Inspiration for a Rainy Monday

The rain has been going at it for three days. It has to stop at some point. I keep thinking the weather is going to improve. It has too, right?

Green Houses

Riding the train browsing Pinterest and thinking about greenhouses.

My Happy Place for the Week: A Meadow

I'd like to be out in a meadow soaking up sunshine and listening to nature. Just sitting in grass warmed by the sun and maybe searching out some wild flowers to bring home and put in a jar. That's where my mind will wander when things get tough this week.

Dream Garden

The British really know how to grow their gardens. I would love to walk out my back door and step into a garden like this one.

Fall Mood Board: #1

I still lamenting how short the summer seemed and having trouble adjusting to the idea of fall maybe because I'm dreading the winter that follows. I actually love the snow but not commuting in the bitter cold. But I'm rushing ahead a season!

Back to fall. In an effort to get inspired by and into the season I've been browsing and came up with some images to set the mood. And hopefully inspire some fall activities.

Judging from my first set of images, it seems as if eating will be one of my preferred fall activities. The recipe for the Chocolate Pear Tart can be found at Confessions of a Tart.

Inspiration Needed

Every need a little push in the creativity department? Some inspiration to make you feel something is possible? That's how I've been feeling. So I was happy to get a peek at Rachel Duarte's journal pages via the English Muse.

Now I'm excited to find my sketch book and doodle, write and collage away and see where I end up.

You can view more of Rachel's inspiring journal here.

Monday Inspiration: Samuel Beckett

I really love the idea of failing better. Forget the pressure of succeeding all the time and just fail better. Thank you for these wise words Samuel Beckett.

Want a reminder that's it's okay to not be be perfect, this poster is available at Keep Calm Gallery.

Inspiration for Monday

This photo from the awesome blog I Heart You made my day. Well it's still early yet. We'll see. At least it made my mini lunch break more amusing and provided some inspiration for the rest of the day. Believe!

Photo Paige from I Heart You.

Jasper Conran's Country

I think I could be happy living in the pages of Jasper Conran's new book Country. I'm looking forward to getting a chance to browse through a copy of the book, even if it's only in the book store. Although, I suspect I'll be tempted to break the bank and take a copy home. It's looks like a book one could sink into a comfy chair with and get happily lost in.

Yeah for Yellow

The forsythia and daffodils in bloom outside reminded me how upbeat yellow is. They also made me realize that while I like the color, oddly I don't have any yellow objects in my space. Okay, maybe a crayon and there is a yellow t-shirt some where that I look awful in. Yellow is definitely not my color when it comes to clothing, but I might just decide to add some to my surroundings.

French cafe photo by Little Brown Pen
Love poster available at Made by Girl
Yellow kitchen via sfgirlbybay
Yellow house photo here

Drawing Inspiration: Paper Worlds

I'm gearing up to get drawing. I have had eight sheets of paper with a first layer of color up on my closet door for over a year now just waiting. I'm starting to get attached to them just the way they are, but now I'm going to risk ruining them. I think that is what drawing and art making are all about: how far you can take something before you go too far. Knowing when to push it and when to stop. Can't wait to dive in.

I was doing image searches this morning and found some offbeat inspiration while clicking through the patterns and color ways on the Thibaut Wallpaper website. The site has nice functionality and the option to bookmark favorites. I ended up wishing I had a room to wallpaper. In the meantime, I love the crazy details in wallpapers like the parrot feathers above and also seeing how changing the color palette completely transforms a design. I wouldn't be surprised if a crazy parrot emerges in one of my drawings.

Drawing Inspiration

I just finished prepping some drawing surfaces and would like to believe that I will start drawing any second now - to be realistic any day now. While it's not a matter of motivation, but rather finding the time, it's still nice to have some inspiration to draw on. So I was pleased to come across Drawing and Notes, a blog about "drawing, scribbles, notes and an occasional painting or photograph." The blog showcases artist's drawings and provides links to artist portfolios and information. I could click away all day but I have drawings to get to.

Drawings above:
Gerda Scheepers, Measures of a shy, 2005
Katie Holten, Dead Tree (left hand/right hand) 2008

Bracing For and Hopefully Embracing Winter

I finally just finished racking and bagging the leaves and now the first snow has fallen. It was just flurries but winter has set in. I love the winter sky and the freshness of cold winter air after a snowfall but I miss the light and long days of summer. I'm bracing for the cold and hoping not to get down because of the short days. I'm definitely believe in Seasonal Affective Disorder and am determined not to get down. Here's a list of things I think might help keep lifew bright over the next few months:

• Put up a Christmas tree (Mame was right, we need a little Christmas right this very moment!)
• Get a great fake fur throw for snuggling up with a good book
• Making an inspiration wall
• Paint my toenails a vivid red or better yet splurge on a pedicure
• Build a little snow girl for my daughter
• Feed the deer apples and carrots and fill the bird feeder with seed
• Find time to draw
• Send notes to friends via the post
• Catch up on missed movies (the list is huge)
• Learn something completely new and outside my normal interests
• Visit the library and check out a book on an exotic subject or place
• Plan my garden for spring
• Finish one of my knitting projects so I have a sense of accomplishment
• Take on a tough corner of my home and make it happy
• Take on my abs with the help of the Ab Lounger Pro (on my list to Santa) and win!
• Put candles in the windows
• Listen to a new musical genre
  
• Keep the Christmas tree up as long as possible which shouldn't be a problem as this year's model was grown by General Electric! Sadly, there is no fir scent but also no skin rash requiring a visit to the dermatologist either.
• Be unnaturally optimistic despite everything!

Encouraging Words

Words to live by! This drawing or "Secret Message of the Day" from Keri Smith cheered me up the other day. I was feeling a bit overcome by bills, the economy and generalized anxiety that seems perfectly suited to these times. I stumbled across this message and remembered, it's all in how we respond! So I slipped out of my dreary mood and put on my rose color glasses for a breather. Thanks Keri for putting out these encouraging words and sharing your work on Wish Jar!

Sunflower Heaven

In her book Seventh Heaven, Alice Hoffman tells the story of a divorcee who flees the city for 1960's Long Island with her two young boys. Frustrated by the upkeep of the overrun 1/4 acre she inherited from the former owners, she turns her backyard into a sunflower field. While this dismays her neighbors, I love the idea and the book. I'm trying my own sunflower garden this year, albeit a slightly more contained version. Here's a wonderful example of a sunflower garden from Wouter Ten Broek. Check out his sunflower prints if planting seems too much of a hassle.