adventures in art & design
Family
Thrifty Baskets and Outer Banks Art
Aug 12th
We’re just getting back from our family vacation in Nags Head, NC! We had a blast hanging out on the beach and touring around nearby Ocracoke Island and Manteo. We love these little islands because they offer a wide variety of local artists’ work.
One of our favorite places to stop is the Kill Devil Hills Cooperative Gallery and Studios right in Nags Head. KDH Coop is an artist run cooperative featuring a wide variety of artwork from local artists. There’s even studio space upstairs where you can often see the artists at work!
Another great place to check out is the Pea Island Art Gallery on the Outer Banks. They carry a wide variety of local artists work as well in various medium, which I really enjoy.
I’d love to still be hanging out on the beach and spending my afternoons pouring over the awesome artwork. Unfortunately, we had to return to reality. And since we’ve been away for a while and still have family visiting, I haven’t had much time for thrifting. (sigh) BUT… I do have a few treasures to share with you that I’ve been saving up!
We picked up these beautiful baskets at an estate sale a couple weeks back. I still haven’t decided where they’ll live or whether or not I should paint or stain them. I think they’ll look nice in our master bedroom once that’s redone this Fall.
We always try checking out the estate sales on Sundays because that’s usually when they’ll cut the prices by at least 50%. So, yep, I got these lovely baskets for $4 instead of $8!!!
We also picked up this gorgeous basket at another estate sale in downtown Richmond, VA. The tag said it’s a rice basket but I couldn’t find a good reference online anywhere. This too was 50% on a Sunday afternoon. I believe the original price of $36. Right now she’s hanging out in our office which is in the midst of a redo so we’ll have to see if she stays or moves to the basement’s entertainment area.
So I’m off to spend time with family we have in town from Nebraska that we haven’t seen for 8 years!!! Soon life will be back to “normal” but for now I’m soaking up this special time with family! I hope you’re enjoying your summer too!
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Flying Melons and Salty Air
Aug 4th
We’re on vacation in Nags Head, NC this week. It’s so wonderful to be away for a while and just be together as a family! We’ve been spending lots of time at the beach of course. Yesterday we decided to take the ferry over to Ocracoke Island for the day. What a neat little place!
We had lunch at this roadside cafe, Flying Melon Cafe. Such a cute little place right off the main road through the island.
This adorable porch greeted us but with temps in the upper 90′s, we opted in indoor dining. And boy, what a treat it was! We tried a variety of dishes, anything from Sweet Potato Pancakes with Orange Butter to a Spanish Mackerel sandwich. Everything was YUM! It was the perfect meal to get us ready for spending the afternoon at the beach and exploring the island.
Today is going to be a lazy, indoor day. Some of us got a little too much sun yesterday. Hhhhmmmmm….let’s see what kind of trouble we can get into today! I just might have to check out some of those thrift stores I’ve been seeing along the way. Stay tuned!!!
Sick Day
Jan 8th
How come whenever I have a break from school I get sick? I just don’t get it. I make these grand plans for completing projectsand I end up in bed. Not very productive.
So here I lay, completely exhausted with zero energy. At least Mr. Jake is keeping me company. He’s such a good snuggle doggy!
I’ve been coughing, watching episodes of NCIS on Hulu, and sneezing. Fun, huh?
I know I’ll be feeling better soon. I hope you have a wonderful, relaxing weekend.
Hugs~
Snowy Getaway-Part III
Dec 30th
Eisenhower Executive Office Building, Washington DC
I just love this building! It looks especially beautiful all decked out for Christmas. I read up a bit on the Eisenhower Executive Office Building too. It was built in the late 1800s and now houses the offices of many White House staff. Such an architectural beauty in my opinion. And just one of the sites we saw while FINALLY getting out in DC to visit the museums once they opened from the snow storm.
Our first stop of the day was the National Museum of the American Indian. The museum houses lots of wonderful artifacts and information about American Indians. There is currently an exhibition of work by Brian Jungen that is a must see! Very unique work. There are two gift shops in the museum as well that offer books, music, jewelry, etc. honoring the American Indian heritage.
