I have been most neglectful of my blogs for a long time – mostly, I think, because of Instagram which doesn’t require any thought or tying anything together.
Themes/connections/symbolism….oh dear oh dear.
Anyway, some summer thoughts.
Lori’s garden on Long Island…
with round pom pom shapes of hydrangeas and the swirl of hostas.
The fall of shadow on the barn with the sail boats in the window heading….somewhere.
Gone to seed dill and cilantro from the roof looking leggy.
This latest obsession with shape and color has to do with needlepoint which I have recently rediscovered – after a thirty year hiatus – since everyone has more than enough hand knitted hats.
These are my first two efforts – but they are done from kits where they send you everything in a little bag. (Erhman Tapestry). So the next step is to design my own. Frances (Cityviews/CountryDreams), has lent me a super book of Bloomsbury needlepoints by Melinda Coss which are quirky and charming and enviable.
So this is inspiration,
as are Florine Stehttheimer’s paintings currently on show at the Jewish Museum
What verve, what energy! How she has looked at Matisse and Chagall and Klimt and Gaugain – well, everyone really. How theatrical she is.
So after all that looking at things and thinking about things, a break at the diner is called for.
But, lo and behold there are the round pom pom shapes of the stools and spots of light scattered.
Back to the drawing board – well, photographing board
I go to Union Square and look at bouquets.
I go to the roof and eat cherries.
I contemplate the charming teacup sent me by Jo Paley and
a photo of some flowers in London which look like a painting.
I look at flowers collected by my granddaughters
and a photo of anemones taken earlier this summer…
So, I have a great deal of inspiration but absolutely no achievement so far – unless you count thinking about things…
Loving re-reading Evelyn Waugh and wallowing in Patti Smith’s M Train – the latter evocative of the late and very much lamented WG Sebald.
And now to stop babbling on the blog and back to designing.
Random Images 
Ohhhh, I love that you are back to blogging, Elizabeth! I miss it and have been thinking of starting up again. I know what you mean about Instagram…there are a lot of pretty photos there but it seems too quick for me. I want to read what people are thinking.
All the flower photos are gorgeous! Don’t you LOVE summer? And summer in New York…sigh… I enjoy tagging along with you on your city walks. I also take delight in seeing what people have put in their windows so I appreciate your photo of the ships in the barn window. Ships in a barn window?! Delightfully unexpected. Your grand-daughter is adorable!!! Lucky you to have so many cutiepatooties in your life.
Have a great weekend in exciting NYC!
Susanna,
Lovely to hear from you!
Yes, blogging is very different from Instagram and has its own pleasures….ie you can explore a thought and it looks so much more presentable than Facebook. YOUR blog was a great inspiration to me back in Morocco days. You had a perfect balance of words and pictures. Sending much love.
Very impressed with your needlepoints Elizabeth. Love the red wall, white window frame and boats flowers pretty too and of course your pretty Granddaughter. I agree if it’s not Instagram taking us away from blogging then it’s Facebook. I’m trying to get more back into my blog.
I’m finding needlepoint very relaxing – a bit like knitting. Can’t watch TV without an activity as I’m a very fidgety person. I’m excited about coming up with a design….probably flowers…
This made me smile and I can hear your voice from start to finish. I too remember the Ehrman tapestry kits but looking around I couldn’t see any of the cushions so painstakingly sewn in the 1970’s – where have they gone?
Great idea to design your own and more meaningful and moreover a good use of the endless phone photos that fill our lives. Look forward to seeing the first Wix tapestry then.
Such a beautiful array of flowers. Good luck with designing your next pattern, the amazing photos are inspirational.
Thank you so much!
I just adore that tapestry work, especially the smaller cushion.
And some of the flower posies are exquisite.
You have found such exciting shape and colour Elizabeth.
Enough inspiration here for a decade !!!