French Flair: 2016 Northwest Flower and Garden Show

I am covering the 2016 Northwest Flower and Garden Show in Seattle to provide insight and increase enjoyment. My blog posts will spotlight specific categories and will leave a trail a breadcrumbs to help my readers find the items or features that will interest them the most. The themes to my blog posts are: Apartment Living, Farm Chic, French Flair, Romantic Touch, Love of Cuisine and Bee Specific.

Ooh la la. The Northwest Flower and Garden show has many beautiful booths and items for sale for those of us who love all things French. 

MD Arts and Linen (booth 407, blue, near Display Gardens)
Be still my heart! You will be hard pressed to find a larger selection of French linens, dishtowels, aprons and tablecloths.  I simply stood and stared the first time I saw this booth. They do not have an online presence, so buy what you love while you have the chance.

Pelindaba Lavender (booth 1015, blue, Marketplace) This lavender farm is located in the San Juan Islands and I'd love to visit the San Juan lavender festival in mid-July. The large banner in the photo (below) shows off their fields in full bloom.

You know that I have been to lavender festivals and have toured lavender farms (once on harvest day!); I've eaten lavender ice cream and woven my own lavender bouteilles.  I have had the full range of lavender experiences, yet something tells me that a lavender farm on an island is even more wonderful. I'm going!

I could not resist these fire starters made of dried lavender stems dipped in soy wax. Aren't they cool? They look like giant purple matchsticks. Do I have a fire to throw them in right now? Nope, they'd just bounce off the glass door of my gas fireplace. But someday I will start a fragrant fire, I am sure of it.

There is a free seminar called "Lavender: One Herb Does It All" on the DIY stage Thursday, Feb 18 at 5 pm.

Love topiaries? Me too! The healthy plant on the right is made of thyme and you can find it at Li'l Spout Nursery (booth 2217, green, Plant Market). I would love to have a topiary at the window over the kitchen sink. 

I hope these suggestions help you to find just what you are looking for.

Northwest Flower and Garden Show at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle. Show is open Wednesday, Feb 16 - Saturday, Feb 20 from 9am- 8pm, and Sunday, Feb 21 from 9am - 6pm.
#NWFGS #springinfeb #seattle

Northwest Flower and Garden Show: Viva la France

The Northwest Flower and Garden Show...a French influence. Today I will highlight the booths and displays with a decidedly French feel. 

I was so happy to see Woodinville Lavender at the Northwest Flower and Garden Show in Seattle. I spent a lovely afternoon there last June when the fields were in full bloom and it looks just as beautiful as their poster - breathtaking. I was also impressed with the extensive selection of lavender products in their shop and vowed to come back to the farm to purchase even more. Lucky for us, they brought the store and more to the garden show. Sachets, tea, culinary lavender, soap and even an array of lavender-themed dishtowels, porcelain mugs and books. Look at the table (below) brimming with live lavender plants. 

Every garden deserves as touch of ooh-la-la and lavender provides it.

Rose Marie Designs' booth was teeming with women imagining themselves in lace-trimmed dresses, fabric flower coursages and white-on-white ensembles. The effect of white parasols and fairy lights drew women to her booth like moths to a flame. Gardeners love beauty and Rose Marie has it.

My husband actually saw this booth of fine French linens first and waited to see my reaction as I came upon it.  Be still my heart.  If I remember correctly many were made by Garnier Thiebaut and all of them were of the highest quality. It is times like this that I curse myself for not logging my kitchen and dining room table dimensions into my phone. The image above is the display of dishtowels - I recognized several that I have and several that I have been coveting. 

Honestly a girl needs to be warned before she is faced with such a selection. I did not expect to find French linens at a Flower and Garden Show, but they are certainly welcome in my book. The booth was named MD Arts and Linens, but unfortunately the referenced website (www.provencedecor.com) is not active, so I can't send you to his shop. Come back to the show next year? You bet!