A Fanciful Twist

Mother's Day Freebie + Bloglovin'

With Mother's day not too far away, I thought it was time for a little momlove doodling...

Then I thought...

Perhaps it's time for a new freebie?

So, I whipped up a doodley Mother's Day cardlette for you.

I actually put two on a page.

So, your free printable will look like this -

Simply...

Click here for free printable PDF

Give the file a good 60 seconds to open.

The cardlettes can be used in a 5" x 7" envelope, or my fave way...

By punching a hole in the corner and tying a ribbon on.

Tucking it under a breakfast in bed plate.

Sliding into a gift.

Tacking to a mirror.

You decide :)

 There ya go, a little freebie.

 

Also...

I wanted to chat about Bloglovin'

Many folks use a service that lets you know when fave blogs have new posts for you to read.

Bloglovin' is one of these services.

As you probably already know, and have heard over 1,000 times...

Google reader is no more as of July 1, 2013.

Google reader was one of these services I speak of as well.

I personally had never used a service to organize my fave blogs on, and get notifications of new posts.

But, I had heard time and time again about the site called Bloglovin'.

I joined yesterday.

It's easy and pretty and nice.

So, just to let you know, you can follow my blog, and any other blog you like, via Bloglovin'

 right here.

Fun right?

A good idea to think ahead if you are a Google reader user.

 

I best be off and take good care of myself...

Mister Lovee's crud is pulling on my bloomers.

Thank goodness for the strawberry patch.

Some of them are so big.

See you real soon.

 

Love, V

 

 

 

Of Ford and Rose...

When the cat is away, the mice will play.

Isn't that what they say?

Or if the cat is real sick, the mice will play too?

Mister Lovee has been majorly under the weather.

And, I have been a really good nurse, if I do say so myself.

Ahem.

:)

For some reason I do caretaker good these days.

I am not sure why or how this came to be?

I was a horrid, rotten self centered child, so who knows?

Love does it, perhaps?

Anyhow...

There I was, tra-la-la-ing around.

Minding my own business.

Keeping myself entertained whilst Lovee suffered a beautiful weekend in bed.

Picking roses, cooking, baking, collecting mint leaves for a hug pot of hot tea.

Painting, stringing pearls, playing with pups.

And then, it hit me.

That old 1957 Ford truck in the yard!?

The one Mister Lovee used to drive ages ago.

That should...

Possibly maybe...

Perchance?

BE MINE!

Imagine?

Cotton candy pink, or muted light teal with pink cabbage roses painted on the doors?

Me...

At the wheel...

Bashing around, to and fro.

Imagine?

Going here and there in my pink or teal truck?

Oh ya.

I can feel it.

So, I took a proper opportunity, you know...

Sort of like when I was a kid, and my dad and his brothers would be outside listening to oldies and drinking beer, and I would be like, hey dad, can I have some money?

And he would give me everything in his wallet, cuz he was too beer happy to know better ;)

Sometimes it was quite a lot of dough for a kid.

So, as Mister Lovee lay coughing and sneezing up a storm...

I proposed, you know -

That...

Maybe...

The truck should be painted all cute, and given to me?

Being such a good nurse and all.

Ha.

With sick eyes closed, he eeked out a tinge of a smile and nodded yes.

YES!

(insert evil grin, bwahahaha!)

I better start saving my pennies, so I can restore my new truck.

Hehehe.

I wonder if he will still say yes when he feels better?

I know how to drive stick.

Kinda Sorta.

Once, well, more than once...

My parents went on a business trip, and left us with a nanny/housekeeper, and I took my dad's big red monster truck out joy riding.

I was about 15 or 16.

I had two best friends growing up, they were boys.

Aaron and Hector.

We did everything together.

We spent every waking moment of our summers up to pure mischief.

So, one day when the parental units were away, Aaron came over, and I had a grand plan to take the monster truck out.

I could hardly get in, it was so tall.

It was a dull tomato red, horrid thing.

And, what I didn't know at the time, was that it wasn't working.

So, I went hunting for the keys in my dad's drawers, and off we went.

Me and Aaron in the big red truck.

