Song-spiration

Completely inspired by this song today. Beautiful. 

Cold Wind

I'm not going to write much today because I'm incredibly busy with school and life! But I just thought I'd share a song with you that I've been listening to over and over again- I rarely do this, so I'm not sure what it is about this one. But I love it! Hope you do too!

New Friday Feature!

It's Friday! One of my favourite days of the week. And to celebrate Friday, I would like to do something on this blog every Friday for the next while. Starting next week, I would like to have regular interviews with fellow bloggers that I find inspiring and hopefully expose you to some new inspiration as well! I don't have anything set up for today, but I thought I would introduce this series and give you a little info about what's to come! If you are a reader of this blog and would like to be featured, just drop me a line at jenni_boldt{at}hotmail{dot}com and I will gladly see what I can do!

For a small bit of inspiration today, I have a bit of music. I went to see The Vow yesterday and LOVED it! Yes, it may be cheesy and star Channing Tatum who's not the best actor in the world, but I secretly love him...oops did I just say that? And I like a little cheese once in a while- sometimes it's just needed. I also love the soundtrack and this was one of the songs- I think it's meant to played loudly and with lots of bass, so if you have it, do it! Otherwise, just imagine :)

Top 5: Favourite Things About the Holidays!

Hurrah! I am officially on holidays! I finished my last exam this morning and am now fully in holiday mode. So to celebrate, I would like to share with you my favourite things about the Christmas season (as it is one of my favourite celebrations! I think Easter and Valentine's day are in close comparison...) I've compiled some images/videos/recipes to go along with the list, so I hope you enjoy!

1. Celebrating the Saviour's birth! THE most important part of the season and the reason why we celebrate! He is the basis of Christianity and (as I heard in church on Sunday) the definition of reality:

"In the beginning was the Word (meaning Jesus), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men." John 1:1-4

2. Listening to Christmas Albums. I have a few favourites that I listen to every Christmas, without fail. My all time favourite album is "Home For Christmas" by Amy Grant! It brings back nostalgic memories of Christmas of years past. This year though, I have been enjoying:

        a. "A Very She & Him Christmas" by She & Him- itunes download

b. "Born Is the King" by Hillsong- itunes download

        c. "Silent Night" by Timbre (magical, enchanting sounds!). The album is available for FREE 

    download on bandcamp!

3. Doing Christmas Crafts. Christmas crafting is such fun and so relaxing, especially when you don't have any exams left to worry about! I can't wait to try out making some of the crafts I've found on Pinterest such as these lovely ornaments from A Field Journal. 

4. Doing Christmas baking/ eating sweets. I am all about anything sweet. I've got a sweet tooth like no other! I especially love any baked goods that I can whip up over the holidays. I'm excited to try out these Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies from The Cooking Photographer. And why not make a little Apple Cider to go with, like this recipe from A Beautiful Mess blog:

Needed: 4-5 cups apple juice, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, 3 ounces spiced rum (optional), cinnamon sticks and apple slices to garnish.

In a small pot heat the apple juice, spices and rum (if using) over low/medium heat. Stir often while the mixture is heating so the spices will blend into the juice (you don't want any spice clumps). Once it's hot pour into two mugs and garnish with apple slices and cinnamon sticks.

5. And finally, I LOVE all of the outdoor fun in the snow! I can't wait to go, sledding, cross-country skiing, and skating! Hopefully, there is a big snowfall before Christmas. My fingers are crossed!

Picture from: Dirty Pretty Things

Wow. That was a loaded post. I guess it makes up for all of the times I haven't posted in the last few weeks! What are your top 5 favourite things about Christmas?

Joy to the World

Hello. I'm back from the pressures of finals week...not much to share from my boring little life, other than I am DONE my art history exam and only have one exam left. There was a massive amount of memorization involved with that exam- 60 pieces of artwork including title, artist, date, where it is from, and what it is made of and also a list of 60 artsy word terms. Too much for a brain to handle, but now I don't have to think about it ever again if I choose not to. But I may choose to. Because it would be fabulous to visit some of the cathedrals we studied!! My absolute favourite would be Saint Chapelle in Paris. I WILL get there someday!

The above piece of work was done in one of my classes- the one studio class I actually truly enjoyed! It was a project on perspective using a shape of increasing size...I just had fun with it and went wild with colour. Oil pastels are one of my favourite mediums :)

As some inspiration for you, because I know it has inspired me, I leave you with a song. And this is how I feel now that I'm done- Joyful!

