Category Archives: Beach House

Sea World

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Slim Paley photo

A little corner of my beach bulletin board

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Slim Paley photo

Hey, not so fast!

 Enough already with all the talk of back to school, pumpkins and leaves turning.

 There’s still some summer left, let’s not  rush things here People.

 I, for one, will be dragged kicking and screaming from these last few weeks of partial fog, clearing by mid afternoon.

You’ll have to pry the sunscreen from my cold, pale hands.

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Who’s with me?!

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Chanel obviously is;

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To coincide with Fashion’s Night Out on September 8th, Chanel launches it’s latest polish collection;

“Le Jeans de Chanel”

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Me. Here. Now.

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I feel badly because I can’t for love or money find the credit/link for these cute soaps – if you’re the person who makes them, please write me.

*** Here it is:  SoapBaubles.com

(Thanks Andrea!)

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Slim Paley Photo

This is as close as I want to come to seeing turning “leaves” until October, thank you very much.

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Driftwood bowls in two sizes from W.S. Home


Don’t you think you could flip these over, drill a hole and they would make fun shades for a hanging light fixture in a beach house?

Especially with a multi filament Edison bulb.

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Pretty coloured tea lights only $2.99 at Ikea

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“Vascabarca” stone bathtub by Antonio Lupi

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more beach combing …

I found Neptune’s curtain tie-back

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Kids, look away.

I’m kind of taken with writing on walls at the moment.

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Parfait goblets from West Elm

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Hello. My name is Slim Paley.

I’m an Uggaholic.

Loving this new colour.

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Not a great photo, but I love this summer dinner (taken with my iphone and yes, that’s a crusty old oven mitt wedged beneath the cookie sheet on the table, paper napkins & ice in the wine. Don’t tell Martha)  A table covered with brown craft, or newspaper, broiled Alaskan King Crab legs, lashings of drawn butter, fresh lemon and japanese pickles.

Oh, and of course truffle salt.

Happiness.

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via Gandia Blasco

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Sunglass charm from Thomas Sabbo

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Have a great rest of the week!

xx

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Au Revoir July

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Here we are, at the end of another wildly fleeting summer month already :(  

 Are you feeling well summerized yet?  Have you been to the beach, or the lake? Maybe even the drive-in? (I have!)  

Or perhaps you’re more of the gardening type? Have you been enjoying all the fruits of your labour?! My garden is in full-on blowsy mode at the moment. To be honest the old girl is in serious need of a new “Do”- you know like when you literally cannot wait one more SECOND to get your hair done?   But no time, no time…where does it go??

 Though I can’t complain about my roses this year.  Even if I do say so myself, they’ve been pretty dang gorgeous.  Now I’m always enamored with old fashioned roses; the delicate, breathy hues and lush crinolined layers of all the regal grande dames, but I must admit to having my head turned by this new, ridiculously loud orange fellow. His sheer brazenness just brings a smile to my face and a kick to any arrangement.  I can’t possibly think of him in feminine terms. This rose is a dude who goes by the name of “Gingersnap” (Available at Rose Story Farm in Carpinteria) .

The colour is divine with turquoise, another of my all time favourite combos

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Rug available at Richard Morant

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Speaking of tangerine (how’s that for a segue?)

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Slim Paley photo

Have you ever tried Lillet?  My husband recently read Hemmingway’s “A Moveable Feast” for the first time and decided that he must try Lillet (being a favourite tipple of Ernest’s)   Aaand guess who’s now drinking the Lillet and who’s gone back to his diet coke?!

Best served very cold with an orange slice.

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.Slim Paley Photo

A little droopy but still appealing (some of us can relate to that, right?)

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I saw these somewhere but lost the credit- if anyone knows where to buy them please let me know

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Suzani from Richard Morant

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Chair available from Shades of Light

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Slim Paley photo

A big bowl of loquats and tangerines from the garden

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Citrus sorbets from another of my fav cookbooks to look at  ”Frozen Desserts”

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Blu Mediterraneo by Acqua di Parma

ahhh- so light and summery

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Lily Pulitzer luncheon plates

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A summer table setting at the beach

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Another version of that delicious Louis Vuitton summer bag…I can feel the ceiling fan wafting through my hair…

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Happy August to Everyone

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Stretch each and every day as long as you can

Take time to read, relax and smell those roses :)

xx

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WHAAT?? July Already?!

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Slim Paley Photo

Lunch with my friend at the beach house last week

Who do I speak to around here about getting time to slow down just a bit??  I’m turning into the Old Person who keeps saying “I can’t believe it’s (insert time, day, month) already”  Whatupwidat?

