so last night Eristotle and I went to Michaels yesterday to get my very first embroidery project started. eristotle kicks booty, and knows how to do so many cool crafty stuff. i am excited she's going to help me get started, and hopefully my 2 left hands won't get in the way of making her proud!

the patterns i have chosen as my first project, was purchased from Patterns ala Carte. i love that the patterns are from the 40's and the fact that i LOVE peacocks. it kinda goes with the whole Jim Dandy's theme don't you think?

it was a nice break from Handmade Ho Down work, and i think we both appreciated the hhd relief. :D

so this past weekend was nuts for me!

the greek and i had planned to have a quiet friday night, but instead he got a gig to open up and dj at Anu. this was excited as he usually does the happy hours on thursday's at Anu. i heart Anu, but really, they should be giving my guy better spots! ::gush::

saturday we woke up and drove to a car dealership in dublin. and........... this hot mama is now driving a new car! i will post pics and a huge explanation of why this is such a big deal to me soon, but Hells Yeah!! i'm still in shock, and keep looking out my window to make sure it's still in the driveway, and not some mean joke that the Single Mom fairy decided to play on me.... 'P

sunday we woke up and the greek was adamant that we dive into the main bedroom adjoining bathroom. the main bedroom has a budoir area, that runs into the bathroom. this bathroom is one of the last parts of the house that has yet to be touched with renovations and cleaning.

for the last 6 weeks, this bathroom has been with door closed, so my eyes could easily avert the nightmare that it represents. i HATE cleaning bathrooms, let alone SOMEONE else's bathroom that has been inhabited by The Worlds Diritiest Woman... EVER.

with disgruntled mumblings, we went to buy paint, and i decided on a deep brown color on accent walls, Bison, and the gorgeous Havana Creme on the other walls. The Havana Creme is found throughout the rest of the house, and is the color in the boudoir, so it all comes together quite well.

the bison color envokes this image to the T:

when the greek and i first started painting with it, we could not stop giggling, because it literally felt like we were being really naughty and smearing CHOCOLATE MOUSSE all over the walls.

i've been trying to not to spend money lately (due to new impending car payments that are starting soon), but still cruised through Etsy, looking for possible artwork to put on the walls. i am excited for the final runner ups i came across, to put on the creme walls as an accent to the Bison.

this bathroom is predominately going to be used by the greek (when he is around) and myself. as my bedroom is way more bohemian and feminine, i want the bathroom to have a strong masculine feel to it, while still complimenting the gypsy in me reflected in the bedroom and boudoir.

i LOVED these prints from VROOOOOM:

The Bear and the Girl

the descriptions in this shop are awesome, "I heard once that you could escape an impending thrashing at the paws of a bear by playing dead. This is, of course, in direct conflict with what you're supposed to do in an encounter with a cougar (stretch your arms up and try to appear larger than you actually are)." read more of this description and see more pics of this print here.

and i really really LOVE this one:

Why are those animals on a bike 

 

This is part of a split edition print. This one is like this! The other one is like this?"

Inside, Your Pretending 

 

today in the bay area, the first real rain of the season came. when i woke this morning, it felt so cool and full of release. i know lots of us hate the rain sometimes, and especially in california, it also means lots of lots of traffic accidents and horrible backups all over the freeways.

but this morning, for me, it was another excuse to stay snuggled up and drink soothing yummy tea. i even took a walk around the little neighborhood the greek lives in san francisco.

there were people walking around in their rain galoshes, umbrellas hid the faces of all the people, and scarfs adorned the necks of passerbys.

this weather reminds me of europe for some reason, and i just love it. i can't wait to be in the prestwick house with a fire going, and friends and family huddled all around me.

so for today, instead of posting yucky ugly pre-renovation pics of the prestwick house, i've decided to post some rainy picks from etsy.

this necklace by LycheeKiss is perfect for my rainy day with my umbrella musings today.

in light of my new home and the fact that i will be busy spending lots of money decorating soon, i thought this print was perfect for my happy-go-rainy mood today. this piece is a print of an original design, I'm Thankful For You When It Rains, by penniesforjillian.

yesterday was quite the day. after working on writing most of the morning, i was excited to cut my day short for a "feathered friend" excursion.

as some of you may know, i am an active member of the SF Etsy Group. its a group of Etsy sellers that live in the Bay Area.

since i have been a member, i have made 1 or 2 friends along the way. but now that i am part of a committee for a TOP SECRET MISSION that can not yet be revealed, i've gotten a chance to get to know a few more amazing sellers.

and while i plan on introducing all of them to you, along with their just-as-amazing shops, the blog state as it is would only hinder my intentions of bring them a few new people to their audience.

so that will have to wait until this blog is fixed.

in the future i plan on talking more about her in support of her endeavours, but for now i'd rather skip to the part about how we had a kick ass day yesterday.

we started off, by meeting at Cafe Sorriso in San Leandro, CA. they had a gorgeous asian selection of food. my wonton soup was homemade, clean, nutritious, and exactly what i wanted. i love it when that happens, don't you?

after our lunch, we both drove to Thrift Town. everyone knows im a sucker for thrift finds. im a NINJA!

i found so many amazing things, and luckily for me, Sarah didn't find me a complete wingnut.

a couple other things are still in the car, waiting for the greek to come over and help me unload, but here are some of what i got to bring home yesterday:

my first find was a General Electric Lighted Dial alarm clock. sooo cute:

it feels like summer is going to take a rain check on fall just yet. i love the way the mesh of summer and fall smells. there is a calming in the air, as if the wind is waiting for halloween craze! (can't wait)

today was the first girl scout meeting. i love my girls and missed them so much! they are already planning their very first halloween party. we divided up into three committees for decorations, games, and food. each committee met in different areas of the room to brainstorm, then reported back to the entire group. next week they will vote on what and who and all the exciting details.

