619 miles

toy stories

When I have my own house I'm going to need TONS of wall space. I have a little addiction to prints, funny, pretty, graphic, photographs... I dream of a nice big wall to display all the prints I buy (and ones I see that I want to buy).

I've seen these prints around blogland for a while now, but I stumbled across them again on pinterest and just had to do a little post on them. The artist is Aled Lewis, and he has made a series of prints called "toy stories" that crack me up, no kidding actually chuckling out loud. Here are some of my favorites:

{images by Aled Lewis flickr}

You can purchase prints here and see more of the collection here. I've always been drawn to photos of toys for some reason. Back in college I was inspired by a photography exhibit of miniature hotel room scenes and did my own series of photos using those little green army men. Maybe I'll scan the photos into my computer so I can share them with you guys.

i heart personalized art

I especially love Kal Barteski's personalized artwork. There is something about her art that speaks to me, I just cannot seem to get enough of it. I am a big fan of words of affirmations to others... especially to the little ones in our lives. I ordered these prints a while back and finally got around to putting them in frames. My niece and nephew live in Florida so I don't get to visit as often as I would like, but I still want them to know that their Aunt (Jenn-Jenn) thinks they are AWESOME!

You can go here to check out more artwork available by Kal, to include her latest print: "be true to who you are", which I'm really diggin'.

Here is the link to the prints I purchased.

Kal's blog, [i] love life, is one of the first blogs I ever found and one of my all time favorites to read.

OH HAPPINESS

 

The Nurture Your Creativity Class that I enrolled in has officially come to an end (que triste), but I'm still working through the "assignments" or IDEAS. I busted out my journal/sketchbook tonight and just started messing around. I made a PostSecret entry (which will stay secret) and then I just kept on going. 

 

 

I've had the song "Oh Happiness" by David Crowder Band in my head a LOT lately. It's just such a happy and fun song, I can't stop singing it. I've always been inspired by Ali Edwards journaling style and she recently released a new digital project of journaling lines that were also inspiration behind this piece. Some cutting, pasting, doodling, and sharpies plus some tunes in the background led to this:

After completing that one, I did one of the class "assignments" for idea4 in the same sort of style. The assignment was to interpret the quote in any kind of visual form. Here is my intrepretation:

I'm only on idea4 out of 6... but I'm chugging along at my own pace. The class has been motivating and inspirational. The class interaction with Kal and others in the class has been great.

more ideas

Sometimes I have so many ideas floating around that I can't keep them straight, or I get so overwhelmed with the thought that I could never accomplish them all. I saw this today and thought "YES!"

I pinned it off pinterest, where it said it was a print from the urban outfitter print shop, but I couldn't find it there.

However, I did find these other cool prints... if only I had more wall space... and MORE TIME

I especially love that first one of the girl sitting down and this last one of the deer. All of these prints are from the Urban Outfitters Print Shop and cost only $15! The collection rotates, so you never know what goodies you may find. Like I said, I wish I had more wall space. Sometimes I feel like I could be a hoarder of art. Could you imagine that episode of "Hoarders"?!?! 

no TV tuesday - wk2

I almost turned on the television today.. then I remembered it was Tuesday. In an effort to be more productive I'm trying a little experiment. For the month of March I am not watching TV on Tuesdays (as previously mentioned here). It is almost 2pm and so far today I have:

• had a quick morning wake-up phone call
• ate breakfast
• returned a phone call
• called my Memaw
• balanced my checkbook
• paid bills
• put $ in savings
• gave away some $
• worked on my master's project
• ate a snack
• played with Reese
• checked email
• caught up on some blog reading
• replied to emails 
• wrote this blog post

And now that I am writing this I realize I haven't had lunch. No wonder my stomach is growling. Time for food and to tackle the rest of the to-do list. I hope you are having a productive day, and if not, then this should make you smile. Enjoy!

photos are from pinterest (1. 2.)

I'm painting

...and it's not walls or furniture this time!!! I went to my storage unit and dug out my painting supplies from my college painting class. As part of the Nurture your Creativity class (previous blog posts here and here) I decided to bust out the acrylics and paint brushes. I have to admit, I was a scared to put paint to paper, but the class is all about just going for it. My new mantra I've adopted is "What if it's awesome?!?!" When people start to question my plans or ideas with "what-ifs", or when I start to do the same, my new mantra will be: "what if it's AWESOME?!?" 

So I ignored the fear of messing up and just started to paint. 

creativity in action

I confess... I do almost everything sitting on my couch. I'm not sure why.. I have a perfectly nice desk (remember me refinishing it?). This shot is evidence of my working on the Nurture your Creativity class I blogged about a couple days ago. The class is pretty fast paced, but I think I need that to keep me motivated. Here are a couple peeks at some of the other things I've done so far in the class.

What creative things have you been working on lately?

Kerry's awesomeness

As mentioned yesterday, Kerry is always trying out the cool craft and photography projects we talk about. We send emails, and make lists of various projects we'd like to try, but Kerry just doesn't make the lists... she actually DOES it. I admire her creativeness and ability to just get to work making stuff.

I searched my computer and could not find any photos of Kerry's sewing to share (drats!). However, I did find some very cool photographs where she is trying out TTV (Through the viewfinder) and HDR (High dynamic range).

I'm gonna have to find some photos of more of Kerry's creativeness. She's GOT skills!!

craft kit

As mentioned in this post, I packed up some crafty stuff to help pass the time when I'm not flying. I focused mainly on stuff I might use with my new GOODNESS mini album/journal. I crammed it all into an old clinique makeup bag I had. So far I've been doing so-so with keeping up with the journaling. I did hole punch and add in a funny note with drawings from my friend and neighbor Amy, who not only draws funny pictures, but also shares her coffee with me :)

the craft kit - stuffed full

contents of the craft kit - I didn't realize how many sharpies I packed till taking this photo

sharpie rainbow

GOODNESS mini album/journal - my attempt to keep from focusing on the negative stuff

pretty tape

I've never really packed a travel craft kit before. Any essentials that I should bring next time? I haven't been here long enough to think of things I wish I had brought. Strike that.... I wish I had a way to get instant photos (like a portable mini photo printer), perhaps I'll see if I can get them printed on regular paper at work and then just glue or tape them in.

color inspired stitching

Inspired by colorful kitchen wares, I am ready to get stitching. I purchased a new embroidery pattern from Sublime Stitching. It is THE most amazing embroidery site ever! The pattern i bought is called Epic Alphabet and it's a mix of House Industries' typefaces that look so fun to stitch. Check out the Sublime Stitching blog for more info on this pattern as well as some more awesome stuff that Jenny Hart, Sublime Stitching owner, is making.

She asked fans of her facebook page to recommend words to be embroidered using the new pattern, and she picked "MERCI". I love this and I am loving the colors. I recently purchased four small throw pillows and I think I'll make embroidered covers for them. Now I just need to decide on the words. I think I'll do "sweet dreams" on one and maybe "xoxo" on another. Any other suggestions?