What's in a name?

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose,
By any other name would smell as sweet."
Romeo and Juliet (II, ii, 1-2)

Laurier ~ Baytree
et ~ and
Rose ~ Rose











Laurier et Rose ~ quite simply Baytree and Rose.

Two of my favourite things ~ Roses; wild, rambling and in abundance or perfectly domed and staggeringly beautiful. Baytrees; paired, guarding doorways or adorned with roses, fairy lights or simply bare.

Domed roses ~ Jane Packer












Pair of spiral stem Baytrees










Rosa 'William Shakespeare'

Fête des Mères ~ 29 Mai

These beautiful flowers are from The Real Flower Company.












Fête des Mères ~ celebrate the French way!

Although we have already seen Mother's Day here in Blighty, the French (amongst others) are still awaiting the moment. As usual, the French have a knack of making things look utterly gorgeous, leaving the Francophiles wanting more!

There are some lovely flower gift ideas at 'au nom de la rose'. Unfortunately the UK store is no longer open. I managed to see it when it was, and the blooms were lovely though some were disappointingly a little tired looking ~ a sign of things to come? The recession was about to hit and the shop went into insolvency. Thankfully, the other branches are all doing well; my favourite being the one in Nice. The lovely ladies in there do not mind a jot if you spend ages just looking and admiring ~ but of course you never come out empty handed!

Merry is the month of May

I love May. Not only does it feel warmer (we've reached temperatures of 26 degrees around here), but everything seems more lively. Spring has well and truly sprung; the plant and animal kingdoms have awoken from their sleepy wintery hibernation.














We've had some of the most beautiful seasonal flowers; bluebells, lily of the valley, hyacinths (not just the forced variety), primroses & tulips, lilac - which is astoundingly beautiful equally hanging from an old cottage porch or in a simple arrangement. Of course the daffs & paperwhites are on their way out but in come the most delightful peonies & roses ...