Showing posts with label pen and ink. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pen and ink. Show all posts

Saturday, October 24, 2009

On A Paper Road




       Color has arrived to this little village of 312.  The maples in the front yard are now ablaze.  Leaves lay like confetti, as if the earth was celebrating.  Friday night was spent relaxing flipping through the pages of  The Magicians Elephant    … ( A so far beautifully written and illustrated “children's” book) snuggling under a down blanket in the comfort of my bed. 
    After reading I typed up several Rituals and Meditations for my newly constructed (and temporary) Grimoire taken from a book by Judy Nock, as I prepare for next weeks Shabbat. I will post pictures next Sunday…  Along with the Grimoire I also put together a binder for our home , Paper Road Farm.



     You ask, Paper Road? Well I will tell you.. gather near. When we bought this darling grandma farm house we were told “ You live on a paper road” .. My husband and I stared at each other.   Turns out that we live next door to a road that was never build its only on paper ( the city plans, our deed, what not) but our little town never built the road.  So I took out our land plot documents and there what we call our gravel drive way sits “Elm street” , yes, really.  I giggled too when I read that.  The street I live on use to be Magnolia Lane before it was renamed for  a founding family I would imagine sometime in the towns “recent” history. 
        However I digress, I made this binder to hold all my paint chips, fabric samples and decorating inspirations.  I recommend everyone doing it, who has a tendency like me to love eye candy.. to collect it like a magpie… and lose it.  It is now all right at my finger tips. 



Just get a cheap binder if you don’t have one laying around and clear page protectors.  I just took tape and a sheet of computer paper and stuck together some beautiful inspiring pages that are double sided and could easily be unstuck if they needed to be.









Above are the piles of fabric and paint chips that I had stuffed in my living room book shelf that are now sitting neatly on the shelf. 
Now for a wonderful tip! This tip is cheap easy and you might already have it in your home.  I have struggled with finding work space.. not only to I not have a desk right now but I also am most creative when comfortable and I am at my most comfortable sitting cross legged somewhere cozy.. but cozy is a crappy work surface.  So here is the answer!




This is a simple wooden cutting board.  It is about H 12” by L 18” or so … I picked it up at Walmart in a set of three a year ago and only used the small one until I got grossed out by trying to wash wood after cutting food up and making deep scratches in the surface.. So after purchasing a plastic Microband one my wooden ones sat useless in the cupboard.  So Friday I had an AH Ha moment pulled it down and this one above has traveled all over the house with me since the moment I pulled it down.  If I flip it over there is the craved out groove all away around the board, which is prefect for a resting pencil or pen… I know, I know its just a piece of wood… But it has solved a problem that has plagued me for years. I hope this might help someone else. 
Before letting you go I wanted to let you know what’s coming up .. I spent the last week sewing my first dress it is so wonderful and I am so pleased with how it turned out I will be posting it soon with a review of the pattern by a true sewing beginner and where I found my fabric. Please do have a wonderful weekend I am off to use my brand new KitchenAid cinnamon red tea kettle and a cup of Early Gray… try to do something cozy by candle light…
blessed be
Sarahlynn

Saturday, October 3, 2009

What Is Inspiring You?

What is inspiring me right now :
    Pen and ink, Etsy, children’s books: their magic and illustrations, peacock blue, heathered knits, cardigans,  brown leather boots, ticking, newly fallen leaves, crisp morning and evenings, flannel sheets, the Sharpie pen!,  ghost stories.. Chipping paint, the shades of white, day dreams, antique quilts… 

I feel like I have found myself after picking up my pencil and pen again.  My right hand moving across lightly textured  paper. A sanctuary of ivory and graphite bound carefully with wire.  I go there to capture movement , creatures and dreams.  And leave light headed and gray handed.  What is inspiring you right now? I hope to make this a regular installment on my blog. Come sit a spell friends and go through your dream books and magazine clipping really think,.. Really think about what is making you tick, tick, tick away these days?!

Keeping a running list has helped keep me grounded lately. I am slowly making my way back to who I am and what I love to do. It is a magical feeling. I encourage all of you to keep a book or binder with clipping and things that really inspire you so if you ever come to a block you can hopefully flip through your book, box, or binder and renew you creative spirit. Thank you all for helping me get back to this wonderful place! pictures to come!