Archive for free your inner artist
Project: Mini-Apron (adapt measurements for full size apron)
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Okay, let’s do this. Do you have a little one that loves to get up on a step stool and cook with you? She needs an apron! (This one is geared toward girls because I have a daughter, but you could ix-nay the ruffles and rounded corners and make an apron for your little man as well) I think it’d be easiest to print this whole post out so you can refer to the photos as you read the instructions, but you know, do your own thing.
First, you’ll need to cut your fabric for the apron front, either two contrasting patterns or the same one, either way you need two pieces. If you want a rounded look just layer the pieces right sides together, fold in half and cut a rounded edge, see diagram for clarity.
Step two, leaving the two main pieces right sides together, sandwich the ruffle between them and pin so the decorative ruffle can’t be seen at this stage – you should only see the “bias” edges. Again, look at the drawing for clarity, if you haven’t done this before it can seem confusing. Now sew with a .25″ seam allowance. When edges are complete flip this piece right side out.
Step three, take your chest panel pieces and place them right sides together. Before sewing place your grosgrain ribbon INSIDE the two pieces with the ends poking out one end. Pin three edges making sure you include the edge with ribbon sticking through, see diagram. Sew three pinned edges and flip right side out, your ribbon should be secure – this will eventually be the neck tie.
Step four; (make sure you refer to the drawings for this one, they are much clearer than my wording) take the long skinny waistband piece then fold & press a half inch seam. Lay one long edge along the top of the skirt piece (with the ruffle) that you sewed in step one. Top stitch .25″ from edge. Now do the same with the chest piece.
Repeat on the back with the second waistband piece.
Now take more grosgrain and tuck it into the raw, open ends of the waistband. Tuck the edges inside the “tube” and pin. Topstitch so ribbon is secure and do this on both sides.
Measure how long you want the waist ties to be then cut, double fold the ends and topstitch. Now go back to the neck loop: find the center, cut so there are now two pieces (still secured to the chest piece) double fold and topstitch.
And you’re done!
Pop that puppy on your little chef and get cookin’!
Scroll to the bottom of this post to see Addie’s finished apron.
My Gooser’s apron:
Addie in her Rapunzel dress and apron rocking some serious naptime hair
Project: Decorative Letters
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I had some time on my hands when I was pregnant with Addison. I decided to make the free standing decorative letters to spell out her name on a shelf I decided to go ahead and make the entire alphabet. Ambitious? Lil’ bit. Here are some instructions so you can make your own letters.
Step one:
Step One: On the WRONG or back side of your patterned paper, trace out the letter you want on your canvas. Make sure you draw it as the reverse that you want to see on the front. Or, if you don’t feel comfortable doing that, draw it on the front and make sure to cut your tracing lines out as well. Use an exacto knife on a self healing mat (or an old piece of cardboard) for clean, precise edges.
Step Two: Choose another color/pattern of paper and cut out a piece JUST LARGER than the letter from the first, letter, piece of paper. Place the rectangle, pattern side up, centered on the canvas and then position the letter on top to find the right placement for bottom rectangle piece. In the case of my example sketches, you would see the green stripes in the cut out “A” of the blue stripe paper.
Step Three: Once you you find the right position, glue the rectangle of paper to the canvas, RIGHT SIDE UP. Now cover the back side of the first piece of paper, with the letter cut out of it, with glue.
Step Four: With the letter cut-out paper GLUE SIDE UP on a solid surface, center the canvas on top and press down. Let dry. SEE STEP FOUR ABOVE.
Step Five: Run your exacto knife closely around all edges of the canvas. If you choose you can paint the edges of the canvas BEFORE you cut the extra paper off, this will ensure that you don’t get any paint on the front of your letter.
Step One: Choose a piece of patterned paper and place it WRONG or BLANK side up on a flat surface.
Step Two: Cover the front surface of your letter with glue. Make sure it is the side of the letter you want to see. Center the glue covered letter on the decorative paper you have set out in step one. Press down and let dry.
Step Three: Paint around all edges of the letter with your chosen paint color. No need to be neat, with the paper still attached there won’t be any paint leaking to the front of the letter. Make sure you remember to paint the interior crevices of letters as well.
