Freeform Friday

Sunset Meadows

Since you got to hear me rant about our freezing cold, snowbound wicked winter, it's only right that I tell you this.

The last week of spring has been amazing. Spring has been a bit wishy-washy, not wanting to give up winter, more gray days than I'd like, and a fair bit of rain, so the fact that is has showed it's true colors this past week has been quite welcome. I am enjoying it with a grateful heart.

Last night we sat out and watched the sunset. It was a beautiful end, to a beautiful day with that pretty, spring light streaming across the lawn and sunset meadows. 

I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did.


Freeform Friday

Now that the World Cup is in full force, I thought an ode to Brazil would be appropriate. You'll probably all remember this version that launched the career of Astrud Gilberto. Well, at least if you're as old as I am. Her vocals are amazing. Click here if you're reading via email. 






Then of course, there is Ms. Warwick. Click here if you're reading via email.






This version I found by chance and I'm glad I did. These kids knock it out of the park. Click here if you're reading via email.




This weekend will be full. Tonight, if the breeze dies down, more than likely a campfire outback to enjoy more of this beautiful weather. Tomorrow is my niece Cait's baby shower. She's got a month to go and we'll be welcoming Miss Olivia.  Sunday I hope to work in the garden and the yard. It would be nice if the pool was ready to go by then, but we will see.  Don't miss the USA v Portugal on in Sunday night World Cup action at 6pm est. It's a big one! Of course, they all are. It's the World Cup.

Got anything planned for the weekend?

Whatever you do, make it a good one.

Ciao for now,

Spring Love & CREATE Challenge no. 1, Last Call!

A High Five For Spring

While the weather continues to be glorious today, I thought it was time to share with you lovelies, some things that I love about Spring.

1. Getting back out into our yard. 

After such a long, snowy, damn cold Winter, being able to get back into the yard is like a meditation.  We've been working a good bit in the yard, doing spring clean up. We've a way to go but it's nice to have weather that allows you to do that.

2. The flowers

The lilacs have passed now, but there are so many other things making their presence known from lily of the valley, the soloman seal, rhodedendrons, azaela, jacob's ladder, and the peonies are coming! What a wonderful time of year to enjoy the blooms of the season. I love to go outside and snip a little of whatever happens to be blooming. What a treat.

3. The temperature

As I mentioned, it was a cold (read COLD) winter. Sub zero, freezing wind chills, through-the-first -couple-of-cord-of-wood-before-February-had-to-order-more kind of winter.  The spring temperatures we've had for the last week (it took awhile to really kick in here), are an absolute delight. The kind that make you want to play hookey.

4. Back stoop

I get to take over the back stoop again for my morning cuppa. I haven't got to cleaning the area up yet, but regardless, being able to sit on the back stoop in the sun and enjoy a cuppa tea to get the day going is a perfectly wonderful ritual. Soon, it will be cleaned and my geraniums will make the back stoop so much prettier.

5.  The soft spring sunsets

The seem most often, not quite as brilliant as summer sunsets here. Lovely just the same, but a little softer and more muted like they're getting warmed up for summer. That's not to say there aren't brilliant sunsets at this time of year, because there are, but softer skies prevail more often.

What are you loving about spring?


Are You In?

If you're one of the people who wanted to participated in the CREATE Challenge no. 1, it's coming to a close. I'll be publishing my project on Thursday. If you'd like to play along, I'd love it if you did!  Read all about it here.  Remember, this time around there are no rules. It can be as simple as taking a photo, drawing a picture, baking a cookie. Only rule is to create something.  I hope you'll be joining me!


Have a fantastic Tuesday. I'll do my best to get a lot of work done as I finalize some branding boards and ignore the fact that it's an absolutely beautiful day here.

Ciao for now,

Take A Walk With Us

Spring In Our Step

Hey you guys....Happy Monday!

I have to say, waking up to a bit of sunshine today was quite welcome here.  It's not meant to last so Lucan and I took to the yard for a walk about.  Despite the generally non-cooperative spring weather so far, things are doing their best to pop.

All sorts of tree buds....

.....including the forsythia!

Hello Gorgeous! (didn't need to make one single adjustment to this beauty).

In the woods, the ferns are unfurling and the evergreen remains, green.

And in the yard...........flowers, both gone-by and awakening.

Sunset Meadows

The weekend had a rather interesting end, gray clouds mixed with a bit of sun giving it its best shot.

 

 

I hope you all had a great weekend. I did a pretty good job staying away from the computer (other than spending time deleting a gazillion emails that were slowing my system down....more to do on that front for sure).  It wasn't very nice weather wise so we kind of just hunkered down for the count. Then Sunday, Gar woke up with a cold. So I went into a cleaning frenzy while he watched soccer on the tube.  Then I said, 'that's it. I'm quitting' and played around with watercolors for a couple of hours.  I was finally about to sit and watch some TV around 8, when our cable went out. Talk about timing. Oh well, I went back to sketching and painting. Why fight it?

In other news: I beat G in a game of Yahtzee, made a delicious white sauce veggie lasagna, had some nice toast for saturday brekkie topped with the apple jelly my nephew made and was kind enough to share from his pantry, visited with the neighbors, enjoyed a little bit of youtube singing and dancing, oh............and watched my Bruins beat Detroit to take their first series on the way to the Stanley Cup.  What did you do?

Make it one awesomely spectacular week and I'll do my best to do the same!

Ciao for now,

Favorite Finds: Etsy Style

Fly By

Hi guys. Rocking and rolling on this end? Is it the change of seasons, the waning of the recent full moon? Or are people just ready to make things happen as the seasons change? I've spent all morning answering inquiries about logo designs, branding packages, packaging design and more. Whatever it is, it works for me.

