Another Visual Obsession: Artists At Work, Part II

Hello Lovelies,

More visual goodness - collected over this past summer - on the theme of "Artists At Work" that I love so much lately:

 

Helen Frankenthaler at work on a large canvas

Enjoy!
Alix of TeaButterfly.

Alix of T

Another Visual Obsession: Artists At Work

Hello Lovelies!

Anonymous artist's studio

"Artists At Work" is the title of a book of photographies by David Seidner that Ireally love. It's also the theme of a visual obsession I had lately: collecting pictures of artists and their studios/workshops, close-ups of canvases and brushes, etc... Maybe the fact that I have been a bit creatively stuck can explain my current fascination with the theme.


Anyway, here are a few faves on the subject:

 Recent view of Lisa Congdon's studio

 

  Playing with paint at Sandra Juto's house 

 Last page from a manuscript by William Styron, or the writer at work, via tumblr

A Scandinavian studio, via tumblr

 Playful abstract art on the walls of a Brazilian home

And don't even get me strated on the subject of home offices! Here's just one, a great one from Paris:

Enjoy!

Alix of TeaButterfly.

New Visual Obsession: Falling Raindrops

Hello Lovelies,

image source: tumblr

As you may know, I'm a highly visual person. My mind/eye connection work in a peculiar way - maybe it's the same for other visually-trained creatives, or maybe it's just me, but I tend to see things in recurring patterns, that i call my (visual) obsessions. An obsession is a visual pattern that currently interests me and that I tend to see everywhere I look at a given moment. After the while, the novelty of it wears off, and I move on to the next obsession. Some obsessions remain with me at all times, they're my core obsessions.

Anyway, I've been subscribing to a lot of tumblr blogs lately, perusing litterally thousands of images, and connecting the dots between seemingly unrelated images - my fave kind of intellectual sport. A pattern that has stood out was the one showing raindrops fallung,n be it in animated gifs or otherwise.

Here are a few favorites:

Literature-inspired graphic poster by Evan Robertson 

Above: both silk Ikat weavings by Polly Barton

 

 

Above: both ceramic bowls by Lucie Rie.

 I've also been researching a lot of David Lynch's paraphernalia, more on that in my next post. Here's just a preview, from Lynch's "Nudes & Smoke" photographuic series:

 

Other obsessions currently include: b&w home decor, with a heavy accent on the black side of things, artists at work/play in their atelier, as inspired by the photographs of David Seidner, with close-ups of tubed of pain, brushes, back of canvases etc...Also: anything Cy Twombly, artwork - usually the typographic kind - that is decoupaged then reconstructed, lots of scenes involving tea-related objects as usual, and for a quirky side of things, funny elephants' images that I collect for my nephews!

I Want a Simpler Life but... Where Do I Start?

Hello Lovelies,

original image via - text added by me.

This blogpost is a bit of a note-to-self kind, but i am publishing it here so it might be useful to others, too.

Well, do you want, just like me, a simpler, slower, more filfilling, zen-like & do-what-you-love kind of life? Do you want to actually live your dream life? OK, me too! ;-)

...But the task of simplifying may seem daunting and well... not so simple! We're often at a loss as to where do we even begin!

That is why I did a little research online and found out 3 must-read simplicity resources.

First, I highly recommend ypu read a short, simple personal story, so you can get the picture. This is simply because, if you know what your dream is, you can start & achieve it! Or, as Jennifer and Aby put it: "Living Your Dream Life Begins with Knowing What You Want."

a beautiful reminder to just "stop & smell the roses", via

You can then have a look at a very thorough zen guide to simple living that answers simply the difficult question of "where do I start?". I suggest you pick a maximum of 5 points (out of this list) - simply choose the ones that are particularly appealing to you, and start working on them... now!
I, for instance, love points #9 #13 #14 #15 of the ZenHabits guide mentioned above.

So, in a nutshell, determine what is your biggest dream/goal and read/act accordingly.

Roughly the same thing as the ZenHabits guide, but in French, the "Par où commencer ?" guide to personal development.

In closing, my motto, beautifully calligraphed:

image via

Enjoy!

 -Naomi of TeaButterfly.

PS: if you're willing to dig deeper, there are literally tons of reading material on and offline including these pinterest boards of mine:

* visual candy to help you get organized at home
* articles (less visual) to read about "getting things done"
* visual inspiration : what a simple life looks like

And, finally, the Brain Pickings site has a whole range of articles on the subject of "do what you love" for a living. You can start by this one: "How to Find Your Purpose and Do What You Love"

Reflections on "What Makes a House a Home?"

Hello Lovelies!

 image source via

There are many ways to make a house feel more lived-in and cozy. I love this advice: "Surround yourself with happy memories", found here at the Whole Living website, and illustrated by the above picture. I also like this advice: "Get cuddly accents", found here, as illustrated below:

Today, I'll publish another (!) excellent excerpt from the May 18th 2013 GON newsletter, because YES, it is that good and I highly recommend you subscribe to it! This short article deals exactly with the important question of "What Makes a House a Home?"

Excerpt:

***

"My friend's 7 year-old son, Jack, is a very outspoken and fun child. His new thing is to point at beautiful and big houses and declare that's the kind of house he wants to live in.

The other day, his mom reminded him that the size of a house doesn't necessarily make it a loving home. That it's the people living inside a house that make it special.

While he may be too young yet to understand the message of her statement, I wasn't...it was a GREAT mind jogger for me.

I love organizing and decorating homes. I enjoy watching HGTV, reading home improvement magazines, and scanning the latest ideas on Pinterest.

BUT a home doesn't mean spending lots of money on redesigning a space or buying the most expensive furniture. A home is a place we and our children can go to for comfort and security.

Fortunately, we can create that space by investing our time and energy with the people that matter to us the most.

I hope you have a wonderful week and make sure to enjoy the individuals that comprise your life!"

***

 

image source: Fi & Livvy's Cozy Home


Newsletter excerpt: (c) Copyright 2013 by Maria Gracia, Get Organized Now!

* Copyright, contact and reprint information:
http://www.getorganizednow.com/contact.html

* To subscribe, visit:
http://www.getorganizednow.com/free-ezine.html  


In closing:

photo source: World of Interios, via

You can find a lot of visual inspiration through commented slideshows about lovely, cozy and lived-in homes here:
at AT (cozification article)
at RS (5 ways to create a cozy home)
at Whole Living (13 ways to a cozy up at home)  
I also love the home inspiration posts by Jane, at her lovely "Ill seen, Ill Said" blog.


Enjoy your home!

-Naomi of TeaButterfly.