Casa Milà is a Modernista building in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It was the last private residence designed by architect Antoni Gaudí. Built between 1906 and 1912, the building was commissioned by Roser Segimón and her second husband Pere Milà in 1905 with the intention of living on the main floor and renting out the rest of the apartments, hence the Casa Milà, the new home of the Milà family. The building is popularly known as La Pedrera (the stone quarry), in reference to its unconventional rough-hewn appearance.
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ABOUT A MONTH ago, I wrote about my many misadventures at the hair salon. That article resonated with many of you, so I thought that I'd share with you the funny habit I have of documenting the exact way my hair looks following these salon appointments.
THESE LINKS COME to you late, as the short trip we made to Edinburgh to visit family ended up spiralling into chaos due to the heat wave over these past three days. We left for the city on Sunday morning and were only supposed to stay one night, but the temperature rose on Monday and created mayhem⏤schools were closed, shops were shut, people stayed home from work, and trains, tubes, and subways were cancelled.
IT'S STRAWBERRY SEASON and Wimbledon, which can only mean one thing: strawberries and cream. Have you been watching the tennis? Also, Summer Solstice was just a couple of weeks ago and we said a bittersweet good-bye to the longest day of the year. Here is a little of our lately: homemade gazpacho and June rose; pints on a sunny pub terrace and wildflower meadows; friendly llamas and gin and tonics and so much more...
OUR FACES are golden on noses and cheekbones, our shoulders bronzed from the past week of hot summery weather. Just as we promised, we spent every single day outdoors, working on camp chairs in new exotic locations throughout the week and ending with dinners on the back terrace on the weekend. Once, we even had a barbecue along the river, our first and possibly only of the summer?
A FEW MONTHS ago I turned a tall shelf on its side to use a console, leaving the now vertical shelf spaces below for storage. It looked good on top, but the spaces below looked cluttered, so I thought about getting a curtain made to hide everything. I was thinking about how, in European kitchens, the lower cupboards are often covered using curtains instead of cupboards, and always liked the idea for its versatility: just change up the fabric from a stripe to a floral for an entirely new look, or swap linen for silk to go from casual to formal ...
YESTERDAY a huge delivery box arrived, filled with protein powder, organic raw cacao nibs, almond butter and other whole/health food items. It was good to be back on a regular workout routine after last weekend's excursion to Edinburgh (inadvertently) during the heatwave. It's nearly the end of July already and doesn't the summer seem to be flying by?
THE WEATHER has been amazing over the past few days, so the weekend was, of course, perfect. We spent most of it outside, eating gazpacho and watermelon, talking of our upcoming travels and plans and places we want to visit, such as Villa di Geggiano, an Italian restaurant in Chiswick. We also talked about books and films, and well, pretty much everything.
BY PURE COINCIDENCE, I recently watched both It's Complicated, the 2009 film with Meryl Streep, Steve Martin, and Alec Baldwin; and Father of the Bride, the 1991 film with Steve Martin and Diane Keaton. Now everyone knows that when you watch Nancy Meyers films, the interiors nearly steal every scene (remember the charming cottage in The Holiday?), so when I came across the writer-director-producer's redecorated Los Angeles home, of course I had to have a peek, especially since she worked with LA-based interior designer Mark D. Sikes, whose work has been featured here many times.
JUST A FEW SNAPSHOTS of the things we've been up to this past July, including a quick trip to Edinburgh that ended up taking longer due to the heatwave, so iced coffees on the morning of the day that we were supposed to return home; pink English roses in the bright June sun and Sweet Potato, Ginger & Garlic Tofu Stew (with Lime and Spinach) ...
TWO WEEKS AGO, when we were in Edinburgh meeting up with P's brother, I got terrible blisters on my feet wearing the new espadrilles I'd ordered a few days earlier. I was really surprised (and a little confused) because I've had many pairs of espadrilles before and none of them ever gave me any trouble. I thought that maybe I should have broken them in more before the trip, but then I read recently about how many people have been having similar foot trouble getting back into regular shoes again after three years of wearing slippers, trainers, and other comfortable footwear during lockdown ...
I HAD THIS recipe for Vegan Gluten-Free Butterfingers saved on Instagram for a while now, waiting for the chance to pick up all the ingredients and the time to make them. Today, everything fell into place and I decided to make them this afternoon and it was one of the easiest recipes I've ever made. They turned out perfectly and were completely delicious! There are only five ingredients, so if you're not the best in the kitchen (like me), you'll still be able to make them without any issues.
HEARD ON A podcast that Napoleon hired someone to read books to him while doing mundane tasks like brushing his teeth. P listens to podcasts while shaving and cooking, and I've begun listening to an economics podcast while putting on makeup. I still read only books and my Kindle though⏤no audio books for me.
OUR COUNTRYSIDE village has these charming events and one of them, which happens every year, is a Midsummer's Evening and this year, it was held last Thursday, one day after the Summer Solstice. There were food trucks and folk dancers and face-painting. All the shops were opened late and there was live music (a cover band act).
