Everything Has a Story

"Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or to be beautiful."  William Morris

I have several paintings I've written about by my good friend Lynn from Madison....most of them are this watercolor zentangle style. They've been sprinkled all over both my houses and now the ones from Lexington are finding new homes at the condo so it's a good time to celebrate them again.

Two of them had a prime spot in the dining room in Lexington and they were the perfect focal point.  And now...they've found a perfect spot at the condo.

Because of the glare...I had a hard time photographing them....but you get the idea. 

You can see more of Lynn's work in this post....and some of it will need to find new spots at the condo too.  https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/search?q=lynn

I have probably reworked and tweaked this shelf a half dozen times....and I'm sure I'm not done...but it's where I'm landing for a while.  I love mixing textures and putting things together that might not normally belong together like toys and old books and even a tobacco spear from my time on the farm. I'm so happy the way Lynn's pieces fill in the gap with just the right colors and feel and the black frames tie into the lamp and accents on the shelf. By the way....Paul made this maple shelf in the early years of our marriage and I love the simple lines and beauty of the wood.

Everything has a story from the Hummel bookends we got from a friend for our wedding after he spent a year in Germany, to Paul's grandfather's coffee grinder, to a special vase from my grandmother.  I love Paul's Big Little Books from his childhood, and my vintage waddling toy collection, and the small jar of marbles I recently got from Angie. There are some of Adam's stars and heart rocks, and a wooden goblet made by my brother Rich who passed away several years ago.  

I picked up this beautiful little art piece at a consignment shop on an outing with Anita several years ago. It's an original painting and because it was very affordable I was able to have it professionally framed and I just love it. And even more so I love that it's associated with a memory of a great day with a dear friend. 

The hand carved figures came from Margie and Dave....and I've always loved those too. The small piece in front is a Aboriginal rattle I picked up on a trip to Australia when I was in college.

Everything has a story and everything is beautiful....to me.