Gallery wall on brick.

I haven't blogged in a while, I know.  This discovery, however, is too good not to share.  So...here is an out of the blue blog post.  Also, I hope it gets me blogging again...I need something to hold me accountable for getting things done around here.  My mind races thinking about all the things we need and want to do.  It's paralyzing.

We have had gallery photo walls in our past few houses.

Part of Gallery Wall

By the time we were getting our house ready to sell in Massachusetts I was glad to take down the photos.  It was starting to feel so tired.  Isn't there some twist that can be given to make gallery walls more exciting??!!?  All those frames were an investment and the big empty wall intimidated me so it stayed up until we had to put our house on the market.

New House

So..new house and a million frames that I am not that excited to find a place for.  For a month and a half all of my photos and art have been stacked on the floor, waiting to be destroyed by a toddler.  (Secretly, I was hoping a toddler might take a few out so I would feel less guilty about not using them.)  Almost two months and NOT A SINGLE frame has been damaged.  I guess I should be proud.

At some point, while I was waiting for my kids to make my decisions for me, inspiration struck...A gallery wall on my big, empty, ugly, awkward brick wall.  Yesss.  (Brick walls can be incredibly cool and urban....this one is too intentional...it's painful...)

The fireplace is not centered and it drives.me.nuts.

I hate hanging things.  Sean hangs everything with exactly the right tools.  I, on the other hand, have no desire to be that detailed and now that I have seen what amount of detail can and should be considered when hanging anything I worry that every nail I put in the wall will not hold.  So...I let Sean know I need to hang something and at some point he appears with the correct tools and things get hung.

When my third request to hang pictures on brick produced no results I asked why.  Sean was reluctant to put a bunch of holes in our brick wall and I realized that I was thankful that he never showed up with a hammer.  Having to place the pictures exactly where I wanted them the first time made me incredibly nervous...and I what if I didn't like it?...there would be a bunch of holes in our brick wall.  Not easy to fix...I'm guessing.  Details, details.

After some begging and false confidence (on my part) in how awesome it would look, Sean began to research alternatives to nails in brick.  Thank goodness he did!  He found these:

They clip to the brick and support up to 25lb.  I was skeptical because the word "clip" doesn't conjure up an image of strength, but they are magic.  I hung all the frames in about 10 minutes.  10 minutes.  (See B still watching a TV show on the ottoman?..10 minutes!) And nothing has fallen off yet.

10 minutes

Obviously, there will be tweaking done to spacing and I will probably add a frame or two but there are 6 less frames waiting to be destroyed by toddlers.

Boom.  Close up.

"monogram"

Monograms.  I have said it before but I will say it again.  I don't get them.  I really do like how they look but for whatever reason I can't understand their purpose and that is the road block between me and monogrammed bath towels.  (Pretty painted box that sits on my shelf and holds nothing but my admiration, you need no greater purpose than beauty to exist in my life, though.)

via The Old Try

Soon after writing the post about monograms a few weeks ago (months??!!) I saw this print on The Old Try and I got an idea for a "monogram".

I am from Florida and Sean is from Massachusetts (after 10 years here I still get nervous that I am misspelling it!).  I decided to get the flags and arrange them like a monogram.  Those little flags are so cheap.   

I had to let B get bored with the American flag before I could put it all together.  I thought it would only take a few days but he played with that flag inside and outside for about a month.  I don't know how it didn't get dirty much less destroyed.  

Crayon Art but Not Like That

If you have ever explored Pinterest in any capacity then you probably have seen this project.  It is extremely popular and for good reason.  The minute I saw it I wanted to do it and B and I had so much fun doing it.

Hot glue those suckers on.

I have to admit I stressed about getting the rainbow right and then I had a glass of wine and realized B is two (Almost three.  I can't think about it).  Close is good enough.  

Make sure you have something under and behind the canvas.

He was impressed.

blow dry

It is so easy even a two year old (Almost three. Gasping for air.) can do it!  Seriously, though, I love how this looks no matter how unoriginal it is.

This was a no pants and sunglasses craft. Mandatory.

Some cool over the top crayon action.

Bonus drips!

Finito.  I am going to Italy this summer so I am practicing.  Finito.

There it is in action.

Love it.

Huis

I have no clue how a professional goes about designing a room.  To me there seems to be a few big things that have to happen.  Furniture. Lighting. Art. Accessories.  Late last year I felt like all the furniture and lighting had come together.  I have never felt finished with either of those in any living room I have lived in.  Probably has something to do with owning versus renting.  Feels good.

I had almost all the artwork done.

I felt so close but so far.  The last wall was the biggest wall and it really made half of the room feel cold and sad.  After some thought I decided I wanted one big piece of art. The walls that touch this big, blank wall have 3 and 4 frames on them.  With all the color and patterns already happening in the room I thought having multiple frames would be insanity.  Unfortunately, having two babies that need new wardrobes every season means I can't afford to buy a giant painting or print...or frame that I really love...and I don't want to spend a moderate amount of money on something that fits just for the sake of fitting and I am not totally in love with.  Also, I am impatient and don't want to bargain hunt or save. I decided to paint something myself. I got the biggest canvas I could find for half price at Michaels.  Sweet.  Done.  Then I had to figure out what to paint which is extremely limited b/c I don't really paint.  And by don't really I mean don't at all.

