I set my coffee down this morning by the stack of straw hats that adorn a console in our upstairs hall. It had me desperately yearn for that simple summer splendor. I am craving the elegant ease that ensues, especially here in Newport… afternoon swims in the sea, bare feet in the garden, salty hair, white ensembles all day and evening… why is summer just so SENSATIONAL? Thank you, Marella Agnelli for inspiring me with this photograph taken of her (and Princess Pignatelli) in the port of Beaulieu-sur-Mer on the Cote d’Azur. Black & white photography often evokes more of a “mood” for me than any colors of the rainbow could…Now, let’s press fast-forward to summer…

(Photograph by Henry Clarke via Condé Nast via Getty Images).