{a bit of moo}

I told you Color Splash would make another appearance...

I wanted to share with you one of my favorite websites: www.moo.com

They are a printing company that originated in the United Kingdom, but now share their wonderful things with us here in the United States.

I have one of their lovely "minicard frames" for work, and I just finished replacing all of the pictures to color splashed photos.


Now it matches my home, and our newly decorated office!

{something to celebrate}

One of my dear friends at work is having a baby next week. So, I found some beautiful fabric in my stash, and made up a quilt pattern...

with some brilliant blues and greens for a baby boy...


and dozens of rectangles...


and rectangles sewn into strips...


I came up with a baby quilt!

{feeling a bit green today}

I found an incredibly fun website this morning dedicated to the study of color:

www.sensationalcolor.com

If you have a couple of free moments and want to look around, I highly recommend it.

I will leave you with some thoughts on the color green:

"Green occupies more space in the spectrum visible to the human eye than most colors, and is second only to blue as a favorite color."

Isn't that fascinating? I love the color green!

{celebrate}

There are a lot of things in life to celebrate...and I am always seeing darling "celebrate" banners at my favorite stores that I love, but cannot afford. So, I decided to make my own!


It felt a bit like "Let's Go Fly a Kite" from Mary Poppins..."with tuppence for paper and strings, you can have your own set of wings"...except I got a banner out of my paper and ribbon instead of a kite.


With a handy tiny hole punch, a LOT of circle cutting (I am thinking next time I do a project like this, a circle cutter would not be a bad investment) and an evening by myself, I put it all together!


This was such a fun project...I cannot wait to have something to celebrate! Although I suspect they will go up in my apartment even without a specific celebration in mind!

{a bit of inspiration}

We all need a little inspiration sometimes. One of my favorite, and very small and portable, inspiration tools comes from Pottery Barn. In their store, they usually have big glass jars full of little books of paint swatches.


They are small enough to fit in your purse, and have a lovely assortment of colors. Pottery Barn usually has a new one for each season, and I am looking forward to saving each one for a little inspiration when I need it.


These are some of my favorite colors from the fall booklet.

{american cupcakes}

I have a coworker who is leaving (work) tomorrow to go to Basic Training with the U.S. Army. So, I decided to do what anyone in that situation would appreciate - I baked a lot of cupcakes! He is most definitely not going to be getting delicious bite-sized cakes at Fort Jackson (a place that I am very familiar with), so might as well enjoy them now. And although I have been teased quite a bit about being matchy-matchy, having some American-colored sprinkles is delicious and very fun...


...I only hope there are enough left tomorrow morning for work.

{stamps around the world}

You never know what you can find that is whimsical and beautiful around your own home (or your wonderful mama's home, where today's post comes from). Inspiration is from Pottery Barn's fall window displays.

In a little box tucked away in a closet in my parents' house, we found a collection of old postage stamps from around the world.


I grouped them by color, set the resolution on my printer's scanner on high, and arranged them.

Blues...

teals...


and my favorite, which will definitely make a second appearance later this year.

{to honor a friend}

Tomorrow marks the first anniversary of a dear friend's "going home" ~ to heaven, not any earthly home. Joe's life is a demonstration of sacrificial love, and I will be eternally grateful for him. Though we still miss him and grieve our loss, it is a great thing to know that he is in Glory, with the Almighty Father.

My mind is often overwhelmed at the thought that my freedom has come at such a high price. And so my prayers and thoughts are often with the young men and women that currently serve, have served, and with the families and friends of those that have given their all. What a wonderful thing it is, to live in a country where volunteers are willing to protect...and what a humbling thought.




"For this country, this Warrior has stood the watch.
While some of us were in our beds at night, this Warrior stood the watch.
While some of us were in school learning our trade, this Warrior stood the watch.
Yes, even before some of us were born into this world ... this Warrior stood the watch.
In those years when the storm clouds of war were seen brewing on the horizon of history this Warrior stood the watch.
Many times he would cast an eye home and see his family standing there ... needing his guidance and help ... needing that hand to hold during those hard times ... but he still stood the watch.
He stood the watch for years, He stood the watch so that we, our families, and our fellow countrymen could sleep soundly in safety each and every night knowing that a Warrior stood the watch.
Today we are here to say 'Friend, the watch stands relieved. Relieved by those you have led, guided, and trained. You stand relieved. We have the watch.'"

