Monday, January 27, 2014

Creative Explosion






















The dad was on a little business trip not long ago, and while he was away
we jumped into hyperdrive and knocked out a few projects that have been
on my want-to-do list.

One of the projects I'd been dreaming up for the last year and a half, was putting
some kind of light-colored false wall in this cubby of our entertainment center.
Since it's not full of a big screen TV, it feels akin to a black hole and I'd really like to
see it become a reading nook of sorts when it grows up :-)






















I picked up some cedar fence boards (because they're cheap) and my
two very capable boys cut and sanded them, and built a free-standing panel.






















Wow.  You know, I am so amazed and blessed by these guys who are becoming so able!

Below is a picture of our trial fit.





























Completing the panel, the boys measured for trim and holes for access to outlets.
Zachary did all my figures and cutting, and by golly!  He did a fantastic job!
I'm pretty sure there's no way I could have tackled this project alone, and I'm
certain my outlet holes would have been cut in the wrong places.

Thank you Zack!
And thank you Clay, for all that sanding you did.  Cedar fencing never looked
so beautiful!






















The fellas let me help some, so I applied a whitewash to the wood to lighten it further.
Then too, Zack did such a great job cutting the trim to fit just so, but because of
my inexperienced false wall-applying abilities, there was a certain amount of 
shimming that had to be done in order to get it all tidy.
Just don't look too closely - any discord would be all my own responsibility.

And Ta-da!  
I should have taken a final picture with my laborers in it, shouldn't I? Oops.

Wonderful wonderful wonderful!  I'm so pleased.  Now to add a photo canvas 
and maybe a reading lamp?  Hmm... Creative juices still flowing on this one :-)

Meanwhile, there were other endeavors en process.

The big girls are each working on a mini quilt as a first go at piecing a quilt.
And they had had quite a lot of help as well  - the kind of help that makes you keep your
scissors off the ground and watch your cord! 

Miles is just big enough now that his little hands reach up to grip the table tops, and 
whatever happens to be near the edge is considered fair game haha!












































Pretty stuff going on here.  Can't wait to produce pictures of the finished creations!

The other thing the boys did for me during the week, was to handle all the shop work
pertaining to a school assignment "station" where I wanted to hang clipboards permanently.

It takes a lot of extra effort for me (and use of a limited supply of brain cells) to figure
how to measure, cut, and hang things strait and evenly spaced. I've never been accused
of perfectionistic tendencies. Ha!
The boys were a lot of help where those things were concerned, and I wanted to do
it for the dad - if he (who notices such) was going to have to walk by it every day :-)

Bryce and Carolina and Aloria made stars with me while the boys were working
in the shop.  They then painted them, and we glittered them all!   Low and behold...
accent art to make the school assignments sparkle!

I love.






















We are kind of getting a rainbow theme going in this house, aren't we!
And now, there is glitter everywhere and a few more stray stars to enjoy here and there as well.






















Also, I made a first attempt at chalkboard art!  I just love hand lettering.
It's so therapeutic to be artistic on something that feels predictable like
a word or letter.
I definitely want to try my hand at it again before long.












Well friends, this is just the tip of the iceberg as regards the
sawdust and fabric scraps that are flying these days.

Isn't it a wonder that the Lord gives us the pleasure of creating, just as He
Himself delights in creating?  I sometimes marvel with the kids that while God
created everything out of nothing, we have to use the ingredients He has already
made when we get creative :-)

And because this post is a little short on baby faces (some of my favorite creations),
here are a couple to close on.

Love you all!






























10 comments:

Diane said...

Love it all! Reading nooks are awesome. :)

Kathy said...

Wow, it looks great. I LOVE your creativity. :)

Nikki said...

You all are amazingly talented.:) I LOVE how helpful sons can be. Those stars. I want to make some. Such a great colorful project and glitter....it makes everything sooo pretty. Can't wait to see the finished quilts.

Momma Bug said...

Glitter makes me smile...
when it's not all over the floor and table, that is haha! We glued those stars together pretty quick with a low temp glue gun, the kids painted them, and I spread some elmers glue on with a Q-tip and handed them one at a time to a child with a plate to glitter over.
Was quite fun and turned out pretty cool! They were very proud of their creations too :-)

PUPPPsMom said...

Such a lovely visit to your house. Your creations are beautiful. Inspiring. The chalkboard! I had an idea last week to paint our fridge with chalkboard paint so I could have a ready palette close by. Now I want it even more. Thanks for sharing. :)

Cinnamon said...

Oh I LOVE that chalkboard art. Sooo pretty! I'm impressed with the beautiful wall and your handy dandy helpers. That's a double blessing.

Creative juices are soooo wonderful to drink in....aren't they?! Love it!

Is that a Mary E. on the calendar on your wall? Love her!!

Any new stationery in the works? Cause I love your artwork :-)

hugs~ Cinnamon

Momma Bug said...

Thank you Jana! I think that's a wonderful idea and I can't wait to see your fridge!

Cinnamon~ You are too kind :-)
Yes, that's left-overs from last years calendar.
You know, I didn't buy a ME calendar this year. It seems like there's a lot less innocence and fun in her artwork over the last few years. I'd love a calendar of her older works though, that would be cool!

As to stationary, well yes indeed! There is some new stuff in the works and I can't wait to show you! I've thought of your girlies as well and am having a lot of fun with those "creative juices". It is the sparkle of life I think :-)

Love you friend~

Sally said...

Love all the projects--seeing photos brings the verbal descriptions into focus :o) Thanks for adding the photos of the faces we love at the end...and that Miles!!! I just long to hug and squeeze that baby body before it turns into big boy...it happens SO quickly!

Hugs to you...
--m

Photo Momma said...

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this post! It is so fun to see the creativity in your home :)

Xenia Kathryn said...

Oh my goodness, you have been a busy bee! I absolutely love your cedar nook, and all of your beautiful, colorful projects! I'm so glad you are having fun with your kids and creating with them, it's so awesome to see!

I love your work! :D Keep it up!