one grape hyacinth

poor neglected blog, i have missed you. there are about 10 more days of hectic craziness, then i will be back.

sincerely yours,

L.

btw

i'm still here, i've just got my head buried in the proverbial sand. or rather, in drywall dust + fabric scraps. things should be back to normal soon, i promise. i miss you, too.

image :: another awesome mini goals chalkboard by mary kate mcdevitt.

natural selection

i'm excited to share a second installment of natural selection with you today!

let your wardrobe choices be guided by nature.

sunny soiree dress :: anthropologie

pink peony silk-lined clutch bag :: red ruby rose

stripe sunburst tank in agate | ivory :: j.crew

sugary...cream orange cotton dress :: after shower shop

military tunic in sweet moss :: j.crew

bhati beads silk planets bracelet in hot pink :: j.crew

{all nature photos are taken by me}

Friedasophie

i'm so glad that sandra of Friedasophie emailed to let me know about her jewelry, her shop is like a breath of fresh air! it is the perfect thing to brighten my days during the unusually cold, dreary, grey spring we've been having in vancouver. my favourite pieces are these simple + pretty necklaces, they'd be delicately perfect with a great spring dress. i especially love the tourmalines [above].

sandra also has an impressive selection of one-of-a-kind bright + cheerful druzies and semi-precious stones, definitely head over to have a peek! for those who know me well, you'd guess that i've got my eye on this one.

a little facelift

so, today i decided to spend a bit of time giving my blog a wee facelift. basically, i liked the style [very simple] and the colours and all that, but i just wanted it wider. so i've chosen a new template and spruced it up a bit, just to tide me over until i finally make a switch to wordpress. this, of course, will require a whole lot more time than i've got at the moment, as i really need to learn how to use wordpress ;)

anyhow, it seems that the little facelift resulted in the removal of all my comments from disqus, which is basically every comment i've had since october 2010. this sucks pretty bad. however, i'm thinking i will keep it as such, since when i migrate to wordpress, i will lose those comments anyhow. might as well start now, so that the notes i get from now on from my lovely friends + readers will at least show up over at the new smidgebox blog...i always love hearing from you, so pop your head in and say hello!

you may also notice some spiffy tabs up along the top there. i'm not sure what took me so long, but there they are! thanks, linda, for your awesome video tutorial. have i mentioned that linda is my internet guru? she also helped me make my facebook page. linda is so generous with her knowledge and willingness to help, she is also a super talented designer, and amazingly kind friend.

{these are some pics i snapped of the kids on friday. otherwise, really not much going on with my camera other than kitchen pics!}

out with the old.

warning :: the pictures you are about to see might hurt your eyes.

and here it is. our old kitchen, in all it's glory. it's hard to see, but the cupboards are old, dingy white melamine with that curved oak edge trim. who ever thought that looked good, anyhow? the pulls are semi-circle white plastic, again, really special.

on the left, the wall is painted a lovely shade of brown that i have dubbed 'baby poo brown'. on the right [where my workspace was], a putrid shade of butter yellow. on the ceiling, there was a layer of old, dusty popcorn stucco. the floors were white 80's lino with a mauve and teal geometric pattern. it was all topped off with the crowning jewels, two old ivory track lights. not the nice kind.

this kitchen has slowly been sucking the life out of me since we moved in over 2-1/2 years ago. i am so, so excited to be getting rid of it, i can barely contain myself! we aren't moving any walls, and we'll be keeping our appliances [which are fairly new], but i know the change will be a big one. i cannot wait.

derek did 90% of the removal work, with me occupying the kids, running around to many different hardware stores {multiple times}, and providing help when he needed. it all culminated with the floor removal yesterday afternoon. the end of a really ugly era.

we are now left with a pretty blank slate. the electrician is on his way right now, and the cabinets are being installed monday. the rest will trickle in over the next month or so. countertops have been ordered, backsplash chosen, and light fixtures are on their way! the floors are nearly there. we're having a hard time with that last one, but i think we may have just found the right floor last night!

i'll be back next week with some cabinet sneak peeks, but the final reveal will have to wait until everything is in place. thanks for joining me on this ride!

zac freeman

my husband and i stumbled across this incredible art a couple months ago. artist zac freeman has been working on his assemblage series for 12 years now, and i think the level of commitment to his work is simply incredible. built completely with found objects, junk, and garbage, assembled on boards, zac creates these very thoughtful works of art.

looking at the images again today, i am still totally blown away by the incredibly detailed work, and the emotions conveyed in the faces. click on each image in his portfolio, and after seeing the whole piece, click again to see a detailed section. you will be amazed at the bits + pieces of random stuff, carefully chosen, carefully thought out, all placed just so.

i really like what zac says about the junk he uses in this art, how it is "more powerful being present. {...} and carries energy in and of itself." i think you can imagine his process, choosing the pieces that will make up each portrait, incorporating their energy into the feeling of the art. art with purpose, and visually stunning at that.

all images used with permission of artist zac freeman. visit his website here.