Current House – Page 92

Star Gazing

Published on January 15, 2013January 15, 2013 by Our Humble Abode2 Comments

I’m a big fan of personalized his and hers art above beds. At our last house, we hung home state watercolor paintings above the bed.

Unfortunately, they were a little too wide to hang above our current bed. Those pretty paintings now hang in our family room, so I made two constellations cut outs.

Ours are cut from black and mounted to metallic silver paper, then framed in an 11 by 14 inch frame with white mat.

Ben’s Scorpio is intricate, while my Aries is simple, consisting of only four stars.

But this (and another comment) got be thinking about his and hers art for beds. What do you have above your bed? One large item? Two or three smaller frames? Monograms?

Etsy Favs: January

Published on January 14, 2013January 14, 2013 by Our Humble AbodeLeave a comment

Our brother, sister-in-law, and niece are visiting. We’re so excited; we haven’t seen them in over a year! So we’re making the most of our precious time together. In the mean time, enjoy January’s Etsy favs.

Solar System print from Penny Luxe Sales:

Faux Taxidermy Zebra Head by Mahzer and Vee:

Leaf Drawing from Obvious State:

A Greener Place painting by Emily Jeffords:

I’m Such a Dodo print from Funnel Cloud:

Druzy Pendant at Midwest Alchemy:

Reversible Cloth Napkins from Too Cute Custom Crafts:

Facet Hanging Lamp by Port Rhombus:

Rainy Day Earrings from Goddess of Jewelry:

Gray Medallion Table Runner by Giardino:

Valentine Print Love Quote at Lily and Val:

Tree with Lights photograph by Eye Poetry:

Stars Can’t Shine print from Hairbrained Schemes:

Mr. Gray Cat by Frighten:

Forest Ferns Block print from Coffee in Bed:

Colorful Geometric Pillow by I Am Christina Bot:

Wood Letter Holder from Less and More:

There are more than a few items I’m really crushing on this month. As in I must make them mine (or my family’s). I’m Such a Dodo, Mr. Gray, and Colorful Geometric Pillow, I’m looking at you. Do you have a particular favorite? Or a few favorites?

P.S. Check out our shop to see a few new (funny) prints perfect for Valentine’s day. Without You, what better way to show you care than with a Kelly song?

Venn Diagram, the print version of our recent art creation.

And Wuv, Twue Wuv, a Princess Bride quote Ben and I say all the time.

As usual, all our art is customizable with your favorite colors.

Art With Heart

Published on January 11, 2013January 11, 2013 by Our Humble Abode12 Comments

Now that we’ve landed on a frame layout for the mantel, I took a few hours to fill the frames with art.

The two smaller frames are unchanged, but the rest is new.

In the center, I wanted something with some color, but still simple with meaning. Enter the Venn diagram.

Colored tissue paper left over from Christmas, a salad plate, a large sheet of white paper, and marker (all supplies I had on hand) made up this quick art.

With the plate on the tissue paper, I cut around it to make two circles. Pieces of double-sided tape hold it down. Using Photoshop, I made a B + A, flipped and printed on plain paper. Once cut out, I used small strips of double-sided tape to attach.

For a little more interest, I wrote Je t’aime across the bottom. Voila, geek chic art. Sure, it’s not perfect, but that’s okay.

On the easel, I printed this Lulie Wallace painting and taped it to a small canvas. Don’t worry, it’s only temporary. This afternoon I plan to make a small floral painting (inspired by these), but wanted to test it out. The small shadow box displays the boys’ hospital bracelets.

In the black frame, I cut a silhouette of a statue. She kind of looks like the Statue of Liberty, right? But she’s not. Actually, she is an angel statue I took a photo of on our honeymoon in Savannah.

Once printed out and cut from metallic silver paper, she shimmers just like Robert Pattinson in Twilight. For a rustic/glam balance, I taped her to a piece of wood veneer.

To the right I popped in this blue flower print from Ara133 Photography in the existing mat.

The photo is Ben and his brothers when they were kids. It’s highly adorable and cracks me up every time. All the dark and wood tones on the left were feeling a little heavy. Sure, painting the small square frame white and the small rectangle frame black will help balance (once our weather cooperates!). But a small dose of wood never hurt anyone. Wait, that sounded bad. Lotus pods and fuzzy faux greenery from the Dollar Store in a white Ikea vase fix that.

