeous, necessary, esoteric things.