What I Learned from The 100 Day Project

I am so grateful that I pushed myself to participate in and complete the 100 Day Project.

My goals for my project:

• My intent for the project was to find a way to paint more without relying on my signature style of black outlines specifically for interiors.
• I wanted to learn to paint more loosely with watercolor and use color to define the spaces, rather than ink outlines.
• I wanted to develop my personal style more and create a cohesive body of work rather than disjointed pieces.
• I also wanted to have fun and learn more about myself.

My guidelines for the project were:

• Create a vignette. It could be an interior, an exterior, or an outdoor space
• Use watercolors on paper but no ink
• Try to do this daily, but realize your limitations.
• Remember that your family and sanity come first, and don't be so hard on yourself!

What I learned:

1. I needed to have a plan in place and remove as much of the decision making as possible. I knew I had to use watercolor and paint some type of space that humans may encounter. It was helpful and I've learned over time that I thrive on having limits to be more creative and inspired
2. Create limits and structure for yourself if necessary. I learned that I needed to create a story to inspire these vignettes to inform my choices of furniture, pattern, colors and make the vignette make sense.
3. I reconnected with my love of the narrative and creative writing. I've always enjoyed writing, but it's been years since I've made up stories. Who knew I loved making up stories? I was dealing with a major life transition myself, and am interested in strong females, so many of the stories had that in common.
4. Projects and big ideas make me bolder. Quickly being part of a bigger project is empowering. Once I saw how quickly my artwork was building up, I wanted to see it next to other people's projects. It made me reach out and find other Philly artists doing this project. I met Sarah Ferone, and we teamed up to see if we could get a group show. We made a proposal and everything. It did not end up happening (I also found out I was moving to Florida right around that time), but I did learn a lot. I realized it would not be that scary to put together a show one day or submit my own work.
5. Community is key, find your peeps. Since the show idea didn't work due to time and logistics, we instead had a simple yet wonderful meetup at a beer garden in Philly. It is one of the most wonderful things in the world to connect via social media with like minded people. It is even better to meet up with those people in real life. I was thrilled to share some beers with the talented artists Sarah Ferone, Terri Fry Kasuba, Mary Kate McDevitt, Melissa McFeeters, and Barb Chotiner.

What didn't work:

• There were some days that I could not do it. I was exhausted, I wasn't inspired, or just didn't feel like it. I didn't sweat it, because this is a way of life in a way - the deciding to do what matters most.
• I didn't finish it on time. I had a lot on my plate and this had to move down on my list of priorities. That's life and it happens. But it doesn't mean you have to give up. Just rewrite the rules. (I was never good at following them anyway).

My tips:

1. Don't overthink things and your materials are not that precious. Use your good watercolor paper. Make mistakes. Make something different out of the mistake. Take the pressure off of yourself to be perfect. Just get things done. Put it away, let it go and move on. The one time I went back into something, I regretted it. But you know what? It's still fine. And at first it felt too precious to use my good paper to experiment. So I would use my mixed-media pad instead to just create and not worry. But once I started forcing myself to use the good paper, it was fine and I adjusted. If I found myself overthinking something, I went back to my sketchpad or painted smaller that day.
2. You can find small moments to create no matter how busy or frustrating a day you have had. But it's a choice, and sometimes you have to give something up. Sleep before work. TV. Time with people you love. The idea of a clean home. It's up to you what makes the most sense that day and be nice to yourself!
3. Have a designated space if possible. It's easier to create daily depending upon the medium and having a designated place to work that doesn't require a lot of set-up or take-down. Watercolor and gouache are especially good for this. particularly watercolor, since if your palette dries, you just add more water later. Now I don't have a designated space, but I have a bookshelf with a tray I can carry and that works just fine!
4. Sometimes you just need to show up and make crap. But don't stop, keep making something! As Elle Luna said, "Show up, show up, show up!" It's about doing the work, slogging through, not being so hard on yourself, and seeing where the process takes you.
5. Public accountability is empowering. Accountability and working with others (especially posting on Instagram) helped to keep me going. But I also realized that my goal was to finish the project and learn. It's not a competition with others, it's about yourself.

Why I'm glad I did it:

• I'm proud of myself for completing this big project.
• I really love many of the paintings I created.
• It built my confidence in my work and myself as an artist and writer.
• It made me learn to paint quicker and experiment with my style in a cohesive way.
• It showed me what I most wanted in my life, because I found myself inspired by places, stories, and things that I wanted myself! For example, having a garden, moving home to Florida,  an outdoor or tropical lifestyle, being near family, having a simpler life, and needing a creative component in my life, in whatever shape that takes
• I think I'll keep finding things that were great about doing this project, and see how those tiny steps led to larger steps that will lead me to bigger dreams down the road. Like making this into a self-published book and selling the prints and originals soon!

