feathers, herbs, and sunflowers

…and all the nice things from this weekend! First let me say I have been working on customizing a beautiful Italian journal that will be in my shop tomorrow, around 8:00 pm eastern time. I will give a little hint…“One Misty Morning” is the theme of this lovely journal/ sketchbook.

This weekend I took a picture of my collection of various feathers collected over the summer months.

The blackbird wins as submitting the most feathers to my collection (probably due to an unfortunate incident but I won’t get into that now!) And the biggest feather, from a hawk found during a forest forage…

This weekend we visited an organic farm in the Hudson Valley. They had the yummiest veg food and it was so pretty! After eating brunch I stocked up all my favorite delicious greens, such as kale, mesclun, and a new one for me (which is actually a yummy weed!) perslane.… I am set for the week!

The quaint barn was a hodgepodge of old windows with a tin roof…

The inside was an absolute earthy dream! Look at the drying Yarrow, the Black Eyed Susan’s and the stainless pails filled to the brim with sunflowers…

A bountiful selection of amazing herbs.

Sunflowers were everywhere in colorful recycled cans.

I find this sort of place so incredibly inspiring. I am searching for more of it’s kind.

orange marmalade, embroidery and other things

Yum! Part of Saturday morning breakfast.

I opened the fridge the other day to find the most delightful jar of orange marmalade (put there by my husband who is quite the foodie). Besides the marmalade’s amazing taste and subtle orangey zing, the jar is so pretty. My paint brushes are sure to find a home in it when empty. It’s made from a thick milky-white glass and the antique-inspired labels make me feel like it’s from very long ago (and the label says established 1797 so I’m in).

Inspiring me the past couple of days…

Rich, fall-like embroidery, velvets and wool. So perfect for September!

Went to a bag sale yesterday and thrifted these little vintage white gloves. They are completely hand sewn and I am in love with the delicate little bow details. They found a home clothes-pinned to my inspiration ribbon, behind my desk.

I have been thinking about goats since last weekend when we visited a farm. They must enter my painting sometime soon! The snippet above is from the book Heidi by Johanna Spyri.

I so wanted to take this little guy home:

It’s a rainy night and I am tucked away in my little room sorting through boxes of wool and calico. I am thinking about making a few totes and picking out the fabric is half the fun. Looking forward to tomorrow, we are visiting an organic farm (and I hope they have goats there!).
A good weekend to all!

Blackberry Breakfast

My latest find is the most perfect tea cup for me. A sepia ship adorns the side of the tea cup and the saucer as well. I drink iced tea in the summer so I decided to use it as a dish for blackberries.