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In case you’ve been to Some Bagels recently and wondered who painted the wall black and hung up artwork….. It…was….ME!! xox
This little oil-painted lass is by Emily Winfield Martin, author of Inside a black Apple blog, and a book I have called the Black Apple Paper Doll primer that I like quite a lot. Emily is a Pacific Northwest artist, and has been a guest on Martha Stewart. She has a very distinctive whimsical style as you can see by perusing her Etsy shop or BuyOlympia. FUN!! Another fun read is her auxiliary blog cataloging her vintage finds, Some Girls Wander By Mistake.
I’m headed to Becky’s Consignment in Uptown Richland. Open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday to Saturday and from noon to 7 p.m. Sunday. Here are some other posts I’ve done about Becky’s
Lots and Lots of stuff From Becky’s
Here’s Becky.
Me at Becky’s.
So, I met Sally Martin at church camp retreat in May. But it feels like years ago; and that’s a compliment. Life is funny because conversations turned toward what we like to do and next thing I know I’m taking photos for her CD cover. It’s even funnier that I’m not really a photographer and that our kids were running rampant around the house while we were trying to do this project. We started with a deep breath and a prayer, and here’s what came from it…..
I’m going to wait and buy the whole CD, but you can buy individual songs here. All I can say is, ENJOY!!!!
Front Cover
Back Cover
Some Extras…
Some Extras…
Hello friends! Do you remember this post I did in March on Wild Goose? Well, right now they’re having a huge summer sale so lots of prices are slashed. I have my eye on a big pretty blue vase that I think would make a sweet umbrella holder. I just…need to get an umbrella. Anyway. I have a few things for sale there, too, that I thought you might like to see. 
Welcome to a little virtual vacay to Manzanita, Oregon. It’s a quiet beach town with enough restaurants and shopping to allow you to get your ‘fix’ if you have your heart set on blowing through your spending loot. It is also within close proximity to Cannon Beach, a more touristy (though charming) area with an amazing beach featuring the famous Haystack Rock. We spent almost a week here and not only can we hardly wait to get back, we actually came back from vacation….wait for it….RESTED!
This is where we rented these keen recumbent bikes (and a kiddie trailer)! We also wished we’d bought our cheapie kite here ($12) instead of Cannon Beach ($20).
Wanda’s is actually situated in nearby Wheeler, Oregon and in my opinion is a must-visit! Breakfast was GOOD. Everything from the jam to the potatoes made me not just eat in mindless comfort-food-mode, but made me sit up and go, “Hey, this is really tasty!” While I’m on the subject of Wheeler, The Rising Star Café is another must-visit. Pepi chuckled when I referred to a red wine as ‘peppy’ without realizing (yet) that was her name. Great family dining.
Also, go visit Unfurl. Your husband might not even hate you for dragging him in. I left my boys behind so I pretty much wandered up and down Laneda Street at leisure.
In addition to being one of the two groceries in town, this one on the main drag (Laneda Street) carries some goodies from Wanda’s.
Snagged these rock candy lollies at Vintage Living, which is a candy store that carries nostalgic candies and some vintage-y items. I think I am in love with rock candy. Isn’t it gorgeous??
Disclaimer: This is not Florida. Bring a different mindset, ready to accept whatever the ocean offers you. Sometimes watching a storm from your porch and then basking on the beach in the later afternoon sun was on our daily activity list.
Manzanita Rentals– We had our eye on a place under renovation and although the place became available a little too late, I found these folks very pleasant to work with.
Ocean Edge Vacation Rentals– Although we had a bit of a mix-up at the beginning, we landed with a free upgrade and champagne, so who’s complaining? They only rent beachfront or ocean view.
VRBO (Vacation Rental by Owner)– This site has the most pictures of the places you’re thinking about renting. A good idea if you’ve never been and don’t have a recommendation. The rental agencies seem to have a friendly camraderie. Manzita Rentals recommended I check out Ocean Edge if we wanted beachfront or and ocean view, since all of their properties have one or the other.
Spindrift Inn- Nothing fancy, but good rates and… MAN! Go grab a coffee and head to the beach! A nice little stroll down the water. I believe according to my code above, this would fall under ‘oceanview.’