some of their ideas made me really proud:

instead of candy bowls, why not pinatas?
a costume fashion show for the parents
creepy punch with gummy worms in it

brings tears to my eyes!

today's etsy seller of the day is this awesome artist Dilkabear! after reading about all this awesome artwork on another blog the other day, i was impelled to buy one of the limited edition pieces. to be exact, i bought the Dandelion Girl print. its gorgeous and i can't wait to hang it in the new house!

alley-cats hamster, olivia simone has been missing since last thursday. alley-cat was in frantic tears all day and sporadically throughout the evening.

i kept reassuring her that olivia would find her way back to the cage when she got hungry or thirsty.

in the middle of the night, at odd hours, i would wake up and find myself looking to see if olivia had indeed found her way back.

yesterday, as i was chit chatting away on the phone, sasha brought me something that looked like a small bundle of rags. as i looked closely, and my eyes registered what it was... i realized.... it was olivia simone.

and she was no longer alive.

i burst into tears and am now wondering what i should do.

should i tell alley-cat that i am a liar, and that my promise didn't come true? or should i quickly replace olivia without her knowing it?

they both have their pros and cons. i'm just not sure which one is more appropriate.

either way, rest in peace olivia. you were a sweet pet for as long as you lasted. and how much alley-cat loved and cherished you.

******

esty finds for today and wish lists:

love love love this piece, Oh Deer, Leave the Pearls, from LuckyDuct:


and all these:


doe, a little deer from Mia Beads.




Deery-Loo Necklace from ckuhwald's.




Rosy Antlers from NBs Closet.



seeing a fawn theme here? check this out:

"Deer's symbolize love, gentleness, kindness, gracefulness, sensitivity, purity of purpose, walking in the light, swift, nimble, meek, gentle, meditation, love, longevity, wealth."

"The Deer is inspiring lively and quick-witted. With a tailor-made humor, the Deer has a tendency to get a laugh out of anyone. Excellent ability for vocalizing, the Deer is a consummate conversationalist. This combined with his/her natural intelligence make the Deer a must-have guest at dinner parties. Always aware of his/her surroundings, and even more aware of his/her appearance, the Deer can be a bit self-involved. However, the Deer's narcissism is overlooked because of his/her congeniality and affability. In a supportive environment the Deer's natural liveliness and sparkly personality radiate even more. He/she is an inspiring force in any nurturing relationship."

oh. also, i had a stale brownie at lunch. ;(

today alley cat and i are spending the time in a quiet calm.

i am not sleeping at all, and instead lay in this weird paralyzed state of sleepy dreamy nostalgic feeling and also, my eyes are wide shut watching what appears to be a possible future for me.

there is an eeirie calm to it, and my only issue with it, is that i can't sleep.

this morning, i finally made two purchases (despite my pocketbook) for two art pieces on etsy. one for me, and one for alley cat.

the first purchase is by an etsy seller, Toxic Guinea Pigs, in which i happily bought this Nestled Fawn piece:



and i couldn't resist buying from this artist, Victoria Vusova, at her etsy shop Chest of Fairy Tales .

alethea picked this piece out, and i CAN'T WAIT to have it hung in her already whimsical room:





we both anxiously and impatiently await our parcels.

xo

wrapped my head around some things today. as in---- finally! got a blog created specific for creating, progressing, and living.

my other blog (private) is not so appropriate at times, and i'd much rather leave it private for strangers. along with the other reasons that come along with privacy, it also give me a certain level of freedom to be raw and unhinged. without judgment.

still working through template issues, and finding a look and feel that will impel me to write, document, and transcribe creative journey.

i started my etsy store just a few weeks ago, right here, and had two sales so far. one from a dear friend of mine in Scotland and the other in Germany.

*thank you!!*

still super excited about it, despite the inaction with sales aside from these two.

after joining the sf etsy street team, i am now signed up for sharing a booth at an upcoming craft fair in pleasanton, ca.

more will obviously be written and posted here.

what i love about all this, is that it feels like..... at.last.


****

today we had a really enjoyable daisy girl scout meeting. we had it here again, as we live across the street from the lake. our intent was that they would walk through the premises of the lake/park and clean up litter.

there are 11 girls in the troop all 6-7 years old. they are all magical in their own rite. when they are all in a group it can be sometimes tiring, but also... seriously entertaining.

the girls paired up and picked up recyclables and trash. they hated the gloves! but really enjoyed the whole concept of keeping our world a better place.

i was able to take sasha along for the long walk, and the girls thought she was really smelly and rude when she went to the bathroom in the field, and also... felt a lot safer walking through the fields knowing that sasha was scoping it all out.



overheard while guiding them through littered field:

dgs #1: this is soooooo disgusting.

dgs #2: i KNOW.

dgs #1: who would want ever make the world a disgusting place?

dgs #2: poor little birds.

dgs #1: poor stinky sasha.

the cookies arrived, so now my dining area is full of girl scout cookie boxes. bleh! the ocd in me wants to organize and store them away from viewing. but as this is something i know im consciously trying to work on, i staggered them in different piles, and am just avoiding making eye contact on that side of the house.

;p

***

its almost the weekend, and alley cat goes to her dads for his week on friday. loads to do in the city this weekend, but i just feel like snuggling. who knows.

***

happy manifesting to all of you in the future, and now-- presently.