art quotes

Some new quotes I'm considering hanging up in my art room...

A hit with my students

I showed this video last week to my Draw/Paint classes and they were mesmerized.  I still did a short live demo as well, but this video was a time effective way of showing them how a piece builds from start to finish.

This poor neglected blog...

Well it's been years since I last posted, but my old blog is still here.  Looking through the last few entries has been interesting; my life has changed immensely since I started this hodgepodge blog.  Parenting, working full time, and being a graduate student doesn't leave time for making handmade gifts and doing big home repair/design projects, unfortunately.

The blogger interface seems much more user friendly than I remember, but I don't think I'll be taking up blogging again any time soon.  For now Pinterest is my site of choice for organizing my projects (both personal and work/school) in a quick and visual way. 

creature comforts

Now that the harsh Chicago winter is over I'm ready to break out of my winter hibernation mode and share some of my crafts from the last few months. This is a creature that I made for my adorable nephew Anson's baby shower. I used flannel and felt to make him extra soft and decided to skip the button eyes just in case they fell victim to baby's strong grip or the family dog's teeth.

My friend Nicole has an another baby girl on the way this summer so I'm starting to plan my next baby friendly creature for her debut in July.

oh, baby

It's official as of 11pm last night I have a new nephew! In honor of Anson, here are some adorable and unique nursery designs.

Images from: oh dee doh and design sponge

head bored?

At some point I'd like to add some more flair to my bedroom decor by adding a headboard of some kind.

paint: save space and money by painting or stenciling a design onto inexpensive plywood or directly onto your wall.























art: buy or make a large scale piece above your bed (just make sure it's attached firmly to the wall!). Below Polaroids are tacked up in a heart shape, found objects are assembled into art, and a mirror frame is used to frame out a free form collage.
























fabric: drape it, add grommets and hang directly on the wall, upholster an old headboard or piece of wood, stretch fabric over canvas stretcher bars.

bland bath

My cozy ranch is a lovely blank canvas just waiting for my next diy whim. Next up might be the bathroom. It's your standard small bath with medium brown cabinetry, light tan walls, Hollywood style light fixture above a large wall mirror, tan ceramic floor tile, and yellow tile in the bath surround. The yellow tile is a little quirky, but after living with it for a few months I've actually come to like it in way; it's a happy and warm color to be surrounded by during my sleepy morning shower.

Overtime here are some things I'd like to change/add to the bathroom:
replace white plastic toilet paper roll holder and hand towel holder
change light fixture
paint cabinetry white
recaulk around the tub
add some excitement to the walls with bright color or possibly a hand painted pattern

The painting part sounds the most fun and creative, so I started searching for advice and inspiration. I'm thinking of creating a mod vine design that stretches from floor to 3/4 up the wall. I love the color combo of yellow, white, and gray and this is the perfect room to use it in since I already have the yellow tile to work around.

Images from: Design Sponge and Casa Sugar