Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Spring Palette 2013
It's certainly starting to feel like spring around here! We've been alternating between rain for a few days, then bright, warm sun (with a sprinkling of freezing rain for good measure - it is still only April). I've been "preparing" for the season with my Spring Sampler cross-stitch and the Art of Spring workshop and have been thinking a lot about the colours that represent spring. I thought it was high time to get on my spring palette!
For 2013, the Pantone colour of the year is emerald, a very pretty blue-green teal. The other Pantone colours of the year include a juicy apple green, a luscious linen and zesty yellow. Here they all are in Patone's gorgeous graphic:
After browsing these and the trends on Colour Lovers, I decided to make two palettes for this spring - a pastel one and a bright one. There are just too many good colours to narrow it down more! I started with the pastels, including some linen, lilac and soft orange:
This might be one of my favourite palettes yet! The tones are so lovely and calming, even with the orange in there. Gray is still my go-to neutral; I just love it with everything! Although, I must say, that linen is a great neutral for the warmer months. I'll certainly be including it a lot of it in my summer wardrobe.
Next, I had to use some of the beautiful bright spring colours out there. I started with an emerald green but opted for a less blue version than Pantone. This green reminds me of a lush forest. I also chose a bright celery/chartreuse, a colour I've been loving this spring. It makes a great alternative to bright yellow.
You can see more of my seasonal palettes here.
What colours are you gravitating towards this season?
For 2013, the Pantone colour of the year is emerald, a very pretty blue-green teal. The other Pantone colours of the year include a juicy apple green, a luscious linen and zesty yellow. Here they all are in Patone's gorgeous graphic:
After browsing these and the trends on Colour Lovers, I decided to make two palettes for this spring - a pastel one and a bright one. There are just too many good colours to narrow it down more! I started with the pastels, including some linen, lilac and soft orange:
Next, I had to use some of the beautiful bright spring colours out there. I started with an emerald green but opted for a less blue version than Pantone. This green reminds me of a lush forest. I also chose a bright celery/chartreuse, a colour I've been loving this spring. It makes a great alternative to bright yellow.
What colours are you gravitating towards this season?
Monday, April 15, 2013
Spring Vignette
We were blessed with two visits this weekend: my parents came over for dinner Friday night (we went out for awesome food and service at the Mandarin) and my aunt, two cousins and gramma came for a visit Sunday morning. It was really nice to finally show off our new place - no one had seen it yet (except my mom who saw it empty a week before it was officially ours) and were really looking forward to being able to "picture me in my place".
Despite having both sent me a housewarming gift back in November, both mom and gramma brought me a little something as a "first time in your new place" gift. The apple clearly doesn't fall far from the tree! And double bonus for me - both mom and gramma know me too well and presented me with a perfect spring vignette (with absolutely no consultation between the two; neither knew the other was bringing something)!
From mom - the eighth addition to my Willow Tree collection (or "faceless angels" as we call them, regardless of the presence of wings) - Bloom:
I love the gorgeous pinky-orange-red calla lilies. I have all the Willow Tree girls with books, one with a bunny and another with a teapot... now I want all the ones with flowers. They're all so pretty and neutral enough to group together or to add to any little corner. I love them!
Next, my gramma brought me this cute little teapot:
The little slot for a spout, the big round handle, the fat round shape... it's just adorable! And practical as it has an infuser insert. Definitely practical (as are my other ten teapots...).
Again, clearly, my mom and gramma know me well. And read my blog, so: Thank you mom! Thank you gramma! I really appreciate it! They're perfectly cute together, even if you didn't plan it that way!
Even better, I had already placed this little vase (a vintage piece handed down to me from my great-grandma through my mom - my aunt exclaimed over it, remembering it from my mom's childhood bedroom) in this corner of my shelf to match the wreath on the wall... and it all just came together so nicely! It makes me smile and think of spring.
I guess with all this mention of collections, it's really time for an update on them. It hasn't been so very long since my teapot post (there are three new additions since) but I've never really posted anything official on my faceless angels (this is the closest I could find). Add that to my "to-blog" list!
Have a great week - only four more to go before our big trip out West!
Despite having both sent me a housewarming gift back in November, both mom and gramma brought me a little something as a "first time in your new place" gift. The apple clearly doesn't fall far from the tree! And double bonus for me - both mom and gramma know me too well and presented me with a perfect spring vignette (with absolutely no consultation between the two; neither knew the other was bringing something)!
From mom - the eighth addition to my Willow Tree collection (or "faceless angels" as we call them, regardless of the presence of wings) - Bloom:
Next, my gramma brought me this cute little teapot:
Again, clearly, my mom and gramma know me well. And read my blog, so: Thank you mom! Thank you gramma! I really appreciate it! They're perfectly cute together, even if you didn't plan it that way!
Even better, I had already placed this little vase (a vintage piece handed down to me from my great-grandma through my mom - my aunt exclaimed over it, remembering it from my mom's childhood bedroom) in this corner of my shelf to match the wreath on the wall... and it all just came together so nicely! It makes me smile and think of spring.