We visited many other Smithsonian Museums including the African Art Museum, Smithsonian Castle, American Art Museum, and the Hirshhorn Museum. The great thing about the Smithsonians is that there isn’t an admission fee! Of course donations are welcome.
Then my wonderful husband took me to the Textile Museum! Let me just say it was the cherry on top of a sweet getaway! The current exhibits were amazing. There is the Mary Baskett Collection, which is Japanese Fashion as well as the Innovations in Nuno. Oh, and an AWESOME gift shop! 
Ok, off to spend some time with the family. Happy New Year to all!
Snowy Getaway Part II
Dec 28th
The U.S. Capitol
So once the snow finally stopped, we were able to get out and walk around DC. Lots of the monuments and museums were still closed but we did our own walking tour of the city. We started at the U. S. Capitol Building because I wanted to see the Christmas tree.
Close up of the Christmas tree at the U.S. Capitol
It did not disappoint! Standing 65 feet and full of handmade ornaments, it was beautiful there in the deep snow.
Each year one of the National Forests of the U.S. provide the Capitol Christmas tree. This year’s tree was provided by Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests in Arizona. The 6,000 ornaments were created by Arizona school children with the theme of Arizona’s Gift From the Grand Canyon State.
The National World War II Memorial
Next we headed down the National Mall and visited the National World War II Memorial. It was so beautiful and peaceful with all the snow and minimal visitors on such a chilly day.
After a long day walking in almost 2 feet of snow and a vicious hunt for a public rest room (I’ve never had to ‘go’ so badly in my life!) we called it a day and headed back to the hotel. Monday brought open museums!!!! More on that tomorrow!
A Snowy Getaway
Dec 23rd
The Snowy View From Our Hotel Room in Washington, DC
So my husband and I decided to have a long weekend getaway to Washington, DC to visit the museums and just enjoy each others company. Leave it to us to have a blizzard come through dumping about 20″ of snow of the city and stranding us in the hotel for a couple days. 
But, we made the most of it. I got some crocheting done. We both got some much needed rest. And we didn’t let the snow dampen our spirits or spoil our getaway! We walked and walked, exploring the memorials and museums (from the outside on Saturday and Sunday) and eat A LOT!
We DID manage to visit many museums on Monday in marathon style (and have the blistered feet to prove it!). I’ll post more about our getaway in the days to come. But for now, I must catch up on Christmas preparations.
Vacation!
Aug 3rd
Yay! We are here in Nags Head soaking up some rays. Thank God for a smooth trip down here yesterday. Now, if we could just get Mother Nature to cooperate with the weather. But…we’re still making the most of our special time together and enjoying every moment! I hope you are having a wonderful start to your week too.
Stealing My Heart
Jun 26th
Ok…these guys are just stealing my heart! Meet Sammy (black retriever mix?) and Buster (long hair Chihuahua. They arrived at the humane society where I volunteer when we rescued them from a county pound the day there were scheduled to be ‘put down’. God was certainly looking out for these guys! They are both the sweetest guys, gentle and loving in every way.
Guys , and girls, like this are the reason I haven’t been blogging or crafting in the past six months! I’ve been spending my days volunteering at a local humane society and helping the doggies find new homes.
I wish you all a Happy Thursday and hope you can take a moment to appreciate the simple things in life! Enjoy!
City Lights
Dec 5th
We took a stroll downtown this past Saturday to enjoy the festive Christmas lights at the James Center. It is always so pretty!
Its hard to stop and take in the sites this time of year isn’t it? I truly enjoy doing things like this as a family and beat myself up because we don’t seem to make the time for it as often as we should. Hmmm…..Do I hear a new year’s resolution coming?! Oh, well. For now it’s back to work on my ornaments for the Holiday Ornament swap I’m doing this year. Happy Crafting!
Priceless
Nov 28th
Ok, this may not seem like much to the average person but this is a momumental event in our house! From left to right we have Jake, Izzy and Mollie-our four-legged kids! This picture is priceless to me because Jake tends to think he is the king of the clan and doesn’t usually share anything, including the couch, with his sisters. Mollie looks so vogue here don’t you think? They are all sweet and precious in their own way and I love them so. Hmmm…..I’m thinking this should be our Christmas card photo this year (with some cropping of course!) . What do you think?
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