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Flowers, Painting & Origami

I have not had a chance to write a personal post for three weeks. I have been painting all. the. things. I think I am going to die with a paintbrush in my hand. Summer in Western New York is so short that some of us spend all summer getting our houses back in order after their winter beating. Andy and I are painting in the kitchen and making some really wonderful changes to the exterior. However, I am keeping all of that a surprise because right now, everything is a big mess. We have a yard sale planned for this weekend, and we are currently the trashy house on the block. We have appliances on the porch, and our neighbors surely must be cringing.

I have been planning this yard sale for over a year. I wanted the timing to coincide with the kitchen remodel so we could offload anything salvageable from the kitchen instead of sending it to the landfill. I have no idea if anyone will buy our junk treasures, but if not, I’ll have it hauled away to various places in order to avoid the trash.

Anyway, here is a recap of the last few weeks of randomness.

  1. The Bee Balm is going crazy, no thanks to us.

beebalm

beebalm1

beebalm2
This gorgeous flower grows wild in our horribly overgrown flowerbed in the back yard. We ignore it, and it grows prolifically. It is my kind of plant. You can actually eat Bee Balm. It has a delicious peppery taste. We recommend sprinkling it fresh on a salad or drying it for later use.

2. Our 13-year-old spent two weeks at camp, and he was so sad to leave. He is a true camper. He loves everything about  it. He arrived home with a deep tan, and his face lit up every time he told me something that happened while he was away. Those of you who have teenagers or remember being a teenager know that those moments of pure happiness and parental connection can be fleeting.  Once he was home, he quickly fell into a post-camp funk. He asked if he could go back this summer. Andy and I talked about it, and we are going to send him back for one more week at the end of August. When I told him, he broke out in the first smile I have seen since he lugged his smelly camp luggage into BHH.

3. In June, the two middle boys and I attended the national Origami Convention in NYC. (Yep! That’s a thing.) In a nutshell, the convention is four days of paper folding, classes, rubbing elbows with celebrated Origami artists, educators and scientists, and very little sleep. I reiterate, very little sleep. Origami is a pretty niche artform with applications in science and engineering as well. People who attend this convention wait all year to spend these four days with people who understand exactly how excited they are about folding paper. Of course, we believe it is about so much more than that, and that excitement leads to staying up all hours making the most of every single minute with this group of people who feel like our tribe.

Here are a few of my favorite models from the exhibition:

Owl by Beth Johnson
Owl by Beth Johnson
Rainbow Koi by Winston Lee
Rainbow Koi by Winston Lee
Fractal Spiral (from the top) by Denver Lawson
Fractal Spiral (from the top) by Denver Lawson
Fractal Spiral (from the side) by Denver Lawson
Fractal Spiral (from the side) by Denver Lawson
Unnamed piece by Goran Konjevod, who is so patient to answer all my "artsy" questions
Unnamed piece by Goran Konjevod, who was so patient to answer all my “artsy” questions. He said that when he folded this, he imagined something different, but “this is what the paper did.”
sethfriedmanbluejay
Blue Jay by Seth Friedman

Funny side note: We looked at these pieces with such reverence, and no touching was allowed at any time. However, I watched them dismantle the exhibition, and the actual artists throw their pieces around without much thought. Origami is sturdier than it looks!

4. Claire at Pillar Box Blue has amazed me again with her beautiful DIY Wallpaper Backsplash. I have this tile for the kitchen, but I am so tempted to send it back and do this DIY option. Seriously tempted.

5. As I am writing this, two men are in our kitchen installing the countertops. I see the light at the end of the tunnel, but there is a paintbrush there. Somebody save me.

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8 Comments

  • Ame Jo
    Posted July 18, 2016 at 11:13 pm

    Love those origami pieces!

    We had a solid piece of glass screwed into the wall as the backsplash at the old house – and it was possibly the only thing I liked about that place. It was SO easy to clean. I feel the same way about tile as I do about cats – those that belong to other people are fantastic, but I’d rather not have them in my house. :-p Cats are fantastic, and I do enjoy their antics, but I hate living with them (mainly because of the litter box and the fact that I can’t have plants in my room where they live). Tile is so gorgeous and there are so many awesome things you can do with it – but they come with grout. Grout is the devil. New house is loaded with tile. Ceramic tile (hate it, it’s the only thing I hate about the place) all over the place, and a tile backsplash that is so pretty, but requires me to clean the grout.

    So. I love the tile you picked out. But I also love cleaning a glass backsplash way more than grout. And with the glass and wallpaper, you can change it whenever you feel like it! Feeling blue in winter? BAM! Summery backsplash! Either way, can’t wait to see the finished kitchen, and the outside stuff you have going on. 🙂

    • Post Author
      Stacy
      Posted July 19, 2016 at 6:48 am

      I can see how it would be much easier to clean glass. I really am giving this some thought.

  • Claire Armstrong
    Posted July 19, 2016 at 8:54 am

    Loving your beautiful flower photography. Thank you for mentioning my splashback.

    • Post Author
      Stacy
      Posted July 20, 2016 at 6:21 am

      Thank you, and you are very welcome. I really do love your blog.

  • Monica
    Posted July 20, 2016 at 12:05 pm

    I chose to have no backsplash at all – it is not that hard to wipe down paint! And if it really gets dirty – you can just repaint! Cheap and easy. And of course, you can always add it later. My space is open to my living dining room and the whole house is not that large, so I wanted to keep things uncomplicated – paint was the easiest way. My contractor fought me on this and thought I was nuts, but in the end he agreed that it looked great. I put a large decorative plate behind my cooktop and it is a great focal point. Been living like this for about a year and so far have not had any really splashing from cooking.

    • Post Author
      Stacy
      Posted July 21, 2016 at 5:46 pm

      I am glad you weighed in. I bet the plate looks gorgeous behind the stove.

  • Jamie
    Posted July 21, 2016 at 5:41 pm

    Your bee balm looks great! We planted some this year and are really loving the bright color. We’ve dried some and are thinking of using it in an herbal tea. We’ll let you know how it tastes.

    I can’t wait to see the exterior changes you’re working on! Ugh…I can completely understand the feeling of constantly struggling to get the house ready for winter. Our winters aren’t nearly as long or harsh as they are in WNY, but we still feel like we’re always playing catch up to get ahead of the cold/ice.

    • Post Author
      Stacy
      Posted July 22, 2016 at 12:16 pm

      Please do let me know how you like the tea. I’m interested.

      Winter…I try not to even think about it. LOL

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