Tag Archives: Decor

Dreaming of Our New Place!

Good afternoon!!

My hubby and I are spending this lovely, rainy day, here in Oregon, packing our house up!! I am so excited about moving to our new place, in Portland, and settling in!! I just want it to happen already!!

So, for this afternoon’s post, I thought I would share some Pinterest inspiration photos that are seriously rockin’ my world, right now!!

This is really similar to the layout of our new living room:
6f31cd61ac032423976b6404020b1d23 Image Credit

Another potential living room furniture layout idea:
4fb637789fa81d97daf2428bc8d752cf Image Credit

Here is a fresh, clean, peaceful feeling I want for the master bedroom:
fb290730ae63729bbe41afa072482a9a Image Credit

Or how about this one?
6a19e5abaab35c2e18b3c3e34dbf9f50 Image Credit

Although, for that look, I know I would have to scale it waaaaay down, because I think that our new room is going to fit a bed, and maybe two very small bed tables!

I am seeing a theme here…I, apparently, like white and soft grey, which is kind of surprising because, living in Oregon, it has a tendency to be grey here a lot, so I have always avoided decorating with that color. But, not in this new house! I am excited about the new prospects!!

Well, that is it for my break!! I had better get back to packing!! Wish me luck!! 🙂

Here is to dreaming of a new home for ourselves!!
1 - Signature

Random Post Kind of Tuesday!

Good evening!

This has been a bit of a rough day. I think maybe the problem is that I am not doing a good job of taking care of myself like I should, and my body is trying to let me know that it is serious need of a break! I can always tell when I am not taking care of myself. I can feel it to depth of my soul. I am tired, my eyes are bloodshot, I have a headache that only seems to go away when I close my eyes – proof of just how tired I am, and I don’t seem to have the same ability to handle stress and pressure in the office when I am not taking care of myself. I really do have to get on that; make healthy, fresh food choices, get enough daily exercise, get my 8 cups of water in every day, take my entire slew of daily supplements and medications (being a post gastric bypass surgical patient you REALLY NEED the extra help nutrient-wise!!), and I need to make sure that I am making enough time for quality, uninterrupted sleep!!

I realize that was some weird kind of tangent, sorry about that!! 🙂

Anyway, I only had one small errand to run this evening, which didn’t take me too long. So I thankfully headed home and here I am!!! WHEW!!! 🙂 My sweetie is working until really late tonight, which means I get the house to myself this evening, and I have taken advantage of that by getting some laundry folded, cleaning the kitchen, and making myself a nice healthy dinner with enough leftover for both of our lunches tomorrow!!

My sweetie has been working so many hours, which I am extremely grateful for, but I really miss our time together, which has been very far and in-between lately! No worries!! I plan on just being as productive as I can this evening; turning some peppy music on, do a couple more house chores, catch up on a movie, and then either spend some time reading or cross stitching before I hop my tired self right into bed!!

Doesn’t that just sound dreamy??

It sure does to me!! I can’t wait – maybe I will skip all of that, and just call it an early night now??? Yeah, I wish!!!! 😉

Onto something a bit more Artsy…

I wanted to share a picture with you of a little project that I have been working on (pictured at the top of this post). This is what I am calling my cross stitch doodle sampler! Cross stitch is one of the many hobbies that I have taken up with the goal of having a more Artsy Life, and surrounding myself with creativity and beauty in even the littlest things in my life!! Cross stitch, at least the way I do it, is so portable (I carry everything I need in a small tin gift card holder), and I can pull it out and work on it wherever I am, whenever! I don’t use any kind of patterns – that would drive me BANANAS!! I am basically just doodling with string, using whatever patterns I come up with. I kept this project simple and only used one color of DNC floss, which I LOVE, because it was very easy to stay relaxed and not worry about what color goes with what, or did I get the right shade, or anything like that. It has almost become kind of a meditative practice for me, even if the project doesn’t come out exactly perfect! I am still LOVING the practice of it!

I haven’t decided for sure yet, but I think this little guy is going to be a pillow-ey door hanger. Something simple, and really easy to make!! I will share pics of the finished project when I am done!! I haven’t decided what my next project will be, but so far I am leaning towards a larger cross-stitch sampler, a colorful granny square crocheted blanket, a ruffle bed comforter, or a loopy summer scarf using a new yarn and technique that looks pretty easy to do that I found online. Whatever project I choose, I will make sure to keep you posted!!