But here we are, July 2nd already and lo and behold  June Gloom has lifted as predictably as an old stripper still going through the motions.  OK, maybe not the prettiest analogy, but hey, it’s GORGEOUS outside and I want to get down to the beach!!  (speaking of old strippers :) )   I hope the weather is also playing well wherever you may be.  Before I head out, I wanted to share two absolutely delicious recipes that are perfect for weekends (prep ahead), or anytime this summer.  The first is new and great and the second is a tried and true gazpacho from 2009, which I’d saved in my files from Food & Wine Magazine but is actually available on their website.  God I love technology. Sometimes.  FYI; This recipe is not to be confused with the Grape & Almond Gazpacho I shared back in October 2009 HERE

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Slim Paley Photo

Celery, Grilled Grape and Mushroom Salad



  1. In a small bowl, whisk the vinegar with the lemon juice, celery seeds, mustard and half of the garlic. Gradually whisk in 1/4 cup of the olive oil and the almond oil until emulsified. Season the dressing with salt and pepper.
  2. In a mini food processor, combine the remaining garlic with the parsley, celery leaves and almonds and pulse until finely chopped. Add another 1/4 cup of the olive oil and puree to a chunky paste. Season the pesto with salt and pepper.
  3. Light a grill. Brush the mushrooms with oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill over high heat, turning once, until tender and browned, about 5 minutes. In a bowl, toss the grapes with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill over high heat until the skins begin to blacken in spots, about 3 minutes; line the grill with perforated foil if the grapes will fall through. Transfer the grapes and mushrooms to a large bowl and toss with the pesto.
  4. Arrange the lettuce leaves on a platter and drizzle with half of the dressing. Spoon the mushroom-and-grape salad onto the lettuce. Toss the celery with the remaining dressing, spoon it on top and serve.
MAKE AHEAD The dressing and pesto can be refrigerated separately for up to 2 days.
PS. Note from me; What makes this recipe really divine are the grapes fit to burst with roasty-goodness and flash grilling the oyster mushrooms so they are slightly blackened and have some crunch.
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Recipe from Food & Wine Magazine, June 2011
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Slim Paley Photo

A vintage ice thermos and little aqua milk glasses filled with last minute grabs from the garden

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White Gazpacho

  1. In a large saucepan of boiling salted water, cook the cauliflower until tender, about 8 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water until cool and drain well.
  1. In a blender, combine 1 1/2 cups of cold water with the cooked cauliflower, bread, pine nuts, chopped garlic, sherry vinegar, chopped shallot, 1 cup of the slivered almonds and the coarsely chopped cucumber; blend until smooth. Add the olive oil and pulse just until incorporated. If necessary, add more water to thin the gazpacho. Season the soup with salt and refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour.
  2. Preheat the oven to 350°. Spread the remaining 1/4 cup of slivered almonds in a pie plate and toast for about 6 minutes, until fragrant and lightly golden. Ladle the gazpacho into bowls. Garnish the soup with the toasted almonds and the finely diced cucumber and serve.
MAKE AHEAD The white gazpacho can be refrigerated overnight. NOTES One Serving 320 cal, 28 gm fat, 3.6 gm sat fat, 12 gm carb, 4.2 gm fiber.
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PS. Note from me;  This was quite garlicky so I would suggest maybe cutting back the garlic to 1 and 1/2 cloves or two SMALL cloves 
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Recipe from Food & Wine Magazine, August 2009

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Slim Paley photo

Now I’d like to say this Lavender Lemon gelato is home-made, but nope, I buy it from my local ice-cream & gelato shop that whips up all their delicious flavours fresh daily.

 If you are ever in Montecito, CA, you must stop in to SCOOP .  

Say Slim sent you :)

Happy 4th of July weekend Everybody!!

xox

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Picking Straws

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.Slim Paley photo

Summer hats in the front entrance of my beach house

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Slim Paley here, coming to you with another tip to “Summerize” your space (to prove I’m not bitter, even though we haven’t woken up to sun in Santa Barbara a single day in June, or so it seems) My willow trees have rust and are actually sporting moss on their trunks.  There are Baby’s Tears growing in the lower slope of the lawn. But I digress…

HATS! Straw hats, and lots of them!  Pull them out and give them a prominent place to perch this summer.  If you’re low on hats, hit your nearest Target or the like and buy several to create a summery tone in your entrance- they’re so inexpensive and once the “Wasting away in Margaritaville” embellishments are removed, they look great.

Same goes for straw bags.

