all hand stitched and emroidered

well, i suppose one new piece for the shop is better than none... especially considering how long it's been since i've updated

'ivy cottage' is a much larger soft sculpture house than i normally create... just over 10" tall. my nephew and i were discussing who might live in this tall home... perhaps a woodland girl? my nephew thought perhaps a tall, burly dwarf ;) what do you think?

i'm planning on updating the shop later today

all hand stitched and emroidered

all hand stitched and embroidered

all hand stitched and emroidered

lovely frock... grosgrain giveaway

okay, yet another fabulous giveaway from grosgrain... a refashioned vintage frock in bright red and blue... i really think i need to step out of the muted color tone of my wardrobe more often with such beautiful bright hues.  red was a frequent wardrobe color choice of mine when i was younger... perhaps my colors have changed as i have, but i'm feeling in the mood for a red dress after seeing this lovely... i'm consistently amazed at the quality of grosgrain's giveaways!

below:  photos of the before and after

you can enter for a chance to win by following the link below... good luck!

Blueberry Pie Refashioned Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!

saturday shopping list - may 23rd

1 ~ linen huckaback bath towel, by linenme

2 ~ red wattlebird, by bridgetfarmerprints

3 ~ felt sculpture, by feltathome

4 ~ vine trellis, by andrewsreclaimed

5 ~ keep the roof on lithograph, by erindollar

6 ~ fleur purple flower set, by soshesews

7 ~ one-piece halter maillot, by felice

8 ~ solstice flat, by hydraheart

wishing everyone an enjoyable, relaxing, and fun-filled long weekend...

i'm hoping to find a car this weekend... car shopping has been an interesting process after so many years of relying solely on public transportation and my own two feet in new york. what a stressful process, with so many factors... affordability, safety, reliability, fuel efficiency (and of course the cuteness factor). i need to make a decision fast so that i can make a little trip up to kentucky in a few weeks for my best friend's bachelorette party/shower... congrats andrea!

happy weekend!

visit fancypicnic for links to all the wonderful saturday shopping lists

georgia

well, my shop is quite bare at the moment... sigh

i finally feel a bit better, after a rough april, and so we've been doing a bit of georgia wandering this week... i've also started sewing again, so hopefully i can replenish the shop soon

first up was a drive down the road to kennesaw mountain, the sight of a civil war battle... apparently, the confederate and union soldiers stood on opposing mountain ridges a mile apart, and across a large valley, when firing their cannons... we saw several cannons up on the ridge and down in the civil war museum

there was also an abundance of wild mountain flowers in bloom up on the trail... hard to imagine that such a deadly battle once occurred in this place of vast beauty

hillside roses

showing off her new birdie

vibrant moss

civil war cannon

next up... a drive through the glorious (and winding!) mountains to the small town of helen, georgia. helen is a funny little tourist village... a combination of bavarian style architecture (and food) with a kitschy 1950's feel. i had actually visited helen a few times before in high school while on retreats in the mountains... so strange to come back as an adult!

a hot day... especially after running around the helen park

bavarian style architecture, in a recreation of an alpine village

the kids had 'superman' ice cream to cool off (i had

rocky road)... but the heat was beating us!

fortunately, big brothers are good for helping to eat your ice cream

before it all melts

my grandmother is a 'granny' too, while my grandfather

was 'pappy'... although my sister and i didn't really grow up in the south,

we're from a southern family (kentucky)

you can check out my flickr page for more adventure pictures

updates: new mountain gorilla babies and humanitarian efforts in the drc

some updates from the virunga national park (all pictures from the gorilla.cd blog)

bonane with her baby boy

had to share these spectacular images of three new mountain gorillas born this spring, along with their loving and nurturing mommas... so promising and exciting to see these new births in this unsettled region

bonane nursing her baby boy

gato caring for her newest baby boy

mahisho resting with her new one

you can read more about these new arrivals, as well as the wildlife and humanitarian efforts in the virunga national park region of the drc, over on the gorilla.cd blog... including the new fuel briquette program, an alternative energy project which is providing a sustainable energy source for the internally displaced people in the camps of goma

cooking demonstration

this project is providing the first truly viable alternative to illegal forest charcoal, the leading cause of deforestation in the region... and the biggest threat to the mountain gorillas and other wildlife in the area. in addition to helping the displaced people in the camps of goma, the program is also providing thousands of jobs to locals in the region

the women of rumangabo showed their support for this effort during their international women's day celebration, both during their parade and a theatre piece performed by wives of park rangers... so incredible to see these women, in an area where violence against women is so high, uniting both for the rights of women and the protection and care of mountain gorillas... such inspiring strength

parade

wife and daughter of park ranger dressed for a theatre piece

you can also read of their various community outreach programs, including the new primary school in rumangabo... here is a lovely video of the children singing the congo national anthem in front of their new school

through many eyes

1. Children Carry Water, 2. lace 026, 3. pedacitorosa4, 4. miles' room, 5. ready to burst, 6. Sketch by My Daughter, 7. ooo, 8. any thoughts?, 9. in my world..., 10. An Adventure of the Banana Slug, 11. josephine and sadie, 12. A Forest, 13. Tweed Baby Blanket

incredible moments of life captured through many eyes. similar patterns, colors, shapes... endless beauty and inspiration

oh, how i want to step through each image... just live in each little world for awhile

saturday shopping list - may 2nd

1 ~ small white serving bowl, by caroleepp

2 ~ stretch out and wait, by lifeinsugarhollow

3 ~ spun cotton flower girl, by vintagebycrystal

4 ~ princess phone, from imsovintage

it is a wet, spring morning here in atlanta today... cardinals playing and birds calling, squirrels teasing, raindrops sliding off leaves to create a pitter patter in the woods... all after a night filled vividly with dreams brought on by open windows and showers raining down through the trees. oh how this spring morning has romanced me, all reflected in today's shopping list selections.

visit fancypicnic for links to all the saturday shopping lists