Sweet Dreams Baby

Been busy creating a few baby boy items for the new room. I just LOVE the new Chic Bebe Boy Collection by Teresa Collins! I kept searching for just the right paper line to create a banner from and when I saw this release, I knew it was just perfect! I apologize that the letters are not posted in order, but the banner spells the word "DREAM". I'm hoping that the power of suggestion will help him to sleep soundly...LOL! I know...I'm probably the one dreaming!! There's no harm in being optimistic!

More Pages of Layers

A few more pictures from my book....

(Love these child's shoe forms I bought for the baby's room)

Statue found in the Huntington Gardens' rose garden...what a beautiful place!!


Have a good rest of the week!! Loving the extra hours of sunshine!!

Creating in Layers

I've been busy experimenting with some new techniques thanks to the inspiration of Donna Downey. She was recently in southern California for CHA and offered a couple of classes at the Scrapbook Oasis. Unfortunately, my energy levels weren't up for taking an evening class so I purchased one of her downloadable videos off her website. She has a couple that you can purchase for a nominal fee and then create at your own pace at home! I had a lot of fun with this project...trying to let go and be a little more messy and free with my art. It was also great to dig into my stash and use up a lot of old stickers and such that I've been saving for "just the right project"...isn't that what we say about all our goodies!! I will try to post a few pages each post in the next week. For now, here are a few of them...

(I love this page... my little baby bird...)

A picture of me from a few years back on a day at Crystal Cove in Laguna....

An Invitation...

"to consider what you ache for and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing." If you have never read the book, The Invitation, by Oriah, it will inspire you to consider all the aspects of life that make each of our human experiences unique and meaningful...fear, betrayal, sorrow, joy, failure, and beauty. Each chapter of the book is derived from a poem that the author initially wrote which subsequently inspired the book. It's the kind of poem that anyone can read and derive meaning or purpose from...it just hits a sweet spot in you and is so beautifully written. My goal is to someday create a large canvas with the entire poem written out on it. For now...I have used little bits of it here and there in my journaling and art. Here is the page I made with the little squares of paper and fabric patch-worked together.

I also used one of the lines in a small piece which I created the other night. I was between projects and wanted to make a little something since I had some free time. I had purchased this yellow canvas at Michaels a few weeks back...it's made by My Minds Eye. I decided to use a mask and then sprayed pink glimmer mist, which ultimately created an orange finish. Then I ripped pieces of Amy Butler fabric and glued those along the left side. A few bits of this and that to finish it and it's ready to be hung in my office to remind me of all the other things in my life that truly, deeply sustain me... since work is not always the end all, be all in life!!

Eco-Inspiration

Anyone that knows me, knows that I am usually a pink and turquoise kind of gal. However, lately, I've been really inspired by bright greens and yellows and oranges and especially by what I call the "eco- patterns"...like vines and leaves. I have been wanting to order something from the Orla Kiely website. I can't quite narrow it down to one item, so while I contemplate that carefully, I satisfied my artistic inspiration at Target. The notecards, clipboard, and binder are from a line called Greenroom which I love!! The hardcase wallet was one of those things I've been looking at for a while but not quite sure if I'd use it. I thought I wouldn't feel as guilty if I wound up not using it that much if I bought it on a Target budget rather than splurging for the cost of what I've seen other ones offered for. I really love the colors and pattern, though!!

And then I also made this in my art journal the other night. The leaves are all cut out of Amy Butler fabric which took a bit of time but I was housebound with a cold so I had lots of time on my hands!!!
I have another page I started with lots of bright colored patchwork pieces of paper, but I'll wait to post that one until I'm done! Have a happy and colorful week!!!!

Kitchen Dreaming

While recently on a daytrip to La Jolla, I came across this oh so cute refrigerator in the display window of Fresh Produce. Isn't it the perfect blend of vintage and color?!! Of course, the price tag you see hanging on the handle was definitely not within my budget to hastily splurge on an aqua refrigerator. But...if I were to win the lottery or fall into some unexpected money...this refrigerator would definitely be sitting pretty in my kitchen!!!

Here are some pictures of my kitchen...my husband is still in awe that a single potholder from Anthropologie could be the catalyst for a room's color palette...that's why he's not the decorator!! LOL!!
And knobs from Anthropologie as well! Hubby had the second shock attack when the knobs cost about as much as the whole redo of the kitchen, but I think they give it that final perfect touch!

Now don't you think that refrigerator would look just PERFECT in here?!!!!!

Be Unique

This is the last piece in my 3-part canvas series. I was sort of tentative about it when I finished, but I think it's growing on me. I was attempting to "think outside the box" a little on this one and do something a little more altered...hence the use of the face I found in an Anthropology magazine.

I chose this quote because it exemplifies one of my personal core values...be yourself! I think a person's individual beauty (and not the physical kind)- I mean the beauty that comes from what your soul is made of- is what interests people and draws people of like values to you. When a person tries to be someone they're not, it leaves you wondering if they even know which version is really them! Our life is a journey of discovering ourselves and becoming comfortable in our own skin, and that journey is made easier when we know what our core values are. I suppose that's why there is so much beauty in mother nature...because a rose never tries to be anything other than a rose, so when it blossoms, it opens its petals to the sun with confidence and pure joy.