Measuring Up - Kitchen Confessions

I don't like to measure when I cook. Even when I bake, which requires a balance of ingredients to make the magic happen, I still tend to approximate wherever I can.  Not really sure why, but I definitely avoid it.

Maybe it feels to confining.  Too much like rules.

Somehow it feels like it stifles my flow and creativity. Guess I like to imagine I am conjuring up and magically creating something new every time.

The fact that I am a reluctant (for lack of a better word) cook may explain it.  I cook for necessity not for the passion of it.   I know people who touch heaven when they are in the kitchen. 

Seriously.  

And based on the exquisite foods they create I am pretty sure heaven comes down and touches them in the process.

Again, Seriously.

I touch heaven when I draw, paint and run. Those activities fill me up - even when they are difficult.  That is passion.

So in my daily cooking time I try to spice it up. (pun intended)  Looking to make the process more exciting, adventurous...  more of a game. So I wing it. A lot.  

I approximate. 

And guesstimate.  Makes the doing more interesting.

And makes the results more of... an adventure.  Nothing ever tastes exactly the same as it did last time. I know, there are pros and cons in that.

But the meals are there, hot, healthy and ready when everyone is hungry. And the cook is happy because she enjoyed the process.

If you enjoy my work you can see more in my shop Erin Go Paint and my online portfolio.

The Dressmaker, a vignette

Enter the Dressmaker's charming cottage.  She leads you up the staircase to her studio,  the air heavy with the past.  With history.  With memories of all the dresses, and the women, and the stories that came before you. So many stories.  Some memories faded and receding. All held within the dress form.

What will she create and craft for you?  How will the fabric, the mannequin and your story guide her? How does she see you?  How do you imagine yourself?  Will she bring to life a commanding stiff brocade,  a shimmering iridescent taffeta,  or a soft, flowing and ethereal chiffon.  

She will be inspired by your story,  your essence,  your dreams.  So cozy up on her workroom sofa, sipping the hot tea and she will quietly, gently ask questions as you examine the fabrics. And she will learn your story. She will create a dream of a gown that is for you alone.

And your story will be held and cherished by the mannequin on which it was sculpted, adding to it's rich history.

Looking for some sunshine...

Yesterday was grey and gloomy. 
Today we face another murky morning.  
Right now the sun is struggling to break through, but so far the clouds are winning that battle.  I am rooting for the sun- and brightness and light and warmth!   All that good stuff!


This time of year I crave sunlight.  A few gray days in a row really get to me.  So I am searching for sunshine wherever I can find it!

from My Home Ideas

I could cozy up in this kitchen in a heartbeat!!  I can almost feel the sun coming in those windows!!  And, while I'm dreaming... how lovely would it be to make my coffee in this kitchen and then curl up into this window seat....  ahhhh!

from Houzz.com

Me and my rhino would fit right in!!

"Green Rhino", watercolor on paper, 5x7, copyright Erin Rogers Pickering

Wishing you a sunny yellow day!