DIY: Christmas Painting

So I started this little DIY painting project because I discovered I had a completely blank canvas sitting in one of my boxes! I don’t paint very often anymore, but it’s still something I enjoy. This is a perfect excuse to make something fun, adorable, and seasonal! I didn’t want to make something I would have out all year long, but something that could be for winter. This is really easy to make and looks so good! so, here’s a step by step tutorial! (sorry my pictures are with my iphone!)

Falling in Love with Fall // Pumpkin Patch

So, for those of you who know me this will come as no surprise….I absolutely LOVE seasons….especially fall and winter. I love the changes in the air, the environment, people’s attitudes, the foods, music, decor…everything. I particularly have a love for traditions and seasonal activities. Growing up, my family created lots of great traditions and seasonal things. For example, ever since I was three, on our birthdays we got to pick our breakfast menu and get breakfast in bed! We always play Christmas music and decorate the day after Thanksgiving, we always open a present of new pajamas on Christmas eve, and I always make gingerbread cookies. We just had some wonderful things that we did every season every year. As I get older, I find that I tend to cling to these traditions, maybe because they remind me of childhood, or simply because I love them. Either way, I love creating memories and embracing the changing seasons. One of my favorites for fall….is going to the pumpkin patch!

Work Day Fuel // tunes

Thought I would share with you all some of my favorite albums to listen to during the work week as I am plugging away at designing. I sometimes forget that I can put my headphones in and instead accidentally sit in silence. As soon as I remember, I get excited, open up my Pandora and end up tapping my foot away to some awesome tunes. So here are some albums I recommend when you are being creative or just in general!

Autumn Art: Background

I decided to ring in fall by creating these two simple autumn backgrounds for your computer!! You can download them by clicking the links below. Each is a collage made with photos I have taken as the leaves change.

 

DOWNLOAD HERE

 

 

 

DOWNLOAD HERE

Senior Photoshoot // Mikal

This past weekend my fiance, Nathon, and I spent some time taking my younger brother’s senior photos! (Can you believe it?! SENIOR in high school!? Wow I feel old!) We had a lot of fun and got some really good shots! I wasn’t behind the camera much, but did a lot of the lighting. I really enjoy shooting with Nate, even if I am just doing technical stuff, its always an enjoyable experience to work alongside my fiance.

Here are a couple of the shots!

Wedding Website

 

So, as some of you may know, I am engaged to the most amazing guy ever! Nathon :) He proposed last fall on my birthday with a candlelight home made romantic dinner of the most incredible chicken cordon blu and garlic mashed potatoes! Seriously, AMAZING. We are getting married January 12th this winter in downtown Seattle. We are just about ready to send out our save the dates, and design our invitations, but we JUST completed our registry a couple days ago. I had been working on our wedding website, and was just putting on the finishing touches last night. It is OFFICIALLY up and running! I think it’s pretty cute, if I do say so myself ;) take a look!! (Click the picture below!)

DIY: Simple Terrarium

So, a couple of months ago I got these two adorable little succulents called Chicks and Hens as a favor at a wedding. I have been going through this attempting to get a green-thumb kick, and so these were a perfect addition to my growing plant collection. I got them in these tiny little pots, and the longer I had them, the more cramped they seemed to be! I decided I wanted to repot them into something cuter with more space, so off to Pinterest I went! I happened to stumble upon these cute ideas for terrariums! I did some research, and found out the type of environment and soil the succulents need, and I was set on my idea! My fiance and I headed to Ikea the other day and happened to pick up this rectangular glass vase specifically for this project! So, before I show you what to do, I want to let you know- this is SUPER easy and pretty cheap! These plants are also pretty easy to maintain!

Spring Fling- A Gift From Me To You

I wanted to do something special for those of you who follow my blog! In honor of spring and showing my thankfulness to all of you, here is a free desktop background for your computer! You can download it in three different sizes, one for a 13 inch screen (1280 x 800), one for a 15 inch screen (1440 x 900), and one for a 17 inch screen (1920 x 1200).

I hope you enjoy this compilation of geometrics and spring colors!

DIY Easy Geometric Painting

I have had this blank canvas sitting around for a year or so now, and just never got around to doing anything with it. I finally decided it was time to just break it out and whip something up. I hadn’t painted in quite a while, as after my painting classes I just got really burnt out and never regained the time to experiment. So, I decided to just go for it. I am really loving geometric shapes and bright colors for spring, and decided to use that as my inspiration. I drew out a basic idea of what I was thinking, and decided on my four colors. I chose four colors because those are my top four favorite colors for spring 2012! I laid out my design with no particular fashion except I started with the big section off to the left. I then decided to do triangles for the right side. 

I’m Marrying a Pinterest Celebrity

I have talked about Pinterest previously on this blog, but just as a refresher for those of you who are new, or just haven’t gotten on the bandwagon yet! Pinterest is an online creative tool that is similar to a bulletin board, inspiration or a mood board. You can “pin” images you like and they link back to their original source. You can follow your friends and strangers and see what they are “pinning” and “liking.” It really is an awesome tool and time-sucker! I found out about Pinterest this past summer in June from my favorite graphic designer, Promise Tangeman. I very quickly introduced my fiance, Nathon, to the site as well as my mom and sister. Nate created an account, but used it solely for “creative purposes at work.” Somehow all of a sudden, he has over 104,000 followers?!