I’m inviting you today to just feast your eyes on some pretty. Because everything’s coming up roses at our house, and I wanted to share the beauty with you. Of course, visit us in the spring and you’ll see them in person!

The image above is what my breakfast bar looks like every day during rose season.  And rose blooms begin in April. It’s a pretty long season here in northern California–last year we picked our last roses in December, although they were not as plentiful as in the spring.

San Jose, where we live, has a huge municipal rose garden. Ours is a mini-version, but not at all miniature. In our ‘hood, we are known as “The Rose People” and if we’re out in the major rose garden, neighbors walking by always tell us how much they enjoy seeing our roses each day,

So let me show you how everything’s coming up roses at our house.

We’ve got so many different colors. This is one of my favorites. I can get lost in the infinite center of each rose.

After cutting in May.

The history of our rose garden actually involves the Covid pandemic. How? I’ll tell you.

When we bought the house, a huge yellow rose bush was in back, and some red beach roses that seemed to be volunteers. That was it. Over time, the rose bush got sick and a lot smaller, which made me sad, because I loved those huge blooms every year.

Michael was looking for something to do during  shutdown. The side yard that faces our side street was wild–it had never been cleaned up, ever, so he did some pretty heavy physical work to clear it over a few months. It was really hard work. When he was done, we planted some roses. Maybe half a dozen bushes.

Then, we thought, why not plant more roses. They bloomed beautifully and we loved the multiple colors.  The next year we planted more on the side rose garden and added to the existing few plants in the backyard. Planted a couple more along our front walkway, too. Yes, yes, I am a woman of excess and when it comes to color, excess-plus. I’m only limited because not every part of the yard gets enough sun.

Some of my favorites.

Last year our neighbors were re-landscaping. They were going to discard seven mature rose bushes in different colors . We asked if we could transplant them into our garden. We figured that if just a couple took it would be worth it. Well…all seven took and have been giving us some beautiful blooms!

Every rose has a completely different petal arrangement, maybe like snowflakes.

When Jackson Perkins had a recent sale, I picked up a few more. We’ve now got at least 45 bushes…including two climbers on trellises. One is already six feet high and we just planted the second. Oh yes, roses from Jackson Perkins do the best. I also like Heirloom Roses. Both mail order.

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The classic red rose, signifying love. I love how my husband maintains this beautiful, huge garden. It is truly a labor of love.

From our original bush. Did you know yellow roses represent friendship?

Now, our rose garden is an explosion of color! And every arrangement I make is different.

Salmon-colored roses are some of my very favorites. You might could tell that by our family room, which is in shades of lovely orange and salmon.

Every arrangement makes me happy.I’m a happy person in general, but seeing these give me a little extra smile every day.

Pretty, delicate pinks.

This is the fireplace in our family room. During rose season, the mantle always holds an arrangement of salmon roses that go with our orange color scheme. We have an orange sofa and the back wall of our built in bookshelves are salmon. So of course I match my little cut roses to the room.

BTW, I love that orange and brown Orla Kiely birdhouse (on left of the mantle). I bought it a few years ago, after my British girlfriend and I visited an exhibition of Kiely’s fashion and design work in London. It always reminds me of that trip and Linda. (I just saw Linda last November in London–we try to get together each time I’m there!)

And when these particular salmon roses open, the blooms are wide open. I have others that look more classic after opening.

Michael is color blind and sees only red, yellow and orange. These red and whites are his favorite roses. We have a couple of different versions in the garden.

I hope you enjoyed this little floral respite. And that for you, this summer, everything is coming up roses!

I’d love for you to check out my shop over HERE.