Under a blue moon

12.31.11

Okay how is that for a discombobulated list of things to accomplish? A few personal improvement items, a few household improvement items, some imprecise goals, some very specific ones.  

I have this vague feeling that if I publish this list publicly that maybe I'll have a better chance of accomplishing them.  Power of intention and all that.  

Actually it's more of a 'in sight, in mind' kind of thinking.  My plan is to revisit the list once a month and check on how I am doing.  

The organize linen one is kind of odd - but I have my linens in five different locations.  I'd like to come up a more managable system of organizing them.  So that goal may be more about organization in general.  

A number of the items are things that I find myself constantly saying..."I sure wish I spoke French (or German, or Spanish)..." or "We should go for a nice drive..." or "this darn camera..."

The list is in no particular order.  I have been jotting them down as I think of them over the past couple of weeks.  I don't think of them as resolutions so much as the way I would like things to be.  I just decided, to paraphrase a quote, to design the sort of life I want to live.

Happy New Year everyone.  Thank you for reading this humble little blog and being supportive and kind and encouraging.  

 

 

Friday's Favorites

Flickr Favorites (please click link to see the source of these beautiful images)

• Pretty, sparkly flats - lovely for a New Year's Eve party (listen - my days of towering heels are ovah!  Flats for me!).  I would get them in the grey.  I've ordered from this site before (from the US) and it was a great experience.  Free shipping
• Speaking of New Year's Eve - wouldn't this be a fabulous backdrop for a party:  Sequin Wall from Oh Happy Day
• I think this is a clever way to save for something.  A shadow box piggy bank with a picture of the desired object (shhh- I think you could DIY this super easily) 
• Pretty earrings!  I can't decide which I like more - the drop earrings in crystal or the dangle earrings in green amethyst
• I thought this was a fascinating story about the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel employees and how they comported themselves during a three day attack on the hotel in 2008.  Everyone has the opportunity to be a hero.  Everyone.

My goodness - where did the year go?  My house has been undecorated (did that on Wednesday) but I still have some cleaning to do in order to have my sparkly clean house for the New Year.  

I will do one more post before the year closes out - I want to share my To Do List for 2012.  I figure if I publicly announce it that the items will have a better chance of getting done.  Some are lofty goals, others are just ways to better myself.  

Have a fabulous weekend everyone!  

12.28.11

(Brace yourself for a series of scintillating pictures of my broom closet...)

One of my Old Year's traditions is to make sure the house is nice and clean when we greet the New Year.  I like to start things off with everything neat and tidy and in its place.  

On the surface our house already looks tidy and organized.  It's not until you start opening doors and looking in cupboards the ugly truth starts to surface.

Exhibit A:  My broom closet. 

Seriously.  Could I jam anthing else in there?  It's a nightmare every time I open it up and try to pull out the broom.  Eight other things come tumbling out with it.  

The broom closet is in my laundry room which is between the kitchen/eating area and the garage.  It has a door to the deck and is quite the thoroughfare.  

Yesterday I pulled everything out and swept it (the irony is not lost on me).  I went to the hardware store and bought eight different hooks.  Four regular hooks and four the kind you hang long handled things (like brooms and mops).

The ironing board can go - we have a new one that doesn't fit in this closet.  There are also 87 variations of the Swiffer mop.  I weeded them down to four.  A regular broom, a dusting Swiffer and two hardwood floor mops.  

Now everything is off the floor and easy to retrieve.  

Simple pleasures for sure but how nice to open that door and see everything in its place.  Very Martha-esque.  

I only wish I had time to tackle the garage before the 31st....

What about you?  Do you have any end of the year rituals?  

12.24.11

Gosh I love the internet.

Naughty or Nice gift tags from Brooklyn Limestone (from yesterday's Friday's Favorites)
Vintage Santa image from The Graphics Fairy
Candied Almonds from My Baking Addiction
Caramels from Giver's Log

Friday's Favorites

Flickr Favorites (please click link to see the source of these beautiful images)

• A few last minute Christmas links (free printables):  Naughty or Nice gift tags from Brooklyn Limstone and  Christmas boxes from The Pretty Blog
• Wouldn't these be fun to collect?  What a clever display: Vintage tree toppers   (sorry for the Pinterest link - I can't find the original source)
• Love these curtain tiebacks - you could totally do them with actual vintage glass doorknobs (UO price seems reasonable though)
• How totally clever:  Ironing mat that you just slap on your washer or dryer
• Adorable hair pins

Today marks the anniversary of the arrival of a lovely and cherished young woman.  Happy Birthday Lizz!!  May all your birthday wishes come true!!  

I hope everyone has a calm and happy weekend.  

12.22.11

Happy Winter Solstice everyone!  Here's to brighter days ahead!

12.21.11

(Dave sweetie - if you read my blog avert your eyes.  Come back tomorrow)

I think one of the best things about Christmas are the stockings.  Another best thing is having extra people join you for the holidays.  Particularly if their own families are far away.

This year we will have a couple extras on Christmas day and I wanted to do stockings for both of them.  At first I thought I would just buy stockings but the choice was either to spend a lot of money on a temporary stocking or buy a really ugly cheap one.  

Then I spied these pretty red boxes with glittery tops.  To get the point across that they are standing in for stockings I made stocking tags with everyone's names on them.  

I thought it was a nice alternative to typical stockings but in keeping with the spirit of them.

12.17.11

Tree is up! 

Friday's Favorites

Flickr Favorites (please click link to see the source of these beautiful images)

• Cutest apple pie.  Ever.
• Holly Golightly's apartment can be yours.  If you have an extra $5.8 Mil laying around.
• I think a few of these will be on my New Year's resolution list:  30 Things to Stop to Yourself
• Continuing with the list theme:  Five lessons learned from living in Paris  Love this list.
• Via Oh Joy:  Pretty coasters
• Cheeky art in a smoking room

After today I am on vacation!  Until next year!!  This weekend we'll get our tree and I'll start panicking in earnest about the lack of Christmas shopping I've done.  

I hope everyone has a simply splendid weekend!

12.15.11

I saw something just ridiculous on Pinterest.  They are pushpins with a Swarovski flatback rhinestone slapped on top of it.  And they are selling at eight for $6.95 (87 cents a piece).  

Pushpins.  Rhinestones.  Glue.  How hard could it be to make them? Well I didn't have any flatback rhinestones that were the right size but I did look up the cost for them.  And if you bought Swarovski rhinestones and clear pushpins and a bit of glue you could make them for 25 cents a piece.  And why would you really need Swarovski?  If you go with a Michael's or Hobby Lobby brand you could make them for even cheaper.  

Okay enough of that.  I think I am going to challenge myself in 2012. You know how you see something (especially now that Pinterest is such a big deal) and think "I wonder if you really could make that?" Well I am going to pick one project every month and give it a go.  See if I can make a skirt out of a man's shirt or make my own lipgloss.  

Changing the subject - I saw this print on Rachel Ashwell's FaceBook page.  Does anyone know who the artist is?  It looks something a Swedish artist would do.