Chinatown

I took these photos at the end of the summer; I can't remember where we were coming from, but we passed through Chinatown on the way to the metro one warm evening. This area is now largely dominated by the Verizon center and teeming with the type of sports bars/chain restaurants that typically surround stadiums, but there are still a few architectural nods to the neighborhood's history, and I've always thought that the gate is pretty fantastic. I hope they never take it down.

This area has changed significantly since we moved to DC in the late 90s, and I wonder what it will be like 20 years from now. DC is an odd place in that so much of the cityscape remains unchanged, at least on the surface. Facades are largely protected by historic preservation laws, and neighborhood streets are still lined with the same rowhouses that have stood for many generations. But the character of neighborhoods is changing all the time. And there has been a push in recent years to lift the height restriction in the city (no building can be taller than 110 feet, I think, due to a law that was passed 100 years ago). When you have so many people in a town that was built to accommodate a much smaller population, you have problems with infrastructure, transportation, affordable housing (there is none) and trouble attracting companies and businesses, just to name a few.

It reminds me of a program Peter and I watched on Nova last week called "Making North America." (They've just aired the first of a three-part series.) It's all about how the continent was formed from a geological perspective, and how it's still changing all the time. It was super fascinating to see how mountains were formed and other landmarks took shape, but the overarching theme I took away from the show is that no landscape is permanent. They talked about how the coastline of California is changing due to the San Andreas fault, and joked that due to the shifting masses of land, one day Los Angeles will be right up next to San Francisco, and two cities that don't like each other very much will be neighbors. It's only moving at a rate of about 2 inches a year, so that will take some time, but still, two inches a year! That's a lot if you think about it.

Anyway, this idea of impermanence and environment is very much on my mind these days. And no, this ramble of mine is not a veiled attempt to hint that we're moving, just things I've been thinking about lately. It's all a bit unsettling and wonderful at the same time. xo, Mary

Old + New

Old houses and new blossoms...two of my very favorite things.

I took these photos last spring/early summer. I have lots more to share soon. xo, Mary

Bits of June

To show you how totally together I am as a person, I had this post titled "Bits of May" for a good long while before I realized that it's actually July, which would make last month June, not May. In fairness to my addled brain, I am including some photos that were taken in May in this bunch because I didn't post them to IG until June. Not that it really matters...summer memories all blend together in a haze anyway, eventually, don't they?

This set and the one below are from a brief stay in Savannah and Tybee Island on our road trip down south in May. I have lots more photos from my "real camera" that I'll share soon. How sweet is that cow's face? She's part of a mural on the wall at Mellow Mushroom. 

Lovely tree-lined squares and streets and The Paris Market, where I wanted to buy everything.

Puffy clouds and boats here in Alexandria; a house undergoing renovation in Old Town (I love to see old houses being renovated here...occasionally, part or all of a wall will be down and you can see inside, just like a dollhouse); pretty windows and balustrade; and a funny building that was, at one point, an old house and was expanded and repurposed into doctors' offices, I think.

We had brunch one day at Fontaine Caffe & Crêperie (really good if you're ever in Old Town and craving crêpes); a pretty blue house with a mansard roof; this former mansion (now split into four condos) has so many porches and balconies...I love, love, love this house. Occasionally one of the condos will come up for rent, and you can sneak a peek inside. Here's an old listing from last year, I think, if you want to see what one of the condos looks like. Gah, it's so pretty. And last, but not least, a super cute little free library in our neighborhood.

Another mansard roof on this lovely yellow building; honeysuckle growing like crazy all along our fence in the backyard; I love the ivy growing on this house on the corner; and irises growing up and along gold-painted finials....basically I guess I like plants growing on buildings and fences. :)

So far, summer has been hot and stormy and very humid. We've had so much rain, Peter joked that we're growing fungi, not plants. And we really are. So many weird types of fungi have popped up in our flower beds. Our yard looks like an alien planet.

I plan on spending most of July in my studio because I have lots of work to do, but I'd love a few nice days to get outside with my camera. It's been a while since I really spent some time in nature, so I'm putting that on my goal list for July too...mosquitoes be damned!

Hope your summer is aces. xo, Mary

I sketched a trapezoid on the back of an envelope. I drew a diagonal line across the trapezoid and produced two triangles. That was the beginning.