Have a great week - only four more to go before our big trip out West!
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Sunday Seven
Sunday: another day of cleaning with great results
Monday: having the cold rain stop in time for my walk to the station
Tuesday: coming home to find the garbage and recycling taken out
Wednesday: my morning latte
Thursday: taking the time for a quick collage before leaving for work
Friday: delicious dinner with my parents
Friday: delicious dinner with my parents
Saturday: nice quiet day stitching in my nice clean home topped off with Pat declaring my risotto the best I've made yet
Now I'm really looking forward to having my gramma, aunt and cousins over today!
Now I'm really looking forward to having my gramma, aunt and cousins over today!
What are you thankful for this week?
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Recommend: The Great Gatsby
No matter how busy I am, how many projects I'm in the midst of, I always, always have a book to read. I read around two hours a day - on my commute, during my lunch and often before falling asleep too.
Last week I did little else but read The Great Gatsby - I just couldn't put it down. I picked up this gorgeous hardcover on a recommendation from a coworker who knows my love of beautiful books. Plus, I had just seen the preview for the movie starring Leonardo DiCaprio, so I couldn't resist. The movie looked good, but if I'm going to watch a movie-based-on-a-book, I have to read said novel first. Do you do that too?
First off, F. Scott Fitzgerald is a great writer. I love his use of words and metaphors and his phraseology. Often when I'm reading an older book I get lost in the writing - they just aren't as easy to follow as contemporary literature. But this was different. Fitzgerald is very readable despite (and because of) his wide vocabulary. In fact, his vocabulary really enlivened the story and made it that much more rich.
Speaking of rich, this is a tale about the rich in the 1920s and 30s. When Fitzgerald first wrote it, there wasn't a lot of appeal for The Great Gatsby - mostly because it doesn't glorify the decadent lifestyles of the affluent, as the public preferred at the time.
I found it to be an intriguing look at the lives of the crazy-rich. I would definitely read this novel again and I'm looking forward to those short stories (there are ten included in this lovely hardcover).
Have you read The Great Gatsby? What did you think?
Monday, April 8, 2013
Around the House
Or around the apartment, if you want to get technical.
Pat and I spent the weekend organizing. We pulled out over half the stuff we had in our storage bin and repacked everything more neatly. We emptied over six boxes of old clothes and two of shoes into a clothing donation bin. We have a huge box of cardboard to recycle and another few boxes of things to donate and throw out. There are a few last things to find places for and a few more pictures to hang, but it's coming along really nicely.
Can you tell we have company coming over next weekend? I have family that will be visiting which is great motivation to finish up some of the last few things we've been meaning to do to finally settle into our new place. It has been six months and all.
Anyway, we put up a shelf in the spare room... yes, another piece of furniture in that little room. This one really helped though and doesn't make the room feel smaller. It's holding all of my supplies that aren't on my desk and then some. I didn't think I'd like it - it's just an industrial looking black metal shelf that we used to have in storage in Hamilton. It doesn't fit in our storage space here though... so into our office it went. Now that it's up, I really like it. It doesn't take up that much room and holds a lot of stuff while still letting light shine into the room. Works for me.
Now I just need to finish organizing the rest of that stuff on the floor...
Pat also got around to hanging a few things. We don't have much wall space with all the windows and much of that is concrete. We're trying to make the most of it though - I think this mirror looks great here:
Honest photo:
Ha! We still have a few piles to cart out of here! One or two loads and we're done though. I'm looking forward to seeing how big this space really is!
Pat and I spent the weekend organizing. We pulled out over half the stuff we had in our storage bin and repacked everything more neatly. We emptied over six boxes of old clothes and two of shoes into a clothing donation bin. We have a huge box of cardboard to recycle and another few boxes of things to donate and throw out. There are a few last things to find places for and a few more pictures to hang, but it's coming along really nicely.
Can you tell we have company coming over next weekend? I have family that will be visiting which is great motivation to finish up some of the last few things we've been meaning to do to finally settle into our new place. It has been six months and all.
Anyway, we put up a shelf in the spare room... yes, another piece of furniture in that little room. This one really helped though and doesn't make the room feel smaller. It's holding all of my supplies that aren't on my desk and then some. I didn't think I'd like it - it's just an industrial looking black metal shelf that we used to have in storage in Hamilton. It doesn't fit in our storage space here though... so into our office it went. Now that it's up, I really like it. It doesn't take up that much room and holds a lot of stuff while still letting light shine into the room. Works for me.
Pat also got around to hanging a few things. We don't have much wall space with all the windows and much of that is concrete. We're trying to make the most of it though - I think this mirror looks great here:
Honest photo:
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Sunday Seven
Sunday: getting back home after a week away
Monday: having a day off to myself to unwind and be creative
Tuesday: getting back to work after a long time off
Wednesday: cheese, my go-to snack
Thursday: surprise visit with a friend
Friday: finishing a great book
Friday: finishing a great book
Saturday: great day of organizing - gave away six big boxes of old clothes and one of shoes!
What are you thankful for this week?
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