Sylvia's Simple Shots

The tomato plant which my sister brought back at the end of June is producing fruit.  My Mom used to order seeds in February, start plants inside in April and put plants in the garden late May and got results in July to September.  That takes patience.

I did keep it watered and with good sun from the east for long enough each day I got tomatoes. There are still some to come.  Better results than the place downtown.

The marigolds are doing well too!

Very happy! 

I finished this book recently.  A Vintage Affair bye Isabel Wolff.

Phoebe has opened a vintage dress shop filled with wonderful dresses, coats, handbags, and much more.

She gets a call from Mrs. Therese Bell a french woman who is interested in selling some of her vintage clothes. They meet at the elderly lady's home and spend time going through the treasures. There is a blue coat though that is off limits and not for sale.

Emma is Phoebe's best friend who has recently passed away under very difficult circumstances. 

There are 4 men - A remarried father, Guy the ex, Miles the older man with a spoilt 16 year old daughter and Dan the color blind newspaper reporter.

The story has WWII backstory which I loved.  It all turns out well but not with a few curves.  Wonderful story!

With the help of my aunt's husband the shelf I prepared was installed this week.  

It helped to get stuff off the floor and put away instead of in the way.

It is all light stuff up there - coolers, plastic bags, the canner, and some paint boxes.

The brackets are from IKEA - Krokshult which I really love.  The shelf is smooth knotty pine from HomeDepot. I did have to put about a foot off the end.  I sanded it by hand and was really happy with the final result.

I attended the Allied Arts Council's Open Art Competetion reception on Friday night.

There are over 100 pieces of art in this and on the walls of the Spruce Grove Art Gallery. 

Wonderful evening - seeing fellow artists, good food, and good conversations.

The best part was having the awards in the Black Box Theatre where everyone could see the winning art, the artists receiving their prizes and all seated and comfortable.  What a great idea!  The theatre holds 175 and it was very nearly full. Great support for art and creators.

I did not have art in any shows this year due to renovation at the old place due to flood, listing and selling my place down town, buying a new place in the west, renovation the new place before I could move in, packing and moving, and then unpacking into a smaller place.

I brought the last of the moving boxes to the ReUse center this week!  Yeah.  It felt really good.

I found a cobalt blue plant pot at ReUse this week.  What an amazing find. No damage as far as chips or cracks.  

The inside and outside have evidence of the surface being affected by sitting in some kind of liquid.  That is near the bottom.

Not sure which plant will be placed in it but what a great addition to the living room.

I found a small cobalt blue votive holder which will be added to the couple I already own.  They will look great with candles inside.

I purchased a new to me shower curtain this week because the lace one has yet to show up from packing boxes despite there is very little left.  There are several missing pieces still.

I am sure they will show up but I was tired of seeing the bathroom looking unfinished so I bought one I could live with long term so the other one not appear.  I have been living with just the liner for months.

Beautiful green foliage at the bottom with embroidered butterflies stitching on going up the curtain. Very transparent so does not darken the showering space at all.

Five dollars well spent.

Slow Stitching - July 2025 - Week 4

I continue with my social group themed stitching piece as part of the Comfort Coverlet hosted by Kathryn at K3N Cloth Tales. 

I have added a few more groups. I belonged to a card making group on line for many years. There were challenges and exchange groups. I made cards and mailed them away every month for years.

I belong to a sewing group at church before the pandemic and has been reborn after. I belong to the slow stitching community through my participation with K3N's projects on You Tube.

I belong to an art group. I participate in art shows, regular meetings and social events.  Those have been curtailed due to moving but I look forward to getting back into it later this summer.

Sylvia's Simple Shots

Captured a Northern Flicker poking in the ground for worms in the park as evidenced by the dirt on his bill.  They are mostly ground feeders so that is where I have found them in the past.

I was visiting my sister and her husband for a fish fry on Friday for supper.  A tradition for all the Fridays in Lent.  It was delicious as always.

We headed to a local shop which sells ice cream and we in luck to have Maple Walnut flavor.  Hers and my favorite.  We ate them in the car so it would not result in a mess before we got home.

I was in Camrose for a funeral.  

With about 45 minutes on my hands and not being able to find the thrift store I headed to the Candler Gallery.

Found some wonderful art.  I recognized at least one artist who had art on display.  One of my aunt has had art in the gallery in the past which was why I knew where it was.

There was some nice pottery as well.

There is a gift shop in the front of the main level along with an art supply store.

