South Carolina

I'm just not ready to let Summer go just yet!

Took a few early Fall images this weekend so I'll be sharing those soon. Enjoy 2 of my favorite coastal paintings!

Just to let you know they are available in my Etsy shop!

Happy Purple Monday!

I Love Purple! and Blossom http://blossomandbloom.blogspot.com/

is featuring Purple Monday and I want to pass it on! Hope you like Purple too!

Don't forget to enter my drawing!

Paying it forward...Last Days of Summer Giveaway!

As we finish this Labor Day weekend I want to have a giveaway!

Autumn Antics http://autumnsantics.blogspot.com just had an amazing giveaway that started with Bone Head Studio's. http://boneheadstudio.blogspot.com/ But it has a catch. Those entering to win the prizes must agree to create 5 of their own pieces of art to offer in a giveaway. I have created these cute little cards called Bitty Sentiments. Leave a comment and I will have a drawing on Tuesday morning. I worked on the sets today and here are some of the images from the themes I used. Enjoy the Last Images of Summer and good luck.

The Cards I Made for you today!

These are some of my photographs I got the little images from Enjoy!







Happy Labor Day!

End of Summer

Sunrise on the beach
As this "Last Weekend of Summer" begins I wanted to share some parting images of summer with you.

I started this blog entry early this afternoon as I sat bored stiff in our frame shop waiting for someone to come in. I was motivated and ready with what I was going to post. But then someone did come in. My wonderful husband came in after that and wanted to talk.

Imagine that!

So, 3 hours had passed and then it was time for our little town's 1st Friday evening festivities to start. I needed to check on my new vendors and do a once around to see how everything was going and then eat. By the time I got back to the shop I had a headache. My wonderful husband was still in the mood to talk, so after a bit I told him I was going to give the chair massage lady some business. After 10 minutes with her, I went to the shoe store and had a FREE 20 min. reflexology session! I was feeling much better and the evening was over so I knew I would be able to go home and finish my blog!

NOT!!!

A few minor things had to be taken care of first .
Finally off to my bedroom, soft music, relax, breath, open laptop, log in, start to type and....
My kitty who has been home alone all day wants me to pet him. I can not type and pet a cat at the same time!
Am I ever going to get this blog entry done????? Breathe

As this last "Weekend of Summer" begins I wanted to share some parting images of summer with you. I know we will have several more warm weeks and beautiful summer days left but soon the colors will begin to change and the temperatures will get cooler and that excitement of Fall will fill us and beachy photos won't be as fun to look at so I will share some with you through out the weekend so you can revisit the long days of Summer one last time before the Fall season is upon us! I won't necessarily have much to say, just pretty images for you to enjoy! If you do enjoy them please leave me a note so I will know someone is enjoying my photography. Thanks and have a great holiday weekend!

Book Addict...Who Me?

I Want to share with you a problem I have. After you read this you may take me off you favorites list but I will risk it!





I have an addiction







An obsession really





I neglect my family, cleaning, tv watching even social gatherings for this obsession. (unless it involves this problem, Then I'm all over it!) It has caused me to spend money needlessly and and spend hours in stores I should not even go into EVER again. At least for a few years!





What is this horrible addiction you ask?

BOOKS and READING!



This is the Awesome old pie safe I just had to have for my blue living room! It was just perfect for the growing stack of books that were overflowing from my Grandfathers smallish bookcase in the next photo. I put all the books I want to read right away in here so I could figure out where to go next. As you can see, I think there are enough books here for at least a couple of years and these are just the ones I want to read RIGHT NOW, Like I want to finish these by the end of 2009. Ha, right.



Did I mention I am in a book club? We read a different book each month and then get together and have a theme party if possible around the books subject! We have great fun and have been meeting for over 12 years now. I remember when I was asked to join the group. I said I didn't think I could finish a book in a month. Wow, I wasn't sure if I could keep up or was smart enough to be in a book club. for a few years I was actually in 2 different clubs. So when am I going to fit in my own books? Why do I keep buying more books? I do buy from library sales and used book stores. That is the problem I can't turn down a good deal.

Well this is bookcase #2 where I used to keep the books I needed to read. It belonged to my Grandfathers Mom and was passed down to me from my Mom.
This is what I call The still to be read bookcase!



I have to brag here...The painting above the chair was painted by my aspiring fashion designer daughter that lives in Chicago right now going to school. Isn't she talented? Thanks.

Also, notice our lovely, cute and oh so loving kitty, Arah. He is sleeping coz he had a late night catting around last night. lol.

