#382...happy halloween

I like these clever Halloween cards seen here. I should send this first one to Tyler and remind him to sleep with one eye open......whahahaha

#381...amalfi coast recipes

I recently bought this cookbook, which has pretty pictures of the Amalfi coast where we went sailing this past summer.

I made Pomodoro Sorrentino Imbottito (stuffed oxheart tomatoes) last week.

They were yummy.

#380...sweater pillow

I've had this vintage sweater car coat in my drawer for a couple years. It's obviously not the most flattering, and I never wore it. 

I pulled it out to consider selling it on ebay, as it is by a famous Parisian designer. However, I noticed a few moth holes in it, so I cut it up and turned it into this pillow, compete with pockets and buttons. 

It has a very Mr. Rogers feel to me. It's currently adding to the Christmas vibe I'm working on in my back den.

#379...family recipe art

My client Sarah needed some accessories to fill this long buffet that is part of her kitchen.

Sarah had inherited a pile of handwritten family recipes from a great-uncle that I thought would be charming to frame and prop against the back wall of the buffet area.

I worried about framing the originals, as I feared they would fade and discolor over time. I decided to try copying them with a wax pencil to keep the integrity of the handwritten original. To make my recipe copies, I bought some torn, hand-made paper from the art supply store, along with a single charcoal colored Caran d'Ache Neocolor Crayon.

To make my recipe copy I taped up the original on my back glass door (using non-damaging artist's tape). I then taped the blank hand-made paper over the original and began the process of copying the handwritten lettering with the crayon. The crayon got dull very quickly, so I had to sharpen it every line or so.

Here is my finished copy on the left, with the original on the right.

Next, I found a vintage frame and covered some mat board with a ticking stripe linen. I positioned the copied recipes (I did two for one frame and and a third in a second frame) onto the linen, which left the torn edges of the hand-made paper exposed and gave it a worn, authentic feel.

Here they are displayed on the buffet. I forgot my camera the day I delivered them, so I only have these few phone pics of them in their new home.

I also suggested these quirky bookends to display cookbooks to help decorate the buffet.

#378...painting the sea

This week I completed an abstract painting of the sea for my friend/client Lisa. The canvas is 60" wide x 36" tall. I did the painting in acrylics. Here it is hanging in her house.

It reminds me of the seas around Capri that we sailed on this summer...

Here it is hanging on my easel wall where I paint.

#377...knit necklace

Awhile back I knitted this cuff from some leftover metallic yarn. Well, I still had more of it, so now I've knitted a necklace.

It is actually one long loop that I can wrap to wear as short or long necklace.

Knitted jewelry seems the only practical thing to knit here in hot Houston.

#376...holiday mirror lighting

I was in Home Depot yesterday, and for the first time ever I felt really relieved to see their entire holiday decor section set-up and blasting holiday music throughout the store. Usually holiday store displays in early October annoy me, but not this year, since I've been thinking about the holidays for a month now. I left Home Depot with a Philodendron that I promptly planted and put in my laundry/bath. Then I added some yarn wrapped star ornaments and wrapped the mirror with a strand of LED sparkle lights. I'm calling this room decorated and checking it off my list. 

FYI....I have not started listening to holiday music at home, although I've been tempted. I'm trying to stave off holiday burn-out.

#375...creating a concrete jungle

Ever since we did the pottery cabana and had these concrete pavers and edging made for the back portion of our yard, I have become concrete addicted. In preparation for the upcoming home tour, we needed to do something about our badly crumbling back slate patio, and we opted for concrete. Here are some before pics of the slate patio. (My Dad and I laid this slate a decade ago)

I got inspired by these pictures of wood and concrete exterior landscapes that I pulled from Pinterest and Dwell magazine.

This week our patio got re-done, and I am excited to style it and cross it off the to-do list.