things are better with a parrott

Whew!

What a week!!  So much has happened...where to begin?

I opened my Etsy shop with much success!  My first sale came from the super talented Jen of Swallowfield.  Jen is a mixed media collage artist based in none other than Portland, Maine {yay!}  You can check out her work here.  Her new zinnia print is lovely {& it would go great in my green bedroom!}. 

Always looking for new design ideas for greetings & prints, Cathy, my best friend from college, came to me with a dilemma: a huge blank wall!  How delightful, I say!  She has a beautiful quilt from Urban Outfitters & wanted some prints to match.  Ask & ye shall receive... .:ahem:. as soon as more gocco supplies arrive.  Poor planning on my part.  Apparently I have gone flash crazy & used all my screens.  But it has given me a lot of time for drawing ideas for prints & I believe they are just about ready!  I love queen anne's lace {I could not choose just one} & have been trying to think of how to incorporate it into a new design, so this is a great opportunity.  Once my new supplies arrive I will get goccoing!

After doing some work in the garden, Rich & I finally made it to the Providence Open Market on Saturday in downtown Providence.  It was fun to see the handmade goods people had & how they set up tables {getting ideas so I can join in next craft season...perhaps?}.  I was excited to see Amy Burhoe of Amy Burhoe Designs there.  She makes one-of-a-kind fused glass items, like rings, pendants, and earrings.  They are gorgeous & I actually bought a ring!  I know...shocking really since I wear very little jewelry, but it is so pretty & I am actually wearing it as I type.  I am hoping to make it back a few more times this summer & early fall.  It looks like there are a lot of different vendors listed on the website, but there were not too many there the day we went. 

Sunday we went to Scarborough beach.  It was a perfect beach day.  It was nice to relax, play frisbee, & go exploring on the rocks!

I will be back, perhaps later today with our Vermont camping adventure!!  There are a few pictures here, however there will be some of us floating down the White River {after I scan them!  We used a good old waterproof disposable camera!}

{!!!}

As if this past weekend was not amazing enough {Rich's family met my family for the first time, finally got to check out Local 121, painted the living room an amazing chocolate brown/vanilla...more on all of these on the next post when I have photos} BUT....

My gocco card was featured on poppy talk!

I love this blog for all of its designerly inspiration and it is one of my go-to blogs for beautiful imagery & indie artists & designers.  I had a lot of catch-up to do on reading my favorite blogs because the last week & a half has been a bit nutty getting ready for our families to visit, so this morning when I got into work I 1. chat with  my officemate for almost 30 minutes 2. read my e-mail 3. put in a vacation time request, which I got, yay! 4. drank coconut coffee & read blogs.  As I am reading poppy talk I see she has created some amazing gocco post cards & was thinking how I really need to work on some more prints...I keep scrolling & reading & I see she has a section entitled "more amazing things being done with gocco" & I see some cool things I have been staring at in the Gocco Pool on Flickr {a daily viewing habit} thinking to myself "These people have it together.  They make amazing things with their gocco, like these bags & this funky card, & have Etsy shops.  I need to open my Etsy shop..." & then I see my sunflower card!! 

Tonight I am going to work on taking photos of my other cards & flat notes I have to put in my etsy shop {which is set up, it even has a banner on top...just no products!}

Thanks again to poppy talk!

More on my weekend later.  I need to like...do work or something...!

Pretty City

I have lived in Providence for 6, going on 7 years & this is the first picture I have ever taken of the city.  Kind of amazes me because it is a pretty city with an ever-evolving skyline {as you can see a crane on the right} & always something fun to do.  I do not get downtown, or as they call it "Downcity" in the winter often because...it is just too cold & we are usually off in Vermont or Maine snowboarding, but now that is summer {yes, indeed I can finally say it!} I get to shed the winter clothes and enjoy the city!

Rich & I went to the Cable Car Cinema, an arthouse movie theatre showing independent & foreign films in Providence where you can sit on {very old} couches.  We saw Avenue Montaigne, a fun, "slice-of-French-life" movie that makes you want to sit in the little cafe in the movie & watch all the arsty-folk stroll by.  I highly recommend it, if it is in your area.

When we walked out of the theatre, it was a beautiful night, one where you know summer is here.  I was about to get in my car when I decided to take a moment to look at the city.  It is a view of the city, from the south, I do not see very often as we live on the northern side.  I love the lights reflecting off the river.  Even though Rhode Island is the Ocean State, you have to drive a bit {30-40 minutes, which is a bit here in RI!} to get to the ocean, which is one part of Portland {Maine} I miss.  Providence & Portland are very similar in size & their skylines remind me of one another, but in Portland, you only have to step foot out of a shop, bar, or restaurant downtown, onto the cobblestone & you can see the ocean.  However, Portland does not have Waterfire.  I have not been to Waterfire since I graduated college two years ago.  I am in hopes of going a couple times this summer.  And with Rich having his fancy new camera now, we can take some nice photos.

Well I am off to clean house a bit.  Casey & I are lounging at the moment, but I suppose I should get some things done, like go buy tickets for 5 concerts we plan on seeing in Providence this summer {summertime = much music to be enjoyed!} & getting ready for the Red Sox v. Yankees game this afternoon!  We went to the game last night as well, big bummer as the Sox lost & it was a super slow game.  But who am I to complain when we get free tickets...?

Enjoy the loveliness of the weekend!

p.s. wondering where that gocconess that I was talking about is?  I did it it, not so please with the outcome, still working on perfecting it...perhaps tomorrow evening?  We shall see!

In Search of...

Harlequin ducks!

.: my apologies for the small photos...I need a new camera :.

Rich and I went on an adventure to Sachuest Point in Middletown, Rhode Island on Sunday.  This 242 acre National Wildlife Refuge is renowned for the presence of the largest winter population of harlequin ducks on the East Coast!  We were so excited by thought of actually seeing a harlequin duck.  We confirmed with a passerby that indeed, the ducks were near the point, off the rocks, past the loons.  We saw about 50 loons before Rich spotted the first harlequin.  We stood in awe, sharing a pair of binoculars wondering how we could climb down the rocks as fast as we could, but not scare them away.  We reached the water just in time for them to swim by and for us snap as many photos as possible (wishing we had a larger lense to really capture the beauty that is the harlequin duck).  You can check out an amazing photo here.  Though I did not capture it in the photos, we were able to see their beautiful color and bold white stripes.  Ah!  So amazing. 

A brick Rich found in a tide pool. 

Along the side of the road we stopped to take a few of these home to remind us of the day and to bring a little beach to the indoors.

The Newport Bridge.  I love acting like a tourist when I am not.

You may check out more of my photos from the day here.

I cannot go without mentioning the equally fabulous part of my weekend:  Cathy came to visit!  My best friend from college, now studying to become a vet in Oklahoma, was back for a night full of sushi, drinks, and laughs with Larissa, Deb, Dom, and Rich, and a day full of shopping on Thayer and Wickenden (ye olde stomping grounds...well...are they still stomping grounds if you still live in the city?). 

I could not ask for a better weekend with better people.