I’m not one to be inspired in my kitchen. When we moved to this small house, two-thirds of my cook books went to other kitchens and I seldom look at the remaining ones. In fact, I seldom follow a recipe. That doesn’t mean I’m a creative cook. It means I’m too lazy to go to the store! But somehow we eat well without eating out too often.

I think I got a little away from Ritva’s topic on finding inspiration in the kitchen. While I may not be inspired, I do find joy and that’s because I love my Mickey Mouse treasures. Yes, I’m a Mickey lover. Here are some of my kitchen treasures.

The top three were gifts and the planter was the first thing I brought into this house. It’s only be sheer determination that it has lived. I’ve been known to kill a cactus. The mug is my last Mickey mug and my husband is not allowed to use it since he broke the others. The toaster is not in use because it gets hot, but I love it anyway. The Mickey skeleton was given to me by my grandson and his girlfriend. She loves Halloween. I enjoy seeing it move when the morning sun shine on it.

Outside of my kitchen, I have photographed kitchen related items like these at Ikea.

And then there’s always the hardware stores.

Or farmer’s markets.

I photographed this at a still life class given by the Gold Rush Chapter of PSA.

I’ll end with something you’ll never see in my kitchen. Knowing I am in the paper plate time of my life, I gave my good china and silver to my daughter-in-law while I could see her enjoy it. This was taken in the Sacramento Railroad Museum’s dining car.

I think I’ve expounded enough on my kitchen philosophy. Thank you Ritva for letting me have some fun and showing you my kitchen treasures. By the way there are more Mickeys around the house!

And thanks to Patti for encouraging us to tell stories through our pictures last week. Your responses were varied and great. Next week Philo will be challenging us with simplicity. Be sure to look for his post.

By the way, the WordPress Reader tag for Lens-Artists is not working well. I hope that through all of us posting on Ritva’s challenge, more will find it. Remember to link to her post and use the Lens-Artists tag.

38 thoughts on “Lens Artists #256: Inspiration Found in the Kitchen”

  1. This was a wonderful contribution Anne. Your photography is stunning and I love that you found inspiration in places like farmers markets and hardware stores. I loved the berry photo. The railroad car was a great find. Looks like one of those places where you have to look around to be sure you are using the right glass or utensil. What is funny, for some reason my grandchildren love to eat at the “fancy” table at my house. We usually only eat there a few times a year, but they insist. I think it is so different from todays fast paced life.

    Any hidden Mickeys?

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    1. Thanks Donna! There are Mickeys in my bedroom, sunroom dining area, living room. You name it and he’s there. So is his sweetheart Minnie. Back in 2006 Richard and I went to Disneyland and stood for goodness how long in the line at Mickey’s house in Toontown. We were the only adults without children. When I was up, the guy yelled “Next kid!” and I yelled, “Here I Am!” Yes, I had my picture taken with Mickey.

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      1. hahaha. I love that story. We live Disney and enjoyed behind the scenes tours. Even then, Mickey and Minnie are secrets.

        Have you ever taken a Disney Cruise? They just do it all right. I enjoyed watching all the kids as much as the adulting times.

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        1. No I haven’t. They are expensive and husband doesn’t like to cruise. When I cruise now, I go with my friend and her family. I also think I’m too old to be around that many kids for a week or more.

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    1. Thanks Ritva! I had fun getting the images together. I also enjoyed working with you. And, I’m sorry we were having trouble with the Reader. It finally started working later in the day.

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  4. Great selection Anne 😀..I like how you have photographed the straws, in addition to everything else. Mickey stuff – that’s adorable!

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  7. Fun post Anne – I’ll admit I’m not much of a Mikey fan but I love that you are!!! I wonder if your husband is jealous LOL. Loved your post which gave me a smile this morning. The carrots are wonderful and the railroad car is perfect! For some reason I remember a scene like that from a trip LONG ago. No idea why or where but no question in my mind. Funny how memories work!

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    1. Thanks Tina! I do like Mickey. He makes me smile. My husband isn’t jealous. I guess it’s because Mickey is too short and looks sort of mousey. Our railroad museum is fantastic. However, the AmTrac will only allow you to eat in the dining room if you have sleeping car accommodations. So regular ticket holders are stuck with microwaved hamburgers, hot dogs, mac and cheese.

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  10. Hi Anne, Thank you for showing us your Mickey Mouse treasures, fun wonderful stories behind these. Love how you captured the kitchen items. Great photos of these carrots and berries!

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  15. Thank you for the Mickeys! We don’t have that much of collecting things and I am not a special fan of something/someone that way. But I can see you smiling!
    Loved especially the wonderful blueberries and blackberry photo.

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  18. I especially like the still life shots, Anne, as well as the closeups of ordinary kitchen things made extraordinary by the photos. I gave our 12-place-setting set of Mikasa china to our younger daughter who loves it and uses it, although not usually for any fancy parties. 🙂 It has to be hand-washed and when the girls were young, we never used it because it might get broken. I’m happy with my Corelle and other lovely pieces that can all go together, look fantastic, and then be (mostly) put in the dishwasher.

    janet

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    1. Thank you Janet! I’m using my Corelle and loving it. Freedom is what I call it. I still have another set of pretty dishes that I use for company and special dinners. I also get a great feeling knowing my daughter-in-law is using the expensive, breakable stuff. I guess we are both in the paper plate time of our lives!

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