Simply sharing some favorites etsy finds today.  Take a look and be sure to check out the shops because there is much more wonderful stuff store.  Honest.  Would I lie to you?


Are you a heavy metal fan? Then, for those about to rock, this awesome industrial box, is for you.

 

source: gearrattx

Are stitches your thing?  Look at this gorgeous handsewn spread. Love.

 

source: gypsya

Ah, so you like things that show a little wear and tear and tell a story.  This little vintage shelf is perfect.

source:  86home

OK, that's enough of the winter colors because in case you haven't heard..........today is the first day of spring here! So long winter whites and grays. Hello sunshine and flowers.

Wouldn't it be grand to write down wishes and dreams and all your blessings in this charming notebook?

 

 

source: twenty fingers

Wrap yourself in color. 

 

 

source: yarnisland

Mellow yellow? Hardly.

 

source: lizzbasingerdesigns 

Or perhaps a little bit of spring you can surely enjoy all year 'round?

source: TMG Photography

Do you love the floppy habit of those tulips as much as me? So sweet. I'm hoping the next time I'm at the store, they have some tulips to join my daffodils. That would make me happy and it would really feel like spring.

The birds are singing here and could care less about the snow on the ground and the overnight and morning rain (trust me, we really don't need it with the forthcoming snow melt).  They're announcing spring and that the sun is finally out.

What's your favorite thing you're looking forward to for spring, or if you're in the southern hemisphere, what makes you happy about autumn?

Do tell.

Make it a great day, it's a great day to have.

Ciao for now,

 

Still Life: The Color Of Hope

Springs Eternal

Everybody around here is getting pretty antsy for some spring like temperatures. We'd like a little more than just one day sandwiched in between never ending polar vortex stretches. It's been a long cold, snowy winter. Which we can usually handle when there are hopeful signs that spring will get here eventually. 

When I went to the store yesterday to get my ingredients for my St. Patrick's Day Shepperd's Pie, I spied what is a true harbinger of spring.  

Daffodils, in all their yellow glory.

We are far from daffodils in bloom here.  So, to be able to grab a bunch to brighten up your home gives you a tiny taste of spring, and confidence that it surely will arrive in the not so distant future (even if today's 26 degrees doesn't support the fact that it supposed to arrive this week!).

 In Ireland at this time of year, the daffodils are everywhere.

They're blooming in the parks..................

 
.............in the fields...............

..............in the middle of the highways............

.....in the middle of the 'roundabouts'.

Everywhere you look.................mass plantings of daffodils. As if a flower fairy sprinkled magic daffodil dust over everything.

It's a beautiful sight.

At least I can have a reminder of that beauty in my home for a the small price of $3.00.  A steal for a little hint of spring to brighten up these last days of winter that just won't seem to release their grip.

I forgot to tell you yesterday, our pal Lucan turned 14! He celebrated St. Patrick's Day and his birthday in grand style.

 

The neighborhoodlums came over for a little St. Patrick's Day cheer and Shepperd's Pie.  A good time had by one and all.

Busy with a ton of design work at the moment.  Doing my best to juggle like I've been on tour with the circus before.

What's happening in your world?

Ciao for now,

 

In The Garden

 

Trees Bloom

 

We've been working out in one of my flower gardens. It's kind of a secret garden in the corner, that sometimes people who have been here a gazillion times don't even know it's there. I'm not sure why that is.  When we moved here, it was chock full of junky fill like chunks of pavement and concrete. I'm not sure why that was either. 

 

We made two big burms in the back that go right up to the stone wall, a bed in the middle where the flowering tree is, and two beds in front. There's a little path that meanders through.

 

I call it wild thing. You can guess why.  Nah, never mind, I'll tell you. This is no 'manicured' garden.  Things can get a little gnarly in there, like at the moment it seems to be overrun with some crazy wild rose and another vine. Oh yeah, and weeds. And, the mutant black eyed Susan my friend Pearl gave me. Least I forget leaves.

 

The mystery tree that we planted in the middle of the garden is in full bloom. I'm happy to report it has an off shoot that is in full bloom too.

 

 

 

The lilacs are in full bloom too. Not so 10 minutes east at my parent's. Guess that cool coastal air has got them behind a bit.  I however, will be cutting enough bouquets to fill just about everyone of my vases and fill the house with that heavenly sent.

Now, back to the mystery tree. That's it on the right. On the left is my flowering crab apple. There's been lots of guesses on our facebook page as to what exactly the tree on the right is. Some think it too is a flowering crab apple.  Unless it's a completely different variety, I'm still shaking my head in wonder.  Leaves are a different color, flowers a different color, and it also blooms at a different time with mystery tree blooming first.

Anybody else got a guess?  It's flowers are light pink that turn the palest pink and white when opened. It doesn't fruit per se, but does get a small little berry come fall. It's a hard little berry.

Wish I knew more but it was a tree that Gman got from a job site where it was going to be thrown away. So we have no info other than, it sure is pretty and it's still going strong.


Sunset Meadows

The other night the clouds turned a pretty soft pink.

Last night the sky glowed.

While we were out in the garden this morning, before the day kicked into full gear, lo and behold, neighborhoodlum Tom came over in the tractor with a bucket load of wood for the campfire. You gotta love genrous neighbors with tractors.

The temp is a bit chilly here today, but the sun is out so we'll take it.

My college roommate is in Pennsylvania and itwas snowing there yesterday. We sure don't need any of that.

What's happening in your corner of the world? Do you have a garden that you've been spending time in? Are you planting a container garden? Or do you skip the green thumb test altogether?

Have a great Tuesday.

Ciao for now,