Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Hello friends. We're right in the middle of moving. I'm not fond of moving, not at all. The good thing about this move is that hopefully, unless the Lord has something different, we won't be moving again for quite sometime. It's a strange feeling to be making somewhat of a permanent move, being that it's the first one I've ever experienced. It's a good feeling though, and going through it with my husband makes all the positive difference in the world. As we were in the middle of finding ourselves in twisted, contorted, and occasionally upside down positions as we pulled apart and primed our new kitchen cabinets for the layer of paint still yet to come (you should try this sometime), it suddenly hit me that this craziness is an investment in our home! Which makes it so worth the effort, and keeps it all in good fun.

My bird however, doesn't realize that all this upheaval is for a good cause. He is a very high strung birdie, and he tends to get upset whenever his perceivable little world is thrown off. He even refused to sing when I played the Beach Boys for him this morning on Pandora, he loves the Beach Boys and usually attempts to harmonize. He's trying to communicate to us his fright and maybe disgust at our attempt to 'change everything, just because you feel like it'. (yes, I did just quote my non-verbal bird) Ah well, I keep telling him that he's going to love his new room- it has four big windows along with a windowed door, and there are lots of birds who live outside that he'll enjoy squawking with. But until he sees it for himself, I don't think I have him convinced.

I'm afraid I don't have a very clear picture of him to share, but here is a shot that Jonathan O'Brian took on our wedding day, he hung my earrings on the cage and you can see birdie in the background. He's all white with just a tiny spot of blue on his tummy, and another on his back. It looks like someone smudged him with blue finger paints. Like my earrings?




Thursday, July 19, 2012

I found some very pretty pictures by Tina Crespo, here they are for you to see too.








These are by Lupen Grainne.




I don't seem to have much to say today. But I thought I'd share these with you anyway. The window above is my favorite, the photograph was taken in Hawaii. Hawaii.. the land of soft air brushed with the scent orchids and plumeria, of windows always open with fresh breezes blowing, of water so blue and clean you're not sure you're still alive on earth, and very best of all, calm and relaxed people.


Hawaiian Plumeria

Friday, July 13, 2012

Along with beaded bangle bracelets (which are yet to be listed) I found myself making some long beaded necklaces, the kind that are easy to wear with anything, and to layer up. Because layering is fun. 

Here they are! More to come, but these are the ones I've done so far.
 




The chalcedony briolettes on this green one are so glassy smooth! They're like little bubbles.














This was the first one I made, I think it's my favorite. I love the Japanese Miyuki beads, I can't get over the tiny stripes on each individual bead. The mother of pearl chips are smooth and glossy.











 But I really like this one too. The blue trumpet beads aren't just a straight up blue, they're made up of varying shades of blue, so they look all mix-y. The opal droplets are great too, white, green and blue.





 

 This is a triangular chrysoprase nugget, with soft peachy beads.




You can find them all on my Etsy store, A Cranberry Day!


Saturday, July 7, 2012

I'm starting to get into some more specifics of what I'm visualizing for our new home. No, we haven't moved in yet. But what does that matter when there is fun planning to do?

I love lighting. It's a major part of my life. Lights need to make a room feel warm and welcoming. Natural sunlight is best of course, but lamps, hanging lamps, overhead lights, are all important to me as well. 

Here are a couple of my favorite finds from Boots N Gus.





Up-cycled Milk Glass, yes please.



I'm not sure I would use this valence on a window, because every time I look at it I come up with a different idea of what I could do with it. Hang it over the bed and embellish with a few fabric flowers?


Brulu Mama

The kitchen has very old styled cabinet pulls. Not in a good old style way. I like the fresh green of this one below. I think I'll take the kitchen more in this sort of direction.

Door Stop Supply Shop on Etsy

Garlands of all different kids frequently catch my attention. They can do so much with so little. I could easily make something similar to this design by Everly Lane Design, which was featured on Etsy's blog. I think I would incorporate some lace.





I like these as well, by Thimble Weddings. Another that would be fairly easy to make, but easier if I really had the time, and owned a sewing machine.






I think I would go for felt over paper however. Since I'm purchasing for home decor rather than an event, it would last much longer. Like these from The Find Sac.






The tile backsplash in the kitchen is white, yea for me. I'm planning to paint the walls and cabinets white too, and have the fun of adding color to a white slate. Two of the tiles over the stove have some rather 90's style designs on them, so I'm looking to replace those two. Or maybe I'll replace a small group of them to make it more coherent. I'm leaning toward some mosaic tiles, maybe subway style. I found these mother of pearl ones on Amazon.






There is a toilet room in the master bath. The kind that's fairly tiny and usually depressing. When I saw it I thought, 'great, without revamping the bathroom, (because I like the rest of it) how can I make that space pleasant???'. The bathroom is a soft yellow, what if I used something like this from Cutting Edge Stencils to liven it up? I'm still debating, but as of yet this seems to be the best potential fix I've come up with.




My goals with home decor are usually to keep the overall feel simple and airy, and to find ways to make big impacts with items and ideas that come at a lower cost. I've been frequenting thrift stores over the last few weeks, and enjoying the thrill of the hunt, as my friend Amy says. So far I have found a wooden chair painted a soft blue that I think will go well in the living room, an ottoman that may find its way into the walk in closet, a blue green windowpane mirror, and a watercolor picture with of course, little birdies. At some point I'll take some pictures of my favorite finds, maybe when they're settled in their new home!