gathering spriggs

A View from YOUR Room

 

 

Happy Tuesday friends! After days of rambling on about my own affairs, I took a stroll through the Gathering Spriggs Flickr group and found a profusion of inspiring images. In particular the images of hearth and home ignited joy in me. Its fascinating to discover small corners of home from those I know and love through blogging or facebook. These personal images fill this post for me like fresh cut blooms added to a favorite vase. 

I hope you too will join the group and share your favorite images from corners of your world.

It going to be an infusion of florals this week here at GS. I just can't get enough of all things blooming. So if you have a favorite image of florals or a favorite flower please share here in the comments and I will make mention of it this week!!

1. Zee Longenecker 2. Missginy and Souvenirs du Passe Recent 3. Twiggs  4. Nest Pretty Things and Machteld M 5.Traveling Mama 6.  Alice M. Wingerden 

Need for Spring

Carefully lifting winter weathered windows yesterday to usher in sunny breezes felt like spring teasing me with her silken scarves. Her breath brushed the hair from my face and her warmth caused me to shed my layers. She whispered reminders of new days ahead. Days fresh. Days restored. 

With ever growing health complications, which have disrupted life and a long awaited doctor's appointment only a week away, I am painfully aware of my need for Spring. Need for restoration. Need for hope. 

...and I see glimpses of it. Maybe as I shed more layers within I will sense the light again. Will smell blossoms. I'm no gardener but I do find this allegory to be true in the garden of my own life:  new growth comes only after the pruning of spent portions. 

And you? How do you sense hope in your own life as seasons change? What season are you experiencing in your heart today?

images: dress: we heart it  flowers: desde my vantana teacup: gathering vintage;  pillow:  seesaw vintage, table: style me pretty

Vintage Victoria Love

Won't you journey back in time with me say 20 years ago (or so) to a period of yesteryear where a teenage girl dreaming of a bygone era where flowing skirts, afternoon tea, parlor games and horse-drawn carriages were the norm, pined over the mailbox delivery of a glossy magazine that would alter her life forever? 

I was that girl and Victoria Magazine was my dose of monthly heaven to transport my heavy heart. So when my sister and I spotted not one but two stacks of vintage Victoria issues (1991 and 1993) at an antique store in Kansas City we snatched them without thinking twice and spent our afternoon reveling in and savoring each page.  With every turn of the glossy pages a new memory sparked and launched a barrage of stories from high school .... like the time I hosted a Victorian croquet party in my front lawn complete with a crisp linened table filled with luncheon snacks, tea and cakes. ( I invited my highschool crush and he CAME). 

The magazine was my solace. The place where dreams were born. And today looking back with fondness I am still drawn to these images. Isn't it interesting how current these images look? I mean, I don't know if it is because culturally we are drawing on inspiration from the early 90's now with a resurgence of pastels, lace, florals and all things granny chic, but aren't these looking more current than dated?  Its hard for me to be unbiased since these images were home to my heart for so many years. 

What in your life conjures up sweet memories from yesteryear? Do you have an emblem of youth that can still stir your heart today? 

Happy Valentines Day my dears! May you embrace your loves, your life and your memories! 

(this is my Valentines for you dear Ginny!) 

images: heather s thompson for gathering spriggs

A Way With Walls

Decorative wall treatments have been on my mind lately. I started a little file on my desktop to store some favorite images when I first came across the ingenious work of Payton Turner's sticker wallpaper art installations. Then shortly after received word of Galbraith and Paul's Wallpaper debut collection. And this week I stenciled my sister's powder room in a shimmery Baroque style pattern. As a decorative painter by trade I love the idea of bringing art into the home via wallspace. Its my playground. Hopefully with being snowed in this week I can do something a bit experimental on my walls this weekend. 

If you are looking to introduce some pattern and want to customize your colors to a "tee" then here is a special wallpaper offer just for you, GS readers from Herisson!! You have to check out the customizable tool to pick your scale and palette. 

 

Code 1: WALLWARNING = 20% off for consumers at the Studio Herisson site and it can be used twice by each reader. The offer is good through April 30. 

So I wonder... how do you have your way with your walls? paint, paper, found objects...??

images: design is mine, purple area, herisson, payton turner, joanna goddard

 

Color Inspiration: Marfa,Texas

 

 

One blistery Texas summer many years ago, lived two best friends down the street from one another with adventure stirring in their young hearts. When the family packed up the minivan and invited the girls on a trip out West little did they know how that summer adventure in the Davis mountains would burn within their hearts forevermore. 

