Met with the painter to touch up the house for summer….I’ve asked him to paint the porch floor in a stone color, and repaint the front and back doorways in glossy white…will give everything else a good scrub down to freshen up.

Went to Bloom in Sag Harbor as they got a shipment in from France and found lots of new things for a project I’m working on…

Fabric sourcing for new cushion covers for the outdoor furniture…a beautiful soft grey sunbrella fabric matches the weathered wood frames and will transform the setting, but keep it all natural.

An early morning walk on the beach is inspirational,- the soft colors and textures are perfect for a beach house I’m working on…

Newspaper recycling time: I still get the New York Times delivered every day as I love the ritual of reading the morning paper…I’m also a “clipper” and have a razor blade ready to cut out articles, inspiration, recipes, new shops to visit, etc. for various projects. What’s left I use for fireplace starters, window cleaning and for my friend Thomas’ puppies . . .

Back to the spring cleaning list …off to Home Depot to stock up on the new Martha Stewart natural cleaning supplies…everything from heavy duty scrubs to dishwashing liquid all in well designed, simple packaging of course…

Easter brunch at my parents house is a tradition…my mother makes a baked ham, with pencil thin asparagus, assorted quiches, and after lunch we go for a walk at the beach and return for pots of hearty English tea and coconut cake…

Sunset at the boathouse: The days are getting longer and I look forward to a mug of tea at the end of the day to unwind and check on the swans and make the list for the next day…

Our little farmstand down the road is all set up with rows of potted flowering bulbs in beautiful spring colors…I always look for the grape hyacinths and apricot tulips for my nieces, pale lavender pansies for my mother and find some white tulips and hyacinths for myself and my sister…I love supporting the local stand and when the blossom’s fade I plant them outside in the garden for next year!

I have a stash of clay pots in the garden shed which I re-use when buying Easter plants in those foil covered plastic pots… I keep a crate of moss ready to finish them off which looks good and keeps the plants moisturized longer as well…

Will pot up a large Easter lily in an old white mixing bowl for my dining table . . .
I also have bowls of Auracana eggs in that perfect color and handblown stone colored ones that I bought years ago and bring out every year to put on my big white farmtable.