My space...not the social networking site ;)

Hi you!  I know I haven't posted in a while and I apologize for that.  Right now I'm going through a career transition...this is a greatly exciting and terrifying thing.  The lesson that I think I've been learning the most is how to love and care about myself.  How can I confidently apply for a job if I'm not my biggest fan?  I guess I can say that I'm a work in progress ;)  Part of this process has allowed me to realize that I need to have an inspiring space to give me some positive assurance.  I'm a huge fan of the show The Big C.  In the show the main character, Cathy, is fighting cancer.  One of the things that Cathy used to "keep her head in the game" is she created a happiness tree.  Basically Cathy took pictures and placed them in a tree shape above her bed.  Every morning she is reminded of things to be happy about/be inspired by.  One day last week I realized that I needed something like Cathy's happiness tree.

I have a corner in our spare bed room with my desk in it.  I started filling my blank corner with a Van Gogh print that my dad gave me when I was a kid and then a calendar which starts on January 1, 2011.  I don't have a lot of spare cash right now so I went through some old magazines and cut out pictures that I felt a connection with.  One of my favorite pictures is of a White Oak tree.  The picture was actually a part of an ad which started off, "White Oaks are synonymous with strength and longevity."  I cut the ad off, but wrote that sentence on the picture and then added "You are a White Oak." :)  I put up a clever picture with a quote, "No one will grant your wishes.  You better make them happen."

My corner, like myself, is a work in progress and I'm happy that I will never be finished with it; like me!  Thanks for reading-I appreciate knowing that you're out there rooting for me :)

Do you doodle? Use your drawings to make interesting and original paintings!

The picture on the lined paper is a doodle that I drew and thought looked neat and a little whimsical.  I wanted to make some art for my living room, so I used parts of the drawing to make three paintings.

I really enjoyed this project and felt very clever when I saw the results.  I hope this inspires you to try this. 

To make your own:
Get a canvas-I get mine from Jo Ann's-the Michael's Crafts' ones just don't seem to be as nice and the Jo Ann's ones come in a lot of different sizes and shapes.  Because Jo Ann's offers coupons, do a google search before you go of Jo Ann's coupons-I found some for 40% off!  While at the store grab acrylic paint in a small bottle of a color you love or will match your decor and a bottle of white or a lighter complementing color.  Also grab a smaller brush and a larger spongy brush. 

When you get home paint the canvas the color with the spongy brush.  I painted one coat and let it dry and repeated the process two more times.  While you're waiting for your paint to dry, look through your notebook/whatever you doodle on and find a drawing that you think might be interesting if painted on a canvas.

Before I painted on my doodle in white, I edited my smaller paint brush by first cutting it a little shorter and then I cut it on an angle. 

When I painted my first line I dabbed my paint brush in white and then started from the top of the canvas down.  I started with the highest point of the paint brush and just took my time.  That's it!  Good luck and if you do this project please show me the results!  I can't wait to see how it worked out for you :)

Coordinating Room Decorations

My friend recently gave me a framed mirror that she had bought at ikea a few years back ( http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90044151 ).  I wanted to hang it in my living room, but I also wanted to give it some more character.  I have a quilt in my living room that has this cool sea foam color and was able to find paint that matched it-I used a little bottle of acrylic from Jo Ann's.  I painted the frame the sea foam, but decided that I didn't like the mirror inside and wanted to spruce that up too.

I thought a little and came up with gluing little glass pieces in the same color family from the dollar store on top of the mirror (Gorilla Glue in the smaller clear bottle works the best).  While at the dollar store buying the glass pieces I saw a small box the same wood tone as the frame and bought it too.  When I got home I painted all the wood sea foam, glued the glass on top of the mirror and on the top of the box's lid.  I think it turned out pretty good and it was a cheap a clever way to decorate my space.