By the way, from the research I did these phrases seem to be used in increasing proximity to the beach, so decide how important that is to you:
Short walk to beach
Steps to beach
Ocean View
Oceanfront/Beachfront (IE, you are ON THE BEACH). Expect to pay most for this. Our place had an ocean view. It is important to me to at least have a view, since I came for the ocean! I like to keep it in my sights at all times and feel a little panicky and that I am wasting my time if I can’t see it. I realize everyone is not as emphatic (read: neurotic) as I am, so decide what’s important to you and stick with that.
A pic in our rental of a ship crashing on these cliffs we looked at every day (Neahkahnie Cliffs).
At the Farmer’s Market, we sat and ate a plate of noodles, listened to the music, and…ran into some people we knew!
Also in our tummies:
El Mariachi Loco (I recommend a regular margarita, blended),
Great Northern Garlic Company- I hear this is a do-not-miss and we missed it. Don’t do it. Go eat. Go buy food for a picnic. And don’t gloat about how good it was.
Marzano’s Pizza– Hit the spot after just an hour of beach biking!
Quick Trip to Cannon Beach…
It was fun to watch the crepe-makers in Cannon Beach. Much quicker if you are hungry and don’t want to do sit down.
It was fun to watch the crepe-makers in Cannon Beach. Much quicker if you are hungry and don’t want to do sit down.
Sleepy Monk: Really good coffee. I would like to pretend to be a foodie blogger and say I like to get a mocha everywhere I go in order to compare. The truth is, everywhere I go, I want a mocha. They made a good one. And we got some coffee to brew at home (which we are still drinking), so that makes me happy. If you’re one of the people who actually read the text in blogs rather than looking at the pictures (I’m guilty of that…except here; I kind of have read this since I’m typing it), then you saw that I recommended getting a kite in Manzanita if you’re looking for simple. My exception is if you’re a real kite person and want something more in depth, or if you actually need a repair. Go a bit off the beaten bath to see the Wizard at Pinky’s Kite Factory.
More Manzanita. Beach Beach Beach!!……
Goodbye beach.
We love you, beach!!
A Little reprise of Thigpen’s Wedding lyrics here (and a little background for why I like the song).
Dear friends, you can’t get rid of me that easily! Haha. We’ve had such a relaxing week…and now I have plenty of inspiration for those canvases that have been staring at me blankly for so many months.
I took these books to Adventures Underground on G-way and now I have 25 dollars to pick out something else. I’ve got my eye on a set of huge Melissa and Doug children’s blocks…also, there’s a train table in there. Not that I need another train table, but it does make it nicer to browse because little man has something to do besides ‘rearrange.’ 
So, like I said, we were at church camp this weekend. Husby spent several summers during his childhood going to Camp Ghormley, and I actually spent a week there counseling as a church intern. I think the intern staff also retreated there once. And I distinctly remember spraining my ankle on the steps of my cabin…oh, about ten years ago now. It just tickles me pink that after traveling from Washingon, and residing in Nashville for 6 years, we have come full circle and are taking our kid to church camp at a place that is already full of good memories for us (except the ankle).
Out the cabin window. Nice silhouette, honey! I don’t think I took this one.
I’m kind of proud of those sunbursts. Here’s the dining hall entrance. In case Christianity isn’t your usual cup of tea, ‘Servants Entrance’ is in regards to everyone, based on the words of Jesus, ‘If anyone wants to be great among you he must be servant of all.” The sign does not indicate that we go bossing the camp staff around. Better not, because they’re clipping you into the zip-line. Haha. 
A little ‘shmallow and Kumbayah action. We joked that if we were at camp when the rapture happened, we might not know. Christians actually believe in the rapture, but also in the Scripture that says NO ONE knows when it’s coming. Just to clear that up.
Frog rock! Visit Rimrock! I think ‘our’ Frog Rock beats the one below in the Canterbury Plains.
On the way home, an amazing rainbow in the clouds.
Aaaaaand, extra bonus round; here are some photos I took between Yakima and Richland. All these are taken from the car, by the way! Not bad, little Lumix!
I think I might have lied about the planes part. But check out this all-terrain firetruck. I have to admit, being a girly girl, I thought I was going to this event mostly for my ‘boys,’ but when the fireman started explaining that this rig can hold 25,000 gallons of water, and it has joysticks to control the water sprayers in the front…I was pretty smitten with this thing. Also, since they usually use this truck out in nature, the driver can adjust to the tire pressure while driving. Sand? No problem? Burning foothills? No problem. But, of course, my first love are the surfaces and textures and colors. See the Michelin Man?