Nice to enjoy a few minutes before meeting my sister and husband for lunch at A&W then headed to the funeral of my cousin's father.

While having a conversation with the gallery owner she let me know about the paints they carry which are made in Canada.  With the tariff situation good to know there is a Canadian option.

Tri-Art produces watercolor, acrylic and oil paint and is located in Kingston, Ontario.

I only picked up the watercolor brochure as that is what I would purchase.

The gallery ships Canada wide but a trip would be a nice break.

My good leather purse has a worn strap and the holding loop let go in the last couple days.  I don't have time to fix it right now so I packed it but I needed a replacement.

I found this bag at Goodwill for just over $10.  Inside is a tag that asks you to register your bag and it will be returned to you from anywhere in the world.

I was thinking this must be worth something if it has that kind of policy. There is a store in WEM which would explain it being here. 

I expect it is very good quality so I gave it a good wash in and out.  It is a bit floppy so I will have to do something to give it a bit of structure.

The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss is a book I finished recently.

A small book written by the same author as books I have recently read which I borrowed from my brother in law.

This is the story of Auri who leaves deep below the University.  A young lady that chooses to live a solitary life with animals rather than people.

She explores the vast spaces below ground and has named them all and has created paths and ways to travel from each. 

Some spaces house her special things, one is where she sleeps and all are very interesting. 

Very interesting character.

Sylvia's Simple Shots

I decided to have flowers on my balcony this year.

I bought some frilly blue pansies and some larger regular yellow ones.

I have added some dill, basil and parsley as well.

I dropped by my sister's house with a box a paper we had rescued at Trash to Treasure.

Her and her daughter were working on a barn for the back of the float she was placing in the local summer parade.

It is going to be very cool!

I had a nice visit with a friend who recently lost her husband.

They had sold the house and rented an apartment they hoped he could return to following a lengthly stay in hospital. He was advised that would not happen and he was going into long term care. He quickly declined and passed away.

She invited me to her new home and we had tea and a wonderful catch up visit.

We headed out to Joey's for supper that evening.

My aunt and I visited the exhibits at the Harcourt House gallery this week.

Caitlin Thompson is a fiber artist that recycles natural fibers from thrifted shawls, scarfs, etc into works of art.

She dyes the fabric, does fabric collage and embroidery in her art pieces.

Lovely show.

We had Vietnamese food for lunch in a nearby restaurant - Saigon Taste.

I had a quick trip to Calgary this weekend.  I picked up my sister on the way. 

We dropped plants to both of her children. Had a nice visit with her son's family and checked out the garden and caught up on things.

We brought lunch to my niece who has been working hard to support her family and the extended family and needed a few hugs.

We went for walk to the local mall for a few groceries for supper and then headed north.  

It was just the girls and we had a great visit.

Sylvia's Simple Shots

My aunt and I went for a visit at the Night of Artists Gallery at Bonnie Doon Mall.

It holds wonderful art from local artists.

There is pottery, sculpture, fabric arts, photography, acrylic painters, watercolor painters, and much more.

The show in the feature area was art from local high school artists. What an opportunity and encouragement to young artist to be in a gallery.

We really enjoyed our visit and had a good chat with one of the local artists who was manning the gallery that day.

I am always in for a tea related book.  The Tea House on Mulberry Street by Sharon Owens was a great read.

Muldoon's Tea Rooms owned by Penny and Daniel Stanley has started looking a little outdated.  We get to know the regulars who seek refuge in this cozy tea shop.  Daniel is the wonderful baker who produces delicious baked goods. Sadie who is dieting comes to indulge, Brenda comes to right her letters to Nicholas Cage which she does eventually posts and Clare returns to find a long lost soul mate.

Penny and Daniel's marriage experiences an renewal as well during the story. 

We all have to be true to ourselves and move head on into our life.

My aunt and I visited the Paint Spot as well the day of our outing as she wanted some Japanese papers.

Much of the supplies in this store were beyond what I was willing to pay but I did find this tiny eye dropper bottle I can use for essential oils.  I have looked for one at the health food and they did not this size. 

It measures 1.5 inches tall so is very tiny.

I love it.

I sliced open my thumb on a microplane grater while doing up some hard cheese for my pizza. I did get a small nick the first time which I should have heeded but did not so with the lesson unlearned it got a little harder.

Needless to say the pizza was on hold.  Fortunately, this time I did not get lightheaded but there was a lot of blood.  I had to hold it above my head for 10 minutes to get it under control.

