Sunday Lunch

Care to join me for Sunday lunch here - it's gorgeous isn't it! We could probably give the throw rugs the flicko though, it's way too hot for those. It's been a silly week - an 0330 start on Wednesday morning, a long drive to the Airport, the first plane to Sydney, the train into Central, then a long train trip up to Leura in the grey, misty cool Blue Mountains, just to attend the last session of a Divisional meeting. Then up at sparrows the next morning, a long, long road trip to the Airport, the plane to Adelaide & back at work by lunch time. I couldn't go earlier as there was an elective case to support here on Tuesday, but really, did I need to go for just an hour??!! The things we subject ourselves to.........

It's the Australia Day Long Weekend here but I'm working, as an emergency case has appeared. But gosh Sunday lunch looks appealing, what should we talk about? I'd love to know what you have planned for 2104 - travel, work stuff, new goals. And you know, I always reckon a long comment is a good comment!! It's the weekend dear Hedgies, so go enjoy! 

On The Mark

 MOTH's making a last ditch effort finishing off the reno of our large upstairs Home Office. It's looking good, but with no heating, window or floor coverings, it's bitterly cold up there.....not a very conducive atmosphere for drying paint. A weekend away in the heat of a New York summer looks good & The Mark, on the corner of Madison Avenue & 77th St. is the place.

Designer Jacques Grange has done a pretty nifty job I reckon. Light & airy, I'll take the Mark Premier Suite thanks.

Fabulous soft furnishings in the sitting room & a custom kitchen specially designed by Piero Lissoni for Boffi with kitchen appliances from Gaggenau, Miele and Sub-Zero will do just fine.



Soft, squishy sofas just perfect for flopping into after a hard days shopping down town.

MOTH prefers a straight backed chair these days for his crook back - this one looks just right.

Breakfast in the suite please, saves having to get out of the trackie dacks for another hour.

The best mini-bar I've seen in yonks.

Couldn't ask for a nicer bedroom.

You can tell a lot about a hotel by the bedside tables they keep, this one passes with tops marks, pardon the pun!

Lots of room on this vanity bar, I do detest juggling all my stuff on a hotel bathroom cabinet meant for pygmies.

Not Port Power colours here on the bathroom floor, but I'll forgive them this one lapse.

Commodious shower - I DO love that word!

The Mark has collabored with stroller manufacturer Maclaren, to offer guests a fleet of custom-designed strollers ideal for a walk through Central Park or shopping along Madison Avenue. How thoughtful!

With Central Park a bone's throw away, The Mark would welcome puppy Lulu, who after a warm greeting from the pet-loving door staff, would have her own comfortable dog bed by Molly Mutt, signature water bowls and a custom placemat. It's a dog's life!

If ever there was time to try out my new bionic knee, it would be here. A spin on one of The Mark's Republic Bikes would definitely put it through its paces - the bikes incorporate elements of the hotel's Jacques Grange design including a striped chain case and monogrammed bells, naturally.

As MOTH's too cheap to eat out in restaurants twice a day, the Concierge can organize a picnic in Central Park, created by celebrated chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. The gourmet picnic basket includes all the picnic essentials – blanket, cutlery and condiments. As a finishing touch, The Mark’s chef concierge, Isabelle Hogan, has curated an illustrated bike map to help guests navigate Central Park. As MOTH gets lost just going to the supermarket at home, this will be essential.

This place looks so good, we may never make it home to finish off the painting. It's the weekend dear Hedgies, so go enjoy!

All images: The Mark

The Mighty Maisonette

Adelaide has had a long-term love affair with the mighty semi-detached maisonette. Along with row cottages, the maisonette ruled supreme with builders between 1836-1925. It became the compromise build between a row cottage & a free-standing house & often families lived in one side & rented out the other for economic gain. Each side was a mirror image of other & always shared a common parapet party wall. For economy of scale they often shared other features such as a continous front verandah (often eye-lash or bull-nose corrugated iron in design) with the traditional tesselated tile floor. Squeezed onto a single allotment, space was tight & the majority of them were built to the boundary fence, with just a small rear access running off a back lane for wood deliveries & the ubiquitious night cart man.