In the meantime…

Here is to a FABULOUS evening!! ;-)

If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!!

Looking for Beauty at Aunt Bee’s House!

Good evening!

I am so very excited to share this post with you this evening, but before I get too ahead of myself, I wanted to tell you a little bit of back story on this post! Last week, I went to one of my FAVORITE shops here in town, Aunt Bee’s House! Aunt Bee’s House is a large marketplace for people to rent space to sell their home furnishings, decorative items, gifts, and other beautiful treasures!! When I find that I am needing to get some retail therapy, some inspiration for doing some decorating in my little condo, find a new color combination ideas for my next arting project, or if I am need of a unique and perfect gift for a friend or family member – Aunt Bee’s House is my go-to place of choice!!

Well, anyway I had gathered up the nerve to introduce myself to the staff, and ask if I could take some pictures so that I could post them on blog, This Artsy Life. That may not sound like a big deal, but me being eternally shy and having a tendency to want to remain invisible when I am out on the town by myself, I was pretty dang proud of myself!! Well, of course the staff of Aunt Bee’s House being SO AMAZING, welcoming and friendly, they said “yes” immediately, and off I went – snapping away!!! I was such a happy girl, and I think I came home with something like 200 pictures!!

Needless to say, it was a GREAT day!! 🙂

Well, long story short, I got home placed my camera card in my computer, and my computer essentially ate all of my pictures!! UGH!!

I would love to tell you that me being the new brave and outgoing Christina, I turned around went right back and started the process all over again, but alas that is not how it went down! 🙂 It literally took me another week to gather up my courage again to go back and ask if I might take those pictures again!! The FABULOUS staff so graciously said “yes” again, and again I spent a lovely afternoon just snapping away!! Finding all sorts of treasures and beautiful items to delight the senses. I can’t believe it had taken me so long to get back there!! I REALLY LOVE THIS PLACE!!! 😉

Soooo…

Tonight I am very happy to share with you some of the pictures that I took while at Aunt Bee’s House.

Here we go!! 🙂

This is what you see when you first walk in to the shop! The colors of these quilts are so happy and joyful, that I think that quilting may become my next hobby/passion!! Oh man, what is my sweetie going to think about that??? 😉

I am really loving teal painted furniture!! Hmmmm…I wonder how my sweetie would feel about having his dresser painted teal?

I love this little vignette! 🙂 The lamps, the bowl of green apples, the books, the horse, everything!! LOVE! LOVE! LOVE!!

I love the juxtaposition of this stripped wooden vessel and the red vintage books.

and how about these two large gears??? Aren’t they just AMAZING???? I am SERIOUSLY thinking about going back and bringing these two manly studs home!!! 🙂

Who knew that oil can could be chic? Well, apparently they can be!!! 🙂

I am LOVING this headboard! The colors, the restic-ness of it, and maybe just the ingeniousness use of recycled fence posts!!

These are decorative storage boxes that looks like books with tapestry covers! VERY SPRINGY!! 😉

I love this vignette too! The books, plant pot, bird, and yes even the doily!! Who knew that I was going to have to start thinking about getting a doily?? My mama would be very proud!! 😉

I LOVE this LOVE sign!! 😉

Aren’t these just the cutest?? They are weighted pillows! I could see myself using these as a door stop for my front door!! SO SWEET!!

This is SUCH an INGENIOUS way to display simple ribbon roses!! I may have to give this project a try!! 😉

I am a SUCKER for colored glass vessels, and this BLUE is just STUNNING!!! 😉

I may need a whole slew of these to decorate all over our place!! I just LOVE rustic stars, and the glitter really adds a but of glam!!

This mannequin FASCINATES me!! Whoever gets to take this love figure home is my hero!! I LOVE THIS!!!

