Gehring Road

like and want

Rojo Bookcase from Crate and Barrell 

I've been spending lots of time procrastinating... shirking dates with my grad class work, the netti pot, putting off taking antibiotics (which I hate and have me relentlessly nauseaous), getting out of PJs, doing laundry... but I've been spending plenty of time pinning on Pinterest (I recently pinned my 1000th pin, that makes me a champion procrastinator!) and scoping the internets for some cozy-sleepy hollow-New England-y necessities for the house. Want to see?

I love this wallpaper from Anthropologie... still I sort of want to paper the loft with it... don't tell Rob

 I think these pieces of Dandelion greens flatware from Anthro need to visit our Thanksgiving table... they're so sweet and I love them...

Anyone else in love with the Pixie Dust Lap Blanket from the Purl Bee? All seven skeins of it... I love it...

This console table might actually find its way into the house... we're thinking TV stand...

I'm loving almost all of Pottery Barn's nordic looking red pillows lately... maybe for the couch? 

Brown transferware... it's so Thanksgiving for me, I'd love to have one piece, and am thinking not of a platter but a pitcher for flower centerpieces... 

 

I'm looking forward to the weekend (though it's Monday!) we were in school yesterday (though it was a Sunday!) for our accredidation visit and this promises to be a bit of a long week for us. It is putting a bit of a kink in my procrastinating time! Happy Monday to you, hopefully your weekend was long, restful and full of all things you love the best. 

making new

lovlies from Anthropologie and Pottery Barn

Thanks for baring with me as I spent some time getting my school-legs (which means falling asleep at 7:30 pm, loads of grading and trying to spend any spare moment with those I love)... I feel oddly settled and really good at the start of this year actually, in a much better place than I've been in years passed when it came to the loss of my beloved summer free time. My planned grad class was cancelled due to lack of enrollment and I have a bit more time to finish some credit courses started in the summer. That combined with the lack of basic necessities like toilet flushing thanks to Irene sort of put things in perspective. The leaves here are beginning to peek out at us, and things are as they should be. We'll pick up our mums and pumpkins for the walkway next week and dust off the halloween decorations as well. Rob has been hard at work on the basement, which looks amazing. He's creating a workspace for himself (hello new kitchen cabinets!) and weatherizing the walls and floor. I'm amazed at how that space has come together... almost there.

Speaking of spaces, we're in the midst of a little living-room identity crises around here... that should really read I am and am taking Rob right along with me. Our couch finally arrived and I love it... but our eccelectic came-from-two-former-homes furniture and style is grating on me. If I could just go crazy (which I might), I'd pick up some of those outrageously expensive and kind of insane lovelies above. Curtains, I know I can make... in time so I won't be buying those yellow or orange ones from Anthropologie. But we need a TV stand solution... and quick. Ours is sitting on my old coffee table and it isn't great. Think table same size as TV... yeah, not good. We're contemplating the use of a hutch from the basement or a table given to us by my Aunt but both need a lot of work and paint remover and sanding and priming and furniture love. With my 8 pm (ha!) bedtime, that doesn't seem feasible but we'll see. In the meantime, a girl can window shop excessively, right? I hope this weekend finds you peeking at things that make you happy and spending much time with those you love. 

some progress... some lessons learned

I'm in a bit of a holding pattern here as I find myself waiting for some fabric to arrive in order to complete the fabric cutting for my fallish quilt... somebody (let's not get petty and name names here, right?) decided that a 2 am bout of sleeplessness is the perfect time to iron and cut lots of fabric (with a 60 mm blade, it could have gone oh so wrong... ahem) and lopped a pesky half inch off of many blocks needed for said fallish quilt. Oops. It's that gold flowery fabric... I have my heart set on it. Sigh, though fingers are intact! 

In other news, I've been sewing up some test blocks in preparation for this quilt and my half square triangles are a little scary. I've tried a few methods... this one (from the Missouri Quilt Company) where you simply sew 1/4 inch around the block and then chop it in halves or quarters. Then I tried this one where you measure out a center line and sew 1/4'' from that line on both sides. My test blocks were... um... off... with first method. I'm a pinner and I think my pins were causing some issues. I attempted (don't giggle) to use my 1/4 guide foot for one of the test blocks and that was a disaster but ironically those blocks were more accurate than the first method ones. So I thought. I walked away from it. I purchased these Omnigrid rulers and now... I think I've got it. The life-saving rulers came in three different sizes, I place the middle line on the center drawn line on my blocks then draw a line on each side. Easy. I like this method because it is lending itself to chain piecing, which I really appreciate and my blocks are so much more accurate. Good investment I think as my love affair with triangles is undeterred by their wonkiness. Lesson learned. 

