Nov 5, 2013
Over the past few months, I’ve noticed that all of my best ideas seem to happen when I’m in the shower. I’ve tried a variety of ways to document them -from jumping out of the shower to jot them on a notepad, to writing on the shower door with “bath crayons” to hanging a dry erase board in the shower. All of those failed.
I had resigned to the fact that I would spend my entire shower repeating ideas in my head… until I got to a chapter titled “CHANGING YOUR ENVIRONMENT: GET NEAR WATER TO WRITE” from the book, Write It Down, Make It Happen by Henriette Anne Klauser. I thought this chapter was especially interesting because I read it while I was fly fishing with my grandparents in Missouri for the weekend.
When I got to this part, I did a victorious fist punch in the air – ” A workshop participant who is a diver once told me that the got so many good ideas in the shower that he hung an underwater clipboard in there to record them. You can get one yourself at a dive shop for under ten dollars.” Hallelujah, I am not alone! Such a simple and yet genius idea! The day after I returned from my trip, I went to a local dive shop and purchased this little beauty (kind of surprised that there even IS a dive shop in West Texas, to be honest).
Attached with a suction cup hook, it’s perfectly handy. Yes, I know how nerdy it sounds, but I’m SO excited to have this useful tool in my shower now. You know, to record those genius ideas I’m sure to have… (write it down, make it happen, right?!)
What about you guys? Anyone else have their best ideas in the shower?
Oct 20, 2013
As most of you know, it’s been a rough couple of months around my house (if you’re lost, you can catch up here and here). So I decided that this Halloween, I would focus more on happy, fun and colorful- definitely not black and death. Old books make me happy, and I have a bunch of them, so that’s part of why I went with the #booksandbirds theme. Since I’ve already shared that, I thought I might go ahead and show a few more decoration/party details as well!
From now until Halloween, I’m going to share the details of my own little Halloween get-together ( really, I mean LITTLE – just a tiny party of just a few close gal pals this year). Even with a small crowd, I can’t help but put a little effort in the details – that’s all the fun for me! So in this post I’ve decided to do a “step-by-step” of my table centerpiece. {Stay tuned over the next week and a half for other fun party ideas and recipes if you’re interested.}
1. With a blank table as my slate, I layered two tablecloths. First a black one, then a vintage “lace” one.
2. Then I gathered a few books (pretty much my entire Zane Grey collection that I got at an estate sale – it’s been “filler” in my favorite hallway for awhile, so I knew I could use them and not disrupt my general “book order”.) I also collect old glass milk jars, so I thought those might be great for adding flowers (and color) to the centerpiece. I used a few I had on hand as place-fillers here.
3. Next, I added a few crows, candle holders that I got at an estate sale ($5 for the set!) and white candles.
4. Finally, I wrapped a few cobwebs (and plastic spiders) around the entire display. I also added some flowers to the milk jars in a loose arrangement. For these I used mostly yellow blooms, with some textural greens and “odd stems” (such as Safflower and Billy Balls) which I got from my friend Pam at Box of Rain.
I love how the whole thing turned out, and it was pretty easy to do (bonus)! Do you spy the place card books I used? A post with details on that is coming up soon!
Oct 16, 2013
I’ll admit, I don’t get much vacation time anymore. In fact, it’s been years since I had an honest-to-goodness vacay (sigh). Everyone says that running a business gives you more freedom, but they don’t really understand that it’s actually the opposite. In theory, it seems that “more free time” would be the case, but EEEEHHHH, wrong, the boss doesn’t get to “take off” if there’s no one else to “man the fort”.
One getaway that I’ve really tried to make an annual affair is fly fishing with my grandparents in the fall. Every August (or so), my grandparents pack up the RV and make their way to Roaring River State Park in Missouri (near Cassville). It’s very remote, and just beautiful! In fact, it’s so remote that there’s “no service” on my phone… for someone who’s usually very connected, that’s pretty freaking scary. But it’s also strangely liberating. Knowing that “it’s not my problem because no one can reach me” is the kind of nice!
I can never stay as long as I’d like to- usually it’s some variation of two or three days… but I just LOVE this place. It’s so peaceful, and serene, and QUIET. With all the daily noise of the store – the cash register ringing a transaction (always a good thing), the beep of the door alarm, conversations between customers, music from the iPod – I’ve learned to cherish silence. (Most of the time, I even drive with the radio off in my car.) When I come home, sometimes I turn on the television, but it’s mostly for something to tune out while I veg. Quiet time means EVERYTHING to me these days. So this little place, this tiny park in the middle of a gorgeous valley, next to nowhere, is my happy place. My quiet place.
I may not be a stellar fisherwoman (yet), but I so enjoy fly fishing over any other kind (except maybe deep sea fishing). It’s constant movement, motion… and it includes making fun flies (arguably my favorite part- but more to come on that later).
