Bookworm

one day in to my eschewing of the internet and I am leaning heavily on my other favorite form of entertainment, books. Today became a book reading day as I filled the hours with pages. Fashioning the stack are recent library finds and a few from my own shelves - with a couple magazines thrown in for a change of taste.





There are many reasons why I love books, I could fill pages with their attributes, but the reason I am appreciating them today is because they enable you to stay grounded in the physical world; while, at the same time, whisking your consciousness far away.

Counterpoise

I've been recuperating from a very bad cold I caught last week. It kept me in my bed, exhausted and feverish, from Tuesday till Friday. I'm feeling more human this week, but I'm still moving slowly and carrying a box of Kleenex with me wherever I go.





I'm trying to cut back on my internet browsing time. I don't like how I can spend hours online every day and accomplish absolutely nothing. I'm only going to read the few blogs that I find truly inspiring and remove the rest from the side bar. Hopefully this will cut down on my time wasted on the internet. Funnily enough, I think it will probably increase my urge to post on my blog. We shall see.

Self Portrait: Window Gazing

Inventive Vases

I've had to get creative with vases around here lately. A few weeks ago I came to the realization that I was woefully unprepared for spring in England, as it seemed, practically overnight, hundred of flowers came bursting forth out of the ground. And me without a single vase to display them. With the desperate thought of the blooms wasting there beauty away out on my lawn, I dove into my recycling bin to find a solution.



Would you believe that this beautiful little vase began it's life as a salsa jar?



I already have a couple bottles, that I stripped the labels from, residing on my table; but this one I thought would look lovely in my craft room. Half way through I couldn't bear to tear anymore of the label off. It's just to pretty.

Home Life

Finding new joy in my home life.
It's the little things,
the quiet peaceful things.
Like sunlight
Warming patches of still air,
Warm water
And soap
And the clink of clean dishes,
The soft shushing of the washer machine,
Daffodils
And forsythia
everywhere I look.




Blooming
On the table, the windowsill,
In jars and cups,
whatever I could find.



The sharp break of the whistling tea kettle,
followed by the soothing ritual:
steeping, stirring, sipping.





The swish of fabric.
The feel of cotton between my fingertips.
The smell of clean.
Lavendar
Tucked in to sachets
Slipped between the folds of scarves.
Wrap one around my neck and take deep breaths of fragrant linen.

Be Back Soon

The Airman comes home today. I'm so excited.
Be back on Monday.
Chow

In A New Light

Every day that we grow closer to spring the sun comes out more and more. I've never seen my house at spring time, I moved in this past fall, and the soft sunlight streaming through the windows has me looking around with new eyes.

Spring Spin

I dug some of my spring dresses out of storage the other day, and I've been living it up ever since. There is just something about wearing a dress that puts a romantic spin on the world.







I can hardly wait until spring truly arrives. It will be bare legs, sandals and no turning back.

Self Portrait: Soule Searching

Found a bit of Soule reading at the library. It had me thinking a lot about what kind of home life I want, now and in the future.

Oil Slick picture: original post.

Inspiring Home Design

I have never been very interested in home decorating. I love design but after a slew of really bad paint choices I figured I should leave the interior decorating to the professionals. Skip ahead several years and I now have a large house and a small budget. A DIY small budget. Several trips to the magazine section later and I have a decent sized inspiration folder and a better understanding of what my style is. An interesting mix of modern and romantic. Take a look.