Story no. 5: Finding my power

Today, I'm feeling powerful...like Jane of Arc. I am definitely feeling ready to suit up and go after what I want. Am I feeling a little scared and vulnerable? Yes. BUT, it's better to put myself out there with an intention and a goal than it is to sit on the sidelines and live life inside of my head.

Story no. 4: Embrace your inner artist

My step-daughter has triplet girls. Every few months we are so lucky to have a Grandparent Weekend. There are three sets of grandparents so each of us takes one girl and we rotate the girls for every visit. It's a great way for the girls to get one-on-one time. We had Emily this past weekend. Now that they're almost 4, they are so much fun to interact with. And they LOVE making art. All weekend Emily kept asking to do "something artsy" with me. Running around all weekend kept us busy but finally on Sunday morning, I got big sheets of paper and water color for her to use. It was such a joy to watch her paint. There is nothing like watching a toddler approach art. They have no fear. They can't wait to dive in and explore. Along the way, she explained in great detail all of the things going on in her masterpiece. Her imagination took flight.

Today, as I work on a new painting in my studio, I want to remember the freedom I felt as a little girl when it came to making art. I want to remind myself that there are no mistakes and that the only goal is to have fun and explore my world. I need to remember there was a time in my life when I only knew the pure joy of playing. It's time to embrace my inner artist again and be grateful for the toddlers in my life who remind me of joy and freedom.

Story no. 3: Beaded Amulet Bag

Next to painting, beading is my guilty obsession. I've got more beads than I know what to do with. There is something incredibly relaxing and meditative about beading. I alternate between loom and off loom projects. I just finished this amulet bag. The chain incorporates a gorgeous blue mesh chain with regular chain links. I jumped for joy when I stumbled upon the glass fish beads. The Mother of Pearl coins and the shades of blue and green bring me right to the beach in my mind. I've made quite a few of these amulet bags; each one different in color and feel. But the one thing that remains the same in all of them is the ability to tuck something special in the bag and wear it close to my heart.

Story no. 2: Plastic Spoon Mirror

My daughter moved away to college in August. As with most teenagers, her room could have been declared a national disaster. Don't get me wrong, I love her to pieces and miss her madly. But...I had been waiting for years to get in to that room and give it the proper make over it deserved. It took me a little while, but once the ideas started flowing, the room turned out beautiful. I can't wait until she comes back at Christmas to see it for the first time. Whether or not I allow her to stay in it is an entirely different story :)

I had one small space in the corner of the room where I wanted to put a small mirror. I looked around in a few stores but found nothing.  The truth is, I'm an artist and almost everything on the walls of our home was made either by me or another artist. So I had to laugh at myself when it hit me that I should stop trying to find a store bought object and, instead, dig in to my pinterest boards for my own DIY solution.

I loved these plastic spoon mirrors from my very first pin. The total project cost me about $11.  Here's a list of supplies that I used:

2 packs of white plastic spoons (48 in each package)
Brushed Nickel spray paint by Valspar
One mirror (4.75") from Michael's
Glue gun
Cardboard

When I tell you that this was so easy to make (about 30 minutes), I am not exaggerating. I looked around at quite a few instructions on-line (and there are many), I decided to go with the easiest. Here is the link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AY29S3ossug#action=share

This was so ridiculously fun to make. I'm already thinking of more color combinations (think Ombre)  I'm sure there'll be a whole crop of them popping up around my house or at least gifts for the holidays!

Story no. 1: Breakfast Carbonara

This is the breakfast of a champion. Seriously. I think even kids could learn to love their eggs if this plate suddenly appeared before them. Whenever I make pasta for dinner, I save a big handful of the cooked pasta and use the rest for the sauce. The next morning, I pull the leftover noodles out of the fridge and make this super easy version of spaghetti carbonara. I love it because it's quick, delicious, and makes me smile. I heat up a little butter in a skillet, add the noodles, and let them heat through. Meanwhile, I scramble an egg or two, add a splash of half and half, some crumbled bacon, and a nice generous shake of parmesan cheese. I add that to the noodles, stir it around until the egg mixture starts to cook, and in just a few minutes I've got a bowl of goodness. I confess that I use crumbled bacon from the salad dressing section of the grocery store; it's real, it's already crumbled, and it's perfect for this use.

Happy eating, my friends!