5 feet of me, perhaps less at the time, driving this thing.

Gargantuan gear shift, clutch and all.

As we got down the road, I noticed that the steering wheel pulled really hard to the left.

And...

Get this.

Every time it pulled to the left, the steering wheel would let out a HUGE HONK!

I mean huge.

So, there we were on a bumpy dirt road, laughing, getting only stations playing Spanish polka on the radio, and the steering wheel honking every 8 seconds.

Bonk, BONK.

Us laughing so hard.

Me freaking out and laughing and trying to shift.

Trying to get the darned thing back home.

If I could handle that, I can handle this '57 Ford.

I think I will need some backing to get Mister Lovee to say yes when not ill.

You think I should have it, don't you?

:)

Let's remind him why it is, that I should have a perfectly lovely cotton candy truck.

Shall we??

Remind me to tell you about the time I snuck out the window, and took my mom's boat size white Lincoln town car (with a faux convertible top, remember those crazy things?) joy riding.

It was like steering a ship.

My parents were pretty strict, so I was always grounded.

 But now, time to convince Lovee to hand over the keys!

Help me out, won'tcha?

 (I wonder if I could pull my gypsy wagon around with me?)

 

Love, V

 

 

 

ps:  My dad just called and I reminded him of the truck thing.

Honking horn, etc.

We had quite a laugh.

 

 pss:  Now I can't get this out of my head.

 

 

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Flower Power

All the wildflower seeds I toss about every November, just as winter rains arrive, are almost about to bloom.

In fact, the teeniest ones are blooming.

This really makes it feel like spring has arrived, save for a little cold snap.

It is leaving us today and we will be back to warm/hot.

Herbs are growing tall, and the sweet william is everywhere...

The smell of earth and petal at this time of the year...

Bliss.

There is nothing like the scent of water hitting the desert floor.

It almost makes your mouth water.

Combine that with mint and orange blossoms - oh my.

I am floral print obsessed, are you?

I have pretty much always been, as far as I can remember.

People used to tell me I liked little old lady prints.

I thought, little old ladies rock, if this is a little old lady print.

I LOVE seeing all the floral out there these days.

I have some white pants stored away somewhere, covered in floral print.

Must find them.

I seem to be back back to my old ways.

Slipping into paper cutting madness.

I find cutting paper terribly relaxing.

Here is my paper flower tutorial, if you'd like to make some as well.

I get so quiet and calm, with a cozy feeling washing over me, as I huddle up and cut paper.

Layering them together is fun too.

If I see any floral print in a magazine, or find old wrapping or wall paper, it's getting chopped.

:)

I highly recommend paper flowers.

Meanwhile -

Collecting flowers, of the living variety, is getting extra good as the days get warmer...

I have been watching movies on Netflix via my Roku, in the studio, whilst painting everyday this week.

Yesterday I watched Wolves of Willoughby Chase, have you seen it?

It is based on a book by Joan Aiken.

Here is the whole movie...

Cutting paper flowers and watching a movie as such, extra yumm.

Also...

I started to watch Skellig: The Owl Man.

I am half way through.

It's good too, can't wait to watch the rest later whilst working.

I am inspired to start saving and making with petals and herbs.

Fresh mint tea is calling my name.

Do you like mint tea?

When you visit my grandma, on her wood burning stove she will either have a huge kettle of "canela" or "yerba buena" tea brewing.  Canela is cinnamon tea, and yerba buena is mint.

Mmm, mint tea is so buttery and lovely when freshly brewed at home.

I have collected some mint, rosemary, poppies, sweet william, verbena and roses in the wooden bowl...

I almost feel like I should give up this lil' collection as an offering to the garden...

Wouldn't it be neat if I left the bowl there, and it was gone in the morning with an elfin note left in its place?

Fanciful dreams.

Well, I best stop typing, as now I seem to just be aimlessly yapping away.

Through my fingers.

Time to start adding some fresh blooms to the birdcage...

Yay!

Ever since Matty was a baby, he has followed me around.

Even before he let me love on him.

He would always be one step behind me.

As you know, since he doesn't feel grand, he practically wants to be on top of me.

