Ramblings
What’s your inspiration?
Greetings from Austin, TX.
Source: flickr.com via Liza on Pinterest
I wish I had some personal photos to share with you, but I do not. For when I travel alone to a new city, I’m reluctant to snap many photos for risk of standing out as a “tourist.” It’s a little safety concern I have. But on to the topic at hand:
I find that whenever I travel, even for business, I am inspired and my creativity is re-invigorated. Does this happen to you?
It doesn’t take much but a change of scenery, a new town or new terrain, to get my creative juices flowing. And usually within hours of hitting the ground in a new town, the ideas are flowing almost faster than I can jot them down.
It happened today when I landed in Austin. I’m here for work, but I had a few hours before my business dinner this evening. I stopped at a little cafe with a lovely outdoor patio, and just grabbed a snack so that I could sit outside and enjoy the lovely 80-degree weather before heading to the hotel. By the time I left the cafe, my notebook was chock-full of new ideas for my shop that I not only thought of, but was really able to plan in detail, during that brief time.
What is it about traveling that makes my creative brain feel like someone opened the flood gates? In Texas I know I’m digging the scenery, the smell of the semi-desert air, and the different terrain. It feels very southern and arid, from the dry soil to the scrubby little trees the likes of which you’d never see back home on the East coast.
Then there’s the fact that Austin is unlike any other city I’ve found in the US. It’s bizarre. There are food trucks everywhere, selling any and every type of food you can imagine. There are also Tex-Mex restaurants and cantinas everywhere. The town seems a little rough around the edges, and the nicer parts seem to lack that glitz and glam that the East coast cities have. That’s a-ok with me! Oh, and I’m pretty sure many of the young people here don’t realize it’s not 1995 anymore. :)
Source: austinmoversblog.com via Mark on Pinterest
But this inspiration isn’t happening just because Austin is weird. It happens wherever I go. . . and when I’m alone I find that I relish the opportunity to be away from my sewing machine and house full of projects. Maybe that’s the key.
Does this happen to you? If not, when do you find you get the most inspiration?
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Just for Fun: 12 Questions
Good morning, friends. Today I’m just going to share a quick Q&A with you. When I saw the Q&A that Mikalah posted yesterday, I was inspired to write a little. I often don’t do those long Q&As that circle the blogosphere, because I don’t want to answer 35 questions about myself and my life. But this one – only 12 questions – I can do. :)
1. How long have you been blogging? Read the rest of this entry »
Not the 2011 Borrowed Abode Pre-Christmas Tornado Tour
This December, as I watched blog post after blog post about roll through my reader, I saw more holiday perfection (decor, gift wrapping, parties, etc) than I could bear to look at. Frankly – and please don’t hate me for this – I had to stop reading them, because I was only getting more discouraged with how far behind I was with holiday preparations.
Running my shop, my blog, and working 9-5 (or longer) has done a number on me this holiday season. I could barely keep up with all of those things. As of this week I pretty much gave up trying to enjoy the holiday and was just counting down to my 4 day weekend at home for New Years’ Eve. One thing after another seemed to go wrong – don’t even get me started on the deer I ran over. That was the last straw. Read the rest of this entry »
Weekend Adventure: Mountains, Friends, Wine & Business Advice
This post is a little mix of business, wine, and fun.
In a bizarre diversion from the norm (lately), I set about having actual fun – and not doing any work – for most of this past weekend. The highlight? Spending Sunday in the “country”, driving through the mountains, wine tasting, dining, and attempting to shop in a small town.
Ryan and I headed out on this day-long adventure with two of our favorite people, who just got married in October. It’s awesome that Ryan’s best friend happened to marry an awesome chick with whom I get along fabulously. Together the four of us make a great adventuresome group. Read the rest of this entry »
Thanksgiving Recap & Impromptu Unofficial Link Party
As I briefly mentioned on Monday, Ryan and I attended three Thanksgiving dinners this past week.
I spaced out for most of the long weekend, and forgot to get photos of almost everything. However, I did snap some photos of my favorite art back home, which I’ll share later this week.
On Thursday my parents and I journeyed to Philadelphia, where we gather at my brother’s home each year. His in-laws also come – and they’re a fantastic Polish family, so they bring all sorts of awesome dishes that my family never used to eat on Thanksgiving. It’s awesome.
Thursday evening Ryan and I drove to New Jersey to do Thanksgiving with his family. It was also awesome. I talked sewing and quilting with his mom for a while, and after seeing her amazing quilts ( like the one below) I was inspired to come home and start my own.
Then, my mother hosted a large Thanksgiving, which we like to call Thanksgiving Part 2, on Saturday. All the family friends that I grew up knowing come – it’s our version of extended family. This year, like last year, Ryan’s family also came. Read the rest of this entry »
Project Updates, Wedding Mood Board, & A New Job
I’m a bit stuck this week, as I don’t have any real projects to share with you all! Unfortunately I’ve been sick for over a week with a nasty bug, one that had me literally sitting on the couch watching movies all. weekend. long. My Saturday blog post about a potential wedding venue literally was the only thing I had the energy to produce. By the time Sunday afternoon rolled around, I was ready to poke my eyes out from boredom and frustration. Luckily I had a few wedding magazines lying around, so I was able to halfheartedly start our wedding mood board.
Wedding mood board: It's just a painter's canvas wrapped in an old piece of linen.
Did I mention I have a new job? Read the rest of this entry »
Ryan Asked, and I Said . . . “No!”
Friday, in a surprise to beat all surprises of my lifetime, Ryan asked me to marry him.
But, as mentioned in the title of this blog post, my response was “no.” Sorry if I’ve disappointed you all!
Despite that, I don’t ever want to forget this past weekend – it truly was perfect.
Ryan had planned a weekend trip to a beautiful little cabin the mountains outside Charlottesville, VA. He said we’d be shutting out technology for the duration of the trip – no phones, computers, etc. I thought it was a great idea – we’ve had a crazy busy year, and Ryan deserves time with me where I’m not constantly on Twitter or blogging, etc. No problemo.
Because Ryan took the initiative to plan the trip, I briefly wondered if he was planning to propose. But no, I corrected myself, there as no way he seemed ready to do so. Heck, I didn’t think he’d even bought a ring yet. He didn’t give off any clues, either, so I thought “Oh, that was wishful thinking.”
I hadn’t been doing the impatient girl thing – you know, the “You need to put a ring on it” kinda thing. (I can’t say the same for my mother, however!) Nope, we’ve been happily living together for a little more than a year, and we’ve been dating for about 2.5 years. Our life together is crazy good, and we’ve had serious conversations so I knew we were both in it for the long haul - so I was happily going about life knowing that he would pop the question when he was ready.
We had a great Friday morning, driving to Charlottesville and taking our time to stop at antique stores along the way. Ryan had also agreed to stop at the J. Crew sample sale in C-ville for some clothes shopping. I’d heard about the sale from Jeannine, and after researching J. Crew’s labor practices, decided that I’d give them a shot.
Ryan gave up quickly, and went to wait in the car. I continued to rifle through the boxes of “good deals” for a while. Suddenly I thought “what am I doing? Ryan’s planned this fabulous weekend escape and I’m shopping? “ With that, I picked up my stuff, made my purchase, and left. Read the rest of this entry »
Last Weekend: Anniversaries & Botanical Gardens
Last weekend my parents came down to visit, and I found out it was their 35th Anniversary!
We went to Meadowlark Gardens, a local botanical garden & park, to walk around. Read the rest of this entry »
