Eat Your Heart Out Georgia O'Keefe!

{Note: The following blog post is rated PG-13 and may not be suitable for young audiences. Reader discretion is advised.}

I like Georgia O'Keefe. She was unique and her work was larger than life- you probably know her best by her up-close-and-personal paintings of flowers.

Anyway, you probably already know this, but some say O'Keefe's paintings were ... hm, how shall I put this delicately...reminiscent of genitalia. There. I said it. See for yourself. 

source 

Don't worry, this isn't an art history lesson... but it IS about the weirdest plant I've ever owned...one that Georgia O'Keefe, if she were still alive, might have a field day with!

Remember my pretty little Lipstick Plant? My sweet little plant? So pretty and green.

Last year sometime, my little plant got one or two tiny dark purple flowers. Nothing too exciting happened with them and I didn't think much more of it. Then this year, around Thanksgiving maybe, a whole slew of teeny fuzzy purple buds started popping up on the plant. They took a long time to grow, but they kept growing taller until finally, it looked like something was growing up from inside the plant. "Cool," I thought. "Like a tube of lipstick."

Day by day the "inner flower" made its way up, until one evening I was walking past, while on the phone with my mom, and I stopped mid-sentence and blurted, "Ohmygoshmom! My plant! The flower looks like...well it looks like...a ... a penis! I'msorrybutthat'swhatitlookslike!"

 

I felt a little dirty looking at it. Although, that didn't stop me from snapping a few pictures on my cell phone and texting them to a few people, my mom included (hey, she asked!). 

Yes, some people do say it also looks like a thumb or finger. OK. Fine. I'll go with that. I wasn't thinking anything else would happen until a friend said she was curious to see what would happen when it bloomed. Cripes. It might do more!

And bloom she did. The next morning I woke up to this:

Pretty, huh?

Appropriately enough, I had a whole bouquet of what I lovingly refer to as "penis flowers" just in time for National Condom Day.

This was taken after a couple of them had bloomed...

What a weird little plant. I kind of love her.

Erm...wait...should she be a he??? Or perhaps a he-she??

Paint Update...

Thanks for all of your thoughts and suggestions about my paint situation! 

Right before I left for work this morning, I snapped a quick picture of a couple of my paint blobs. At least these look a little more grey! These are right near the window and it was bright and sunny this morning, so maybe just having a lot of natural light helped cut the yellow down. I don't know. I also took this picture using the "daylight" setting on my phone, so maybe that helped? This was closest to how it really looked on the wall this morning...

Hmm... this kind of looks like a Mark Rothko, doesn't it? I DO love his stuff, so maybe I should just build a frame around this and leave it there? Ha. :)

I didn't do any priming yet, but I still plan to this weekend. I really want to be sure my bedroom doesn't turn blue/purple in artificial light before I go and paint the whole darn thing. I'll keep you posted.

Happy weekend y'all!

Watching Paint Dry (May Be Hazardous to Your Health)

You know that expression, "It's about as fun as watching paint dry?" Well last night, when I put paint on my bedroom walls, it WAS fun watching it dry!

Let me back up... I ended up taping my paint chips to my bedroom walls the other day, in two different spots to account for lighting differences. I stared at the chips on Sunday and Monday at various points...my life is glamorous, don't be jealous...and narrowed it down to two colors.

French Silver, by far the popular favorite!

And Pebble Grey. In some light Pebble Grey ended up looking lighter than the French Silver, but at other times, a little darker and a little more tan.

Last night after work I got some samples and couldn't wait to get them up on the wall! I decided to paint a "square" (they ended up more like blobs than anything) for each color in three different spots on my wall. And then I watched the paint dry for a bit. I was so excited...

But then...as it dried it looked ... bluish...

I think the craptastic yellow EVERYWHERE is pulling out the blue tones in the paint...or maybe my retinas are burned forever.

I know the paint is grey...look... ah, so loverly...

