Collecting colors :: green

Collecting Color is a bi-monthly link up hosted by Cyn at RiverDog Prints.  Got color and want to join us?  Stop by and link your Collecting Color post to the most recent one here.

22/52 - home sick, Project 52

22/52 - home sick, Project 52, originally uploaded by alamodestuff.

E is home today not feeling very well: sore throat, cough, runny nose. It's nice to snuggle with him on Valentine's Day.

From our house to yours

nutcracker, originally uploaded by alamodestuff.

Wishing you the very best this season and throughout 2011!

Happy Holidays!

-Linda

Making the mundane your muse - OM [one moment] meet up - week #15

You know the elegantly staged bedside tables you see in magazines and interior design photos?  The ones that have a stylish lamp and vase with fresh flowers.  Mine is not like one of those.  Mine normally holds a pile of magazines, my current book, lip gloss, hand cream, an old glass of water, the occasional nail file, and yesterday's tissue.  Not a pretty scene.

One night this week, I crawled into bed early for a little 'me' time (book, TV, quiet).  I was playing around with my iPhone and wondered if I could make the aforementioned objects on and around my bedside table  more interesting through the eye of the iPhone camera.  I was really curious to know if I could take random shots and have them turn out more intriguing.  This is the result.  I am happy to know that my mess can be my muse.











What was your 'one moment' this week? What took you out of your present every day life and made you reflect, appreciate, notice?

Share in the blog comments here, on your own blog (and link back below) or on my Facebook fan page. If you are on Twitter, I've started a hash tag - #omMeetup so that we can converse if we'd like. We'd love to hear your moment this week!

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Photo of the Week: Autumn bokeh

Autumn bokeh
Originally uploaded by ~ielle~ ilarialuciani.com

Happy Halloween!

Mortimer waving to the neighbors
Sigh...since the boys have moved beyond homemade costumes now, I thought that I share a few favorites from the past.
2006 - E as mummy and M (sneaking up behind) as Ninja. E's costume was simply muslin tacked on to grey sweatpants and jacket. To this day, there are still little knots of thread on that jacket.2007 - E as an M & M. This is one of my favorites! I used puffy paint for the face and felt for the body. His only complaint was that people kept trying to take a bite out of him.

2007 - M as a crusader from Monty Python (the killer rabbit scene - notice it on his neck). People either recognized this costume right away or didn't get it all.

2008 - M as Angus Young from AC/DC.

Photo of the week - Perfect Pear

Perfect pair by Citrus Tree Designs (Delray Beach, FL)

Photo of the week - SKYplay

via hb19

Quintessential Rhode Island Summer

Stuffies and Dell's Lemonade - can't get more RI than that!

Quahogs...do you know what they are? As a Midwesterner, I didn't until I moved to Rhode Island. Quahogs are a shellfish much like clams and oysters. It isn't a town as depicted on the Family Guy. Quahogs are used in chowders, soups and the infamous "stuffie" (stuffed quahogs).

Yesterday, after dropping off M for guitar lessons, I had an hour to kill and decided to walk through the 24th Annual Quahog Festival in Warren, RI. I live in the adjoining town and have seen and heard about this festival for years, but have never gone. What a lovely surprise. I called the rest of the family to join me. Since C was on chief call [see "personal note" in previous post here] and couldn't stray too far from home, this was the perfect solution for family fun.

The festival featured seafood, and lots of it! Lobster, clam cakes, stuffies, shrimp, oysters, etc. There was great music in the band shell, plastic tables in the tents, arts & crafts vendors, and even pony rides. Set along the Narragansett Bay, this little festival was a picturesque RI event.








I love shellfish although I have had a love/hate relationship with lobsters.
Years ago, I watched a lobster go into a pot and became a vegetarian for quite some time after that. But, there is no denying that lobster and shellfish are ubiquitous on the East Coast.












Another local favorite - clam cakes. Yum! E thought that if he touched each morsel, he could stake claim to the whole batch. We are on to him, and his sticky little fingers bother us no more (although he has been known to lick his finger first which grosses us out).

I met local artist, Ed Randeau, a metal sculptor. He brings new life to found scraps of steel. He introduced me to The Steel Yard, in Providence, where he creates his wonderful art and co-mingles with other artists and students with similar artistic interest. The Steel Yard has various classes and events as well as artist studios. I can't wait to check it out.

This earring display by Jorge de Freitas, caught my eye. He took a metal trash can and placed it on top of a lamp base. It is a perfect solution for this type of display. It spins around and is quite funky in its 'lamp' like shape.


Our perfect day didn't end here. Later in the afternoon, we grabbed out folding chairs and hiked to our local beach. We sat and listened to the sounds of waves crashing while the kids swam. We took a long walk and simply enjoyed the beauty of the Narragansett Bay and our time together as a family. It is a shame that we live so close (less than a mile) and are often too busy to take an hour or two to appreciate this beautiful gift.

I would love to hear what you did this weekend. Hopefully, you were able to do something fun and relaxing!

My photo of the week: a cupcake in a cup

photo taken at Dylan's Candy Bar, NYC - 4/09

I'm not sure what possessed my to take this photo but I'm glad I did. Yes, it was as good as it looks. Any cupcake in a cup is a great find.

Maybe my friend, Diana Brennan of D.S. Brennan Photography, will stop by and let us know why this photo turned out nicely. I'm sure it helped being by a window on an overcast day. Or perhaps it was simply the contrast in colors. Someday, I hope to harness the powers of my camera to consistently take pictures like this one...on purpose.

Inspired by colorful gumballs

Photo taken by me at Dylan's Candy Bar, NYC 4/09

moon drops acylic painting by Messicakes
gumball pillow by DedeEtsyShop
rainbow bubble necklace by Arielle and Pamela
balloons photo print by ScarletBeautiful2
earrings by Executeme
gumball machine limited edition print by CB78
sprinkles necklace by Stoopidgerl

Inspired by color and lines

Photo taken by me in Vietnam, 2006

Clockwise from top:

Chirping trio photo pendant by The Intuitive Garden

The Harlow top by Ureshii

Embroidered organic stick earrings by Nectar Jewelry

Not funny anyway ACEO by 7seventeen Gallery

Lucy custom made dress by My Black Dress

Chain fringe recycled necklace by Boxing Day

Oh, hello there gocco stationary by Heather Jeany