Corey's Birthday!

Today was my wonderful fiancé's birthday! He is such a kind, patient, loving man. I can always count on him to put a smile on my face. I made the silly little drawing above for him. Happy birthday, Corey! I love you!

Blueberry Picking

Here's a snippit of my painting. The rest of it will be revealed at my next exhibition.

I just spent the last week with my little cousin who was visiting from Florida. We had a lot of fun going to museums, eating ice cream, visiting petting zoos, and enjoying the delights that summer has to offer.

One of my favorite activities was going blueberry picking. There is a blueberry/blackberry farm practically down the road from us. I have been taste testing their berries since I was a little girl. :) It was always a treat when my family went there to load our buckets full of delicious fruit. Mum usually makes blackberry cobbler from our findings (it is to die for).

Although it has been busy, I managed to finish my first painting since the break. It was a lot of fun and I am already anxious to begin the next one!

Japanese Dolls

Check out these Japanese vintage dolls I got today for $1 each! I know for a fact they are worth much more than that. I am trying to find out more information about them, but I'm guessing they were made in the fifties just based on how they look. I love the kimono details and their gestures are quite....interesting (surf's up, dude?).

A Return to Painting

In light of the new Harry Potter movie coming out this week, I thought
I'd share this antique serving spoon with you. What on earth does this
have to do with Harry Potter? Notice the little griffin within the
design. A Gryffindor member would be proud to use this! :)

After my far too long painting hiatus, I finally picked up my brushes again! The last few months have been a whirlwind with the exhibition, graduating, putting up my Etsy store, and preparing for multiple necklace orders in the area. I vow to never take this long of a break from my painting ever again. I am excited with my newest piece and I will enjoy taking my time with it. My first "Women in Kimono" paintings were very rushed due to the time constraints that the semester provided. I plan on adding more details within these future paintings.

I hope you are all doing well!
Smile, it's the weekend ^_^

A touch of paint, my dear

I fell in love with this mirror. It looks nice next to mum's antique brush and perfume bottle. To get that weathered look, I just used an old rag to wipe away bits of the textured parts after I had just painted.

A teacup with flowers inside of a birdcage? How odd, but delightful! I am planning on using this as a decoration at my wedding.

A nice example of how you can turn something gaudy into something fresh.

This is an excellent item to store/sell my art prints in!

I don't know what this is supposed to be for, but with the flowers it makes a nice table decoration. I suppose I could also put salt/pepper containers in it.

I can't wait to hang this up some day.

I have no clue what these things are supposed to be. Mum says they look like they are from Whoville. Once I find a proper base to attach to them, they will make an interesting display for my necklaces.

Can you tell that I love this pale robin's egg blue color? It is so restful on the eyes. It's a good thing that my fiancé's favorite color is brown. They go together quite elegantly. Nessie thinks so too!

It's no secret that my mum and I love to pick up wonderful items from flea markets, antique stores, yard sales, and thrift shops. I am not the least bit ashamed of what I do as it is better to reuse items than to just buy buy buy. With the state of the economy at the moment, many people are repurposing items, repainting them, or finding what they need at second hand stores. I have discovered that indeed it is true... one man's trash is another man's treasure!

When my fiancé and I get married next spring, we will be moving into our first home together. To say that I am insanely excited about this is an understatement. I have been collecting and repainting a whole boatload of items to use in our first home. Most people wait until they move into their first space and then immediately buy what is needed around the house. I don't completely agree with this method, as you are more likely to buy something that you aren't crazy about just because you need it. I would rather take my time and accumulate items that I really appreciate and enjoy looking at.

I have repainted the items above with the pale robin's egg blue color that I am obsessed with. Click on the images to see them larger. Painting is easy and you can do it to your items too! First, I painted on a white primer. Next, I put on two coats of the blue paint... and...voila! Simple as can be and quite the transformation, eh?

Words to live by

I took this picture at the place where I'm getting married! Just looking at this scene makes me feel calm and happy :)

"Change your thoughts and you change your world." - Norman Vincent Peale

If you are not happy with where you are in your life, try changing your thoughts and conquer those obstacles. A positive attitude will only push you forward!

My New Etsy Shop

A good reason why pajamas have been my attire of choice lately

The new “dressed up” necklaces

Hello! I have been a busy girl the past few days, so I apologize for the post delay.

I am very happy to introduce to you…my new Etsy shop!

For those of you who don’t know what Etsy is, it is an absolutely wonderful site where you can purchase and sell handmade or vintage items. I insist you check it out if you’ve never been there before. It is an excellent source for unique gifts (whether for yourself or someone else! ^_^)

Currently in my Etsy shop, you can find prints of my artwork and jewelry that I have made. I am extremely excited to be a part of their creative community and I hope it helps to get my artwork out there.

I have just started creating “fancier” versions of my necklaces. They have beautiful beads and stones as well as sterling silver attachments. I have really enjoyed making these, though I have discovered how incredibly easy it is to spend all of your money in a bead shop. You can check out some of these necklaces in my Etsy shop.

I have also been busy revamping the website! It was a lot of fun designing it and I would have been lost without Corey’s html knowledge (thank you, sweetie!).

You can get to the sites by clicking on the links below:

My Website

My Etsy Shop


Have a great night, everyone!