Step Four: Use your exacto knife and a self healing mat (or large piece of cardboard) and cut around the letter as close to the edges as possible without cutting the letter itself.
If you want to hang the letter go ahead and attach something to the back of the letter about an inch and a half from the top. Staple some string, pop some picture hangers in there, you could even just poke a hole in the back for a nail. All options are super easy because the letter is made of cardboard. Now hang it up, set it on a shelf, do what you please. You’re done baby.
Ruffled Apron
Posted by: | CommentsThe majority of projects that I do for myself never make it to the website because in the chaos of inspiration and execution of an idea I forget to document the process. So here is the first post showing my attempt to rectify my negligence. For any project that I forget to photograph I will sketch out the how-to and hopefully the drawings will be more helpful than the photos!
Let me know what you think of this process, I think there will be a lot more content using this method. Just sayin.
So here we go: Frilly Apron.
My mom told me that my younger sister, Caroline (aka, Bean), wanted an apron for Christmas. Would you ever expect me to go buy an apron? Never. So rather than create a standard apron that I’ve made before (and will show you how one of these days) I wanted to do something special and fun for Bean. A retro/frilly apron is what I came up with. She loves the color green as well as subtle patterns so I took the inspiration for the fabrics from those clues. Scroll to the bottom past all the sketches to see the actual apron. I was inspired by an apron I found online at One More Moore and then changed and expanded to fit my vision.
Here are your measurements:
Piece #1: 15.5″ x 20.5″ for back of apron
Piece #2: 6.5″ x 33.5″ for ruffles (cut four or five depending on how many ruffles you want)
Piece #3: 5″ x 22″ for waist band
Piece #4: 4.5″ x 24.5″ for tie strings
Piece #5: 13″ x 13″ for chest panel (optional, you can just do a fold-over waistband and have a half apron rather than full)
Piece #6: 4.5″ x 24″ for neck tie
Piece #7: 4.5″ x 8″ for short end of neck tie
thread, needle (if sewing by hand), one set of D-rings (for neck tie)
First off, hem the main apron piece (#1) along one 15.5″ end. Double hem by folding over half and inch and then again one inch then secure using a running stitch. Repeat on all ruffle pieces (#2) along one 33.5″ edge.
Next, baste (long, removable stitches) along the remaining long edge of the ruffle piece. Pull the fabric along the thread so it puckers until it is roughly 15″, the width of the apron backing. Repeat on all ruffle pieces. See figure one.
When all ruffles are pulled, sew them onto the wrong (the underside of fabric) side of the back panel (piece #1) starting at the top of the panel. Before you sew lay them out on the fabric so you can see how much space you need to leave between each one so the entire back panel is covered. Leave about an inch of fabric above the edge of the top ruffle. Sew directly over the pulled fabric so the stitching secures the folds you created. Backstitch on edges so secure. Lift each ruffle as they are completed and sew the next ruffle with the predetermined amount of space for overlapping. Repeat on all ruffles. Important: you should be sewing the ruffles onto the wrong side of the back panel but make sure you are sewing the ruffles right side out. Imagine this: when all ruffles are sewn on, you will see all the patterns and colors as you are supposed to. But when you lift them up to see the panel, it will be the wrong side of the fabric. This is so the “pretty” side of fabric will be visible if the apron is turned around.
Next, take pieces 4, 6 and 7 and fold them in half length wise so they are long and thin. Press with an iron or enough that a visible fold is left in the fabric. Open the fold then fold in both edges to the center line. Press or pin and then stitch the edges closed, see figures 3a and 3b.
Now, if you are making the full apron, take pieces 5 (mine were two patterns, stripes for the front and dots on the back) You can leave them in a square shape or cut into a “v” or sweetheart neckline, Just make sure to leave an inch and a half open at the edges for straps. With right sides together, stitch the sides and neckline but NOT bottom and NOT openings for straps. see figure 4. Before you flip the sewn piece right side out, slide the strap pieces up through the interior of the body so a half inch of straps poke out through the openings you left when sewing the seam. see figure 4b, not marked as such but the second part of figure 4. Zig zag stitch three or four times along straps to make them super secure. Flip right side out and pull straps taught. All edges should be clean and straps secure.
