marvelous moths

These seem to be popping up more often these autumn days. The moth inside was a teeny little guy. The one outside was excitingly huge. My older daughter discovered him.

One of my favorite fabric designers, Anna Maria Horner, featured moths in her latest fabric line and on some limited edition prints.

Sunroom treasures: curtains & crewel

I finally got the curtains sewed for the sunroom!

I first wrote about my fabric selection way back here in February of 2012. The design is by one of my very favorite artists and bloggers, Geninne Zlatkis. I just adore her sweet little birdies and appreciate our mutual love of nature. When I finally went to buy the fabric it was actually rather difficult to find a continuous piece. There seemed to be plenty of smaller quilt-worthy cuts but it was a trick to find what I needed. The moral of that story is if you see some new fabric line you absolutely must have, well, don't delay in buying it.

Curtains are fairly simple to sew once you've mastered the elusive straight line (I will admit this was actually quite difficult when I was first learning to sew) but I still sought some online guidance. I ended up following these directions posted on Design*Sponge.

I also added these sweet little crewel pictures I bought for a mere $2 each at the Allegan Antiques Market. Of course odd numbers are better when it comes to decorating so I will have to keep my eye out for a third!

The oval shaped one had this inscription on the back. If anyone knows Judy Verslype, please pass along my compliments. Her craft work from long ago is making me smile today!

tidbit Tuesday

1. Katydids (or "Leaf Bugs" according to my daughters) are pretty sweet.
We saw this one sitting on the back of a car at a park one recent evening. Nature never ever fails to impress me. All I have to do it get outside.

2. Still
I saw an interview with the photographer Mary Jo Hoffman in Martha Stewart Magazine and was intrigued. So of course I had to go check out her blog. So. Very. Beautiful. I have dabbled in similar things – y'all know I love my details shots of nature so I really appreciate her work.

3. I touched this snake.
I wanted to set a brave example for my daughters and teach appreciating instead of freak-outing!

Adventures at the Allegan Antiques Market!

I went to the Allegan Antiques Market on the last Sunday in September for the very first time and – wow! If you have any love of vintage or antique anything this is the place to be. Absolutely astounding in its size. I went with a dear friend who happens to be old hat at this sale. Thank goodness because otherwise I would have gotten myself turned around for sure. I tend to be directionally challenged!

I bought a dresser (future project & future post on this one) and a few other treasures I will be sharing with you tomorrow. And some others I will share in the far future when they get revealed in my home as surprises related to future decorating adventures.

Isn't this a fun idea? The tabletop was finished with yardsticks. I liked it.

the art of the gravestone

The weeping willow is a symbol of mourning

 So today, dear readers, I am going to reveal something to you that might strike you as odd. Maybe even creepy. Or morbid.

I love cemeteries!

I especially love the older stones (here in the Midwest, that's the 1800s) and their designs. In fact, I even did an extensive report on gravestone design and symbolism back in high school. My husband I took a trip to Boston several years ago where the stones are from the 1600s and 1700s and those have even more history to them.

The broken-stemmed flower symbolizes a life ended too short.
The hand is pointing heavenward.

So when we vacationed in Pentwater and I realized how old the town was thanks to numerous historical plaques adorning the homes I made a point of finding the cemetery. My poor children were not nearly as entertained by this as I was but they survived. Here are a few of my favorites.

The anchor can symbolize Christianity but it is also found on gravestones of sailors or of people who drowned. This might be especially relevant considering Pentwater is a lakeside town.

And my very favorite of the day!