What makes it even more fun is that my grandfather is an amazing fly fisherman – and self taught. He doesn’t cast like other men I’ve ever seen on the riverbank- in fact, it’s not unusual for bystanders to pull up a chair and watch him for awhile! It’s so graceful and effortless how he casts his line- but I know he’s only made it SEEM that way. Belive me, it’s NOT as easy as he makes it look.
I hope that one day I can be as skilled as he is, and that I have the opportunity to “unplug” for a few months at a time like he and my grandmother do. It’s so beautiful. And renewing. And such a treat to connect with nature. When I’m there, I constantly find myself in awe of the beauty God has put before me.
So there it is- My Happy Place. Where’s yours?
Sep 28, 2013
As the beginning of October approaches (and temperatures start to drop), I’m REALLY looking forward to fall – specifically – nights by the fire! A few weeks ago my family was kind enough to help me stock up on firewood, so I should be all set there (for a short while at least).
The high for today is supposed to be 78 and the low is 50, so I’m really hoping I get to cozy up by the fire for the first time tonight!
In diligent preparation, I replaced my cheerful, summer decor (an old croquet set) with my fireplace tools. I love the look of both -they’re unique, colorful, fun, seasonal… and in this case – useful. After Halloween, I’ll replace the pumpkin with an amazing pair of vintage ice skates that mom and I got at an estate sale in Michigan (one of my favorite finds).
Cheers to fall, ya’ll!
Sidenote: Last year I learned my lesson about putting pumpkins too close to the flame. It was melting pumpkin mess (oops)! This one should be perfectly safe though (whew).
Aug 20, 2013
A few weeks ago, mom and I stumbled upon an estate sale. Most of the stuff was overpriced, so we walked away almost empty-handed, but there were a few items that we had been eying (and of course waiting for the “half price” day to follow). Our first treasure was a “Texas Rose Quilt” that was handmade and many years old – obviously it had taken a very long time to complete, and neither mom nor I had seen anything like it. After buying that “must have” (along with a few other small items) and left the scene. Later that evening, mom wondered if the glassware she had seen was actually Uranium glass. I had never heard the term, so she explained (being the good science teacher she is). Uranium glass contains uranium, usually in oxide 
diuranate form (disclaimer: I have no clue what that means exactly), added to a glass mix before melting. The pieces vary from trace levels to about 2% uranium, although some 20th-century pieces were made with up to 25%. The amount of uranium in the piece determines the color of its “glow” (it’s more yellow if there’s a greater amount of uranium). It’s found in early century tableware and household items, but fell out of widespread use during the Cold War (1940s) when the availability of uranium decreased. These pieces kind of rare to find now (and can be expensive if the seller is knowledgeable).
The next morning, mom still couldn’t stop thinking about that glass, so we went back to the estate sale, armed with a black light in her purse (of course, she’s the only person I know who has a mini black light handy). She casually plucked a piece from the glassware area, sequestered it to a bathroom, and plugged-in her black light. It was sneaky, and exciting. We were rebels, living on the edge! (Kidding. Actually, it felt exciting, in a nerdy way of course.)
The glass glowed a neon green, bright and very spooky. I’m not nearly as amused with science-y discoveries as my mom is, but I’ll admit this was cool. In fact, it was impressive – that my mom recognized it and went to such lengths to prove her theory to be right. I’m glad I was there – it was a fun experience (and she got to add some cool pieces to her collection)! By the way, Mom, I plan to borrow these for Halloween… can’t you just see a spooky tablescape lit up with black lights?
Jul 14, 2013
A few years after college, my grandmother gave me a small clothing wardrobe (that she actually found it on the side of the road) . I’ve always loved the cabinet’s little frame, adorable skeleton key lock (but of course the key is missing), and its built-in shelving (on the right side). For me, it wasn’t much use as a wardrobe… so eventually I decided it would be the perfect bar cabinet! It’s beautiful, sentimental AND functional.
Originally, the cabinet was for clothes, hence the shelving. To create even more storage, I purchased an inexpensive wooden wine rack from World Market, screwed it into the back of the cabinet to make it secure, and then stained it to match. Then, I installed wine glass “runners” in the top of the cabinet. I use those to hold champagne glasses, with wine and martini glass storage on the built-in side shelves. The top of the wine rack also creates an instant shelf, so it’s perfect for more oddly-shaped bottles. I love how much storage this little cabinet has- with everything tucked away so neatly, it’s just perfect!
Do you have a “hidden” bar? Share your creative ideas, I’d love to hear!
Attached with a suction cup hook, it’s perfectly handy. Yes, I know how nerdy it sounds, but I’m SO excited to have this useful tool in my shower now. You know, to record those genius ideas I’m sure to have… (write it down, make it happen, right?!)
