Day Off

-

Today was a unexpected day off from the studio.

I worked on the website, freshened things up a bit.

Listened to City & Colour.

Squeezed in a trip to my favorite thrift shop, The Trading Post

& got some pretty things (like the pewter sugar jar and silk scarf above).

Finally closed our storm windows. Ok, I get it cold gusts.

Summer/Fall is officially over.

Ignored the sewing machine.

-

What has your Thursday been like?

My sewing machine is an old grump

It's not that I'm jealous of Martha Stewart, she just makes everything seem oh so easy. Listen Martha, a few extra lines of explanations or maybe 3 more step by step photos would seriously be helpful. 

Mk, thanks.

 I just don't understand how a sewing machine could be so difficult! I've gone through the troubleshooting and in the process knocked over a barely sipped gingerbread latte from Starbucks. That was the last straw.

I put the sewing machine away.

So someone from Meatbagz asked in the previous post to share my burlap chair. Not sure if it was Kate or Mackenzie, but here it is!!

This chair was a super find back in May (yes...it has taken me 6 months to get around to finishing this.) and had very little wrong with it. The original fabric was torn in a few spots, and stained. At that point, I wasn't completely sure what I would recover the cushion and back piece with but I knew I could go over the existing fabric and stuffing since it was in good shape. Which also saved me some dough.

I think I was in Terrain when I spotted a burlap reading chair, it was gorgeous! So naturally I had to knock it off.

What I used:

40'' tall 27'' wide coffee bean burlap - purchased here for $2

Helmar Fabric Glue

Upholstery nails (from previous trim on chair)

Thumbtacks to hold burlap in place while gluing

A knife (...something not sharp) to press fabric 

I also cut off the burlap seams (which was "roped" burlap) and used that as the trim on the back cushion

I think overall this project costs me less than $10.

Which is killer, obviously.

Now I just have to convince Mike we need everything covered in burlap, and we'll be set!

Like a nice toaster oven cover :D

This past week:
Took a trip to the 113 farm

I've discovered Eugenio Recuenco -- you want to go here

Added the dark side (my newest board on Pinterest)

Purchased and cut apart coffee bean burlap bags

Drank strong, delicious coffee

Voted

Brought home Swain Thieves (thanks to Andrea)

This weekend I plan to:

Persuade Mike to buy me a sweet potato muffin from Jasmine's...

Be a proud aunt at Cayla's Girl Scout banquet

Finish the coffee bean burlap office chair

Swoon over Martha's Sewing Encyclopedia and anxiously await the use of a sewing machine.

Finish Nip/Tuck season 6 - aka try and get my life back from Netflix

---

I hope you all have a great weekend!

CHRISTMAS ALREADY?!?!?!

It's hard to believe that before we get to have our Halloween candy (and eat it too), Christmas decorations and sign squealing "EXTRA SUPER LARGE CHRISTMAS DISCOUNT SALE NOW!" are already littering our towns.

Eh hem...

I love Christmas! Don't you?!

This year I plan to do very special gifts for friends and family that have supported me throughout the year. I also wanted to do something special for those of you, may you be a stranger or not, who have supported my photography and my shops.

This year is the $25 sale!

How it works:

Purchase the Holiday Sale listing, or any 8x8 and as a special gift to you

please choose another 8x8 of your choice, plus another 8x8 to be printed as 5x5

for free!

*Please leave titles of special free prints in "Notes To Seller" at check-out*

3 prints for the price of 1?

Yep. Done and Done.

Don't forget, I can also send your prints directly to a gift recipient

with a special note.

The Holiday sale begins November 4th and ends December 15th!

All Hallows Eve...

I Dwell in a lonely house I know 

That vanished many a summer ago, 

And left no trace but the cellar walls, 

And a cellar in which the daylight falls, 

And the purple-stemmed wild raspberries grow. 

O'er ruined fences the grape-vines shield 

The woods come back to the mowing field; 

The orchard tree has grown one copse 

Of new wood and old where the woodpecker chops; 

The footpath down to the well is healed. 

I dwell with a strangely aching heart 

In that vanished abode there far apart 

On that disused and forgotten road 

That has no dust-bath now for the toad. 