I don't mind at all.

I baby both boys all day.

Or should I say, all three boys, ahem.

Yesterday I was painting on the painting door and turned around to find myself sandwiched between the door and Matty.  He was so precious there sleeping so close.  I am leaning on the door.

That boy.

With that I shall say...

I hope you have a lovely weekend, and that spring has found you, or is making its way.

 

Much love, V

 

 

ps:  I almost forgot to say...

I added 3 new prints to the shop today, hooray!

Including...

Tea Party in the Magical Cypress Grove.

Plus Carousel Enchantment...

And, sweet Genevieve...

 

Right here ;)

 

Trinket Snippets + Thoughts

Today feels very quiet.

Hot tea in hand, roaming around the house.

Looking here and there at little collections of this and that.

Dark skies, cold air, wind today.

Odd, but welcome.

I love weather as such.

I did all my shopping errands and seeded and top soiled before 8:30 a.m.

I just had to get out of the house.

I tossed and turned all night.

Sadness in the world makes me sad and uneasy.

Truth be told.

You too?

I'm just snooping around my own home.

Getting ready to paint.

Wondering if I should tidy up my mood board...

Nah.

Matty had a little relapse so he is back on medicine, and doing better again.

Poor boy.

He is sleeping behind me as I type.

He panics if he can't see me.

Follows me like a mad man.

I like being his mother hen.

I do.

I love being his mother hen.

I wonder what he thinks?

The more you get closer to animals, the more you are so vastly aware at how sensitive they are, and how "animal" doesn't suit them at all.

I think they might even be more sensitive than humans.

More intuitive?

Angels.

On.

Earth.

Perhaps I need a mood board, just for Matty and Miles and Baby?

Like a scrapbook page, on a wall?

I stole lots of little pink roses from the arbor out front.

Wilted lovely things.

By the way, the jar I put them in, is a jar I painted and glittered (along with 11 others), and has been outside in the rain and sun for 2 years with no loss of color or glitter.

I just made an acrylic paint wash (a little paint + a little water), brushed it on the outside of the jam jar, then sprinkled the glitter over the wet paint.

This one has even been buried, watered and dirtied in a garden bed -

Hosed off, and is still painted and glittered.

Majorly durable.

I was using them as candle holders.

(I made lavender, light pink, and light teal ones)

I guess it's safe to say, they are resilient and you should make some :)

I was standing in the studio a minute ago, sipping my tea, peering into this glass box.

Thinking....

Hey, I haven't noticed you in a while.

Do we become immune to our surroundings?

I am desperate for something good to read.

I am not a huge fiction fan, unless it is super good.

Well, I do like fairy tales and stories as such.

But I have a weird relationship with fiction.

Maybe it just depends on my mood?

I do quite enjoy non-fiction.

Have you read anything marvelous lately?

I picked some strawberries last night and this morning.

Firsts.

Wouldn't you know, they taste like real strawberries, in a way you never taste from store bought ones.  Kind of like the tomatoes.  Real flavor.

Well, my paint calls.

I wash paintbrushes ever so often.

All the time.

Washing washing paintbrushes :)

Oh oh, also...

I think I need to take one of my mannequins out of hiding and use her as an earring model.

For the ear jewels in my jewelry shop.

I was trying some of the earrings I make on, and thinking, you have to see them on to really get what they look like, right?

It's too hard for me to take the photos of myself...

But one of my gals has pierced ears, so I'll grab her and a wig, and take some fresh photos for the jewelry shop.

I want to steal these for myself ;)

Well, off I go, back into Wednesdayness.

 

Love, V

 

 

 

ps:  Mister Lovee didn't give me a card for our 12 year celebration.

(he does so many nice things often, it doesn't matter)

I asked him about it 3 times.

Of course he is so nice, who cares about a card.

But I had to hassle him about it, because it's fun.

Anyhow, he just now came in with my "card."

He says it's a card anyways, ha!

12 times love, he says.

Spray painted on my usable card.

What the heck?

Haha!

On a container, that I can fill with some of my junk.

Something useable he says.

Can the man get any more practical?

 Umm, thanks Lovee.

:)