I am no great painter. I will begin by saying that. But I am a big fan of color and having fun with art! And when I look at my new living room wall, I feel happy and admittedly a little proud to know I made these mini masterpieces myself!
After this project the greatest painting advice I can offer is to give yourself the freedom to "play" when you paint. No pressure!
If you have a color palette already established, you can create some pretty and easy wall art using one simple brush stroke. Back and forth. Changing colors when you feel the need. Blending as you go. Until something lovely emerges.
I love the fact that collages are so popular lately. No need to spend a fortune on one large piece to fill a big empty wall. Lots of small goodies will do the trick. In my opinion, the more the merrier. The key of course is hanging them artistically which is (I suspect) easier than one might think. Pretty sure there is more than one right answer when it comes to hanging arrangements!
By the way, Ikea has some fantastically inexpensive frames! They also have little mini prints on sale every now and then. The one in the tan frame came in a set of five for 98 cents. Steal!
Craft paper makes a great frame filler too. There are dozens of cute options to choose from and you can change them out as frequently as you please.
One last thing, I don't know about you but I am often frustrated by the prices of throw pillows. You can thus imagine my delight when I found these four darlings for 8 bucks apiece on clearance at Target! Perfect for me as a lover of orange. Isn't it true that people either love or hate orange? Maybe that's why these were on sale. So I must say thanks to all you haters of orange for not buying them at full price!
There you have it. My new living room in a nutshell! I'm sure this space
will continue to transform as new inspiration comes my way, but for now I find it homey and inviting and am enjoying it to the fullest.
Of course, the new keyboard doesn't hurt. Some of my favorite family moments of late consist of after-dinner piano music (by me) while James plays with Jack on the floor.
So much to be thankful for! Looking forward to a week of gratitude...
The weekend is nearly here. I plan to spend as much time outdoors as possible. How about you?
You may remember the frame above the couch from this post? I truly am ashamed to admit I had that frame for eight years before finally tackling it as a project and turning it into something beautiful. But oh was it worth the wait...
After perusing (to no avail) the internet for an inexpensive print to fill the frame, I sat myself down to do some painting. I used curtain fabric as my canvas since I had an abundance left over from the curtains I hemmed in Jack's room. You may laugh but I can't help savoring the thrill of my resourcefulness. The paint colors are a combination of little "count-by-number" colors I just happened to have on hand and the can of white furniture paint I used to paint the frame. The cardboard backing I used was given to me free by our nearby hardware store. Aside from the bit of hardware we purchased for hanging, I didn't have to spend another penny to complete this piece of art. Now that is what I call success!
Only to take breaks as I search for the perfect piece of art to showcase this beauty of a frame. That's a little backwards I admit. Kinda like buying a dress to fit the shoes. (And yes I'm pretty sure I've done that also).
Loving these for Christmas presents this year! Just praying the buttons come this week so I'll have them in time for you to place your Christmas order. 
Would make the perfect Christmas gift for someone special in your life. To view more photos or place an order visit The Velvetleaf Boutique. 
Craft paper makes a great frame filler too. There are dozens of cute options to choose from and you can change them out as frequently as you please.
One last thing, I don't know about you but I am often frustrated by the prices of throw pillows. You can thus imagine my delight when I found these four darlings for 8 bucks apiece on clearance at Target! Perfect for me as a lover of orange. Isn't it true that people either love or hate orange? Maybe that's why these were on sale. So I must say thanks to all you haters of orange for not buying them at full price!
These darling little baby bombers are now available at The Velvetleaf Boutique. To see more photos or place an order, visit here.