Rob is away for work and I'm currently juggling the dog (who believes if she stares at the street long enough he'll appear or at least she'll figure out where he went), grad school classes, the onset of school... as a result of constant Powerball losses (the numbers are mocking me), different grad school classes and preparing to teach American literature for the first time in a looong time (I'm reading Huck Finn for the first time since I was in high school...). So things are a bit crazy here in this little corner of my world. Happily, sewing, loft organization and writing here have been lovely little distractions from the crazy... balance is super important I'm finding. Remind me of this in a few weeks when I add kids and grading won't you? Excellent. I hope you are finding calm and balance in the midst of your own storms and enjoying this Thursday, whatever it brings. Back tomorrow with some Etsy finds! 

i love mondays... show and pin

I am really, really searching deep to find something to love about this Monday... the start of a new series here on the blog is making it semi-paletable. The sheer act of turning my neck to grab something in the back seat of the car yesterday has aggravated my already aggravated neck and a heating pad (bag of corn kernels) is really the only thing my neck finds paletable.  That and pain-in-the-neck jokes. So I bring you a new little series whilst sitting far too long with this steamy and oh so wonderful bag of corn draped on my aching neck... Pinterest.  Have you been? If you'd like an invite, please let me know (email!)... I would love nothing more than to interest you in the hours and hours of time wasting and day-dreaming that Pinterest is. Actually, it is a source of inspiration and fascination and I love it. So here on Mondays... my last five pins...

... this heavenly house number seen here and from Tillie Mint pinned to my board "nest." 

... also pinned to "nest" I'm in love with this kitchen... the hardware, simplicity, legs and oh that sink... found here...

...this baby slipper pattern from Ithinksew is only $4 and now lives on my "small." board, with the baby boom we're having at work, I think I need to give it a go...

...and this little slice of heaven has been posted to my "eat." board, I've pinned three kabobs in the last few days (these were first) hmm, what's up with my kabob fascination? ... anyway, you can find the cupcakes here...

... and finally, this tutorial for painted jars... love... and now pinned to my "try." board...

My "try." board is my favorite, the ideas, tutorials and creativity that are shared on the site is really remarkable, I'm so inspired and humbled by the wonderful ideas posted by some super talented individuals. I love that I can hoard them in one spot and see what I'd like to conquer next... when not dealing with a pain in the neck that is... Happy Monday! 

pinteresting

Oh Pinterest... how you've revolutionized (really organized) my loves (not Rob and Kylie) but those inspirational things I find in my wanderings on the internets. Here's the low-down: Pinterest is a site where you create "boards" then pin items found online to those boards that are then available to be viewed by yourself along with your fellow pinteresters. Before this (say, last week) I was keeping track of things I found interesting on my computer, wasting a whole lot of space. I'd find something that sparked my interest, drag it into a folder and often, forget that it was there. Though the things I found are organized, I can't see them all at once and there are many images missing sources - not so useful. Pinterest allows me to organize those items that I love, comment on them, and also keep a running list of where those items were found... really perfect.  I now have a Pinterest button on my computer, so as I am browsing, say sewing projects on Flickr, I can pin and post those items I'd like to try onto my "craft." board. Anything can be pinned - quotations, pictures, vacation destinations, recipes, projects, hair styles, wish lists, catalogue items... anything... and everything.

I've loved, loved, loved seeing what other people are finding inspirational online, it truly has been a really fascinating way to, yes, waste a wee bit of time, but more so, organize things I love, places I'd like to see (Adventure.) and even things we want to accomplish (Garden. is next!). So much fun, I tell you. If you'd like to try (and are fully prepared for the addiction), send me an email while Pinterest is in it's testing stages and you can be a part of the community too. Happy Thursday... I'm off to do some pinning (the non-quilt related kind for now...) 

etsy finds tuesday... bright

 Sew in Love Print from A Life Through the Lens Etsy Shop 

Just when I think the snow removal is behind me for a bit... Winter Storm "Benedict" threatens with 15-20'' of snow expected... sigh. At least it looks like I'll be home snug as a bug in a loft with my little lady at my side tomorrow.  I'm thinking pajama pants, sewing, a roaring fire, more period films and watching the snow while lingering over some tea at say, 10 am... delicious. All this white has me dreaming of color though... here's what I've been peaking at, not at 10 am and not at work... ahem. 

