indulge in the sweet scent of lavender

A little buzzing bee visiting my garden; 

She’s a lavender lover, just like me!

Lavender has been used for over 2,500 years, starting with the ancient Persians, Greeks, and Romans who added lavender flowers to their bathwater to clean and purify their skin. Even the word "lavender" comes from the Latin word "lavare," which means "to wash". During the Medieval and Renaissance periods, it was scattered all over stone castle floors in Europe as a natural disinfectant and deodorant. 

Lavender is known for its calming and relaxing properties, which can help with insomnia, anxiety, and stress. Not only that but lavender is so easy to grow in the garden, and you can enjoy its beautiful fragrance outdoors as well. I know when I spend time among the lavender in my garden it instantly calms me and provides an amazing experience while doing chores outside.   

One of my favorite ways to enjoy the scent of lavender at home is this

French Lavender Candle by Love Goodly.

Four ways to easily indulge in the relaxing scent of lavender:

1. L'Occitane Lavender Hand Cream

2. Trader Joe's Lavender Body Oil

3. Heirloom Variety Linen Spray from World Market

4. Trader Joe's Dish Soap

And, why not serve a little lavender at your next gathering?

Lavender Honey Lemonade

Ingredients:

1 cup raw honey

12 cups pure water

1 drop lavender essential oil

6 lemons, peeled and juiced

lavender sprigs for garnish

Directions:  Mix all the ingredients together in a small pan and heat on low until honey dissolves.  Cool it and add more water or honey 
to taste.

Fresh Lemon and Lavender Ice Cream
Recipe courtesy of Emeril Lagasse
Total Time:  40 min.  Prep: 20 min. Cook: 20 min  Yield:1 quart
Ingredients
3/4 cups granulated sugar
2 lemons, zested
1/2 cup fresh lavender or 1/4 cup dried lavender
2 cups whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
8 egg yolks
12 thin slices fresh lemon
12 small sprigs fresh lavender

In a saucepan, combine lemon zest, lavender, milk, and cream. Bring to a boil. Steep for 20 minutes. Strain. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar together. Whisk 1 cup of the hot cream into the egg mixture. Mix thoroughly. In a steady stream, slowly add the egg mixture to the hot cream mixture. Continue to cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and cool completely. Strain the mixture. Add the mixture to the electric ice cream maker. Process according to manufacturers' directions.

ciao! fabiana

Unique Gifts & Accessories for Everyone on Your List at Cost Plus World Market.

try planting lavender in your garden

💜 I love to be bathed in the scent of lavender while gardening. It’s my favorite kind of aromatherapy.

 

💜 And it’s quite elegant to add a little posy of lavender to each place setting when you're setting springtime or summertime table.

 

💜 In southern California, now’s the perfect time to plant lavender. 

💜 Bursting with fragrant blooms, irresistible to pollinators, and waterwise too - this miracle plant has it all.

💜I always look forward to celebrating Lavender Days at Armstrong Gardens during the month of May. 

 

💜What makes it so much fun is that Armstrong’s has activities, classes and lots of beautiful lavender varieties that weekend in May. 

💜Stay tuned in the upcoming weeks, and I’ll share the exact dates with you.

 

💜 

 

💜In case you haven’t heard, I started a new Instagram page in October and named it Claudia Fabiana Home. My former page is still up, but after getting a new phone, I was no longer able to log into this account, so the new profile was born!

 

💜I hope you’ll follow along with me on Instagram for all the latest projects and décor I will be sharing in 2025.

 

 

 

ciao fabiana

 

For lots of fun extras, follow me on Instagram!

 

 

 

You can check out some of my favorites here at “Tablescaping Essentials” 

 

 

 

Please note that this post may contain affiliate links.

 

 

inspiration: blue and white in the garden

It’s been so nice out,

that I’ve spent the last two days out in the garden.

I’m so happy it’s spring…

because my garden's really calling out to me!

After a stop at Roger’s Gardens to pick up some lavender,

I was super inspired by their centerpiece display of 

blue and white porcelain in their front garden bed.

It’s such an elegant and timeless look.

I have several of these ceramic jardinières

and four of them are currently unspoken for…

so I plan on incorporating them into

my heavenly lavender garden plan!

I especially love how they look with

blue, pink, and white flowers.

Of course this look isn’t new.

Carolyne Roehm has been doing it for years.

And so has Mary McDonald...

Wow!  And so iconic!

Well, my garden is currently a work in progress.

I just finished plated a dozen new lavender plants

all around my garden shed.

inspiration 

Mostly I planted several tall and wispy English lavender,
but Roger’s also had the most amazing Spanish lavender 
called The Princess Lavender.

It’s a stunning a pinky-purple color that I couldn’t resist. It's smaller and I found just the right spot for it, so I'll share photos of my garden soon, after I mulch and clean up a bit!

 ciao! fabiana

other photos courtesy of  The Quintessence Blog, 

Carolyne Roehm & Mary McDonald

local mother's day shopping ideas

Molly Wood Garden Design

Instead of gifting mom with the over-done bouquet of standard flowers, give her a beautiful succulent arrangement from Molly Wood Garden Design that will last for months. This drought-friendly alternative is beautiful and low maintenance - she doesn't need to get a vase or change the water. 

