Sunday, February 27, 2011

prettified matches

some things,
well,
many things,
are an eyesore
... like strike on the box kitchen matches ...

(front)

 since I keep them out in plain view in my dining room
I had to make them pretty


(back)

 it was easy
I coated the top and bottom with gesso 
(that step is not entirely necessary)
and pasted on some cool wrapping paper
added some scraps of this and that
coated it with mod podge
(not entirely necessary either)



and now I don't have to look at an ugly red and blue box anymore

* * *

... and then I discovered this sweet picture on my camera ...


child's self portrait
(new pierced ears)

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

nesting instinct




this is an old art piece 
from back in the days of making tons of atc's (artist trading cards)
these atc's are all paper pieced bird houses


I used:
stamping
decorative papers
sanding
inking
a little bit of vintage lace
and attached them all to an old piece of fence wood


it's been hanging in my kitchen for 3 yrs now
and today I decided that it needed
beeswax



take something.
do something to it.
do something else to it.
- jasper johns



some things are much happier with a bit of beeswax













* * *
looking forward to the season of birds
this is what we woke up to:

it's just a little wimpy bit of snow up here in western Washington
it's very pretty and just a little bit of a nuisance
but with our hills and lack of snow removal stuff, 
it's enough to close the schools
and put us all into hibernation

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

virtual tea


over the weekend,  I had reason to "metacognate" about the virtual world

facebook
e-mail
blogs
urban legends


Jill, Nathalie, Penny, Pat (and many others I am sure)
posted their
"this is me while I am blogging"
portraits

well, this is me while I am blogging

I have decided that blogging is my favorite piece of the virtual world puzzle

for instance:

I blew it on facebook .... I questioned the whole "unfriending" thing and called attention to an "unfriending" event .... which is better left ignored and not discussed (on fb at least)

I forwarded a circulating e-mail without first checking snopes

I think the only mistake I've made while blogging, is to not leave enough comments
kind comments are everything to a blogger
how many times have you posted something and then checked e-mail all day to see what sort of comments you've gotten?
 it's the kind words and encouragement that forge these lasting virtual friendships

facebook is not the same
you just sort of throw words out there and hope something comes back

e-mail will never replace a phone call

blogging is a very happy medium

and I am a happy blogger
:)



well, I am off for a few hours now for some real (not virtual) time with someone
I hope your day is a happy one
full of kind words and encouragement
from both near AND far
real AND virtual
it ALL matters

love,
from
me


(p.s. I will check back in and make the rounds with everyone later on this afternoon)


* * *
the tea on tuesday bloggers
(all kind and encouraging bloggers)



*new*My Cup of Tea 
*new*Amy 
*new*Wendy


Friday, February 18, 2011

spring sowing

(no I am not planting it)

"spring sowing" art quilt


attached to watercolor paper


18X22 inches


(unframed)
available here on: Etsy


materials used:


teabag papers


teabag tags and string


garden seeds


garden seed catalog


damask


beeswax

*

thank you for your continued interest in this project
it was fun to string you along
(heart)



Wednesday, February 16, 2011

sewing seeds illuminated

the spring sewing is nearly complete


taking advantage of sunbreaks today


to get that backlight photography I love so much


teabag paper, an old sheet, a seed catalog and 3 year old seeds I've saved


marigolds
my favorite flower
these seeds are trying their darndest to work their way out


Tuesday, February 15, 2011

tea from where I sit

 (I purposely overexposed all my pics today ... it creates bright sun ... when there is none)

before sitting down to tea this morning
I checked my mailbox
there was lots of mail For Me!



but first, you have to see who is keeping a watchful eye on me all day long:



is he making sure I don't blow the budget?
you can't spend too much buying seeds, can you?



sewing is on the "to do list"
but first comes tea
(tazo passion)




 and a sweet little valentine all the way from Buffalo NY




I hope the P.O. never stops making pretty stamps



thank you PakArt for the great bottle caps!
all the way from Alaska



soon we will be seeing these flying friends again
soon
yes
soon

***
happy tuesday to you
I hope your day is filled with sunlight
even when there is none
spring is a month away!!!


please click the tab at the top of my page:
What is Tea on Tuesday?


Monday, February 14, 2011

hands and hearts

we were a flurry of activity yesterday


an origami lesson from the sweet 11 yr old


doilies that we thought looked like maori warrior faces


thinking of the right words for the right people


mom's lazy modern art


happy valentines day
let the love flow

Saturday, February 12, 2011

scattered heart


a mosaic of heather blossoms


a minute later, swept away by the wind

*
photographed on top of my gulf spill quilt, which is enduring 153 days of nature
(read more about it HERE)


Thursday, February 10, 2011

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

"hello honey"

... a valentine a day ...

these are from the 60's and I am sure will bring back lots of sweet memories



do you like the vintage photo effect?
I went to Rollip.com
... it's free!