A Shepherds Purse

11 comments:
The Shepherd's Purse is a very common plant 
and many would say it is little more than a weed.

It is often found by the roadside or in unattended city lots

But after the flower has withered 
the seeds begin to grow and take the shape of
a small green heart
....a little shepherd's purse
It easily self sows and makes its home in un-likely and often odd locations 
with little regard for dust or disarray...

It seems to thrive along
the side of the road or in a crack in the pavement


This is not a pretty "gardeners" plant 
but...I love the Shepheard's purse


It finds it's way into our garden's 
wherever the wind 
and birds take the heart seeds
&
 it shows up each Spring without a care
to flower and bloom 


it grows from weed
to wild flower



 As I begin this new year full of changes 

 My promise to myself is to accept my life's crazy path
with grace and a cheerful heart



to follow the breeze and sow seeds where they land

to enjoy the 
smaller moments 
I so often take for granted


wishing you all 
a healthy
happy 
New Year












A Patchwork of Inspiration

12 comments:
It's often interesting what can inspire us....
is it an image on Pinterest?

 a fabulous evening silhouette and big green lawn
 a simple humble work table
 beautiful natural elements
 clean and modern spaces with interesting antiques
 whimsy and white
a place to have tea
  a chic and warm restaurant
a simple morning in the garden
filled with sunshine


It's probably all of those things
or
a patchwork of a bit of each

 My inspiration usually comes from the colors and textures
of things that I enjoy looking at

and most often a house and it's architecture
will tell you what needs to be placed inside

But since I'm not sure where or what style exactly our next house will be
I have chosen this little Plein Air Painting as my inspiration
 for a few new furnishings


It has wonderful coral and turquoise hues
as well as yellow, rich greens, terra-cotta and salmon

 The colors of this old Roseville Wisteria vase are similar 
And something about the terra cotta, greens and blues in this glaze 
are so beautiful together

I think this vase dates from 1920-1940
 so those may have been the colors that people really liked 
during California's golden era

 This old basket has wonderful old paint in oyster white with just the right amount of wood peeking through....
beautiful simple color

 Old storage firkins are a beautiful example of how color can become
 more rich and interesting with time


So I purchased a few things to get me started....keeping in mind the colors of the little painting

first up
a clean and calm Ushak rug


Millie...of course is quite pleased with this purchase
I found a few old indigo batik pillows
with blue-green
and cream 


For some of the larger pieces I like the neutral texture of linen in stripes and solids
and maybe some ticking thrown in


These are a fun colors to use as large pillows....
I really like the bright melon and turquoise velvet
colors found again the the painting
And a really unique fabric I purchased is this
Antique Japanese Boro panel


Japanese boro's are folk textiles, 
 pieced together as the fabric became worn 
because cotton was highly prized for it's warmth
The fabrics are all hand loomed, died with indigo
 and stitched together by hand 

randomly... but with great care
this beautiful boro dates to 1800-1850 
the color and texture is really quite amazing 
and I have never used anything like this before


 I love the fact that all of the patches are sewn by hand 
and the textures are both rough and soft

So I need to get started right away 
to furnish a new living room

 and I will be using
 my patchwork of inspiration


see you soon