Collaboration with Vivian Ducas

I am so thrilled to finally be collaborating with other artists who are translating their designs to fabric!

The first of which is this Feather Dot painting by Vivian Ducas of C'est La Viv. I have designed an oversized pillow that is sure to stop your visitors in their tracks, they will die to know where you got such a gorgeous print!  At which point you can promptly encourage them to run to my store & check it out (wink.  wink.)  ...

Indigo Feather & Fluid Polka Dot 

This book

So I think every blogger who waits longer than a month in between posts, feels the need to open with an apology. I feel that need this morning. But I will just say sorry & move on to this book I'm reading (for the second time). Okay? Ok.

This book came to me at the perfect time and from the hands of the (almost) perfect person, my mentor of the past year.

You see I've been grappling with the concept of prayer & it's purpose. And making sense of why God doesn't heal physically or emotionally in some circumstances, after you pray & plead & try to persuade Him to do so. This book has taken me on a journey to answer that very question and as a result it had changed my definition of prayer. My understanding of prayer has gone from being clever or desperate enough to convince God to do what you want him to do; to simply sitting with Him, being near Him, just asking for more of Him.

All of that to say, if you're looking for a good, sound book on prayer this one is a home run.

I've become an aficionado (aka snob)

Well I discovered one thing for sure on our recent trip to San Francisco, I've become a total snot when it comes to my morning joe.  I absolutely cannot drink off the shelf beans or Kerug coffee of any sort (let alone "flavored beans"---people stop the madness!).  I have been so completely ruined for anything but freshly roasted beans, and the darker the roast, the better (at this stage in my coffee experience, but that may evolve too).  And Costco is my main go-to store.  They roast these beans on site and sell them for cheap!  $17 for this four pound bag:

I do my best not to complain about much when I'm staying in someone else's home.
Hospitality is central to my heart.  But I couldn't help but require a good cup of coffee each morning of my seven day visit (and it was my Aunt's house, so she's used to spoiling me).  Which meant that we incorporated Peet's or Great Bear coffee as part of our morning ritual.  And I even bought 1/2 pound of their freshly roasted coffee and tried to create my own little coffee maker.

And realized that I will now travel with a french press.  I know RIDICULOUS!  So completely high-maintenance.  But coffee is my "thang" you know.  For some people it's wine, others it's chocolate or cheese or good steak, etc etc.  I just love one really good cup of coffee in the morning.  And someday I will roast my own, but for now I don't want my little 900 square feet to be saturated with that burnt popcorn smell.

And as my reward for traveling 4 hours on a plane with a tired two-year old, we visited a place called Blue Bottle Coffee (per a fellow-coffee snots recommendation).  They do "pour-overs" meaning they hand pour each and every cup of coffee (with their own freshly roasted beans) and it was such a party!  Small, overly crowed sort of place, with the line wrapping around the building, fully staffed with artsy-hippy types.  And so worth the wait!  Such a fun experience for us (minus my cranky side kick...that I just kept feeding cookies).  I've always thought it would be so much fun to learn the coffee business and open my own shop, where we roast beans in front of our customers.  But if you've known me for any length of time, you know that's just one of a dozen, out-of-the-box, business ideas that I'm in love with.  So, on that note.  I'll get back to my for-real business and sew these two ikat pillows.

Pinterest in the kitchen

First let me say, I don't remember life without Pinterest.
I'm sure it was largely un-inspired.
Actually, if I try hard enough I can remember when most of my inspiration came from magazines (I lamented the closing of Domino) and even that was limited.
I think Pinterest deserves the most credit for how my taste has evolved over the past few years.  All of that exposure to out-of-the-box ideas that are actually attainable for people like me, meaning people on a lean budget.  And daily exposure to all sorts of crafty blogs.
I can be found on pinterest much more than facebook.  Is that true for you?

Pinterest is my go-to for:
-Cleaning tips
-New recipes
-Craft & design inspiration
-Toddler activities  (that actually hold my wiggly two-year olds attention)
-Organization
-and on and on.

Here are a few things that I've tried & found much success with in the kitchen:

Mini Caprese Salad bites : My go-to appetizer.  I just use use string cheese cut up into mini-circles, cheery tomatoes, fresh basil and drizzle olive oil & balsalmic vinegar all over the top.  It is not the least bit heavy, so you're still hungry for dinner when the time comes.
Cooking bacon in the oven : Even though I have to clean the oven afterwards (because there are baby grease splatters on the front & sides of the oven), the bacon is near perfect.
Sopapilla Cheesecake : I take this to Mops when it's my turn to bring a breakfast casserole & I'm almost always asked for the recipe.  I liken it to a cheese danish more than a cheesecake.
Roasted Broccoli : I never really liked broccoli before I cooked it this way.  Sometimes this is all I want for dinner. Yum!

My week in a picture

Hunting for acorns with this cutie boy.
A load of laundry (almost) every day.
Still enjoying my bowl cover (crazy for the fabric, I respond to loud color).
Playing a waiting game with my potentially water-logged iPhone. (And realized that I hadn't bought a bag of white rice since high school, it hurt my whole-grain ego.)

Firey Orange

I can be caught buying variations of this same shade of orange almost every time I shop.
And I don't shop very much anymore, but for the past few years I've managed to fill my closet with this color.  I'm pretty much obsessed with it.  And I don't plan to out grow it, ever.

I make lists

So I realize that I can't do much without a list.
I can't stay focused in a grocery store.
Or remember the dimensions of something I've sewn a million times.
Or efficiently clean my house (if you were inside of my head while I'm cleaning you would hear me constantly redirecting myself, "One end to the other. One end to the other.")

I need a list to actually accomplish all of the things that swim around in my head.

I also think it's important to add the things to the list that I've already accomplished that day because then I give myself credit for all of the things I do repeatedly...like making beds, putting away laundry & emptying the dishwasher.

And side note, I think I've had A.D.D. most of my life & lists are one way I compensate. In fact, I'm pretty sure of it.