Morning Glory Studio

simply a moment | aug 2014

            friday 15 august 2014        8:15 am

Seeing Red...

I thought earlier this week that I needed a different approach for this month's "Simply A Moment" post. What would the moment be like? How might it be different? Or even the same? As the moment drew near, I  was at the microwave, about to make a second mug of tea when I had the bright idea to snap photos of all the things in the Kitchen/Great Room area that were red. 

The Kitchen is black and white - walls and appliances, sink are white and the counters/stovetop are black. The Great Room walls and chairs are a buttery yellow. When I was decorating, I thought red would make a great accent color...and it did. Does! All in all I snapped over 20 photos, ranging from the fruit above to the red/white kitchen towels and red toaster - the latter, not shown in the photo collage. 

So, that is story of  this month's moment. Just a different twist on one of my most favorite activities to do, every month. Trust you enjoy it as much as I did!

Cheers~

birds on the wire...

We have had an incredible array of clouds in today's skies. This is just an example. My thoughts, whenI took the picture: All that's needed is three birds on the wire.

Guess maybe it's too late for that. Tomorrow, maybe.

I have spent most of today in a very lazy mood tho' I did wash a couple loads of laundry and clean out the refrigerator (tossed in a few @#$% words while doing it; for some reason, ice forms on the track of the bottom drawer which causes it to stick, etc. Once I chip out the ice, then all's OK.) 

Haven't taken or made a stitch this week; think I'll do that, next. Enjoy your evening (or day if it's AM when you are reading this.)

Cheers~

 

watercolor wednesday |flags ...

After yesterday's deluge, today we're greeted with blue skies, fluffy white clouds, sunshine and delightful temps. Mother Nature always redeems herself!

Love the Maryland, Swedish and United States flags, flappin' in the wind at IKEA!

lost and found, redux...

 

As I begin to type this post, it's 4:11 pm EST and the sun just broke through the clouds. We've had a tremendous downpour most of the day; rain, rain, rain...and more rain. The National Weather Service had issued flash flood warnings. Naturally, I had to be away from home during the worst. 

My friend Margaret is having knee replacement surgery at the end of the month; today, she and I, as her "coach," attended a 3-hours orientation on what to do and to expect, etc.   After the orientation, we went  to lunch at Nordstrom's department store. Arriving at the height of a downpour, I dropped her off at the store's entrance, parked the car - only a short distance away - and sloshed my way back to the entrance. By the time I arrived, my shoes were soaking wet.

We went to the restroom, I dried my feet and then we went to the restaurant and had a scrumptious  and leisurely meal. Before we left, we went to the restroom again and proceeded to exit the store. I looked in my bag for my keys (house, car): nowhere to be found! 

Of course it was conceiveable that I'd left them in either the bathroom or the restaurant. Nope! And a check with Customer Service resulted in zilch. In the car? Well, I didn't think so but who knows? So I sloshed out to the car, just in case; of course the car was locked.

I returned to the store, thinking that maybe I'd accidentally thrown the keys away with the paper toweling I used to dry my feet. Oops! Looks like Housekeeping  had emptied the trash since I was there earlier. Oh dear! What's a person to do?

Even if I called a friend it would do me no good 'cause once I got home - easily 25 miles away - if Norman wasn't home, I'd not be able to get in the house to retrieve another set of car keys. Not such a bright scenario!

Just adjacent to the women's lounge is a clothing department for young adult girls.  At the service desk were three sales clerks. Might as well inquire with them, I thought; perhaps I'd left the keys in the lounge and someone had picked them up and turned them in. So, I did...and the first clerk with whom I spoke said : Contact Customer Service; I explained I'd done that already.

Might she  ask the other two salesclerks if they'd been given any lost keys?... 

The second salesclerk turned around and stretched out her hand towards me...These?

My keys! Even though it was still pouring rain, the day definitely became much brighter. We could go home, torrential rain notwithstanding!

There are several object lessons to this story: 1- Be more attentive to what I'm doing. 2 - Carry a spare car key in my purse. 3 - Park a spare house key with Margaret. You think?

