The Birds.

A month ago, the Mr. and I went to an incredible Japanese soba house.  This restaurant, named Tei An, is honestly, one of the best meals I've ever had.  Everything served was delicious and inventive, yet comforting and soulful.  And even better yet, the food matched the interior.  While I was marveling at each and every dish, I was as equally enchanted by the beautiful, secluded dining room in which we were seated.  The style of the restaurant is beautifully modern, without being cold.  It has a warmth and comfort that I sometimes find difficult to achieve when designing modern spaces.

Above and to the left of our table was a flock of beautiful origami birds.  They seemed so delicate and whimsical in the moody, grey dining room.  I was instantly inspired by them, and knew that I wanted to incorporate something similar into our home.

I wondered, however, how it would fit in with our current decor, which currently has lots of curvy pieces, and a few modern touches.  I like to mix these things, but find that balancing them incredibly important for flow and continuity.  I'd say our place is 80 % traditional and 20 % modern.

While brainstorming one afternoon, it occurred to me, that if I could find a beautiful birdcage, I could house the origami birds.  It could be kitschy and whimsical, but most importantly that traditional meets modern balance that I really love.  And I did just that.  One afternoon, while browsing for housewares, I found an inexpensive, and decidedly plain birdcage.  Gold spray paint, origami birds, and tiny bits of string brought this idea to life.  It fills up an otherwise empty corner of the small bedroom I share with the Mr.  I like it because it isn't just a picture on the wall; it's art suspended from the ceiling and is viewable from the two entryways into our bedroom.

I'm sure this idea isn't for everyone, but it works for us.

Me Vs. Paper

I recently made some origami birds for a little project I'm doing over at Casa de Contreras.

I'm a pretty visual learner so youtube was definitely the name of the game.  Following step by step instructions is for the birds. HA! Total accident, but I'm keeping it.

Anyway... I can't wait to show you what I'm going to do with these little dudes.  Or dudettes.  

And if it ends up sucking, I'm just going to pretend I never mentioned it. Blog Amnesia.

Happy hump day!  

{Creating perfect squares}

{This is called a 'Square Base.'  It's the foundation for most shapes.  It's a pain in the a$$, in my opinion.}

{This is seriously where I got lost. Backtracking makes messy birds.  Mine are messy.}

{Big bird.}

{Big bird had a baby!}

Stripes.

{The top stripe?  That's the improvised one.}

Wow, the weekend went by quickly.  My head's spinning.  Or maybe that's from last nights wine.  Either way, I wish I could have one more day of weekend.  One more day,  at least.

So do you remember when I mentioned doing some arts and crafts?  So I did some.  And it turned out... kind of okay?

I guess to describe what I mean, I should tell you that one of my dearest friends made an observation about me that has stayed with me for a few years.  She told me that despite all of my efforts to be polished, I'm usually missing a button, or I'll have a run in my panty hose, or lint on my sweater.  I couldn't possibly be mad that she told me this, because unfortunately, it's true.  I've tried to fight it.  But the powers that be always seem to resist my attempts to change.

My DIY tote bag turned out the same way.

After all of my work to meticulously measure the width of each stripe and to place the tape down neatly, within minutes, I've carelessly spilled glitter paint on an area not designated for paint.  Damn!  So of course, I improvise and add another stripe to cover my boo boo.

All seems to be going well.  I even started to think that I'd lifted my curse.

And then I realized, hours later (what a test of patience, that was!) after the paint was nice and dry, that no, the curse had not been lifted.  My perfectly taped stripes were droopy.  And smudged.

And so, I'm just embracing it.  Droopy striped bag and all.

Imperfect.  Rough around the edges.  Sparkly.  That's my bag.