My definition of “luxury”!

My friend who writes the blog “Splenderosa” asked us to

write about our “definition of luxury”!

Here is mine!!!

noun (pl) -ries 

  1. indulgence in and enjoyment of rich, comfortable, and sumptuous living
  2. (sometimes pl) something that is considered an indulgence rather than a necessity
  3. something pleasant and satisfying: the luxury of independence

This definition works for me!

Now;  I will tell you what this means to me!  And I suspect it will be quite different from others!

But maybe not!

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I will start here!  My picnic table my friend found in the nearby “collective antique store” for my 18 chairs I found in  Paris

at the flea market 30 years ago!  And my beloved bantam “mille fleurs Belgian chickens”!  Every morning I let them out of their

coop!  The joy of seeing them…indescribable!!!..the roosters, the chicks…and they change every day!

Not to mention their delicious eggs!

LUXURY!  Not to most;  but to me!!!

Meeting my friend Brooke for the first time!  She and her husband Steve are two of my

most treasured luxuries!  who could have known how close  and

beloved we could become!  When she called me her “mentor” and said that

our house had inspired “Patina Farm” (I get goosebumps typing this!!)

was one of the great “luxuries” of my entire life!!!

Honestly.

My family!  Here is my darling husband and two grandchildren at

“Grandparents day” a few years ago!

Tremendous “luxury”!!!

5 out of our 7 grandchildren live within a mile of us!  Lordy!  LUXURY!!!

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My Balinese chicken coop;  designed and built by my beloved talented Radisha!

Every single day I see it;  I think of him….and what a luxury!  (as you can see the chickens love it too!!)

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One of my greatest luxuries EVER were my parents!  My Daddie died when I was 4;

and my Mommie when I was 33;  but I had the luxury of the most loving

and supportive parents…in every way!  And then I discovered this

amazing video a few years ago!  (my cousin’s contractor discovered)!

the BIGGEST LUXURY OF THE LAST DECADE!

(see my blog about it if you are curious!)

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An enormous luxury is our amazing house and garden we created

out of a “vacant lot”20 years ago!  With more birds and creatures

than you can imagine! The quail running to their roosts; and their sounds

in the morning fill my heart with joy….and are a luxury far beyond!!!

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My mother’s pink azalea in a pot…I’ve been dragging that thing around for

60 years…..(honestly, I have proof!) and every year when it blooms;

It is as though she is saying hello!

Our pond!  (It was a luxury before when we dug it and it filled with water)

But then;  with the drought…..it went away!  (see previous blogs for story.  SOB!!!!)

My husband Adam spent a fortune to line it.  The minute it was lined and the water

trucked in;  we set the duck houses in position;  the

mother duck for the last 7 years showed up and claimed our pond and her house!

Hatched 7 ducklings the earliest ever in 17 years!  March 6th!

My idea of Luxury!

More pictures of things I consider luxuries!  Friends, places I have stayed,

things I love.  Those are true luxuries to me!

My friend Renees house!

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My friend James visit and his partner’s photo of us with dogs!

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My husband and my visit to the Columbe d’Or 30 years ago or something!

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part of our garden!

desk

My office!

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my path to the pond!

My collection I discovered of china collected over 65 years!

A mama Mallard takes her newly hatched ducklings for a swim in a pond off of East Valley Road in Montecito on Thursday morning. The ducklings hatched earlier in the day.

My ducklings every single year!  (this was last year….they narrowly escaped by walking a mile to my neighbor’s pond!!!

My collection of the artist Marcel Vertes started by my mother in 1961;

and greatly aided by eBay!!!

and I haven’t even started on my great luxury of true and talented friends.

luxury

noun (pl) -ries 

  1. indulgence in and enjoyment of rich, comfortable, and sumptuous living
  2. (sometimes pl) something that is considered an indulgence rather than a necessity
  3. something pleasant and satisfying: the luxury of independence

All those things apply to what I consider “luxury”!!

Thank you Splenderosa for affording us the terrific opportunity to express our

different viewpoints on so many subjects!

BRAVA!!!!!

You are another of my Great Luxuries!!!!

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15 Responses

  1. via email:
    My Luxury…to read your blog. To be blessed to have found it thru Brooke. For your generous sharing of your wisdom and experience.
    Thank you!!
    xoxo Gina – Willow Decor – Boston.

  2. via email:

    And I have the luxury of reading your post and savoring every picture!

    Cheers,
    John

    Wilson Kelsey Design
    978-741-4234

    1. Thank you my friends! Compliments to YOU ! So sorry for all that snow!

      You are a wonderful team….we share the same values…..the same artists..and the same goals! From West Coast to East!

      XXOO We are coming back in June! We will make a dinner date!!

      XXOO

  3. via email from my talented friend who is now on New York Social Diary once a week! The best taste! Look what he said!

    And he is clever with all the symbols! YIKES!

  4. Your house and garden are just magnificent! When luxury is both lush and welcome, that is a rare and special delight. And your 18 chairs! Your Belgian chickens! Your ducklings! Just the smile I needed for this crazy-busy work week. I thank you for this luxurious tour. What a pleasure

    D. A.
    Daily Plate of Crazy

  5. Yep!
    You and I are on the same page!WE GET IT!
    That office of YOURS…………that was a LUXURY for me to even sit there and watch the QUAIL come MARCHING HOME for bed time!You live in PARADISE……………I am trying to COPY you!I have aways to GO HOWEVER………………….we do not have YOUR WEATHER which PUTS a DAMPER on my VISIONS!!!!!!!!!!I can still DREAM and RUN to the COOP!XO

  6. I think if that were my office I may never get anything done at all, as it would be so tempting to wander off for a walk in the amazing garden that you have created.

    I like your definition of luxury, as the things which brings us pleasure, and I have to say I really like your list of the simple, yet incredibly important, things which do so for you.

  7. Yes, you are a true individual, one who is confident enough to pursue your visions and dreams; and still have time to inspire others, and to love others. YOU
    are the luxury in the life of so many, including mine. I love what Elizabeth said. And, yes, I want to go to dinner with you !!!! Thank you, Penelope for being a part of “BY INVITATION ONLY.”

  8. Things that give us pleasure – what a wonderful definition of luxury. For me, luxury is beauty, and the freedom to pursuit it. Your take on our topic is full of beauty, thank you for making my day a little more luxurious! XOXO

  9. Oh, you have such beautiful surroundings! I agree that having ducks and chickens about would indeed be luxuries. (My parents kept chickens for many years, and the eggs…oh MY so good!)

  10. I loved everything about this post…it is just pure joy! And there is nothing more luxurious in feeling than that…You are surrounded by beauty and much of it of your own creation!
    xo
    Heather

  11. I love your take on luxury 🙂 — and it echoes what I have felt about gardening and being surrounded by well-loved things — handcrafted, hand- and honestly-made things. It is pure luxury too, to have come upon your blog, through Velvet and Linen. Thank you!

  12. Knew you were a luxury the 1st time seeing a room in your home, via Brooke.

    To discover the myriad luxuries in your realm, my luxury too.

    Gratitude unbounded you share your luxuries. Cannot imagine otherwise.

    What is this ‘thing’ about creating a home/garden that is shared? In pics, alone, or words, alone, shared, and felt as a luxury.

    XOT