It was an art thing...

First there was gelato from the little Italian neighborhood...

Then there were these incredibly detailed tiny works of art flowering along the path...

Then there was this public building with its detailed mosaic beautifying its outside...

The leaves on the tree were handprints of children...

Some of the mosaic bits were mirror pieces so that the whole thing glittered in the sunlight!!

And this mosaic floated between the building and the sky above it...

The bohemian hopes you'll take your bits and pieces and create something beautiful with them today...

this one's for the birds...

here the bohemian presents for your visual and imaginative pleasure...

her cards created for the challenge: "Put a bird on it..."  Favorite things in these two (above):  gorgeous, rich pillows; and cut flower bouquets...

favorites things in these two:  that lime green settee! and that wonderfully dramatic staircase railing...

favorites: blue hydrangeas; and a full bookcase...

favorites: the golden chandelier; and that black and white tile hallway...

favorites: roses growing up over the door (yes, please!); and the cut glass window in that door...

favorites: the drama of the colors of blue, red, and green...; and of course, that green again!!  the bohemian would love to hear your favorites...   The weather her in bohemia is absolutely stunning right now! hope it is in your corner of the land, also!!  Go out and play in it!  garden green wishes to all...

a journey of hints...

the bohemian traveled into the city by the bay.  it was much earlier than she usually arrived there. she was on a food fast so as to give blood at the laboratory...  it was a misty, slightly eerie morning, putting her in mind of Autumn and Halloween. and vampires, what with the blood-sucking and all that spookiness in the air...

she noticed things she didn't usually... like rusted gates...

and stone steps disappearing into the darkened recesses of old buildings...

and black cats looming out of the mists...

spooky silhouettes and  haunting shadows...

and windows shaped like crystal balls...

but THIS window... oh this window made her smile so big!!!  and she immediately thought of COFFEE!!!  and so her journey into the city by the  bay was sweetly capped off by a tall *bees knees latte at the black drop coffee house...  (more smiling!!!)

* this delectable treat is a coffee latte with honey and essence of roses... oh joy, oh coffee bliss!!!!

  "I know the night is near at hand:

the mists lie low on hill and bay,

the Autumn sheaves are dewless, dry;

But I have had the day..."

-Silas Weir Mitchell

(of course that dewless/dry part isn't really descriptive of this part of bohemia but lately it HAS been pretty dry! the fire-danger-meter stands at HIGH right now...  no end-of-the-summer campfires. no s'mores.  but O! the berries! they are just dripping off the vines!!! grazing along the edges of the property puts a giant smile on the bohemian's face! YUMMY!)  the bohemian is wishing you a lovely fall season with crackly leaf carpets and crunchy brown nuts and late late warmth-of-summer days as the season slowly turns into autumn. and of course: coffee bliss to you all!

an adventure of miss hanna, the fairy grandchild...

once upon a time, the fairy grandchild journeyed to her bohemian grandmother's cottage at the foot of a very high and craggy mountain...  it was one of those rare and sunny, hot days in the lateness of summer...

miss hanna, the fairy grandchild roamed around the grounds outside the cozy cottage of the bohemian grandmother...  there were so many wonders to discover!  she found a SILKY, cobalt blue feather that a scolding stellar jay had left behind. 

she gazed around her at the sights... roses in bloom, blackberries hanging like grapes from the vines which her fairy grandmother called: "evil spellbinder thorn vines".  her grandmother said: "ouch! ouch!" as she stole purpleblack berries from off the thorny vines for the fairy grandchild to taste. oh the taste! sweet, dark magic melting in her mouth!

she had dressed appropriately  for the day's adventures... stylish plaid shorts...

chic yet comfy sandals with their flirty pink roses...

an o so pink t-shirt with frilly girly sleeves...

so what did the fairy grandchild do next?  well, the  bohemian grandma will continue the tale on the next available sunny summer day!  but in the meantime, sun-warmed wishes to tan your summer skin... and to keep that skin and the soul inside it young: go find a fairy child to play and laugh with... IT'S MAGICAL!!!

the flowery goodness of bohemia:

bohemian faerie snowblossom

bohemian sunshine supernovas

bohemian purple-honeybursts

 

bohemian bluebits-in-the-grass

hope the flowery goodness near your home is as beautiful! don't forget to use your imagination and paint your world the color "gorgeous"...  what color is that, you ask? well... what color do YOU think it is?  i'd love to hear your definition of the color "gorgeous".   happy lavish bouquet wishes to you...

the rest of the story...

O! look! up there in the yard!!

the bohemian has ALWAYS wanted an outdoor room!

but living in the pacific northwest makes it challenging at best. it's not the best year-round outdoor weather type of place. the bohemian is going to try it anyways!!! her prince charming bought her this lovely gazebo, spent 2 hours with her on the day before Mother's Day assembling it in 80 degree weather (which is VERY warm, for up here!), and then BBQing out there the next day for her and the royal children and the fairy granddaughter... it was  maaaahvelous!!!!

 of  COURSE she decorated it!

and now look! she has this lovely outdoor space in which to eat her breakfast and drink her coffee and...

and a special place out in the open air to make some art!!!

this art project you see on her table is for a very special friend of hers. this friend bought a large picture at a department store and when she got it up on her wall, she didn't like how it fit the space. so the bohemian is taking small portions of the large piece and making two smaller complementary pieces to go with it.  the bohemian is just full of joy to be able to sit outdoors with the breeze blowing and the sun shining and create art.  hope there's lots of art-making time in your day today. and that the warmth of the sun is embracing you. and that the spring breeze is caressing your hair...   okay, the bohemian got carried away there for a minute. happy outdoorsy wishes to you and yours...

cuteness warning: this is post is laced with undeniable adorability. a baby post: in which the fairy grandmother goes overboard taking pictures ...

O! a cord! one of my favorite things!! ...with a remote attached to it! aNOTHer of my favorites! and i pushed all the buttons... O my gosh! what did i do? hey...those are cool red circles! and they are moving! O hi, grandma! i'm not messing with anything! honest! and if i WAS, i'm too cute to get mad at, aren't i?

romping with the panda bears...

yes, this has been the face of bohemia darn near all summer. well, there have been a few sunbreaks. but the bohemian is definately vitamin D deficient!!! so... for a week and a half, she stole away to "somewhere else"... "somewhere" through this old white door... where her eyes were dazzled with parasols and peacock feathers... where gold silk and chinese lanterns decorated the ceilings, and panda bears roamed... (as well as other wild things...such as children aged 3 to 12...) dragonflies hovered... and peonies bloomed in doorways... peonies and cherry blossoms filled every space... and exotic birds perched on exotic greenery... and the bamboo was made out of recycled paper towel tubes and curling ribbon... oh yes! the bohemian had so much fun at vacation bible school again this year!!! PANDAMANIA... "where God is WILD about you!!!' and the latest grandma update... the bohemian is SOOO in love with this child!! hug your loved ones tight and don't forget to play and sing and dance with children! what a marvelous way to stay young (even if it's simply "at heart") fuzzy black and white cuddle wishes to you...