Second Chances

On my last post, I neglected to mention a couple of other tiny purchases I made about a week ago. This was mainly because they didn't look that stellar in their found state.

 

They were two rather unimpressive violet prints from the Goodwill store. But at just $4 each, I knew I could reinvent them. I was drawn to the fact that they had matching gold frames and decent-looking matting. Once, I got home I quickly dismantled them. Unfortunately, the matting was not the same color on each. One was a fairly decent pale greige but the other was an unfortunate anemic sage. I accidentally tore the sage mat while removing the print from it (it really was an accident), but mended it as best I could. Then, to conceal its color and the slight tear, I covered the mat with brown craft paper.

Now onto the replacement art. I bought some drawing paper and charcoal at Michael's, looked for inspiration, then got to work. An artist I am not, but I can imitate simple lines so I went with some very simple subjects. I know my limitations. Here is what I came up with . . .

a nude figure drawing

and some random abstract.

What do you think? Anything would be a vast improvement over those violets.

The nude is the one whose mat got recovered. Also, it has glass whereas the abstract does not. Details. My children shriek with laughter whenever they see the nude. I forgot how hysterical naked people can be to children. I reprimanded them and told them art is not funny. That didn't seem to help. So, the drawings may be going in my bedroom. For now, they're parked on top of my grandmother's china cabinet in my kitchen/breakfast area. I'll have to live with them a while to see where they need to be.

In other totally unrelated news, my husband came home from work this evening and surprised me with these:

Isn't he the best? Today is the anniversary of the day he proposed to me 14 years ago. Isn't that sweet? I totally forgot. He likes to surprise me from time to time with little romantic gestures like this. He hates Valentine's Day and its artificiality, so he thought this was much more original. I agree. So what's that little fake yellow flower ring doing in the rose? When he proposed, he stuck my engagement ring down in a rose for me to find. I swear it's not as cheesy as it sounds. Or maybe it is, but I don't care. Thank you, Matt, and I love you!

And just to balance that bit of sweetness with reality, my daughter just threw up about an hour ago, so no school for her tomorrow. You win some, you lose some.

Hope you had a happy Monday!

Happy Day

With the historic flood that hit Nashville over the weekend, I never thought today would be a happy day, but I was wrong. For a couple of hours this morning, I got the opportunity to help someone in need. Someone I didn't even know. I couldn't do much in the short time I had - just helped haul out some soaked carpet. But it truly puts things in perspective. People's entire lives were sitting out on the curb. Makes you count your blessings.


Then when I got home, some mail arrived that made me smile . . .

This sweet little birthday card - complete with a candle necklace - from Anthropologie offering me 15% off any purchase in May (my birthday's at the end of the month). Isn't it cute?

And this skirt that I ordered from Sevier Skirts arrived too . . . 

just in time for me to wear to my son's pre-school Mother's Day Tea tomorrow!

Then, out of the blue, my husband came home with these . . .

just because he knows I love peonies and that they're blooming now. They are beautiful and smell wonderful. Thanks, honey!

I am very lucky indeed. 

Sidenote: If you are interested in spiffing up your (or your child's) wardrobe this spring and helping out Nashville at the same time, check out Kayce Hughes blog/store. She's donating 50% of all sales made over the next week to the American Red Cross for flood relief efforts in Nashville.