Birds On a Line

My feng shui approved painting for the bedroom is complete! I was supposed to go out with my friends, but I decided to stay in. I had gotten some large brushes earlier that day so I could work on this painting, so I figured I might as well start. I had to finish it this morning, because I've learned that nothing good happens after 2am! It's the largest canvas I've used and its was a bit tricky painting it on the floor of my craft room, but it turned out OK! What do you think?

Start And End Your Day With Inspiration - Art For Your Room

A few weeks ago I started looking into the feng shui of my house to see what I can do to increase the positive chi or energy in my home. I found a lot of things that were "off" and set out to rectify or improve what I could without breaking the bank. One of the things I decided to do was create a motivational piece that I  could wake up to every morning and see before I go to bed. Now, you don't have to believe in the whole feng shui business, but I think that this is a good idea for anyone. Sometimes we just need a little reminder. So pick a quote or even a single word that means a lot to you and put it on a canvas.

One thing that I have learned is that I have a greater control over my emotions than I thought. Emotions are a choice and we can find many things in our current lives to satisfy the choices of how we want to feel, but we may not conscious of these choices. If we want to be angry, it is easy to find something to be angry about. If we want to be happy, we are bound to find happiness somewhere if we are willing to look for it and be open to it. It can sometimes make us vulnerable, but vulnerably is what makes us real. I wanted to remind myself of this everyday and I wanted it pretty immediately so I went right to my craft room and had at it.

It's not the most artistic piece of mine, but it's the message that counts right? :) Just pick your favorite colors and get a wide brush and blend them for the background. In my case I had a tiny brush, so it took a bit longer. Then, write your message in a contrasting color. My walls are a light minty green, so I picked calming colors that went with my wall and bedding. When I see it, it makes me smile.

Misty Guilin Painting

One of the most beautiful places I've ever been to was Guilin, China. I visited this city with my study abroad group during the fall of 2004. We came here from our previous destination, Yongzhou. I just absolutely loved the mistiness that enveloped the hills and mountains. It makes you feel like there's a treasure just waiting to be found on one of the peaks that pierces through the blanket of mist. It was beautiful even in the fall, but oh how I wished I could have seen this place in the spring. There were old men floating peacefully on long skinny rafts on the Li River, which cuts through the city. I made my best attempt to paint Guilin, but I was not that happy with it. I told myself that I would fix it at some point. I doubt that I'll fix it and I don't hate it, so here it is. :)

Misty Guilin, acrylic on 18x18" canvas - April 11, 2012

Red Skies Painting

After I did my orchid painting, I got inspired to do another painting immediately the next day. I consulted Mike for ideas and I incorporated his concept in this painting. Looking back at this now, I think it looks a little eery but has a sweet darkness to it. I have two other paintings that I plan to do at some point to go with this.

Red Skies, acrylic on 10x10" canvas - March 2, 2012

Orchids Triptych Painting

I figured that it was about time that I made some contributions to my "Art" section, so I'll be posting some paintings in the next few posts. :)

I am absolutely in love with orchids. It's my favorite type of flower and I am always trying to grow them. Unfortunately, it's difficult for me to find a good place for them to get the right amount of filtered light AND be safe from the pets. I figured that a painting would last longer and so I took a stab at painting. I was pleased with the turn out and was surprised. I hated painting in art class when I was in school. I was horrendous. I think I grew some patience over the years. I found an orchid painting that I liked from here and did my version on three canvas that now hang in my living room. I contacted the original artist (Kerry Crutcher) and he was kind enough to let me post my version in this blog.

Orchids, acrylic on three 20x10" canvases - March 1, 2012

The End Of A Hiatus And The Beginning Of Something Better

I've been fairly unproductive in the last couple of weeks. My friend was visiting from Dallas, so she's part of my excuse. She came up to visit St. Louis for a couple of days and then we took a road trip to Kansas City. I've grown to like KC quite a bit. There are some good tourist attractions, nice shopping districts, and also it's the home of the best BBQ in America - Oklahoma Joe's (one of Anthony Bourdain's "13 places to eat before you die").

We arrived in Kansas City fairly late in the afternoon and missed the lunch rush at OK Joe's, but as you can see, the line was still out the door. It was my second time there. I fell in love with the brisket the first time and hadn't stopped thinking about it since. Nothing has ever compared. I ordered a full brisket dinner and was delighted that it was exactly everything I had hoped for... I also got a chicken dinner as well. I think I put the men around me to shame with their single dinners. Honestly, I thought everything else here was OK. I was only there for the brisket and their sweet spicy BBQ sauce (it can be bought at the grocery stores in St. Louis, so it may be available in other cities).

As always, after a trip I always feel a little blue to be back home. It's so nice to able to step away into another city and explore. It took me a couple days to get out of the slump. What helped was my excitement in making some plans to learn about classical art. I have such a deep appreciate for old art and was just blown away by the artistry of the pieces I saw while visiting art museums. More to come on this...

I am currently also working on getting myself on track with exercise. I haven't worked out in a loooong time and it's taken such a toll on my energy level. I have so much I want to do and have just been too tired to do anything.  I started by taking Winston to run around at the park. Baby steps! I got a chance to take a picture of Winston for the first time outdoors.

I hope to have a few projects finished in the next few days for Mother's Day, so stay tuned!

Fabric Canvas Art

I keep seeing so many pretty fabrics and I can't help myself from buying them when I do. I wanted to frame some of them and display as fabric art, but today I decided to go a different route. I got into painting not too long ago, so I've got a decent supply of canvases. I started sewing not long after, so I haven't had a chance to use them. I figured that I would temporary put my canvases to use and save the money on frames. If you are looking for just a pop of color or to jazz up a spot in your home (my sewing area in my case), here is an idea to achieve that in just minutes. You can use more permanent solutions to attach fabric to canvas, but I chose safety pins. I can repurpose the fabric and frame without any damage and I can change out the fabric easily. When it comes to home decor, I'm a bit of a commitment-phobe. 

Materials:

• canvas
• fabric = canvas size + ~2"
• bobby pins

Instructions:

Lay your canvas over fabric and cut out a rectangle big enough to cover the canvas in the back.

Iron to get any wrinkles out.

Carefully pin the fabric to the canvas material.

Be sure to pull taut, keep the print align/straight, and tuck in the corners.

And... that's it!

Hammer a nail into the wall, plop on the canvas, and enjoy the view.

Happy Wednesday!