On the 9th day, I rested

I mentioned in my last post that I was itching to do some home re-decorating.  Well, I have been a busy girl ever since I posted.  Sometimes, I am a major procrastinator, and other times, I jump in with both feet. Without looking.  And without a net.  It's quite impressive, really.  This doesn't always work out well for me, because I sometimes find myself in over my head after it's too late.  Therein lies the reason I have so many unfinished projects around the house.  I am happy to report, however, that this is not one of those instances.  Starting with last Wednesday, this is what I have been doing...

Day 1:  Chose living room paint color, purchased paint and supplies, did some prep work (removed pictures and switch plates, washed walls, taped ceiling and trim, etc.)
Day 2:  one coat of tinted primer applied to living room and hallway
Day 3:  first and second coat of paint applied
Day 4:  touched up crown molding, trim, and doors in living room and hallway, put furniture back in place, completed 2 jewelry orders
Day 5:  chose kitchen paint color, shopped for fabric for living room curtains
Day 6:  purchased kitchen paint, did prep work in kitchen, ordered fabric for living room curtains
Day 7:  applied 3 coats of paint to kitchen (the third coat was really light and mostly a touch-up), applied 1 coat of paint to kitchen trim
Day 8: 2 more coats of paint on kitchen trim and door (to garage), painted 2 picture frames (I purchased a collection of picture frames at Savers and plan to do a shabby chic collage in the living room)
Day 9:  applied a fourth (!) coat of paint to the kitchen trim and door

So now, on the evening of day 9, I am doing absolutely nothing.  The prep work and clean-up that goes along with painting is more exhausting than the painting itself.  I should really try to hang some of my pictures, and clean a little bit, but I just don't have it in me tonight.  Instead, I'm sitting here watching DVR'd episodes of Ellen and Christmas movies on TBS.

I'm really pleased with the painting results.  Oh, and my wonderful husband patched the hole in my kitchen ceiling, so that is a big improvement as well.  I will share pictures after I finish some of the final details...hang artwork and curtains, etc.  My curtain fabric is arriving next Monday, so I will have to wipe the dust off my sewing machine, and see if I can still remember how to use it.  We're hoping to get our Christmas tree this weekend, so the holiday decorating may delay my home decorating projects for a while.

It doesn't look like I will be creating and listing any new jewelry before the holidays, but I have a few orders to keep me busy.  I am thankful that the baby napped well for me most of the week, which allowed me to accomplish as much as I did.  But now, I'm tired and I don't want to see a paintbrush or blue tape for a while.  And at some point, I just want to sit back and enjoy my newly-decorated home.  I didn't make it to the gym as much as usual over the past week, but I'm pretty happy about everything else I accomplished.

You may have noticed that I changed the design of my blog a little bit.  (I'm changing everything this week.  I just had my hair done a few weeks ago.  Otherwise, I'd be changing that too.)  The truth is, I was playing around with the layout and colors, and then I couldn't figure out how to get it back to the way it was.  I also added the new "follow by email" feature.  What do you think of the new look?

Happy Birthday, Whimsy Design

It has been one year since I opened my Etsy shop.  And while it hasn't gone gangbusters, I really enjoy having a shop, and occasionally listing items.  Most of my jewelry sales are local custom orders, and my customers find me through word of mouth.  But I love the Etsy community and wish that I could spend more time on the forums and wonderful resources that are available to Etsy shop owners.  The beauty of Etsy is that it allows you to be as active as you want.  If I ignore my shop for a month, it still sits there online, and doesn't cost me a penny.

I would like to get a few pieces listed for the holidays (Hey, it's only November 29th.  I have plenty of time, right?), but I also want to paint my living room and potentially my kitchen, before the holidays.  Which means I should start, um...tomorrow.  I've mentioned before that I enjoy rearranging and redecorating my house...

Six years ago, I stripped the wallpaper in my living room and hallway (and kitchen and bathroom, but that's another story), and painted it red.  By the way, if you ever have to strip wallpaper, I highly recommend Wallwik.  I tried various methods that included steaming, DIF, scraping, screaming, and crying, and the Wallwik is just amazing.  It saved my marriage, but that too, is a story for another time.  Anyway, I have enjoyed my warm, rich, red living room for six years, but now it's time for it to go.  And I mean now.  I'm over the red.  I'm looking at a nice neutral, like "Latte" from Restoration Hardware.  However, I'll probably end up getting a similar color from Sherwin Williams, because, 1) it's less expensive, and 2) I won't have to wait for shipping (our local store doesn't carry the paint).  If I don't paint this week, it will have to wait until January when I take down the Christmas decorations, and I really don't want to wait that long.

I recently started collecting some vintage pieces to add to my home.  Most of my decor is fairly modern, and I decided that I want to infuse some fun vintage pieces into the mix, and just make it a bit more unique.  I want to start with a fresh color palette, and then I'll feel like I've completely made-over my living room.  I picked up a few things at a huge antique store last weekend, and I will be receiving some exciting packages in the next week.  (Ssssshhhh...don't tell my husband -- I'm hoping he won't notice.)

So, I want to redecorate and make some new jewelry all in the next week.  Sounds rather ambitious, huh? Wish me luck.

Imagination

Creative block.  Probably something like writer's block.  I sometimes fiddle with beads, wire, and chain, and just can't come up with anything that makes me happy.  I'll start a necklace, realize I don't like where its headed, take it apart, and start over again.  Sometimes it all just comes together.  Other times, I spend more time ripping things apart than putting them together.

I realize there are many factors affecting my creative flow (lack of sleep and lack of time, to name a few), but I wonder if there is an art to being creative.  Is using your imagination an art in and of itself?  I look at Conor, my 4-year old son, who is wonderfully inventive and imaginative, and I think that most parents would say the same of their young children.  So, do we lose the ability to be creative as we age?  I hope that I can always foster and encourage creativity in my children.

A recent conversation with Conor went something like this:
Conor:  When Friday comes into my room, I can fly.
Me:       Friday comes into your room?
Conor:  Yeah, Friday is a boo-yak.
Me:       What's a boo-yak?
Conor:  It's a kind of a thing that turns into a ghost.
Me:       The boo-yak's name is Friday?
Conor:  Yes, Friday comes in and we fly all around my room.
Me:       That's pretty cool.  I didn't know you did that.  Today is Thursday, so tomorrow is Friday.  Will Friday come into your room tomorrow?
Conor:   No, he only comes on Tuesdays.

I can't make this stuff up, people.  I struggle to keep up with his creativity at times.  Like when we're playing trains and he wants his train to talk to my train.  I mean, other than introducing our trains to each other, and saying "Hey, let's pull some freight," how much does a train really have to say?  I do my best, but it's a struggle for me.  I realize that this type of pretend play is different from artistic creativity, but I think it all comes from the same general area of the brain, right?  Perhaps more train-play will be good for my creative juices.

I finally sat down and made a bracelet this week.  (Actually, since I started this blog post 2 weeks ago, it has now been 2 weeks since I made the bracelet.)  It will soon be for sale in my Etsy shop.  Ideally, I like to wait until I have a few pieces ready for sale, and then do a photo shoot for them all at once.  I think it's a better use of my time, and it helps to give my website a cohesive look and feel when my photos are all shot in the same light.  I made an exception this time, and just took a few photos of the bracelet today, so I can share them with you.

This bracelet feels like autumn to me, with the amber and brown tones.  It was made from a mix of new beads, and some that I repurposed from consignment store pieces, so I will be making them in limited quantity.