Take the short strap and put the end through d-rings (keep them together) double fold and stitch a few times along edge to secure. see third part of figure 4.
The top is done now, remember the bottom edge should be open and un-sewn.
This is where I had to get creative so it gets confusing, try and stick with me.
To attach the top and the bottom, take one of the waist band pieces (#3 from first sketch) Lay out the bottom section on the floor (ruffles facing down) and situate the top section (front piece down, back up if they’re different patterns) just above it so the rough edges of both are touching. Lay the waist band piece out so it covers the un-sewn seams and fold UNDER the edges to create a clean seam. You can iron in a half inch fold along both long edges, but I tend to just fold under and pin. Top stitch these folds. I did my best in figure 5 to demonstrate with this should look like. Flip the whole thing over and do the same thing on the front. Make sure you do the back first and then sew the front piece on to cover the stitches from the back piece that show up on the front.
Now put the waist tie pieces and tuck the end into the open ends of the waist band. It should look like the waist band piece is eating the waist tie. Hows that for a description? Fold the edges of the waist BAND piece under and then topstitch. Repeat this on the other side. It should look like figure 7. When this is done take the remaining open ends of the waist TIE straps and fold the ends in on themselves, about a half an inch, then topstitch for clean edges.
Aaaaaaaaaaaand…you’re done. What do you think? Plenty of steps to this one, I know. But the results are SO fun. Here’s a picture of Beanie’s actual apron, I’m waiting on a new pic from her so until then here is a Christmas morning over sweatshirt picture:
Have fun, writing this out has inspired me to make another one. Here I go!
Christmas Party
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getting ready for our party!
So I have made it very clear that I LOVE Christmas and I wanted to share that love with my friends…so the Obsessed with Christmas Party was born. Here’s a peek inside:
Addie and I getting ready for our friends to arrive
Transfer alcohol to glass bottles and label them
I had hot cocoa and hot cider available for guests but I knew that some people would want to spice it up a bit. So I put Baileys Irish Cream, Peppermint Schnapps, Spiced Rum and vodka in glass bottles and vintage decanters to keep my kitchen counter from looking like a bar. Peppermint sticks were available for stirring and little marshmallows to finish off the cocoa. Gotta tell you, the cocoa was a crowd favorite!
Cocoa and cider in matching chrome tea kettles
Cocoa and cider on the stove in matching chrome tea kettles. I designed and printed out labels so people knew what was what. Silver platters on the front (cool) burners held coffee cups and Irish Coffee mugs.
Coffee station with flavored creamers...NO packaging to be seen!
People know how to pour coffee from a standard coffee pot, but not everyone knows how to use a Tassimo machine. I printed out instructions and set them next to the machine and the bowl of coffee capsules. Vintage creamer and sugar bowls held flavored creamers which were also labeled. A ceramic log vase held spoons for stirring.
Simple platters? Not here. Think UP not out.
Keep it simple with food, if you’re having a cocktail party people won’t expect a ton of food and not everyone wants to try wacky hors d’oeuvres. I had plates of various dippers: crostini, parmesan pinwheels, cheese straws, corn chips and crudites in decorative cups. For dips I prepared two different salsas, one spicy one sweet, artichoke dip, spiced hummus and vegetable dip as well as a bowl of kalamata olives. On the beverage counter I had a crock pot full of lil’ smokies (they went FAST and Chris had to go to the store to stock up on more!) and platters of turtle cookies and sugar cookies with crushed candy canes. Yum.
Have a variety of wines available with appropriate glasses on hand
Have a wood burning fireplace? Set up a s'mores station!
Have enough seating? Plan to have extra chairs if you don't have two couches
Make enough room around food and drinks that guests can linger comfortably
It’s almost like you were there, right? Now get out there and host a great party!
Paint your own Lyrics
Posted by: | CommentsI love this project. Even if you aren’t comfortable painting landscapes or still lifes on canvas you can still do this one. And it isn’t holiday specific, adjust your colors and lyrics and it can be used year round.
