A Perfect Specimen

We watched the flight of a butterfly this weekend in Orient Village, NY. It almost seemed as if it flew just to show off it's beauty while catching the wind, like we pick the perfect suit and lay in the sun. No wonder they have captured our hearts for centuries...

Early 20th century mahogany specimen cabinet via Liveauctioneers

English emerald and diamond butterfly brooch circa 1870 via Sandra Cronan

Hardoy Butterfly chair, 1938

Vintage entomology collection via Modern 50

Leprechauns on Clouds

From chippy paint that's seen winter's wrath, to mossy trees and stones desperate to show-off a new spring, we're welcomed each weekend in New Hampshire by lovely shades of green and white. Today we bring the outside in with some inspiration for our New England home...

Vintage chaise underneath green stairs via Remodelista, photographed by Ditte Isager

Grouping of art and antique mirrors via Lonny

Flowing whites photographed by Anna G Tufvesson, via emmas design blog

Through the Trees

On a little antiquing excursion this weekend, we drove through Westmoreland, NH. Once we were off the beaten path, we were shocked at how quaint the town green is and how lovely the untouched areas are--the pond and the surrounding forest was captivating. Whether we're referencing Emily Carr's paintings of the Pacific Northwest in the 30's or pulling hunting photos of Adirondack guides in the late 1800's and early 1900's, we're reminded on every trip we take how desperately we all need natural, untouched expanses of land.

Adirondack guide and his Sport via Wikipedia

Lake in Westmoreland, NH shows winter's ice finally subsiding

Emily Carr, Logger's Culls via Terramia

A group boating in the Kankakee River

Emily Carr, Scorned as Timber, Beloved of the Sky

Silhouette of a hawk's nest, NH

Emily Carr, Blue Sky via The Vancouver Art Gallery

Guides John Burton and Henry Courtney via My Adirondacks

Sunlit tree trunks, Westmoreland

Emily Carr, The Red Cedar

Hunters on the Kankakee River

Nature's Patina

One of the many beautiful things for us about antique and vintage pieces is the patina that can only come with age. Besides it's natural beauty, patina is a history of time and place that you can never know, but always wonder about. And on our hikes through New England we find nature's "patina" on stone and trees and gates, that remind us of the settlers who paved the way for our journey ahead...

Inside, Out

"Your vision will become clear only when you look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens." - Carl Jung

Above: house and grounds of 19th century colonial in Acworth, New Hampshire

Cold River, Warm Hearts

Thoreau had his Walden and we, at H&GH, might just have our Cold River. It's that place of contemplation and profundity, or of simply taking a deep breath and dissolving into nature.

"A lake is the landscape's most beautiful and expressive feature. It is Earth's eye; looking into which the beholder measures the depth of his own nature." - 9. The Ponds, Walden, Henry David Thoreau

Flora, Grant, New Hampshire...The Art of Our Summer

A quick trip to New Hampshire, during a glorious weekend of temperatures in the 80's, yields roadside shots of corn rows, lambs ear growing around reflective balls and artistic inspiration. See some the art of our Summer...

Lamb's Ear reflected in the garden. Warner, New Hampshire

Lambs Ear, watercolor by Lynn Railsback via Geneva Lake Art Association

Cornfields in Vermont, shot roadside

Young Corn, Grant Wood, 1931

Mushrooms on an old Stump in New Hampshire

Stump, Neil Welliver, 2000 via Michael Berger Gallery

Lichen illustration via Hairy Sack of Magic

Nautical Lines

Eleven cities, five states and two ferry rides later, we're back in New York feeling inspired by the land...and by the sea (lakes and ponds). But we saw more than waves this weekend--we saw lines and colors and the evidence of man harnessing the power of nature.

Kayaks against the New Hampshire sky

No. 10, Mark Rothko 1950

On board the Charlotte, Vermont ferry to Essex, New York

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No. 14 White and Green in Blue, Mark Rothko

On board the Charlotte, Vermont ferry to Essex, New York

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Untitled, Mark Rothko 1969

On board the Plattsburg, New York ferry to Grand Isle, Vermont

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Untitiled, Mark Rothko 1969

On board the Plattsburg, New York ferry to Grand Isle, Vermont

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Untitled, Mark Rothko 1952