"If You Can Spend A Perfectly Useless Afternoon In A Perfectly Usseless Manner, You Have Learned To Live." -Lin Yutang

In the spirit of celebrating celebrating, on Saturday I had some fun  making some rings as part of my Valentine's Day decorations. I decided to play with one of the craft ideas on Martha Stewart where a guest showed how to make rose rings out of pipecleaners.

After giving one a go I got really into it and ended up making a bouquet of red ones and a small collection of pink including the bling enhanced one above.

It got tricky as I went along cause I would wear them after making them and you need a free finger to mold the ring around.

I decided that I was going to wear as many as possible so I converted one into a broach with a saftey pin...

and one into a hair clip with just an old clip I had laying around.

I got so into it I made some 'super bling' ones and wore those the rest of the night.

My friend got into it too and she made a few red ones and one super bling one. We decided to wear as many as we could the next day to the movies and celebrate our funky not-quite-anti-Valentine's Day.  I only wish I had photos.

Luckily, pipecleaners come in a rainbow of colors and so come future holidays and seasons I just might be stocking up and handing them out.

"After A Day's Walk Everything Has Twice Its Usual Value"

OK first things first. It was so BEAUTIFUL today! Spring is here. Or at least making a sneak peak. The cherry blossoms are out and looking amazing!

A shot I caught while walking around.

http://www.alphaville.com.au/

I have always loved cherry blossoms and so in a resent photo search I stumbled across a bunch of beautiful images.

http://www.exterpassive.com/naturewallpapers/index.php/archives/299

Having just been Valentine's Day, the colors seem all the more appropriate and uplifting.

https://www.mywestcoastwedding.com/

I couldn't resist. I know this isn't the actual blossom but I'm in love with this fan! It reminds me of the little folding fans I used to collect from China Town...but soooo much prettier.

http://www.trekearth.com/gallery/

I want to go here! I want to sit cross legged and watch the blossoms fall around me.

Hope you're having a happy day like me

"Every Woman Has to Love Something, Even if it is Only a Man"

So many people out there hate Valentine's Day. Here's what I have to say to them. It is simply an opportunity to celebrate the special someone(s) in your life. Meaning anyone special to you. This year I chose me. I like to celebrate things. I love getting lost in the festive atmostphere of holidays no matter how commercial they are. I was born in February which might account for my enjoyment of Valentine's Day specifically. I hereby celebrate celebration!  As a result I got my 'Martha Stewart' on and put my craft skills to some use.

We have this old wreath hanging above the fireplace that used to have faded plaid ribbon and a hideous bow. I removed all that and worked with what I had, mostly it was Christmas supplies. I took some red ribbon and wrapped it around and tied it in the back. I used some Ikea heart ornaments I have.  I'm happy that hearts are such a big Scandinavian icon.  I used some clay conversation hearts ornaments I have from college and tied them on with more red ribbon.  Finally I typed up my words in Illustrator so I could make sure I got just the outline and cut them out. Here comes the Martha moment; I hot glued them to pieces of twin that I tied to the wreath. I like that everything can be removed and saved for next year or used for something out. The wreath can be updated with whatever we want to celebrate next.

Here comes the valentines! I used some left over paper I had and some stamps I had as a kid and put together a couple valentines. I always think the simplest homemade ones are the most special so that's what I aimed for.

I have mini letter stamps that I used to spell out my words. I didn't try to be even since it adds to the charm. I used the heart envelope stamp as my key icon and used pinking shears to cut the edge.

Inside I refered to a favorite commercial from my child hood where a little girl draws a whole bunch of hearts on a page and colors them in with a crayon in true kid-art style. Again very simple and sweet.

The other one was just a postcard format with the stamps. I used a sharpie to write in Happy Valentine's Day etc .  I think this is SO CUTE!

I had forgotten about these stamps but I love them! They are so amazing for creating that cross between hand written and typed look. It's also an afordable alternative to ordering letter press cards that are of course beautiful but exensive.

My next task was to create a paper heart garland.

I like how much happier they made my view this morning since it was so grey and foggy out.

I just used plasitc cookie cutters in three sizes to trace the outline and cut them out. Some in straight and some zig zag. I used three different colored paper, one being a pink print. I punched holes and strung them on some string I have. (*note: keep some twine and or string around cause it comes in handy in so many ways.) The result was this:

They are so happy! Next year I think I might extend my paper heart collection and tuck them around the house for people to unknowingly discover as they go throughout their day. Despite myself I love hearts.

After crafting, I moved on to baking.

I kept it pretty simple. I tried a new recipe out of my new favorite cookbook for chocolate chip scones. They turned out so yummy and they were so easy to make that these have definitley become a staple in my breakfast/brunch baking repertoire. 

Even though it's just for me I didn't leave my room unadorn.

I had to piece together my photos cause the lighting isn't condusive to photography nor is the color of my room.

Like the wreath, I cut out my leters but I drew them by hand so they looked more handmade and pulled out various valentine paraphernalia including favorite past cards and images. I through in some more Ikea hearts and used mini wooden clothes pins from Michael's to hand them on string just below my windows. I got the idea from another blog that I already can't remember :( but made it mine with my imperfect letters and personal items. My bed is even done up with heart pillows and other red and white items.  It's too bad I couldn't get a decent shot to share.

Even though tomorrow will just be another day, I am going to enjoy most of my efforts for the rest of the week. (I was a little late in finding time to work on this.)

I hope everyone had a wonderful day however or even wheter or not they celebrated the holiday.

"Keep On and Carry On"

I'm sure you've all see this poster somewhere. They are featured in cataloges, blogs, and restaurants to name a few. I absolutely love the message so in doing some research I stombled across a whole variety of messages in the same style!