Get a canvas, paint (background color and text color), a sponge applicator, a medium tipped paint brush and if you choose, some liquid glitter and a frame.
Paint the background your solid color, in my case red. I used two different reds and a little metallic gold for the canvas pictured but a solid background will do the trick. Once dry, give it another coat especially if you’re using red, if not thick enough red tends to look a little pink.
When your background is done start on your lettering. I free handed mine using different scripts for a little more interest but you can try a variety of things:
tape your lines out so your script stays straight…(use painters tape and divide the length in inches of the canvas by the number of lines of text you want. Tape out equal spaces)
use stencils to apply your wording if you don’t feel comfortable free hand painting.
use a local print shop and have them print out your text to the size of your canvas on a clear material then apply to painted background.
When background and wording is done go ahead and apply your glitter if you choose. I applied my glitter to look like icicles and snow accumulated at the bottom of the frame. Then added a bit to the corners of the frame for a little umph.
I bought a black canvas frame (open backed with a ridge to accommodate a canvas) I painted it with four coats of metallic gold paint and inserted the canvas ready to clip it in with framing clips but the canvas was too deep for the frame. I originally wasn’t going to frame this piece so I bought a gallery canvas…deeper than standard canvas without any staples showing on the sides. SO I fished some extra blanket biding in my supply cabinet and used it and a staple gun to attach the canvas to the frame. I stapled one edge of binding to the wood of the frame then stretched it across the canvas stretchers (wood frame of a canvas) and stapled it there as well. Once the canvas and frame were firmly together I used another piece of binding and stapled it across the back to hang to entire kit and caboodle. Here’s how:
Star atop the Christmas Tree
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The star I bought for the top of our (small, apartment sized) Christmas tree was too small in proportion to the tree. And it kept falling over because the top of the tree wasn’t strong enough. So I did what I do…thought of another way to have a proportionate star atop our tree.
I suspended it from the ceiling!
It took a little dedication to find the right star that would look good from all angles if it spins, but I finally found one at Hobby Lobby. I used wire cutters to trim off the majority of the “swirl” topper where the top of the tree is supposed to go. I then tied on some jewelry wire and attached the whole shebang to the ceiling making sure to center it over the tree.
I LOVE the results.
katie O home tour
Posted by: | CommentsTake a peek inside my home…get comfortable, it’s almost 10 minutes long.
…I apologize for the blurriness, I can’t figure out how to fix it!
Beaded Silverware
Posted by: | CommentsLove the look of beaded silverware? Me too. And I have been stunned to discover that the decorative silverware is the most searched item on my entire website! If you are interested in making your own pieces, please do! Go to this link and have fun with your project.
If you love the look but don’t want to get your pliers out and make your own, here are two sets that I have made that are available for sale. If you are interested click here to send me an email and I’ll send you the set of your choice. If you want a set act fast…these REALLY are the only two sets available right now!
Holiday Set with Faceted Beads
Two piece serving set: $40
hand wash recommended.
Round, faceted beads wrapped with red wire and gold accent wire
detail of Christmas beaded silverware
detail Christmas beaded silverware
Autumn Silverware Set
two piece serving set: $40
hand wash recommended.
Smooth red stones wrapped with gold wire
detail of autumn silverware...no swirls here!
Happy (super creepy clown) Halloween!
Posted by: | CommentsThe art of redesign doesn’t only apply to making things more attractive…sometimes we need to redesign a room (or an entire apartment and its occupants) to resemble an abandoned carnival and it’s terrifying clowns.
My sister in law, Brooke, and her roommate Jamie and their friends hosted a haunted halloween tour in the heart of Wrigleyville last night, Halloween Eve. Each stop was to have its own theme and Brooke & Jamie settled on an abandoned carnival. With my OTHER sister in law, Courtney, by my side I trekked to downtown Chicago to transform an apartment from cheery pale turquoise artist’s haven into a dark and evil stop on the tour.