I know this isn't the best picture (taken with my phone) but ... am I crazy? Don't these look bluish or purple-y? They definitely don't look very grey in person...and I'm a little worried! Granted, I've been mostly looking at these spots on the wall in artificial light, but I'm nervous I'm not going to get a good read on the colors.

(By the way, the edges are "feathered" so you don't have ridges when you paint over...a neat little trick I read about on Young House Love!)

Any thoughts? Should I go over the wall with some white primer and repaint some sample spots? Take the plunge and pick one of the colors, possibly without having a good read on it? Let the sample spots sit there while I prep and begin painting the inside of the closet, the doors, the ceiling, and the trim....to see if cutting down on yellowpalooza helps?

Help!

Oooh Shiny!

{Imagine me saying that like Jack McFarland from Will & Grace. Season 2...Will just had his floors refinished...the outtakes are flippin' hysterical!}

Besides finding awesome lamps over the weekend and picking up paint chips, I did a little thrift store browsing. I haven't been able to do it in a while, so it was fun and relaxing to look around. Although...I will admit, I was actually one of the FIRST 3 people in Goodwill on Saturday. I walked in behind another woman at 8:58...the store doesn't open until 9:00.

Does this mean I have a problem? It was an accident, really, I promise.

Anyway, I ended up finding this cool silver candlestick!!

With the snuffer thing attached! I've never seen one like that, so I thought it was a pretty cool find. I've been on the look-out for some silver candle holders and candlesticks for a while and haven't had much luck before. I'm actually thinking of buying a few mismatched brass ones and spraying them, but we'll see.

At $1.49, I think this baby was a steal!

For now, she'll stay on my favorite windowsill {can you see all the crazy snow out there? Ugh.}. But I am definitely considering putting her in my revamped bedroom!

So, have you scored any amazing thrifty finds lately?

The Bedroom Update

A while back I mentioned my hopes and dreams for overhauling my bedroom so I could have a lovely, airy, light, inviting space...instead of yellowpalooza. I've been slowly gathering the important elements...bedding, a few accessories, paint chips...

I found the bedding at my local TJ Maxx one day for a pretty reasonable price. I'm going to keep you in suspense for now and not share a pic just yet. I'm mean, I know. It's a duvet cover, so I will have to revive my down comforter that I haven't used for a while. (Apparently my mom learned a trick to get them all fluffed and looking like new again, so I'll let you know about that when I actually do it.)

When I was in the Twin Cities last weekend I found a few other things for my "dream bed", like a fun throw, a coverlet, and some fabric to make some pillow covers. No sheets or new bed skirt yet though. Hmm, I need to remember those things!

Today I went to Home Depot for some paint chips to coordinate with my duvet cover. I plan on hanging them up in my bedroom in a couple spots, like the experts recommend (did you know Martha Stewart paint chips actually have adhesive on the back already so you can do that?! That woman thinks of everything!). I managed to rule out a couple colors right away, but these are the ones I'm left with...

French Silver... when I mentioned to a coworker that I was thinking about gray walls she told me it would be too dark and heavy for a bedroom and chastised me for liking "dark, depressing colors". This doesn't seem dark or depressing to me. 

Cathedral Gray... initially I really liked this one and thought it was nice with the duvet, but after looking at it with the others and in the room, it might actually have more of a tan tint to it. I know you can't tell that here, really.

Dark Pewter... ok, now this is a little darker than I would go, but I still really like this color and it's such a nice contrast. Maybe I could go with this and have them lighten it? Or do one wall with this?

Pebble Grey...I know it might seem that this color is the same as one of the above colors, but when you have the cards in hand, they're definitely different. This is probably somewhere between Cathedral Gray and French Silver actually.

Granite Grey...I'd say this one is between Dark Pewter and Cathedral Gray. Pretty, but has a little more brown in it than I was expecting.

What do you think? I think any of them would be just fine and will look nice with my Parchment White trim, etc.

