A Little Bit of Audrey in My Life

A while back, well more than a while it's been several months; I won a contest for a hand sketched portrait of Audrey Hepburn from Fall Into London's Etsy Shop

I wasn't sure where to hang it until inspiration struck the other day. Audrey Hepburn isn't only known for her famous movie roles but also for her inspirational saying and quotes. I thought it would be nice to create a little inspiration vignette on my wall in the bath room. I searched online for some of my favorite Audrey quotes and framed them with the sketch.

The Quotes read- "Walk with the knowledge that you are never alone."

"As you get older you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, and one for helping others."

"The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mode, but true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul."

I like waking up in the mornings and looking and reflecting on these ideas. I also added some pictures of the kiddos and a sketch that my Uncle did of a cafe in New Orleans- I'm surrounding myself with all my favorite things!

And did you notice that Sa-Weet detail on the Audrey frame?

It was one of my thrift store finds from last week! It looked like this remember?

I painted it glossy black and sealed it with laquer. I like the moody vibe it has now- no more brown town!

Have a Happy and Inspirational Monday Everyone!

Latest Thrifty-ness

I feel like I've gone through a long dry spell at the thrift store lately. Besides the bamboo trays I bought last week it's been slim pickins. I don't know if it competition from other people looking for similar things or if people haven't been donating as much the last few months.

All this changed however yesterday when I popped in just looking for a picture frame to repaint. I found a few goodies to fill my basket!

First up is this pair of chairs:

The last thing I need in my life right now is chairs but they were only $5 each! I thought they had good detail and would be worth making over. 

I'll probably pawn them off to a friend when I'm finished overhauling them.

Next up is this lovely duo-

I found the frame I needed and winner of a tray circa 1975 (I'm guessing?)

Both these guys will be hard to recognize when I'm done with them!

Have you had any luck at the thrift store lately? Or have you encountered a dry spell as well?

Just a Quickie...

Ummm I'm talking about a quick DIY project- what were you thinking??? Ew...

Anywho I thought I scheduled this to post last week and I'm all like- "Man, no one is commenting on my project. *Sad Face*" But to my surprise I didn't click publish, so here you go~ one crafty DIY just for you one week late! :)

Last week I found these super cool bamboo trays at Goodwill for only $1.50 for the pair!! Score!

I think bamboo is making a comeback. Not like in the 70's/ 80's where it was over used- but nicely mixed in with modern decor to give a room a touch of natural elements. These little trays are a great way to bring that natural look into my home in a subtle way. Since I have 2 of them I thought it would be fun to paint one and to leave the other natural. I have some Pantone Celestial Blue samples I've been wanting to use and this was the perfect opportunity for it!

I left the "supports" the natural wood for some contrast.

And here is the natural one. I think it will be fun to change them out and use the two to create different looks as needed.

Are you digging bamboo or do you think it should stay put in the 70's?

Linking here

Retail/ Work Space Revised

One of the things I love most (and sometimes hate) is that design is never done. You can rearrange, revisit, and renovate over and over to achieve different looks for the same space. The same holds true to my little side project. I wasn't completely in love with my first stab at the space plan so I've been reworking it. I could go one and on forever switching and rearranging but for now this is what I am going with.

There are lots of shelves lining the walls for storage and what not. I envision them looking somewhat industrialized.

The open work tables will look just like they sound- large tables that can be used for any purpose. Whether it be building something or just sitting and working on a computer or sewing- these multi purpose tables give lots of room to spread out and work.

The space I am working with has a whole wall of windows that I want to take advantage of. I wanted as few walls as possible in the work area. So for the conference and main office I choose to give them a full wall of windows to allow as much light to filter through as possible.

So that's all for now. I have some more inspiration photos for the Retail area to share later on this week! 

Sawyer's 12 Month Photo

I can't believe Sawyer is already 1 year old!! Where has the time gone? Sawyer is starting to walk, eating lots of big boy food, and says- DaDa, Dog, Bye Bye, Ball, rarely says MaMa (what gives?)