First we needed to cover the walls and, well, every single surface in the apartment. We opened up large black trash bags and taped them to the walls. Every single wall. Next came black fabric on couch and chairs, then spider webs and creepy clown faces, strings of red lights and shredded streamers. Bunting and balloons were misted with black spray paint to “dirty them up” and tickets strewn across the room. When everything was in place the lights were turned off and the notes of a broken and cracked merry go round filled the room. It was quite scary.
The girls dressed in black shirts and torn tights with our homemade multicolored tulle tutus wrapped around their waists. Everyone chipped in on the hairstyles and I relished every moment of applying creepy clown makeup to all of their faces. By the time we were done they looked terrifying and I am SURE than numerous people who entered the apartment were ill prepared for the sight of five (six with their friend Landon) deathly clowns there to greet them!
Take a look at the photos…and Happy Halloween!
(ps…these pics were taken with my phone on the fly, please forgive the quality!)
Kelly, Jamie and Courtney: residents of the abandoned carnival
Clowns, curtains, black walls and spider webs set the scene
So creepy even with the lights ON! I wish I could show you what it was like when the lights were off. Creeepy.
Brooke at her creepy best
Courtney really got into character. I wonder how many people she terrified last night.
Courtney again. She was really good at the scary face.
She had a thing for that knife.
Kelly getting into (very scary) character
Close up of Kelly.
Could Jamie count as the happy clown?
I don't think I want to know what this clown was happy about...
I can't look at this one for too long. Good job Brooke, you officially scare me.
A little too much creepiness for one photo.
aaaaaaand...I officially have a clown phobia.
Alexshea...happy? Sad? She was good at it, thats all I know.
after all that I did for them and they STILL want to kill me!
How would you like to walk into THIS party?
Toddler Winter Hats (and mittens)
Posted by: | Commentsscroll to bottom of post for updated instructions and sketches!
Check out some pictures of some winter gear I’ve made for Addie over the last month:
She fell in love with a gray bunny hat from babyGap but none of them fit her correctly so I made her my own version:
And a Jingle bell poof top hat with matching mittens:
Contact me if you want some of your own!
UPDATE!
I have had some requests for instructions on how to make the hats and mittens yourselves, here they are! Sketches for this one are much easier to follow than the photos…good luck and stay warm!
Okay, here’s the story:
step one: measure the head for which the hat is intended. Adult, kid – doesn’t matter, the instructions are the same for all sizes.
step two: cut a piece of anti-pill polar fleece to the head measurement by 13″ (if the head is nineteen inches around then your fleece should be 19″ x 13″)
step three: bring the short ends together and sew along edge with a 1/2″ seam allowance (look at figure #1 above) Backstitch both ends of seam. If your fleece has two distinct sides make sure that the right side, or side that you want to see is on the inside during this step.
step four: flip the tube inside out so seam is on the inside. Fold bottom rim up half and inch and then another inch so you don’t see any raw edges. See above figure #2. Now sew a zig zag stitch a quarter inch down from top of fold. If you have elastic thread go ahead and sew a running stitch, but if not the zig zag stitch will help the fabric to stretch around the head.
step five: gather the top of the tube at roughly the height of the head from forehead to crown PLUS one inch. Or just eyeball it, I haven’t measured this step once and have made TONS of hats. Tie with extra strength thread or a long piece of scrap fleece. Once it’s tied off take some thread that is the same color of the fleece and sew through the gathers. Criss cross through so it is super secure. Once the knot is complete, snip the fabric on top of the tied off section in strips, make sure not to cut into the thread or fleece tie off. Cut about 1/4″ away. Look at figure 4 above. And you’re done. Put your hat on.
The mittens are a little more…off the cuff. You may have to take a couple of stabs at this before you get the right fit.
Step one: measure around the hand. The trick to this is to make the tracing MUCH larger than the hand otherwise it will be way to small to fit a hand. Like I said, this one isn’t an exact science. Make sure you cut the fleece long down the arm, so it looks like the glove would cover half the forearm before its sewn. Cut four (or eight or twelve!) of the hand template out of anti-pill fleece.