Most were constructed with sandstone or bluestone facades with brick side walls, the standard internal design was 3-4 rooms all running off the side passageway. The front room was generally the sitting room, followed by either one or two bedrooms then a kitchen. The bathroom, laundry & loo were housed in a corrugated iron lean-to either attached or detached leading off the back verandah. Again for economic reasons those rooms sat along a party wall with the adjoining maisonette, so they could share the one set of plumbing connections. Generally a row of them were built in the same street which meant that the gutters of each adjoining house nearly touched, really restricting the flow of natural light & ventilation through the side windows. For those of us who have experienced life in an unrenovated Adelaide maisonette, even with a largish window, you'll know that those 2nd & 3rd rooms were black holes of unrelenting darkness.

My how things have changed, just look at this renovated maisonette in St. Peters, a lovely leafy suburb just 5 minutes drive from the Adelaide CBD. Sadly a number of the internal period features are no longer - the original ceilings, cornices & fireplaces have disappeared, but I think it's a pretty schmicko reno job all the same.

I've had another good but very tiring week at work, with not a smidgy of blogging happening. That will be fixed later today. We celebrated our largest single order of the year yesterday arvo, so the 2 of us were doing the Happy Dance around the office. The boss surprised me by ordering a very ritzy coffee machine for our little 2 roomed, 2 person office, so I take that as an indication that I'm doing OK & he might want me to stay. It's the weekend dear Hedgies, so go enjoy!
Images: Klemich

Easter

Best wishes dear Hedgies for a wonderful Easter weekend. Mine will be spent just like every one since 1989.......renovating. It's our 17th wedding anniversary on Easter Sunday, but as MOTH is going through an incredibly grumpy patch at the moment, I think that I won't make a fuss & just let this one slide under the radar. I've had a wonderful week at work, the boss returned from his travels in the UK & much to my relief, it seems I didn't stuff up too much & that the business is still viable, phew! Puppy Lulu is overdue for some serious mother & puppy bonding time & I want to give my dodgy knee a trial with a longish walk. I may live to regret my decision, but I'll never know until I try. See you next week.

Destination Unknown

This year I've felt I'm a passenger on a train who's destination is unknown. I've paced the corridors of that train, sliding open the doors of each of the compartments along the way, anxiously asking the people inside 'Do you know where this train is going?' And all I get are blank stares & a collective shaking of heads. I've been doing it in my waking hours & also in my sleep. It has been a disturbing experience.

However late this week I've had someone whisper a possible destination to me. I know this may sound confusing to many, but to those who have picked up on some of this metaphorical pacing of corridors here at The Hedge & have written (as you do!) to let me know you are concerned, breathe a little easier. I'm hoping that this time next week my train will be pulling into a very familiar station. I know it sounds like code, but trust me on this & send me positive thoughts through the Bloggie Universe.

In the meantime I'm going to leave you with some Weekend Thoughts, an idea I've so blatantly knicked from one of my Bloggie heroes, the amazing Branford aka Uncle Beefy.

• Do I really need another pair of divine shoes from here, you bet I do!


• I admit to shedding a tear last night when Catherine Willows said goodbye here.


• Food & wine snobs invading the Hills on a weekend are driving me CRAZY!!


• Was it wrong to buy 3 identicals of these this week in 3 different colours & prints just 'cos the fit was FANTASTIC!


• I need to be careful Twitter doesn't usurp my first love.


• I still wonder what happened to Manhattan Transfer.


• Pinning is not a way of life.


• This is, & always will be, my favourite restaurant.


• I love my best friend more today than ever - 22 years of never, ever letting me down xx


• Does Bach's 10 Siciliano (Sonata for Flute and Harpischord n° 2) sound bloody good played on a bandonéon here - you bet it does, & I'm not afraid to argue the point!


• It is a very good thing that MOTH understood early in our relationship that to get me to agree to anything, he needs to plant the seed & walk away. I eventually come around.


• I would sell all the kids to black market slave traders for one of these.

It's the weekend dear Hedgies, so go enjoy!

Date Night

It's a hot Summer's day here in the Hills with the temperature soaring. I couldn't believe my ears this morning when I heard MOTH down at his woodpiles chopping, chopping with his trusty axe. For those of us with a wood fire it's a constant battle to keep ahead ready for the sudden onset of Winter's icy breath. He's now barrowing his work up to the wood shed in the courtyard & it's hot, hot work. He's just hit me up for a cold drink & a date tonight. So it's out to dinner & then a movie. I want to see Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy but I reckon a tired MOTH would be snoring before the opening credits rolled, so it may have to be something a little less demanding. So George C.'s new flick is looking good. It's the weekend, so go enjoy!