Ah! If only I had the snapshots of that summer on my computer to share with you the vivid floral short shorts, sunglasses, golden tans, incessant laughter, Dwight Yokum on the tape player, iridescent swimsuits, inner tubes, trail rides up mountainsides (feeling the burn the day after), sun-bleached adobe homes, and fresh tex-mex cuisine. Those were the days of yesteryear before Marfa, Texas had a "Prada"store and glossy magazine features. Those were the golden days of my youth. Even though we both now live miles and miles from Marfa, those days still color my life, my art, my color choices, my home which blushes with a desert complexion. 

Since it is February 1 and a monumental blizzard is crossing the continental US, I figured it was time to warm things up around here. So here is my color inspiration gift to you gleaned from that golden moment in time. Do you draw inspiration from memorable moments of your youth? How does your story affect your creative influences?

Top image: Thunderbird Motel, & Pretty Little World

Interiors: Lanalou Style  & Florals: Once Wed

Penelope Dullaghan, Artist/Illustrator

Penelope Dullaghan is who I would want to be in another life. Her work strikes a chord within me. Her colors ... my best friends. Her style... soft yet forthright. Her creativity... deeply moving. Thanks Penelope for a dose of energy this morning. 

Check out her blog, and have fun clicking all around her website.. it is extensive and inspiring to say the least. And look at her about page! Its honest, creative and makes me want to be her friend. 

all images: penelope dullaghan

Dreamy Romance: Photographer Christine Bauer

Fleeting worries melt into wonderous dreams. The world is fresh.  A new dawn unfolds like crisp linens. Hope makes it home again. 

Romance lives. Here in the work of photographer Christine Bauer, luminosity fills the void. Ahhh! Deep breath in. Cleansing. 

Hope is alive, and It Is Worth It. 

Thank you!

images: christine bauer

 

Listening to the (Winter) Magic

Friends... do you ever hear the whisper in the wind? or a song in your heart that keeps the music alive? 

On New Years Eve my younger sister and I watched the newest movie in the series -The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader based on the book series by C.S. Lewis. There is something in these movies that stir a sense of adventure and mystery in my soul. Of course it is visually stunning and fortunately amplifies my own imagination after reading the series. There were moments in the film where I wanted to take off my 3D glasses and write furiously notes in my journal. For fear of embarrassing my 16 year old sister with my nerdy habits I just let the themes soak in. And walked away with a hopeful resounding "Yes" crying from within. 

Yes. We are living in a magical adventure. Yes. There will be danger and resistance along the way. Yes. We have comrades alongside us to encourage and support us. Yes. There is a Great Story at play. We are not alone. 

What a wonderfully poignant way to start a new year... with a spirit of hope, forging into an unknown land ready for what lies ahead! 

What adventures are you seeking or looking forward to in your own life this coming year??

images: madame cupcake, i. anton, scout and catalogue

A Peachy Tribute

Thank you friends for your kind words, your continued support and for just taking time to hang with me here. This week feels like a dream, a walk in slow motion, adjusting the eyes. (not to mention the sketchy internet connection). My sister came back with me from Texas to stay for a couple of weeks. I'm hovering in a crossroads of desire to make this a fun trip for her and work on my own future plans....but I am not fully recovered from our whirlwind trip. 

My brain has been a bit dried up like a raisin and inspiration drained.( not to mention the fact that I am trying a new diet for health purposes that excludes caffeine, sugar, dairy and gluten. OMG! Its hard. I miss my morning black tea! 

So... blah, blah,blah. Here is my tribute post to my favorite color this year. A color of controversy and situated between desire and fear. We don't want to resurrect our mother's decorating mistakes of the 80's but long for a world of soft, dreamy sun-kissed pleasure. You may remember my original peach post.  I think we have come a long way this year to embracing this pretty pastel with new arms in design, art, decor, fashion, etc.. Have you been aware of the power of peach this year? What is your gut reaction? Love or Loathe?

I have always loved peach, since 5th grade! You can see how I have used it as my theme color in my home and work this year.  

Thank you Peach for inspiring me in 2010! What has been your color muse this year???

images: cream colored ponies, creamy life padgett hoke, img. ffffound,  raliegh vintage 1. bp. blogspot, remodelista , audrey hepburn complex

Sweet Romance

Have to say I am still recovering a bit from our travels and busy holiday with the family. Here are some pretties I pulled together last week that are calling to me to tack up on my inspiration board for next years' style files.  A little exotic, a little rough hewn vintage and a little modern all at once. 

How about you? Are you still chillin' in holiday mode or ready to look forward to a New Year? I think I'm a little of both this week.

images: elizabeth demos, a life's design ,  lisa warninger , beautiful paper   design box