I fell in love with this one since that's basically what I do all the time.  I found the image on Flickr.  I printed it out on photo paper and put it in an old frame I had laying around. It's sitting on my desk next to my mouse!

I'm totally obsessed with this calandar I found on Etsy.

There's a different motivational saying each month.  I love that it's like getting 12 posters and you can frame them and make a little series for a hallway. So CUTE!

If you're into the original "Keep Calm and Carry On" you can get them from one of my favorite blogger's Etsy site.  sfgirlbybay has them in every color and a whole bunch of sizes. They are really affordable too!

If you like the syle, go to BluLima who has some of the original but also has a bunch of others like this.

 

I have a little binder that I keep favorite resipes in and this is going on the front! There are also a bunch of fun prints 

Finally while I was out shopping I stummbled across this little book at Urban Outfitters.

It's full of little quips and quotes and details the history behind the solgan. I keep it on my desk to refer to for any problems I might have. How to budget my money: "There are plenty of ways to get adead. The first is so basic I'm almost embarrassed to say it: Spend less than you earn." - Paul Clithero. 

"Let Them Eat Cake"

On my little journey my friend and I stumbled into the cutest tea place. Crown and Crumpet located in Ghiradeli Square is such a jewel! They had the best tea I've ever had. That may only be a mild complement given how I learned to make tea but they are still the best I've ordered.

They served us three tiers of delishiousness including really good egg salad. You can have lunch too to balance out the sweet or go for afternoon tea like us.

There are more pictures on their website.  They were setting up for a birthday party and a baby shower while we were there. The decorations were so pretty.

They also have a little shop in the corner of the salon and a bigger shop below them.

Even if it's not your personal style it's worth checking out. They have some great gift ideas and of course fun treat-yourself things.  I was so inspired when I left.

I recomend trying out a real tea. It's SO much better than anything you're currently making at home.  Next time I go I'll be taking some of their tea with me. You can buy it by the ounce and even get a Crown and Crumpet tea set to serve it in.

Everyone Should Have a Belle in Their Lives

On Friday our beloved dog Belle passed away. Below is the message my mom send out. 

Last night, 17 ½ years after we brought home our free puppy, last of a litter of 8, given away outside the Gualala Supermarket, we said good-bye to Belle.

It was time. Although slower and frailer (not surprising at 116 dog-years!), she had been doing well, enjoying her walks and supervising all the comings and goings, until just a couple of weeks ago when her back legs gave out. But she was still game to get out and about with some help. On Wednesday, the front legs went too with all the accompanying frustration, pain and indignity.

Yesterday, we had a lovely day outdoors together, enjoying the sun. At 6 p.m. Dr. Jennings and Carol came and, very simply and quietly, in her own bed with her people around her, she went to sleep. There were lots of tears but no regrets.

She’s being cremated and we’ll take her ashes ‘home’ to Sea Ranch.

We wish everyone can have a Belle in their lives.

 

"Travel Develops a Man's Mind, Especially His Imagination."

On Saturday I went in San Francisco with a friend from across the bay with the sole intent of being a tourist for the day. San Francisco is too big to take it all in in one day especially on foot as we did but we did cover some ground all the same.  As part of my personal quest, I took pictures of things that caught my attention, things that could inspire me later...hopefully.

We started by the Ferry building and walked through the market there. I love farmers markets and I always forget my camera when I go to the one at home but this reminded me to try harder next week. They are an amazing place to find not just really good food that's special to your area but it's pretty. The colors and the textures are so interesting.

We walked down the Embarcadero and I almost walked right past this place.  It's a small grill with one window on the street and I loved the mood it had as I passed by.

We walked to Pier 31. I did say this was a touristy day. This was at the end facing the Merry-go-round. I thought they looked like they were lined up, waiting for a ride. I have a smaller version of this bench at home but I really like the red here. I like that color can be used at a neutral.

After tea we walked back towards Russian Hill and saw this as we crossed the street. I had a flash back moment of 5th grade when our class spent the night on the C.A. Thayer or the Balclutha (which is what this was.) I also thought it was cool how close Alcatraz looks behind the ship.

Our path was a little zig zag. We ended up walking down Leavenworth where we saw the beautiful gates and entry ways. I think this might have been both of our favorites with the red door and bronze work on the gate.

At one of the corners there was a tree all ready for spring! I adore Cherry Blossoms. They are so pretty and delicate. Here's one of many photos I took. YAY Spring!!!

We made our way back though China Town. This is in front of one of the corner markets. Like I said before, I love the fruit and veggie displays.

Not sure why but I really liked this. It might have something to do with the colors. The blue with tha gold/brown tile and chocolate trim.

Finally! Downhill!!! This street made me want to get a cart or something with wheels and roll down it like I used to do on my driveway at home.

We ended up down town and stoped at Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie. We took a break at Madelein on O'Ferrell and finished off the day at Old Navy...looking for inexpensive versions of things we had seen earlier. We had amazing weather. I can't wait to go back and walk around another area!

Hope you take the time to be a tourist in your town

Brunch Anyone?

Breakfast food is among the best.  People don't say lets have dinner for breakfast or lunch for dinner. Whether you're an egg person or sausage, or oatmeal with fruit, everyone (I know) is a pancake person. For my birthday I was given a Ebelskiver pan which makes amazing stuffed pancakes. 

If you've never seen one, they are little balls of delishousness. Since this was my first attempt at making them, I had to get used to the length of time it takes to cook all the way through compared to normal pancakes.

All you need is a little sprinkle of powdered sugar or a dipping bowl of syrup. My dad just popped them in one after another. I filled some with peach preserves which were my favorite. The other half was with blueberry jam...also quite yummy.