This summer, I quietly decamped to Italy for three weeks. It was every bit the Mediterranean idyll I’d wanted, but I still insisted on keeping a work-worthy camera in tow.
Photography by Meredith Swinehart.
A plant-filled adobe courtyard at a friend’s vacation home in Bonassola, Italy, on the Mediterranean coast.
These potted lemon trees are fairly new additions to the garden, but still have thrived for their five years there.
There is officially a front door to the house, but I never used it–because the back door leads straight to the sea.
A glimpse into a neighboring courtyard.
This modern yellow plant stand was designed by the owner of the house, who is a kitchen designer; it was a mock-up for an unrelated project.
An aged but resilient slate slab on a clean-lined stainless steel base was also designed by the homeowner.
Why hide extra terra cotta pots in the hallway closet? They’re prettier and easier to access tucked under an outdoor table.
Antique pink hydrangeas play the perfect foil to boisterously orange clay flower pots.
This rosemary plant has a good gig, perched over the Mediterranean.
This patch of Parthenocissus quinquefolia, identifiable by its five-fingered leaves and known in the US as Virginia creeper, has grown on the trellis for as long as anyone can remember.
Another instance of terra cotta styling I want to recreate: these aging pots are nearly as pretty as the plants.
When the roots of a giant maritime pine began to dislodge the outdoor floor tiles and work their way into the foundation of the house, the family had it cut down.
A creeping fig found its own way onto the back wall of the garden.
Gamberoni rossi, or Mediterranean jumbo prawns, on a slate-topped outdoor stove.
My host, Michael, at the stove.
A turkey leg with lemon.
Within easy reach: a red enameled baking pan to hold utensils and a glass of Schneider-Weisse (non-Italian) beer.
Dinner was served in low metal baking pans I’m still trying to source in the US.
Garden aside, the terrace wasn’t wanting for Mediterranean allure.