chenille & other cheap thrills

seaside painting of rock, barnacles, seaweed and red sand // cheery yellow daffodils // that Betty, she's been following Missy D and I into the park and along the harbour side boardwalk // everyday 3pm tea time // bacon ? Sam & Winnie Dixon in the backyard sunshine // making a wheat, grain & sugar free version of Dorie Greenspan's apple cake // 2 cats and a favourite sunshiny chair // 22 x 30 pattern, painted with transparent sepia ink and a very small brush, days & days & days - part of the new fantastic & finished 12' x 5' collage illustration project // les bomb of a BIG project has gone off dans les studio // creative director Oliver brainstorming & conceptualizing // the purchasing department approving a new fabulous expenditure a gift to moi + it arrived just in time // oh my love lil' lichen forest // + more geranium love (geranium care post coming soon ;-)

We are not strong for acting like we have it all together 
all the time. We are strong because even when it is hard & uncomfortable & embarrassing & messy & ugly, 
we keep walking forward. Michelle Taylor

Amen ! Michelle Taylor - her quote found on Kelly Rae Roberts Facebook page


Chenille & other ... cheap thrills.

To say I am a frugal person I think would be an understatement. I'm not cheap, at least I don't think I am but after years and years and years of a barely there, hit & miss, insecure at best income, + living in a tiny, rural-ish, chic-is-not-essential village, being self employed (no one sees me or my attire, hair, face etc...) and I guess with age, maturity + a dash of wisdom - I don't like or want to spend money unless I absolutely have to. Most often, aside from the usual suspects - bills, groceries, etc, my biggest expenditures would be Creative Empire related - like my brand new thrilling 12 x 17 LED flat, thin Lightpad pictured above (chorus of angels are singing here) a 200. + item, but it's paid for itself already with this recent BIG 12' x 5' foot collage project (more on that soon, promise).

I do so love a cheap thrill, and I've been realizing lately I have quite a few of them

• chenille preferably in a loose, boxy turtleneck sweater form or blanket - it's like wearing a teddy bear - my most recent mock turtleneck find from local Monty's Emporium of Second Hand Vintage goodness - ivory in colour, XL and $3.50
• turtlenecks period - there's something so comforting about rolling them up to just below your nose
• uncontrollable laughter, so very good for the soul - anything by David Sedaris & this internet cat goodness
• every day early morning coffee in bed with my journal (+ coffee delivered by 1 handsome Prince)
• a freshly made bed with flannel sheets that have hung outside on the line - this thrills me beyond belief ;-)
• a really good novel waiting for me at bedtime - I'm currently reading Lost Girls by Canadian author Andrew Pyper
• library books, magazines, audio books, movies & TV series  - I ♡ my library
• not eating out in restaurants but cooking dinner at home, trying new recipes, growing our own veggies
• being outside in nature - I'm starting a nature journal this spring not sure exactly what that'll look like but I'm looking forward to studying the expansive nature in my own back yard - first up our ant hills and many moss varieties
• every day, 3pm usually, tea breaks - current favourite is a 2 cup pot of tea with vanilla nut & orange pekoe
• a tidy organized office & desk - unlike explosion of creative-ness pictured above
• starting anything from a seed - current successes lemon, clementine & avocado
• Netflix, Netflix, Netflix - currently watching Season 4 of the Good Wife - a perfect hour of wind at my 8pm quitting time
• everyday (nearly) walks along the crescent beach
• hanging out with my family of pets (including the many birds we feed)
• finishing a really difficult project (on time) and knowing confidently - I can do difficult & well.
• youtube videos (keeping me company while I work) -  new brain science goodness x 2 here & here
• every Friday business ladies ;-) lunches at Inn the Elms with the fabulous Mary P
• 29 Black Street Film Festival started Friday night - movies borrowed from our library - held in celebration of a month long bit of madness finished and finished well - hip hip hooray !
--- Friday May 9th - Captain Phillips - 9.5/10 - near perfect - edge of your seat thrilling & a fantastic ending
--- Saturday May 10th - Gravity - 5/10 - what was the fuss about, must've been the 3D glasses - tres corny we thought
--- Sunday May 11th - Nebraska - 9/10 -  spare, authentic, poignant + gorgeous cinematography
--- Monday May 12th - Inside llewyn Davis - 5.5/10 - beautifully filmed but I couldn't stop worrying about the cat(s)
--- Tuesday May 13th - Dallas Buyers Club - 9/10 - I had a good friend die of AIDS in the late 80's who was on AZT
• & of course cats, dogs & handsome Princes

Would love to hear about your favourite cheap thrills ;-)

I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes. Because if you are making mistakes then you are: making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself & changing your world. Neil Gaiman