July 31, 2021

Social Saturday | July 31

Nicole blog + shop, social saturday artwork, lately, life

Here we are already at the end of July and beginning of August! The summer seems to be going past very quickly- how about for you?

This has been the Year of Reading for me- I’ve just finished book #33. I’ve been trying to spend my evenings reading, rather than browsing the internet. It’s been nice to get through quite a few of the books on my list, although of course, as soon as I cross one off, I find several more to add to the bottom!

I requested Mistress Pat by L.M Montgomery from the library (review: not my favourite of her books, but still enjoyable) and the copy I received was this beautiful first edition from 1935! I love it when they keep older editions of books in circulation, rather than replacing them all with new copies.

We had some exciting visitors to our place; my sister walked out the back door, and spotted two lost Mallard ducklings in the flower bed! When their mom never showed up, we brought them inside and put them in a brooder, and then my mom brought them to the wildlife rescue shelter a couple days later. They were so tiny and cute, and actually very quiet as well. (At least compared to the chick we’ve got inside; we named him Mortimer, because he never stops cheeping!) They were hard to photograph and got a little bit panicked when my sister picked them up, but I’m glad I got a couple of pictures to remember them by.

I’ve been working on some more watercolour illustrations; this time houseplants. I’ve been trying out this mini format- just 4″ x 4″ and I quite like it. So far I’ve done a Kalanchoe, a grouping of Cacti and a Pothos.

I’ve added them to my Society 6 shop as greeting cards or mini prints. There are “hello”, “happy birthday” and “thank-you” cards as well as blank ones available. I will also be listing these original paintings in my shop here, but am waiting for some mats I ordered to arrive first (hopefully they arrive soon!).

Ps: I’ve also added some more photography prints to my shop, and am slowly adding more as I have the time.

How has your summer been going so far? I hope you have a great weekend!

July 3, 2021

Social Saturday | July 3

Nicole social saturday flowers, garden, life lately, nature, summer

Lately…

Reading- Just finished Pat of Silver Bush by LM Montgomery. I enjoyed it, but it’s definitely not one of my favourites of hers. It had a rather slow start, and took a while to get into the story. But, I did request the second one in the series from my library, so I’ll see if I like it better.

Loving- Taking photos of all the flowers in my mom’s garden. So many beautiful blooms, and the camera really doesn’t do justice to them!

Watching- The Closet Historian channel on YouTube- mostly her tutorials! I especially enjoyed Bianca’s Victorian bonnet video, and am planning on seeing if I can use some of her techniques to mash up a few hats for myself.

Making- A crazy patchwork purse in a 1970’s style. It’s going to be quite wonky by the time it’s done, with nary a straight seam to be seen, but that will add “character” right?

Eating- Lemon Almond Crinkle Cookies from The Iron You blog. Just rediscovered his recipes lately, and have been saving almost every single one!

Thankful For- Cool summer days. We’ve been going through an extreme heat wave (a “heat dome”) in Western Canada lately, and that makes me appreciate the mild summer days all the more. After a week of extremely hot temperatures, we finally have one in the mid twenties today, and are all breathing a sigh of relief!

What are some fun things you’ve been doing lately, dear Reader? I hope you have a wonderful weekend, however you spend it!

June 26, 2021

Social Saturday | June 26 (Chicks!)

Nicole social saturday life lately

It’s been a while since I have posted on Saturday, but I had to pop in today to post because we have chicks! The chicks are actually a few weeks old already now, but I even though I am posting these late, I still wanted to share, since they are just so cute! My mom has a mixed flock of Black Copper Maran and Chantecler chickens. This brood of chicks is our first of mixed breeds of chickens, so instead of being either pure white or black they ended up grey! We had four hatch out, and we’re not sure what they’re going to look like when they are grown, but are hoping that they will at least be more Winter hardy.

Anyways, I’m no chicken farmer, but here are some photos of the little chicks running around with their mama hen to brighten your Saturday!

And one final photo, with this little guy peeking out from under the hen!

May 15, 2021

Social Saturday | May 15

Nicole social saturday lately, life lately

For this Saturday’s post, I have some fun news to share- we have a gosling!

I shared back in April that my mom’s geese were laying eggs and sitting on the nests. We weren’t sure whether we’d get any goslings hatching, because first year geese don’t always quite know what they are doing. When my mom was talking to some people who have raised geese for many years, they said that if you get any goslings the first year with your geese, those are a “bonus”. So, we have named this little guy Bonus!

All three female geese have been fighting over the nests, and it appears that they have all claimed him as theirs, so they are all looking after him (her?). He hatched on Thursday, and it’s looking like he’s going to be the only one…with three mothers though, he certainly won’t be lonely!

I hope you all have a lovely weekend, dear Readers!

May 1, 2021

Social Saturday | May 1

Nicole social saturday life, life lately

Happy first day of May! Is it warm where you are at, dear Reader? We’ve been having a bit of a rollercoaster lately- going from coat-and-scarf temperatures, to hot and having to wear a sunhat, then midweek there was a snowstorm and then it’s now back up again to warm Spring weather!

One of my houseplants is finally blooming, after years of stubbornly refusing to. I grew this one from several cuttings, and I believe it is a Kalanchoe- it’s so much leggier and scruffier looking than the ones I’ve seen online. I pruned it ruthlessly a few months ago, and I guess it decided that meant it was time to bloom!
This week I listened to this interview on The Daily Connoisseur YouTube channel, with the author, Richard Thompson Ford, of the book “Dress Codes: How the Laws of Fashion Changed History”. It sounds like an excellent book, so I’ve just requested it from my library.

In other book related news, I love Agatha Christie mysteries, and have amassed quite a collection of them. As I add more volumes to my library, though, it becomes more and more difficult to find copies of ones I don’t already own. But, when I went to the thrift store a couple of weeks ago, I found a whole stack of Agatha Christie books, a couple of other books, and some smocked pillow patterns.

I’ve started doing fashion sketches again. I’m not sure if I’m going to do anything with the sketches, but I enjoy the process of putting all of my fashion dreams down on paper. It’s so much easier to sketch than to sew, and it’s nice to be able to indulge in all of those garments that will most likely never come to fruition.

I have also turned one of my abstract watercolour sketches into art bookmarks. I plan on including one of these with every order that is placed either in my Art Shop, or Poshmark Shop. It’s nice to open a package and receive a little something extra, isn’t it?

So, those are just some things that have happened in the past couple of weeks. I hope you’ve had a lovely week, and that you’ll have a good weekend too!