Red Shoes blog

Art, craft, life 2010

What a Year! it blew by so fast, my head is still left spinning,  but I won't lie and say I'm not happy to see 2010 go....HellO 2011!

...but then again,  when I see these photos, I know I had a good time despite the times!

So here is a little visual wrap up of what went down in my life for 2010....a life filled with Art, family, and everything else in between! I hope you enjoy them. :)

you can click on the images to see them larger!

           January......

    February......

     March.....

   April......

    May......

    june....

     July.....

    August.....

  September......

 October.....

      November......

    December.....

 That's it!  a whole year wrapped up in

a teeny tiny nutshell....makes me wonder what this New Year will bring hmmmm.....

 Well,  the one thing I do know for sure is that I plan on creating more, and taking more photos!!!

 I look forward to sharing it all with you in the next coming months!

thanks for stopping by to take a peek!

XOXOXO

Mileage.....

 I hate to admit that at times I have a little hoarding problem.

I save WAY too much stuff. 

in my defense there are some things that I just can't bear to throw away, things that I know at some point in time my brain will come up with an idea for.

but there are also things that I cannot let go of from when my children were little.

things that were special, and oh so cute.

like this sweater for example from my friend Margaret's fabulous boutique

Oliebollen

it was one of the very first things I bought for my little girl. purchased before she was even out of the womb,  because I think all children should have some red and white polkadots in their lives. 

we've gotten some SERIOUS mileage out of this one.

from baby to toddler.........and then some...... flash forward to

present day.......7 years later.

transformed now into one cute little cropped sweater and still going the distance....

which just goes to show you, that it's not always that bad to save everything...

because when this phase is done,  I'll probably transform it into a pillow.... and I think that would be pretty cute too   :)

Random thoughts.....and a SHOP SALE!

 On Days when I have about a billion and one things to do,  I usually just end up falling apart and kind of just spiral around doing stupid random things instead....how about you?

So here I am sharing what I did instead of doing work...... :)

I dug up a tomato plant in my yard this morning that just kind of appeared in my garden on accident,  I certainly didn't plant it.........

but what a pleasant surprise!  I felt it needed to be rescued and relocated in my sunny kitchen right?

so I dug in the dirt instead of walking this clown......

she's only a little bitter ;)

but when it's sunny outside,  and a beautiful fall day it's kind of hard not to dig in the dirt just a little bit...in fact if I could transplant this MONDO morning glory that is STILL blooming I would have done that too!

but today I raced to work to gear up for a sale we are having tomorrow

lot's of things are going to be marked down,  fun things!  nice things!

but I am sadly over these things and they need to go to another happy home,

so if you are local,  come scoop up a deal.......I'm in total purge mode

(when I'm not in spiral mode digging up random tomato plants)  

and that all works out well for you :)

XOXOXO

home........and stuff.

 For Me,  life seems to be all about home and all the things that go with it.  

I am just a natural nest builder so my art always seems to go with that theme....

I am going to try and do some different things that I have rolling around in my head,  but for now I just finished a piece that still defaults to that topic....and I'm pretty happy with it,  actually I am just happy that I actually FINISHED it! ;)

it's kind of big,  larger than I usually work,  so it took FOR ever....

lots of detail, even though it seems simple,

layers of paper, glue, and paints......

the cute little number 2 is from my very talented friend Angie......she had her work shipped to me so perfectly packaged with the numbers on top that I didn't have the heart to just throw them away,  so here they are,  glued on forever.......don't you just love to recycle?  :)

 

little eyeballs, and cherries......
I wish I could learn to work faster, but details take time I suppose....

(oh,and a nice dose of A.D.D. on my end, thankyouverymuch)  oye!

but I guess that's just.....

hee heee heeeeee........things somehow get finished one way or another....with little stops in between.....

anyways,  this big ole painting is now for sale at the shop.......

along with other goodies that I have been making......

like my crooked table runner.....hey,  i'm not perfect,  so naturally my art isn't either ;)

but it does help to make your table look nice and fall like!  yippee!

speaking of which,  I did a little article in the local paper about making simple inexpensive table top placecards and markers using materials found around your home, 

you can read about it here.

