Creative Thursday

my first patchwork throw

Oh you know, before I headed out to quilt market a few weeks ago, I just whipped up my first patchwork throw.

Seriously! I made this in a day {daily quilting?!} This is when I realized that all the sewing I've been doing, especially garment sewing, is starting to pay off. My skill level and speed is improving. Also, I was given some great advice about easing into your first quilt and that is to use a 12" x 12" ruler square to cut your pieces. Brilliant! 

You can see the front is an assortment of 12" x 12" squares. At least one design from each of my printed fabric collections to date is featured. I cannot even begin to tell you how much fun this was to make and how satisfying it was to put together a grouping of some of my favorite designs and see how they all tell the same story together. Joy. They give me so much joy.

The back displays 4 more designs. I didn't add any batting or quilt this throw. I just stitched the front and the back together and the combination created a perfect summer blanket.

As I told the audience at my schoolhouse at market, "I get it. I really get it. The love of quilting and the fabric stash." The chance to layout and design a favorite collection of fabrics and then turn it into your own, timeless piece of art, that is not only beautiful but useful. I get it.

there have been times

when I've looked at other's lives, wishing I had more of what they have. instead lately i've been looking more at my life and am really happy with what I see.

is it a pillow or a cat?

 

an unexpected guest + an art wall

I'm visiting over at Victoria's blog today. I LOVE her unexpected guest/home tours series. Don't know about you, but one of my favorite parts of this whole creative blogging world is the chance to peek into other artist's homes. It must be the interior designer left over in me. I'm a sucker for an inspiring interior space.

Which reminds me, I don't think I have shared the beginning stages of my art wall with you yet? Earlier this year we let go of a very large armoire in our entry/living room and replaced it with my favorite yellow chest. Guess what was created? *space* and the perfect place for my 'art wall'. You know how eclectic collections of art all on one wall are all the rage? I've been wanting one for a while and would've chosen my sunroom studio ~ however  ~ it's proven to be rather challenging. First since it is a sunroom there are more windows than wall space and second, it was literally added on to the outside of the house, and the walls are actually the original exterior of the house which means they are made of some serious cement. I've finally given up on trying to hammer or screw anything into them and have resorted to sticky back velcro squares to adhere art. This means that the art can also fall at any given moment...oh who am I kidding? I've pretty much used up all my wall space in the studio, and my growing art collection is spilling over and needed a new home. Voila!

Here are some of the artists featured from top then clockwise

Outi Harma

Amanda Blake

Camilla Engman

Matt Adrian aka the Mincing Mockingbird

Michele Genele

Mavis Leahy

Lizzy House

my work

and my crazy "maps to the stars home" vintage sign I found in Silverlake when I first arrived in L.A.

Thank goodness this art wall is attached to a 15' ceiling...because I cannot wait to keep adding to the collection...

garbo + the yellow boots

...and the yellow chest.

I was taking some photographs of our home this weekend, and this one = a new favorite.

An arbitrary cute picture of Garbo and my favorite yellow boots. ;)

Want to spend April in Los Angeles?

 

While I'm at it ~ Welcome to our home. 

I love sneak peeks of homes, don't you? Honestly one of my favorite parts of the blogging world, the chance to glimpse into people's, especially creative people's inspiring homes.

Last summer, I opened my home to Indie Fixx readers, Where Women Create featured my studio in their magazine, but I've never posted all the photos together here on my own blog. One of my earlier  plans was to post a room, a corner at a time but as is often the case on these kinds of blogging commitments it fell by the wayside. So, enough is enough, before I move again or re-decorate everything...a mini tour of our cottage in the middle of the city.

Today I must admit that I also have an ulterior motive and that is that we are wanting to sublet our home for the month of April into early May. If you are interested in getting more details you can email me.

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
  
 

 

 "artwork & such" resources, if I have them, in order of appearance:

1. painting over fireplace by Sean and I, vase by Outiart, chair is vintage, an original Creative Thursday design with the fabric by Tricia Guild

2. artwork on dining room wall by me and Amy Ruppel, another vintage chair re-designed by Creative Thursday, dining table vintage, sideboard IKEA

3. wood houses by Amber Dusick

4. yellow chest, vintage

5. black and white chair, vintage and newly re-upholstered

6. encaustic painting by Cathy Nichols, nightlight by Creative Thursday, ceramic sunflowers sculpted by me in a college ceramics class, all time favorite stove-top coffee maker by Bialetti, tangerine mixer by Kitchen Aid, mugs by Orla Kiely for Target last year, rug is recycled by Mad Mats {adore this rug ~ it can handle anything}

