News Trend Another Rainy Day|Actual

This morning, I woke up yet again to the patter of rain falling on the patio beneath my window.

Scratch that verb. Unlike most Pacific Northwest rainy days, I heard not a patter but a drumbeat of steady, hard rain, accompanied by intermittent gusts that sent soggy leaves tumbling across the grass and whipped my wind chimes into a frenzy.

In these parts, we call that a monsoon.

Despite these dark, dreary conditions, a photo shoot sat at the top of my to-do list for the day. Finally, finally! After a solid ten weeks' worth of construction setbacks and snafus, I had put the finishing touches on my brass hanging planter and the little darling was ready to vogue for the camera.

But when I set up the shot in my library, on the north side of the house, the photos were dark and grainy to the point of being unusable.

Sigh.

I reconvened in the south-facing kitchen, brightest room in the house. And while I managed to eek out a few marginal photos, the dismal conditions did nothing to showcase the ridiculous cuteness of my creation.

Brass tubing wired together Himmeli-style makes a clever design for a tiny planter; and I love everything about this delicious morsel, from its wrapped leather lead to the pentagonal pouch that cradles a bitty succulent.

When I couldn't find a small white bowl that suited me, I ended up making my own out of clay. I know. Call me stubborn but I am fiercely committed to the DIY.

Double sigh.

I considered deleting the whole crop of shadowy shots and doing retakes tomorrow. But let's be honest. It's been dumping rain for weeks now, and there's precious little sunshine in Seattle's November forecast. Every day for the foreseeable future promises more of the same murky atmosphere.

Today may be just another rainy day, but I've decided to accept it and make the best of it, gloomy photos and all.

* * * * *

In my opinion, you can never have too many succulents, and you can never have too many stories about succulents. Here are a few to choose from:

Court And Kylee's Succulent Party

Succulent Season

Franklin Park Conservatory

Confessions Of A Crazy Plant Lady

Pallet Possibilities

Another Rainy Day

Growing Things

This Is War

All In A Day's Work

Design Dilemmas

Wait For It

Shopping Spree

Saturday Spring Satisfaction

Sprouts

Tiny Tinsel Tree

Biology 101

Little Things