.... I will admit that in reality I very rarely set a table properly...so don't think I am all that .......  it's nice to pretend though ;)

o.k.,  so on that note,  I am racing off to work....gonna start some new projects that I have rolling around in my head....

one of them is this idea....

do you think some of my photography would make nice prints???

it was an idea I had and just thought I'd ask your opinion.....  :)

cuz you know I have a ton!

and they would be all about interesting images...not my family,  though they do make good subjects :)

cheese!!!!    hee heee heeee

o.k.,  can ya tell i've had WAAAAYYYY too much coffee?

i'm going now :)

thanks for checking in!

XOXOXOXOXO

The Artful Cottage......

  The great thing about my shop is that I get to meet some of the most interesting people.

  All sorts of folks walk through my doors....wealthy folks, poor folks,  students, kids, oddballs, and the regular old average joe. 

 I've never been impressed by status, or money, in fact I feel more comfortable with the regular average joes.   So when I meet people that are pretty well off but are so down to earth and humble about it that you wouldn't know it,  I am always impressed by that.

  So when my Friend saw that I was headed up North to pick up my son from Camp,  she invited me to come and stay for a few relaxing days at her "cottage" before I went to get him.

 Since I was driving up north for 4 hours BY MYSELF, it seemed like a really liberating thing to do,  so I accepted her gracious invitation........

needless to say I was blown away by her place.

this wasn't your average "cottage"

this was a LAKE house, and needs to be in a magazine!

so grab a cup of coffee,  or an ice cold drink, because I couldn't help but take a billion photographs........:)

come on in won't you?  just follow this path to paradise....

walk up the charming stairs to the cute little entry way...

then go down this hall to......

oh my WORD!

walls of windows overlooking the bay.....

everywhere I turn I am met with Art......

art I love!

vintage treasures.....

cool collections....

  inspiration starts to flow!  I am SO happy to be here in this amazing place......

Lucky really ;)

every where I turned......I was just so darn excited!

(even her fly swatter looks cute so artfully displayed)  :)

her cool table with her found vintage Jury chairs....Love them!

even washing the dishes in her kitchen sink is amazing because of the view from the window....

and the sunsets equally impressive....

I would retire for the night in my cute little room....

where I'd curl up and read a book!  I actually READ an entire book this summer!  something I hate to admit that I haven't done in YEARS, but was so thankful that I did.

I would wake up in the morning, and sneak out here to watch the sunrise and enjoy the solitude,  just me and my book....

spectacular views all around.....

sometimes I'd even have company........:)

best dog E.V.E.R.

Marley!!!

Portugese water dog,  amazing, loyal, mellow, and had the most expressive eyes ever.  so cute.  :)

(he liked me)  see?  he's smiling

such a happy place!

we'd spend time walking down to her beach....

for more lounging...... (it was so nice not to have the words

"mom!" yelled at me a million times a day,  where I could actually read, and gaze out into space in peace.)  :)

looking at rocks and driftwood.....

in fact her fireplace is made with a bunch of them.....along with other treasures

even her mantle piece is made from a piece of driftwood that  she and her husband dragged in from the water...it weighed a TON...but look how cool!

All in all it was an amazing time,  every nook and cranny made me feel like I was on an Artistic retreat.....

 

it was so relaxing, rejuvenating, and inspiring.....

So thankful that I have met such amazing people that are so generous and kind to me from all walks of life.

it makes me happy to do what I do.

:)

XOXOXO

p.s.

click on the photos to seem them in their full sized glory!

life in Technicolor......

 I love to take pictures.

 lots of pictures.

 I basically document every inch of my life every day from a simple bowl of cereal, to my child's face,  or a heart shaped rock....you name it.....everything's fair game, and everything catches my eye. I don't know why that is, Maybe it's because I am a very Visual person. I want to soak up everything and remember it on film.

 Plain and simple, Images just move me,  they can lift me up or plunge me into depths of despair.  It's one of the reasons I avoid the news as much as I can. 

I know it's probably not the smartest way to live, but it's the best way for me.  I read and absorb just enough news to be dangerous and that's it. because seriously,  I can't take it.

Lately I have been so saddened, like most of the world, with the images of the oil disaster. The animals,  the people affected,  it's all too much to bear, so I did what any mother with 2 kids and a small business would do,  I signed up to volunteer to help!

oh geez,  don't ask me how I'll do it,  I'll figure that out if and when I ever get called, but I felt compelled to do that from what I've seen image wise,  so you see why I try and tune out? ......lose myself in pictures and film....trying hard to think of other things......oye!

So This week I bought 3 Apps for my Iphone that have completely altered my life,  if you own an Iphone I suggest you get these too if you haven't already!

1.) Old Camera

2.) Hipstamatic

3.) tilt/shift generator

They are amazing. I spent most of the week snapping pictures.

These are ALL taken with my Iphone...

the result of these app's is a nostalgic look that is pure genius!

even the most basic and crappy shots somehow look great in this format.

 So I will leave you with some images captured from my little corner of the world,

you know,  La la land,

that magical place where everything is just fine.........let's escape there and live happily ever shall we?

oh if only for just a minute in a day.............XOXOXO

 












 

 

Blue Skies, Blue Paint, and a tiny tutorial........

  Oh the sunshine, Blue skies, and warmer weather means I get to start stripping......

furniture that is!  ;)

  I love this time of year when I find the killer scores,  drag them to my deck and have at it,  sanding, peeling off all the layers and discovering the beauty below.

 So this week I came home with a GORGEOUS old pie safe, and an old barrister's bookcase with the glass all intact!

  I brought the bookcase down to my lower level basement/Man lair, and organized my c.d.'s and dvd's.....

it fits in beautifully and works perfectly!

i'm so lucky!  :)

  The pie safe was in perfect condition too!....very old, but smelling of old pipe smoke which I adore. That sweet smell of tobacco reminds me of my Grandfather... his attic with cedar walls and his pipe collection displayed all around ... that sweet rustic scent,  love it!

  So I grabbed a cold beverage,

headed outside and began with removing the hardware and the front panels exposing the interior...I then gave it a nice sanding down with my orbital hand held sander by Dewalt.

  I grew up in my Dad's workshop surrounded by tools, so I have a love for the good ones. if you do this stuff,  this tool is a must have in my book, it's my FAVORITE!

 after sanding and bringing it down to bare wood.....(which you really need to do for this technique)

I decided I wanted this piece to be blue,  a gorgeous turquoise style blue,  one of my favorite colors!

 I went to my favorite little paint store, Anderson Paints....and got the good stuff, because you really want good paint for your pieces....I chose a semi gloss finish.

  For this piece I wanted to do a kind of "wash" instead of a full paint job.

  So I just dipped the tip of my paint brush in the paint and kind of do a Semi-dry brush treatment.

 

back and forth, not really covering all of the wood,  letting some of it still show through.

 The Majority of it done with the dry brush technique,  except on the inside shelving.  Because I am So A.D.D.about things, and want to get stuff DONE like Yesterday,  I went the rag route  and poured paint on the inside and rubbed it all over with a dry rag,  covering all of the surface in double time ;)...but I will say it's kinda messy....but that doesn't bother me one bit.

I like to get dirty. because I know what the outcome will be....

a gorgeous new piece for my living room!

yes folks,  I am keeping this one,  it just won me over and I am in LOVE!  :)

in fact I spent the past 3 days completely rearranging and cleaning,  moving things all around because of it.

 My husband was out of town on business,  so when he's gone,  I get BUSY and do stuff... completely purging and re-organizing,  it's such a great feeling.

  The great thing about it too,  is that you really don't have to spend any money to make your house look different,  just moving the couch or a table to a different place completely changes the whole look of things! 

Before:

After:

I am just So happy with the piece,  and how it makes the room.

finally able to see ALL of my wonderful Art books that have been stored in a CLOSET....now available at my fingertips for inspiration!

hanging out here on a lazy Sunday morning....

dogs on my lap....

admiring my new piece and mentally preparing to tackle my day.....

dealing with these clowns.....

and these......

2 nights of sleepovers in a row......the boys busy making skateboarding videos....

and wild little Fiona there of course ......  :)

 So the past few days have been full with kids, cleaning, painting and moving furniture....but what a wild,  fun  little life,  I think today I'll escape to the garden.....and dig in the dirt.....working in my mom's garden,

under beautiful blue skies......

because it's the little things that make me happy  :)

Happy Sunday!

XOXOXO

Vintage Weekend...

 I don't know about you,  but when Spring hits,  I start to get all excited about looking for vintage goods!

 Antiques markets are open,  Garage sales start happening,  and people start cleaning out their basements...

 So my friend Molly and I decided to head out of town on an adventure to go see the Kane county Flea market in the outskirts of Chicago.

 we had always heard about it,  so we of course had to check it out for ourselves!

  we loaded up the truck, packed the ipod, and hit the road!

first stop was to my sweet friend Jenn's house for a yummy taco dinner and a visit with her adorable family,  then the next morning we were up early, ate breakfast and hit the market.

 Now when it comes to flea markets or antiques shows,  I don't mess around,  I like to fly through them,  I know exactly what I want and am always surprised at what I find...

So here are a few peeks from our trip and some treasures I scored from the show....most made it down to the shop,  but some I squirreled away for myself (i just can't help it sometimes)  ;)

Cool old signs, too expensive for my budget,  but super cool nevertheless....

the thing about Flea markets is that they will let ANYTHING in...so we had to weed through a lot of garbage to get to the good stuff,  but I was oddly drawn to these pieces of work....

i think they are kinda cool....

great way to recycle old ceiling tin....make FRAMES!

 I found a couple of cool things like an old zinc prep table from a restaurant and a sweet old postal cubby from New york that my friend Jenn told me about.

I also found some great small things like old metal boxes and coolers,  I have this thing for green boxes,  don't ask me why.

vintage film crates make excellent plant boxes right?!

or even TRUCKs make great plant boxes!

this is probably one of my favorites, I love the Graphics on it....and I certainly don't mind the rust,  it will make a great planter too!

 Now we ended up finishing the show,  grabbed dinner and hit the road back to home starting at 8:30 Saturday night....I drove 5 hours back home....totally not a fan of night driving,  my hands completely calloused from gripping the steering wheel,  white knuckle express thankyouverymuch!  but we made it home safe and sound!

 Of course I WOke up the next morning and totally got to work,  scrubbing the funk off of my newly scored pieces....because I am kinda driven like that ;)

um,  can I tell ya how DISGUSTING this piece was!? it took me HOURS to get the grease and grime off.

but oh man,  how fantastic it turned out!

now in between the cleaning I of course HAVE to have some time with my family,  so i took a break from scouring funk and went to a vintage car show with my people.

can I tell you....I love old cars.

they just don't make them like they used to.

the amount of detail on them is extraordinary.

i mean look at this steering wheel

how fine is that!

mr. cool with the cool old van...

the kids were getting into it,  I think Fiona's looking to see what's under the hood  :)

now on the way there I saw this fine old truck for sale...

the PERFECT red truck

one I have been looking for,  forEVER....

Hello gorgeous!

..... sadly Ian wasn't sharing my enthusiasm or vision.

i mean how cute would that be with my little red shoes logo on it right!?

and too funny that we saw one at the show all restored as an example....

Ian still wasn't sold on the idea,  but hey, it's o.k.

I still have my Mini cooper,  and am SUPER thankful he bought me that!  :)

I think I must have been a man in a former life because I love cars so much,   I would love to learn how to restore them.

in fact,  I LOVE what this one person did at the car show to theirs....

isn't that fantastic what they've done with the vintage license plates on the floorboard!?  Love it!

 anyways, in another time of my life maybe I'll work on cars,  but for now,  I had to get back to cleaning....

so i finished the zinc top table and loaded it up onto Ian's truck, took it down to the shop on Monday and rearranged.

I LOVE it's new home....

so happy how it turned out....

 

Happy with the little postal cabinet too...

now since it's spring of course I NEED to visit my favorite little greenhouse 

and stock up on spring plants for Mother's day! 

we have SUCH a cute little collection!

So needless to say I have been running around like a crazy person since I got back,  rearranging and cleaning things,  along with making things too.

 We have a ton of stuff coming up in the future.....this Friday (may 7th) is midnight madness (or moonlight delight... I can never keep that straight) regardless!! we will stay open late until 11:00pm at night!  that night is always a ton of fun,  our downtown really comes alive,  so come visit!

also don't forget to pencil in on your calender that on May 15th

from 11-1pm

I am having a Matilda Jane trunk show at the shop!

if you have never heard of this clothing line....well take a peek,  it is the CUTEST stuff around!  they have both a little kids line AND a fabulous adult line that is wonderful!

 She will have both lines available to take a look at,  to feel, touch, absorb and basically bask in the vintage inspired goodness of it all!

 



So on that note,  I am off to bed.....dreaming of all the wonderful things this time of year has to offer....with a head full of ideas and dreams...can't wait to wake up and start all over again tomorrow!

:)

XOXOXOXO

 

Spring Fever!

This time of year always has me hopping...from one project to the next..squeezing out every last minute of the day to try and get it all done. The Ideas flowing like water,  I want to do it all!

 This is when I start to rearrange things,  paint walls, move things around,  hunt for vintage goods,  sand, strip, and re-do things!  Love it!

