So! Here it is Friday and after 4pm my time so I’m heading out for the day because we have things to do and friends to visit with, and tomorrow a festival at the enchanting baroque gardens here (shopping, food, music, entertainment, etc.) and on Sunday more people to visit. I want to spend the next hour or so completely alone so that I may have a few moments to myself before the weekend madness begins. I love/hate weekends with back-to-back plans, though I cannot complain because I could be a lonely expat sitting here with nothing to do and nobody to do it with! Not the case at all, so I feel lucky and should be grateful. Before signing off though, I have many posts below this one that I invite you to look through and enjoy because I think they’ll give you a cozy feeling for the weekend and lift your spirits, invigorate your creativity and perhaps inspire you to do something nice for yourself over the next few days until we meet here again on Monday morning.
The weather here is in its 5th week of deliriously gorgeous temps with loads of sunshine and now the evenings have this “crisp” quality to them that promises Fall will come soon (love) – the weekend shall be nice so fingers crossed, it will be so that I may take some photos to share with you on Monday of this festival I will attend.
I’m hoping that if I can sneak it in I will take the morning on Sunday and curl up with a pot of tea on my sofa to review 3 new books that were sent to me. Perfect English Cottage, Essentially French and Romantic Irish Homes all arrived this week from the publisher and look ever so promising – I can’t wait to dig in and hopefully offer you a review of at least one of them next week. One perk of being a writer, you occasionally get some great books to share. Yay, books!
What will you do this weekend?
(images: holly becker for decor8)
I don’t know what’s in the air lately, but I’ve received some of the best submissions ever! Recently I heard from Freya Ete from Freya Art & Design and just got around to looking over her submission this morning and feel so bad that I didn’t get to it sooner. What talent and fun, whimsical illustrations with so many caring thoughts! She is an artist who lives in London (part-time) and on Phillip Island during the rest of the year and her pieces are lovely and full of sunshine and warmth.
There is so much negativity in the world (but a lot of good too) but for me to navigate the bad I like to surround myself with positive thoughts (and people) – it’s my way of getting through the muck sometimes. Some people can be so thoughtless, negative, and absolute pains sometimes, can’t they? Sheesh! I’ve dealt with flakes, copycats, people who cannot forgive simple mistakes, those who are obsessed with perfection to a fault, those who are just plain mean — most of whom I personally never care to deal with again. But on the flipside of all that pain and drama, which I have none of in my life currently, there is a lot of sunshine, hope and a refinement process that builds character so that once you’ve dealt with a difficult personality, you are sometimes so much better from it! And you know what to look for to avoid those “types” next time. Aging = wisdom. Well, hopefully. :)
And of course, I always think about this on September 11th because as an American, this day will forever mark a day of great sorrow in my country when stupid people did very evil things. And I think that to the rest of the world, those who are not American but who care about life and freedom, 9-11 will always be a day of reflection for them too. We all want peace and happiness. So here are some nice positive thoughts for all of us to reflect on today… let’s leave the negativity behind and focus our energy on the good, the great, and the amazing!
Many more are available for your enjoyment at the little Fréya Art & Design shop. Enjoy!
(images: fréya art & design)
Elisabeth Perotin is a delightful French illustrator and photographer with an online shop you’ll certainly want to peruse today… it’s magical. Here’s a glimpse of the goodness you’ll find there.
Her blog is quite dreamy as well, especially if you’re a lover of all things French.
Thank you Elisabeth for writing to me today!
(images: elisabeth perotin)
Move over Martha, Jamie, Rachel and Donna… did you get the memo? Amy Butler is going for world domination (yay!) alongside the best of ‘em and she’s going BIG, baby! Fabric, bags, giftwrap, tableware, sewing kits, scrapbooking supplies, bedding, card kits, software, patterns, books, rugs, stationery and now office products. I’ve died and gone to heaven with these… Here are a few glimpses to make you reconsider your office space and how much better it would look with a little dash of Amy where you work!
This collection will be available via Mara-Mi and will include coordinating desktop and office items like folders, organizers, binders and more. The entire collection will be available soon in Amy’s web store as well. Stay tuned!
(images: amy butler design)
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