Did I say Hapless?

Well my lovelies, it looks as though things have taken an unexpected turn. Out of the blue, the computer has given up the ghost, thrown in the towel, gasped it's last beep, beep, beep...and I don't know when - if - what can be saved. Hopefully I wont be too long away but, until things get sorted out, I am hoping you all have a joyful time till our next little chat.

Red and White

The colors of my winter. I'm slowly making festive the little cottage. Arranging and re-arranging...and then arranging again.



The hook and I are steady companions. You will be happy to know that I have finally moved on (for now) from going in circles. You will have to wait and see what shapes I am obsessed with now.



Nothing is complete, it's all in various stages of making but, I am pottering along well enough.

This week things may be a little spotty around here. Grandma is in town which has been quite the treat. Parent teacher conference is scheduled. Sundry appointments need to be kept. So, if all is quiet here, it means I'm out and about doing the daily.

I wish you all a happy Monday!

Have you seen my sparkle?

Tis the season for sparkle.
Right.
I had plans to make with the festive, really... I intended to break out my sparkle and wow you with a big "Ta Da!" I have to wonder now, if my best intentions were truly my best. Perhaps they were merely good intentions; possibly even average, oh dear. I know for certain that I meant well.

Things simply ran amok, wrenches were thrown into the works, cold weather and cricks in the neck; the death of a gold fish and gas leaks at the school; impending guests that I was unaware of until my husband said "Oh, by the way..."; the dawning of understanding that two weeks from today I will be turning 41 and am feeling painfully human; it has all wrecked havoc. Not to mention, the walls are all the wrong color. To the point... the big "Ta Da," turned into a big "Ta Don't," and "quick hide it away before anyone sees!"

...and now that I have peaked your curiosity...I am going to shamelessly change the subject and bring you the saga of Troublesome Dutch Girl and the Lumberjack.

Whilst readying my mantle for some sparkle, I discovered a drama taking place.

The Lumberjack has taken notice of the Troublesome Dutch Girl, finds her irresistible and waves a greeting.

He tries to entice her with a ride in his giant pineapple boat.

She is not impressed and walks away.

Broken hearted, the Lumberjack wallows in his own misery.
I could have told him that it would not end well.

I'm off (oh yes that is obvious), I am going in search of my sparkle and I will keep you posted.

Show and Tell

When we arrived home from our holiday, I was greeted by a mailbox stuffed to the gills with small parcels. Really, is there anything better than spying those envelopes and boxes in the post? Well, after unloading and putting away, I sat down with my bounty and began tearing into the parcels.
The first was from California and intended for Little Miss Ringlet, from my mother. A sweet little purse in bright colors.


The second envelope had winged it's way from France. Not too long ago, I had made a comment to the lovely Floss on her blog, about how I wished I could find some second hand issues of the British Country Living magazine. She replied that she had an extra copy from summer and did I want it? She also sent along some sweet summery buttons that I will use in a special project. I am touched that she went to the time and expense to send this to me. If you haven't seen her blog, head on over.
Edited to add: Floss has also set up an amazing vintage shop here! I just looked and she has some gorgeous vintage buttons I am quite tempted by, so pretty!

The final parcel came from across the country from June At Noon. Gretchen has been a supportive blog friend and has a wonderful blog and a new Etsy Shop. She makes gorgeous hand embroidered items and carries original embroidery designs in her shop. I happened to win a give away from her! So exciting! A beautiful hand embroidered pin cushion, a couple pieces of yummy fabric, and two full spools of ribbon. Yay! She also sent me one of her patterns that I am hoping to get to before too long.


I am indeed a lucky duck! A big thank you to the most generous folks of blogland, you are ace!

Holiday

Just back from our holiday at the coast. This was our second year renting the big house at the beach for Thanksgiving. Ten big people and three little ones, friends and family arrived in cars laden with ridiculously delicious food and drink, musical instruments, and cozy slippers.

There is nothing between this wall of windows and the ocean, but for a small strip of road. The view tremendous and awe inspiring.

The house sits just the other side of the small coastal village of Yachats, an artistic community with a small population. It remains less tourist filled than other nearby towns and it's coast line is rough and dramatic.

We feasted, walked on wind swept beaches, played games, watched movies, played music and generally had a lovely time. Now it's back to real world and the post holiday clean up and catch up. We are ever so thankful for this time with good folks and family in such a beautiful place. So blessed are we.



I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

Thanks

Just a quick post before I take a little break to spend time with family. I wanted to simply say thank you to you. That's right, you!
You have been the loveliest bunch of readers a gal could ever hope for. All of your comments and support mean the world to me. Whether you have been a long time friend or a new friend, you make this blog a joy and a wonder! With out you, I would simply be muttering to myself in the hallway (which I still do from time to time mind you). You have given me so much inspiration and I treasure your words and insights.

If you are just stopping by from Apartment Therapy, thank you too!

I hope that all of you have a wonderful holiday, or a lovely few days, however you roll. I will be back come Monday with more mutterings and what not.

Thanks a lot!

On a Lark

Lark - A carefree or spirited adventure.

Last week, The Lovely Miss K emailed me a listing from a soon to open fabric store in a neighborhood just a short ride away from my home. They were looking for sewing instructors of all levels to teach classes. At first, I was simply excited to know that a new fabric store was on it's way. I told The Engineer about the listing and he simply said "Go for it!" No, I couldn't really, or could I? On a lark, I emailed a response, they emailed back and an interview was set up at a local coffee shop for this morning. Now, it looks as though I will be teaching a couple of classes next year! This is going to be a whole new adventure!