  Off to See the World Wall Art from Three Red Apples Etsy Shop 

 Salmon Sweets Silver Earrings from Lilyja Etsy Shop 

Refurbished Vintage GE Fan from Fishbone Deco Etsy Shop

 Complete Set of 1962 Seattle World's Fair Frosted Tumblers from The Fancy Lamb Etsy Shop

 Berry Bowl Colander (perfect for cherries!) from Cheryl Wolff Etsy Shop

 High Tide Enamel Post Earrings from Verre Encore Etsy Shop

Scandinavian Style Screen Printed Cushion Cover from Jane Foster Etsy Shop

 Vintage Souvenir Tammis Keefe Central Park Handkerchief from EG Vintage Etsy Shop 

Some brights in the midst of what promises to be a bit of grey, a lot of white, and plenty of sore back! Is it snowing where you are? Don't tell me if it's sunny and anything over 50 degrees... I prefer to deny such weather exists! Then again, if it was sunny and 50, my Wednesday would be oh so different and oh so less filled with glorious sewing... there's always silver lining... and a silver snow-blower gassed and ready! Let it snow!

etsy finds tuesday

Vintage Kids Table from Solstice Home Etsy Shop 

I'm so ready for the holidays this year... ready to decorate and enjoy every aspect of this season. This year we're most looking forward to the rest, relaxation and calm that come with the holidays (ok, not last holiday but most!), we're just settling in and enjoying the joy that comes with this holiday season.  I love that our festivities are kind of paired down, we're planning on spending it with those we love and my list of to-dos for the handmade portion of what we love has also been paired down.  I found I missed the feeling of the holidays by just trying to do too much... this year is being taken in stride.  It feels wonderful, sort of just like it should.  Some bits have been coming in to help deck the halls and relish the season... I love these little Etsy finds... 

Vintage Wooden Sleigh from bellalulu Etsy Shop 

Vintage Wooden Tool Caddy from BD Vintage Etsy Shop 

Red Stool Seat from Place Michel Etsy Shop

Mid Century Desk Lamp from Old Crow Farm Etsy Shop 

Tiny Scallop Clock from Uncommon Etsy Shop

 Banana Sting Ray Screen Printed Tea Towel from Tiny Peepers Etsy Shop

Retro Mix Felt Balls from HandbehgFELTS Etsy Shop 

Happy Tuesday friends, I hope you are enjoying each moment as we head towards the holiday season and that your preparations are bringing you as much joy as we're finding here. Back tomorrow...

loving...

Spooled Candles from Anthropologie 

Right now, I'm just loving the absolute quiet of a Sunday morning, a warm fire and a sleepy (and dreaming! I have to get her dreaming on film, it is just way to sweet for words) Jack Russell Terrier. In my Internet prowlings, I'm finding a few other loves like those amazing spool candles from Anthropolgie...

        * Too early for this advent calendar? It's oh so cute...

        * This amazingly stylish blog... 

        * Calling Scotland "wilderness" and the idea of a vacation... 

        * Fair Isle Rugs as above vacation idea is neither feasible nor practical... 

        * These beautiful and transportive illustrations...

... time to go convince Rob that my comment "I don't want to go anywhere today" comment actually meant let's go get Storm no Coventry Grey no Storm paint and tackle the bedroom. Hope you are enjoying this beautiful weekend. 

etsy finds tuesday

Vintage British Postmark Print from Scarlet Beautiful Etsy Shop

Oh, how I loved that long weekend... here's hoping you had one also!  Now on to a week that hopefully will bring some much needed color and calm into my life.  It has been raining frustration as of late, and these Etsy finds are happy little mix of some vibrant and bold things I keep coming back to.  Another visual feast you might say... 

Tole Painted Red Canister from The Old White House Etsy Shop 

Antique Turn of the Century Wooden Mail Sorter Station from Ugly Santa Etsy Shop

Large Vintage Thermos in Kelly Green from Comet Wreckage Etsy Shop 

Early 1950s Hardware Store Cabinet from French By Design Etsy Shop 

Vintage Orange Metal Oil Bucket from Comet Wreckage Etsy Shop 

Two Farm Chairs from Place Michel Etsy Shop 

Tomato Crate from Polkadot Home Etsy Shop 

Vintage Yellow Wire Desk Organizer from Foolproofed Etsy Shop 

... hope your week is off to a lovely start, back tomorrow with some sewing! 

70

Image found at Rolling Stone Magazine Online 

I'm finding it amazing that today that visionary man who is almost frozen in time at the age of only 40 would have turned 70. I wonder what he would have done with more time. I so love his songs, his words and his belief in peace. In celebration, the magicians behind Google doodles have outdone themselves... this is lovely... 

 

So happy birthday to an icon, who just so happens to be one of this blogger's heros.  A very happy and peaceful Friday to you all...