Showing posts with label mixed media. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mixed media. Show all posts

Thursday, October 1, 2009

the Illusion of Control

Brian Andreas, an American mixed-media artist, is known for the StoryPeople objects he makes using salvaged wood from old homesteads and includes a short story.


I've a number of his prints in my store including my personal favourite - the Illusion of Control, “If you hold on to the handle, she said, it’s easier to maintain the illusion of control. But it’s more fun if you just let the wind carry you.”


Like most of us, I like the illusion of control so I try to hold onto the handle at all costs.


I make to-do lists on every scrap of paper I can lay my hands on. Not to mention several day-planners and countless notebooks. In fact, I’ve been known to make lists about my existing lists when I’m really desperate.

Thing is, you’ve to be a bit of “list-freak" when you work at least two seasons ahead of everyone else. It’s the only way to stay on top things.


Currently I’m harvesting as much as possible before the first frost comes, gathering a variety of leaves, branches, flowers, and just about anything I can get my hands. I’ll experiment with them once they’re dried and transform into gorgeous Fall and Christmas Wreaths like this one:



Most of us deal with a fair degree of chaos in our lives and of the things I find helps immensely is coming home to an uncluttered space. If you struggle with recalling what your floor or dining room table (in my sister’s case) looks like, consider Baskets or Containers with lids and labels.


I’m South American and like most South Americans I’ll get undressed and put my clothes away – who knows what could get into your things if you leave them on the ground. After all a scorpion or another bug may crawl in, not to mention weather elements – maybe a rain storm that results in flooding.


My husband is North American – invariable he’ll get undressed and throw his clothes on the floor. There they’ll sit until he’s looking for something or another and it’s in his pocket. After 30 years of marriage I’ve finally hit upon a solution that works: placing a basket where he tosses his clothes.


He’s gotten the hint.


Things look neater, you feel more organized, you’ll spend less time looking for things that are often easily misplaced, and chances are, you’ll feel more in control.


Ask me about customized solutions for your unique storage needs.


If you’re going to let the wind carry you, why not let it carry you a serene, calm place at the end of your busy day.


For me, this is my bedroom. It’s the one area in my home where things remain in place most of the time.


My favourite scent is Lavender and I’ll have lavender in a vase with essential oil.


Monogrammed pillowcases and deliciously soft bedding create a sense of “being away from it all.”


Poet Leigh Hunt says it best, “It is a delicious moment, certainly, that of being well nestled in bed and feeling that you shall gently drop to sleep.


We offer in-home consultation to create your personal space to escape from it all – master bedroom planning, a return to the drawing room, and even a space within a space.


Ask me about pillows and throws, washable cotton bedding ensembles, and aromatherapy options.