Gypsy Fort

As most of you know, my house has been virtually empty for a year now. To make the space inviting and cozy for my birthday party, I had the idea of creating a gypsy lounge in the living room.

I borrowed some twinkle lights, grabbed a handful of vintage sheets from my beloved collection, and started building what might well be my very first fort.

I first put up the twinkle lights. They were so magical just by themselves, I really debated whether or not to build the fort after all. I loved how open it was and didn't want to fill it with a bunch of bulky objects. After much debate and encouragement, I decided to continue.


To avoid a lot of bulky objects or having to patch any holes in the walls/ceiling, I managed to use only 1 ladder, a long pieces of wood, a curtain rod (in addition to the one already above the window), rope, and safety pins to construct it. Luckily, one corner of the room had a hook in the ceiling, the other wall had the curtain rod, and there were also two air vents. Then I used the rope to string up the sheets, zig zagging from one side of the room and back. The ladder was used as the entrance and the wood and extra curtain rod sat on the top step with a blanket and actual curtains on them.

 

I was really happy with how it turned out and everyone seemed to love hanging out in this special space. For those who slept over, we fell asleep under the magic of the twinkle lights and billowing floral ceiling.

A magical place I am still waking up to every morning as I have not yet found it in me to let it go just yet.

Wild Wednessday: July Showers bring August...Mushrooms?

It has been raining like crazy here in Kansas the past few weeks. The rivers are full and rushing. Lawns are growing tall. And mushrooms are popping up everywhere!

I have never seen so many and so many HUGE lawn mushrooms. I was really wanting to eat them. A little olive oil. Lots of garlic. Mmmm. But others warned me not to, so I didn't. (A friend shared this site with me that lets you sort of 'build' your mushroom to figure out what kind you have.)

At least they made for some neat pictures. Wish I had had some miniature gnomes for props.

 this one was as big as my size 9

I picked them all carefully and bagged them up before mowing, to find this little golf tee of a mushroom just a few days later.

And this funky orange one too!

Happy Wild Wednesday to you all!

Tribute to my Workshop

Years ago, I lived in a tiny studio apartment that felt more like I was living in a storage unit. I had boxes piled on top of boxes piled on top of furniture. I didn't mind so much. It was cozy and cheap, and I had it all to myself. I did however day dream about having a space where I could work on projects, make a mess, and then close the door. Instead, my desk/kitchen table was the only work surface in site and with all it's duties from hobbies to freelance work to ...well 'entertaining' might be a stretch, but I'm going with that... it was a lot of work just to keep it in the right mode. The process of taking out and setting up a project and then putting it away again took more time then I typically had to actually work on them in one setting and therefore projects got strung out and put off.

So yeah, I day dreamed a lot about space. To organize. To inspire. To create. To be myself. And maybe actually be productive and a little more efficient.

The idea of living in a loft above a commercial space started to intrigue me more than ever. I started looking. There wasn't anything that really jumped out at me. Purchasing a commercial building didn't seem to be the answer, so I started looking for a house...with a workshop of course. It didn't take too long before I found just that, fell in love, and made it mine. All mine.

Three rooms inside. One to sleep in....the bedroom. One to work in...the office. One to do fun crafty projects in...the playroom. I was in heaven. So much space. So organized, each with it's own designated purpose.

bedroom

 (I couldn't find any pics of the office set up.

Not the most picturesque space, anyway.)

playroom

Then there was the outside space. A separate detached garage that already had a gas heater and ac unit. With help, I was able to turn this space into my workshop. Lots of shelving. A large workbench. Added natural light. And even a custom drawing table...made out of parts salvaged from the original garage door we removed to transform into a wall. Dream come true!

I painted one wall the same color as the main wall in one of my favorite galleries. I found a vintage orange drafting table and eventually collected probably over a 100 frames. (Most of them are still sitting there...all neatly stacked...and empty.)

(This is a current picture showing garage type items are also now residing in the workshop. 

Those are hidden shutters that slide into the wall, allowing in more natural light. When they are shut, it looks like a framed painting from the outside.)

Like most, I had to make a living to afford this dream. A living that was not only uncreative, but seriously sucked the creative juices right out of me. It would take me so much time to try and re-coop from work and transition into creative mode, that I rarely set foot in the workshop. Don't get me wrong. I loved it in there. And I did do some painting in there....just not much.

Five years passed, and I was given the opportunity to quit said creative sucking J O B, hit the road, explore new places and ways of life, and best of all...paint. And in case you weren't around then, or just haven't figured it out yet...that's when this little bloggy blog started. Hence the name.

So I closed up the workshop. Packed it full of personal items. Locked the door. And off I went.

I have lived in so many different places over the past three years. Some had amazingly huge spaces for me to paint. Some gave me my own room. Some were dinky and I literally painted in the living room under the TV, on the floor, or at the kitchen table. But I painted all the same.

This past July, I returned to my house with the intention to find new renters, but a couple months later I was emotionally ready to let go. Let go of my very own little space in this world. Let go of my very own bedroom. office.  playroom.  workshop.  back yard.  deck.  brick path.  custom painted backboard.  and so many things I had worked long and hard to create. I was finally ready to let go of this dream. This dream I made reality.

But not without taking advantage of the time that was left in this reality. I cleared out most of the personal belongings from the workshop, dusted off my drawing table, thanked the gods who helped create it all, and headed to the store to buy some paints (because I didn't think to bring any with me on this 'little trip').

One of those first nights, when it was still warm and sunny out, I decided to sit down on the patio and paint. It was quiet. Peaceful. I looked around and saw a squirrel running across the fence. Happiness and gratitude filled me up as I realized how perfect that moment was. I was doing something I loved, in a place I loved, in my very own little piece of the world. My home. Happy and grateful to have had the experience and then a gentle sadness settled in as I knew it would soon be over.

I've been drawing and painting out in the workshop these past few months. And I continue to be grateful.

farmers markets

I was happy to discover 2 local farmers markets near our new home, and I made sure to check both of them out this week.




Tuesday, the market was held on a cool old-timey street that had an antique store packed with goodies and an art gallery next door. There were even live musicians creating a fun atmosphere while you browsed the fabulous local produce. I picked up some beans (they're fuzzy like peaches), a lemon cucumber, a couple peaches, and a variety of tomatoes.



Yesterday's market was set in a park and had a larger variety of both produce and vendors. I sampled an apricot (though I forget what kind), some yummy homemade bread, honey butter, and raspberry preserves. We walked away with a cross-bred melon that smelled soooo good and an expensive yet beautiful mini peach pie. Of course, we picked up a carton of vanilla ice cream on the way home.

purple peppers

I can't wait to try it all!