I tend to have anywhere from 5-67 projects going on at once. While not all of them actually come to fruition (some are never even started...), these projects help me keep my creative mind active, which I believe helps keep me sane. Well, that and wine, but we've gone over that, haven't we?
I saw this pin on Pinterest and immediately knew I wanted it. The productive mood struck me on Saturday, so I decided to make it!
Supplies:
Sharpie marker
Floating picture frame (you know, one of those with the glass on both sides)
Piece of paper (I used a patterned piece from JoAnn Fabrics)
A bowl to trace circles
Good music (I listened to Zach Brown Band's album "Uncaged." Love.
Before.
I used paper with a wood pattern on it.
The finished product hanging on the wall.
Finished product hanging on the wall with other photos in frames. What can I say? When the productive mood strikes, I do as much as I can. It doesn't strike very often.
The finished product hanging on the wall with other frames over our (half-made) bed!
My husband was pretty impressed. Not that I put this all together, but that I knew what a Venn Diagram was. Come on hubby, I know my calculus.
I've been pretty clear about the fact that I'm currently obsessed with gardening, right? Well, let me illustrate the depths to which this obsession as taken root.
Taken root, people. Seriously? I am queen of comedy, with the punning.
...wait, was that an actual pun? I could never remember the definition.
OK, so it's Saturday morning, and I am clearly distractable. A couple things you should know:
Like (apparently) all amateur gardeners, I bought a gajillion seeds and was WAAAAAY too ambitious in planting them. I read in a snarky but helpful garden blog that this is a bad idea if you don't have grow lights (which I don't), but I went ahead and did it anyway. Because I'm a rebel. And because I like to make the right-of-passage mistakes that people more wise and experienced warn me against. Whatever. The blogger was right: it is very difficult to grow a large quantity of seedlings without grow lights. Especially without proper window space and in a spring that's been swinging back and forth between hot sun and almost-freezing wind. Oops. So I killed a lot of seedlings. I'm trying not to feel super guilty. I'll do better next spring, Mother Nature! FYI, things that do surprisingly well under mild neglect, not enough sunshine, and sporadic watering? Peppers of all kinds, squash, and basil.
I have a dog walking business. As such, I spend my days outside, traversing the various semi-urban, suburban, and rural spaces Madison, WI has to offer. Since it's almost May and everything has turned green (and yellow, and blue, and white, and pink), I have an endless repertoire of landscapes to study. This has been super helpful. It's meant that every day, all day, has turned into a massive "shopping" trip for plants. I peruse, I make mental notes, and I slowly decide what I want to buy based on others' purchases and designs.
I note what catches my eye (like this beautiful sloped rock garden), see what plants they've used, and pull together some kind of mental list of likes and dislikes. Here are some of the landscapes and plants that have inspired me over the past couple of weeks.
Gorgeous, mature rock plantings
Crabapple in bloom
I love the glimpse of a fiery Japanese maple over the traditional fence
Hostas and daffodils in foreground; someone PLEASE tell me what the shrubs behind them are!
Adore these dilapidated stairs
I love the redbud in the background
There's mystery in stairs that lead to the unseen
Betula Papyrifera 'Paper birch'
Van Houtte Spirea (I'm almost positive)
Blue spruce sets off the brighter greens in the foreground
The spreading limbs of the oak? tree combine with the dainty Japanese maple
This street view is why I love spring. Color abounds!
Lysimachia nummularia 'Creeping Jenny' in the foreground
Creeping phlox, rock cress, daffodils and sedums combine to make a lovely raised rock bed
So I take all of these accumulated visuals, combining them with lots and lots of gardening books strewn around the house, and I go to various nurseries to check out availabilities and pricing. Yesterday, I had about 45 minutes to kill in the late afternoon, so I stopped at a big store's plant sale and meandered up and down aisles, taking pictures of everything like a weirdo.
Not sure why my hands looks like I just dipped it in oil, but...
As you can see, I have come to have a truly one-track mind. Apart from the seedling misadventures, I'm making slow but sure progress in my garden...but those pictures will be for another post. Happy gardening!
It goes without saying that I am late for things and that's just me although, I try to make up for that with my super lengthy stories and cooking. So please excuse my tardiness. Since this is my first post I will make it short and sweet, like me. Just a little "how do ya do?" so we can break the ice and move on to the good and tasty stuff a.k.a. FOOD.
With a cool iPad in tow I have found this new fondness for staying organized, connected, and in the know all within a little tablet. I also have yet another way to document the things that get me all sorts of excited...like food. :) Plus, now I can get in touch with you that much easier to make the inspirations more fluid.
So, first off, Hello there! I am looking forward to sharing random stories that may inspire you, recipes that have been boyfriend and roommate tested and approved, and some creative juices through this blog with my dear friends, Katie and Crystal.
Healthier option -- Mediterranean Barley Salad
Get your appetites ready for some unique and health conscious recipe items with a few guilty pleasures along the way.
Sweetier & guiltier option -- Strawberry cream cheese cinnamon french toast (heart shaped, of course)
And now to say 'tchau for now" with my introduction: I read the back of a Papyrus card with the description of the hummingbird which states:
"Legends say that hummingbirds float free of time, carrying our hopes for love, joy, and celebration. The hummingbird's delicate grace reminds us that life is rich, beauty is everywhere, every personal connection has meaning and that laughter is life's sweetest creation."
Last week was just...one of those weeks. We all have them. It was something like this:
Then an unwanted Midwestern March weekend of snow, snow, and more snow. The emotional dregs of the last part of winter ensued...mild depression, anxiety, all of that fun human crap that results from too little sunshine.
It all left me feeling very...ugh.
And then today happened.
It was like I was sitting in the stuffiest, smelliest, ugliest, darkest room you can imagine--and then someone opened a window. And the room was bathed in light. And I realized that there was all this cool stuff in the room that I missed before, because it was so dark and smelly and whatnot.
Today was absolutely, unseasonably beautiful. Full sun, all day, 60 degrees...my sleeves were rolled up, my car windows were rolled down, and I even went so far as to buy a milkshake. That's right. Premature summer craving, what up.
In the spirit of my newfound joy and inspiration, I thought I'd share some songs that popped up randomly today, on the radio and in conversation--some of my favorites. A sure sign from the universe that things are looking up, and spring is truly on its way.
First up, "Home" by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. This is a feel-good song if ever there was one.
Then, "I'd Run Away" by the Jayhawks. Not only do I love this song and adore this band, but this music video is so very, very summery that it made me feel doubly happy when I watched it.
Next, the haunting and ethereal "Hide and Seek" by the oh-so-talented Imogen Heap.
And finally, "Sideways" by Citizen Cope. Crystal introduced me to this song years ago. Was so excited to hear these last two songs, back to back, on the local student radio station today.
I'll leave by pointing you to a little gem of a video I found, featuring the crazy-infectious song by Florence and the Machine.
