A Place Called Home...

I've been intrigued and introspective about the concept of home since I was in college. My undergraduate degree is in Environmental Studies with a minor in Philosophy. While doing my studies I became facinated with the idea of place....the environment in which we live. Living with a sense of place. Living locally. I did my senior paper on urban agriculture and became involved with community gardens and community supported agriculture. Maybe part of it is that I still live within 15 miles of where I grew up and I chose that. Maybe it's the fact that I know I will never live outside Minnesota, it's in my blood. I need seasons. I need bitter cold days like today where the high is in the single digits to truly feel the pulse of springtime when it arrives. I am obsessed with this wonderful place in which I live.In the latest issue of Somerset Life magazine Pam Garrison wrote a wonderful article about her obsession with home, the concept of home and adornment of the home. She writes that what is probably fueling her infatuation with home is that it is where she finds the people she loves. Her family is at home and that means the world to her. Her sentiments ring true for me as well and I'm assuming for most of you. Ever since becoming a mother, home has a whole new meaning for me. It's where we play, sleep and eat. It's where I spend the vast majority of my time. I spend lots of time picking up the messes created (constantly) throughout the day, but it's also a place that nurtures us all creatively. I am constantly changing the decor on a whim. Whatever I'm in the mood for that hour, day or week. Pam writes about creating a home folio. I've wanted to do this very quite some time. I have piles and piles of magazines with images that speak to me, either with palette, whimsy or absolute beauty. So I finally gathered my stacks of glossies and got busy tearing out pages and cutting out pictures that moved me in some way. Then with sheer joy I began putting picture after picture in my favorite blank journal and the pages started taking shape. Setting a mood, making a statement. It was such a delight to collage my favorite pictures, papers and bits of this and that and step back and admire the play of colors and the feelings they evoke when all brought together. It is my own inspiration journal and it has already brought a smile to my face and creative ideas swirling in my head. Such a simple concept with such profound impact.

All photos are from my new journal. Do you keep an inspiration journal or a home folio? I'd love to hear about what it means to you:)