More International Books

OK, a few more international books that I've read .
Been thinking about these,
this is a great brain working topic for me.
Always good to work your brain a bit in a new way.
Thought I'd share a few more that have come to me.
Oldies but goodies, at least most of them.
First of all, this great Australian story-

Read this years ago but still remember it clearly.
Priest falling in love with a young woman...
The settling of Australia...

Then here's a book that I read twice- way back in high school and then in college-
can't say I remember much about it except that it wasn't my favorite book ever.
Too philosophical for me.


And then we have a book more my style

Like the Thorn Birds, I'm all for these great sweeping historical novels.
A good read for a cold winter weekend.
Or for a hot summer day when you want to cool off since it is set in Russia.


And I LOVE this mystery series.  I've read several.  This is the book that came out in 2012. Louise Penny is a Canadian Quebecois writer. Excellent writer.I recommend her. Her detective Inspector Gamache is such a hottie and kind of man you'd love to be married too-(not to say my husband is less than that...ha-ha)

And an excellent horror story. Though a real oldie-


And an Italian book that was a pretty quick read that I enjoyed.


Here's an interesting Iranian selection that we read for my book group a few years back. What I liked about this book is that is was non-fiction. Seeing how people live in other places is really interesting to me.


And a play we read back in a college literature class by a Norwegian author.


OK, and I never said we could include children's books, did I?
This is such a fun series.

A great Swedish author. A great character, Pippi, is a hoot.

And here's another book club book we read a few years back that I enjoyed.  The author grew up in Prague, back when it was Communist Czechoslovakia. This is a childhood memory, sweet, tender but interesting too.

That's it for books today. I showed you this last week and I am really enjoying this read. Learning a lot about Iceland and life there.


Have a great weekend.

Happy Thanksgiving

Wishing you a happy turkey day if you celebrate.

Got to love these school style clip art images.

Makes me feel like I'm in first grade again.

I pre-posted a book post for Saturday but other than that, there won't be any other posts since I am off on a little travel adventure tomorrow and won't be home until Sunday. The hubby and myself, along with his sister and her husband are heading for Burlington, Vermont for some fun and a couple of hockey games.
We were thinking of going to Montreal Friday, before heading back to Burlington for  hockey, since Montreal is not that far north from Burlington.
But it is going to be really cold there- a high of 12 degrees Fahrenheit, and a low of like -5 Fahrenheit.
No sense running from building to building. Disappointing since I haven't been to Montreal since I was a kid and its high on my go to list.

But I will have some photos to show you next week from our weekend getaway.

Happy Thanksgiving or

if you're not eating turkey

Happy Thursday.

Food for Your Soul

Not the best journal page I've ever done, but one appropriate for Turkey Day  tomorrow so here you go.

Sprayed inked background with some ghosted leaves.

I doodled the border and used some stamps from Chocolate Baroque to makes the brick pattern. Photo is from a Rick Steves brochure I received in the mail.

Oh yes and some letters stenciled with paint using a Stencil girl stencil.

Not sure I like the dark green of the stenciled letters with the other colors I used here-

but there you go, it is what it is.

So I have no school day- extra long Thanksgiving weekend.

Love this weekend. 

The start of the holiday season here in the US and although the weather today is far less than wonderful, my tv in my bedroom is getting hooked into the rest of ours so I will be able to lay in bed and watch tv on those cold winter nights.

That are here already but with many more and colder nights coming.

Dread.

So today- I might be a culinary genius today or maybe I'll be an artist of high skill. Or maybe I will be a couch potato well roasted and cuddled in a blanket.

Not so sure.

But that's the beauty of having a day off.

Tomorrow I'm off to my husband's sisters for dinner and then Friday,

a little traveling.

More about that later.

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by.

Mini Card

Here's a teeny tiny card I made using a couple of stamps from Technique Tuesday.

Tree image is from Chocolate Baroque stamps.

I noticed this is now no longer available from Technique Tuesday-but I just recently picked this up.

 I stamped the giraffes twice, and cut them out to stand out in front of the trees. I painted on the clouds and added some fringey grass and tape on the bottom.

Sweet and simple.

And here is my favorite new ice cream. The yummiest. 

Tastes like pecan pie and ice cream.

I need to get another one and tuck it away in the back of the freezer for later.

Not that I need to eat all this ice cream.

But ice cream doesn't spoil that fast, does it?

I'm feeling a bit under the weather today, better than last night though.

Hope I perk up before the long holiday weekend.

Thanks for stopping by my friends.

Holiday Journal

I start my holiday journal this week. Kind of a December Daily but with my own twist. To me, the holidays start at Thanksgiving not December 1, so my journal starts with Thanksgiving and goes through the start of the new year. I actually cheat and start mine the day before Thanksgiving, just because I am off from school and its the start of my holiday weekend, so why not?

So here's my inner title page (I like to make my book really book like.) 

One thing is missing on this page- I added in a written word MOSTLY right about the December.

So the old photo of the ladies with the sled is from some art photos (Retro Christmas) by Tweety Jill Designs.  Tag next to it is stamped with an image from an Inkadinkado set I bought last year-and never even opened- but now I have used it several times already. Number stickers and little tin pin are from October Afternoon.

