lingenberry "yam"

Anyone who knows me knows that I like warm, colorful homes.  My ideal house is a fairy tale cottage with diamond stained glass windows by the ocean covered in flowering vines with an herb garden, a vegatable garden, and of course, flowers and cobblestones and christmas lights and fruit trees.  It would probably be crammed with old books, paints, paper, buttons and ribbon, clothes and clothes and clothes, sewing machines, things I can't seem to stop picking up around the world like crowns, dolls, parasols, and wooden painted animals, fabric, feathers, clothes, plants, drying herbs, cushioned furniture you disappear into, antique jewelry, spices, cooking pots, glass bottles and jars, beads, glitter, quilts, masks and fairy wings, and clothes.  All this gets very cluttered and hard to keep orderly.  I've been looking at the blogs of some northern Europeans and am enamored with the simplicity of their lifestyles.  I'm drawn to their eco-conscious modernness that inherently carries a sense of folk tradition.  It makes me want to have a living room furnished with just a striped couch and a coffee table and decorated with nothing more that ferns and shells and driftwood.  Also my favorite teal-gray color seems to pop up often in their photographs.

Liivian Talossa

Fine Little Day

Ullabelluna

everything i ever wanted in a birthday card

Found this living among the debris on our sewing table while I was cleaning today.  Nikki is so talented, she's going to be so famous when she's all grown up.  My favorite birthday card I've ever received.

the best day off *ever*

About a month ago, on my last bona-fide day off where I wasn't promised to any special projects or extra jobs, I had the most amazing day. It was Amy's last day at work, so we had a special breakfast at Cafe Cluny with Frances and Ginny.  Amy made us all beautiful terrariums with our own special spirit animals.  Then we went shopping in the west village and I got some cute shirts at Housing Works.  I walked the long way home down streets that I only normally see at night, when things are hidden and all boarded up.  7th street is my new favorite street.

I stumbled into this magical Harry Potter in Diagon Alley shop.  There is no signage that I could see, just wonderful junk in the window, and a huge pendulum in the doorway that you have to twist around to get through.  I wasn't even sure if people were welcome inside, so I had to ask if I could come in.  Turns out it's owned by a very sweet Santa Claus man named Anthony, who has been repairing watches there for over thirty years.  He has the most inspiring collection of junk I've ever seen, and is just the sweetest guy--I adore him.

Thompkin's Square Park finally bloomed in full, no more bare branches.  Everything is green and full of life.  I loved this white pigeon on the pavement, she looked like she was hopping through a sky of stars.

Even the trees were given necklaces of flowers.  I felt like this place was overcome with vitality and joy, everything and everyone was just so happy that winter was finally, finally over.

These two guys were fantastic!  Pianos and drums in the park?  That's some serious set-up.  They played "Jealousy" by the Killers, "Is You Is Or Is You Ain't My Baby," "You Spin Me Right Round," "Fidelity" by Regina Spektor, and "Just Go Ahead Now" while I was there.  They took a break at one point and one of the guys hanging out in the park sat down at the piano and performed a jazzy little song, I don't know what it was, but he sounded like Louis Armstrong.  Then the pianist started playing frisbee with random people walking (or skateboarding) by.  I would have stayed all afternoon, the weather was so lovely, but I had to get home to eat my goodies I'd picked up along the way and work on my bathing suit.

I finally stopped at the cheese shop on 2nd(?) Ave.  The cheese I got is the most delicious cheese I've ever had.  I don't remember what they're called.  The top one has truffles in it, and the bottom one was everything I've ever wanted from cheese, with a sweetish nutty aftertaste.  Oh*my*god soooo good.  My mango was the perfect amount of crispy-tart, my raspberry tart from Veniero's was delicious as always (best bakery around, so cheap, absolutely delicious, run by the same family since 1895, 11th St. and 1st Ave), and I am officially converted to Fizzy Lizzy pomegranate soda.  What a perfect end to a perfect afternoon.

Then I started sewing....

steam punk (or) shopping with mollie

Mollie Little of Pretty Interesting introduced me to this amazing new-to-me concept, "steam punk,"which is sort of...industrial revolution collage.  So beautiful!  These first pieces can be found at edm.designs. 

These are absolutely THE most magical necklaces I have ever seen, how could you not just feel a little witchy wearing them?  I want them all. (Except, of course, the one with hair in it.)  They are by Madame Fortuna, who also has items on Etsy.  Her designs are kind of chunkier and more prohibition-gypsy inspired than the steam punk stuff above.

One last steam punker, keys and memories.

valumtimes

Two months after ordering it, I still haven't uploaded images from my camera to my computer, and I'm feeling silly having generated all this hooplah about having a blog and then only making one post.  So, I'm posting pictures of valentines that I made for my family this year.  The idea for this project came from Amy Merrick (I feel like she is going to be a star player in my blogging).  We watched Harold and Maude and made a big mess on the floor of her amazing apartment.  I got the images from some Dover books I bought at the Strand--best bookstore ever.  I photocopied them and cut them out and remembered how fun construction paper is.