7. measuring spoons and decorative hooks from Anthropologie

8. tea cups also Anthropologie and espresso cups by Outiart

9. rooster painting by Anne Skok, star lights from IKEA

10. artists featured in this photo, from left to right, Patricia Anders, Christine Mason Miller, me,  Heather Renz, Amber Dusick, Outi Harma, Le Train Fontame, Kimberly Applegate, Nate Williams

11. details of more artists, Patricia Anders, Christine Mason Miller, me and my first ever print I bought on Etsy by Corinne Dean 

12. detail of Nate Williams pillow that was sold at Urban Outfitters

13. canister by Julia Rothman also sold at Urban Outfitters, vintage lamp a gift from Melissa, lamp shade by IKEA, vintage Coca Cola soda crate found on at this shop on Etsy

14. another Woodmouse house, good luck lady bug from Germany, hedgehog I adore, a gift from Sean and sadly I have no idea where he's from

15. green hanging lamp by Grange, another painting by Cathy Nichols, chair is vintage, mirror is vintage

16. art by me, bedding by Banana Republic and IKEA

Tank is in the house

Yesterday he was not. 

That was a scary moment. (for me not for him) 

He decided to take himself on a walk. 

The Lu and I went looking for him.

Then he returned on his own through a hole that we missed in our various yard barricades.

Now he's beneath my feet. 

Just a freedom seeker at heart, gotta respect that.

happy saturday!

{for those of you not familiar with Tank ~ we babysit him from time to time with my Jackson (the weimaraner) too ~ just check out episode 13} ;)

correction

Remember when I mentioned that Sean reads this blog? (he prefers to be a lurker ~ actually when did we decide to call non-commenting blog visitors "lurkers"...it sounds so creepy!) ~ of course he saw my post from last week and I heard from his office, "Hey, I'm a co-worker too!"

And he's right. 

(If you recognized any different handwriting on the last round of shipments...Sean)

Yet obviously, he is much, much more than a co-worker to me ~ he's my love.

And sometimes he is also Dr. Doolittle, for the other co-workers. 

(especially Garbo who uses our affection as a tool to be let outside ~ I told you my days....inside...outside...inside....outside)

Not today though ~ I was away from the studio picking up Chanin at the airport from her awesome trip to New Zealand, and getting what were quite possibly the last two Orla Kiely cups left in a Los Angeles Target.

hope you had good Tuesday! Now go hug your co-workers again ~ especially of the human kind ;)

This is how I see it

A collection. My vision for how the tiny original ceramic illustrations fit in with a grouping of original art. (they are officially up in the shop as of right now) I don't know about you, but I am a huge fan of eclectic art groupings. I think it's because we have access to so much fantastic art these days, in so many forms and styles and sizes, that you can't help but want to display it all together.

The rest of this week is dedicated to shipping packages to you! I am expecting the nightlights in this week, and plan to turn them around in a day and get them out to you. Thank you so much for your patience in receiving them. All the prints from the sale should be on their way as well, and then if I have time, I will release the rest of the ceramic creations, which include, cups, mugs and bowls, as I promised...see you again soon!

I see the LIGHT!

 

I see the NIGHTLIGHTS!!! If you are on my email mailing list, or if you've been over to my house in the last month then you already know about the NEW nightlights that have been added to the ever expanding Creative Thursday collection! As of today, they are available for pre-order at the shop. (these aren't the big plans I was referring to yesterday... so there's more to come, but these are the bright new creations I mentioned. I think I've used every light pun and reference possible today in all my announcements ;)

A collaboration with one of my licensing companies, I wasn't entirely sure how my images would work as nightlights ~ and then they arrived in the mail, and then Sean and I plugged them in all over the house and they haven't been turned off since. I am just so HAPPY with them. I already said this in my email but these are honestly some of the cutest nightlights I've seen...and yes I'm heavily biased :)

Below is a photo of where we have one in our kitchen right below Cathy's gorgeous painting.

You already know how much I love ambient soft lighting. So I've now decided that I would be perfectly content with my home being lit solely by twinkly lights, IKEA star lights, and my nightlights. I only hope the photographs can convey how pretty the light is when they are turned on, even in the daytime.

Alrighty then. It's been a very busy and exciting Creative Thursday over here. I was clearly in "back at work mode" today. As you can see below, I also released a new podcast! So right about now it's time for me to put the computer away and say good night. If I'm not back tomorrow ~ I think I've left you enough food for thought both visual and intellectual for the next few days. I wish you a very happy weekend...and next week is inauguration week...I'm already looking forward to Tuesday. In some ways it feels like Tuesday the 20th is when the new year will really begin!