Stamp Francisco stamped imaged (This Christmas saying) and sprayed  background using a stencil I picked up at Michael's by Heidi Swapp.

And the thick December. I picked up this cheap placemat last year at a Crate and Barrel outlet last year, with lots of holiday words, and I just snipped it off. Love using things like that in my journals. It has other words too, like joy and peace and merry Christmas and Noel. Awesome.

I showed you this before but here it is again, my book cover (not a very good photo at all). This years holiday journal is made by emptying out an old book, decorating the cover and then I'll sew in some signatures. Last year I actually altered an old book, and the year before I made my journal in a 3 ring binder.

Got to shake it up, I say.

I'll show lots more snippets from my journal as I get pages made.

Until then,

or actually until tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping by.

Shopping Thrills

Yesterday was a shopping day. Lots of people seemed to have the same idea. Parking lots were filled.

I went to my favorite craft store

They were having a half back sale:

get a coupon for 50% of your purchase-coupon good to spend in January.

They also had a huge clearance table-

40% off and some used items for $1.99-2.99.

Got to love it!!!!

And then I went to Costco and also Barnes and Nobles and managed to find some Christmas gifts.

Barnes and Nobles had all these Dr. Who things-to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the show.

(Last night- can you image a tv show celebrating 50 years? Even Google yesterday had a Dr. Who header.)

They had stuffed Tardis and stuffed Daleks and coffee mugs and books and all kinds of super fun things.

Got a good jump start on my holiday shopping seeing we are Dr. Who fans in this house.

Got to love it!!!!!

Shopping by yourself is never as fun as shopping with someone but

shopping alone lets you do some GOOD gift buying and since it was stay home alone or go shopping,

I think shopping was a good pick.

And I take it back,

I didn't go alone.

Just the shopping part.

Mr. Doggie went for a ride with me.

He loves going shopping with the girls-

or in this case,

girl.

Photo not from yesterday but Mr. Puppy who hates his photo taken didn't see this one coming.

So today we're into what feels like the deep freeze-

Even some flurries last night!

A little chocolate martini too-YUM!!!!

And we had a great hockey victory last night- we beat BC 5-1.

5-1!!! Boston College- they always win.

But not against us. We were their first loss this season and we beat them the last 3 times we played them.

Go Maine.

Anyhow-

I am hanging home and relaxing and enjoying a quiet day!!!

Probably time for the woodstove...

But it is also so relaxing since I only have 2 days of work this week!!!

Thanksgiving on Thursday and

a little adventure planned for the weekend afterwards.

More to come about that.

Happy Sunday my on line friends.

More International Reading

Thought I'd add a few more books to international reading list I started last Saturday.

http://fat-emma.blogspot.com/2013/11/international-books.html

I know I've read a lot more than I listed last week, but

who can think of everything you read in the last 50 years of your life?

(Man that makes me seem old-

50 years of reading,

NO WAY!)

I know, not exactly international as Pearl S. Buck was an American.

I'll be showing you more as I find  or remember them.
I am almost finished reading Elizabeth and her German Garden right now-

It is a wonderful charming book and I think what strikes me most is that even though it was
 written in 1898,
yes 1898,
it seems so current in some ways.
And here's a new word for me-
SELFIE-
a photo you take of yourself on your phone.
Love it.
Here's another book I am anxious to read


This book is kind of a travel story of Iceland. Sarah Moss is British, so a little more of my international reading even though I read a lot of British authors so I guess it doesn't count.
But hey!
So I am off today to my craft store for their annual half back sale-
get a coupon for January for half of what you spend.
Love it!
Make it a good day.

Art Journal Pages-Using Freebies

Made this bright busy background using Dylusions ink and stencils and then decided it needed something. I've been using  cut out photos in several pages lately- love them! They all come from a Rick Steves travel brochure that somehow arrived in my mailbox.  Feel like I am being green while creating and that's a great thing in my mind. This guy in the photo was actually making pasta but I added the punched out circles- like bubbles.

Ha-ha.

And this page wasn't suppose to have so much writing on it, but once I started,

I just couldn't stop. You can see I swirled and curled and just kept going wherever my pen ended up. The big tissue word is from some tissue in a Teva shoe box. (more me being green!!!!) I added the man cut out (I cut him from a sheet of old photos made for arty projects that I picked up on a discount table for 10 cents) and some silver music stickers that came as a freebie awhile back in a scrap order. Might as well use them up.Love using these free things in my art. Not only free, but so ecologically conscience.

That's my post for today.

Thanks for visiting me.

Getting into the Spirit

Made my first holiday card the other day.

Am trying to get into the holiday spirit- you know

change over from making fall things and moving into winter and Christmas.

I am definitely someone who needs to be in the "mood" to create something, and that is especially true for Christmas.

One thing I have been doing to motivate me is to listen to some music- the Pandora app on my phone has lots of oldies-the best- to jam to while I work for that squeezed in hour in the studio after work and before dinner.

Plus it been so COLD it feels like the dead of winter here in New Hampshire.

