Sunday, August 26, 2012

~HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME




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This year for my birthday, I treated myself to...


Some hattage (so to speak).  Caps are swell when you're having a bad hair day or you just don't care to style your hair or you just feel like having something spiffy atop your noggin'! ☺



I'm also thrilled with my new Bible.  How did the publishers know to design such a nifty volume that would compliment Rose & Robin's aesthetic so well? 





This tinted lip balm by Treat Beauty smells scrumptious, but the best part of all is that it's all-natural.  And who can resist that nostalgic jumbo-sized tube? ☺



And last but most definitely not least, I crafted myself a couple of deliciously vintage-chic rings.  I adorned spunky-sized vintage mother-of-pearl buttons with vintage cabochons from Japan, along with Swarovski rhinestones which have an aurora borealis effect.  They're making me smile as I speak.  And type.  Whilst wearing one on each hand.
*You can find a couple of similar rings on my website.





All in all, I'm very pleased with my birthday treats.  As one of my cousins likes to say, we all have little things that make us happy.  Very happy ☺.







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Hmmm...it looks like it's that time again--
"Word-of-the-Day"-time, that is...

Aurora Borealis, or "AB" is a type of glass coating that gives the surface a rainbow appearance.  It takes its name from this natural phenomenon.

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Wednesday, August 22, 2012

~QUOTE AND D.I.Y. FOR THE DAY


 
"A garden is planted one flower at a time.  When faced with a large task, get a spade and dig the first hole.  Then watch the plants grow."
 
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Tuesday, August 21, 2012

~FASHION INSPIRATION FOR THE DAY




What's not to love about these photographs of Gwen Stefani by Terry Richardson for the September, 2012, issue of Harper's Bazaar Magazine?  The subscriber cover is above, and the newstand cover is at the end of the post.



(Gown by Jil Sander, hat by Alexis Mabille Couture, shoes by Charlotte Olympia)





(Gown by Alexander McQueen)



(Jumpsuit by Diane von Furstenberg)



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Friday, August 17, 2012

~POESY FOR THE DAY




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A BALLAD OF DREAMLAND 

I hid my heart in a nest of roses,
Out of the sun's way, hidden apart;
In a softer bed than the soft white snow's is,
Under the roses I hid my heart.
Why would it sleep not? why should it start,
When never a leaf of the rose-tree stirred?
What made sleep flutter his wings and part?
Only the song of a secret bird.

Lie still, I said, for the wind's wing closes,
And mild leaves muffle the keen sun's dart;
Lie still, for the wind on the warm seas dozes,
And the wind is unquieter yet than thou art.
Does a thought in thee still as a thorn's wound smart?
Does the fang still fret thee of hope deferred?
What bids the lips of thy sleep dispart?
Only the song of a secret bird.

The green land's name that a charm encloses,
It never was writ in the traveller's chart,
And sweet on its trees as the fruit that grows is,
It never was sold in the merchant's mart.
The swallows of dreams through its dim fields dart,
And sleep's are the tunes in the tree-tops heard;
No hound's note wakens the wildwood hart,
Only the song of a secret bird.


ENVOI

In the world of dreams I have chosen my part,
To sleep for a season and hear no word
Of true love's truth or of light love's art,
Only the song of a secret bird.



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And now we must tend to our "Word of the Day":


*Image reblogged

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Sunday, August 5, 2012

~SONG FOR THE DAY






"This Little Bird" is a hidden track that is included on Jewel's 1998 album, "Spirit."  The track isn't listed on the back cover of the CD, and I hadn't seen it listed on the CD insert, so the first time I listened to the album all the way through, it was a delightful surprise when the song came on at the very end.  I suppose hidden tracks don't always surprise people, but this one did for me, and that's something to chirp about ☺.  You'll love this hauntingly beautiful song, which Jewel sings a cappella with her mother.  I think it sounds like a traditional folk song, and I had assumed it's roots were in the culture of Alaska, where Jewel lived from the time she was a young child until she was a teenager; however, from what I can gather, it was written by John D. Loudermilk (who is from here in NC!) and was first recorded by Marianne Faithfull in 1964 (you can listen to her rendition on youtube).

I think you'll find that all of the songs on this album are amazing.  Though I don't agree with all of the ideas which are expressed in them, I appreciate their artistry.  This music can stand alone on its own merits without relying on a lot of bells and whistles, courtesy of a recording studio.  Lyrically, they are extremely strong.  You won't find a better lyricist than Jewel.  

On a fun note, the CD design is the prettiest I have ever seen, and the photography is divine.  It makes one rue the dissolution of the material CD as MP3's become more and more prevalent!



*This pic doesn't do the CD design justice; in person, the feather on the front is like a lovely little hologram--you must tilt the disc back and forth in order to see it really well ;)














*You might also want to take a look-see at Jewel's book of verse, A Night without Armor: Poems.


*And lastly, before finishing this post, I went outside to sit on the patio and eat a Nutty Buddy, and I caught sight of this little feather, which was nestled under some dry leaves at my feet.  Serendipity.




...I suppose that leads us to our "Word of the Day"!

...And, I can't but think of this book ;)




*I've just now discovered, all these years later, that the song is in fact listed on the back cover of the CD--it's in a different font/color and is right around the corner from the main track listing...I don't know how I missed it before, yet I'm glad I did ;)


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Saturday, August 4, 2012

~POESY FOR THE DAY





A LITTLE BIRD

A dewdrop
from the sky?

A bud
of a song?

May I touch you
Just with my eye?



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