Retail/ Workspace Floor Plan

Hey Friends! I've been slowly but surely working on my design for my Design Retail Workspace. I've been doing some space planning and brainstorming and this is what I've come up with so far:

My original concept was for a group of artisans (Not necessarily Etsy sellers but they could be) to be able to come together, have a place to work on their projects and designs. They could be a team of designers or just individuals who need a space to work on and create their designs. Then be able to showcase and sell their work to the public in the retail area in front as well as have the opportunity to sell online. 

My Hometalk Curated Board!

Hey Friends!! Today I'm to sharing some exciting news with you! The folks over at Hometalk recently contacted me to curate an inspiration board full of DIY Wine Rack Ideas. Here's just a little taste of what I came up with. Check it out!

I am always amazed by the creativity and ingenious of others. There are some really inspiring projects out there.

Head over to my Hometalk profile to see the rest!

If you're unfamiliar with Hometalk it's kind of like Pinterest in that you can pin and create boards of projects and ideas to save for later. But Hometalk takes this a step further and allows you communicate with others on the site to discuss and swap ideas! 

So while you're over checking out some wine rack inspiration you can sign up for a profile of your own and join in the fun!

Enjoy!!

Etsy Retail Space Design

Good Morning Everyone! I hope you had a wonderful weekend. We have been keeping busy with Con-Man and Sawyer's Birthday party this past weekend (pics to come soon). My MIL is also still in town so we are showing her around fabulous Altus this week.

In the meantime, to follow up on my last post about missing design work- I started a little project. This is completely just for fun, a client that I dreamed up (my dream client who lets me design what I want and has an unlimted budget!).

This client is a group of Etsy Retailers who have come together to create an office/ workspace where they can keep track of the business side of their shop and work on their designs as well. There will also a retail space where they can sell their individual designs to customers off the street.

First up is a basic concept board. These are just my preliminary thoughts of what the space might look like and what may go in it- no where near a finished board. I wanted to get my first ideas down on paper so I could remember them later.

And here is the floor plan of the space I will be designing. You can see the existing bathrooms in the back of the space. The left wall is all glass, the main entry is at the bottom.

And here is my plan on dividing the space into public (retail) and private (office/ work) areas.

So that is my starting point, next up is schematic design where I'll plan out the office and retail layout. Yay Space Planning!! (My favorite!!)

Have a great week everyone.

A Super Birthday Party Plan

Thank you to everyone who sent words of encourgement over the weekend in response to my last post. I hated to be a Debbie Downer but it was something that had been weighing on my mind for sometime and it felt good to let it all out.

Today I have something much lighter in store. Con-Man's 4th Birthday is coming up! This year he is really getting into Super Heros. He still likes cars but Superman and Power Rangers are taking hold pretty quickly.

So for his birthday we are doing a Super Hero Theme. I used this background for the invitations:

Con requested a moon bounce for his party, and because it's been well over 100 degrees here we are having the party at the AFB community center. I didn't want a bunch of kids passing out in my backyard- so indoors we go! 

Other than that it's going to be pretty simple. I'm going to attempt to make him a Power Rangers cake:

And just for fun I'm making some kid size cardboard cutouts of the Red and Pink Ranger the kids can take their picture with:

Sawyer's first birthday is this week also. We're combining his birthday with Con's (poor guy ;) I'm making them both birthday shirts and Sawyer will have his own special little cake to eat and smash up.

Other than that it's pretty low key- friends and family having fun. I'll be sure to share pictures next week.

Have a great week!

Deep Thoughts~

Hey Friends! Long time no see. Just a warning this is going to be a wordy contemplative post. I don't usually go into things like this on the blog but here it goes... My abscence the past few weeks has been because of 2 things- 

1. It's summer time and we have been out and about at the pool, bowling, horse back riding lessons and other summer activities.

2. I've been in a total funk.