Katie (my daughter) has gotten me hooked on these love story movies on the Hallmark Channel. They are doing straight Christmas love stories lately. You know the outcome when you see the first 15 minutes and they always end happy. No academy award winners, but just plain relaxing fun. In small doses that is!!!

Oh my!!!! 

This card looks a little top heavy- but its actually the angle.  As you most likely know,

if you photograph a part closer, it looks bigger. (So that's why people hold fish they catch while fishing out in front of them when they take photos-so Mr. Fishy looks bigger-sometimes a lot bigger.) I looked down when taking this photo so the top looks bigger-and hence-out of proportion.

Stamps are Designs from Sheena. 

And before we get to Christmas we first have turkey day-

1 week!!!

Here's a card I put together for my daughter for that day.

Pilgrims from Hero Arts, words from Flourishes, and the turkey is a Quickutz die.

And inside I made this fun little pop-up using a Sizzix pop up.

Words and turkey here are from Hero Arts.

Not sure I like the blue background but it does make the colors pop.

Hope you enjoy my cards.

Thanks for stopping by

Stencils

Tried my hand at using a stencil burner to cut some photo stencils this past weekend.

Actually didn't go too badly BUT

I really disliked the blue Martha Stewart stencil plastic I'd picked up at Michael's.

I don't recommend it.

It doesn't uncurl!

It's hard to keep flat.

Its blue and hard to see through to your photo underneath.

But anyhow-

even with the difficulties I had with my stencil sheets,

I tried a couple of photos.

They came out ok, but it was the first time I ever did this.

The only stencils I've made were with my die cuts.

But anyhow, let me show you.

Nothing to brag about, but I am still impressed with my first attempts and 

think I will like what I can do with some practice.

I do say, if you know my hubby and daughter you'd be able to pick them out from these stencils.

That's what  I am really pleased with.

The most.

I'll use these in my journal.
Did order some other stencil sheets off of Ebay and lets hope I like those better because I want to cut some more.

Keeping this post short,

I have a long night tonight with our National Honor Society Battle of the Classes event tonight. Be dragging tomorrow for sure!

Still its for a good cause tonight-

and we'll get money for scholarships.

Hope you get a little art time today...

or fun time...

whatever your muse is.

See ya!

Wishing Journal Page

Short little post today.

Thought I'd show you this journal page.

Blue and green sprays, and some black paint stenciling.

I outlined the shapes with a white pen.

(Stencil by Dyan Reavely).

I stamped the beach word several times as you can see

(stamp from Technique Tuesday, Allie Edwards).

Then I doodled the palm tree and cut it out on black paper and ran it through the Scan and Cut.

Lets me store the shape

plus I could make it bigger.

So I cut it out on white paper and then sprayed it and stenciled the leaves

(stencil from Tim Holtz).

Die cut the chair

(chair die is from Die-Versions).

That's my page.

That's my post.

That's all for today!

Hope you'll visit again soon.

Leave me a comment if you'd like too.

Cool Skies

I've been sky watching again.
Searching out sunshine in what short days we have-
and they're only getting shorter!

Sunrise off my back deck one morning last week.

Fuzzy but another morningwith some cool watercolor skies.

The bottom of my driveway when I got home one day last week. It was only 4:15. (And only 29 degrees-Fahrenheit)

And there were some pretty wisps in the sky on my way home Friday after I picked up Katie at school. This photo is kind of late...you can just see the moon as a white spot in the sky.  Before that the sky was some wisps of blues and greys and white.

  I thought it would make a great sweater.

This was the moon Friday night.

This photo is bright and makes you feel like your looking into a lightbulb.

So its another Monday, and today it is going to rain

(so much for pretty sunrises).

Then the cold is coming back. 

Oh my.

 Luckily it was nice on Saturday and warm,

so we went out and finished up the leaves.

Dave worked on fixing up some driveway ruts too.

I am really glad I got that job done!!!!

Once my snow tires go on on Wednesday I will be ready for snow-

UGH!!!!!

Not in my head though.

Never ready for snow.

So did you do anything fun this weekend?

We went to see Thor at the movies Saturday night.

Dave and I.

Then the daughter calls and we end up meeting her on her boyfriend there.

So much for our date night.

But it was fun and I enjoyed the movie.

Yesterday it was dark and damp all day.

Rather a downer.

But Katie needed to go back to school early so we went out for breakfast at a local

place called the Farmer's Kitchen-

which I go by every morning on the way to work and want to go get breakfast,

so it was YUMMY! and a treat!!!

And later when we got home I tried to motivate myself to go play in the studio

but it just wasn't in me.

More like a nap and some reading kind of day-

with a fire in the fireplace and the darkness,much more cozy to snuggle on the couch and

relax.

Before a busy week.

New reading book for me

This book was mentioned in this book

which I recently read and enjoyed a lot.

So I picked up a used copy of this book

and so far I am liking it.

Elizabeth and her German Garden was written in 1898 so it is a classic.

Plus, it kind of falls into my international reading.

Oh yeah,

on that note, 

I found a book of Latin American short stories I had on the shelf and had read a 

long long time ago.

So I am going to reread a few stories.

Really serious about doing some of this international reading.

So what have you been up to?

Thanks for stopping by.