Picnic.

January Picnic

Because I worked a half day today, and Rich was off, and we live and Florida and it was therefore a sunny 75 degrees, Rich took me on a picnic! It was such a relaxing, lovely way to spend the afternoon.

January Picnic

Yes, that is a t-shirt and yes, those are bare feet. There are a few advantages to living in a place with two seasons (hot and hotter).

January Picnic

Two Month Challenge Project #1: Yellow Lamp

I did several projects last weekend and the one before, but it gets dark so early and I haven’t been home in any good light to get photos. Here’s the mid-point of Project #1: the dingy, thrifted yellow lamp. I started to like the original lamp color after (AHEM) several weeks (months?) of it sitting in my studio. Rich was strongly opposed to the yellow, and on closer inspection/ cleaning, I had to agree – not salvagable. It was dingy down under the paint job.

Icky before:

Yellow Lamp, Before

So I gave it FIVE thin, even coats of navy blue spray paint; here’s the classed-up after:

Yellow (now navy) Lamp, After

And a closer look:

Yellow (now navy) Lamp, After

I’ll post more photos once it has a shade and is up in the house!

All I Want for Christmas (for under $25) is…

Christmas Wish List

1. Tree of Life pillow cover from The Hunger Site, $12.95

2. 3-D Drawing Pad from Flight 001, $9.00

3. Charley Harper Flash Cards and Floor Puzzles from Barnes and Noble, $14.95

4. Sleepy Red Forest Fox from Sleepy King, $24.00

5. Mo’s Bacon Chocolate Chip Pancake Mix from Vosges, $12.00

6. Scribbles: A Really Giant Drawing and Coloring Book by Taro Gomi from Amazon, $13.59

7. Hand knitted iPod or iPhone case in Blue Grey from onaroll, $14.00

And one extra, because I just couldn’t resist- definitely not under $25 but worth it:

8. Handmade Marigold Flats from Smartfish, $95

And now that I look at all of these items together, I’m picking up on a subconscious primary color theme. This calls for watching The Grinch, drinking hot chocolate, making paper snowflakes, and channeling my inner kindergartner!

A site worth seeing

Ahem. Pardon the pun.

But I really think you should all go and check out my husband’s newest site for his trio, The Mars Trio, here. These guys are incredibly talented, and the site is lovely.

Picture 3

Counter-Productive De-Stressing Tactics

DISCLAIMER: The following post has absolutely nothing to do with design, decorating, art, or crafts, and contains several outbursts of overwrought emotions. Proceed with caution.)

So I have this aromatherapy lotion – which smells fantastic – that touts as a benefit that it is proven to “calm your senses.”

The back story: I was walking aimlessly through Target a few months back, feeling overwhelmed and frantic from work, when I saw IT. IT was in a shimmery purple tube and even lookedrelaxing. It was inexpensive, so I bought it. (Obviously. Since I said “I have this.”) I figured that even if it didn’t ACTUALLY calm my senses, just thinking it might should do the trick. (Confusing, eh? That’s how I end up with so many body care products.)

I used this lotion all the time – at night before bed, after a long day of teaching, the day of a yearbook deadline. Fast forward to today: I pulled out my lotion, feeling like a need a small clone army to keep up with all my responsibilities, slathered it on my hands, and then…. FELT MORE STRESSED. My brain missed the association of “lotion” with “calm and tranquil”, and instead now associates wonderfully scented shimmery purple salve with “outright panicking anxiety.”

stress


I am going to go home today and sit on my couch and crochet while listening to Arvo Part.

Thrifting!

We had a day off today, and a friend of mine had asked if I wanted to go thrifting (answer: heck yes!). So we drove around to a few thrift stores, finally reaching the verdict that most of the thrift stores here are hugely overpriced. For example, why would I pay $700 for a small kitchen table and 4 chairs – at a thrift store?

After four hours and one purchase (a pair of striped green knee socks) and one massive “duh” moment, though, we remembered that the best vintage and antique shops (if you’re willing to dig a little) are right by where we both live and headed over there. She picked up a set of six little melamine bowls, each a different color – red, aqua, mustard, gray.

I got this fantastic gold mirror for $10:

mirror

A white ceramic coffee pot with a great shape for $6:

coffee pot

And an old bank bag for a buck fifty:

money bag

The mirror will be painted (it’s a toss-up – red or white?) and the bag will become a pillow. I am super proud of my purchases, and that I spent under twenty bucks! Whoo hoo for days off!

Spotlight on Berean

A couple weeks ago, we had our second annual “Spotlight on Berean”, our school’s open house. Albert, who teaches upper school art, and I set up a gallery in the hallway of student art. It looked so good that we left it up. Pardon me while I brag on my kids a moment.



Paul Klee study:

Berean Spotlight 2009

Kindergarten and first grades’ salt paintings:

Berean Spotlight 2009

Abstract portraits:

Berean Spotlight 2009

Perusing art journals and 3D works:

Berean Spotlight 2009

Update: Our Bedroom

I promised pictures of our bedroom once we finally finished (HAH! “Finished!”) it. And so, here it is!

Bedroom, Redone!

Bedroom, Redone!

Next to come: the wonderfully empty corner nook on my side of the room!