Painting Kitchen Utensils Since I Forgot to Buy a Shower Gift

This Saturday, Mike and I had plans to go to a coed Wedding Shower this weekend, and I completely forgot to purchase a gift. Luckily, I had free time on Saturday to paint a card for the sweet couple, which filled in as an I.O.U. for a William Sonoma gift card. Since the weekend is my main time to paint, I took the opportunity to make them a card that was relevant, but also to accomplish my goal of creating a downloadable desktop image for April.

I will always love the look of black pen and ink filled in with watercolor, and it's probably what most people think of when they think of my drawings. However, I want to push myself to rely less on what feels safe, and practice using color, layers, and paint to add depth and dimension.

This was the perfect exercise, since I love painting anything related to food, cooking, and baking.

Above, you can see how I used the light washes of color to draw the objects and figure out where everything would be. This was freehand, but usually I would have used a light pencil to sketch it out, and erase after the painting was completed.

In the picture below, I would add layers of color on the various objects after they dried to create depth and substance. For instance, painting the inside of a pot with a darker color to show that it was deeper. I used light washes of color on the outsides of the objects to ground them on the blank white surface. Lastly, I used my tiny brush to line some of the edges of the objects to further define them. I tried to make it slightly loose and sketchy, and retain a limited palette for a more cohesive design.

I had fun creating this and either drawing things that I have and enjoy using in my own kitchen (a Le Creuset Oval Dutch Oven) or items that I am coveting but don't need in my life right now (like a Chemex Coffee Maker).

Here is the finished piece! My favorite things to paint were the measuring spoons, the details on the measuring cup, and the muffin tins. I'm pleased with how it turned out, and I hope they liked their card. We weren't there to see them open it since we also did not get a babysitter and had to switch off going to the party, which was actually quite convenient since it was a block away!

I liked this watercolor so much, I have also added it as a print in my Society 6 store here.

Sketches and Clothes and Chicken Scratch

I had some fun today mentally recalling what I put together clothes wise for the past ten days trying to only use items in my capsule wardrobe. I felt like sketching...

Days 7 and 8 were my favorite days, since I wore a new silk scarf that a friend gave to me, and a gorgeous 100 inch strand of pearls my mom gave me one Christmas. The pearls looked especially nice against the black blouse I wore.

I'm still working through my capsule, and I already replaced a few things, but so far it's making my morning wardrobe decisions much easier. It's also encouraging me to work with the accessories I have but never end up wearing!

Ina Garten Inspired Summer Corn Chowder

Before Summer officially ended, I made a huge batch of Summer Corn Chowder. Using a few recipes for inspiration (the ever fabulous Ina Garten and a few others), I came up with this recipe. It is delicious, if I do say so myself. I ate it for about a week solid. I'm hoping to make it one last time before the leaves turn.

Ingredients:

Directions:

Rustic chic table setting:

Food detail drawing:

My favorite companion to soup:

I heart soup.

Watercolors for Caitlin Wilson Textiles

Right before Henry was born, I was commissioned to paint several water colors for Caitlin Wilson Textiles, thanks to a referral by Rachel Grace. My illustration style and what she needed turned out to be a good fit, and I am so grateful to have this opportunity to work with her. Caitlin is an amazingly talented and creative designer. I had so much fun bringing her lovely pillows and interiors to life in watercolor for her portfolio and website relaunch. I always love a fellow enthusiast of bright and happy colors.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I loved being able to do something that felt "normal" in the early days of motherhood, as I was feeling tied to the sofa while feeding the baby or trying to sleep. It was a bit stressful as well definitely, but it helped me to work faster and  plan my time differently. Instead of painting a watercolor in 2 shots, I had to think of what I could accomplish in 15 minutes, 30 minutes, and be flexible as well. As sometimes my mom could hold the baby, and sometimes he needed me, as I am his food source!

This type of working means that I have to leave my studio area in progress sometimes, and avoid the common procrastination trap of thinking everything must be neat and clean before I can start working. Sometimes you just have to get it done, even if it's painting on your bed while watching TV with a cute little boy who just wants to snuggle next to you.