Step two: Sew around edges with a 1/4″ seam allowance with right sides together if your fleece has discernible sides. Snip TINY cuts into the curve of the thumb (see figure 2 and 2a) This will make the curve on the flip side much smoother. Try the mitten on the intended hand. If it fits go ahead and cut the length of the arm fabric so it ends at least an inch and a half past the wrist. With the glove still right sides together, fold up the bottom edge 1/4″ and sew with zig zag stitch for stretch OR elastic thread if you are adept at using it. Flip the glove inside out so seams are now on inside and put those puppies on and warm those hands up.
You’re done, baby.
Jar o’ Pinecones
Posted by: | CommentsIt’s no secret, I have a thing for apothecary jars. I have seven on our kitchen counter (m&m’s, chocolate covered almonds, tiny chocolate chips – the essentials) and three large jars on our mantle/shelf. Glass jars are an awesome answer to so many decorating dilemmas; just put them in a grouping and add seasonal fillers.
Summer: I like to use citrus (lemons alone, clementines and limes mixed, don’t be afraid to use leaves as well)
Spring: flowers! big, fat, beautiful peonies, roses in five different shades, lilacs. If you’re not a floral kind of person then you can stick with grasses, and call me crazy, but jars of colorful candy look awesome in spring as well; try gumdrops, gumballs, etc. If you’re decorating around easter time stick some easter eggs in your jars, but please make sure they’re fake if you don’t want to smell up your house.
Fall: pinecones, gourds, squash, pumpkins, acorns, leaves, sticks, coffee berries (not roasted beans, although that could be kinda cool) Here is my own fall look:
My jars are full of acorns and pinecones
Once Thanksgiving passes I will change to winter decor in my home. I’m torn whether I’m going to fill the jars with Christmas candy, pine cones and small glass globes or just glass ornaments. I’m leaning away from the candy even though I love the way it looks because Addie will do everything she can to get to candy. I can just picture her scaling the fireplace to get her hands on a candy cane.
Let me know what you put in your jars, I’d love to know!
Lampshade Upgrade
Posted by: | CommentsI am a big fan of design store catalogs. Love them. But what usually happens is I see something I want and then scoff at the price and figure out a way to make one myself.
I immediately fell for this lampshade in the Ballard Designs catalog – I’m a sucker for anything referencing literature:
Ballard Designs "document" lampshade
So I took two plain fabric lampshades I found at Ikea for $8 each, some calligraphy pens (one in black and one in sepia) and Act II Scene II of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, one of my all time favorites.
There isn’t a lot of to do here, just write on the lampshade in various different styles and “fonts”. If I did it again I would vary the size and placement of letters a little more (similar to the Ballard version) but I love reading Shakespeare ON my lamp.
Shakespearean Lampshade (what light through yonder window and so on and so forth)
And on the other end of the couch:
Shakespearean lampshade (a little more Juliet than Romeo)
Pretty easy, I think you should try it out yourself!
Project: Utensil Art.
Posted by: | CommentsI’m gonna get right to this: I obviously remake things constantly yet I have had the same two framed pieces over my sink for almost five years now. I finally reached my breaking point and took those puppies down and turned them into something new…ish.
Out with the old:
Utensils mounted on fabric backing in shadowboxes
To make these I wrapped fabric around the backing of two shadowboxes, sewed the back (this was before I owned a hot glue gun) Then sewed the utensils, which I purchased at a local antique store, to the fabric.
When I FINALLY took them down I ripped all stitched apart and started with a fresh ‘canvas’.
Step one: I painted the frames with a hammered bronze spray paint. See the paint post for instructions.
Step two: I wrapped the backings of the shadowboxes with an ivory contact paper. This paper was left over from other projects because the adhesive on the back is useless. I always keep things because what fails for one project may be perfect for another.
Take apart the old in order to make the new
lay out backing on sticky side of contact paper
wrap corners around backing like a present; make sure it looks good from the front, the back doesn't matter
Secure the edges with tape - especially if your contact paper is useless
arrange your utensils and adhere with double sided mounting tape
Completed Utensil Shadow Boxes
And I’m happy again. I love seeing these over our sink; they look fantastic. You can arrange your silverware in an orderly fashion or do what I did and make it look like the pieces were just tossed in the frames. Just make sure they are secure however you arrange them because they will shift/fall/rearrange themselves if you don’t.