I snapped these two photos when we were passing through the east building of the National Gallery last time we were there. I looked up as we were about to go downstairs and was struck by the beauty of light, shadow, glass, and steel.

The title is a quote from I. M. Pei on his inspiration for designing the building. It's a good reminder, if you're feeling stuck, that all it takes is a shape, a line...all it takes is a start.

Detour in Staunton

On our most recent road trip, we decided to take highways down through the western part of the state rather than sit in traffic on I-95 (anyone who's regularly driven the stretch of I-95 between DC and Richmond already knows what I mean...it's always awful and can easily add two hours onto your trip if you happen to be on it at the wrong time). The route we took is slightly longer, but much more scenic and relaxed. Also, we were sure to pass by several cute small towns, which you know I love!

After driving for about 3 hours, we were ready to get out of the car and stretch our legs, so we stopped in Staunton, VA for a not-so-quick pit stop. We got coffee, walked around a bit, and even did a little shopping in a cute store. (I'll share what we bought in another post.) To be honest, I was pretty smitten with Staunton and didn't want to get back in the car!

I want to go back to Staunton for a weekend trip at some point to see more of this beautiful little town and the surrounding countryside. I got a good vibe from this place. :)

By the way, my ongoing obsession with small towns seems stronger than ever lately, so if anyone has recommendations for cute places to visit within driving distance of DC, let me know! It doesn't have to be super small, anything smaller than DC is usually a welcome retreat.

I have more pics from another stop on our trip to share soon. xo

Bits of April

I struggled with feeling uninspired to take photos most of February and March, and I didn't spend much time on Instagram at all. I think that probably happens to everyone from time to time when there's a lot of stress and other things going on in life. But April was a little brighter. Here's a peek at the last month through my phone.

Reading lots of art books; my handmade Easter gift from Peter which deserves it's own post (coming soon); it's been so nice having vases around the house filled with flowers cut from our own yard; and colorful houses spotted on an afternoon walk.

Exploring trails and spotting creatures; and the view from one of the rooms at The Kreeger.

I've been crushing on pink tulips in particular everywhere this spring...these were at a local garden; Frank Stella at The Kreeger; pink-blossomed canopies make a perfect spot for day dreaming; and cupcakes from Sprinkles.

I'm hoping May will be super productive, and I'll have lots of finished projects to share on Instagram too. It's so hard to stay indoors making things when there's sunshine and ice cream and walks along the water beckoning, which is exactly how we spent last weekend, but you know, I'm still making up for lost time and have lots of goals to reach! So with that in mind, I'm off to make this week count! :)

As always, if you'd like to follow along, my IG name is @my_hideaway.

Bits of January

A super cold, but beautiful, afternoon at Jones Point; magical pink sunsets over the water are pretty much my favorite (even in a city as cynical as DC, most of the people we passed on the bridge that night couldn't help but stop and marvel at it for a moment); a cute little dog we passed while out shopping (this dog was actually in the vestibule of a shop, if you're wondering...we weren't like sticking our noses up to the door of someone's house...though I am kind of a puppy stalker so you know, I might); and pastel houses on a grey day are some kind of medicine, I think.

This house is the cutest, they managed to update it while still keeping in line with the original architecture, which is paramount in these parts...also, that itty bitty tree in the garden and the potted plant on the sidewall...adorable, right? I hope they fill the wall with lots more potted plants and add some flowers out front come spring. Christmas trees lining the sidewalk are always a little sad to me, and actually this year the city took forever to get them all picked up...lots of angry residents around town. We passed some cute mid-century Danish things in this shop window; I would happily buy them all if I could afford it. And a walk on a cold, wet evening is always made infinitely better by the glow of street lamps (and the promise of coffee in a few blocks).

We went to a Winter Walk of Lights at the beginning of the month, and it was like an epic-scale Lite-Brite...color explosions and fairy dust and hot chocolate too...if I hadn't been completely frozen, I would've happily stayed for hours. Another pretty sunset with pink and purple marshmallow skies; vibrant colors at the Botanical Gardens from a recent trip (I have more photos to share soon); and another rainy walk in Georgetown.

