I've been tagged

I've been tagged by lovely Kim, otherwise known as slinkymalinkicat. Thank you Kim! So here are my answers:

What is your current obsession?
Vintage lace.

What is your weirdest obsession?
Kaleidoscopes.

What are you wearing today?
Jeans and a pink top.

What's for dinner?
New potatoes, curds with sour cream and dill from our garden. Very Latvian.

What is your favourite book?
One Hundred Years of Solitude.

What's the last thing you bought?
Jade green bandana. Bandanas, head wraps and hats are another obsession of mine.

What are you listening to right now?
Birds through open window and humming of my computer. I seldom listen to music when at computer.

What is your favourite ice-cream flavour?
Chocolate.

What do you think of the person who tagged you?
I think of Kim as very open and kind hearted. I admire her for relocation to the middle of nowhere :) and I adore her Etsy shop.

If you could have house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be?
Right here where I am, in my little home town.

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go?
Any sunny beach.

Which language do you want to learn?
Would love to improve my French.

Who do you want to meet right now?
Friends in Rīga.

What is your favourite colour?
Red, white (my summer colour) and green (it's slowly growing on me).

What is your favourite piece of clothing in your own wardrobe?
Anything linen.

What is your favourite magazine?
I read magazines only occasionally. Depends on mood, cover and content.

If you had a £100 now, what would you spend it on?
Books. In a bookshop there's always something I want to buy. Or I could donate it to the local animal shelter. Decisions, decisions!

What is you favourite time of the day?
Evening. I'm especially fond of long evenings in May and June.

Do you admire anyone's style?
People who remain positive in the face of adversity. I totally agree with Kim on this.

Describe your personal style?
Unpredictable.

What are you going to do after this?
Mix some paint.

What are your favourite movies?
Ed Wood, 3-iron, Dead Man (and the list goes on).

What is your favourite fruit?
Strawberries.

What inspires you?
People. Anything people do, say or create.

What music do you like this week?
Traditional midsummer songs and the new CD by Latvian post-folk band Iļģi. Here's their newest video:



What is your dream job?
Travel journalist.

What is stopping you?
Nothing. I'm keeping this as an open option for the times when I'll get tired of what I'm doing right now which might never happen though.

If you could change something in the world to make it better place what would that be?
I would cure all the sick. Wish I had superpowers :)

Something about yourself that makes no sense?
I don't like gluing.

What is your favourite tool?
Brush. I don't mind paining walls, but smaller surfaces are fine too.


The rules:
1. Respond and rework; answer the questions on your blog, replace one question that you dislike with a question of your own invention, add one more question of your own.
2. Tag eight other people.

I'm tagging:
Alise (XauXau)
Inta (binkaminka)
Margaret (Splendid Little Stars)
Alona (rafya)
Melody (CheshireCatsGrin)
Alison (AMIdesigns)
Melinda (Autumn Olive)
You (please, feel free to feel tagged!)

The magic key

I've been stumbling through fabulous Etsy shops again. Sources of inspiration for this treasury were rafya (the title) and vart (the colour palette).



Featured shops: vart, JenniPenni, Sumikoshop, softspoken, krize, helenaemmans, ArtMind, panopoly, rafya, iragranteco, Aranwen, PearsonMaron

Midsummer flower wreath

On Midsummer Eve women wear flower wreaths and here is how you make one. I have chosen clover, but yours can be from daisies, madder or anything else you can find in a meadow.

Pick 3-4 flowers and bend them around other 3-4 flowers. Hold the loose stalks with the left hand.

Pick next 3-4 flowers and bend them around the loose stalks. Continue until you reach the desired length. The trick for making even and tidy wreath is to use flowers in similar stalk length.

To make a circle tie both ends together with a thread. Cut of the excess stalks. Voila! You are ready for the Midsummer!

And here is what I found in a sunny spot while picking flowers. First wild strawberries!

Favourite month

I like June very much and there are several reasons why this could be my favourite month of the year. First of all, it's the month of graduations - kindergarten, grammar school, high school, college, university, brother's, sister's, friend's, another friend's, cousin's, my own... There's always somebody I know having a graduation in June. Oh, I just got my diploma as master of arts! Yay! Secondly, June means my nameday which is an excellent reason to invite friends and have an outdoor party (outdoor party on my birthday wouldn't be so nice). And thirdly, the main reason why I'm fond of June is midsummer which is a huge event over here. You can't miss it! Let me list some sure signs that midsummer is almost there. Nights have shrunk to a few hours of twilight. Radio is playing songs with refrain līgo! over and over again. Almost every town and city is holding some kind of floral and craft market often involving traditional dance and song as well. People are making wood and putting up a bonfire or checking their grilling equipment. Cheese, beer and mosquito repellent are on every shopping list. Some people are making beer and that special midsummer cheese with caraway seeds themselves! Others are packing sleeping bags, buying bus tickets and getting ready to visit relatives or friends in countryside. Weather forecast for the night between June 23 and 24 has become the most importantant conversation topic. What else? You must be sure your lawn is mown and your flowerbeds are weed free, otherwise your guests can tease you about being lazy. And make sure you learn some traditional midsummer songs!

