A Few Fantastic Hats

English hats have been on my mind recently, pretty much ever since it was announced that Philip Treacy would be designing the hats and headpieces for the royal wedding party. I’ve been an admirer of his work ever since I saw him featured on Project Runway last season. He landed the royal gig because Camilla Parker Bowles is a fan—she wore one of his designs to her own wedding six years ago—and she recommended him to Kate Middleton. All three of the above hats were inspired by Treacy designs that Camilla has worn over the years

Kitchen

Of all the rooms in this house, the kitchen has undergone the most dramatic change. We started with a chair rail and two kinds of wall paper: a gray marbled paper on the bottom (hence the gray outlets) and a white textured paper on the top that actually would have been pretty had it been in better shape and covered the walls from floor to ceiling. One of the first projects (if not the first) that we tackled in this house was removing the wallpaper in this room. Here’s a before and during shot. It was a hot mess.

Once it was removed and the walls were cleaned up, we painted them a beautiful turquoise blue (Valspar’s Sea Serenade in eggshell). This look isn’t for everyone, but we love color, particularly blue, and it suits us perfectly. This was also the light fixture we were working with. It was fine as is, but we wanted something a bit lighter to balance the bold walls.

We added an Expedit bookcase from Ikea to house books, wine glasses, serving pieces and cookware, and Smoky’s food and water. And we simply spray painted the light fixture white for an easy and inexpensive upgrade.


I know there’s a group of people who would suggest I paint the cabinets. The reason we haven’t is simple. The finish on the cabinets is pretty and since we’re not going to be in this house for many years, I can live with them as they are. Plus, I know many, many people would absolutely love them just as they are (not to mention that it would take forever to sand, prime, and paint them).

We also put the Europe map print from These Are Things (which I’ve mentioned before here and here) in the kitchen, and I love the yellow against all that blue.


Smoky was giving me the stink eye because she wanted to go outside. No worries. She got to spend a good bit of time outside over the weekend.

Burlesque, The Movie

I finally got around to seeing Burlesque (which I mentioned here) over the weekend. It stayed in Birmingham theaters for a week, maybe two, so I never got to see it on the big screen.

Cher still looks AMAZING (seriously, wow!), and she and Stanley Tucci were a great pair onscreen. There wasn’t much of a plot, but I didn’t expect one and that wasn’t the reason I wanted to see it. The songs (mainly from Christina Aguilera and a couple from Cher), dance numbers, and costumes were the main attraction, and they didn’t disappoint in the slightest.




The cast was rounded out with Alan Cumming, Julianne Hough, Kristen Bell, Dianna Argon (from Glee who I actually didn’t even notice in the movie), Peter Gallagher, and a cameo from James Brolin. If you’re looking for a fun, light-hearted movie with some great entertainment, check it out. And if you’re a fan of Cher and/or Stanley Tucci, you must!

All images courtesy of Screen Gems.

New Drawings at Forest Perk

As I mentioned here, four of my drawings are on display and available for purchase at Forest Perk Coffee on Clairmont Avenue in Birmingham. I replaced two of them with these drawings, which aren’t available yet in my shop—they will be soon.

Artist’s Studio: Julia Denos

I love seeing the spaces where creative people work and think and make something from just an idea in their heads. Some studios or work spaces are messy and cluttered and some are organized and neat, and I find that behind-the-scenes look deeply fascinating.

With that in mind, I thought I’d share images of the studio of Julia Denos, the talented artist who illustrated Just Being Audrey, which I’ve mentioned before here. It’s such a fun, happy space.




This is one of my favorites.

To see more images of her studio, go here.

All images courtesy of Julia Denos.

Pascal Campion

I discovered this amazing artist courtesy of Thumbtack Press, which has the best tagline ever: So hip it hurts. It’s a great site for affordable art prints from a variety of artists. I browse the site from time to time, and today found the work of Pascal Campion, a French-American illustrator and animator. I love so many of his pieces that this selection is really just a sample of some of my favorites. His work really is a beautiful celebration of the everyday. Be sure to click on the images for a larger view—there’s a lot of magic to be seen in the details.

Check out his page on Thumbtack Press, his portfolio, and his store to see more. You’ll be happy you did.

Images courtesy of Pascal Campion.

Mixing Old and New

Have you seen this video trailer for the second issue of Anthology magazine?

Isn’t it so happy? It’s such a fun way to celebrate the latest issue of the magazine, and it echoes the theme of the entire issue: Mixing old and new. In this case, a print magazine with online digital content, and both work brilliantly.

Three Little Pigs

This drawing by illustrator Veronica Petrie makes me smile, particularly the pig in the middle.

This print and a number of others are available for purchase in her etsy shop, Painted Forest. To see more of her work, visit her website.