Cottage Life - Time Well Spent




The holidays are over and the Christmas decorations have been packed away. (Well, mostly packed away. I can't get to the box that holds my Nativity scene because there's two feet of snow in front of the shed where the box is stored. So for now the Nativity is still on display in the cottage. C'est la vie.)

I'm always ready to get back to my everyday cottage decor after  Christmas.




Happy to have a more streamlined, simple winter mantel.






The storage boxes I mentioned in last week's studio update arrived and I organized everything under my work table into neat, stacked containers. 





I even have a small space above the stacks for odds and ends, such as a tin or a small box.




Now everything is in order and kept out of sight behind the skirt.





Thanks for all your encouraging comments on my studio reorganization and rearrangement. They spur me to action!

The colors in the new rug I'm twining remind me of a spring garden. I'm using a heavyweight cotton that tends to fray, but I rather like the rustic appearance. It reminds me of farmhouse rugs of the past. The strings you see are loose, and I'll brush those off.




This is the fabric I'm using.



One of the things I enjoy most about twining rugs is choosing a particular fabric and pondering how it will appear in its new form,then seeing it as it comes together and thinking, "Yes! That's exactly how I imagined it."

It seems to be the tradition of many bloggers to share thoughts going into the New Year. A word for the year, goals they've set, and so on. I've chosen a word for the new year in the past and shared it on my blog, and last year at the advent of the New Year I wrote a post entitled Finish Well. You can read it here. I re-read it yesterday and found it means as much to me now as it did when I wrote it. Maybe more. 

So, I won't be sharing a word this year, although I have plenty of them rolling around in my head. Instead, I'll share a quote that I wrote in my journal during my blogging break last summer. A quote that sums up what I learned during that time and what has become most important in my life.

"If you find that you're simply too busy for a daily chat with your heavenly Father, it's an indicator that you probably need to take a long, hard look at your values and how you're spending your time." ~ Hugs Daily Inspirations for Women, August 27

No matter what my plans are for the New Year, having time for a daily chat with my heavenly Father will be at the top of my list.

May 2017 bring blessings from God meant only for you.







23 comments

  1. Good Morning Nancy, You have true wisdom in your urgencies; for as long as we have our priorities in the correct order, God first, it is guaranteed to be a wonderful year :)
    That fabric is so pretty. Depending on what you plan on doing with your rug and what room you're using it in, I see it in a bedroom with curtains that have a boarder with the same fabric. The colors are calming and the pattern in very cottagey ( is that a word?)
    Have a lovely week,
    Connie :)

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  2. Hi Nancy,
    Great post with a really good message. I love the rug you are making. How pretty is that going to be. Your creative space looks so wonderful and organized. You are off to a great start in the new year.
    xoxo
    Kris

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  3. Nice storage boxes. I have such an odd assortment of sizes that it's hard to get them organized and put away.

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  4. How creative you are. The storage, your table and your rug. It's really nice.
    We got snow down here in the Boise area, a lot today. So now I can't put away my Christmas decorations for the same reason.

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  5. Gorgeous rug!! Happy New Year Nancy!

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  6. Ooo! I love the rug! Next month I am joining a tapestry weaving study group! Can't wait!
    I do have a word for 2017. The blog post is still in my head being formed. Probably I'll post it this weekend.
    I do love your Finish Well word.

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  7. Nancy- That is a great quote---one to live by-that's for sure. Wow-that is quite a rug you are putting together. It is amazing and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the fabric. Did you say TWINING a rug? I have to look that up- I know about looming, weaving and rug hooking but don't know a thing about twining. It looks amazing. xo Diana

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  8. That is a lovely quote Nancy. It's one I need to think about, as that time does usually fall away for me. One of my goals for the new year is to put those activities back at the top of the list, so this is a perfect reminder. I love the fabric. It reminds me of a Laura Ashley dress I had in the 80s. It was stunning, like your rug will be. I am off to pack up some more Christmas. I have been doing it slowly, I'm not quite ready to say goodbye to my own nativity set or my tree...so it's still Christmas around here. At least in the living room!

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  9. I too have put most of the Christmas away and am enjoying winter decorations now. I do not make new year's resolutions but I will be getting to my back room sometime soon! I love your new rug fabric and the homespun look it has. The quote is so true and something to live by daily!

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  10. What a great quote dear Nancy. Time spent with God is time well spent! I love it that we can talk with Him any time of the day, about anything. He is always with us, we just need to realize that.

    Having those containers is great isn't it? It's nice having things sorted and hidden away, just waiting for your creative juices to flow.

    I've never heard of 'twining' rugs, had to look it up online and found a you-tube video. I am really loving your rug. What a great choice of fabric. What size are you making it?

    Have a wonderful January ~ FlowerLady

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  11. Good morning Nancy! First thing: that mantle of yours is fabulous. Ruben built me a mantle shelf just like this two Christmases ago, and it adds so much charm to my great room. I wanted him to build me another one in my small, older living room but he never got around to it, but good thing because I've altered my plans for that mantle, if some day he gets around to it! Like you, I've put away Christmas and in doing so, cleaned, decluttered even more and WOW, does it feel good. If I were to be of the sort that makes New Year's resolutions it would be this: DON'T CLUTTER! I even cleaned out my spice cabinet and created a special spot for just tea (we have tons of tea!) and we just happen to have this darling little cabinet space where I keep all our tea pots and right below it, is a cabinet that I cluttered up with magazines. They are now in the recycling and that space is dedicated to all the tea boxes.

    For me, these two weeks off from school was time well spent celebrating the season of snow, gathering with neighbors, reading, writing, photographing and reorganizing our living space. Your cottage is looking SO GOOD! Happy day, Anita

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  12. Wow thanks for the quote that was for me ;).....
    nelly

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    1. Hi Nelly! I'm glad the quote spoke to you. It's certainly a reminder I need to keep my priorities straight. Happy New Year!

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  13. The colors in your rug are so pretty, they remind me of the painting my mother did for her bedroom and left to me when she died. The quote is a good reminder. Especially for these last few months when things have been so chaotic that I have been easily distracted. If I do not sit with God first thing in the morning things of life get it the way. I like your well wish at the end of the post too. May God give you many blessings meant only for you too my friend.

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  14. Keeping up with traditions I will wait to put away the decorations tomorrow after all Kings day! You have everything nicely organized. I seem to have yarns in one place and another. The rug is looking beautiful Nancy!

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  15. I love your simple mantel and it looks so cosy with your stove burning! Have a great, thoughtful year!

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  16. Hi Nancy,
    Your quote is so true. It just seems WE all are so busy. Back in 2012 I started to say NO to the so many things people wanted me to help with. I did not really do all that well. I ended up on two committees I did not even have an interest in. After the fact I wondered how on earth I ended up on them. In 2016 I said NO! I left both committees, because I was of no help, because I did not even want to be on them. It was hard for me to say NO, but it helped me and my family so much. I needed to really look at what I can help with, be involved in and what my family needs of me and what my own personal time needs to look like.
    I am praying to stay strong in this area of my life in 2017.

    I do like how your studio looks. I like the fabric you chose to skirt the table.

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  17. lovely photos .
    glad you had wonderful Christmas and now packing the decorations as they can be useful again .how nice to save them for better .
    wishing you a very Happy new year friend !

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  18. Its so nice to see how well your storage is coming along in your craft area Nancy! The rug looks great too! Happy New Year :)

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