And this is the 1st book case I actually bought at an auction (I was so proud I won it!) to hold the few books I had in our home at the time, just for looks. Ha ha ha. They were antique books and such. Nothing I would possibly take time from my darling babies and my cross stitching and tv watching, to actually read! Why, I couldn't read. My teachers in grade school told me that. I was always in with the slower readers. I hated to read! I do remember liking Dick and Jane. I can still remember the smell of those books at school. And don't tell my teachers but I can remember chewing on the top of the book binding edge. Oh, I was suppose to be reading the book? Not eating it? Well when there is no food at home you got to do what you got to do. lol.

Just kidding, Glad my Mom can't read this.

Anyway, Thank goodness I had a wonderful teacher in 5th grade who didn't believe we should be separated and made us all read out loud taking turns. She encouraged all of us that we could all read well. Believe me I really stepped up my game when I knew I was going to have to read OUT LOUD! Then we had the opportunity to buy book from the Scholastic book flyer. As I look back now I am so thankful that my Mom let me buy those books. We really didn't have a lot of money but she let me get a book every time those papers were sent home.

I was never a book worm or really dedicated to reading in school like other kids but I did enjoy many books throughout my high school years but gave it up after that for crafts, photography and tv.

I want to thank my friend Betsy who encouraged me 12 years ago to give the club a try. I have read a lot of wonderful book since then and grown as a person because of it. I started this blog entry because I wanted to post an interview done at Borders Books on line about one of the books I so enjoyed. After listening to Sara's interview the book became even more special to me. If you have not read "Water For Elephants" by Sara Gruen please do and here is the link to the interview she did quite awhile ago http://www.bordersmedia.com/bookclub/gruen

I hope you enjoy reading as I do and I have the book selector thing here so you can see what I am enjoying. Support your local libraries and book stores!

Playing with photo editing

I have been very busy the last few weeks and finding time to give you something you might remotely want to read about has been difficult. I decided to share a couple images I have from the beach. I love taking photographs but with digital I love turning them into art! Using Photoshop or other photo editing programs really lets your inner artist come to life. With the 2 images here you can see the different feel you can give an image with different effects.

Surfer Dude

Passages

The problem is deciding which effect you like the best! I will share more beach images in the next few days before summer is over. Hope they inspire you to take a deep breath and relax a bit!

Cold Brewed Coffee

My Guilty Pleasure! Yum, Mocha's
I love mocha's but in the summer it is to hot for me to drink hot drinks. I have just not been able to "warm" to that idea. So iced coffee was a great discovery for me. Then I truly became a coffee snob when our local coffee shop started offering "Cold-Brewed" coffee. It was soooo good! I looked it up on the Internet and found my favorite toy. The Toddy. This is the Toddy. They are offered at Borders bookstores, Seattle's Best coffee shops, on line and I'm sure other places. I started using Seattle's Best Saturdays blend but have tried their Beach house blend for my past 3 batches and it makes a good cup also.

Now these are the next necessities. Your milk, or half and half, (which Land o Lakes has great fat free half and half) chocolate and a mug. Getting the right mix is not an exact science. It depends on your taste, the size of your mug and whether you use milk or half and half. So here is the basic simple steps to a great cold cup of coffee.

Open up you Lb of coffee.

Take a few minutes to sniff that wonderful aroma!

I have a hard time getting past this step!

I did not stick my face in the bag, the blue around

my mouth is reflection off the bag.

Get out your grinder and grind up that coffee!

My kitchen smells like heaven. (Will there be coffee in heaven? I sure hope so.

Any way after you have it all ground you will put it into the Toddy.

Sorry about the out of focus image but can't you just imagine that wonderful smell!!! Go ahead put your nose right up there and close your eyes and breath in. Nothing? Well where is your imagination?

Now you add 4 cups of cold water slowly. Let stand for 5 minutes and add 5 more cups. Make sure all grounds are wet. Then I cover with a plate and let it sit overnight or 12 hours. Sorry I forgot to tell you, you do have to plan ahead. When you make your last cup, mix up the next batch so the next day you are ready to go. This is what it will look like after you add the water.

Now you don't usually have to give me an excuse to buy cute antiques. When I found these adorable small spoons I knew what I was going to do with them. Perfect for stirring my coffee! Aren't they beautiful? It's all about the experience as well as the taste :)

What comes out of your Toddy is a very concentrated mixture that you will keep in the carafe in the frig for up to 2 weeks.

I usually put equal amounts of coffee and half and half then add liquid chocolate (hold over mug, squeeze for a count of um... 6 to 8. depends on how fast you count. lol) then stir. Add water, taste then add water till the taste is good to you. For me it's half mixture and half water. Again it depends on the size of your mug and your personal taste.

The final product! Yum, Miranda just finished baking fresh blueberry scones so I feel a cup of freshly made Cold-pressed coffee calling me. Have a great day!