Thursday, April 28, 2011

tweak tweak

do you remember this?
it was the spring banner I made in March
(see this post)


well, I sold out in Etsy
(not THAT big of a deal, there were only 2 of them)
so I made some more
and if you know me, you know I get bored easily


so I tweaked it
:)


now in my Etsy shop


Tuesday, April 26, 2011

reflecting


I am finding it hard to say goodbye to the lacy trees of winter time
I notice them in glances
and reflections
and quick passing by
I want to savor and gaze upon their still bare branches
... they will be in full leafy regalia within weeks
their winter silhouette hidden in green

I am savoring the murky gray sky of our wintry April
noticing the way it reigns in the garish colors of spring
there is a party atmosphere that comes with a too sunny spring
like a woman in high heels
perfume
dangly earrings
who, only an hour ago was in her jeans and finishing up with the wash


I guess I'm more comfortable in jeans
but I admit
I'm also looking forward to wearing sandals
... and not wellies

just a thought with my tea today

what are you thinking about?

* * *



Friday, April 22, 2011

green eggs

(no, not Sam I Am's green eggs)


these are the green kind, as in:

"reduce"


"recycle"


"re-use"


I made these "green eggs"
by blowing out the innards and gluing on various kinds of paper:

an old map
a page from Pride and Prejudice
a dictionary page
an old cookbook
saved wrapping paper
and
security envelopes
:)

Happy Earthday
Happy Easter

p.s. here's a good how-to that I found:
Martha Stewart "Elegant Eggs"
it's basically identical to the way I made mine


Wednesday, April 20, 2011

153

(click on any of the smaller pictures for a larger view)


a song to listen to:

I unwrapped my oil spill quilt yesterday
(read more about The Oil Spill Quilt)


it was a sunny day 
(unusual for here)


the fabric was soaked through


but as I unfolded and unfolded again,


it appeared to be o.k.


the underside of it has the worst damage


but the front has only a few spots and considerable fading


it really is quite small in reality


my dog standing guard


drying in the sun









and a heart


what will I be doing with it next?

I need to back it and bat it
then make it suitable for hanging

it was making me sad
now, it makes me happy

and about the oil spill?
only time will tell.
unfortunately.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

securi-tea


I rescued these security envelopes
(a last vestige of 2010 tax season)


they struck me as something kind of pretty


reheating some tea from this morning's pot
and wondering what I could make with these


hmmmmmm

*

please don't have an opinion about microwaving cold tea
(I know you are the last to judge)

:)

waste not want not


*

If the butler (Mister Linky) fails us again this week, he's fired .....





Friday, April 15, 2011

fabric transfer

posted a video about Citra-Solv (HERE's her post)
and that got me started on the following odyssey:

trip to the hardware store 
(no citra-solv)
trip to the health food store 
(found it!)
altering magazine photos
(messy!)
finding a how-to for transferring photos to fabric
(HERE's the link)
a trip to the copy center
an attempt at transferring photocopy onto fabric
(wrong kind of photocopy machine)
another trip to a different copy center
transferring a photocopy onto fabric
(success!)
and all the while hoping my brain cells are still ok after breathing the stuff
(it says "all natural," but it IS a solvent)


this is what I photocopied
(my watercolor from last week)


whoa ... this looks really different!
it's much softer much foggier much fainter and much more muted


the fabric I used is muslin


I will be adding some hand stitching
(I'll post pictures of that too)

do you think you might try it?



Tuesday, April 12, 2011

one week to go


this is my oil spill quilt from last fall
I put it out to winter over in the weathering chair for 153 days
(November 19th to April 20th)
the oil spill was 153 days long
it seemed right to me to subject my precious quilt to the whims of nature 
for the same amount of time that precious nature was subjected to the whims of an oil spill

it's really very logical to me


it was very clean to start with

this is what it looks like today:


oh, and The Sweet Husband planted White Bleeding Heart all in a row next to my weathering chair
I don't think he knows how much that means to me




For the story, as I know it so far, please visit the tab at the top of the page "Oil Spill Quilt"

gadget love (tea post)


someone had this teapot on a recent blog post
and for the life of me I cannot remember who it was
(if it was you, please raise your hand!)
... anyhow ....
it is really very cool

siberian rose tea


it's a basket that nests at the top of the pot
you put your tea in,
then your water,
then you push the button,
and all the water pours down into the pot

it makes PERFECT green tea
because it's fast
(you can't steep green tea)




it's also perfect for my Siberian Rose Tea
which I picked up while in Seattle last week
at the Vital Tea Leaf in Pike Place Market
(here's the link to find the teapot)



they have tea tastings all day long




I only live about 30 miles from Seattle
but "going into the city"
is always a treat
especially when there's tea

:)


Happy Tea on Tuesday!
share your tea with us
(Mister Linky is the butler)



It appears "the butler" is still on spring break! Oops! Just mention your tea post in your comment and we'll pop in to say hello! Cheers!


Saturday, April 9, 2011

reflective


some of my favorite captures are reflections


your brain will notice reflections when your eyes relax


pause and reflect