So how are you spending the last weekend of summer?  I’ll be deadheading  plants, doing laundry and generally catching up after yet another trip to Utah. Three family weddings (including Will’s) had me flying into the Beehive State once a month over the summer.

On a clear day, the descent into Salt Lake City is quite lovely.  The evaporation ponds on the northeast side of the Great Salt Lake are colored in vivid shades of red, green and purple caused by the minerals left over after evaporation (above).  This last trip, however, smoke from fires in surrounding states placed a gray filter over the view.  Here’s what the descent looked like last Friday.

Things didn’t clear up much over the weekend but by Tuesday when I flew home there was a hint of blue sky and more of that jewel-like aerial art. Much better.  (Any wedding metaphor here? Well, I’d advise all the newlyweds to let the smoke clear when assessing their fledgling marriages.)

Which reminds me that you might be interested in following THE.JEFFERSON.GRID on Instagram to see artful square mile aerial shots from Google Maps (thanks for the tip, Claire). Here are a few other things worth looking at this week:

The elegant graphics of the digital game Prune.

Stylish self-watering planters.

Graphic contemporary quilts at a relatively good price point (speaking as a quilter.)

This guy’s explanation for how his email ended up on the Ashley Madison website.

How the modern dating crisis plays out in Mormon and Jewish cultures (thanks, Syd.)

The bias against air conditioning (not new, but of interest since we’re thinking about adding air conditioning to our home.)

Theo Jansen’s eerily beautiful Strandbeests strolling on the beach.

Pep Talk Generator.

And finally, the song of my summer was on the playlist of every wedding we attended.  It’s been a hit with the next generation ever since they saw their uncle M.J. boogie down to “Brick House” at Sydney’s wedding three years ago.

 Happy Last Weekend of Summer All!

A friend who grew up here in the Bay Area says it’s the smell of eucalyptus and fog in the air that tell her she’s home.  Another, who spent childhood weekends at a family beach house, says it’s the sound of the ocean and the smell of woodsmoke.  And another who hails from the Northwest says it’s a lush “green-ness” that feels most familiar and reassuring. What does “home” look, feel, smell or sound like to you?

Here are a few other things that peaked my interest over the past few weeks:

Did you know that once upon a time the Dalai Lama also rode a ski lift to the top of a mountain?

Here’s how recalling a childhood home can spur more recent memories.

Daily floral paintings herald spring.

A touching toast to toast.

This recipe for Carrot-Coconut Soup was easy (everything I needed right here on hand) and delicious.

By all accounts, L’Wren Scott (who also grew up Mormon in the Intermountain West) was a charming, unusual beauty making unusually beautiful things. What more would she have done?

You may recall from my last post that I was intrigued by chef David Lebovitz’s extensive packing list. A few days later I volunteered to help my sister-in-law Connie, also a top-notch baker, create some desserts for my niece’s wedding in Idaho. Her packing list was equally impressive.

Connie’s mini-van was filled with kitchen implements like tools to cut and roll and form tart shells. There were jelly roll pans to make enormous sheet cakes, cutters to create perfect parfait cake circles, and whisks to make fantastic fillings. There were tiny spoons and great swaths of table decorating fabrics. There were even snacks–like freshly squeezed tangerine juice, pretzel goldfish and almonds–for the kitchen crew.

Grateful that I was just the help and not the dessert table mastermind, I was nevertheless inspired to pitch in with other meals.  After the last tart pan was thoroughly dried and returned to the van, I made this simple apple salad with walnuts and lime as part of a post-wedding dinner.  It’s one of those dishes that’s easy to execute even without the exact recipe. And for those of us who travel a little more lightly, you can use any old paring knife and baking sheet to make the salad.

In other news, my interview with Pottery Barn and Williams-Sonoma Home Executive Vice President Monica Bhargava is up over at William-Sonoma Inc.’s Designer Marketplace if you’re interested in what one of the retail world’s top tastemakers is saying about trends in furniture design. Also, find out which WSHome products Bhargava uses in her own home!

The night before our wedding, my oh-so-chic Aunt Carole and Uncle Curtis gave us an elegant bud vase made by the Stueben Glass company. Recognizing that we didn’t have a clue about fine art glass, they let us know that this little vase was something of value. That it might be an heirloom someday. We took note and carefully packed the vase away for the next 32 years. Since this last move, however, I’ve put it where I can easily see and use it. Right now it’s sitting on top of my piano, holding a red gerbera daisy that we brought home from a performance of the AXIS Dance Company last weekend. Every time I look at it, I’m delighted by the little bubble in its base and regret that I haven’t used it more often.  What was I saving it for?  A tea party with the queen? So far no royal invitations have been extended. But now that the vase is out of its protective wrapping, I’m definitely ready should her royal highness decide to drop by.  Are there things you’re saving for the perfect time and place that should become part of your everyday world?

Here are a few other useful and beautiful things I enjoyed this week:

1. As the oldest of nine children, I can verify that families are messy. But as this essay shows, knowing the good and the bad in our family’s stories can help support and sustain us.

2. Last year I had two opportunities to be the Mother of the Bride. Which made me ever so curious about what Barbara Kingsolver had to say about her recent turn as a MOB.

3. After five years, I’m still mourning the demise of my local stationary store. Now I have to rely on the internet for unusual, artful products like this design notebook.

4. Speaking of design, here’s a lovely little tale by Christopher Neimann about making an app. The take away quote for me: “Simplicity is not about making something without ornament, but rather about making something very complex, then slicing elements away, until you reveal the very essence.”

5. I’m intrigued by the knit fungi produced by American artist Leigh Martin for her 52 Fungi project. See a few samples at her web site or collected at The Jealous Curator. Just another example of how different, and therefore delightful, we all are.

Happy Weekend!

After a month of waking up to the sound of wild turkeys and tending to a garden swarming with friendly buzzing creatures, I’ve decided we’ve moved into a house fit for a hobbit.  Tucked into the hillside, with a creek out front and a wood burning stove to keep us toasty-warm on these cold, foggy Bay Area summer days, this house makes me want to enjoy a 2nd breakfast and snuggle into a morning nap.

But wedding bells are ringing and sending me out the door in search of the perfect dress, invitations, cake and party decorations.  Not to mention a pair of dress shoes that I can dance in all night. Daughter # 2 is just over 2 weeks away from marrying her red-bearded scientist.  Daughter #1 just got engaged to her funnyman adman.  Such jubiliation all around!

Though very little blogging.  Time for that later, but the bride-to-be just returned home to our new house. And she needs a pair of wedding shoes she can dance in all night.  So out the door we go to wrap up the final details. Catch you on the other side of the wedding aisle!