art&soup

What are you up to this weekend? So many nice options! If you live around here, your best bet is the 3rd annual Dallas Art Fair which runs through Sunday. After the Fair, you might as well keep your art buzz going! Have you seen the 2008 documentary, Herb & Dorothy? It's the story of a New York postal worker and his librarian wife who compiled a world class modern art collection. It's inspiring!

Enjoy your weekend!

Asparagus Mushroom Potato Soup - Peachtree Family Cookbook

1 leek, sliced

3 c mushrooms, sliced

3 T butter

3 garlic cloves

6 c red potatoes, quartered, unpeeled

10 c chicken broth

1 t freshly ground pepper

1 lb asparagus, sliced into 1 1/2" lengths

salt to tast

In a stock pot, saute the leeks and mushrooms in the butter and garlic until tender.

Add the potatoes, broth and pepper and cook until the potatoes are soft. The asparagus should be added last and cooked only until crisp tender, about 5-7 minutes. Salt to taste. Garnish with sour cream or creme fraiche. Plain greek yogurt would work too.

Photo by Esteban Cavrico via Flickr

save the words

Did you know that each year hundreds of words are dropped from the English language? Perfectly wonderful, useful words! If you're crazy about words, click on Savethewords and adopt one or two or bunches! Your only responsibility is to use your word in conversation and correspondence as frequently as possible to the best of your ability. I'm in! Here were a few of my faves:

amorevolous - affectionate, doting

aquabib - water drinker

gnathonize - to flatter

aporrhoea - B.O. aka body odor

and the winner...

foppotee - a simple minded person

Go ahead and adopt a few of your own!

You're such a smarty!

bubbles

I hope you enjoy bubbles in some form or fashion this weekend!

Kids of the 70's? Just for you, as in me. In it's entirety. You're welcome!

Want to mix up your own?

This link has lots of recipes.

photos 1 and 2 by Julianne Swartz via Pia Jane Bijkerk, Sis (my niece) aka Mary Eloise by her Mommy, Sofia bubbly from geekdreams/flickr

you said it stevie ray!

I sure do miss this guy. Classic Stevie Ray Vaughn, Montreux 1985

hiatus + headlines

I went on hiatus. I didn't really mean to. I just needed to. Summer projects and bat mitzvah updates coming soon. Five more weeks! Tonight, I'm fascinated by the work of Lauren DiCioccio. Incredible! Her obsessively detailed handiwork lends permanence and beauty to yesterdays fleeting headlines.

Stunning.

via laurendicioccio via a cup of jo on her fabulous friday links!

fuel for thought

Charcoal or gas? What camp are you in? Talk amongst yourselves. This post might provide fuel for thought. Pun most definitely intended. You might also enjoy this list of top grilling tips from Country Living. Have a great weekend!

images via garden and gun and country living

gaga for summer

We had a good weekend over here.

I delivered this quilt.

Farmers market was eventful. I sat and listened to a tuba and euphonium quartet playing the Beatles and Lady Gaga's Bad Romance. I was also fascinated by this giant pea sheller machine shaking the purple hulls and creamers right out of nature's garb.

Sadie opened her new Etsy shop and Sophie put together a happy summer outfit. I hope you had a good weekend too! Here's another cool cover of Bad Romance via Ken's excellent music blog.

happy things

Here are a few things making me happy today:

Ice cold watermelon cut into perfect little chunks for easy grabbing.

Platinum.

And this song.

Don't you just love the whistling?

What's making you happy today?

Happy Thursday everyone!

knitta please

On our recent trip to Austin, I saw up close, in living color, the handiwork of

Magda Sayeg, graffiti knitter.

The girl knits everything she can get her hands on!

Lamp posts, street signs, crutches and even a smart car!

So unexpected and fun. Here is a link to Magda's site if you'd like to see more.

craft nerds

I recently spent a very pleasant afternoon crafting with Sophie, Sadie and Fay, my super fun sister in law. We signed up for the paper chandelier class taught by the cool girls over at Paper Nerds.

I made these "spacers" by winding colorful strips from magazines around a chopstick. I sealed the edge with hot glue and cut them into different lengths.

Mine isn't so much a chandelier as it is a mobile. Either way, I love it!

We started with a ring made from bendy branches. I wrapped mine in lilac bias tape from my Aunt Nadine's sewing box. She would've loved knowing a whole room of crafty girls enjoyed her rick rack and other goodies.

This is Sadie's dream catcher/chandelier combo. More is always more with Sadie. Love it!

Here is Sophie's creation. I love her double levels and great variety of trims. Beauteous!

Fay's is nice and colorful. Very ambitious design! She even took supplies home with her. Fay wasn't ready for the fun to end. Thanks to Shannon and Tish, THE Paper Nerds. This weekend they're teaching paper marbling. Check out some of their classes here. Or let your kids make one at home. Minimal supplies, big payoff! Happy Crafting!

old guys are cool

I've had these gents in my inspiration folder for awhile now. I love old guys. When I heard 60's t.v. personality Art Linkletter died today at 97, I thought about these guys again. They are still making cool stuff in their 90's. Irving Harper, above, designed some of the most recognizable housewares of the 50's and 60's. Today, at 93, he makes intricate paper sculptures. Read about his genius right here.

This is Vollis Simpson, a retired farm equipment repairman. Vollis uses scrap metal and junk yard parts to create enormous metal sculptures he calls Whirligigs. A mere 91, he lives and works in Lucama, North Carolina. Read more about Vollis here.

Don't his Whirligigs look oddly perfect in this holiday window for Bergdorf Goodman?

And if you aren't familiar with Mr. Linkletter, take a look at this clip back when television shows were sweet. I vaguely recall...

photos from NY Times, Design Sponge and American Visionary Art Museum

plants on strings

Look at these incredible string gardens as seen on Poppytalk via Aesthetic Outburst. Super cool. See more here.

Happy Monday everyone!

the art guys

Doesn't this party look like a blast? That tent is the best! It was designed by The Art Guys out of Houston, Texas.

These guys do a little bit of everything ranging from performance art and large scale installations to sculptures and intricate drawings. Most of their pieces are based on very ordinary, accessible objects. I love this one called Get a Hold of the Situation, made entirely of clamps and plywood.

This table is called Plywood Lace.

Click here and scroll to the bottom of the page to see a couple of short videos. My favorite is Bottle Rockets. These two have a great time making art together. Thanks to Kalynn for today's post inspiration. Happy Monday!

sooner or later...they break everything

I laughed to the point of tears

this morning. All thanks to Shit My Kids Ruined, a hilarious site where people send in photos of the destruction wrought by their offspring. We're well beyond this stage (unless you count that fingernail polish remover eating off the surface of the table top incident?! well, maybe we're not past this stage)..

...maybe that's why it's so stinkin' funny.

I actually had my eye poked by both daughters. Once with a paintbrush and once a fingernail. The pain brought me to my knees. But the patch is so becoming.

The old pepper in the fish tank trick. Good one.

So many great ideas. Tough to pick my favorite.

Today's fun via Alan and Eric Lidji