I trust you are better prepared than I was!

Cheers~

hello monday | 19...

Hello Monday...off to a cool start - 61 degrees F; so welcome. We've been on the cool side this month of August, so unusual and no complaints!

Hello Monday...the bébé was two months old yesterday! He's growing and becoming his own little person. Hurrah!

Hello Monday...Brown Bear quilt is taking form and Flower Garden Block # 19 is 50% done; four more to go...

Hello Monday...microwave found; a newer version of our current one, which is good because that means less of a learning curve...

Hello Monday...big project - not on the agenda-took place over the 2nd of 5 weekends in August: I decided to weed and reorganize the contents of the two cabinets that sit on either side of the TV. One held primarily books, video & music DVDs (including some casettes and CDs) and the other, more of the same plus a skein of yarn or two and a few UFO knitting projects... My thought: have "His" and "Hers" cabinets. So I proceeded to pull everything out and reorganize...and in the process, found my magnifying glass that I've been looking for - for months! The magnifier belonged to my mother so it has sentimental value as well as it's quite useful for that teeny-tiny type...

Hello Monday...I read  but I didn't finish a book and now have found that I've lost or misplaced my library card...more than likely I stuck it someplace - like the magnifier??? Eventually, it'll turn up but first, guess I need to get a new one, which means I stop at the library today, especially since my books are due and I can't renew online 'cause I don't have my card number...

Hello Monday... lots of activity on board for the week and I'm so glad  for another fresh start! What fresh start are you looking forward to this week? Whatever it is, I wish you the best week ever!

Cheers~

 

five weekends...

 

This month there are 5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays and 5 Sundays. 

So, on the eve of the second of 5 weekends in August, in 2014 , I ask: how are you going to spend this and the next three? On my agenda this weekend: 

• continue piecing the Brown Bear quilt
• stitch a Flower Garden block or two
• read a book or several
• buy a new microwave oven - hopefully
• do a little bit of this and a whole lot of nothing

Whatever you do, I hope you have a bang up weekend, week and rest of the month! Enjoy! Live well! Be Happy!

Cheers~

"what do you see?"

This morning when I walked into my sewing studio I was greeted with an array of brilliant color; I  am making a quilt for bébé' Chris. I spent most of yesterday cutting blocks and pieces for the quilt. It's coming into being has been on the docket a while though I hadn't planned to start before he was scheduled to arrive circa July 15. He arrived June 10 and will be two months old on Sunday. Thinking I'd best make hay soon or else he'll be too big for the quilt. I plan to have it finished when he's about 4 or 5 months old - just about the time he starts crawling and such.

The fabric is a reproduction of Bill Martin and Eric Carle's timeless  picture book: Brown Bear, Brown Bear,What Do You See? (Note: the link opens a YouTube video of Bill Martin reading the book.) 

I've had the fabric  since my youngest niece Kayla was about seven; she's now 13.5 and going into the 8th grade in a couple weeks. When Kayla, who is the bébé's youngest aunt was three, Brown Bear  was her favorite book. I'd bought the fabric on a whim tho' Kayla was probably too old then for the quilt. Glad I kept the fabric.

I don't make quilts that are utilitarian; mine are more creative exploration and expression. I find it interesting that the only other big quilt  I've made was for the bébé's other aunt, Christian, after whom he was named. 

Making this quilt is a nice change of pace and the bébé' will undoubtedly spend many enjoyable hours with the quilt. Back to the sewing machine...

Cheers~

watercolor wednesday |petunias ...

The Waterlogue app is more fun to watch as a photo taken on the iPhone* is repainted in watercolors. You can watch a demo here .

I am eager to keep playing around with it...and to broaden the subjects of my paintings; so far, flowers have been it.  But, stay tuned because henceforth, I plan to post my paintings on Wednesdays, using the new title Watercolor Wednesday. 

I was introduced to the app by my friend Mary who also created the title above for the weekly blog appearance. Check out her painting, here. 