After dousing it with peroxide I wrapped it in this towel tight in order to get the blood flow to stop.

I was able to get a bandaid on it before I headed to bed.  It hurt a lot!  My right hand was out of commission for over 2 weeks.

I decided that I needed a light where my ironing table sits when I am sewing.

The general room light is behind me so I was on the hunt for a lamp.

I managed this lamp which uses standard size bulbs came home with me.  It got a thorough cleaning. 

I have hung it on the wire shelving near my ironing board.

It is working very well. 

What a great book!  Pilgrims by Paul McDermott.  This is a true story.

Val is 74 and has cancer.  Paul is in the healing profession and has come to visit Val as a Hospice Home Support worker.  Paul is a young man who feels led to do this work.

He is there to provide support to Val as she comes to the end of her life.  He provides physical support - some yard work, shopping assistance, and other things. They talk about life, books, and much more.

We learn about Paul and Val in this book.

Very good book and should probably keep it and read it again in the future.

Allied Arts Council - 2022 Open Art Competition

With a bit more time on my hands and Mom getting the care she needs I was able to put one piece into the Allied Arts Council Open Arts Competition.

I dropped off this piece on Saturday and had lunch with my aunt.

The show is open to the public starting today.  There will be some great art on display so if you can visit the gallery that would be appreciated.

I look forward to seeing all the pieces.

Title: Blushing Beauty
Size: 16.00 x 13.00 inches
Signed Photography Print
Mats: Double white archival
Frame: Wood Black wide
Print: 8.5x11 inches

 

This is an Oriental Poppy in a beautiful coral color. I found this one in a front yard in my neighborhood.  

I love the wispy background created by the thin stems of the poppies around it. With the farther elements completely out of focus creating a beautiful bokeh background.

Sylvia's Simple Shots

My aunt and I took a walk along the river with our cameras recently.

It was very nice temperature wise and the sun was shining.  A great time.

As you can see, though the river is frozen but we still have no snow.

Love the fall grasses in the foreground with the reflection of the sun on the river.

Gorgeous blue skies which are typical for Alberta.

We heard geese which I was surprised were still here despite the frozen water.  Who knows what they are thinking!

I joined another aunt for a visit to the Art Gallery.  The weather was still nice and I was tasked with driving us downtown and finding parking.  That went well.  It was really weird to be out and about.

First time, I used my vaccination record to visit a non essential place of business in 20 months.

There were 2 exhibitions I was interested which both featured colorful art.  Mostly abstract as well.

The blue and pink piece was about the how color can be dispatched to for social control.  The pink color which is used in institutional settings was studied in 1978 and was found to make inmates violent.  The barn is a piece about our abandoned farm buildings.  Love the abstracts.

Our first snow arrived on Sunday Nov 14th.  

It continued to come down for a few days in varying degrees.

I had to go out on Wednesday and the roads were like slushy soup as they had not been ploughed yet.  Yuck!

I had several places to stop and it was a bit harried but I managed to keep the car and myself intact.

I made roasted vegetables yesterday.  I used the large roaster so I could keep them to one layer.

Yams, red onions, brussel sprouts, rutabaga, turnip, garlic and carrots.  A bit of olive oil and seasonings.

I added fresh oregano in the last bit of its time in the oven.

They were yummy.

That means its time to head for groceries as I am completely out of veggies in the fridge.

An Irish Cottage by Patrick Taylor is the book I finished this week.

Love this author and his stories of a medical practice in rural Ireland in the 1960's.  

In this book the Donnelly's looks their cottage to fire and the community rallies to find the family a temporary place to live.   Then further efforts are made to rebuild the burned out cottage.

The civil unrest with north and south regions plays a part which I don't really understand well.  

Another theme is women's reproductive rights in the 60's where one women is not wanting another child and another woman desperately wants one and is having difficulty conceiving.

The doctors and their house keeper and neighbours provide wonderful stories!

The Perfect Christmas - Debbie Macomber revolves around a young woman who wants to be in a relationship.

She finally decides to hire a matchmaker for $30,000 to find the perfect match for her by Christmas.

The matchmaker gives her several tasks to prepare for her first date with John, her perfect match.  She stands outside a mall ringing bells to raise funds for a charity, dressing up as an elf with Santa at the mall, and prepare Christmas dinner for her neighbors in the apartment building.

Each of these provide opportunities to learn things about herself and ensures visits from the matchmaker to monitor her progress.

In the end, she finds the man of her dreams but it was not exactly as the matchmaker had planned.

It was okay for a light read.