{the blog}

Monday, Monday

Bayn (my brother-in-law) informed me yesterday that my blog needs to be updated more often.  I had to remind him what all has been going on in my life lately.  I didn't mention the work and the emails that I can't even find time to respond to... but because I love him (and you, my readers) here I am.  I am making an attempt to do better.

I'm pulling some stuff from my favorites... and today it is this:

 

This house is in Charleston, SC... where I recently traveled, but somehow missed this gem.

It belongs to Muffie, who runs ESD (Elizabeth Stewart Designs) in Charleston... where I did happen to visit.  I bought a couple things and enjoyed the shop immensely. Courtney interviewed Muffie's take on art collecting... it's an awesome post and such a great reminder that art needs to be loved- not something you pick just to "decorate". Read more about Muffie in these posts.

::photo from Style Court::

 

And something else wonderful from Style Court. Haskell Harris (was at Cottage Living, now at Garden & Gun) must have provided Courtney with these photos of her house in Birmingham... they are large images (click on them) and soak them all up.  They are good.  Haskell is blogging too... check her out here.

 

Remember her bedroom?

 

Well, here's her living room...

 

It all suits the house so well...

 

Peace.

Cookbooks & Gardening Books

I absolutely adore these paintings... I can't take it!   

 

 

 

Paintings by Holly Farrell 

via Absolutely Beautiful Things :: via Wide Open Spaces

please keep your tinkle in the pottery!

I've told yall before... sometimes Google searches take me to the unexpected.  I think this was a "vintage urinal" search.  Okay, I have mixed emotions.  You know I love to garden.  And I love flowers.  And I love plumbing fixtures... but do I love them all mixed up in one unit?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
I think they are funny.  And pretty.  But, but, but?  I can't put my finger on it.

I love the sinks:

 

Thoughts anyone?  Seeing as how I'm not a urinal-user I can't really give honest feedback. A piece of art you pee on/in seems a little irreverent?  I hope some men will speak up?  I know you are out there.

Clark Sorenson gets the credit for these pretties you can pee on. 

a sea captain just rolled over in his grave

Captain Coleman Jenkins probably didn't have a proper "grave" because as the story goes... the old man was lost at sea... but roll with it... because THIS is what I found in my in-box late last night:

 

"Captain Coleman Jenkins" by Patricia VanEssche

Patricia VanEssche (aka PVE Design) is my home girl... really... her hometown is Louisville, Kentucky... which is (sort-of) my hometown too!  Her parents founded Paul's Fruit Market (hello my Louisville readers!) a fabulous fresh produce (and more) market that happened to be my family's never-fail place to buy a Christmas tree!  What a delight I found in my in-box yesterday evening.  Amongst a sea of emails was this gorgeous illustration of Annmarie & Barry's house and a little note from Patricia.

Patricia, you'll be glad to know that coming up in my Boston post (if I can ever get around to it) is a picture of J.McLaughlin... even though we are just 'blogging friends' and have never met face-to-face there are always those moments where I think "Patricia!", so you know I stopped to snap a photo...

 

Thank you Patricia for a beautiful illustration, I know Barry & Annmarie are going to be delighted with such a thoughtful gift!!

curdled milk

This morning I poured curdled milk into my coffee. 

The fridge is still broken... and I guess the "dorm room fridge" that we are using in the interim is not cutting it.

I thought my coffee tasted weird yesterday, it must have been the curdled milk.

Are you gagging?  I was.

I drank my coffee black this morning.

I hung the matches on Sunday night.  It was nothing short of a nightmare.

I made a template, which eased the pain.  My husband must really love me... he was the one who put all the anchors and screws in the wall.  Sorry about the light glare, I took these this morning... the light pours into this room at 7am. 

In case there are inquiring minds: the walls are Sherwin Williams "Hardware" SW6172; the sofa was at a local furniture clearance store original tag said $3,600, I paid $400; the roman shades are Babara Barry for Kravet; the lamp is old; the match books were courtesy of a flea market; frames from Target; mats from Hobby Lobby.

sketchy

I used to* sketch, draw, and paint.

This isn't a great sketch (I have better ones at home)... but I was just thinking about sketching and this was one of the few in my computer here at the office.

I went to Mike Lin's Graphic Workshop during college. It was the best creative thing I've ever done for me.  I learned so much in his 2-day workshop.  If ever you want to learn more I highly recommend this class. 

This is what sparked my sketchy post. 

*- I got really busy somewhere along the way and have lost patience with myself. Maybe I should start back slow? Patricia is so encouraging... maybe I'll sketch a house. Sketching a house sort of contradicts starting out slow... oh well.

creative overload

I want to be in art classes again. I want to take a photography course.  I want to paint and draw.

I need a vacation.

Since a vaca isn't an option instead I watched my PBS Art in the 21st Century (Vol I & II) videos yesterday.  It was rainy, so I closed the shades and snuggled up with the pups and some popcorn*, and was completely enthralled by these videos. The selection of artists was varied and so intriguing. I want to do a separate post on each of the artists, but there just aren't enough hours in the day. Some highlights...

Sally Mann

Kiki Smith

Kara Walker

I bought the videos to see the tour of Walton Ford's studio... but I paused it right as it got to his segment.  I was tired and wanted to be alert when I watched (so I could soak it all in)... so I'll review that later this week.

In other news... I finalized mats & frame for my matchbooks. Framing 15 pages separately (including the cover page of the scrapbook)... mounting the pages on soft black, shadowbox relief, then ivory mat in foreground, black oak frame with nice relief to the wood grain... whatcha think??

Thanks again to Mr. Burns for a sweet collection of matchbooks... I bet he never dreamed someone would find his 70 year old Boy Scout project at a flea market and be really excited about framing it!?

*- the popcorn: Archer Farms (from Target) White Cheddar & Rosemary (you know, already popped and in a bag)... it was the best ever, I highly recommend it.

Raoul Textiles

Raoul Textiles are gorgeous, I sent Courtney home with a couple samples... one of which was the fabric on the sofa below. (it's Amijao linen #909B82, for fellow tradespeople who might be interested)

I love the repetition of the same fabric on the draperies. Love the grasscloth too. (my grasscloth is going in my pantry on Friday!) I also like the frames over the sofa.  This image is from Elle Decor, July/August 2007, photographed by Pieter Estersohn.

I've been stewing over how to frame the antique scrapbook of match books I scored at the Kane County Flea Market.  I have a few frame samples and a million mats I'm sorting through, and was leaning towards a deep frame so I could have some relief and a shadowbox affect so you could see the cool depth and crunchiness of not only the matches themselves, but also the pages of the tattered old scrapbook ($$$$$$). But looking at that image above I wonder if I shouldn't just go with a classic (plain jane) metal frame ($) and white mat (oh the decisions).  I would usually never go with a metal frame... but it works there.  But they have grasscloth on the walls, which is a nice soft element, and what they have framed has hardly any color.

Okay, enough thinking out loud.

calling all chair lovers

Blue Art Studio has really cool chair posters, check 'em out! 

 

another oil sketch

I can't get enough.  This is my favorite painting by Janet Woodward Hill.