Remember, if you don’t like something in your home MOVE it or CHANGE it. There are no rules that say once something is on your wall it must stay there. Make your surroundings beautiful…you’re the one that has to look at them all day every day!
Some Autumn Inspiration
Posted by: | CommentsIf you follow this site at all you know that I am constantly inspired by my parents’ home. Everything I know about seasonal decor changes I learned from my mom; as my sisters and I grew up our surroundings evolved from jack o lanterns and turkeys to gourds and bundles of wheat.
Check out my mom’s latest exhibition of fall in their Rocky Mountain home:
Formal Dining Room Table
My parents are lucky enough to have: numerous INCREDIBLE antiques and big time storage space in their basement to hold off-season decor. I want both.
detail of formal dining table
If you don’t have the storage space to use things year after year, take inspiration from what you see here and just use one or two pieces. Fill a glass vase with leaves and gourds, go to your local farmer’s market and buy a bunch of miniature pumpkins in various colors and put them on a table runner. The season’s natural decorations speak for themselves; just transfer them to your table.
Pops of color with branches and leaves make an impact
Every once in a while there is an appearance of a friend from our childhood. Hello Mr. Scarecrow.
Changing the color of your candles and adding leaves make it FALL
Use as many surfaces as you can to transform your rooms for the season
Hopefully you are inspired as I am when I visit my family. It’s too bad you can’t see the mountains, Red Rocks and valleys from their windows…kind of incredible.
Now go get some leaves and pumpkins and get to it.
A Little Spray Paint Makes a BIG Difference
Posted by: | CommentsI think the love of spray paint is genetic; I have heard numerous stories of my Grandmother, Virginia, wielding a can of spray paint to jazz things up – more often than not it was turquoise, the official color of the Mize family.
Years later I like to think that Ninny would have been tickled by my love and advocacy of spray paint. I. Love. It. There have been some incredible technological advancements in spray paint formulas and you can pretty much find whatever you need at your local Home Depot (or Lowes, or Menards) I have become a huge fan of Rustoleum Universal paint: no need for primer and it adheres to just about anything. I have not yet found a surface to which it doesn’t stick. And let me tell you, colors GALORE.
A couple of years ago I bought four white frames from Ikea (another passion of mine – love me some affordable Swedish home goods) And I have finally grown tired of the white against our white walls. If I could paint the walls I would but the historical preservation society would have my head. Strictly not allowed in our building. My solution was to paint the frames, have some mats professionally cut and print out some botanical prints.
Take a gander at my painting set up and journey:
I use an old shower curtain liner as my painting dropcloth
If you aren’t painting in your own backyard or garage (always make sure your painting area is properly ventilated) then be courteous about spray over – there is almost always a mist that settles on things around your project. Don’t paint on community grass or near other people’s cars without proper materials to protect their belongings from paint.
Don't restrict yourself - you can paint ANYTHING. These little birds needed a makeover.
Try to follow the instructions - I am too impatient and usually end up with drips
This is an important tip, but I am one to tell you that its not always possible to follow. Remember that a few thin coats are always more durable that one thick coat (this requires a lot of patience and time, neither of which I have in spades) Let each layer dry for half and hour to an hour before applying the next coat (yeah, right) Let dry completely before you handle the painted piece (uh huh, whatever.)
Cover ALL angles of your piece
It is incredibly irritating when you think you are done with the spray painting process and then you realized that you forgot the entire inside border of a frame. Be meticulous about covering all angles. This one isn’t that hard, just do it.
My little birdie buddies in their new duds
I used hammered bronze and glossy hunter green
The glamorous life of an artist. I am literally waiting for paint to dry.
finished frames ... until I repaint them in hammered gold.
After reassembling all the frames with glass, mats, photos, backing and hanging (I have since figured out fantastic way to hang frames in a quad more easily, stay tuned for that) I have decided that the green frames don’t work with my mats and botanical prints. I will be taking them apart and painting them with a hammered gold paint within the next couple of days…maybe I’ll finally be content then!
professionally cut mats can elevate inexpensive frames to lovely art pieces
