These lilies aren’t the first to bloom, but they are worth waiting for. Oriental lilies bloom the latest in the season, but their intense fragrance (one blossom is fine for a big room or more, in my opinion) is so much more thrilling than the no-fragrance Asiatic types. Be careful about brushing close to them, as their pollen can stain clothing.

Pink Oriental lilies bloom in a Seattle garden

Please visit Ruby Tuesday 2, Skywatch Friday, A Piece of Heaven, Macro Monday, I Heart Macro Saturday, Pink Saturday, Outdoor Wednesday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Weekend Flowers, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday, Garden Tuesday, My Romantic Home, and Fishtail Cottage Thursday. Let’s try a new meme, Thursday Floral Love. Thanks for visiting and please come back soon!

After the first flush of bloom in a rose garden, it’s kind of spotty. Some bushes are totally done, or at least resting, and some, like this magnificent Camelot rosebush, are just exploding with blooms. My rose bed gets some late afternoon light, and have you noticed it’s my favorite?

Peachy pink blossoms adorn a Camelot rose bush in late afternoon light

Linking to Pink Saturday, Outdoor Wednesday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Weekend Flowers, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday, Garden Tuesday, My Romantic Home, and Fishtail Cottage Thursday. Check out a new tag or category here in the sidebar to the right. Rose, perhaps? Come visit again soon.

Our friends with the gorgeous deck (see post just below) got married on Sunday, and I got to make some bouquets for their backyard ceremony. They have lovely flowers there but it would have been a shame to pick them, and I have so many. Our friends are also neighbors so they strolled over and chose what they wanted, brought the “vases,” and I had fun creating six matching bouquets in a rainbow of bright colors.

Garden flowers getting ready for wedding centerpieces using blue mason jars

See Pink Saturday, Ruby Tuesday 2, Monday Mellow Yellows, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Weekend Flowers, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday, My Romantic Home, Fishtail Cottage Wednesday, Thursday Challenge (Abundance), Water World Wednesday, and Garden Tuesday. Thanks for your visit here!

This photo of my friends’ deck has so much more than geraniums. I want this deck at my home.

White wicker chair invites on a deck with geraniums, fuchsia and hydrangea

Linking to Ruby Tuesday 2, Pink Saturday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Outdoor Wednesday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Weekend Flowers, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday, My Romantic Home, Fishtail Cottage Wednesday, Thursday Challenge (Abundance), and Garden Tuesday. Hope you come back soon for more pretty pictures.

These darling sweetpeas are on my patio table. Take a nice, deep breath, now!

Sweetpea bouquet graces an outdoor table

This week I’m linking into Pink Saturday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Outdoor Wednesday, Floral Friday, Weekend Flowers, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday, My Romantic Home, Fishtail Cottage Wednesday, Macro Monday, Hope in Every Season Wednesday (homemaking) and Garden Tuesday. Thanks for your visit here, and come back soon.

Here’s the rose garden out front. That late afternoon light is so beautiful, and I don’t mind a little lens flare, do you?

Rose garden with curly willow and dark red smoke tree in the background

Participating in Pink Saturday, Ruby Tuesday 2, Outdoor Wednesday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Scenic Weekends, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Weekend Flowers, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday, My Romantic Home, Fishtail Cottage Wednesday and Garden Tuesday. Click around here to see what you can find that’s fun. How about the tag My Garden?

This little hen-and-chicks sedum on my patio is only maybe 1.5″ or 4 cm. across, but it has an amazing flower (see 2nd photo below). I like these succulents because the circular leaf pattern looks like a flower, and then it HAS flowers. The individual pink flower is half an inch or so across.

Today’s Flowers is showing a couple of my photos this weekend. Be sure to visit as many of the participants as you can, and leave a comment so they will know you visited.

Little green and purple hen-and-chicks sedum rosette

Small pink sedum flowers with yellow centers

Joining the fun at Pink Saturday, Ruby Tuesday 2, Monday Mellow Yellows, Outdoor Wednesday, Floral Friday, Weekend Flowers, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday, My Romantic Home, Fishtail Cottage Wednesday, Macro Monday, and Garden Tuesday. Please browse around here and come back soon!

Last night we were lucky enough to be at a friend’s place with a spectacular view of Lake Union in Seattle, and the fireworks were as good as we hoped. And loud! Hope you you had a great Fourth, too. I love this image and I’m calling it my Best Post of the Week.

Fireworks explode over Lake Union in Seattle, Washington

Joining in at Skywatch Friday, A Piece of Heaven, Pink Saturday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Outdoor Wednesday and Scenic Weekends. Don’t forget that if you arrive here and see only one photo above, if you click on the Sara’s Fave Photos Blog above you will see more pretties.

The day lilies are blooming.

Macro of peach day lily blooming in my garden

Joining in at Pink Saturday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Outdoor Wednesday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Floral Friday, Weekend Flowers, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday, Today’s Flowers, My Romantic Home, Fishtail Cottage Wednesday, Macro Monday, Garden Tuesday and Creative Weekends Friday at the Pink Home. Thank you so much for visiting, and hope you have a happy Fourth of July, the happy celebration of Independence here in the U.S.A.

Just went out to the garden and saw that the hydrangeas are beginning to show color. Such flower excitement! This one was a gift from friends who needed the space for something else. This year it has recovered from the move and is blooming beautifully for us in a shady spot.

Glowing Embers hydrangea begins to show color in late afternoon light

You might visit Pink Saturday, Ruby Tuesday 2, Monday Mellow Yellows, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Outdoor Wednesday, Floral Friday, Weekend Flowers, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday, Today’s Flowers, My Romantic Home, Fishtail Cottage Wednesday, Macro Monday, Garden Tuesday and Creative Weekends Friday at the Pink Home. And for some easy tips on how to take better flower photos without any fancy equipment, see my free “7 Secrets” download at the right. Thanks!