Orphaned Elephants

Do you subscribe to National Geographic? The latest issue has a story about elephants that have been orphaned because of poaching. There is a group that cares for the little ones. This elephant is wearing a raincoat. They typically wear blankets to comfort them. They are very sweet.

Pottery Barn Organic Bedding

Pottery Barn has had some beautiful organic bedding options lately. Have you seen them?

Sea-Glass Bracelet

This beautiful sea-glass bracelet was Martha's craft of the day a week or two ago. I have a turquoise bracelet almost just like this that was my grandma's in the late '60s. This could be a fun project with a variety of materials.

Friday Featured Art: Japanese Kimono

One of the Art Institute's current exhibitions is on the Japanese Kimono. It's clear down in the basement, but I was glad that I found it - it is a fascinating exhibit. The kimonos are so beautiful. It was interesting to learn about the purposes and patterns.

Thursday Tunes: Fantasia on Dives and Lazarus

We heard a song on our classical radio station the other night, and it was so pretty. It was Ralph Vaughan Williams' Fantasia on Dives and Lazarus. It was a beautiful string version, but it reminded me of the version by the 5 Browns. Sample it here.

Henri Bendel Candles

There's a C.O. Bigelow shop at Water Tower Place in Chicago, and it has lots of fabulous stuff. One thing that I thought was pretty ingenious was this travel candle by Henri Bendel. The scents are really fabulous, and they seem like a handy idea.

Adjustable Curtain

Our TV room upstairs is on the southwest corner of the house and has no shade. So it gets really hot in the sunny afternoons. So I made a curtain to keep out some of the hot sun. Since we're renting I couldn't fasten the curtain permanently to the wall, so I used 3M hooks. I bought some upholstery fabric and backed it with muslin. I sewed twill tape hooks along the top and bottom edges of the curtain and then sewed buttons along the middle of the back. So I can hook it up in half like this or button it only part way up or leave it all the way down.

Hotel Frederick

A couple of weeks ago we spent some time in mid-Missouri. We stayed at the Hotel Frederick in Boonville. It's a lovely early 1900s hotel that's been renovated. They did a great job. I really loved these light fixtures in the lobby. They came from a hotel in Kansas City.

Friday Featured Etsy Seller: Cowgirl Snaps

Today's featured Etsy shop is Cowgirl Snaps. Sara told me about this one. I really love pearl snaps, and this is even more exciting because they come in so many fabulous colors. Time to sew something that calls for snaps!

Thursday Text: Jane Austen

I signed up to take a class this fall called "Jane Austen's World in Film and Literature." I'm really excited. These are our two textbooks. The second one is a collection of short stories from a Jane Austen competition. I'll let you know how it goes...