Last weekend threatened rain but turned fine for Kadlec Regional Medical Center’s Kidz Dig Rigz Event, a fundraiser for the hospital. My fabulous coworker Amber wrote up ‘why’ part of the description of the event here. The other ‘why’ is just because it’s awesome. Can we do it again next year? Huh, can we?
My kid, last seen, entering the bounce house!Dear friends,
Every time I blog about Wild Goose Designs (here and definitely here), I always get such a kick culling through my photos. The place is really photogenic! And, as promised, they are having a mirror sale. I titled this with the word ‘decorators’ because that’s what they are, as well as artists, carpenters, and upholsters. If you need an ‘eye,’ they’ve got it. Now, how about a large mirror, or some decorating advice? 
Dear Friends,
Not only did I get some large canvases at Becky’s, but I can sell my old stuff here, too. I love NOT spending money on stuff, don’t you? If you buy something here and consign something here too, you’re winning all around. Becky’s does a 60/40% consignment split (your favor), and I think you can set your lower limit for what you’d be willing to sell something for. This is great for something you dont’ want to sell on Craigslist because it is too small, doesn’t photograph well, or just because you want foot traffic. The ladies there have lots of experience and know what will sell well. This is not Becky by the way. She told me her “I’m not Becky” T-shirt was on its way in the mail and I believed her. I only wish I had taken a pic of Becky! I did three posts on Becky’s a while back; check them out here!
Plant caddy $14.50 each. Beats triple through a catalog!
…from Wild Goose Design on G-Way for you Tri-City locals. I asked my husband if he wrapped my b-day present like this in royal wedding theme paper, and you could tell he was weighing what the correct answer was. “Did I? Is that a good thing or a bad thing?,” flickered across his face as he answered, “Not really…mabye, sort of.” Anyway. Isn’t it pretty?
Today’s Warm and Cool is from close to home: the corner banquette in my kitchen! Today I finally figured out why I (and many women) are so in love with throw pillows. They are like soft pieces of art. It’s so dumb and I can’t help it. The ikat dotted ones were made from clearanced napkins from West Elm. The light blue pillow is from Value Village (relax! I threw the whole thing in the wash), and the peachy embroidered pillow is from Becky’s Consignment here in Richland.
Here’s some of my personal loot:
Poppy print. Does anyone else think this is as cool as I do?
Couch, $50! This may not be your style, but I think it’s rad. That’s right. I paid $150 to have it cleaned just in case, but Becky’s only takes couches that look and smell good, so that’s a plus. 🙂 I got this couch there a while back, not recently, but the other stuff is from yesterday.
Kids’ divided plate/tray. We only had one other divided plate, so now we have two! Isn’t this cute?
3 enormous pictures on printed stretched canvases that I will simply paint over to my liking ($90 for all 3, which even for blank canvases is pretty good.)
Finally, the right size mirror for this spot! Can you tell I’ve been struggling? I will move the federal mirror, take the other two back to T.J. Maxx and paint this new one my predictable white. Does this mirror remind you of the one below? It’s on the opposite wall, and they’re about the same size. Except the one from Becky’s was $7. It’s not super nice, so I won’t feel bad freshening it up with white paint. When in doubt about something, or if you hate it, paint it black or white first. I’m telling you, it makes it sooo much better.
Am I getting a little thematic with the octagonal mirrors? I know I’m pretty thematic with all the white, but that’s not negotiable. 
Here’s a dresser that I bought at Becky’s a while back and have since painted a fun teal that, believe it or not, is incredibly versatile! I can’t think of a color it would not jive with. Sorry that I do not have a ‘before’ picture. The hardware is the same, and the wood was just kind of a blah brown; not bad shape, just not my color. It’s amazing what a coat of paint can do! I liked that I felt confident painting this dresser because I did not shell out big bucks for it; I think it was around $60 dollars. So really, you have this amazing piece by just adding the price of paint. Totally worth it.
Hi friends! I want to tell you about a little gem I’ve found in uptown Richland. I’ve had good luck there in furnishing my home inexpensively. There is a ton of stuff in there with over 2,000 vendors, but don’t be overwhelmed. Be inspired! There is new stuff every day, but here are some things I saw today:
I have a thing for geodes..
And discounts.
Dear friends, for those of you who live in the Tri Cities, I just thought I’d let you know! Wheee! Go Wild Goose! I’d rather have a hand-upholstered chair anyday. You know the materials and labor came from right here not only in the US of A but from our very own city. It makes me so…proud…sniff!
artisallaroundus 
