(This is a Paris collage by Little Brown Pen – and no, I don’t own it yet, but oh, I’m craving it.)
It’s gray over here. Gray and misty and cold, and the only things that are keeping me from complete and utter despair are copious cups of tea, a new pair of boots (lined with fleecy faux shearling), and the music of The Swell Season – which, if you haven’t heard, you should go buy immediately. These two are the stars of the movie Once and their music will make you dream and lift your heart, and put a lump in your throat. Beautiful.
Anyway. I’m continuing the list project with the red things, because I need some cheerful red today. Like L.M. Montgomery’s heroine Sara Stanley (the title character in The Story Girl), I “never get tired of red. I just love it. It’s so rich and glowing.” So here are the red things I own:
1. A fat little teakettle, a gift from Jeremiah which has boiled untold amounts of water these past few years.
2. A mug with hearts etched on it, a gift from Bethany.
3. Two sweaters, a crisp button-down, a hoodie, a linen top bought in Paris, a Gap henley, two tank tops, and two cardigans.
4. Three coats – a belted trench bought in Valencia, Spain, and a fleecy coat given me by Mom. And the wool one I bought for myself this winter.
5. A necklace and earring set, handmade by Abi (in exchange for the gloves and hat I made her).
6. The beret I made myself for Christmas.
7. A couch slipcover.
8. A toaster, a rice cooker, several pots and pans, and a Crock-Pot. (I may have a slight problem.)
9. Half my Fiestaware dishes are red (the other half are a rich cobalt blue).
10. My geranium, which is hanging on through the winter, though it’s grown a bit leggy and spindly.
11. The guest-room bedspread.
12. My favorite ballet flats.
13. A thick, chunky scarf I knitted myself during my first semester in Oxford.
14. The Valentine Cowl.
15. Personalized stationery – a Christmas gift from my sister.
16. Two canvas magazine bins.
17. A set of little bowls that I use to carry food to work. (And my mixing bowls.)
18. My current journal – red-brown stamped with gold.
19. A set of sheets and all our bathroom towels, and some of our kitchen towels.
20. Numerous Christmas ornaments, and other decorations.
21. My kitchen countertops (though those were red long before we moved into this house).
22. A plump cinnamon-scented candle.
23. An Eternal Threads lace table runner.
24. My wallet, bought at Sam Moon with the coffee girls.
25. A pair of tights.
26. The chiffon dress I unearthed at a charity shop and wore to the May Ball at St Aldates, where Lizzie and I and our mates danced the night away.
27. A beaded letter-opener from Dots by Audrey.
28. Both pairs of my slippers.
29. A pair of pj pants sprinkled with white hearts.
30. Lots of socks and unmentionables – so many that Lizzie, and Joy before her, used to tease me about having enough red clothes to do a whole red/pink load of laundry.
31. The tray that holds my teas.
32. My sugar-and-cream set.
33. My car’s ice scraper.
34. Some stash yarn, ribbon and scrapbooking supplies.
35. My yarn basket, also a gift from Jeremiah.
I’m sure there are more – but this is just off the top of my head. Anyone else have a thing for red – or another colour that crops up, over and over again, in your house and your clothes and your life?
**Edited to add (because I went home and found MORE red stuff):**
36. My old fleecy bathrobe
37. The kitchen clock
38. A polka-dotted cream pitcher
39. Two cookie jars, one shaped like a strawberry and one shaped like a basket of strawberries
40. My laundry hamper
41. Three rugs
42. Several sofa and bench pillows
43. Tomatoes, nectarines and apples in my kitchen
(I’m sure there’s more…but wanted to share these extra bits with you!)
cakes, tea and dreams 
Yes, yes, hooray for red! Definitely a dashing balance to the grey outside.
Red is my very favorite color!! I adore it to pieces too. 😉 I, too, have wanted to drink several cups of tea today.
While I feign indifference, I actually have a thing for purple (as you well know). Things I can think of right now include:
1. At least three cardigans, two skirts, and more shirts than I can count (tho I do have the excuse of needing them about once a week for work).
2. The blanket on my lap right now (tho the cat on top of *it* is gray and white).
3. My new sheets, a deep plum to contrast the black and white floral duvet from ikea.
4. The small (but prolific) star-shaped flowers on my newest house plant and also my barely-surviving pansies outside.
5. My yoga mat.
6. My favorite eye shadow.
7. My newest earrings–intricate wire with purple beads–a staple on preview days and a handmade gift from a friend.
8. The stems on my wine glasses, a set that miraculously survived many cocktail-less parties in our little cottage.
In truth though, I like colors in general: glowing reds, bright splashy turquoises, pale hydrangea blues, soft moon tide green, sunny daffodil yellows, and dark chocolatey browns. They all make this season of the year a bit more bearable. 🙂
Yes, I know you love purple, my dear. 🙂 But I love your thought about the colors in general. They do get us through the winter.
That’s such a fun list! Mine would include numerous tops/sweaters/jackets, blankets, socks, shoes, cushions, a rug and curtains. There’s much more though … love this!
Glancing at my kitchen, I see some red mugs, some toys and a kitchen towel.
But there are lots and lots of blue things around here. That’s my color.
[…] to mention my red bathrobe, our red bath towels and dishes and couch slipcover, and all the other red things in our house. Me in my "Valentine […]