And a succulent arrangement is perfect for her to take to her office or place anywhere around the house! Molly Wood Garden Design has locations in Costa Mesa and Laguna Beach and they can create a completely custom succulent arrangement for mom.  

Celebrate Mother's Day at Pacific City

Pacific City invites you to celebrate mom with the ocean as your backdrop on Saturday, May 7 from 11 am – 4 pm.  Join in the entertaining festivities on Pacific City’s center deck (near Tommy Bahama), where attendees of all ages will enjoy creating a wildflower bouquet for mom, courtesy of Petals and Pop! Pacific City also will be hosting a social media giveaway.  

To help commemorate this special, fun-filled day, skilled photographer Jenna Norman will be onsite to capture special moments. Families may participate in a complimentary session, and each family will be able to download 3 professionally edited photos starting Monday, May 9. 

The photo session is free to guests who present $50 in combined same–day receipts from purchases made at Pacific City from April 30 to May 7. Pacific City is located at 21010 Pacific Coast Highway in Huntington Beach. 

SOCIAL Costa Mesa

SOCIAL is celebrating moms with brunch on Sunday, May 8. Executive Chef Brian Jenzer has delicious, spring-inspired items on the a la carte menu like Avocado Toast with creme fraiche, confit cherry tomatoes, pea tendrils, radish, and tarragon; Cinnamon French Toast with brioche, summer berries, and maple syrup; and more. 

For every mom that dines for brunch, SOCIAL will treat them to a complimentary glass of champagne or dessert. To reserve, please call the restaurant at 949.642.2425. 

Studio Suzan

Handcrafted locally in Costa Mesa, all of the pieces at Studio Suzan are made by hand with love and care, making each one special and unique. 

This Mother’s Day, gift mom with jewelry she will treasure forever, individually designed and made by Suzan Zahedi and her talented, who has been creating jewelry for 20 years. 

These handmade 18k gold and rose gold rings are perfect for stacking and wearing together, or you can purchase one for yourself to match her. 

Lavender Salon Boutique & Blowdry Bar

This Mother's Day, treat mom to a signature blow dry at Lavender Salon in Newport Beach. Before she spends the day with her loved ones, Mom can get her hair blown out by one of the talented stylists at the recently opened salon that offers a new level of luxury service and ambiance not found anywhere else in Orange County. 

During the blow dry, mom will be treated to a complimentary glass of champagne (or Lavender Bellini!) and a scalp massage. Lavender Salon is located at Castaway Commons in Newport Beach, next to Gratitude and Ra Yoga. 

For more info and to book your mom's appointment, please call 949.515.2900.

Ways & Means at Home

For the mom who loves to cook and indulge, Ways & Means at Home at Pacific City, will offer customizable gift baskets this Mother’s Day. 

The team behind Ways & Means Oyster House offers a curated collection of cookbooks, packaged goods, kitchen small wares, culinary and more in their first retail store.

ciao! fabiana

yolanda and her lemons

 

It’s Tuesday, that means tonight is the night for the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, one of my guilty pleasures. 

I’m really enjoying the two new housewives this season, soap stars Lisa Rinna and Eileen Davidson, and it help that their hubbys are also entertaining to watch, (Harry Hamlin and Vince Van Patten). 

Back to Yolanda… I love her fashion sense, seeing her beautiful home and watching her dinner parties that always feature music by her husband, David Foster and a few talented musical guests (last week it was Babyface). 

BUT, most of all, I get a kick out of the huge hoard of lemons she grows in her backyard orchard. She’s a bit obsessed with lemons, as I am too. 

I have a few trees in my back yard, but Yolanda takes it to a whole new level, as witnessed in these photos!

I do love how Yolanda incorporates the lemons on to her dinner table with flowers and candles. These pics are plucked right from Yo’s Instagram, so let me know what you think! 

   

Lemon Yogurt Pound Cake

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt

1 1/3 cups sugar, divided

3 extra-large eggs

2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (2 lemons)

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

For the glaze:

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Grease an 8½ x 4¼ x 2½-inch loaf pan.  Line the bottom with parchment paper.  Grease and flour the pan.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into one bowl.  In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, and vanilla.  Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it’s all incorporated.  Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear.  Set aside.

When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes.  Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan.  While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in.  Cool. 

For the glaze, combine the confectioners’ sugar and lemon juice and pour over the cake.

Recipe by the Barefoot Contessa at Home by Ina Garten,

Lavender Lemonade 

4 lemons

1/2 cup dried lavender

1/2 cup raw honey

1.   Using a vegetable peeler, remove zest from two lemons, leaving white pith behind. Squeeze all of the lemons for 2/3 cup juice and set aside. In a large pot bring 5 1/2 cups of water and zest to a boil over high heat. Stir in the lavender. Partially cover the pot, lower the heat, and simmer for 10 minutes.

2.   Meanwhile, place a large strainer lined with cheesecloth or a damp paper towel over another pot or heat-proof bowl. Strain tea, pressing on herbs to extract all liquid. Stir in honey until dissolved. Stir in lemon juice. Let cool completely, about 45 minutes. Fill four tall glasses with ice. Pour tea over ice and serve immediately. 

Recipe by Martha Stewart.

ciao! fabiana