Thank you Irene

For giving us an excuse to do nothing today but read, nap, bake and relax...and that you haven't taken out our power so we can enjoy a wonderful hurricane dinner and a marathon of Lost.




Kind regards,

Charity


Need doesn't quite cut it


I just looked up "need" on thesaurus.com to find a word that could accurately describe something I've been feeling lately. These are the definitions listed:

1. Want, requirement
2. Poverty
3. Emergency, pressing lack
4. Want something


Further explanatory words include:

Essential
Ought
The urge
Wish
Deprivation
Distress
Insufficiency
Necessity
Demand
Desire
Hanker
Hunger
Pine
Long
Feel a dearth of
Feel the pinch

All of these words wrapped up together in one urgent package tied with a grosgrain ribbon, scratch the surface of this ache that seems to start in my shoulders and travel down my arms to my fingers. Everywhere I go I see images, hear phrases, that are crawling under my skin wanting to escape onto paper painted. in. watercolors.

Am I a watercolor painter? No, but I want to be.

Have you ever felt a pinch to do something you don't really have much experience doing but feel deprived because you aren't doing it?

Btw, I can blame two things for this. 1) Alisa Burke whose blog I drool over, and 2) our relief society activity last month where we learned a bit and I painted the picture above.

And now I need to do something about it, but there is a visitor (aka: hurricane) named Irene that has shut down public transportation and we are on an island and stuck in our apartment, but I'd rather be stuck in our apartment than stuck staying on someone's couch or an air mattress or in a hostel somewhere in land or not on an island like we are (strange though that long island is not really an island, right?)

Our first houseguest

And hopefully not our last! Btw, he said our guest bed is really comfortable :).


Having company means we get to do things we really want to do but usually forego for the likes of laundry. We met Nate under the bridge for some Grimaldi's pizza. We timed it right and only had to wait about 40 minutes for a table. It was worth every minute. Best pizza I've had yet!



Then we took a walk over the Brooklyn Bridge. I think I loved this architectural feat long before I could tell you what it was. I just love the lines! And someday I will paint/sketch/vector-ize this image.

Sisters and Sunday v-chats


Thank goodness for modern technology. It makes it a little easier to be so far away.

update

I found the materials for a lot less at Top Trimmings and opted for a copper colored leather cording instead of the black -- this I did get at M&J Trim, but could've also found it at Toho Shoji. 

I also found tons of beautiful fabrics that would work perfectly with my mom's color pallet, which is peach, blush pink, ivory, watermelon (coral), and platinum. It's such a romantic pallet and will be so pretty.

today

I'm about to head out to the Garment District to rummage for some fabric finds for my mom's upcoming wedding celebration, and in doing some research before I do...I stumbled upon this.

Being as cheap as we are, I don't get much exposure to fashion and/or style magazines so maybe you have already met Jenni Radosevich, the resident DIY-er from InStyle magazine. She does some amazing things with fabric and trim. I may just have to try this tutorial and add rhinestones and thick chains to my look out for list.

Also, this blog is the best I've found for garment district resources: http://www.shopthegarmentdistrict.com/

Wish me luck! And tireless feet. 

ispydiy : step 8

been working this morning...

Free hand vector...the only part I didn't draw is the grass.

Just an idea for a client's (aka: my Mom) logo. I really like how it turned out, though it may need some tweaks.