feelin' lucky, not yucky...

I've had a bad cold for a couple of days and last night my daughter left this sweet simple note on my dresser. Her way of sending me get well wishes. She's a sweet kid, they all are (of course, I'm biased). Often my kids will leave me little notes or they will pick up stuff outside for me. We are especially fond of things with a heart motif or shape. Like the little heart shaped rocks or the big one I set on the floor next to my fireplace or the nut with the perfect heart. I save them all - they are tucked in various spots around the house -and whenever I see one, I remember I am loved. I'm so lucky.

feelin yucky

I have a bad cold. I'm feeling yucky. What more can I say?

wings

When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been and there you will always long to return.

-leonardo da vinci-

new stuff is good for the brain

I've been working a lot in the journal above lately. I love this journal. I made it myself, so there isn't another one out there like it. One of my latest passions is making journals. I've had to start selling some, because I can only use so many. The one above was made using two 8x10 canvas boards and some book linen, all of which was painted black, before I drew and painted my hand for the cover. The hand image actually wraps around the back which is kind of cool and it really is my hand. I do a variety of stuff in there, mostly experiments for possible future projects. Above are a few snippets of some of my stuff. I can never seem to stick to one thing, which I think is mostly good. I like to learn new stuff and when I get bored with that, it's time to learn other new stuff. Keeps everything fresh, including my brain.

taking flight

Some pictures of a journal I am making with some cool vintage book covers that I found. Have you ever read the book Taking Flight by Kelly Rae Roberts? I love this book. It is very inspirational. It talks about realizing your dreams, conquering your fears and allowing your creative self to "take flight". I think I may have been thinking about this book when I created this journal. If you like it, I will be listing it in my etsy shop when I am done (if I can part with it, because I really love it).

imagination...

Imagination is more important than knowledge.

- Albert Einstein-

The sentiment on the bottom of this little cutie given to me by my sister-in-law, who knows my love of fairy folk.

my muse

Yesterday, my son were on the way home from the doctor. He finally got his cast removed. As we were cruising along, we saw a giant "ANTIQUES" painted on the side of a building. Well, of course we stopped. I need a bumper sticker that says "I brake for antiques." While I was paying for the silver treasures above, I noticed the poster behind the desk. For some reason, it spoke to me (it might have said, "buy me"). I think she is a beautiful old lady and I like all of her wrinkles. She seems very wise. I am going to hang it in my art room and she will be my muse. My son bought what I thought were shell casings, in a cool box from the 1930's, but they actually turned out to be live ammo. My husband laughed at me, but he says the kids think I'm a really cool mom, because I let them buy old bullets and other cool stuff. Which reminds me, while we were antiqueing in Syracuse a few weeks ago, the boys saw an old Red Ryder BB Gun (you know, like in that movie, A Christmas Story) and some pocket knives and some old lighters. I said, "You can have a knife or a lighter, but no BB gun." My mom gave me a look like I'm maybe crazy. And I'm starting to think maybe I am. But in case you are worried about the safety of my children, none of the lighters work, the knives are for display only and I'm looking for a shadowbox to encase the bullets in permanently.

more on dishes

After my post the other day, I thought you might like to see some of my favorite dishes. And my favorite piece of chippy white furniture. Most of my furniture is old or handed down. I got into the habit of painting everything white. When I was six months pregnant with my fourth child I spent a week sanding and painting this chest. The next day I went into premature labor and spent the next three months on bedrest. It was worth it though. He was born healthy, pretty close to his due date and I still love this chest.

Some hearts I am working on for Valentine's day. When they are done, I will list them in my shop.

treasures

We had a really nice trip to Syracuse last week to visit all of our family. It was fun to see some snow, do some ice skating and of course visit my favorite antique shop. These are the treasures that I found this time around. Some sparkly stuff and a gorgeous pink satin box, some lovely compacts, a crocheted doily and one silver spoon. The compact on the left is covered in mother of pearl and on the back it is engraved "To Mom From your devoted Son, 12-25-49". I just loved that when I saw it. It is in pristine condition, never used and I wonder why she never used it. I try to use or display my special things, I believe there's nothing worse than hiding the good stuff away - it's meant to be enjoyed. I have a wonderful collection of mismatched china and sterling silverware that I use everyday. Having four kids, there's always some breakage. I save all the broken bits and someday I am going to make a mosaic with it all (I almost have enough to do an entire wall). So go ahead kids - throw some plates!

happy birthday Jacob

Happy 9th birthday Jacob. The day you were born was my best New Year's Day ever!