Snow Day!

Well, looking out my kitchen window...
...it's a beautiful world!
....still in my pj's...no office today!



Santa Baby is doing his thing....shoveling and snow blowing our long and winding driveway...
...at 3 pm we had just under a foot...as measured with the yardstick on the table.
...still snowing!



Yes! Yes! A sight for sore eyes...
I took these snapshots at the market yesterday!
... Calla lilies are daughter Kate's favorite flower...



6 more weeks of winter...



And then we will have beautiful, glorious spring!

I am getting excited with Valentine's Day coming up on Sunday...
... and Evi's Valentine's Day Luncheon on Monday!

Guess what else Monday is?

Unbelievably, incredibly....
...Monday will be the one year anniversary of the birth of
52 FLEA!

It will be time for me to Give-Back....
...to all of you who have been so kind to me...
...stay tuned for details!

Meanwhile....I must make something warm and delicious for Santa Baby who is about to come in from the cold and snow.

...Poor guy...
...feeling just a tad guilty as I let him "play" outside all day.
...I just may have to throw in a back rub!
:)

Trying Something New

I told myself that I was going to try new things in 2010....
...after all this is the year that will bring big changes in my life...



...in just a few months I will be leaving Corporate America for...
...home.
The time that I have been craving for so long will be mine.
Time to "do art"...to create...to organize... to clean out... to decorate...to try new things...



Time to travel...
Time to sort through my piles of great stuff...
...maybe sell some of my collections...perhaps open a shop?
Time to figure out what I will do with the rest of my life.



To start, I signed up for a workshop called Sweater Craft offered by Charlotte Lyons.
It really sounded like fun. It still sounds like fun. I just don't know if I will be any good at it.
It is coming up soon...Saturday, January 23rd.

Today, I received a very nice email from Charlotte, listing some supplies that we should bring and sharing a little bit about what we would be making...

Confession:

I'm just a tad nervous. I have not met these talented and creative women that have signed up and know each other and I am feeling as if I will surely be the dunce of the class. I am shy...not painfully shy like when I was young...but... a little shy. I don't really sew....at least not in a very long time. I'm not so good at following patterns, spacial relations or mechanical things. Last year I took a class with several girls from the office on how to make a charm bracelet. I was not so good with those pesky jump rings and needed a lot of help from the teacher. I decided I am not a jewelry maker...although I thought I might be good at it and have tons of stuff that I have accumulated to create and embellish with. I wasn't good at it...not at all.

Well, Charlotte did say the class would include some easy projects too and even some no sew projects for beginners....so maybe it will be OK.



...maybe I will just try something new...

How about you? Have you tried anything new lately?

Vintage Blue Christmas

This long holiday weekend turned out to be sunny and cool....we were able to take walks along the Croton and Hudson rivers and enjoy the beautiful November weather...



After Dan left this morning to drive back to school, I started to pull out some Christmas decorations...



Vintage blue ornaments...











Wishing I could stay home tomorrow and continue playing and decorating...
...it will have to wait till next weekend!

Joan of Anything Goes Here is hosting Vintage Christmas Monday....be sure to check out all the other participants and their vintage Christmas treasures!

Review of the Details

This afternoon I had a long conversation with my dear friend Evi, the dollmaker ....she is busy preparing for a show next month. Speaking with her reminded me of her amazing talents and attention to detail in all that she creates and in the decorating of her beautiful home...
This collage consists of a few pictures taken in a guest bathroom in her home...
(click images to enlarge)



The wonderful treasure found in those two cigar boxes a few weeks ago....I can't wait to find a few hours to sort through these fabulous rosaries and religious medals, clean and polish them and put them to use as embellishments in art projects and decorating....
What would you do with them?



A few more details and vignettes found in Evi's home...
She is a master at finding unique antique treasure and then incorporating those finds into her elegant, eclectic European styled home...
I can't wait to see the new dolls and other creations she will be exhibiting at the show!
Hope your day tomorrow brings all good things!