september 27th, 2023

come to the beach, chill by the sea / see how your heavy life looks from the coastline ☀

The last time we drove down to the coastline was May 14th, and life was going incredibly well. We were all happy, busy, inspired, and thriving. And then June came around (no comment), July absolutely sucked, August was hell, and the beginning of September was super stressful and highly disappointing.

Before yesterday, the thought of taking a day trip down felt more like an exhausting chore than any kind of fun adventure. But now (dare I say the words, lest I jinx it?), it seems like life might actually be beginning to calm down and become a little more centered again.

(knock on wood)

And we finally made it back to our second home.

was she stalking the seagulls, or were the seagulls stalking her?

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Edgar

I’m in love.

His name is Edgar.

He’s now 20 days old, and though his eyes are open, there ain’t nothin’ behind ’em. He looks absolutely clueless and soulless 100% of the time, and it’s absolutely infuriating how cute he is.

Although I knew kittens grew up fast, it’s still hard to believe how quickly he’s quadrupled in size since the day of his birth. And the size of his paws?? They’re tiny, but also massive. We all think he’s going to end up being a much larger cat than his mom.

Edgar, formerly known as “One”

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cropped sweater (DIY)

I’m an idiot.

Listen, I’ve been altering, sewing, and saving clothes for how many years now, and I only just realized that I can easily (eas·i·ly) turn an awkward sweater into an adorable cropped sweater.

Why have I not done this before?? I feel like there have been multiple cute sweaters in my past that I could have saved with this method.

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woodstock sanctuary donations

Like I previously mentioned when I painted some donation pieces for Barn Sanctuary’s auction: I love donating art. If I could make a living off simply donating art, I would. The pressure of getting every detail of someone’s beloved pet is off, and I just get to loosen up and enjoy the work.

I chose to paint Colin the cow, and Kellen the goat for Woodstock Sanctuary’s Harvest Picnic Gala, and I couldn’t have been happier with the outcome ❤

click the photos to enlarge them

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thanks to road work (ootd #3)

Looking like a baddie, but my bumper sticker gives me away 🖤

(9.5 years of driving, and what has changed?)

I spent most of Saturday at my sewing machine altering my latest thrifted finds. It’s amazing what a few darts, tucks, and carefully-placed seams can do to an outfit. Also, how did I go so long before realizing that I can alter the length and fit of any sweater!?

(more on that in a later post)

bumper sticker from SensitiveByAndi on Etsy

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recent work

Some recent pet portrait work!

I’m currently working on a couple art pieces to donate to Woodstock Farm Sanctuary’s Harvest Picnic Gala. It’s always nice to take a break from dogs and cats for a minute and paint some cows and goats.

❤ to see more of my work, click here

❤ to order a portrait of your own, click here

one of my 4″ x 6″ portraits

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fishnets & mushrooms (ootd #2)

When it comes clothing color schemes, for many years I’ve been a brown+cream combo kinda girl, but lately I’ve gone back to my roots and have wanted more of the stark black+white combos again. Now I’m in desperate need of some black boots.

Also very happy to be bringing the mushroom purse back out, because it’s her time of the year to shine. A couple years ago Instagram targeted me with this purse in an ad, and I’m embarrassed to admit that they knew exactly what they were doing. I bought it as a Christmas gift for myself. I love it, and it’s held up really well 🍄✨

although my baby monstera has grown considerably, she has yet to produce a split leaf

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one

Okay, here’s the thing: I am refusing to go back to letting my entire personality be centered around being disappointed and let down by life.

It’s not necessarily easy though, because it has definitely felt like every time I get back on my feet lately life bitch-slaps me again. The audacity.

You see, Agnes has given birth. And (drum roll, please), she had two (two) black-and-white kittens inside of her. One of which was stillborn.

So therefore: there is one healthy kitten.

(naturally we’ve been referring to it as “one” while we wait to see if it’s a boy or girl)

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daisy jeans (ootd #1)

Two things:

1. I finally learned how to make Dutch braids

2. I thrifted my first pair of non-skinny jeans in like…15 years

Actually, the latter isn’t true, since I’m still fully in my flare-pants/bell-bottom era. But now I can see why Gen Z brought the relaxed fit back, and despite continuing to hold on to my millennial skinny jeans, I’m fully on board 🌼

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