Caitlin could not have been sweeter or more understanding regarding working with a brand new baby, as she's a working mom herself. Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to meet her in person before she relocated to Portland, but I can definitely say she is a sweetheart (via email) and a talented and hard worker who deserves great success.

Enjoy the details of these watercolors. The floral pillow with navy piping was my favorite to paint. Okay, and the bulletin board!

Charlotte's Web Shawl

There are some projects and goals that lay on the wayside for the duration of time it takes to graduate from high school. Case in point, I have had these Koigu mill ends since 2008 which were always slated to become a Charlotte's Web Shawl. After I found out I was having a baby, it seemed like hundreds of strangers and friends wanted to tell me how little time I would ever have to myself, labor and delivery horror stories, advice (some good!),  more horror stories and very personal inquiries. Regarding the knitting, I took this time to finally make myself this particular shawl - before my life is over and I never have a minute to myself! I jest.

Here is the yarn. Mike helped me to put them in order for the shawl.

My illustration from four years ago was inspiration to someday knit this!

I really just wanted to knit this shawl for the fringe.

Here is the finished shawl. It's huge. It's about my height fully stretched out, so around 66 inches.

I'm really happy with how it turned out. Once I got the hang of the lace pattern, it was pretty easy, but I recommend placing a lifeline in case you mess up. I messed up and restarted it at least three times. This is not to scare you off, just to provide some realistic expectations.

This colorful detail below is one of my favorite parts of the shawl.

Well, besides the fringe of course! I held myself back from adding beads or sequins!

I don't know why I waited so long, but it was worth the wait!

Holiday House Portrait for the Grace Family

My adorable friend, Rachel Grace of Raenovate asked me to create a house portrait for their 2012 holiday cards. I was so touched to be asked, and hadn't realized how much I missed my watercolors and inks after a brief hiatus. In interior design school, interior and exterior renderings was always my favorite part of my projects. They have a cute Craftsman style house which was fun to draw, and Rachel and her talented hubby are always doing impressive home improvements.

I especially liked creating the holiday garland details and banners, and painting the bricks!

I loved how their house portrait turned out, and thankfully, they were pleased with the results! I also decided to add custom house portraits to my Etsy shop since they are so much fun to create.

Rachel used a local printer to scan the image and create their cards. It was such a treat to receive their cute holiday card in the mail. I think it turned out really great! Thanks for the opportunity, R+T!

Citrus + Avocado

I should blame my unanticipated absence my new role at work, my volunteer position, an event I helped plan, the twice weekly Spanish lessons I'm taking, and a baby shower I'm throwing.  But it mainly comes down to one thing. Feeding the pantry and food storage obsession.

Most of my recent daydreams have been dedicated to what whole grains and bulk bin items I can scoop out and store in the carefully cleaned out jars I've been saving over the years. I dream about having matching jars found on sale somewhere that I know the contents of by sight, or with handwritten labels since I'm not a label-maker type of girl (excluding one workday frenzy with name labels and the P-Touch).

I'm using my new reference book, Rebecca Wood's The New Whole Foods Encyclopedia, to get ideas of how to incorporate new foods and grains into my diet.

Last week I brought home beautiful poppy seeds that I just wanted to put my hands in. They're blue, purple, black and oh so tiny and susceptible to static cling.

Citrus is in season, so I snagged some tangerines for an avocado, grapefruit, radish, arugula and citrus salad. I was inspired by this delicious and refreshing version by Martha Stewart. It reminds me of home, when I used to have a ruby-red grapefruit and orange tree in our backyard until the citrus canker hit Florida. Our neighbors traded us for mangoes, avocados and tangerines. That was the life!

Big ruby reds were always my favorite. Fresh picked while warm, eaten first and then juiced for the finale. Always with a teeny bit of sugar, though it barely needed it.

I tried out a red lentil and carrot soup for lunch this week. It was healthy, tasty, filling and easy to make. Fits the bill for my busy week! Avocados have had constant rotation in my morning smoothies of late as well.

Lastly, the beautiful blood orange. They're so pretty on the inside, but aren't my favorite tasting citrus. However, I keep buying them to add dimension to other colors and flavors, and you know I'm a sucker for pretty colors!

¡Qué alimentos bonitos! (What pretty food! I told you I was taking Spanish!)

Pomegranate Obsession

I officially became obsessed with pomegranates this year. I first realized that it was a full blown obsession when I started stocking up on 6 at a time.

