Cherry Blossoms in Paris

Paris in Spring

Oh can you imagine the sweet fragrance of this evening in Paris? This photo brought back a a lovely memory for me. My sister lived in D.C. for many years and during my Spring visits, we would drive through Kenwood, a stately old neighborhood with brick houses and grand lawns. The cherry trees lining the streets formed a canopy.  When a slight breeze caught the blossoms, it snowed pink flowers.  The lawns and streets were blanketed in these fragile blossoms and it was absolutely magical. Although I have never seen the cherry blossoms in Paris, there is always tomorrow.

Haggens Has Arrived in North Park!

Overall, living in the 'hood is awesome but we have been a little deprived in the grocery store department. Sprouts has been "meh" lately with the fruit and veggie spoil rate pretty darn high.  So DH and I have been searching for convenient nearby solutions.  (God, I hope this isn't too boring!  When I start writing about recipes, shoot me.).  A customer told me that Food Bowl (right by our house) is a good place for fresh produce. WHAT?!# Alrighty, then.  So we tried it this weekend and actually had the pleasant surprise of being able to identify what we were eating with our eyes closed. Imagine that!

And then today we were driving down University and noticed that the old Albertson is now a Haggens.  Huh? So we pulled over and I went in to check out the goods. I am excited to report that it is beautiful. Really! Lots of organic veggies and fruits and a big selection.  I love bitter salad makings and they actually have radicchio (not easy to find).  And aisles and aisles of stuff.  They carry Bread & Cie and Sallie Rose breads (my personal favorite is the Chiabatta).  A darn good cheese selection.  Prepared foods that were actually tempting.  So run, don't walk if you're tired of the Von's shuffle and if Sprouts has let you down.  Here's to the neighborhood moving on up!

Fickle with Color

So yesterday, I'm on my knees over the Spring color combo of lime green and pale grey.  This morning?  I'm on to Pantone's Marsala which is pictured here.  When I saw this picture on Pinterest I literally gasped out loud.  I LOVE THIS COLOR SO MUCH IT HURTS!  And it's not just the color, check out the textures! I've been monitoring Fall fashions to stay on top of color and knitwear trends and that's how I discovered this. Wine is this year's Fall color.  Deep.  Rich.  Sexy, no?

Spring green!

One of the best things about owning the Grove is that I get to bring in anything that suits my fancy...like these awesome felted laptop cases, wallets, and eye glass cases.  Cut-outs were all the rage at the L.A. Gift Show. Aside from this collection, our clothing vendor has brought in leather-like purses with cut-outs in crayon colors.  As mild as our change of seasons is in Southern California I still feel them and am grateful it is Spring and that bright colors are popping up everywhere!

Get ready, get set, GROW!

Whew!  They're in!  A beefsteak, an heirloom pineapple and an isis. They may not look it but these containers are enormous. The middle one took almost 2 huge bags of potting soil to fill. We're not messing around here!

Dee thank you for the worm casings and minerals!!!  With your advice and help, this crop will be the absolute best!
Sis, thank you for helping me rearrange the deck and for doing so much of the hard work on the record-breaking hottest day of the year!  
And Krista, thank you for carefully selecting these plants for me.
It takes a village and I want enough tomatoes to feed one!

Motorized!

What you see here is my ball winder mounted (sounds kind of kinky, no?) on a motor.  Yes!  A motor!  So all those 600 yard skeins of lace weight yarn are wound without any arm action.  We just push a button now.  One of the best things about the motor is it allows me to multi-task.  So I can wait on customers while the yarn is winding.  And look at the pretty cake of yarn it makes!  Awesome!

It's Just An Hour

Why does springing ahead one hour mess us up so badly?  Feeling off for two days I was wondering what on earth was going on with me. And then I remembered Day Light Savings time (DLS) kicked in during the wee hours Sunday morning. I'm pretty sure that's the culprit.  That one measly hour.

Then I came across an article (actually quite a few) regarding the increase in heart attacks, work-related injuries, and car accidents on the monday following the DLS switcheroo. There are folks campaigning to do away with DLS based on such increases.  Man oh man, I'm all for it!

Is this crocheted wreath dorky?

I can't tell whether this crocheted wreath is dorky or not.  I suppose it doesn't matter because I like it!   I'm tempted to make one out of Cleo which has an awesome range of colors.  I have lots of colors because I recently stocked up for the summer.  I can't think of a better way to show off Cleo's rainbow than to make one of these.

I can crank out crocheted flowers like nobody's business.  Sadly enough my crochet skills may be limited to flowers.  My beautiful blanket that started with such optimism is all but abandoned because I cannot, simply cannot, get the sides straight.  I'm losing stitches and it's looking more like a skirt than ever.  My crochet teacher is in the Desert this weekend and I await her return.  I am sooooo tempted to rip out the whole thing and start again but experience tells me to wait for the teacher.  And so I shall.  Meanwhile, I think I'll lift my confidence by cranking out a rosette or two.

Creative Lettering: A Trend

Last year, I started getting interested in hand lettering.  I bought a couple of books on the subject, graph paper, colored pencils, fine tip markers, all kinds of fun stuff.  And I practice with the intent of doing signs for different categories of yarns at the shop...like "LACE", DK, HAND-DYED, etc.  And now, it seems like everywhere I look I see hand lettering.  And I realize this is the beginning of a trend.  This occurred to me while I was standing on line at Starbucks waiting for my breakfast sandwich (good lord, don't ever get one of these especially the Gruyere and bacon because you too will be addicted). And their signs give the impression that someone has written them by hand.  Funny how we think we're onto something unique and special to us and then find out that the idea has bubbled up from a collective unconscious. Not to get all Jungian, but do you know what I mean?