inspiration - faded

The iris are in bloom in my garden, they are so beautiful its almost too much.  The blooms are so huge and showy, they threaten to break the stems at the first suggestion of strong wind.  I think we're going to have to stake them.  I have the standard lavender/purple variety and then I also have these amazing peach/apricot color iris that are so incredibly beautiful.  The other day when I went for a morning walk, I spied pale yellow iris blooming in front of a neighbor's house.  I thought that was a pretty unusual color.  They are very pretty.  Just the first of the peach iris has bloomed so far this year and the lavender ones are all blooming now.  My white clematis is also flowering.  Here are a few photographs from the garden this time last year. 

And the chives are flowering...

And I have lots of different hostas...  I have a pretty shady garden. 

These teensy tiny little pale blue flowers came up in the front under the roses.  I don't know if they are weeds or forget-me-nots, or what... but I think they are impossibly darling and I love them.

This is a potted fern that lives indoors in the winter, but she's much happier outdoors when the weather permits. 

There will be more garden photographs to come, but for now I've got to get down to business!  This morning I discovered another lovely treasury I must share with you.  My hair bloom is featured in this stunning collection of faded and muted handmade goods.  Thank you kangaroostitches for choosing to include me in this wonderful collection!  How perfect for a hot summer day, it just feels cool and summery.

Interested in the hair bloom?  Get more info here.  Look out for shop updates today!  I made a new necklace yesterday and I have finished some beautiful new wedding-appropriate hair accessories!  I also have some new earrings.

Hurry up, Spring!

First, I want to share a little teaser with you.  I have been painting.  I'm working on a series of collages that will be featured in the shop very soon!  I am very excited about this and I look forward to sharing more!  I will be offering prints and notecards (and perhaps originals too).  More details and PHOTOS coming soon!

Check out the shop for some new items!  This cute green and yellow hair clip is the perfect accessory for your Spring wardrobe.

Perhaps this green flower says "Spring" to you.  Find them both in the shop today.  There you can find all the details regarding the measurements of each piece, as well as notes detailing the thoughtful touches that went into the creation of each item. 

Yesterday Jeff and I visited a local greenhouse in search of potted bulb gardens.  They told us we would have to come back tomorrow to find bulbs in bloom, but we HAD to look around any way.  As soon as I walked inside and that warm, humid air surrounded me and there was green EVERYWHERE, I felt like I was in paradise.  Well, maybe it was the monkey.  Yep, that's right.  They have a monkey.  (I'll take the camera when I go back today).  Jeff loves monkeys, so we had to feed her, of course.  She is so funny and cute!  She put on a little performance, smiling and 'making eyes' at us.  Its fascinating to see her little face and her hands, she's so expressive.  At times she looks funny and then very thoughtful.  So, after feeding Mingo a bit of trail mix we marveled at all the fabulous plants.  One thing that caught my eye was a large planter featuring an array of succulents.  It was too pricey for us BUT I remembered that we have a beautiful container at home, hens & chicks in the garden, a succulent in a 3" ugly plastic grower's pot on the kitchen window sill and all the necessary rocks and soil stuff.  We decided to purchase one 4" succulent to be the focal point of our planter.  As soon as we got home, I went right to work.  Here is the finished planter!  If you look closely, you can see some tiny little 'babies' I put in the soil to root.  I think its going to take a long time for the little guys to get big, we'll see...

I can't wait to plant things in the garden but for now I'll feast my eyes on this little oasis of green and try to wait patiently for the soil outside to warm up.  How about you?  Are your green thumbs itching to get to work?