I rationalized that I wanted to make good use of the 3 for $5 sale at the grocery store. But then a man walked up mistakenly to my cart, saw the fruit, and hollered to his wife in shock and disdain, “Elaine, what the heck is wrong with you? Why would anyone need so many pomegranates?!”

Poor Elaine and her frustrated husband! I found it hysterical, it still makes me snicker. I jumped over to the cart to defend my loot, and we all had a hearty laugh about the mix-up.

Last week, I contemplated buying 8, but felt that equated to crazy cat lady type numbers in regards to fruit. Though at least this addiction is full of antioxidants!

I love to eat them in a little bowl with a spoon. They're incredible sprinkled over Andrew Swallow's Grove Salad from Mixt. They're a great addition for a crunch pop in a fruit salad, or over yogurt and granola.

I’m the type of person who does all the work of seeding the pomegranates first, and enjoying the literal fruits of my labor later.

I’ve sketched up my current present way of removing the arils (in a bowl to avoid stains, and in front of my television because that’s how I roll, but on the floor because I love my sofa).  It’s a relaxing, meditative like ritual, and the arils keep well in the refrigerator.

Though my way works for me now, I’m absolutely trying this easy and logical technique via Apartment Therapy's The Kitchn next time. Hopefully, there is a next time. I don't know when they go out of season, but I nearly shed tears at ShopRite last week when I thought they were out.

Can you tell how  much fun I had with my hot pink inks?! I forgot how much I miss drawing. I can't wait to do more this year.

Ode to Josef Frank Kitchen

When I was studying interior design in college, my favorite part of every project was the schematic and conceptual work.  I would scrounge magazines and books for inspiration with multiple cups of coffee at my favorite bookstore, sketch furiously and take pages of notes.  I'd always find an excuse to buy more beloved Tria markers from Pygmalion's Art Supply for my renderings. I loved it because it's that exciting stage where anything seems possible.  You can go crazy with ideas, options and color before you need to rein it in and focus.  Plus, I love to draw with pen and ink, and use watercolors and pens.

It's a place where you can decide to create an entire kitchen based on wanting to use a beloved Josef Frank textile as wallpaper paired with a lemon-lime SMEG refrigerator.

I miss doing this type of work.  Since I don't currently have a job where I get to help clients in this way, or a home to renovate yet, I remembered my fictional clients from college and drew upon them for inspiration.  I'm vowing to do this at twice a month to keep these creative juices alive.

Enter Molly Albers, a young librarian living in Astoria who inherited a small apartment from her dear Grandmother Mil (short for Mildred).  It's small and the kitchen doesn't have the best work triangle, but she makes it work.  She had a bit of money saved up and spent it doing some small cosmetic kitchen renovations.

Molly is somewhat reserved at work, so when she comes home, she likes to let loose with color and pattern.  She fell in love with the Josef Frank Hawaii 315 Fabric while browsing through books at work, and splurged on the wallpaper.  Her very hip grandma Mil happened to have this fridge (let's just go with it).  Molly is learning to cook more, and decided to go with less counter space for this kitchen so that she could have a larger island with seating and workspace (she's learning to bake bread).  Plus she had limited options without changing the water and gas lines.

She decided to leave the existing stove, and installed white subway tile with light gray grout to balance out the black wallpaper and colorful floral print.  When they ripped up the parquet flooring, there was some concrete underneath that they stained with a slight violet gray.

She installed butcher block countertops and simple white shelves to hold her tableware, cookbooks, vases and dry goods.  She likes how the open shelves allow more of the beautiful wallpaper to show.  There is also additional storage under the island on the side opposite the seating.

Molly waited patiently for a year searching, and finally scored a pair of hot pink Tolix Marais Counter Stools on eBay, which she lugged back on the subway with her best friend Peter.  She put her unwanted Ikea stools on the curb to pass along the good karma to someone else.

The last detail we noted was the red library stool from the basement in the library that her sweet boss insisted she take after hearing she needed one to reach her growing library of cookbooks.

Thanks for accompanying me in letting my imagination run wild with me tonight!

Terrain vs. Plant Killer

I got to attend the Design*Sponge Book Event at Terrain earlier this month.  It was so much fun to run into old and new friends, drink spiked cider and get a copy of Grace's beautiful book. My friend Olivia and I both had air plants on the mind on this trip.  Olivia is my plant guru and gardening expert, so I asked her to pick out one for me.  I'm hoping I don't kill it like I did the Baby Tears plant from last year.