Now, the thing I'm REALLY excited about....lamps! After looking in a few places in the Twin Cities and here I was feeling a little overwhelmed and a tiny bit discouraged because of how stinking expensive lamps are! But when I was walking through Home Depot today I browsed the light section and found ....

two of these beauties!! On sale! For $27 each! Regularly $54! Woot! Seriously, who would've guessed Home Depot would have awesome table lamps? Anyway, the base is glass...ceramic?...and obviously white and glossy. The shade is just slightly off-white, though it looks a little more yellow in this picture (gee, could it be those yellow walls?) The height is good, I love the drum shade, and it takes a 3-way bulb! Now I just need new bedside tables...hmm.

OK, so you know my room will be full of grey/gray and white. Fear not, I do have color. Here's a sneak peek...

I found this little bird bud vase in a fun shop in the Mall of America and loved it right away. Then I realized it coordinated perfectly with my bedding! Seriously, I had been carrying a pillowcase in my purse all weekend, so to be sure, I whipped it out and voila! So there you go! Grey/gray, white, and this turquoise-y/Tiffany blue color will definitely be in my revamped bedroom!


So, what do you think??

Happy National Condom Day!!

I'm really not one to celebrate Valentine's Day, as you probably know by now. I almost forgot all about it actually... and I'm ok with that. But do check out this link...It's got some interesting fun facts for you!

In other news, I had a really fun weekend in the Twin Cities with my brother! I did lots of shopping & browsing, ate some yummy food, and had a lot of laughs...which tends to happen when we are together. :)

My good friends finally had their baby! I'm so very happy for them and can't wait to meet little Cody. Though who knows when that will be! Another Colorado vacation may just have to happen.

It's going to be a busy week. Well, starting tomorrow anyway- I have today off! So "Mega-Weekend" continues.

Here's hoping all of you have a great day, however you're spending/celebrating/dreading it. :)

Eye Candy

Maybe it's a bit silly or frivolous, but when I saw this lovely book 50% off at a store closing. I vaguely recalled seeing it mentioned on a favorite blog and once I picked it up and flipped through...I just couldn't resist.

It's chock full of glossy, pretty pictures...

 Solutions and ideas to steal...

 

And it's organized by room, so you can jump right into the part of the house you're most interested in!

But it's also got tons of tips you can really use to decorate your home...in your own style. (They even help you define your style.)  I love that there are real examples of how to mix and match things...I think being a little bit eclectic helps a place feel lived in and not too "matchy". Don't you?

One of my favorite parts (besides the eye candy throughout) is at the end...sort of like a dictionary of all things decorating. So if you ever wondered what your options for pelmets were or what the perfect curtain length was or what that particular shape of headboard was called, this section is for you!

This book makes me happy. I love all the pictures and tips. I love seeing something kind of cool and thinking about how I might be able to do something similar in my house. It's fun.

So how about you? Do you have any house-type books lying around that you love? Either for the helpful tips or for the gratuitous eye candy??

Love It!!

Woohoo! Congratulations Green Bay!!

Way to bring that trophy back home where it belongs!

Dear Winter,

Taken during the Blizzard of '09

While I consider myself to be a 4 Distinct Seasons kind of gal, it's no secret that you and I have had a troubled relationship. At times you can be so sweet, offering beautiful gifts like Snow Days (though few and far between for me), pretty snow and ice covered branches, quiet nights, squeaky footsteps, excuses to stay indoors with a warm blanket and cup of hot something-or-other, and fluffy white snowflakes that inspire people to walk around with their tongues out to catch them. These are lovely things, Winter, and I truly do thank you for them. 

But there are the other times, when it seems like you are so overbearing and relentless ...almost as if you're showing off how much you can really do- the high snowbanks, slippery streets, bitterly cold temperatures, day after day of dreary gray skies, and the early darkness. 

I'm of tired of your moodiness and unpredictable behavior. I'm tired of having towels all over my dining room to wipe up wet dog paws (though at least they're clean and wet). I'm tired of feeling like I should be going to bed because it's so late only to realize it's barely 7:00.

I think we should go our separate ways Winter. 

It's not me. It's you.

Sincerely, 

Heidi