laundress

Many complain about the mundane chores; dishes, vacuuming, dusting (don't even get me started) but when it comes to laundry, for me, there is a touch of a romantic notion.  It only just recently become clear to me when I was enjoying this view that maybe I would be looked at sideways by some for enjoying the look of a basket full of clean laundry.

My clothesline obsession has been hinted at here and there and has now found a resting place here.  The rudimentary aspects of the laundress, a la Kate Winslet in Quills (minus the insane asylum and unrequited love) appeal to my senses somehow.  Was I a coy laundress in a past life, walking through halls with a basket balanced on my hip and a tune in my head?  
Fancy laundry rooms or pretty washing machines aren't really what I'm going for here.  It is really an aesthetic.  Baskets, fabric,  piles....this is kind of a new revelation and fascination.  I'll have to see if it goes anywhere from here.
Perhaps I'm just finding a little bit of zen in this housekeeping world that many overlook.  Challenging the idea that it is mindless or drudgery.  I'll keep you posted.

spring love

Just some images of the love that is blooming all around us.  The sun is finally here for a few days in a row.  And is much needed I might add.

 cousin love (shhh..it's a surprise)

 

brother love (making mama's heart melt)

bubble love with new friends

clothesline love

first patio art session of the season love

and first picnic at the park love

happy weekend!

Notes to my Future Self

If you have ever rented your home or if you do now then you can relate to my dilemma with home projects....I am very limited.  Some people paint walls, add different window treatments or shelving when they rent but we don't.  We've lived with vertical blinds for three years now.....(no offense if you like them, I don't) and change is not something that Dave likes that much in terms of decor.  He's an "if it ain't broke don't fix it" type and I...well, obviously I'm the "artsy, everything must look pleasing to my sensibility type."  So I've had to limit my changes and dream of future home ownership where I can let my interior and exterior design diva out.  When I came across this project in Garden Wise magazine last month I had a "I must remember this"  moment.  This my friends, is a clothesline trellis!

Isn't it lovely?  Hanging out your clothes along side a flowering vine and doing that thing that I love so much: making a functional object beautiful.  Clotheslines are so esthetically pleasing to me.  I love sheets, dresses, tea towels, even underwear floating in the wind.  The smell on the laundry when it dries this way is fresh, the sun bleaches out stains, and you save energy by leaving your dryer idle.  In the article they even suggest planting lavender or rosemary beneath it to encourage your laundry to smell even more divine.  Some day this will be in my backyard but until then my love affair with clotheslines will continue.   If you want to check out some photo streams of clotheslines from around the world you can do so here and here.  And for those of you that have one, lucky you!