This little lady was kind of tucked in the back of this display, and as soon as I saw her, I knew she just needed to be brought forward and with a little bit of rearranging she is now the ROCK STAR of this vignette!! 😉

Here is another vignette that makes me happy to look at! I am really digging the message of this teal sign. “Thank God for blessing me much more than I deserve!” This has become my motto on almost a daily basis!! 😉

I am just CRAZY about this white chippy dresser!! TRES CHIC!!! 😉

I am so impressed by this paper wreath!! Someone has some SERIOUS patience!! 😉

I love this rack!! I could see this in my place being used as our mail rack…or maybe a medicine rack…or maybe a spice rack…or maybe as an organizer in my art studio…or maybe as a…or as a…!! I KNOW, IT IS A SICKNESS!!! 🙂

This is a message that I am going to try and apply to my life this week!! Enjoy the Little Things!! 🙂

Here is another one of those FABULOUS quilts!! See what I mean?? I love this design and the colors!! I would LOVE to have a new, homemade quilt for our bedroom!!! Sooooo cheery!!!

Well, there you have it!!! I hope you have enjoyed all of these pictures, as much as I had taking them!!! If you happen to be in the Salem area, I would highly recommend visiting Aunt Bee’s House!! I KNOW there will be THE PERFECT treasure waiting there JUST FOR YOU!!!

Thank you to the INCREDIBLE staff at Aunt Bee’s House for letting me share your lovely shop with my readers. I am greatly impressed by everything about your shop, there is such a welcoming, homey feeling that is evident as soon as you walk in the door!!!! I will most DEFINITELY be back in again!! 😉

To my readers, I want to make sure you know that I am in no way compensated by Aunt Bee’s House, and all of the opinions expressed are solely my own!! I hope you enjoyed all of these pictures!! 😉

Here is to a FABULOUS evening!! ;-)

If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!!

Some Home Updates!

Good afternoon!

We are having a lovely four-day weekend here at the manse!! LOL! 😉

I thought I would share some new pics of some things going on around our place this weekend! 😉

Here are some pics of our garden! It is so fun to watch the plants grow and getting out there and weeding, pruning, and making everything look lovely!!

We are so jazzed to see how much lettuce we are going to have! They are growing so much faster then us newbie-farmers could even imagine!

Here are our snap-peas, and 3 strawberry plants! We already have one red strawberry!! We will have to flip a coin to see who gets to eat it!! 😉

Here are the two blueberry bushes! I can’t wait to see how much they produce! 😉

Here are a few of our herbs!

Here are a few more! We have 3 pots of herbs growing! 😉

Next, on to our living room!! As many of you know, my sweetie and I are getting ready for Bariatric surgery. One of my goals before surgery is to make sure that the house is clean, organized, purged, and no muss, no fuss ready for us to just concentrate on getting better!

One of the things we have been hearing from past patients is that a recliner is almost imperative to post-surgery resting! Well, I have been a long time naysayer of recliners. They are large, ugly, and I have just really never liked them! So, when I picked up two leather ones this weekend, I was sure that I was losing my mind, but my rationale behind doing that was twofold! 1. I know that we will both be having surgery, and I don’t want either one of us to have to sleep on the couch! 2. It has been really hard to have company over when there is just not enough seats in our place!

So after a ton of time spent cleaning, purging, and redecorating, and along with the help of my FABULOUS sweetie, we were able to take our living room from this:

To this:

Aaaaaaah…SO MUCH BETTER!!

The feeling in here is now so much more calming. We moved the large television out from in front of the window, so the room is now awash in sunlight! What a much more positive feeling, and way less drab and gloomy!!

Also, now that I have a bunch more of our favorite art work on the wall, the space feels sooo much more like us!!! I can’t wait to see what the rest of the house looks like once we are finished, but we are really so close!! I will make sure to share pictures with you as more progress is made!!

Here is to a FABULOUS evening!! ;-)

If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!

I Love This Sunday!

Good evening!

This has been such a COOL Sunday! We got an extra hour today with daylight savings time, and it has really made a HUGE difference in my attitude for the day!! I knew today was going to be the PERFECT kind of naked lazy-do-whatever-you-want Sunday!!!

I woke up early this morning, and spent a little time reading! Even got to take a mini-nap before breakfast, yes I go t up THAT early!! After my nap, I had a leisurely breakfast with my sweetie, and then made a b-line to the art studio!! (Jason LOVES my art studio time because it means that he gets to spend that time hogging the Netflix, watching EVERY low-budget horror movie they ahve available!!!)

