for Stephanie

A little while ago, one of my favorite friends from college asked me if I would make her some uplifting decor for her new office.  I was so happy about this assignment!  She shared some favorite quotes, and after a few questions and answers, I hope I have captured her ideas.

 

Each canvas is 8 x 8 inches.  She could hang them in a row, or a square, or all over the place.  I wonder  what she will think?!?!  

Have a wonderful week!

this unfinished collection

I found that I had stowed away a collection of paintings from a few summers ago.  I painted them during a relaxing Mackinaw vacation (and maybe a few from before or after that).  Most of these, if not all, are from 2011.  I haven't seen them for quite a while, and now I am sharing them with you, in their various stages of finishedness. 

Make Something Beautiful Today: This one, I think, is definitely finished.  It makes me happy to look at it.

Always Be Kind:  This one is not entirely finished, although I don't have a vision right now for what I want to add to it.

The Good Old Days Are Still To Come: My college roommate Catherine (who is awesome, and I miss her) wrote a similar phrase on our dorm room wall in chalk.  I love the optimism in this phrase.  I also like these bright colors!  This one isn't finished - it looks like it needs some white stars and doodles to fill the spaces.  Some of the flowers were punched from newspaper I used as a base for the canvases.

Slow Down:  This one may have been added to the box later than the others.  It probably isn't finished but really, I think I would just add some more to the left side, vertically, and then it would probably be finished.  This is incredibly busy already for such a simple sentiment.  It doesn't need much more.

I Will Keep Happiness In My Soul:  I like this, but I think it's not finished, and needs something that I couldn't decide in 2011 and can't figure out tonight.  I like its color scheme, and this makes me happy to look at even in it's unfinishedness.

You Are Amazing:  This was finished, but now it needs a few repairs.  I think it's funny now that I just drew on the canvas with oil pastels.  Why did I do that?  I don't know - I like this, though.  It's sufficiently bright and the flowers are fun.  My favorite is in the bottom left corner.  

I Am On Your Side:  This one is so not finished.  It's barely begun.  But I wanted to include it because I like its orangeness and wow, this one really has a long way to go.  You can still see my pencil marks!

There were more, mostly about as finished as the orange canvas.  I've been working on some special projects recently, so I will get back to these soon.  Maybe.  I hope so!

when all else fails, pinterest

hello.  i am interrupting this blog break. i don't know that it's really necessary to talk about blog breaks, but i kinda miss being around here.  i can't wait to write more and share with you the projects i've been working on, even though they are fewer than usual, and life is pretty full of tasks lately.  also, my Dad is in the hospital, so i'm spending free time there.  i feel all kinds of things.

one thing i have kept up on is pinterest.  what a wonderful five-minute escape from woes and tedium!  even after two years, there is always something new to see.  visual, educational, and social (but not too social).  i like looking back through my pins, too.  i'm happy that it exists.

i'll leave you today with a few selections.  i hope you have a happy Easter and April - i'll be back soon!

stopping by

 Here is a little flower for you today. I started it several months ago, and finished it several weeks ago. I am going through a little creativity lull right now and feeling quiet lately - staying very busy connecting the other dots in my life. I'm doing well, and I'll be back soon. I hope you are doing well, too!

a project with a toddler, and a party, and hearts

Some photos from recent weekend activities:

I took a day trip to Cincinnati, where three year old Aven and I created an art project together. Photos below show the process.

 

 We started out with watercolors, and painted a mostly orange page, a mostly blue page, and a page of whatever she wanted that was not part of the project, to allow her some creative autonomy.

 

 Aven chose a bird from an assortment of paper punches I had brought with me. I did the punching, this particular punch was too big for her hands.

 

When Aven counted to twelve birds, we started arranging them.

 

I used small adhesive squares and positioned them at somewhat-equal distances apart, a few at a time. Aven adhered each bird to the orange paper.

 

The finished product was simple, colorful, peaceful, and sweet. Aven seemed proud of her accomplishment!

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 In January, I went to a surprise party for my friend Nikki, who had no idea! It's fun to prepare for a surprise party, and I think she really enjoyed it.

 

 For me, the party was a reunion of co-workers past. I have known some of these ladies for ten to thirteen years! It was great to see them again, even if some of them look a little blurry (I promise, they are not blurry in real life).

 

 I started another unfinished project when I opened up a package of chipboard shapes. I loved painting these Valentine-y embellishments, but I didn't get much farther than this - at least not since that day, maybe I'll start again sometime soon.

 Have a wonderful week!

all day

All day today, I painted. The flower above is my favorite project from this afteroon. Today was a blessing. I am so thankful for the free time, and the opportunity to rest my mind. I also slept in until 8:55. I am now on a weekends-and-holidays-included conference call every morning at 9:00 a.m., so sleeping until 8:55 has become somewhat of a luxury. I am almost a morning person now, which is so strange to me!

 Days have been packed with family, friends, work, and all of the mundane bits that hold everything else in place. Maybe later, I will share some photos from this month. For now, I think I may begin to wind down with some tea and begin to prepare for a Monday full of meetings. I hope that you are warm and well, and that your week will be punctuated with moments of all kinds of awesomeness.

2013

Happy New Year! Did you watch the Tournament of Roses parade this morning? It always amazes me - the floats made from natural, perishable materials - they are all so beautiful. And while I was looking forward to another year of surfing dogs, the Natural Balance pet food company created another impressive display this year. I spent some time painting, during and after the parade. I experimented a little bit with watering down paint into tiny spray bottles, but I'm not sold on that technique yet. I painted a canvas with a layered flower. It looks a little bit like I'd imagined it in my mind, with much more added detail. Sometime, I may paint something similar with more restraint in the details. I like it, regardless. It's bright and reminds me of patchwork, in a way.

One layer of the flower is a piece of coffee filter, on which I wrote my goals for 2013. They weren't resolutions, just ideas that came to mind about improvements I'd like to make in my life. They are simple, and they are mostly about simplicity, health, using resources wisely, being present and intentional, challenging myself creatively, and spending time with family and friends. There are so many opportunities ahead for me to grow.

May your 2013 be filled with peace and joy!