Not surprisingly, today I am a woman pressed for time. I had a whole list of other things I was going to prattle on about but, turns out this is going to be one of those short and sweet posts.

The only other odd bit I have to tell you is that I am a woman under the influence. It is inspirational all the clever folks out there, and I find myself being influenced by the very creative loveliness I encounter when I go poking around. I see echos of it in my work too, sometimes not realizing it until after the work is completed and I stand back and look at it. This weekend I put together another one of Lola's journals for the shop

a sweet little deer under the moon to tell your secrets to, he wont tell a soul, but he may whisper it to the moon.

As I was taking the photos, it occurred to me that something was familiar about it. The color scheme, the woodland creature...then it dawned on me. It reminded a bit of this photo by the very imaginative Dottie Angel.

So, here is to all of you lovely and inspiring folks out there, I hope you don't mind if some of your cleverness sneaks into my brain and leads me to new discoveries.

First

Yesterday was a day of "Firsts" 'round here. Very exciting stuff I tell you.
After waiting, and waiting, the ladies finally delivered. We found our first egg in the hen house!!!

This made for quite a lot of excitement, more than may seem reasonable to some still, we hopped around and exclaimed joyfully, even did a little jig.

It was also the night little Miss Ringlet had her very first sleepover! Oh my she is getting so very grown up.


...and if that wasn't enough...
I got to play music and sing on stage for the first time in almost a year. My dear friend Little Sue, invited me to sing at a benefit with a whole mess of incredibly talented musicians.

Photo of Little Sue

I had such a good time! Made even better by being able to sing along with The Engineer on banjo and his cousin on cello. We enjoyed so much wonderful music and company, it was a hoot!

Quite a day to be sure...and a very late night for me. I stayed up way past my bedtime and woke before the morning light so, tired I am. I am off to make that 2nd cup of coffee now. I shall return on Monday much rested and with a tale of a lark.

Wonderful weekend sweets!

Hapless - my creative space

Daily Meditations for the Hapless

Yes, I know that My Creative Space is supposed to be on Thursday, but honestly, I don't know what kind of shape I'm going to be in by then. So, here you have it, a day early.

Now, settle in if you have a minute. I do believe I will be taking the long road home.

As some of you may be aware, I have been going in circles. I am speaking specifically about circles of the crochet kind. There has been a hint of 'granny circle' obsession going on for days at The Cottage. The Bearded One...ok I feel a bit of an off track moment coming on, so bear with me...

I am growing weary of calling the Mr. - The Bearded One, so henceforth, from this moment on (until I tire of it as well), I will be referring to him as The Engineer.


Soooo...The Engineer was starting to worry some. He was concerned that so much going 'round and 'round with hook and yarn would lead to trouble, and perhaps there was some merit in that concern. You can decide for yourself.
When I began, I only intended to see whether I could conquer a small circle. After two, I thought they might make sweet handmade ornaments. Then, I had a vague notion of a garland (seeing as the whole world has gone garland happy - and why not? They are after all happy things.) One day, just finishing my 5th little circle of joy, I spied an aesthetically displeasing thumbtack in the wall. It was serving an important purpose to be sure but, it was none too pretty. I walked over and plopped one of the crocheted circles over the thumbtack, stood back for a gander and felt a silly grin creep upon my lips.


So there I was, standing in the hallway giggling to myself, thinking - This is it! I am going to be the maker of crocheted thumbtack covers! Why, just a short while ago I was having one of those 'let's chuck the whole crafty thing and become a professional belly dancer' moments, imagine! Lo' and behold, I have had my breakthrough - hazzah! By now, the giggle has become a real laugh, which ends in a big sigh.


To embrace this silliness, in the midst of a rather hapless week, I decided to create a small theme, a vignette if you will. An ode to crocheted thumbtack covers, a celebration of the happy garland, and a few words of inspiration.
Thus, Daily Meditations for the Hapless came to be.

The word Hapless has been one of my favorites ever since I came across this book in my late teens. And while the definition is quite dire, I have thought of it as oddly endearing. Of course, I have a bit of a dark humor.

This little spot of color now sits prettily on the wall above my desk. There to remind me not to take myself too seriously.



my creative space has been brought to you by the creative folks over here.

Circle Game

I woke early this morning with heart pounding and head spinning with all the things needing to get done today which are compounded by all the things that did not get done yesterday. Add this to a skipped dinner last night and an empty fridge this morning and I find myself a bit dizzy. Me thinks that after dropping off miss ringlet at school, I should get myself to a bakery, grab something splurge worthy to fuel the activity that must take place in the hour and a half before I head back out for school pick up.

Oh dear, I've just now received the phone call informing me that school is canceled. Our lovely teacher Joyce is out ill. Well, this puts a new spin on things.

No need to worry though, it will all sort itself out in time I'm sure. The shop update I intended to post today is looking like a stalled car on the cyber highway. Real life bumping up against my 'best intentions'. Sometimes it can't be helped. The only thing for it, is to don one's 'make way for whimsy' hat...

...pack up the gal, and head tout suite to the bakery for a treat. I am of the mind that layers of flaky butter pastry make everything better.

I'd best bid you adieu as I am getting a bit loopy and the room is beginning to twirl. I shall return with news of progress or at least a full stomach. Until next time my lovelies.
Happy Monday!

Edited to add: I had just enough time for a mini update in the shop, have a look! There will be more coming.