Earlier this week, I had gotten inspired to create two pieces of art for my drab office cubicle! So I had a lot of fun getting these started.I have some more textures, aging, and motivational thoughts to put on these still. I am planning on taking my time and getting these done over the next week. It will be hard, because I am not exactly the most patient person, but I am really am very excited to see them hanging in my office cubicle!!

So, without further ado, here are the pieces I have been working on, please keep in mind that these are a work in progress, but I am very excited how they are turning out so far!

I am not really sure what to say about these, but when I look at them they really make me happy!and the little maps, and word puzzles that I have chosen to accent these have sentimental value to me! I really just can’t wait to see these finished!!! 😉

This is how I wish I could always make art, just get whatever is in me onto the canvas, without worry about what others might think of them, or worry about whether or not they are commercial or sale-able.

Art for the sake of art.

So what do you think? I would LOVE to hear your thoughts!!!

Being creative is where my bliss is coming from.

Life is good.

Today has been great.

I am feeling greatly blessed. 😉

Have a FABULOUS evening!! 😉

An Evening of Decor & Fashion!

La Dolce Vita

Good evening!

OK, so I had better get with the program and get a posting out there tonight! This evening, I have been feverishly going through decorating books, and fashion magazines. I am not exactly sure what I am looking for, but I know it is time for some slight modifications to my immediate world around me – namely my living room decor. I am bored with it. Which, when I think about it is not too surprising! I have always been very nomadic in my life, moving from place to place to place, and we have lived in our condo for 5 years, which may be longer than I have lived anywhere!! Well, I am bored with it all! My favorite thing about moving all the time was that moving not only gives you the opportunity to go through all of your belongings and decide what is important to you and what isn’t, it also forces you to redecorate for each new place you move too. I LOVE decorating, and I kind of have a natural talent for it!

I would LOVE to be able to house all of my books in one room. I have more than 1200 books, so that, right now is a problem, because space is rather tight!! All the same, I have just ordered my new Ikea catalog for some storage/creative use of space ideas, and I am dreaming about what this living room could be!

I would love to see this room have more seating, and a much more comfortable couch for visiting with company AND for cuddling up to watch movies!! I would like it to be in a more neutral color, so that I can decorate with throw blankets and pillows, and easily change them on a whim – whenever the mood strikes! Having a red couch has been fun, but if I had given it some real thought, I would have preferred a neutral-colored couch with a red slipcover!!! That way I would have had some real versatility!

Alkemie

I love the idea of being surrounded by books, art, and music. Being comfortable in your space, but at the same time, have a sense of plushness, and sophistication – all while being able to cuddle up in a blanket with a good book, while your bare feet are thrown over the arm of a chair! Simply divine!

Alkemie

I also LOVE the idea of some more versatile lighting in this place. I have a few lamps in this room, and in the Winter I utilize the glow of candlelight quite a bit. I know that someday, when we are in our actual house, then I will have a chandelier in our living room, and it will be very chi-chi-fab!!! I can just picture it now! 😉

Alkemie

Anyway, I am going to put together a design board for my dream living room, and then modify that so that I can have my “dream room” on a smaller scale for this place, so that even though my sweetie and I have to be here for a couple of more years, it will still feel like home – at least for now!! 😉

Alkemie

Have a FABULOUS evening!!!

A Naked Sunday!!

Good morning!!

Did I tell you how divinely and utterly happy I am? I am enjoying a nice quiet morning at home! I am washed, buffed, coiffed and ready to enjoy the day!!

Jason and I have no real plans this morning, but I think I am going to let him kick my booty at a couple of games of chess! He LOVES doing that, and I honestly STINK at chess!! QUEL RAT!!! 😉

This evening my sweetie and are heading to Albany to go to a church service with my dad! My dad is going to be sing a solo, and I haven’t heard him sing in a long, looooong time!!! Maybe I will be able to take a recording and post the video clip here. Hmmmmm….I will get back tyou on that!!

Yesterday, when I spent some time browsing at Tar-Jay!! I found a lot of pieces that made my current color scheme, make sense, and I thought I would post them here, to not only share them with you, but to also record them here so I can call on these at a later time!!! 😉