I love houseplants.  The little shots of green add life to a home.  However, I need to remember to rein it in so I don't have the Amazon Rainforest going on in here.  Ten is usually my limit of smaller plants, but I think everyone has to find their own balance.

Luckily (for the ratio), I am pretty bad with succulents (I know, they're supposed to be hearty and impossible to kill), so this allows me to get new plants from time to time.

Speaking of new plants, I've never been the biggest fan of ferns, but this little guy caught my eye.  The leaves are a different shape than others I've found and the structure is so cool.

I was even inspired to do a little watercolor.  In hindsight, it may be good to document it before I possibly kill this one too.

What are your thoughts on houseplants.  Do you love them or hate them?

Lines and Chevrons

I keep blank watercolor cards and envelopes on hand at all time so that I can easily whip up cards when I need them.  With some major life events happening for a few of my friends (both good and bad, which is when blank cards come in handy for your heartfelt messages), I needed to either head over to the card store or make a large batch quickly. I went for the latter.  For quick and easy, nothing beats watercolors in my opinion.  You just need a bit of water, paper and a brush.  Having worked in a wonderful small art store during college, I can go on indefinitely about art supplies, but I'll save that for a later post.

In this case, I used masking fluid, which is like a glue that covers paper that you don't want the paint to touch, and you pull off when the paint is dry. I'm usually a frenetic sketcher who uses lots of crazy black lines, so it was good to experiment with white spaces to change it up.

After having the stunning cover image from Sarah Midda's South of France Sketchbook in my head for days, I decided to attempt my own loose interpretation with various palettes.

Those who know me won't be surprised that I had to include a rainbow palettes gradating from color to color.

Oddly for me, since the palette above is my nearly neutral with the bright hues I love, I found myself enjoying how the peach masking fluid looked.  I particularly found myself drawn to the burnt umber and colors of the Utah landscape shown below.

I also tried to edit myself with the color choices. This messy chevron card was one of my favorites.  It now has a home with one of my dearest and oldest friends in Georgia.

This polka dots card ended up being much cuter than I thought it would be.  When it comes to watercolor, you could never get the even washes of colors around the white areas without the masking fluid.

I did some batik inspired cards, and a flowery one that I sent to the sweetest 11-year-old friend of mine in North Carolina to thank her for a lovely necklace she made me.

This ended up being a lot of fun, and I achieved the result I intended; loose drawings and lines, different color combinations, some love thrown in to the end users and a bit of hot pink, but in check.

Pantry Ideas + Drawing Grains

I've been collecting jars for food storage for about six years now. My husband and friends make fun of me, but I don't care. Personally, I think they're just jealous of the beauty that is a jar of French Lentils. Plus, looking at all of those healthy foods lined up, it makes me want to eat, cook and bake in healthier ways.

If you're going to display your dry goods, it helps to make sure everything is lined up nicely and neatly. I prefer if the shelves are shallow and everything is lined up only one row deep. I also think that clear jars really let the colors and textures of the grains or dried goods stand out. Necessity in a manner that can be lovely.

Dried apricots, burnt umber couscous, creamy jasmine rice, yellow pepitas, 70s green split peas and pecans waiting to be baked into sweet treats. Is it just me, or do others go nerdy over this type of storage?

Who better to showcase this concept than the covet worthy pantry of EmersonMade? The organization and simple yet pleasing aesthetic make me swoon. And plenty more people judging on how this image has been repinned and blogged multiple times.

Who can go wrong with this cheery storage and rainbow colored painted bowls? Though I do wonder just how many bowls one home can have? I'd hope that they host an annual ice cream social and vie for the Guinness Book of World Records for something. The narrow height of the shelves would allow for less wasted space.

This is my own current storage for our wealth of dinnerware and lack of cabinet space. Looking at everything lined up and the $30 steal of vintage lead-free Fiesta Ware makes me smile.

Though I like to look at pretty things, I do like to hide everything once in awhile. If you can style your belongings nicely, and keep everything neat, overhead open shelves like these are perfect. The white shelves on white walls integrates it into the wall, and makes it look more streamlined and neat in my opinion.

This custom unit is quite the focal point in this San Francisco family's kitchen. I would incorporate a display of food storage, cookbooks, and favorite cookware and kitchen goods, all lovingly arranged of course.

Lastly, here's one more for inspiration. Streamlined, color coordinated to some extent, with a great natural wood ladder and a faucet that makes me forget about the shelves.

Seriously, I want one of those faucets! It reminds me of washing the dishes in my coffee-slinging, barista days.