Inspiration, Poetry & Words

Beautiful and Useful: Conquering Clutter

We had to move around some furniture this morning. Aveline’s crib had been near the wall of windows in our bedroom, but yesterday she discovered she could reach through the side of the crib and mangle the mini-blind slats (don’t worry, the cords have been safely tied up for a long time now.)

Swapping the position of two pieces of furniture seems simple enough, but now everything is all discombobulated. Cluttered. I’ve been on a mission to get rid of excess stuff, but honestly, I struggle with it. Not with the idea of getting rid of things, but with the actual sorting. If I’m totally honest, I would admit that when it comes to sorting, I am pretty lazy.

Image of Paper Ephemera from Europe Trip

I love the idea of minimalism. In theory, I hate clutter. In practice, I live with little piles of clutter. But I get so STUCK when it comes to sorting piles of small things — especially when they are interesting. For me, it’s the ziploc bags of ticket stubs and maps and letters and greeting cards that stop me in my tracks. I just really have a problem getting through the stashes of paper ephemera. I get bogged down, finding myself distractedly reading that one card my uncle wrote me for my high school graduation or reminiscing over the train ride from Barcelona to Paris. Gah!

Un tren de valores Renfe Barcelona Spain

And the stickers left over from addressing wedding invitations? The six pathetic pieces of cardstock left over from my last scrapbooking project four years ago? Get a grip, Gina! I don’t need these things to remind me of those memories. I’d rather have the space in that basket on the shelf for something actually beautiful or useful.

I am going to tackle the bedroom this weekend, with this William Morris quote in the forefront of my mind: “Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”

Because really, laziness is the only thing keeping me from a clutter-free house.

Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful

Inspiration

One of my Very Favorite Songs from the New Josh Garrels Album

If you haven’t downloaded Josh Garrels’ brand-new (FREE!) album “Love & War”, what are you waiting for?!

“Farther Along” – Josh Garrels

“Farther along we’ll know all about it
Farther along we’ll understand why
Cheer up my brothers, live in the sunshine
We’ll understand this, all by and by…

…So much more to life than we’ve been told
It’s full of beauty that will unfold
And shine like you struck gold my wayward son
That deadweight burden weighs a ton
Go down into the river and let it run
And wash away all the things you’ve done
Forgiveness alright…”

Inspiration

WANTED: Your Summer Photo Favorites

Summer Photo Favorites - Have a Favorite Summer Photo? Send it to Oaxacaborn!

You might have seen my tweets about this…Oaxacaborn is looking for YOUR favorite summer photo! It could be a photo you took, or one someone else snapped of you, or even an amazing shot you spotted on the internet (with appropriate credit, of course). I’ll showcase these images in a special Summer Photo Favorites mini-series here on the blog.

You’re already thinking of a specific photo, aren’t you? One that just screams “summer”? Well then, wait no longer — send it on over to oaxacaborn (at) gmail (dot) com. You can include a link to your blog too, if you’d like, but that’s not required.

I can’t wait to see what summer looks like through your lens!

Inspiration

INSPIRATION :: Shades of Turquoise Blue: A Small Collection

I’ve been drawn to this color lately. It keeps popping up all over the place, from a corugated iron church in the hills of Scotland to chevron-patterned textiles.

Season of Cherries - turquoise and red photograph from Canelle et Vanelle at Canelle-Vaneille.blogspot.com
image via Canelle et Vanille

Blue and White Zig Zag Chevron Duvet Cover from Urban Outfitters
Zigzag Duvet Cover; image via Urban Outfitters

Baby in White and Red Enamel Washbasin Wearing Turquoise Ruffled SwimSuit - via cBaase
image via cBaase

our lady of mercy, dull, scotland - beautiful ocean-green church in the mountains - maraid design
image via maraid design

Zigzag Romper - Kop Organics
image via Köp Organics

Inspiration

pinterest: my ‘dreamy outdoors’ pinboard of pretty summer days

have you heard of pinterest? i love it — it’s a fabulous virtual pinboard which allows you to easily save inspiring images from any webpage. the best part about it, in my opinion, is that it saves the source of the image, so when you look back through your pins & boards, you always know where you found any particular image. it’s also ridiculously easy to use. when you’re on a webpage with an image you want to save, simply click the ‘pin it’ bookmarklet on your toolbar. pinterest then pulls up all the images on that page, and all you have to do is click on the one you want to save, choosing which of your boards you want to pin it on.

i thought i’d share a few photos from one of my pinterest boards.

oaxacaborn's outdoor pinterest board - paper lanterns and string of lights at dusk via stacey bodevia apartment therapy via stacey bode

John Allen Photography for Anna Allen. Models: Anna Allen + Moriah McClurg. (Anna Allen Clothing) via wildflowers::pretty  (john allen photography for anna allen. models: anna allen + moriah mcclurg. anna allen clothing)

oaxacaborn outdoor pinterest board - cottage with blue doors, gardener in pink raincoat - via mytinyplot.co.uk via mytinyplot.co.uk

oaxacaborn outdoor pinterest board - via style me pretty - via tana photography and hope blooms floral design - hanging lightbulbs from treevia style me pretty (tana photography and hope blooms floral design)

normandy france - cottage at easter- via jordan ferneyvia jordan ferney

want to see the rest of the summery images? visit my ‘dreamy outdoors’ pinboard.

P.S. do you want a pinterest account of your own? leave me a comment! i have a handful of invitations available.

Inspiration

high summer 2011 toast UK catalogue

i love the wind — the summer wind — blowing through the leaves and the tall grass.

forgive me, midwestern family. i don’t believe you yet have properly fluttering leaves. that’s just wrong. so while you’re waiting for old man winter to finally get his grubby hands off the world, check out these latest high summer (doesn’t that sound exhilarating?) images from toast.

meanwhile, i’m off to shower and generally get ready for the day, as my tiny person has finally succumbed to mid-morning sleepiness. after a rough couple of days, this week is already unfolding with promise. i look forward to seeing (and blogging!) what it holds.

Images via High Summer 2011 Toast UK Catalogue
Images via High Summer 2011 Toast UK Catalogue
Images via High Summer 2011 Toast UK Catalogue
Images via High Summer 2011 Toast UK Catalogue
Images via High Summer 2011 Toast UK Catalogue
visit my other Toast UK catalogue round-ups for more visual inspiration:

Inspiration

if there is any meaning…

“If there is any meaning in the life of Jesus of Nazareth, it is this: that there is a God who create us, and who loves us so much that he would stop at nothing to bring us to him. And I really suspect that of all things that we want to know, the only thing we really need to know is that we are loved. And if Jesus means anything, he means that you are loved. I hope you know that. And I hope you stop worrying about all the stuff that you don’t know, because I don’t think it amounts to  a hill of beans.” –Rich Mullins