Here is the treasury I made to capture the mood of the midsummer:



Featured shops: tasteslikepurple, TijaViksna, elisasherejewelry, earlybirdcreations, pamelatang, sophistikate, WalkingToJericho, johntunger, gaiaconceptions, thePhotoZoo, neawear, LouisaRose

Wish list

In Latvia we celebrate namedays and since mine is in two days I'm going to be a little egocentric this week. My name is Latvian for dew, so today I'm window shopping for dew and dewdrops on Etsy. A few more gorgeous items for my endless wish list:

Girl and dewdrops print by yaelfran:



Dew drops stack by TreAnelli:



Arhimedes' field - dew by RachelMarsden:



Morning dew necklace by fleurfatale:

Sunday

Sundays are my creative days. At the moment I'm working on my new project (intended for the Etsy shop as well), but I think I just overdid it today. Arrgh! So I'm keeping my hands off it and letting the whole thing to rest a little. Perhaps I still can save it. Stay tuned! And here is my favourite distraction - a new treasury. This time I was sneaking in some of your Etsy shops, dear blog readers. If you have an Etsy shop at all, of course. Thank you for spending time with me!



Featured shops: ZsBcreations, BlueshineBaby, GlazedOver, Evrydiki, janeheller, namolio, ArtGarden, VividTexture, ikabags, UnderGlass, Kecky, HauteWhimsy

The time is now

Current treasury:



Featured shops: iheartnorwegianwood, Meetalls, thePhotoZoo, sofiamasri, lamixx, Kreativlink, dacedesign, sbarao, InmostLight, fieldofroses, Ulaa, GirlOnAVine

Playful black

It's time for the weekly window shopping again! As you may guess I'm always fond of discovering new Etsy shops and these playful items and amazing fresh shops I found while browsing the comments under my last three treasuries. Enjoy!

Natura necklace 3.0 by Accessorius:



Toy 005 by Mattak:



Sweet metal drops by jesophi:



Remembering by amyquerin:

La vie est belle

I just can't click away when treasuries are about to open! Grabbed one and browsed my favourite Etsy shops. The colour palette was inspired by my window shopping last week. Voila! Promise to write about something besides treasuries soon!



Featured shops: Suuskeramiek, chichiboulie, FancifulForm, Joannarutter, oishiiknits, eyeshoot, iktomi, WickedClayGirl, sonyarasi, namolio, saranorris, JenniferOrme

Yart sale!

I'm participating in Yart sale on Etsy. What is Yart?! Art + Yard sale = Yart sale. I'm offering free shipping worldwide on all items from my shop June 10 -14!

Treasury time again

Beautiful things I found on Etsy yesterday. The song (Looking for) the heart of Saturday night by Tom Waits was haunting me all day long and since yesterday by coincidence was Saturday I just carried on. Yes, I know that Tom Waits isn't singing about chocolate heart, but, common, Saturday night can have many different faces...



Featured shops: crearting, ilzuks, dgordon, kathiroussel, dearpony, thePhotoZoo, flywithme, Fishstikks, AmandaYuDesign, magdalinen, karuski, larimeloom

Meanwhile my happy butterfly brooch has been featured in this soft treasury by bijouxdellostregatto. She has adorable little jewelry shop you might want to check out!

Hello sunshine

Inspired by the summery weather we had about a week ago. Now we're freezing!



Featured shops: CassiaBeck, Sigmosaics, GirlOnAVine, ZsBcreations, SayHiBeth, ExoticFlavour, upintheairsomewhere, AidaCoronado, yellowgoat, InkspotWorkshop, SewFragrant, sweetblue

Dewdrop collection

New addition to my Etsy shop! This week I've listed three pairs of earrings from my dewdrop collection. I'm wearing similar earrings myself and I'm absolutely fond of these clear and simple glass beads and comfy copper earwires. I'm going to sell only one pair of each, so when they're gone they're gone.

Fun

Today I'm window shopping for photography again. Through the viewfinder is a technique of taking the picture with a digital or film camera trough the viewfinder of another (usually older) camera and creating a square format image with framing effect. Dust, scratches and softness are all part of this beautiful vintage aesthetic. Here are some fabulous prints found using term ttv on Etsy. I want them all!

Alberta street balloons by girlhula:



Strawberries by saranorris:



Fun, a cheery seaside pier by eyeshoot:



Morning light by JKphotography:

Colourful flowers

New in my shop: