i'm a giant!

Alright. I'm having WAY too much fun doing project 365 (taking a photo a day for a year) not to post the photos.  I'm pretty sure they're more interesting than anything I have to say.  Submitted for your approval:  a self portrait with a twist.

random collection of etsy awesomeness

You won't be able to resist, I promise:

I heart this print.  Adore it.  MAN, I wish I could paint like that.  See more from the artist in her shop, tush tush.

Then there's this cool bracelet, made of silicone rubber.

It is also available in black.  Check them out at nervous system. 

And this t-shirt- so simple, unique, and downright charming.

You can learn more about it in mary ink's shop.

And last but not least, the item I would have purchased eons ago if not for it's costliness.....

The loop leaf ottoman by Megan Auman.  Stunning, and probably worth the $750 it costs, right?

ho hum.....

So I redesigned my bedroom after a particularly strong dose of HGTV viewing.  It came out all white.  It is SO not me.  But, my bedroom is a tiny, dark, nearly windowless, cave-like space that needs a lot of light colors to give it a bit of openness.  I think. 
I hung these fabulous curtains I bought at Pier 1 (don't bother looking, they have been discontinued!) to try and make it appear that the one tiny window that is 50% obscured by air conditioner is larger.

And last week, with inspiration from these perfectly pleated pillows on etsy and tons of help from this tutorial, I made a decorative pillow to try and complete the look.  I would definitely not use the words "perfectly pleated" to describe my pillow, but I'm learning, right?

My goal with the room has been to keep pretty much everything in it white or close to it, so that my end tables ($5 formerly hideous thrift store finds I painted an obnoxious shade of turquoise) can get away with existing in the space.  So, I wanted to make a pillow with visual interest from its texture, rather than it's color. 

This is the result. I'm still not sold on the whole room yet, probably becuase there are only two colors in it instead of my typical thirty-seven. But I'm thinking about letting it grow on me.

wall decals!

I am really into all the cool wall decals available on Etsy.  Here's a sampling:

these super-modern dandelions from PopWall, or

these charming birds from DaliDecals. 

Or perhaps

these cool power lines from TastySuite.

 I'm partial to

 

these stylish mandalas by DesignFruit. 

Although I can hardly resist

 

these awesome orange birches by ShaNickers. 

But how clever is this

 

crowd of people by ellynelly?

bunnies with smarts

 I have been in love with these crazy rabbits since I first spied them on Etsy about a year ago.  Something about the creative way their eyes are made makes me think they really have hearts, souls, dreams, aspirations, great wisdom, favorite colors... you get the idea.  They also look kind of bored, which cracks me up.  These adorable creatures are made by Dawn over at LookWhatICanDo on Etsy.  You can check out her blog here.  I have only made one foray into the world of sewing stuffed animals, a mom and baby elephant pair for a friend who was with child.  I don't have a photo, but trust me when I say they were nowhere near as artistic as these badass rabbits.   I got the pattern from Sew Everything Worskhop by Diana Rupp.  I love that book (and you will too!) because it has tons of simple sewing projects that you actually WANT to make.  It has been my bible during my hesitant journey toward becoming seamstress-like.  Still have a ways to go on that one...                                        

fab fabric

O.M.G. 
Are you aware that you can actually design your own fabric and print it?  I LOVE THE INTERNET!    Over at spoonflower, you can upload any image and have it printed onto fabric.  AND, they can make it available for sale to others.  The possibilities are endless!  These are some of my favorite fabric choices from their massive collection:

photo addict

How fun is photography? Super fun. I'm a tad obsessed right now.  The evidence: I decided to do project 365, which involves taking a picture every day for a year.  Seems like it will offer some interesting perspective on 2010 by December, don't you think? I don't plan on posting them here on a regular basis, but this is today's.  Birthday flowers!

career aspirations

It would be really cool if I came across the following:


Wanted:  Doodler

Open position for individual dedicated to doodling, with various art mediums and for hours on end.  The ideal candidate will have limited artistic talent that extends only into the doodling arena.  Minimum eight years experience, salary commensurate with expertise and flair.

I would attach this to my resume:

It could happen. Right?

desperation

This one time, I went to Ikea. I took this picture:

It was a wonderful, wonderful place. A place where you can get things like this:

and this:

I was in Detroit.  One of my fave blogs, door sixteen, recently posted the awesome collection of Ikea products she is using to remodel her kitchen quickly and on the cheap.  Then she wondered aloud what people who live in places without an IKEA do when they have such dilemmas.  Sigh.  We have kitchen counter tops that look like this:

And very little hope. 

We are DYING for an Ikea in Denver.  I knew this on an unconscious level, but I am even more clear about the problem after stumbling upon coloradoikeafans.   It is seriously a website dedicated to obsessing over when we will get an IKEA in Colorado.   It has been visited 3279 times in the past thirty days.  This is a pandemic, people. 

So please, if you live near an Ikea, go there. Buy something beautiful and inexpensive.  Savor the experience.  Send me pictures or something.  Because there are people in Colorado with no Swedish meatballs, affordable orange sofas or free-standing kitchens.  And we're apparently going to have to wait for years (yes years!) for any relief. 

orange

In looking for inspiration to continue decorating my home, I'm reviewing a few things that have gone well. We'll deal with mishaps later, shall we?

This is my favorite area of my house. Against the advice of nay sayers, I painted it a fabulous shade of orange and created a dining set out of a yellow formica table (craigslist), two sparkly red diner chairs (craigslist) and two insanely turquoise pleather chairs (thrift store for $4 each!). The turquoise chairs needed some rehab, so I painted them silver with spray paint. I adore the effect, and I've definitely never seen anything like it. Now what to do with my neglected office space?