the weekend, the last, a long wait for ernie to come home nearly over. but there’s so much left to do, hours of conversations left to have and pots of coffee to drink.

my brother gets married soon after this, married to julie of virginia. another trip, this one with darling husband in tow, for a wedding, a stay with ernie’s sister, a visit to the nation’s capitol, museums galore, freckled kids to trek about, cousins by the truckload, my brother sent off in love. and after these, home, which i’m already looking forward to, the place that’s for me to clean and cook inside and make little messes on the desk.

i took a longish break from royal buffet and whenever i do this ideas come in floods. i like that.

these little royal singing birds are in the shop now, just in case you need something royally ornithological that perches on a wire.

i love the weekend, fridays, the suspended space of days that aren’t made for the ordinary. the fact does remain that we don’t really do anything out of the ordinary on these days, but somehow a friday is full of hope, a saturday beaming with it, sundays floating on the waves of the others. what are we hoping for? even this i do not know. sunshine, time, contentment to just be, these, others, hope for a little joy clutching at us into the night and even beyond.

i got these amazing strings from liane’s shop (who also has this amazing post of photos of perfectly messy interiors on the blog today) i love basically everything in her shop and have been looking for an opportunity to buy something. happily i ended up buying these at just the right moment because she sent a host of extra lovelies to me for being her 1000 sale. i can’t wait to make some new garlands with these.

today seems like a good day to tell you all about the indie craft parade in greenville. if you’re local you must at least go to the fair and buy something, but you may want to consider submitting your own work, too. the site just launched, check it!

weekends hold the best of days, even when the sunday is full of rain and cold and everyone goes completely berserk by nightfall.

today i made cheesecake for ernie’s birthday, which was, of course, last week. last week, a busy time. too busy, really. i feel like we don’t really ever have anything going on, but we are always busy all the same. so ernie had cheesecake (there were oreos involved) and later this week he wants carrot cake. you only turn 30 once, no?

i’ve got some new royal buffet coming in the shop, as i said before. royal buffet for weddings, that is. this is part of a cake topper made from vintage french magazines and record jackets and green velveteen ribbon. have i told you before how much i love using my quilling tool? i don’t really have the patience to quill perfectly, but the wondrous spirals that come from the tool after a little bit of twisting are enough to evoke some love from me. later this week there are new birds to hang in a flock, a handful of birds and wired butterflies, some pennants, some tags, and this topper in the shop. i’d like to say i had time to make the gigantic flowers i was hoping to make, but i didn’t, and am back to filling orders for the dear people who have already ordered lovelies. there are other days for paper flowers.

it’s good that the daffodils keep coming up, because the kids bring them to me in handfuls. i’m not annoyed, either, like the mother in the naughty bunny: since they’re for me, it’s okay. and even if they were picking them for themselves, i think it would be okay. i just like very little more than i like seeing them run up to me with flowers in their hands behind their backs, telling me they’ve got a present for me. they know to keep the stems long, and this is a good thing to know. at last.

tomorrow is ernie’s birthday. we will, at least, be in the same decade. what a handsome young boy i married.

some shop updates soon. i had a little outside pressure and a teeny deadline, so there will be new lovelies for certain, and soon. a little hint with the words “flowers” and “birds” and “’til death do us part” will have to tide you over until i do, indeed, update. i sure do love making new things!

this little garland is now in the shop. six feet of chirruping goodness. i have several other things in the works, if i could just stay caught up on actual orders!

today, cold, the afternoon sun still cold. big dad took kahlil for a walk, so it wasn’t too cold, i suppose. ernie’s parents are coming for a few days and the clean condition of our house and the newly organized game cabinet (why yes, we do have all of the pieces to sorry. oh, bananagrams? yes, those are right here.) will tell you that.

tomorrow brings the weekend, blue and cold. i want to do things like make a fire in the barrel, take max for walks, eat pasta, play cards, loll about in my bed with a couple of kids and some books. wishes sometimes do come true.

i made this little valentine for annie and can’t stop thinking of phrases to write and clip and string. i hope i actually make one to hang here, in this house. you know how the baker’s children have no bread? and the cobbler’s children wear no shoes? well, there is a sad scarcity around here when it comes to garlands and paper fascinations. the kids are always asking, “is that for me?” when they wake up to a ceiling full of mobiles, paper birds and pennants strung from here to there.

and now you can make up your own phrase for me to string on silver and send your way, if you like.

we’re headed to the farm tomorrow. just one night to celebrate ernie’s grandpa turning 90. hopefully we can fit 90 candles on one of those dreadful millionaire pies grandpa loves to eat.

april dunn, comment 40!  who said, “best thing to happen to paper since gutenberg.” thanks april, you’re way too kind.

and thank you so much, everyone for entering this little giveaway and even more for all of your nice words about my paper creations and my shop. i’m pretty much blown away.

cheers to two years!

these will be in the shop by the end of the week: little moleskines transformed into animalskines by royal buffet! there are a few animals and two sizes of books. i had hoped to have them really early for early valentine shoppers (a very nice, and quite non-commital valentine, i’d say), but we’re down to the wire. ah, well. i’m terrible about planning ahead.

tomorrow i announce the winner of the giveaway!

i’ve been selling royal buffet paper lovelies on etsy for two years and eleven days now (no comment on missing the actual anniversary) so i thought i should offer a little celebratory giveaway to my friends and fans and the foes few and far between. enter a comment in the comments section and i’ll choose a winner (by random selection, of course) on wednesday, january 27. and what will you be winning, should you be the lucky winner? well, the choice will be up to you, as the prize is any one item that is listed in the shop! mobile, garland, wired bird or creature, whatever you wish will be yours. so enter, don’t delay, and be nice and tell your friends to enter, too.

thanks so much for your support of Royal Buffet, it has been and is much appreciated.