Polly Want A Cracker?

Yesterday, I decided to venture into new territory- into the world of crackers! These babies are not as hard as they might seem! And they are delicious. I had a funny conversation with my brother-in-law as I was making them, though:

B.I.L: What are you making?

Me: Crackers!

B.I.L.: I didn't know you could make those things...

Me: Well, they have to get made somehow!

B.I.L.: Oh! I just thought the factory pumped them out...

Silly boys. 

Both the recipe and pictures come from: LoveFoodEat blog from this post. I was going to try to take pictures myself, but they wouldn't have turned out nearly as nice and delicious looking as these! Some people are food photographers, but I am not one of them! Here's the very simple and yummy recipe:

Chickpea Crackers

*250 grams of dry chickpeas (I used 1 cup of canned, drained chickpeas)

*1 cup whole wheat flour

*1 tsp salt

*1 tsp dried thyme (I did not have this, so I used dried rosemary- tasty!)

Soak dry chickpeas in water for 5-6 hours or overnight. Cook them with a pinch of salt till soft.

Drain all the water and mash the chickpeas well by hand or in a food processor.

Add the thyme and salt and mix well.

Now add the whole wheat flour little by little, enough to make hard dough. I used almost a cup.

Roll the dough between two cling films as thin as possible and cut into desired shapes.

Bake in a preheated oven at 160 degree C for 25 to 30 minutes till golden and crisp.

Annnddd as an end note to this post, I would like to share with you a new band that I heard at the Civil Wars concert last night (who were AMAZING live, by the way! Wow. Enchanting.) But the opening band was called Milo Greene and they were also quite amazing. Normally you expect opening bands to be, well, not all that good- this band surpassed my expectation! Here's a sample:

I do have a funny story to tell about the concert, but I will save that for another day...

Open Your Hymnals...

The words of this song are so wonderful. I feel it is a prayer and vow every time I sing it! I haven't heard this version for a long time, but as I got into my Christmas mood again today and started listen to Sufjan Stevens Christmas, I was reminded of how good it was! Hope you find it a blessing as well :)

Gold Falling From the Ceiling...

...of this world, falling from the heartbeat of this girl. I wanted to do the whole line for the post title, but figured it was a bit too long- how long is too long for a title anyway?? That line is from the song "And the Boys" by Angus and Julia Stone- a fabulous song and I've included the video at the end of the post! One of my favourite things are summer evenings, riding bikes and beautiful things. I've combined all three and had a solo photo shoot tonight. SUCH a beautiful evening!

See the rest on my Flickr site. And here's the video! Although, I have to say I like the song better than the video, so if you prefer, listen to it without watching the video...it changes things for me.

For Emma

Heeeey. It's been a while....I know. I know. But I have been busy preparing- No, no, not thanksgiving dinner. I've been preparing for the annual craft sale season! So much to do, so little time... But if you are in this area in the near future, come stop in at the Western Development Museum October 15 (4pm-10) and October 16 (10am-4pm). I'm selling all kinds of crocheted goodies, so you really should come and see!

Also check it out- I'm a guest blogger today on No Waste Wednesdays! My post is on clothing swaps and the like. I haven't written about No Waste Wednesdays before, but it is an initiative to start living greener through a Facebook group and blog. Each month focuses on a different aspect of life in which we can change how we do things- this month focuses on clothing. If you join the group, each Wednesday a message will be sent with eco-friendly ideas along with a new blog post.

Ok that's all the updates for today...p.s. This post is not for Emma, it's what the song of my favourite youtube video is as of late:

A Beautiful Mess

I have a studio space. I set it up yesterday in our little house. I wish I could show you the finished product so badly, but with no camera that is kind of difficult! So I will just tell you how excited I am and leave you with this little visual treat.

Red Poppies

Lately as I've seen the poppies bloom around town, I've begun to really appreciate their beauty. There is something so timeless about the simple red poppy. I think this one is going on my favourite flowers list. And Begonias. I think by the end of my lifetime, my favourite flowers list will be very long...

I stole this picture from The Audrey Hepburn Complex- beautiful imagery site if you ever get a chance to take a peek!

Oh and to appeal to another sense, this artist has been pleasurable to my ears lately. Have a listen! It takes a bit to get into the song, but it's worth it!



And if this wasn't enough, here's another one!