Hartville Flea Market

Up at 5am sending Jeff and Elisha off to Hartville Flea Market to sell our bounty from purging the garage and basement. I met them out there at a more decent hour to shop and cruse the flea market with the girls (Zoe and Bella, my granddaughters and Jennifer, my niece). The weather was a little ominous so the crowd was thin, but it was Hartville - it never disappoints! I found a few goodies - some fabric and a desk chair. But the best part of the day was getting rid of all the junk from our house. Elisha and Jeff are experienced sellers and set up a great space (Elisha's touch) and sold their hearts out.

Another wonderful thing about Hartville is the farmer's market. Beautiful locally grown food from area farmers and Amish families. I couldn't resist taking some pics of the great produce.





We had a fun morning, exploring the market, eating breakfast at the Hartville Kitchen, but the girls got a little bored and it was time to go. When Bella made this face I thought she had reached her looking at "old junk" tolerance level! So we headed for home.

At the end of the day, most all the stuff was sold, what was left over was given away and Jeff brought home two nearly new tires (for my Vue) and a lawn mower. Both things we needed and were about to buy. So it worked out so well. We basically traded our purged stuff for things that we really needed and still came out with some cash! That is a new form of recycling!

Clearing Space for Change

Elisha (my daughter) is the queen of organizing. Since she is here visiting I asked her to help us purge and organize the garage and basement. If we want to move we need to get energy moving in that direction. I surrendered to her method and wisdom and just followed directions. (Well, most of the time:) She is good! It took us two days of hard labor, but it is amazing what got done. The garage is completely in order with designated areas, the basement has been redesigned and purged, even the tool room is ship shape.





We also went through and organized 6 boxes of family pictures and memoribilia that I have been trying to get to for years (maybe decades!) This girl should have a show on HGTV!

We have a huge pile of stuff to get rid of so we decided on a trip to the Hartville Flea Market on Thursday to sell it. Yipeeee an adventure - I just have to hold back from buying anything. Oh temptation!

Now the energy is all stirred up and junk has been cleared I know we are ready to sell this house and get on the road to Nashville!

Thanks Elisha for your guidance and amazing skill. You are the queen!

-- Posted on the go from my iPhone.

Sunny Day . . . Art in the Park

Today off to Hardesty Park for the 30th annual "Art in the Park" Art Show. It was a beautiful morning and the sun was shinning, although the weather report was for rain. The art gods were smiling. It wasn't a shopping day for me, but an inspiration day and I found plenty! Here are a few of my favorite finds.

These great bags are so colorful, bright and really well made. Inside they have cool fabrics and lots of pockets. They are Sassy Sacks made by artist Cyndy Naylor.

Modern Ancient Glass artist Kelly Crosser-Alge makes fabulous fused glass jewelry. I love this bracelet! The colors are so bright - and you know I love bright colors!

Unique, powerful and soulful! This art work by Jenn Cole is one of a kind. It is a cross between painting and collage with amazing images and uber cool paint techniques. Her art was a stand-out at the show for me - true creative expression. Awesome!

The next group of pics shows some cool art made from recycled components. It was so wonderful to see so much "green art" this year.

Glass and Garden art by Gordon and Peggy Black. Cool fish!! They had one in orange too. I could hardly resist buying this!

Very cool yard art made from old dishes, plates, cups and other unique items. What a great way of recycling! These eclectic pieces are made by Shabby Joe Glass Art from Michigan. Inspired!

This art was so unique - all made from recycled plastic. The colors were so bright and varied - who knew plastic came in so many colors. Phil's Art is bright, fresh and clever!

Modern metal sculptural yard art! Wow! Not only do Hammer Song Farms sell their art they also teach sculpture workshops. I could see one of these great pieces in my new backyard in Nashville. (If I had my new house yet!)

What a terrific way to start a mid summer Sunday morning with beautiful art and tons of creative inspiration.

