Wednesday, July 12, 2006

Living Memories



I was going to post this yesterday, but this post by myaimistrue made me second guess my poor quality pictures on the same subject. But crappy, free, old websites with "image hosting" often don't supply the best photos, so I dug out my scrapbook and rescanned my Italy pictures specifically for this post.

I've always been kinda obsessed with keepsakes. It's the packrat in me, I guess. Ever since I saw this project idea earlier this year in the Martha Stewart Good Things for Kids supple
ment magazine, I've been in love with the idea. Every time I look at the beautiful photography of this idea, it makes me want to travel. To collect. To display. I wish that I had collected my own little cheesy Eiffel Tower while in Paris and the even cheesier mini David statue while in Florence. They were everywhere, at every street vendor around anything that might be slightly considered a tourist destination. What cool jars I could have had. (I have this weird thing about large jars like those pictured, I think it comes from reading to much MS, and pouring over too many Pottery Barn/Crate & Barrrel catalogs - recently I've been thinking I need a gallon size jar for my new "honey bunches and oats" cereal so it'll be easily accessible every morning.)

Luckily for my obsessive-complusive personality, though I may have missed my chance for my own travel jars, Mike & I have yet to take a vacation together. So opportunity is still avail
able to have a complete set of memories displayed for all to see. Now all we have to do is actually go on a real vacation.

AssisiPisaFirenze
EiffelTowerArcDeTriumphcoloseum

Since I developed my photos from Italy/Paris three years ago, I've had this desire to "publicly" (in my own home) display the photos for all to see. And not just the 4 by 6's in cheesy store-bought frames. I want them to be dramatic. From the moment I saw these pictures, I knew they had to be displayed as art. I envisioned them in black and white in clean-lined frames hanging in the living room or something of that sort.

Now that I'm living in my own home now, with my own decor and style, I know the perfect place. The place I have tried to make soothing, my Andes Mints room (based on its colors, a minty/sagey green and chocolate brown)…our bedroom. What better way to fall asleep than amongst memories of grand adventures. I can just imagine the room with the series of large travel photos and sporadic shelves with travel jars displayed.


Oh, I have the travel bug again. The places I wish we could go and experience together. There are so many places I haven't been, so many things I haven't seen. I don't understand how people can want not to travel.



Alicia's, at Posy, recent posts about some amazing letters she picked up at a recent estate sale, got me thinking about the art ideas in the premiere isse of Blueprint magazine. How cool would those old envelopes look blown up 500% hangin in a home office or study? How awesome would it be to come across letters like she has? I always dreamed about finding amazing treasures, other's keepsakes, when I was younger. I wanted (and still do) to live in a old house. preferably Victorian (though now I'd love to live in an old farmhouse, or early american house) because that's what all the coolest houses were/are in my town. To walk up into the attic and find treasures from past inhabitants, forgotten over time. Maybe I read to much while I was younger to have such a romanticised view of old homes. While house hunting (at least those in our price range), those old houses were not cool and filled with treasures. They were old, needing lots of work and smelled funny.

Maybe someday though. I want to add my own treasures for prosperity to find.

No comments: