friendly reminder

I'm declaring this week national "finish all your projects because your in-laws are coming in town from Georgia and you don't want them to think you live in a tornado of nastiness" week. Consider yourself reminded. First thing on today's agenda... I made a cover for this chair.

We found this chair in our neighbor's trash on a Sunday night months ago. The chair was in perfect condition, just needed some paint and love... and a cushion. So I painted it black last week and made the cushion today. Somehow the finished product was all inside out and upside down and backwards... maybe it wouldn't kill me to use a pattern every now and again. Anyway, I sort of love it. It's kind of Anthropologie-ish. O.K. gotta run... projects are waiting!!!

snack time

Sometimes... at night... after the kids go bed... we eat snacks... and we enjoy it. Sundays are pretty hectic for us and by the time the kids are clean and brushed and in bed we remember that we've forgotten to eat dinner... so we just eat snacks. This cappuccino brownie mix is spectacular. Happy snacking!

quilt... day 37

So close... yet so far away. I stayed up late last night machine sewing the darling zigzag fabric to the back of the quilt and some wool batting in the middle. Then I cut the flower fabric for the border. It almost made me sad to cut that fabric cause it's so gorgeous... then I remembered that cutting the fabric would mean finishing the quilt and then I was happy again. I ironed the border strips before sewing them on so the edges would stay down (that's right, Mom, I did something that is only done by people who actually know how to sew). So it all came together with only a few minor catastrophes. All that's left to do now is hand sew a few more embellishments that will cover up the nasty mistakes. I'm loving how it looks!!!

did i mention?

Again, I would like to say that we spent a few days in the country. A few extraordinary days. My grandmother doesn't know life without big flowers and trees and garden fresh produce and animals and water and peacefulness. Although life without computers and central heat and air and paved roads is simple... its seems to spring up a well of creativity and inspiration. My sketchbook is overflowing with new ideas. I sketched and colored and dreamed all the way home. P.S. I wish I could describe the color of my grandmother's bathroom. Since I can't, here's a picture... Now it's time for chai tea and quilt finishing!!!

pretend camping

We've been deep in the glorious woods of Mississippi... that's where we've been. And we didn't want to come back. My grandparents took us in for a few days... cooked for us, loved on us, entertained us with their MeeMaw and PeePaw-ness. It was practice for future "real" family camping trips... but not really since we had ice cream, beds, and a small (but fully functional) television. It was still an incredible break from our everyday life. O.K. more details later! Hope you took a deep breath sometime this week!

quote for the weekend

Love this quote. I've been busy this week preparing for a new, exciting year of teaching toddler art. I'm about to explode with inspiration for this job. Hope your weekend is razzle dazzle!

quilt... day 26

Sometimes fabric combinations make me very excited... it just happens. I ordered these two fabrics from Heather Bailey's website and they are absolutely scrumptious. One will be the back of the quilt and the other will go around the sides (i'm sure the "go around the sides" part has a real name... like "binding" or "edging" or "border" or whatever). Sooooo... here's what I've learned so far... a full size sheet is WAYYY too big for quilt making if you're hand-sewing star shaped thingys all over it. Maybe if I were doing large, uncomplicated squares of fabric it would work... maybe. So, what's an abstract mind to do with a half-finished project that needs to get done fast? Of course! Cut the thing in half and call it a day!!! So now the quilt measures about 40in x 48in. About the size of a flat crib sheet. Still perfect for picnics and soccer games. I spent about 2 hours last night attaching these pinwheel thingys. Only a few more embellishments then I'll start sewing it all together.

mr. husband

Happy Birthday. I like you.

hopes

Hope you made some cupcakes today with homemade buttercream icing. Hope you ate 2 of them. Hope your friday night is full of good movies and smelly good candles from anthropologie.

art journaling

I want keep a normal journal like normal people full of uniformed penmanship and honest, realistic goals. I really want to. But just when I sit down to write, I start thinking about how the writing would look much better over an acrylic paint background. And it's not enough to simply write about things I want or would like to do... no... I must dig through magazines and books for a picture to prove the point. Why can't I just write about being happy or sad or nervous... why do I have to draw a picture??? I have no idea. Maybe it's good that the inside of my journal looks just like the inside of my mind... maybe. O well, I'm sharing a few pages with you today. I'm working on a HUGE etsy shop update which might include a few art journaling kits for those of you who would like to try your hand at more creatively documenting your hopes and dreams.

ps... here's a picture of our family. It was recently taken for our church directory. When you have 3 toddlers, pictures that capture everyone's face all at one time are a real treasure to your heart. This one makes me smile.

market

If you go to the farmer's market and you find yourself practically in tears because the lemons and avocados are so beautiful, don't feel bad. It happens to all of us. And if you happen to fill up your reusable shopping bag with lots of gorgeous lemons, avocados, potatoes, peppers, and homemade bread... please... i beg you... go home and make some guacamole and french fries. Just mash up an avocado and squeeze half a lemon, add salt and pepper stir... heaven help us. Then thinly slice some small red potatoes, spread em on a baking sheet, salt and pepper, coconut oil, mix it all around (with your hands of course), bake at 400 for about 30 minutes. Then your husband might smell the potatoes and this will motivate him to fire up the grill and make some enormous hamburgers. Which will in turn motivate you to make a pitcher of fresh squeezed lemon iced tea. You will top the burgers with potatoes and guacamole, then you will eat. And you will be happy forever.

quilt... day 17

I did some hand stitching tonight while I watched a movie called I'm Reed Fish. It was a special, artistic, refreshing couple of hours. Happy hand stitching! night night!

a million reasons

Here are a few highlights from our Saturday morning. Our bellies are full of chocolate croissants and good coffee fresh from our local bakery. Our life is full of laughter. Enjoy today!

quilt... day 15

Thanks for your patience with the quilt updates! The emails asking for updates have been so encouraging and exciting to my beating heart! I didn't have much time to give the quilt last week because I was finishing my big painting and this week has been... wellllll.... filled with things that needed my attention other than the quilt. I did manage to assemble and attach (by machine) a few more star shaped thingys. I think I like the look of the hand-sewn star shaped thingys more than the machine-sewn ones... even though it takes WAY more time. To the untrained eye (or I should probably say to the "trained" eye, since I have the "untrained" eye) the quilt may look a little disastrous. Don't fear, it still looks exactly how i wanted. Each wrinkle and fold and frayed edge is perfectly placed. It's starting to take on it's own personality. So cool. It also took me a little longer to sew with this gold metallic thread that I thought was entirely necessary... it breaks alot. O.K. have a terrific Friday afternoon!

calm chaos

This is Kevin and Katie. They are getting married today. They are darlings. We're driving 4 hours to the wedding this morning and driving back 4 hours tonight. The little cuties came over to our house for lunch a few months ago and asked me so preciously to do a special painting for their wedding gift. Since I'm not very good at resisting adorableness, I got right to work. I've been working hard this week putting the finishing touches on this...

It's titled "Calm Chaos." Weddings and Marriage seem to bring moments of chaos regularly. I pray that Kevin and Katie will always find calm in the chaos... something beautiful in the middle of every hectic day.

And it took me nearly an hour to wrap a 38in. x 38in. canvas. Charlie will be carrying it into the wedding. I love him. The end.