Night comes; the black bats tumble and dart; 

The whippoorwill is coming to shout 

And hush and cluck and flutter about: 

I hear him begin far enough away 

Full many a time to say his say 

Before he arrives to say it out. 

It is under the small, dim, summer star. 

I know not who these mute folk are 

Who share the unlit place with me-- 

Those stones out under the low-limbed tree 

Doubtless bear names that the mosses mar. 

They are tireless folk, but slow and sad, 

Though two, close-keeping, are lass and lad,-- 

With none among them that ever sings, 

And yet, in view of how many things, 

As sweet companions as might be had.

GhostHouse

-Robert Frost-

Have a Happy and Safe All Hallows Eve!

Under The Trees

Under the trees, I'm at peace with myself.

I'm home.




---

Dread: apothecary

The anxiety and grief has finally released their grip on me. I haven't been much of any use these past few weeks, and finally picked up my camera (shamefully, it's been weeks) and began to shoot.

Oh....it melted everything away. 

Camera, I love you. 

available in print

available in print

I like this series, do you?

It's a great way to make sense of my glass bottle obsession.

....and an excuse to continue it.

Bake it

It's about that time again! I pretty much will bake uncontrollably all through the fall season.

How can you not? The weather is gorgeous, and I'm an early riser on weekends anyway so why not make myself useful (and my boyfriend happy) by baking.

This is a great recipe that can change to fit your cravings. The original called for chocolate chip cookies, but I added the cranberries for some bite.

I do believe Kaelyn gave me this recipe, it was written on a calendar page (with sharpie, no less) stuffed inside one of my books. ::shrugs:: It's delicious, regardless.

Our little tropical storm has finally stopped (although you wouldn't be able to tell from the overflowing rivers causing mania in our area), and I hope to have a sunny and relaxing weekend.

Enjoy yours, wherever you are!

T

Priscilla

I'm still getting used to this area, and for whatever reason I still talk about Berwyn as if I have doubts.

The truth is, I've been having one amazing experience after another. I've met a few neighbors who enthusiastically talked about food and art with me, and one in particular....shared her life story. I think if I walked away she still would have kept talking, but the point is everyone seems so open and nice. Not at all what I expected moving to the Main Line (the stuffy, I drive expensive cars so I'll cut you off and spend $45.00 on a sandwich type o folks).

Before I moved here, I guess I thought I'd have to be around that certain type of person all the time. Funny thing is, I'm finding these great little nooks all throughout town that are starting to light sparks of love for Berwyn. 

Our neighborhood feels like a beach community, which is so fun. Everybody is outside their fences either chatting or walking their dogs (I've met quite a bunch of those, Marshmallow sticks out the most). It's very relaxing and I can feel myself slowly settling in. I still have rising bursts of anxiety, but it's fading away.

We needed house plants.

So I finally stopped by Flowers by Priscilla off Lancaster Ave and see what this funky little shop was all about.

Let me tell you, do not be fooled by the prim and proper website. Priscilla is a fast-talking, quick-moving, straight to the point woman who made an impression on me almost immediately.

I hadn't even look at a single plant, but I knew I'd leave buying something from this magical place.

Picture this:

If a mad chemist had a wife who adored flora and fauna, glass bottles and do-dads so much she opened a little shop. That would be Priscilla. 

We talked and she asked my name.

"Tina? Oh! Do you know the song Tina the Ballerina?" and quickly disappeared into the back, behind some flowers to find the song on youtube.

It was a whirlwind for the 15 minutes I was there, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Exactly what I needed this afternoon.

I bought this little guy for our bathroom, as well as these dried seedy things that I have no idea what they are. Any idea?

She never did find that song....

Hi!!!

::waves::

I think I'm finally getting back into the groove of things now that we're a tiny (and I mean..super tiny) bit settled in our new home. I realized a very important fact about Mike & myself.

We're hoarders.

Not the trash keeping, paper clip collecting, strapping ourselves to chairs so we don't fall in the muck on the floor, kind of hoarders.

I guess more along the lines of pack rats.

A lot of stuff, no where to go with it. We're working on it, though.

I'm not completely ready to feature whole rooms at once (because I've strategically not shown the towering boxes in any of these photos), so here are some mini scenes from our new place at Bridge, Berwyn.

I apologize for small images, I didn't want a long row of single images :/

taken with FXCam on Motorola Backflip