Burn Your Bra's, But Put Some Lipstick On!

It's been more then a year since I've posted a new entry, so wow I'd say I'm way overdue - even for what I like to call a "casual blogger".  This past year saw the beginning of a new chapter in my mother's life.  She told us kids that she would be listing her house (our childhood home) on the market in the springtime.  Only it didn't quite go that way.  When my mother gets what she calls a "bee in her bonnet" all bets are off.  

She was more then ready to leave behind the dusting, sweeping and managing of a three story house for a smaller and simpler space.  Who can blame her, the thought is daunting to me.  I'm way too lazy of a housekeeper for a three-story!  

I'd like to say that I chronicled that journey in pictures, but it just didn't go that way.  We were too busy going berserk!  You see, the dear-heart listed her home almost immediately after making her announcement to sell.  And to top it off...she had a buyer the first week!  What!  

I loved everything about that house.  We had tall ceilings, hardwood floors, carved woodwork, stained glass windows and a mantel in almost every room.  Having a mantel in your bedroom is magical for a kid who's in love with design and antiques.  I changed out the decor on that mantel at least once a month.  Usually after I schlepped home my latest finds from the thrift store up the street.   

I promise to post pics of mom in her new place, just as soon as it's finished, and she puts her lipstick on.  Which reminds me...

I got kind of a mixed message growing up, I think it's because my mom was a child of the 50s.  She was all for women's liberation; she always had a subscription to Ms. Magazine and taught us kids to strive for independence and individuality.  However, she also had this question she would ask us as we were walking out the door to go on a date or to an event....."don't you want to put some lipstick on?"  Excuse me???   No I don't want to put any lipstick on, I'm a liberated woman!

Burn your bras, but put some lipstick on!  My mom is one of a kind, and I wouldn't have it any other way!

Creative Display and Storage

Aluminum Fish Mold

Vintage Refrigerator Dish

Vintage Mail Organizer

Flat Top Bushel Basket Lid

Criss Cross Refrigerator Dishes 

Vintage Crate

Vintage Bean Pot

Vintage Cooling Rack

30 Day Creativity Challenge: Day 9

I found these magnetic letters at a Thrift Store, but didn't like the primary colors

I painted them with Sharpie Paint pens, it took about 5 coats to cover the red one!  

Love the outcome!  Joy, joy, joy!  EnJoy your weekend friends!!

30 Day Creativity Challenge: Day 8

Wow, so much time has passed since I've posted something new. Tsk, tsk on me.  But it doesn't take very long before I'm bitten by the bug to create something... anything.  I did this assemblage tonight.  I started it yesterday and I finished it tonight.  I like it.  First I secured an old set of tongs into a ceramic insulator, then added the turkey feather, decorative hook and finally the skeleton key. It makes me smile.  

Sadly, the key I had to use is new, I don't have any old ones, so this will be replaced with an antique key just as soon as I get my hands on one. 

The antique hook has been moving around with me since I was a kid, and the Turkey feather was a gift left from that gang of turkeys I wrote about last month.  Love those guys!

Some of my favorites on Etsy...

Reclaimed Art Assemblage Flowers

Overload - A Landrover

Nuts and Bolts Animals

Winter Bird's Nest

Up in the Crows Nest

30 Day Creativity Challenge: Day 7

Inspiration can come from anywhere at any time. Your imagination, riding the bus, doodling, nature, poverty, need, to name a few.  I'm so grateful that I was raised by parents that read to me, sang me to sleep and didn't pressure me to be anything other than myself.  I think it allowed my mind and soul to develop in such a way that I let things be absorbed, no matter how odd they might seem to someone else.

It's totally normal for me to see something IN something else, that others might not see.  I have these tiles in my bathroom.  I love them.  I picked them out when we were building the addition to our house.  They're very amoeba-like.  I see something new in them every day.

Exposed varnished brick chimney in my house

Dried Sea Oats from my garden

Old Pottery Shard in Moss 

I love textures, patterns and combinations.  They inspire me.

I've been crocheting this green string on and off for a couple of years now.  I'm not a great crocheter.  My grandmother, mother and sister all took a turn, at one time or another, trying to teach me to crochet when I was young, but I couldn't catch on.  Then one day at work I asked a co-worker (who was happily crocheting away at lunch time) to teach  me.  We got a little workshop together and about four of us learned how to crochet together.  I've been hooked ever since!  I certainly do love to do it!  I've made some scarves for myself and my kids, but for some reason I just really love to crochet this damn green string! And I'm not interested in turning it into anything other than roping.  I've made yards and yards of it!  Weird, I know.

I just love it wrapped around these old spools!

30 Day Creativity Challenge: Day 6

Last week I was in the painting mood, but didn't have any new canvases. I did however have some old canvases of horrific paintings I'd done over the years.  The kind that you do when you're going through something and you just paint to "get it out".  I decided to paint over one of them.  As you'll see, I'm no artist.  I simply paint because it makes my heart sing.  I feel content, joyful and free

Stormy Window

In the background you can see some of the orange paint from the original painting, which I like.  I love textures, patterns, mixing things up

Apparently I also paint with my tongue hanging out of my mouth!  My husband poked his nose into the room and said "whats with the tongue?"  At first I was mortified, but then I thought..."well that's just more proof that you're doing something that you love".  Have you ever watched kids when they're REALLY into something?!  

And one final note.  I'm pained to announce (and it was painful to realize) that I can't produce something creative everyday.  It sucks, it really, really does, but that's my reality right now.  I don't like it, I really hate it, but life is just not cooperating with me.  So....my altered guideline for myself for this challenge is that I WILL do 30 days of creativity, they just won't be consecutive

30 Day Creativity Challenge: Day 5

Happy Friday everyone!  

Tonight I decided to play around and experiment with making handmade tags using stamps and decorative tape.  The stamps, ink, tags and string/raffia were all purchased at thrift stores.  You can find Pretty Tape here 

I think this tag looks great, but would look better if I extended the tape all the way to the ends

Tag #2 feels like it needs a bit more of something

This is cool, but one strip is cut straight and the other diagonal, I would like it better if they were both straight, and possibly going to the end of the tag as well

I really like how this one turned out!!

So you experiment and you learn, feeding the soul along the way  =)

ICANHASCHEEZBURGER.COM

30 Day Creativity Challenge: Day 4

I'm finding out very quickly that my energy levels need re-charged after work every day, before I can tap into my creative side.  I took a nice nap, packed up a shipment and looked around at my stuff.  There was something that caught my eye.

I spied a Trouble Light cage.  It was in my Etsy shop for awhile, but it didn't sell.  I had a thought...  

I love nests.  Always have.  So I mixed some cool nesting materials together added an old ceramic bird, and tied the cage up with raffia. I like it!

Happy Wednesday!  We're half-way there!! Yippeeeee