The end of summer is turning into quite the exciting time...so much happening...so much on the horizon...
First and foremost - I am proud to have our home featured in the October/November issue of Cottages & Bungalows magazine...
Last October, Jickie Torres, editor and Bret Gum, photographer spent a long and crazy day here...photographing every nook and cranny...here's a few shots to show you what goes on behind the camera...
A quick run to the local grocery store provided pumpkins for a seasonal touch...
I was so glad that it was a glorious sunny day...it made the house shine...
Lots going on in the background while getting the perfect shot...
Even Calvin had to get in on all the activity...
stealing Jickie's heart...
At the end of day, all were tired and exhausted...and it was hard to have to wait so long to see how it all turned out...
But I'm pleased as can be with it...and I invite you to pick up a copy at your local newsstand or grocery store...I share lots of ideas for incorporating vintage treasures into your home...I think you'll enjoy it...
Yesterday I actually got out my real camera...as opposed to my phone...and shot some still photos. I'm on deadline for a magazine article about holiday gift wrapping (yes, its August, its hot and dry but I'm trying to get in the Christmas spirit as I write this piece due on Monday) and I needed a couple of pictures to complete my tutorial.
I decided to play around a bit after I got the shots I needed...I was reminded this week of a book I own when I saw a shot on Instagram by Barb of Keeping With the Times, where she used the book "A Life Less Ordinary" as a prop...I was inspired...
Its a beautiful book...filled with simple and uncluttered images...and attests to the beauty of friendship between two women...
And it made me think...about my own life...it is a life less ordinary...for the last 15 years, I've been pursuing my ambition to be an artist...and though I am not rolling in the dough, I am rich in other ways...deciding how I spend my time, determining how my energy will be used, discovering a wealth of talents...
And I too have some wonderful friendships that have formed along the way...both within my local community as well as online...others who support what I am doing, offering encouragement along the way, building a network that strengthens all who participate...
One of which is Barb of Keeping With the Times...today I'm linking up to her Instagram post Sunday Sundries...which encourages each of us to celebrate whatever we wish...today I celebrate my life less ordinary...and the friends who are a part of it...
I was recently asked by a friend about how I begin a collage...do I have an idea and then go looking for the materials to pull it together...or do I start with a piece of ephemera that inspires me and go from there...
I thought for a minute...it really had me stop for a moment and consider...
"How do I begin?"
More often than not, its a piece of paper, a scrap of material, a torn page, a faded photograph that sets my mind wheeling...thus begins the process...
My most recent collage series started with a trio of vintage seed packets...ones that I picked up many years ago...the vivid colored vegetables along with their European monikers motivated me to action...I started collecting materials...
I painted three wooden boards coordinating pastel colors...and glued down the first layer of papers...since I wanted these three collages to relate to one another, I used similar (though not identical) papers with each collage...
The names of each of the vegetables included reference to three European cities so that guided my choices...London, Paris and Florence...old atlas maps, historical timelines and garden/botanical pages were all gleaned for inclusion...I wanted to include a piece of silverware on each collage for the crowning touch...auditioning forks for the Florence collage was a challenge...which one would fit the best...
Eventually all fell into place...the trio now complete...
You can see this trio for yourself...I'll be one of the artists participating in the Fresh Paint art show this coming weekend, August 15-16 at the Everett Marina...
please, stop by, say hi and chat with me a bit...I'd love to see you...
