it's the little things

I've made
mini cards made from

mini stamps

carved out of white erasers

(click HERE for the how-to post)

and mini gifts

of decorated matchboxes

"merry"

and

"bright"

(click HERE for the post about these)

* * *
I'll see you tomorrow for tea and catching up on things ....
until then,
 I hope you're warm and dry today

I know there's lots of snow for some of you guys

and if you're in LA you're trying to keep cool

Our town's river is expected to crest above flood stage tomorrow ...

we live on a hill, so we'll stay dry, but it's so hard on the folks who don't.

on workspaces and white elephants

a martha stewart, I am not

and my desk 

(which is NOT a lovely shade of bottle glass green)

is in a constant state of array

ar-ray

[uh-rey]

- verb (used with object)

to place in proper or desired order

to marshal: Napoleon arrayed his troops for battle

but my mind, of late, is in a constant state of disarray

it hits me hardest when I walk into ANY store

even the grocery store

it's the the christmas music and the displays 

they propel me into an instant state of wandering aimlessly and losing any focus

it's intentional I'm sure

a conspiracy to help boost the economy, right?

which brings me to the white elephant:

this is the white elephant gift I won last night

it was the last gift on the table

I had already lost the John Deere tractor clock

 (which makes real tractor noises)

this last gift was the messiest wrapping job in the bunch

so it was the last one picked

when I opened it I could hear a collective groan

and the guy who brought it apologized.

he said,

"it's really good for falling asleep."

I said,

"I love it."

but I don't think anyone heard me say that.

and I do love it.

bloggie tea

I've had an iPad for a little over a month now.

I love using it to visiting my favorite blogs,

but I'm waiting for an app from Google Blogger to make posting a lot easier.

(I've done it, but you have to use the "edit html" tab instead of "compose")

There's an app for Wordpress Blogs ... so it's just a matter of time I'm sure.

There are apps for everything.

Even for tea.

Tea Remedy for iPad ($0.99)

 "select your mood on the teapot, and look to the cup to find your perfect cup of tea"

or

The Little Tea Book HD ($1.99)

"A fascinating little book about the drink of drinks, tea."

or 

The Book of Tea by Kakuzo Okakur ($1.99)

"a guide to the history of tea .... and more"

But I see no free tea apps.

I'm all about what's free right now.

And 

slow

and

natural

and

very

very

unplugged

like the weathering quilt:

 and a weathering recipe box:

How are things weathering where you are?

* * *

for more tea and wintry weather,

please visit the tea blogs listed in my sidebar

"Tea on Tuesday Blogs"

ornamental

The Sweet Husband's sweet sister made these ornament hooks and

ornaments

 aren't they beautiful?

they add some elegance to our very eclectic tree

our most loved ornaments are the handmade ones.

I'll bet it's true for you too!

*

a very happy and joyous 

second sunday of advent

and 

fifth night

to all my friends

journaling

I've been keeping up my journal pretty consistently
... which is unusual for me.
I have loads of started journals
and not one single completed one.
I think I'm on a roll with a method that works for me.

Basically it goes like this
(and this technique I learned from Willowing and Friends "Art, Heart and Healing"):

1. write a two page spread in pencil - thoughts that need to get out
2. on a separate piece of paper record the gist of what you wrote
3. gesso over the pencil, lightly or heavily, depending on how revealing you want to be
4. collage, doodle, paint, etc. over the gessoed part
5. write in the bit you wrote that was a summation of those original thoughts

Because of the personal thoughts included in my journal 

(which is as it should be)

I'm only showing you bits and pieces of it.

I hope to inspire you to have a place you can write down your hopes and dreams and fears and worries.

There is something good about putting those thoughts to paper

finding the beauty in them

and then keeping them secret.

tea on tuesday

(gloomy)

we're having a typical "low light day" today

(in western washington)

but that is easily fixed in iPhoto

(sunny)

see how good lighting can make anything look better?

and actually, once you get outside the diffused light is almost magic

(the quilt)

it wraps around and between and underneath things

... just like the misty rain ...

(looking up)

the weathering quilt is very wet today

I'm staying warm and cozy indoors

today's tea is Good Earth Original

spicy and delicious

(sorry about the santa mug .... the onslaught is just beginning)

* * *

for more tea on tuesday,

please visit the blogs listed in my sidebar (under the tea mug)

sewing again

I've been having fun making these cards

and it turns out they are very similar to

something Patty's been working on

and Terri, too

Terri's got a video for the paper bag version

but mine are simply pinned to a blank card (for giving/greeting)

and I did the slow sew (just didn't want to get out the machine I guess)

... oh, and they're in my etsy shop too ...