What Are You So Afraid Of!?

I realized the reason I haven't been in my studio for a while: fear. Fear that I couldn't create what was in my mind. Fear that I'd get frustrated and give up. Fear that if I would feel pressured to make something greater than my ability. The excuses for why I wasn't creating were getting old. And the more excuses I made, the more frustrated I became.

So tonight, even though I could think of a million excuses - I picked up my pencil anyway, grabbed a tiny scribble from my 'secret stash' and started in.


I also found these bins for a shelf in my studio.

I had been looking for some way to hide all of my back up discs and music and 'bingo!' who would've guessed I would have found these beauties at the DOLLAR STORE! A grand total of $4 and it looks like an organization article from Real Simple Magazine. They go great with my fun binders too.


And... I had to share these early morning photos of my studio since the windows face the east. Who wouldn't feel inspired when the sunshine makes this kind of a statement in the morning!


Wanna win a print of my artwork? Check back for December Give-Away details. I'll be posting sometime next week. Have a Happy Thanksgiving :)
xo

Secret Stash

Wake up. Get ready for work. Eat breakfast. Get to work. Design books for 8 hours. Come home. Make dinner. Run errands. Relax for a bit. Take a peek into my lonely studio. Crash for the night. Repeat.

I really do enjoy my job, but one of the most frustrating things about not having time to do new art is... *sigh* not having time to do new art. So I've devised a plan: When I have all these creative ideas running through my head, I stash my thoughts as tiny thumbnails on post-it notes or whatever other piece of paper I can get my hands on. Then they end up here, in my Secret Stash folder:



And hopefully sooner than later, I'll get back to them and make them real. So far, this method has been working well for me. It's all part of my journey–figuring out which path I want to take and what things in life that are most important. Art has always been a part of my life. It's what makes me the most happy and I feel the most comfortable with. I know that this journey is leading to something bigger than me, and I've just begun to realize that I can't always answer the "what-if's" or "I-don't-know-hows". I take one step at a time (sometimes easier said than done) and trust that I am exactly where I need to be at this moment in my life.

Elegant Journey Teams Up With Madison Reece Designs!

This is what I've been *SO* excited to tell you about! A while back- Melissa, from Madison Reece Designs, approached me with the idea of teaming our talents and creating some really unique & classy pieces of jewelry. You can now purchase these chic pendants from Melissa's Etsy shop.

You can view this piece here.And this one here.

We both think that the colors of these pendants go perfectly with the new winter fashions and they'd make such unique, hand-crafted holiday gifts or stocking-stuffers. Melissa also now takes more wholesale orders, so be sure to check them out and let us know what you think!

New Entryway Art + 7 Random Facts

4 months after my move, I'm sitting here in my studio sipping some hot chocolate and finally feeling like this is my 'home'. When I moved during the summer, I never really felt like spending too much time inside messing around making this place cozy. Now that the days are shorter and much cooler, I'm finding that desire to 'nest'.

Here's some new art I made and put together in a grouping right in the stairwell entryway of my house. Since I can't paint the walls because I'm renting, I wanted to bring color in with my art.


On a side note, I found this super cute old skeleton key when I was first unpacking my things. And to my delight, it still works! I wanted to include it in the grouping so I strung it up with red ribbon.



The other day I was 'tagged' by Yellow Lux. The rules state you need to share 7 random facts, so here are 7 about me:
1) I work better when I'm in a clean space.
2) When I get stressed out, I'll pop in old movies I used to watch when I was little. It takes me back to the days when I was a worry-free kid!
3) My toenails are ALWAYS painted some shade of pink.
4) I've know my best friend, Sarah, since Kindergarten.
5) A very special 'someone' found a REAL 4 leaf clover & I have it framed, sitting on my desk.
6) I {heart} sushi.
& 7) *smirk* I'm currently bursting at the seams with some exciting news that I'll be sharing soon! :)

There's No Place Like Home...

Okay, okay... I suppose I'll end the suspense. Since everyone knows how we dress up at work for Halloween, people have been dying *giggle* to know what this year's Halloween office shenanigans would be. So I present to you – The Wizard of Oz, complete with Munchkins, Flying Monkeys and the 'oh-so-pretty' Ruby Red Slippers:


Pssst, and a special 'thank you' to Glenda the Good Witch (aka Lisa) for sewing my outfit! It fit perfectly!

Which reminds me, I've really wanted to start sewing again. Okay, okay, so the last time I actually 'sewed' was in my 6th grade Home Ec. class, but I have some really fun ideas that involve my illustrations, fabric,...and well, you'll see.

The rest of my day involves absolutely nothing in particular. Yay, my first lazy Sunday in a looong time! I'll have my football fix at noon when our Packers play the Titans. Oh! And bake some cinnamon rolls later this afternoon. Yummy!