To my dear friend Joe, thank you...thank you.

{the silver sea}

"Look at that sea, girls--all silver and shadow and vision of things not seen. We couldn't enjoy its loveliness any more if we had millions of dollars and ropes of diamonds."
~Lucy Maud Montgomery

{what is whimsy}

whimsy: an odd or fanciful notion. originating in the 1590s.

what a whimsical thing to be using such an old word, but such a friendly and happy word.

{my favorites}

I love having favorites of things...favorite movies, favorite snacks, favorite colors...and I love to have favorites in abundance. If I thoroughly enjoy something, it becomes a "favorite" of mine. I don't just have one favorite color, I have ten. But one of my favorite movies is "You've Got Mail." I adore that movie, and watch it frequently, so much so, that I can quote it all the way through. Having a movie that I am so comfortable and familiar with is, well, a comfort. It's a good movie to watch when I feel alone, or scared, or sick, or romantic.


"I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address. On the other hand, this not knowing has its charms." - Wouldn't a bouquet of sharpened pencils be lovely?

{colorful tealights}

If you cannot tell, I just love crafts and projects...and color...and color-coordinating...and elipses. And this week is no exception...


I decided to dip some tealights in colored wax as a simple, yet pretty display that still matches my apartment.


The result was quite striking.

{a bouquet of tassels}

I just love a new project. For a quick weekend project, I made a set of tassels. They turned out fabulously.


I think I might attach them to my Christmas presents this year instead of bows. Wouldn't it look lovely with silver wrapping paper?


Instructions can be found here

{we will remember}

On this anniversary, we will remember the sacrifice...

“Time is passing. Yet, for the United States of America, there will be no forgetting September the 11th. We will remember every rescuer who died in honor. We will remember every family that lives in grief. We will remember the fire and ash, the last phone calls, the funerals of the children. “
~ President George W. Bush

"We ask a lot of those who wear our uniform. We ask them to leave their loved ones to travel great distances, to risk injury, even to be prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice of their lives. They are dedicated. They are honorable. They represent the best of our country, and we are grateful."
~ President George W. Bush - 02 OCT 01

"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."
~ George Orwell

...and through a veil of tears, we are eternally grateful.

{who doesn't love a cupcake?}

My sister and I had a wonderful time this Labor Day weekend doing all sorts of crafts and projects. The cupcakes were the biggest hit with the family!

{a bit of wool. and acorns.}

Autumn has definitely arrived in the Pacific Northwest, and my craft inclinations have shifted from summer projects to fall projects.

Yesterday, I took a basket of wool roving, found in my closet...


several dozen acorns, found in the park...


and made these beautiful felted acorns, in all of my favorite colors...



instructions will be posted soon.

{autumn is here}

As soon as September 1st came, so did Autumn. It is still warm on occasion, but the nights are chilly, and the rain and grey skies are here. Still, there is incredible beauty in the changing of the seasons, and not all of the colours are the typically-thought-of reds, oranges, yellows and browns. Let me share what I saw yesterday on a walk around my favorite park...


beautiful greens...




incredible fuchsias...




deep purples...




blues...




and some very whimsical and fun textures.

{it is time to change to autumn}

I decided that since it is September, it is time to change from my Spring and Summer table display...


...to my Autumn display...


...Autumn is also much easier to dust, which is a very good thing.

{a splash of color}

I love photographs. But, I also love everything to be color coordinated. So, I have discovered an application for iPod and iPad that solves all of my problems: it is called "Color Splash" (I am unsure how to post a link to an Apple App here). It is a fun, whimsical way to make my photos match:



It doesn't always have to be photograph of people...





But it can get pretty silly and whimsical...