Cheers~

*Unfortunately, the app is only available for the iPhone; the developers explain why here.

what to do when waiting...

 

Today's Ten on Tuesday topic: how we spend time in a waiting room...

My last time in a hospital emergency waiting room was last September 2013, when I broke my hand. T'was pleasant enough, i.e., quiet, during the time I spent there. Generally, my "wait time" is for routine medical appointments and as such, this is what I take with me and/or do:

        1. My  iPad 

• I usually use my iPad to read books I have in my Kindle library.

        2. My iPhone

• I don't have wireless on my iPad so I use my iPhone if I want to do a search or read online - and also, of course, take photos.

        3. My Circa Journal/Planner

• I'm still very much a pen & paper girl; I find I think best when I can mind -map, write , maybe sketch an idea, take notes, make a list, etc.

        4. A magazine and/or a book

• Even if I have my iPad/Kindle, I may also have a book or a magazine in process; sitting in a waiting room is a great time to spend some time in it/them.

        5. A current stitching project:

• This can be something I'm knitting that's basically stockinette stitch - I'm not proficient enough to tackle an intricate stitch if I'm not at home or am in a stimulating environment.
• A Flower Garden  quilting block - or some other piece of hand applique.

        6. My art supplies:

• I'm trying to reconnect with doing art journaling so I've created a portable kit just for "waiting room" occasions as well as an artist's date with myself.
• My kit contains: pen/s; color pencils; a water brush; scissors; glue stick and  a few sheets of watercolor paper (which fit nicely in my Circa Journal Planner.

        7. Note paper and stamps

• time in the waiting room is great for catching up on writing real mail.

        8. Watch, intermittently , the ever-present TV program - generally  CNN news is on...

       9. People watch ~infinitely more interesting than the aforementioned

       10. Visit the cafe (if in a hospital) for a change of scenery as well as some refreshment

I took a quick look at my calendar and realized that I'm going to have more than the usual amount of time in waiting rooms this month as I have my annual opthamology appointment and a friend is having knee replacement surgery.

 

What do you take with you to make your time more productive when you are waiting?

Cheers~

4 goals | august 2014...

 

As I was planning this month's blog schedule during my weekly review and planning session, I realized that today, Monday, Aug 4, is a perfect topic for today's post, for two reasons:

1. I've not done a 4 goals post since March; and
2. What better day to share some goals than the first week/Monday of a new month?

Good idea I told myself and quickly proceeded to draft my 4 goals. And here they are in no particular order - probably as they came off the top of my head:

• Walk at least a  mile-a-day, regardless of the weather, even if it means that I go up/down the stairs 20-25 times if it's too bad outside. My daily aim is a minimum  5K steps; I'd really like to increase that to 8K. Often, I postpone walks to the afternoon and then it's too hot, etc. I think I'm going to aim for an earlier start. On my walk yesterday (Sunday), I saw a lady, using a walker, taking a walk. I suspect she may be recuperating from surgery. I  am inspired.
• Create and do daily the stuff that makes life better, engaging in doing what I most enjoy: stitching (including knitting) and reading. As I thought about this, I  envisioned a piece of weaving and realized that maintenance, mundane activities are the warped threads on the loom.  Often times I find myself not getting around to weaving the enjoyable, important activities and projects into my everyday life. I aim to reverse that.
• Write my memoirs . This sounds so pompous to me but I can't think of a better way to state it; actually, I just intend to document, in a variety of ways, using a variety of tools, the stories of my life. At its minimum, writing 2500 words, as a beginning. Clearly, I will be counting and including a few blog posts as I  proceed with this goal. 
• Resume art journaling. This item has been lurking on my lists for a long time. Too long. Each month I tell myself, "this is the month" and come the end of the month, "well, next month..."  So, I aim to change the narrative in this area, too. I can do this!

The exciting promise of these goals/intentions is that the outcomes are not only realizable but tangible and things I can and will share right here on this blog. Do you set monthly goals? What's your track record? Any tricks you have to share?

Stay tuned!

Cheers~