Yard Sale Bounty

Over a cup of coffee this morning I looked over the Garage Sale listings in the Westside Leader and it looked like a pretty good day to go treasure hunting. And was I right! I found lots of treasures and things to sell on eBay, but one sale made by heart rate jump. In the corner of the garage was a box of vintage fabric. Right on top of the box was a entire bold of old cotton children's fabric - so cute - pink with dogs and cats. In the box were a few other pieces of adorable old kids fabric and at the bottom of the box was a folded white fabric. I thought it was an old sheet but when I opened it up it was a small quilt with the needle and thread still pinned at the corner. What a find! With a stop at Chick-fil-a for lunch it was pretty much a perfect day!

Crocheted Jewels

Jennifer and I visited a local bead shop called Beadtini and discovered some great beading techniques. One that caught our eye was the "crocheted bracelet". A variety of large and small beads crocheted with wire. They were unique and beautiful. Jen signed up to take the class the next week. Her bracelet came out amazing and I asked her to teach me what she had learned. She came over with wire, hooks and practice beads and gave me a lesson. I was hooked (pun intended!). I went straight to Pat Catan's and bought a small metal crochet hook and some 24 gauge wire, then came home and gathered some beads. Here are the two bracelets I made. They are so cute and colorful! Thanks Jen for the lesson!

Midwest Modern . . . . . ahhhhh!

When I saw this book a couple of weeks ago in Sew Crazy, an awesome shop in Wooster, I fell in love with Amy Butler. The book was not for sale - so I immediately came home and ordered it through half.com. It was an awakening for me and gave me a creative boost that I hadn't had in a long while. I had a paradigm shift in my thinking about style and living. Her idea of Midwest Modern is the look I love but just never saw it put together until I came across this book. It is 100% me, yet I was never able to clearly define it before. It was a crazy kind of spiritual experience. Sounds weird, but it has given me a new outlook on life and how I want to live.


She also designs these fantastic fabrics! The colors and patterns are so whimsical and fresh - I love them! I took my granddaughters to pick out some fabric and my daughter and I are making them dresses.

Dreaming of Nashville . . .

We have an Open House scheduled today and then we were called for a second showing on Monday afternoon. It is making me hopeful that the house will sell soon!!

For a while I have been thinking about a new home in Nashville and trying to visualize what our new home will look like. Then I saw this picture in a magazine and I knew this was it! A country cottage in the city. Small, cozy with a nice back yard, a garden and art studio. I can see it now . . .

Sew Crazy

Last week I went on an inspiration adventure to Wooster - a little town about 30 miles away. There is a great little shop called "Sew Crazy" that had the most wonderful fabrics - like nothing I had seen before! I picked out three fabrics and made this purse. It was great fun. It seems like forever since I sewed, it helped me remember how much I love doing it. I am planning another trip to Wooster next week!

While at the shop I saw a book by Amy Butler called Midwestern Modern. It was filled with amazing photos of her beautiful fabrics and lifestyle ideas for living. Her designs and style was inspirational. It was just the inspiration I needed to begin thinking differently about my creative direction. More about that later. . .

Life is ever changing . . .

Welcome to my new blog. This blog has a new focus - I am not teaching, coaching or trying to heal the world, instead I am turning my attention inward. This blog is about my life and my own creative journey. So far in 2009 I have learned that life is ever changing . . .

Wow, how life can take such twists and turns. Just six months ago I was heading in another direction all together. Today, I am back together with Jeff (it is a good thing!), taking the summer off from my coaching business, selling the house and planning a move to Nashville.

As we wait for the house to sell I am keeping busy enjoying my relationship, having adventures, making art, getting healthy and enjoying living a creative life. I am loving it! There is so much to do, the time just flies by. At the top of the blog I have made art collages of some of my interests and I will explain them as I go along. This is my new life . . . . for the moment. . . . it is ever changing. . . . just getting better and better! Life is good!