All and all, January was a pretty cold and grey month, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't spend most of it indoors, under blankets, feeling pretty grumpy and wishing I lived in California. But we still made an effort to get out of the house on weekends, seeking light and color and beauty in the world around us and for that, I'm happy.

Here's hoping Punxsutawney Phil, that little bastard, was dead wrong this year. :D

P.S. Thanks to everyone who responded after last month's IG post to let me know whether or not to keep doing these posts. Most people seemed to like them, and I'm guessing if you don't, you're probably already skipping them in your feed, so you know, it's all good. :)

Today's Finds

Mobile from Patricija

Hand-knitted girls' sweater from Sweet Meadowsweet

Wooden Empire State building and Chrysler building from LaNiqueHOME

Pear greeting card set from deKanimal

Squirrel costume from opposite of far

National Museum of the American Indian

A couple of weeks ago, Peter and I decided to venture out to the National Museum of the American Indian, and I'm so glad we did. I'm a little embarrassed to admit that we'd never been before, despite the fact that it's been open for something like 10 years. It was always on my list of things to see and do, but there's so much to do here, it's easy to get distracted. Anyway, I snapped a few pics on my phone to share.

The building is beautiful. It's worth going to check out the architecture alone.

The inside walls curve around a large atrium and stage. We hung around after we'd finished looking at everything to watch a traditional Native American dance. I think they have different groups performing on the weekends on a regular basis.

I probably don't need to tell you how much I loved looking at all the handmade things. I thought this was a little girl's dress at first glance, but it's actually a Seminole boy's shirt.

The teeny tiny boots in the bottom right corner killed me. To give you an idea of how small they were, the shoes next to them were probably normal sized baby shoes, so I can't even imagine how tiny the baby was that those boots were made for. My very favorite things we saw were all the handmade animals made from various materials, but for some reason, I didn't get any pictures of those. I think I was too much in awe.

We stopped in the gift shop on the way out, and I bought this little handmade Oaxacan animal. I think it's maybe a centipede snake...something that would no doubt terrify me in real life, but is just as cute and colorful as it can be in wooden form. :)

Right now he looks perfectly at home with the plants, but I don't know if I'll leave him there forever. The bay window gets tons of direct sunlight, which is great for the plants, but I'm afraid it might make his colors fade over time. I might move him to the studio to live with my favorite little cowboy.

All in all, it was a great visit, but Peter and I both wished they'd had more to see. I would've loved to have seen more handmade textiles, and Peter wanted to see more history. Part of the fourth floor was closed because they're getting ready for an exhibit opening in September, so maybe that was part of it. (On a side note, I think a lot of museums here tend to close parts of floors or entire floors during the summer when they're getting ready for fall exhibitions, which has always seemed strange to me since there are so many tourists here in the summer, but that's just the way it goes, I guess. So if you're planning a trip to DC, you might want to check out your favorite museums ahead of time to decide when's the best time to come.) I know I was a little bummed when we went to Florence years ago that parts of the Uffizi were closed. They still had the more famous works on view, but those weren't the ones I was particularly excited to see. We couldn't have changed the dates of our trip anyway, but I guess it's always good to know what to expect.

So have you guys been to any interesting exhibits lately? Anything I should add to my growing list of places to visit someday?

The BIG Maze

Last weekend, Peter and I went to check out The BIG Maze at the National Building Museum, and it was a lot of fun. I have a pretty terrible track record with large mazes, and this one was no exception. We kept running into dead ends. The whole theory that if you keep your hand on the wall the whole time, and it will lead you out, did not seem to work. There was a mom and toddler on a similar track, and she joked that if we were following the little one we wouldn't get very far. That might have been true, but she was nevertheless really cute and highly entertaining. Once we'd gone all the way through, we went up several floors to view the maze from above. I guess you could look at it from above first and then memorize the path through, but that's sort of cheating, right? Also, it's a little fun to get lost for a while. :)

The Building Museum is so huge, it's the perfect location for something like this maze. I should warn you, though, that it's not cheap; non-member adult tickets are $16 and kids are $13. Peter and I are used to free activities here, so that seemed like a lot to pay. But we hadn't done a large maze since visiting hedge mazes in Europe years ago, so it seemed like an ok splurge. And it was fun.

I have more photos from the weekend, but I think I'll save them for the next post. And I have new notebooks to share soon! Happy Friday, everyone! xo, Mary