molly irwin

mini book :: sunshine in february

   

As I photographed my way though last week, I realized that I was capturing a story of our family at this point in time, with a focus on just one color. This was pretty fascinating to me, because at the outset I didn't think of yellow as a dominant color in our home, and it isn't. It took some looking.

Typically these are the type of photos that would live on my hard drive (or flickr) and I would be fine leaving it at that, but when the visual biography began to unfold, I knew I wanted to do something with the collection. Two projects came to mind; this mini book is the first.  

 

materials: board book, gaffer tape: 7 gypsies, 'found' metal tag: paper valise, adhered with 3D-dot, by EK success, ribbon: making memories, patterned paper: Chatterbox, yellow handmade textural paper: provocraft, corner rounder 

inside pages: yellow patterns: jesse edwards for designer digitals, scratched edge overlays: Anna Aspnes for designer digitals, aged alphabet: katie pertiet for designer digitals, stitched details and circle accents: self-created. printed on inkjet presentation paper and adhered with 3M spray mount, fonts: Typo Upright and Avenir.

yellow week :: gardens

     

I know you're probably crying out "Stop the madness!", but I just felt compelled to share a few more yellow finds.

Over the last two weekends we visited two of our favorite local gardens: The Bishop's Garden at the Washington National Cathedral, and the National Arboretum.  They are lovely and surprisingly NEVER crowded year-round.

Though it hasn't quite come to my own street yet, I'm seeing yellow everywhere I go.  Spring is surely on her way.

yellow week :: the man

 

I didn't start out to make the yellow quest a visual family biography, but it took that direction early on, and I think it's been a more interesting process for me as a result. I love the idea of using color -- and focusing on a single color at that -- to create a story line.

It took me a while to land on images to represent Paul. My tendency is to seek out every detail of what the kids are doing, so it was good to shift my attention back where it belongs. (wink) These photos should do the trick: legal pads, a measuring tape, and a power cord are undeniably some of the most fundamental tools upon which Paul relies EVERY day. 

 

Yellow week has been invigorating creatively. Just plain good for the soul. I definitely want to make something with these photos, and will share that project soon.

Many thanks to Erin for hosting. If you want a jolt of sun-shiney inspiration in your weekend, there is a ton of beauty to be found in the "yellow week" flickr photo pool.

yellow week :: bits of my own

 

Yesterday was the kind of gray snowy/rainy February day that reminded me why I took on this yellow-seeking photographic mission. The sunshine in today's frames is due to the fact that I've been streadily taking photos for days; sharing them categorically.

Although I never thought of yellow as a mainstay in our decor, apparently this last year it became as vital as vitamin C. I hadn't even realized it until this week.

Of the few things I've purchased recently, several are vibrant yellow: my thrift-shop ceramic cups, a duvet cover to change with the seasons, and a tall vase for pussy willows. Each is balanced in our home's landscape against dove gray, or white.

      

I think there is a mini-book project coming from this experience. Stay tuned for that.

yellow week :: girly girls

 

The room they share is predominantly pink and red -- as are their wardrobes with bits of turquoise and lavender -- but in their activities yellow is everywhere. It's stitched into reading pillows, scrawled across the driveway, glazed on the tea set, and (being a declared favorite) was first choice for a private journal.

 

yellow week :: the boy

 

I love that (at three) he's not too big for his duckie towel. His good nature shines on everything he does, so it seems fitting that so many of his favorite things are bold yelow. (But if you ask his favorite color, the response is always green, or jsheen, by his own pronunciation.)

       

yellow week :: in the kitchen

         

I'm happy to join friends in this mini photo project. Nothing like a sunny spot of yellow to fight the winter doldrums. 

It will be interesting to see how much yellow I can spot around here. I don't wear it much, and I don't think I own too much yellow, so I'm on the hunt -- eyes wide open -- to capture bits of this cheerful color in my days this week.

Want to play along?

we gave our hearts

 

what she gave.

 

what I gave.

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Starting tomorrow I'm joining Erin for 'yellow week.'  I could use some of that golden warmth myself.

b.y.o.v.

 

I think I've always taken my Valentine's day with a shot of cynicism; brushing off its dictated sentimentality with the notion that it's a contrived holiday, fabricated by greeting card companies in cahoots with associated florists.

Somehow when lilacs and chocolates are pressed on us by a date on the calendar it seems less than sincere; an obligatory action, like a dental appointment, or my turn in the carpool.  And the symbol: a heart, is only a recent friend of mine, since children and their fondness of drawing and cutting them of pink and red.

Romance (to me) is a well-directed albeit mysterious pause. The flirtation of possibility. A silent somewhat distant presence. Question upon question. A void filled, if for a time, to be opened all the wider for the next longing hour, replaced with similarity mixed with a refreshing newness over and over again. Romance says: "I see you," and has one wondering if, in fact, it is true. 

Love is more near than romance. And perhaps because of its proximity we can use a reminder of that distant romantic appreciation. Just how do you spark romance that was once merely implied after it is spoken and freely given? Commerically available options seem bleak.

Lately I've been feeling like finding something within myself is the only way. Making room in my own mind will in its own way manifest itself.  In being "my own valentine," so to speak, my imagination and my situations will broaden.

You can see that the foil wrapper really spoke to me this afternoon. Be your own valentine. Be good to yourself.

Here's hoping you have a sweet weekend.

thinking small

 

I've been retreating a bit. Surrounding myself with little simple organizational home comforts and small people. The warmer weather is trying its hardest to draw me out, and I will dutifully emerge eventually.

This morning I want to share some small things of recent experience and interest.

 

Outside of providing a juried criticism, it's not often that my husband has occasion to revisit the model-making of his college architecture curriculum. However, he recently found himself with exacto in hand for a particular project, much to the delight of my daughters who discovered this as a new form of miniature play. After completing his own project, he offered balsa and foam to the girls and helped them build scale rooms, to which they added fabric scraps.

 

Whether it's with traditional dollhouse furnishings or raw materials, I never cease to be amazed at the environments that they assemble and the imagination that sparks when they build their own small worlds.

My wonder over miniature worlds was fortified this weekend when I happened across the artful work of Althea Crome and her recent work for the new movie Coraline.  Purely fascinating!

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