amanda briggs at dear ada

the sun will come up...

I love the morning. It's my favorite time of the day. There is so much possibility and time and energy to get after the things that come to mind or are on a list. I always feel kind of excited in the morning because some kind of adventure or progress or discovery lies ahead. Ok, so I feel the excitement of adventure more on Saturday and Sunday morning, but I do also feel it to some extent during the rest of the week too. The world looks bright and sunny even if it's raining in the morning. At night I'm less optimistic and often a bit whiny. Morning, good, evening, not so much.

One of my favorite blogs, russell davies, had a great post about the morning and work called lightweights are late that I totally loved. Mornings are even good on workdays, especially if it means getting lot's of stuff accomplished before noon. Here's to the morning.

reliable comfort

I've been thinking a bit about the perfect uniform idea again. What is the goal of this perfect uniform thing that keeps flitting in my head (and why am I so obsessed with it, but that's a question for another day)? It's not really about a particular style but rather about finding our own perfect uniform. Because everyone has different likes and needs and bodies and preferences. So the madras short concept works for me and will probably be absolutely appalling to someone else. Which is ok, of course. The core concept for the perfect uniform I'm thinking about is reliable comfort that leads to a real confidence, day in a day out. Confidence because we feel really good in what we're wearing. Variation on a proven theme that works to make us feel fabulous and comfortable. It's the idea of stepping off the fashion merry-go-round for a while, to find a signature style that allows us to feel good, age gracefully and have fun in the process.

Or maybe this is just an elaborate story I'm telling myself so I can justify getting a couple more pairs of jeans...

story objects

I have always liked the stories that random groups of funny and meaningful things tell when put together. The one in the picture sits in front of an old collage I did a million years ago and includes a buddha head I bought for peace of mind before a recent surgery, a vintage sprinkler head I found at a garage sale, a tiny enamel blue bird pin, a vintage dog sculpture I got at the summer antiques fair and a new bud vase, filled with love in the mist cut from the garden this morning. Recently, I found these great trays from publique living which work as a perfect canvas for these kind of collections.

A few years ago, I was lucky enough to visit the Eames house in Santa Monica which is available for tours through the Eames foundation. The wonderful arrangements that Ray Eames used to make of precious objects and fresh flowers throughout the house are kept up to this day by the staff of the foundation. They are so beautiful and very inspiring.

dog philosophy

I saw a great bumper sticker yesterday that said, "more wag, less bark". Words to live by.

2 please.

Summer's (supposedly) on the way and it's time for some new shorts to freshen up my take on the perfect uniform. Check out these great men's distressed shorts from Old Navy of all places. They're made out of a washed madras, are nicely detailed and fit great, even though they're made for a guy. All this for $20! If the product is good, I'm all for getting it cheap. And at that price, like my dear husband says: "take two, they're small".

liquid sunshine

It's one of those rainy late spring days. Actually it's almost summer but it's still raining here, with moments of sunbreak and then a downpour and then sun again. The roses are at their prime right now but they're also taking a bit of a beating from the rain. Oh well, they're still pretty glorious, regardless.

here kitty.

This piece of art is done by the artist Malia Jensen whose work I have loved for a while but just didn't know it. I'd seen this fabulous beaver many times over the past few years and had always been moved by it's presence, incredible crafting and accessible warmth. But I didn't know that it was done by Ms. Jensen until I went to the Elizabeth Leach gallery to see another show and noticed these intriguing and glamourously colored ceramic pieces on a shelf. I then found out that they were created by the same artist who'd done the wonderful beaver sculpture I'd admired for so many years. It was a surprise that such apparently different pieces of art, in terms of scale, material, finishing and detailing, were created by the same person. One piece so big and raw and rough, the other petite, glamorous and sweet, with both having such amazing crafting and attention to detail. Very nice.

color week: red friday

One thing to do with a bouquet of red tulips at the end of their life.

color week: blue thursday

Turquoise blue and navy blue and tasty too.

color week: black/grey wednesday

This image has always made me feel a bit sad. I don't know why. But I love it just the same.