Southern Living May 2023

“I would like to paint the way a bird sings.”—CLAUDE MONET ONE OF THE BEST THINGS I did when we moved into our house 10 years ago was hanging a bird feeder in an oak tree outside the kitchen window. Aside from the fact that I spend way too much on seed (when did it get so expensive?), it’s a constant source of entertainment—or perhaps I should say amazement. We live on the Mississippi Flyway, so we see a little bit of everything here, especially in the spring and fall. The most prevalent visitors are the cardinals, impossible to miss in their exquisite shades of red, but we also get goldfinches, sparrows, chickadees, cedar waxwings, mourning doves, blue jays, red-bellied woodpeckers, and (my favorite) the occasional bluebird. I’m often drinking my…

WHAT WE’RE LOVING, SHARING, AND CELEBRATING Strawberry Shrub Place 1 qt. fresh strawberries (hulled and sliced), 2 cups unfiltered apple cider vinegar, 1 ½ cups granulated sugar, 2 Tbsp. sliced fresh ginger, and 2 tsp. grated lemon zest in a large bowl or resealable container. Stir until sugar is dissolved, about 2 minutes. Cover and refrigerate until flavors have infused, about 2 days. Pour mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a 1-qt. glass jar with a lid, discarding solids. Secure lid, and refrigerate shrub for up to 3 months. ACTIVE 10 MIN. - TOTAL 10 MIN., PLUS 2 DAYS CHILLING SERVES 8 Strawberry Spritzers Pour 3 Tbsp. Strawberry Shrub into each of 8 glasses filled with ice; top with ½ to ¾ cup seltzer water per glass (or desired amount). Garnish with fresh strawberries. ACTIVE 5…

“THE KENTUCKY DERBY is like any other major holiday for me, so that’s how I approach it,” says Angela Beck, founder and designer of the Lexington, Kentucky, home-goods line Pomegranate Inc. “It’s about family. I think that’s why there’s comfort in it.” Although Beck is not originally from the area, 30 years spent living on Gainesway, a farm with Thoroughbred horses, has instilled in her an unruffled approach to entertaining that feels right at home in her pastoral surrounds. “If I were worried about someone staining the linens, I’d feel a little uptight,” she admits. “When you have five children and a bunch of dogs running around, you don’t think like that. But you can still pull together a nice table.” Her collection of block-printed linens that are made in…

FOR CELEBRATED designer Bunny Williams, the key to decorating with pets in mind is making it so you don’t actually notice which items belong to four-legged friends. When it comes to her home, she caters to her right-hand rescue dogs, Annabelle (above, at left) and Bebe (right), with a mixture of easy-to-wash blankets, chic beds, and unique water bowls that she sprinkles around the house—wherever the pooches like to go. “I keep fuzzy leopard WallyBeds everywhere. They fit in with my decorating without screaming ‘dog bed.’ I prefer those that look like cushions on the floor,” says Williams. “Annabelle and Bebe love to sit under the table in the front hall, so I put a big square one there; it’s basically their doghouse.” Williams also has a trick for preserving sofas.…

SPOTLIGHT A New Farmstead Resort in Franklin, Tennessee Although it’s only 25 miles from the bright lights and past-midnight music of the honky-tonks on Nashville’s Broadway, Southall Farm & Inn is a world unto itself. The focus is on the land—all 325 rambling acres of it—and its abundant bounty. “Farm to table” still means something here; every meal is a celebration of ingredients grown, raised, or found on the property, from its greenhouses to its rolling hills. Of course, that’s just the food. Layer in 62 guest rooms and suites and 16 cozy cottages with features like soaking tubs, fireplaces, tailored spa treatments, 5 miles of hiking trails, and a lake suited for fly-fishing and paddleboarding, and you’ve found an escape for the entire family to unwind and unplug. “Everything at Southall…

BEAUTIFUL SPACES FOR A BETTER LIFE SUNNY SHADES Treat a heavy vessel as a small, wild garden. This concrete pot is filled with warm, yellow-toned flowers that are traditionally placed in the ground instead of in containers. Plant these in May, incorporating various types so something will be in bloom through late summer and into early fall. We chose lantanas, ‘Cheyenne Spirit’ coneflowers, and autumn ferns—plus ‘Alabama Crimson’ honeysuckles and ‘Gilded Sun’ roses to add height. PRETTY IN PINK Allow a large terra-cotta pot to become a semipermanent part of your landscape. Embrace a thrilling mix of highs and lows in rosy hues. In front, trailing vincas spill over the edge. ‘Great Falls Angel’ coleus fill the middle ground, while ‘Peppermint’ caladiums bring scale with their elephant-ear shape. Long-lasting ‘Miss Molly’ butterfly bushes, snapdragons,…