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I know I don’t usually share pics of myself but today…

oh wait…this isn’t me  :(

Going back to bed…

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At least I have that belt.

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I lost the credit for this photo but it has to be one of my all time favourites- I adore everything about it.

Of course to know me is to know I’m a complete sucker for a pith helmet and if this tile floor is heated, I could be buried here.

Although, on second thought…maybe not such a good idea.

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 J.Crew

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Lauren Hutton

How we all want to look in a hat

This super cute chapeau and many others are available on NET-A-PORTER.COM  right now and a few are ‘On Sale’

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Brent Black, is the preeminent purveyor of handwoven straw hats in the world today.

Authentic Montecristi Panamas, the world’s greatest, are made from extremely fine toquilla straw and woven only in Ecuador; a handful of master weavers produce the best of the best, which sell for tens of thousands of dollars apiece.  No joke.

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Can you even imagine hand-weaving straw this fine??  I can’t even braid my own hair without it veering to the right.

Black offers dozens of different styles and bespoke finishes, some based on vintage patterns. In 2009, he commissioned  ”The Hat”. Woven by his master weaver, who only produces 3 or 4 hats a year, it was so incredibly fine it weighed less than one ounce. “It is as thin as my stationery,” Black said. “When I handle The Hat, I do not worry that it might fall to the floor if I drop it; I worry that it might float away.”

Black’s best hats sell for $5,000 to $30,000. Black, who’s based in Hawaii, started the Panama Hat Company of the Pacific in 1987 for the specific purpose of trying to preserve the art of hand weaving the finest Montecristi hats. Each of the hats is custom made to order – hand woven, hand blocked and styled, custom sized. The price isn’t about the label; it’s about the labor. And the art. “I believe the most direct way to encourage any artists is to buy their work and to pay them high enough wages and commissions that they will be eager to create more of their art,” Black says. “So I pay the weavers higher prices than anyone else in the world. Plus I pay the artists commissions when their art is sold.

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Hats taking shape

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All photos via Brent Black and info. from a  Luxist article (2009)

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Stack those babies!

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Maison Michel $475

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Carolina Herrera

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Shelly Kroeger Photography

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 Net -A -Porter.com

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An old hat sits in my front hall

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Also from Net-A-Porter.com

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A vintage french Boater on my sideboard in the kitchen (it actually opens up, a real treasure)

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What an adorable outfit

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What an adorable outfit

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 $80 on Net-A-Porter.com!

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I tip my hat to you   xx

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Summer-ize!

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.Slim Paley photo

Simple Summer Table

An unbleached linen table cloth and white garden roses strewn between oversized turquoise votives create a simple but pretty Summer table (even if I do say so myself :) )

Less than a week to go now until the first day of Summer people!  Let’s share a few more ideas to bring some Summer vibrations to your surroundings, shall we?  I’m trying to calm myself while watching the Stanley Cup Final-I need a big distraction right now.  It’s either write a Slim post, or finish off a bottle of vodka.  Please excuse any grammatikal errors  :)


Slim Paley photo

Summer-ize your fireplace

Here; some vintage fishing net and an antique hourglass help to create a placid tableau against a cool summer hearth.

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Create A Summer Mood Board

Slim Paley photo

 I keep this one at the beach. It’s filled with nautical pics, menus, water colours, shells, crab claws, beads, & old photos

Start your own board this summer!

This one measures about 7′ X 5′ – I bought it from Ballard Designs a few years ago- hopefully they’re still available.

If you don’t have room for a board, leave a big scrapbook out on the kitchen counter to collect anything & everything over your summer;  Have friends sign in, your kid’s summer camp artwork, poems, cocktail napkins, butterfly wings, jokes from The New Yorker…anything goes!  

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Slim Paley photo

Liberate your drawers & closets- pull all your summer “Jewels” and accessories out; try grouping complimentary colours together and spread them around the house!
Fill a basket, or a big bowl like I did here, hang necklaces & scarves on door knobs, across mirrors, on the mantle;  let your Significant Other’s patience be your only restraint! :)   It seems silly, but seeing your ‘stuff’ all out & about (that’s my Canadian, sob sob, Canucks) does inspire you to wear it more.  With a colorful bowl like this on the coffee table, who needs flowers?!   (well, OK, maybe just a few…)

And may I  add; how great would this new Louis Vuitton beach bag look sitting beside the front door in summer?!! Just sayin’…

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Stay tuned for more Slim Summer Suggestions soon,

and please DO feel free to share any of your ideas and old stand-bys here!

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Ps. God, I hate hockey and I’m cooked with sports.

Hey- who ate my olive?!

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