It's also the time of year when I feel the kookiest,  I think it must be that spring fever thing,  it gets me all worked up

(in a good way of course!)  inspired by nature.....the new things sprouting up all over....ideas spring-boarding from all that is around me.....So here are a few photos of the things going on in my world at the moment......

painting walls orange.....

Hunting for vintage goods.....

  



making things......     

painting furniture.....

practicing my guitar in between, because YES!  I just started taking lessons, (you're never too old to try new things)

never touched a guitar before in my LIFE,  but I am learning!  so fun!  :) ..... I'm really bad,  but hey,  you gotta start some where right?  :)

painting these chairs in a rustic/country/folk/bohemian/quirky style.....

inspired by nature.... 

  

with weathered rustic edges.....because I love imperfection..... 

influenced by how I grew up...in an old house where things weren't perfect.....

things that were a little rusty around the edges...

just the way i LOVE THEM!!!

back when houses had CHARACTER!

sweet little candy coated houses......  

with front porches where people actually sit around and talk.....soaking up the beauty around them 

because I LOVE to be social,  don't you?  :).....

anyways,  this is how I grew up,  in an old house in a charming neighborhood where we learned to appreciate the rustic stuff,  the slightly imperfect-ness of life....

so today I celebrate it!

  so happy that Spring is here,  and all the good things that sprout from it!  hope you are enjoying it too!  :)

 because around here EVERYBODY has spring fever!

and we love it :)

XOXOXOXO  

  

   

        

 

Field trip/Chicago part 3......NOODLE AND LOU's Studio home tour

Well 3's a charm right?  and how perfect to be ending my little field trip with the most charming home around!

We spent Friday with Jenn and Henry walking all over town and ended up heading back to her adorable home for the evening.

 My husband Ian teased me about taking all of these pictures,  but I couldn't help myself,  there was just too much to look at!

I wanted to make sure to capture as much of it as I could so I could go back later and look at every little bit of it and be inspired.....SO inspired!

 SO sit back,  grab a cup of tea...... (or a vodka-tonic) ;)

and come have a virtual visit with me won't you?

Follow me........

click on the images to see them in their entirety...

as soon as you walk into Jenn and Chris' home you are met with some sweet smells...candles burning...warmth all around....

love at first sight I tell you,  such a warm and cozy home....

the kids, my husband, myself,  we all settled right in...

henry running around like a little blur....

the kids playing the Wii......

can I tell you how much I love this living room!?

so cute and cozy!

her Art work all around...

collections.....

cabinets filled with treasures....

 

 

I love that Chris and Jenn collect together,  here is Chris' collection of Vintage radios.....

their Vintage Camera collection.....

in fact the whole family gets into it......

Jake is into History and military stuff....

he is also an AMAZING artist!  and he's only 9 years old!

love it!

these were done when he was younger..but I mean C'mon! 

I A.D.O.R.E. these!

a phenomenal collage piece he did for his mom for her Birthday a few years back....

check Lincolns hat!  such detail ;)

in fact Both Boys are artistic.... They love to draw and have adorable rooms with space to be creative ...

Little Henry's room made me want to move right in....

now I love it when people decorate with Kid art,  it is one of my most favorite things,   children are so expressive,  and not held back by anything....their art is so free, and un-inhibited.

 In fact it's kind of sad when we get older because the majority of people loose that innocence and freedom in our expression...  but thankfully some of us still hang on to our child-like, fun traits... decorating, and living with color and imagination...you can see this in the playful home that Jenn and chris have made for themselves and their boys.....

great Music fills their home too...gotta love that!

She Mixes the traditional with the playful so easily, and it totally works.

Even Their bathroom has a little collection displayed!

now across the hall is where all the magic happens.....

Jenn has taken a Bedroom and carved out a nice creative space upstairs for herself....

 the place is chock full of vintage goods,  art supplies,

fabric, paints.....you name it.

  At first,  when I went into the room it was a little too dark for me to really photograph it well..

the lighting was just too bad......when we realized that all we needed to do was replace a bulb in the ceiling fixture...well.....

we enlisted the help of the men....

crack me up! (couldn't help myself)

now I just love seeing artist's spaces...

see what they surround themselves with to inspire creativity...

So that wraps up my little tour of my buddies house, and my fantastic vacation spent with them.

we had such a good time,  we laughed and laughed..because really, that is what life is all about right?,  having FUN!

;)

hope you had fun here too!

XOXOXO