You Know You Love Me

I have a weird obsession with scraps.

When I'm messing around with my art, I never know what little snip or snap might eventually come in handy. So I take the prudent course.

Every cast-off trimming is carefully protected and added to my you-never-know pile.

And while I continue to work on my main project, my eyes often wander back to that unassuming little heap, sifting through the odds and ends and imagining what they might become. 

Some days, I get nothing, and end up sweeping the whole mess into the recycling at the end of my work session. 

But other times, I hit the jackpot.

Yesterday was one of the good days.

I might be in love with this tiny Valentine banner, fashioned from:

leftover scraps of pink and red painted paper

brown paper grocery bags used as drop cloths for a gold-spray painting project, and 

rejected bits of baker's twine.

Kind of obsessed with the bright bursts of intense color against the lush gold backgrounds.

And I'm fixated on the idea of taking a break from hearts. This XOXO motif, popular as it is, reads like a breath of fresh air in my Valentine-y brain. 

Plus, every time I see this darling little frollop of festive fun, I hear a soft, familiar voice purring in my ear:

You know you love me. XOXO Gossip Girl

Ranger, you know you love me too.

And I love you...even more than Chuck Bass loves Blair.