Image: Michael Graydon Do youself a favour & visit Michael's site, his photography is just awesome!

Blanc de Blanc

Phew that was a huge week! Another year, another Kick-Off Meeting - overblown, undercooked, a cast of thousands & too many Chiefs & not enough Indians, enough said. All this was tempered however by the surroundings where all the 'stuff' was presented, The Observatory Hotel in The Rocks. Over the years I've been fortunate to travel to a lot of countries & stay in some pretty amazing places for work, so I can't believe this little gem has alluded me up to now. It's the only Orient Express hotel in Australia & so is indicative of all that goes with that unique brand. However for me, my stay was made extra special by the hotel staff. Warm, welcoming, generous, utterly professional yet without a sniff of pomposity or snobbishness, each & every one of those gorgeous people are at the top of their game. Thank you, thank you all from the bottom of my grateful heart, I need to return, I will & soon.

I noticed as I was flipping through their Collections portfolio in my room, that our friend at Le Manoir aux Quat Saisons, Raymond Blanc has designed & opened 4 new Suites. Here's Ray spruiking the new digs, very nice mate. I have thought before that this should be the venue for my long dreamt about Hedgies Bloggers Retreat & seeing Raymondo waxing lyrical, I've locked it in. It's the weekend, so go enjoy!

Sign The Guest Book!

William & Catherine's Big Day Out has finally arrived........

.......so please grab a pen & leave them a message on a piece of the virtual Royal Wedding Puzzle Guest Book here at The Hedge. But you'll need to sign it using your Royal name. Starting with Lord or Lady, your first name is one of your grandparent's names. Then your surname is the name of your first pet, double-barrelled with the name of the street you grow up on. Won't it be a hoot to see the results & great fun seeing everyone's messages to the Royal newlyweds. So please join me, Lady Edie Ginger-L'Estrange as we sign the Royal Guest Book, & go enjoy every minute of this very exciting day!

Images: Bella Puzzles

Buona Pasqua

I've been feeling decidedly Italian this week. On the drive home from Melbourne, MOTH & I were reminiscing about the best food we've eaten together over the years. One stand out was a wedding anniversary celebration at the wonderful Gennaro's (R.I.P.) at Parkside. Gennaro presented us with Roast Capretto (Baby Goat) lovingly prepared by his Mamma the sous chef. It was one of those moments in life that you want time to stand still & never move on. I've managed to find a recipe that looks mighty good from chef Scott Conant - Moist Roasted Baby Goat (Capretto) with Peas, Fingerling Potatoes and Shallots here.

As Greek Orthodox Easter co-incides with the Christian calendar this year, goat has been plentiful in the market this week. So it's on the menu here at The Hedge this Easter weekend. I have the time & the enthusiasm - what a luxury.

So Buona Pasqua to you all dear Hedgies. It's the Easter break, so go enjoy.

Image: Not On The High Street

Luscious Limoges

Deb Taylor, a Sydney ceramicist uses Limoges porcelain to create fabulous pieces for her company Little White Dish. Deb says this material is the finest & smoothest of all & allows her to create beautifully defined lines in her pieces, with a fabulous translucency.

Functional pieces like this cream dish.

And this customized bowl with a touch of the quirky.

A sugar & creamer with a paper-thin relief design.

Pass the butter please!

Drinking from the Cherished cup.

Fabulous, functional colanders.

Pendants with attitude.

Pendants for the one you love.

The surprise element!

And now Deb's making these simple & quite beautiful memorial urns. Inside each one is a handmade silk drawstring bag to hold the ashes & the client who commissions the piece, chooses the words or quotation for the inscription. All images are from Deb's site littlewhitedish .

A big Thank You to everyone who left a message on Friday's Anniversary post - you are all too gorgeous! MOTH & I had a fab night out at The Table in Stirling. We are at the beginning of a really busy cycle in our lives, so thanks to Callum & Michelle for providing the most amazing Chatter Platter for MOTH & I to do a lot of chattering & synchronizing of diaries over! The evening finished on a high note when MOTH leant over & told me I'm exactly the same today as the bride who walked down the stairs to meet him at Carrick Hill 16 years ago. Not one for expressions of romance my MOTH, it was quite something!