Wabi Sabi

Wabi Sabi - The Japanese art of seeing beauty in imperfections.

It celebrates cracks and crevices and all the other marks that time, weather, and loving use leave behind.Things that resonate with the spirit of their makers' hands and hearts: the chair your grandfather made, your six-year-old's lumpy pottery, an afghan you knitted yourself (out of handspun sheep's wool, perhaps). Pieces of your own history: sepia-toned ancestral photos, baby shoes, the Nancy Drew mysteries you read over and over again as a kid. It is the lines in a persons face that lets us know how much they have laughed, considered carefully, grimaced in their lifetime. It is flea markets instead of warehouse stores.

One of my dear friends, Amanda, introduced me to this philosophy. It encompasses all that I have recently learned about beauty. In a consuming society that has become plastic and particle board it is a treasure to stumble upon things that have the "Wabi Sabi" glow and beauty.

I thought of this philosophy the whole time I was in Boston last week. It was so full of history and beautiful architecture, every crack and crevice had a story of its own. I was so lucky to get to tag along with my sister while she was there on business. My senses were in overdrive as we walked through the streets and parks. I couldn't get over the amazing buildings that were built so long ago without the technology and heavy machinery of today. I was in complete awe the entire trip. Here are a few snapshots I took along the way.

This would be my doorstep if I lived in Boston. Every doorstep was different, unique in its own way.

Quaint little courtyard in the middle of two buildings.

Out of control...

That is what Z said as I was rummaging through the house finding anything and everything I could spray paint white or red to accessorize my office. It's amazing what a fresh coat of paint can do to something old and overlooked. Things I had planned on selling in our GS have now become new treasures. I've always been a sucker for make-over shows and now I get to witness it first hand with silly little household trinkets.

Here is example 1: Old Tray Z had at his bachelor pad. Probably purchased at Pier 1. Cute by itself but really doesn't fit in anywhere in our house anymore. It was in my "let's get rid of it" box and I rescued it because I had a vision...

It has now become a tray to hold my desk accessories.

Example 2: This is a bird my sister got me for Christmas.

La Fonda Turquoise

First of all, I love my desk. I love it because it is real wood (not the particle board of my college days), I love it because it is La Fonda Turquoise, and I love it because it is exactly what I have been looking for and I made it that way myself. There is something to be said about a little elbow grease that makes something mean that much more to you.

Here is the journey my desk and I have taken over the last 10 days....

Desk Before:

The desk primed and ready. We used a can of Kilz ordorless primer (started out with primer in a spray can...fail).

Z helping with the priming. It didn't take long for him to jump on the bandwagon.

The desk paint completed. La Fonda Turquoise is the color

Item #1 on Summer "to do" list...

After obsessively blog stalking for the last year, I thought it only fair for me to start my own. So here it is post #1. As I wondered aimlessly through the blog setup and HTML codes, I realized I have no idea what I am doing. But I have a whole summer to figure out how the blogging world works!

Last summer I was planning a wedding and building a house. This summer I have another huge project on my plate...decorating our house. We moved into our brand new home in November. I was completely overwhelmed by the blank walls. Blank walls are not good for someone like me that needs multiple choice options, not endless possibilities. So I did what any other overwhelmed, overworked, newlywed housewife would do in the middle of the busy school year, I put it aside until summer.

Now it wouldn't be "that hard" of a job if it weren't for the fact that we live in Oklahoma. Z and I's taste in decorating is very different than that of the traditional Midwest/Old World style. Now don't get me wrong...I love brown and bronze! But since I dreamed of living in a New York brownstone or in a cottage on the beach, I am bringing that style to our house (or attempting at least).