Around Home on a Friday

 

That was a fast week! After being away it's good to get back into a routine. The intense heat is gone, and the weather is very pleasant. Unfortunately, the wildfires are increasing and we might be in for a smoky summer. 

I've been admiring the vivid chartreuse vine against the cobalt blue container. It's a new plant that I'm trying this summer and it won't be the last. What a shot of vibrant colour to set off the usual pinks and blues of my pots. The sweet peas in the back pot have many sunburned leaves and I thought I might lose them, but the new growth is fine. No blooms there yet, although the ones planted elsewhere are just beginning.

I made a batch of blackberry shrub - a syrup concentrate that one adds to plain water (or club soda, I suppose). It's very refreshing and when I enjoy it on the patio, surrounded by blooming roses and hydrangeas, it's like a mini-holiday. 

Marian Parsons of Miss Mustard Seed fame has an e-course on Jeanne Oliver's site. I signed up for it knowing that we'd be gone for the start, but it's all recorded and self-paced. It's about painting with a limited palette, just three shades. I made these colour wheels using just three paints for each one. It's kind of addictive and I did another one yesterday. These are plain watercolour and my next one will include gouache. It's been fun to try something new. I'm itching to try some landscapes. 

Lavender bushes line the driveway and tend to overgrow there. I cut it back one sunny day and tied bundles together with string. They will dry and I'll use them in sachets for the linen closet. The bees are crazy for lavender and I found myself apologizing to them for cutting it. I did leave plenty for them to use. 

My reading stack, picked up from the library this week. I've finished Hamnet and Judith - such a sorrowful tale, and am about half-way through The Letters of Vincent Van Gogh. What a tortured soul he was, so lonely and eccentric, yet so very gifted. He expressed emotions such a range of emotions: "Life is after all enchanting" to "I can see no possibility of again having hope or courage."

This morning I've made a pot of soup using up leftover vegetables, and I plan to go for a walk before cleaning bathrooms and tidying up. We're meeting with friends this evening, and tomorrow is second-vaccine day. We'll see how the weekend plays out after that. 

A lovely summer weekend (or a winter one) is what I hope for each of you. Do you have plans?

Waiting

Winter Weary. I read that somewhere lately and thought "how apt." Everyone is tired of wearing layers, tired of the cold, tired of the grey, tired of the snow (some more than others). Of the four seasons, winter seems to be the one that outstays his welcome. Still, spring will come. This I know without a doubt. It seems just a little bit closer when I notice that the forsythia branches I cut a week ago have blossomed into yellow on my mantel. 
 

This past weekend, the snow fell. I spent a couple of hours on a very grey Sunday afternoon playing with pencil, watercolour, and ink. Dreaming of more croci. 
Some in our area have had more snow. This morning I was called in to teach because a tree had fallen across a road, blocking a teacher's route to town. It was a day of scrambling since her power was out (no email or landline) and her cell phone coverage was down. All went well. I'll be teaching tomorrow and Thursday as well.
 

Waiting for spring. Preparing to teach. Waiting today for news about a design competition. Our youngest flew to Montreal on Monday to take part in a design competition put on by Télio, a Canadian fabric company. Tonight is the final competition. Whatever the outcome, Ashley has done well in being one of 25 finalists (out of 500 entrants). She'll make connections and have a wonderful time. We are so very proud of her. The link will take you to the Télio blog where there's a little writeup about each of the contestants.

Are you waiting for anything in particular? Would winter-weary describe your state of mind?

On Procrastination

 I'm a procrastinator. Sad, but true. I've been intending to paint the hallway and stairwells for well over a year now. Last spring I talked myself into waiting for the summer. In the summer, I thought I'd wait for fall. Then it was Christmas. My excuses ran out. So last week, I went out and bought paint. Saturday was the day. It took all day. I'm so glad I chose the same colour of paint (pale grey) so that one coat would suffice. So many doors to cut around, such high ceilings in the entrance. Do you know how much dirt settles onto the top of door casings? I cleaned. I stretched. I reached. I rolled. I brushed. I tottered on ladders. I set the step stool right into the tray of paint. It's done.