My first idea was an abstract-like colorful, blobby painting.  It's easy to be tricked into thinking you can do it..I have seen plenty of DIY abstract art in the blogosphere. It doesn't look that hard because you aren't trying to end up with a painting that looks like anything.  But as those attempts in the blogosphere prove...finding colors that work well together and don't look childish and cheap is the hard part. I spent a few months staring that the blank canvas having an internal battle between my "I can do anything" voice and my "be realistic and don't waste money" voice.  It's probably a good idea that I didn't attempt it because if I had succeeded I don't think this room or I could handle more color crazy art.  I needed something to ground room a little.

Then I saw this.

Jackpot.  A big black and white word.  That's it.
...
...
...
...
More months went by while I tried to figure out what word to paint on the canvas.  It's for the same reason I don't have a tattoo.  I can't figure out something that I am 100% sure will never be lame.  A word on canvas is obviously not as permanent and/or expensive to remove as a tattoo but there is a lot of labor and emotional energy that goes into painting something for me and I don't want to get tired of it in a month.

After wasting lots of time coming up with lame words I brainstormed with my brother who was smart enough to turn to the internet for inspiration.  After looking at lots of lists of words we decided to look at words in other languages.  Bingo.

Huis.  It is Dutch for home/to house. Dutch?  Yes Dutch.  I lived in Holland for a summer and I have never felt more at home in any place.  It's my soul country...like a soul mate.  I love it.

I love the effect it has in the room.  I do not love how my photography skills make things look awkwardly proportioned and terribly spaced. I tried to get pics of the walls from floor to ceiling so that the proportions would look normal but that is HARD.  I only got one kind of decent one. So I gave up.  Sorry.  Trust me.  It doesn't look this tiny in "real life".  Oy.

Next...edit those pillows.  Yikes.  So many sizes.  So many colors.  Too much.

Quick + Cheap Change: Frames and Mats

A few years ago my parents brought me a set of five beautiful watercolor prints of Nice back from one of their trips.  At the time we were living in a lot of leafy greens and dark red.  So they were put in black frames with light olive mats.  With each move (2) and slowly figuring out my style they have had less and less of a place in the house.  

This is pretty much exactly what it looks like.

Now we own our home and have been able to pick any crazy colors we want for the walls.  Martha Stewart's Rainforest is what ended up on our dining room walls.  Unfortunately, I can't replace all my decor accessories that don't match (most of them) as quickly as I can paint a wall.  Slowly I have been moving new things in...very slowly.  We had't been spending much time in our dining room.  Lately, however, Brady has been refusing his high chair which has forced us away from eating at our island and into the dining room.

See those frames above me and my beautiful ladies?? AHH.  Kate, I stole your picture! 

Without really planning it I found myself at HomeGoods last week looking for things to go on the shelves.  I ended up with a few blue and blue/green things.  My (very wonderful and organized and amazing) friend Stephanie threw me a baby shower this weekend and when I saw the above picture I felt repulsed by the picture frames above our heads.  Need. to. change. immediately.

Oops....the print is falling down on the right.  

The wall color has been begging and pleading for more gold.  It has only been getting louder as I spend more time in there.  What to do? What to do?

Prime and spray paint the frames gold?  Easy and done.

Prime and spray paint the mats?  Not so much.  Fail.  Thankfully, I didn't ruin the mats.  Applying the spray paint evenly was impossible and as much as I love graffiti I don't think anyone could get away with mixing bad, back alley graffiti-looking mats with beautiful water colors of Nice, France.  Right?!

Day two.  Round two.  I found a blue craft paint, thankfully, in my existing paints that worked with the prints.  Easy and done.  Phew.

I do like the outcome.  I wish there was more gold frame and more purple in the blue but it's much better than black and olive.  Crazy how a seemingly little thing can change how you feel in a room.  I am so much more comfortable in there now.

Regarding placement...the frames are not going to live like that/there.  The green mat version was bearable just sitting on top of the bookshelves because they kind of hid there...but now the blue really pops and I think I need to move some more things up there for balance or find a new home for them on the shelves.

We went from three packed Billy bookshelves in our previous apartment to 5.5 Billy bookshelves in the dining room and a bookcase in the living room.  We can't read as fast as shelves are entering our home right now.  So until we catch up the shelves are going to be a mix of bare and slightly tchotchke heavy.  

Incase you were wondering....I put on quite a show while spray painting.  Big, pregnant me in BRIGHT orange painting shorts...in my front yard....paint mask....beautiful.  Whatever, I got things done.  

Walt Perkins Photography

Walt

I am proud to share Walt Perkins Photography with you!  I am proud not only because he is a great photographer but also because Walt Perkins just happens to be my brother.

Walt has been working on his photography for seven years during which he has developed a distinct style and a unique eye.  He has traveled the globe and come home with interesting, fresh views of some of the most photographed scenes in the world.  In addition, he captures everyday life in an intelligent and witty way.

You can check out a full range of his work here.  Also, check back to his Etsy store often as he continues to list new items.

Venice, Italy 2006

Sydney Opera House, August 2008 

Palm Cove, Australia, September 2008

Orlando, Summer 2009