Just a little warmth and darkness. Seriously, how great are lotus pods? I think they should be the new billy button.

For a few hours of work, I’m thrilled with the result. Art with meaning, happy colors, and zero dollars spent. That’s right, I used frames and supplies we already had sitting around the house.

Much cheerier than the empty frames of yore.

And I can easily swap art out with changing seasons, holidays, or moods. I’m hoping to con, um, convince Ben to install the new door trim, baseboard, and crown in the family room so I can get some paint on the walls. I’m guessing I won’t succeed, but I can hope.

What do you think of the new art? What’s your favorite art you’ve made? Have any big plans for the weekend?

Mantel Madness

Published on January 9, 2013March 26, 2013 by Our Humble Abode26 Comments

For a long time, I’ve wanted a house with a mantel to decorate. We had a fireplace in our first house, but the stand alone design didn’t allow for a mantel to decorate. But now we’ve got one, thanks to a new fireplace surround. I’ve patiently waited for the paint to cure. Now that it has, I’m in full decorating mode. Originally, I thought I’d stretch a long, lean canvas to paint an abstract landscape on. It would have worked, provided the real painting turned out as well as the one I had mentally painted.

Then, to get an idea of the size I’d want, I pulled a few frames out of the basement storage. And then I switched gears, pulling out more frames to make a layered frame shelf. Sure, one large art piece would look fine, but then I’d feel the need to fill in with tchotchkes, aka clutter. Round one, I centered a 16 by 20 white frame then layered in 11 by 14 frames and filled in gaps with smaller ones.

Don’t mind what’s in the frames, some (or all?) will change. Too small and washed out. I pulled slightly larger wooden frame out from under the guest bed and set it up front and center. More frames around it, this time including a 12 by 12 frame.

Not a winner. I really liked the black frame and mix of styles and colors.

Close, but no cigar. Needs a little more height on the right side, so the 12 by 12 frame got the boot and an 11 by 14 took its place.

Almost there; that gold vase just didn’t tickle my pickle, nor did it serve a purpose. A set of matching white marble vases balanced the ends, and holds matches.

Obviously I’ll need to fill the center frame and swap out some art in the other frames.

Also on the redo list, painting the small square frame white and the small rectangle frame black. Gotta spread out the light and dark for balance.

We also loaded up the wood box over the weekend and love the usefulness, rustic look, and warmth it adds to the room.

So what do you think of layered frames on a mantel? What do you have above your fireplace? Do you have a favorite art piece? Any suggestions for customizeable/DIY/special art to add in the frames? I’d like a mix of art, photos, and something for the small shadowbox.

Bathroom Break

Published on January 7, 2013January 7, 2013 by Our Humble Abode6 Comments

For the New Year, I’m trying to organize more around the house. Call it a resolution if you wish. Some of that includes improving our current systems. In the words of Tim Gunn, ‘Make it work!’ First up, working out the main bathroom storage. After rearranging some miscellaneous supplies gathering on the top shelf, I cleared room for our supply of toilet paper. Yes, we buy it from Costco, so we’re stuck storing 36 rolls. Lucky for us, we’ve got a large shelf to help out there. Below that we store soap, cotton balls, and q tips in covered glass jars. A stack of clean white towels toward the bottom rounds out the closet.

Then I added a ‘guest jar.’ Basically, I took all the travel sized necessities and stuck them in another lidded glass jar. This way, our guests can see assorted items and take something they might have forgotten.

Below that we still have the storage caddy, a bottle of mouthwash, a lotion pump, and a few more travel sized toiletries.

This time, cute Burt’s Bees. Just a little something special.

In a house full of boys and DIY projects, we often need a basic first aid kit. Easy access is always nice, so I filled two plastic boxes with supplies. The top one, from my great grandma, holds an assortment of bandages.

The bottom one, an Alli weight loss container from a thrift store, has first aid necessities. Rubbing alcohol and hydrogen peroxide, in labeled travel sized shampoo bottles leaves space for other items.

Unfortunately, everyone in this house has a cold, so I haven’t gotten my organizational hands elsewhere. Have you organized (or reorganized) any areas of your home recently?