It feels wonderful! Not only are the scuff marks and bashes gone, but a huge weight is lifted off my mind. I think, "why didn't I just do the work?"

To be fair to myself (I'm usually on my own side), there were a couple of spots that I couldn't possibly reach, no matter how much I stretched. I knew I needed Tim around for those. Which meant a weekend. But still. 

That was Saturday. On Sunday afternoon, we blithely skipped town and went to East Sooke Park, introducing the wonders of the park to friends who have never seen it. I think it's the prettiest place on the Island. Skies were grey and threatening rain/snow. I was hoping for a good snowfall (I can hear the Easterners screeching) but it didn't happen. 

Do you procrastinate? 

 

A Weekend Away

Years ago, I dabbled in watercolor painting. I never took a class, learning instead from books. Taking a course has been something I've always wanted to do. This weekend, that desire was fulfilled.

I always keep a journal. Often, when we travel, I long to be able to do a quick sketch in my journal. When I read Materfamilias' post about the class she took, Keeping an Illustrated Journal, I put the class on my "list of things to do one day." 
 

This past weekend, I drove up to Nanaimo, boarded a ferry for Protection Island and spent two fun and challenging days of learning how to mix colors to get just the right shade, how to draw something quickly, to draw out the essentials of a scene and to apply color to sketches.

Four of us sat a table and at one point, discussed why we were taking the class. Each one expressed excitement at learning something new, but also a measure of guilt for doing something "just for me." Why is that, do you think?

Another delight was meeting Frances (and her husband Paul) of Materfamilias, who kindly offered to host me in her cozy guest cottage. 
    

Keeping an Illustrated Journal is taught by Alison Watt, who shares her knowledge in wonderfully encouraging style. The above sketch is a detail of the Pont du Gard, from a photo taken in 2007.

That day, Tim and I rented a motor scooter in Avignon and zoomed through the French countryside to the historic bridge. It was a hot day and we changed into our swim suits behind some bushes, then swam in the water below the bridge. I imagined the Roman soldiers who built the bridge might have done just the same thing 2000 years ago. On the return trip we decided to meander along smaller roads. The scents of Provence are what I remember, olive trees, lavender, the earth itself, all wafting on the wind. Tim and I talk of that day as the highlight of our trip. 

Memories like these are what photos and sketches evoke.

Have you ever thought of, or have taken a course of some kind, "just for you?"  

PS Don't forget to enter my little giveaway, here.

Another Item Ticked Off the List

What's wrong with this picture (above)?
 

"Nana, this chair has a HOLE in it."
 

Well, yes it does. In March (time really flies) I found a set of 6 dining room chairs for a really good price. The seats were in terrible shape; someone had attempted recovering them and the foam was thin and squishy, and the fabric improperly applied.

The cherry wood chairs themselves were in good shape with labels inside from a very reputable Canadian chair manufacturer.

I did not use the new-fangled Chalk Paint on these chairs - my husband (Mr. Woodworker in his spare time) is highly suspicious of things that don't require proper preparation like sanding, washing with TSP, and a coat of primer. I did all that and then I applied 4 (FOUR) coats of white paint. Thin coats, and there are still a few drips.
 

Then I took the seats to the foam store where they cut and glued firm foam to the chair bases. Last week Tim and I spent a couple of hours one evening and managed to cover one seat. Things were not looking good. But the next night, the remaining five seats were covered lickety-split. We'd figured out the system the first night. First a covering of polyester quilt batting, then the fabric tightly, tightly applied with a staple gun, then a dust cover underneath. Then Scotch Guard and finally, on Saturday morning, we screwed the seats back onto the chairs. 

And I'm very, very happy with the way they look and how comfortable they are. Very happy. I like the mix of painted and wood finishes in the dining room and how the light paint makes the room brighter. The walls are pale blue and go well with the grey hutch. Another wood piece sits behind this chair at the end. And I love the upholstery fabric - a Robert Allen print from Fabric.com.

This was a bigger project than I'd anticipated and I'm happy to see it completed. Just one more thing to tick off the list. Have you ticked any projects off your list lately?