treasury + gratitude

{.welcoming october.}

featuring the work of~

Bucks County Frames

Bomobob

The Secret Hermit

Wild Life Prints

Irene Suchocki

Middleburg

Watercolor by Muren

Flight Path Designs

Schalle

Scaramouche61

In a Pale Place

Faux Kiss

Alice B. Garden

Dilkabear

Tharn Photography

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.{This week I am grateful for}.

The late September warm front

Seeing old farm signs on road trips

*they remind me of home*

Being back at my art full-time

Long Sunday trail runs with friends

Blackberry pie & Vanilla ice cream

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What inspires happiness in you this week?

step.by.step

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Bec Winnel uses these on her wonderful blog,

and I thought it would be fun to try.

{a nice little alternative to the static pictures I post for my step.by.steps}
I used gickr to put it together for you.

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She was my first project of the morning~

the beginning of a small series inspired by 

{Victorian hair wreaths}

&

{ball-jointed dolls}

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I hope that everyone is having a lovely Monday~

{inspiration}

*the victorian hair wreath*

I have never come across a hair wreath before, but

I will surely be on the lookout for one on any upcoming antiquing adventures.

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They are a family tree, of sorts, and usually have documentation with them of who's hair was used, their age, and if one is really lucky~

the family background.

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I tend to be drawn to things that are pretty~ in a creepy sort of way.

I think these Victorian hair wreaths would fit right in with the rest of my collections.

I am certainly going to use them as inspiration this coming week!

IF*old-fashioned

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{the reply}

While his method of communication may have been a bit old-fashioned,

he knew that his carrier pigeon, Harriet, would always deliver his messages.

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playmates

First, I stained the wood with a dark brown and gold acrylic wash.

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Then, I sketched out the girls and began the inking process.

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I had an idea to create the highlights in the clouds with sandpaper.

I love the way it turned out!

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Time for a little color...

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...and voila~ the piece is complete!

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{playmates}

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It is my biggest piece to date, and I really enjoyed creating it.

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What do you think of the little pink knees?

I'm on design*sponge!!

Remember the post I made a few weeks back 

about the old stair steps I found in my closet?
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Well, I turned them into a jewelry rack, 

and it made it onto design*sponge!

It is one of my favorite decor/design blogs 

and I am soooooo excited!
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I bound the two boards together
with a nail on one side and a hemp tie on the other.
Then, I spray painted old silver locker hooks from home resource
and attached them to the bottom board.
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There is a little lip between the two boards 

that is perfect for my brooches and belt buckles.

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I had a great time making it!

first attempt at making a drawing video

Hahaha. I'm so glad I spent all morning working on this little video.
It is not very good, but it is also my first one ever, so I am going to cut myself a little slack.

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I promise I will try to get better!
Two things I learned from the experience:
{1} Try to color without my hand covering up the actual drawing
{2} Try to keep the piece in the frame the whole time
Baby steps, right?

Here is the finished product~

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la catrina {iii}

a horse is a horse, of course of course....

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{castor and pollux}

*the gemini twins*

new art cards

I have a one-night show coming up October 1

and I am creating these beautiful coffee-stained art cards

for the occasion and also for the shop.

They are available for purchase as I make them~

*first come, first serve*

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{the appearance}

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{lepidoptera i}

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{rabbits}

dia de los muertos

I have been having so much fun working on my coffee-stained paper!

I've been busy working on a series of Dia de los Muertos illustrations.

Here are the first two~

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la catrina {i}

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la catrina {ii}

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IF*proverb

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A best friend is like a four-leaf clover~

hard to find and lucky to have.

{no. 5} made the paper

Thanks Indy staff!

*the 4th floor*

I have found myself with a few extra days off from work

{Wednesday afternoon through Monday}

On Wednesday, I thought it best if I try to cram as much illustration work and promotion into the next five days as I possibly could.

Upon telling a dear friend my plans, she replied~

"Make sure you take at least one day for you."

I thought, perhaps, she did not get it.

Illustration is for me.

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Her words stuck with me the rest of Wednesday and into Thursday morning.

What would I choose to do today if I did not choose to draw?

Aha~

Rip my house apart and then put it back together!

So I did.

{although it is not quite back together}

One project for the day was to raise my closet bar so that I could fit a dresser underneath my hanging clothes.

In order to do this, removing an old shelf was necessary.

When I took the shelf out, I found that the boards were old stairsteps!
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I love owning an older home.
It always seems like when you do something nice for her
{show a little love}
she will give back a gift~
a thank you.
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I think that these steps
will look great hanging on the wall above my headboard.
Perhaps when I dream I will end up on the 4th floor?
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IF*dessert

"What would you like for dessert?" I asked.
"Candy," she said. "Just candy."

coffee and paper play {ii}

*Tonight's Project*

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