House and Home

Here's a photo I shared of our kitchen on Instagram recently. This is the only photo I've taken of the space so far because it's still not quite where we want it to be, but we're getting there- extremely slowly. The weekend before last, we seemed to turn a corner and it really is feeling like more of a home around here these days.

A home is always about the people who live there, more so than what it contains. Many of our things are hand-me-downs from loved ones, things we've made and gifts we've received. Every item has a story to tell about us, the people who live in our home, and our journey together. I love that about our house.

But a new space requires a few fresh items to transform it from a house to a home- to turn a space into something that makes your heart beat a bit faster and that functions well for everyone who lives there. I've mentioned to you before that we have rid our life of a whole lot of stuff in this move. Over the last couple of weeks, I have also started to accumulate a few things as well (very few- I'm being ultra picky about what comes in) .

Here are a few of the new things I've purchased and some of the things I would love to get for the new house...

The top three items are things I've already bought. That citrus reamer was way too cute to pass up when  modcloth had their sale recently. The mat I bought for our front door at, kitchen stuff plus and the last item in that row is a Martha Stewart home office system. I bought some of the pieces of the home office system for our kitchen which you can see in the photo above and I liked it so much, I got the same stuff for my new office space at work as well. It looks nice and it keeps the kitchen counter tops and my desk at work from becoming loaded up with incoming papers. 

The rest of the things here are all things I'd love to get for the house. The adorable mouse tea towel is from eclectic shop (I can't believe how cute that is!), the amazing pillow cover is from libs elliot- handmade right here in Toronto (her stuff is so great) and the pig jar is from lady kitschener. The radio/ MP3 player, moon mat and calendar are all on my home wishlist on modcloth

I hope you have a great weekend! I really hope to dedicate even more time this weekend to making our house a home.

♥ Andrea ♥

*I'm an affiliate with modcloth because I'm a big fan of theirs. If you click on my links and make a purchase, I will make a few pennies. And that would be very nice.*

What I've Been Up To Lately...

I'm still working on this project that is taking a very, very long time. If it's not done this week, well, I'm just not sure what I'm going to do. It simply must get done this week.



I've started working on a little something new :) I'm looking forward to sharing it with you soon.



My studio is feeling extra cozy and well organized these days.



A pile of Baby Stars ready to be sewn. I've had some requests for some recently and I've been meaning to make more for the shop for a long, long time.



John took a ton of photos of the skull we found belonging to the doe we lost a year and a half ago and made a 3D scan of it to make a replica for the kids to play with. They are very enamored with the skull and we don't want the real one to get damaged.



I am totally in love with our bread maker.



I got this little handmade nest brooch from Mel. I wear it on my coat everyday.



I'm particularly enjoying my home brews lately. This one was nettle, oat straw, lemon balm and fennel.

We had an amazing time this weekend, first at the Ontario Science Centre in celebration of our wee man's 6th birthday, then a wonderful night out at Massey Hall to see Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. The kids were a little young for the Game On exhibit at the Science Centre so, unfortunately, I didn't get to play nearly enough video games. But it was neat to see all the old favorites, learn about other games I wasn't familiar with and to see the development of the industry over the years.

It was really fantastic for Johnny and I to get out on our own for a night and see Nick Cave. It was a wonderful show. He played a bunch of the old favorites that a fan would hope for; Deanna, Red Right Hand, From Her to Eternity, Stagger Lee, Tupelo, The Mercy Seat, The Ship Song, The Weeping Song and I was so happy to hear Love Letter as well. They did a bang up job on Stagger Lee. That song in particular was fantastic to see live and Nick Cave was just as grande and sinister as you might expect. Oh and it was a lovely and unexpected surprise that some local children performed backing for him on several songs. All in all, a great show and a perfect weekend.

I hope your weekend was perfect too.

♥ Andrea ♥

A Space, Just For Me

Something's been happening to me these past few months. Since November of last year when I dusted off my sewing machine and made a permanent place for it in my home, I feel like my entire life has changed. Can a machine change your life? Absolutely. The computer certainly has changed my life. But the sewing machine? Oh, my sewing machine, I love, love, love you!

I remember looking on the internet at things that people were making just last year and being amazed. I would think to myself, 'I wish I could do that'. And now I feel like I can make anything I can think of. I stay up late and wake up early with measurements and fabric designs dancing in my head. And there are other changes too.

Now that I have my own creative space in the house (it's really just a corner in the living room next to all of the kid's toys) I am also becoming much more organized. I think I sort through and clean this area of the house more than any other place. As new thoughts and projects arise, even those totally unrelated to sewing and art, I am organizing those thoughts and creating new spots of organization for these as an extension of this creative space. It's as though I've finally allowed my creative self to stretch and breath.

In high school I read A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf. I really enjoyed this book and understood the importance of creating my own personal creative space even at that age. And yet, I have actually never done this before.The importance of etching out one's own creative space is so obvious to me now. I don't think I could go back to living in small quarters without any space for my creative self again.

If you have not made a space for yourself to be creative in yet, do it now! Taking the time and space you need, will enhance every aspect of your life! I promise.

Happy creating!

♥ Andrea ♥

Some New Haitian Art

We just bought some Haitian art at the Art Creates Change silent auction hosted by OCAD in support of the relief effort in Haiti. The little intricate set of dolls is really gorgeous. They are made from Pre-Columbian fibers and have amazing little details like the small feathers in the first figure's dress.

This colourful Adam and Eve scene was done by Antoinette Valmador. I quite like it's naive simplicity. We have it up in the play area in our living room.

I don't really know anything about these artists. It looks like some of Antoinette's paintings are for sale on-line.

We have accumulated many pieces of original art over the years. It's become quite a nice collection. I will post more of our art collection sometime.

♥ Andrea ♥