The Mid Century Mod Dresser Update

Well as you've already seen in the post about the "the studio" I'd better post this one. I'm almost finished with the dresser I started refinishing a looong time ago. You may remember this 40$ beauty looking like this: and now it's upstairs looking like this after what felt like 900 coats of white heavy gloss paint, laquer, sanding and staining:

Grilled Zucchini, Tabouli, Curry chicken salad

Whats a girl to eat while Charley's not home?? This meal might not be satisfying to your average male due to the fact that most of it is "bunny food" but it sure did hit the spot tonight. I was craving Lebanese food, especially tabouli. We didn't have cracked wheat so I just used parsley, garlic, tomato and lemon. I lightly grilled a piece of toast and put some chicken salad made with curry and cashews (and sadly no grapes). The Zucchini are done the way my Dad taught me. You drizzle olive oil or butter on slitted zucchini slices and season with paprika, salt and pepper. You let them roast and then about halfway through add Parmesan to the top of them. They are ready when you can enter a fork in them with ease.

THE STUDIO

My plan for the next few days is to blog a House Tour so (really bored people) can see our little updates and offer suggestions in places that I'm stuck. I've been in commando cleaning mode on and off and tackled the garage, a much needed endeavor. We gave away a lot of our unused things to goodwill and are slowly paring down to live more simply. That being said, I still have a lot of stuff. I am a hoarder for things that might be useful and I have about 30 different hobbies. Charley too is a "try a new hobby" person, so between the two of us we've got a little case of chaos. I've been working hard to ask myself  "now really, are you ever going to need that?".

I get tired out by cluttered workspaces, it bugs me so much that it's hard to work. But a clean efficient space begs to be used and that was my goal for the upstairs room dubbed "The Studio". In my head I've been referring to the room as "Backburner" (like telling myself not to put it on the back burner) so I think I unintentionally named my studio.

So here she is!! (I've labeled where things are stored):

Underneath the right side of the Drafting Table (from IKEA!) are four KASSET boxes. They are Cardboard but organize the needed things for that area. The VIVA line at IKEA is a series of legs and table tops that you can custom build for your needs. The drafting table legs move up and down for a flat or tilted surface. My favorite part is the light underneath the table. It is bought separately and attached to the table top. It allows you to trace and transfer with ease. A must for graphic arrangement and grids. For instance I can place a piece of graph paper on the light. Mark of some key measurements and then put my drawing on top. I  then don't have to put the measurement lines on my paper. 

And the Insides of these boxes:

This one is a bit of a mixed theme, it has my pastels , modpodge, wax sealing stamps, wax, ink and caligraphy pens. Basically, stuff I would do at the table is near the table. 

And It was so nice of Ikea to put little metal brackets for labels.

Behind the Bed are KASSET magazine files that hold my pottery barn magazines (inspiration!) and other magazines as well as my bound sketchbooks.

This is a lamp that my Mom gave me. Aren't moms great!?It had a rather unsightly lampshade (you know the tulip shaped bumpy ones) that was stained from age. To update it, I added this lampshade from Target that I found in the clearance for 65% off because it's binding was coming off, an easy fix to just glue back on. The mirror is also from my mom, it came from their bathroom and has a twin somewhere else in the house. I like it behind the lamp to bounce extra light on the workspace.

  And for those of you wondering what's hiding in the closet (I'm not going to open it because it's still a bit messy and there are lots of things in there that aren't ours):

And over in the "sewing corner" of the room, the white KASSET boxes again hold the needed supplies. Below them in the Dresser, the drawers are mostly empty (I'm not through varnishing three of the drawers). They are being filled with different hobby themes. The top left contains my acrylic paint and glass palettes. Next to that is Charley's whittling things. Next to that are my candle making pot and wax...and so on and so forth.

And to end, here is the room with the lights off :) I'm still looking for cooler chairs , probably from  His House or Goodwill that are  comfy  and yet have a better footprint than the gray office chairs (EW). I  saw one online at IKEA that I love, it's acrylic and modern, but not as cheap. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Nom Noms

A summary of the hubby: awesome! Charley cooked this for me one night after work. This is a piece of rare fillet mignon that is sears on the outside with a basic salt and pepper rub and then glazed in a Guinness reduction sauce. The side looks like potatoes right?? but no, since I am allergic to potatoes, Charley made a puree out of parsnips and rutabagas with a hint of cinnamon and then garnished the plate with fresh parsley...not overkill right?

...some pig

1. This pig painting from Chatter Box Art makes me smile. However, I've always had  a thing for pigs so it could just be me. My favorite childhood book for a time was Charlottes Web and I would watch the cartoon every chance I could. My mom probably got tired of "Zuckerman's famous pig" bellowing throughout our house.  I had a little stuffed pig named Wilbur that I walked around with everywhere, inside, outside, to friends houses and it even got dropped in the toilet...twice. 

Calm white seaside breakfast

A mood board I threw together this morning (yes i know i'm supposed to be working !) , you could easily throw some pops of color in here with your dishes or art.

Iceland in HD - Gullfoss

travel bug is biting

The Lounger

why hello content lazy puppy:

Tiney Sculpture

Check out this artist: Dalton Ghetti. He carves things into the ends of pencils.

Our Christmas living room ( a little late)

bookshelf upgrade

http://ana-white.com/2010/01/creative-guest-knock-off-wood-bookcases.html
This lady is amazing.
 

how to hang your artwork and not screw it up via Apartment therapy

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/ny/how-to/how-to-hang-your-artwork-and-not-screw-it-up-006174

in progress

I need to finish this. It's a 26x32 for a spot in my friends living room. This is just mostly the underpainting and "blocking". I started it forever ago and now lack the motivation to finish it.

It doesn't have to make sense....

Everyone should keep a sketchbook!! Okay, maybe not everyone (did my thoughts suddenly fly to my husband??). I guess what I want to say is: if you're a musician: experiment your notes, if you're a philosopher: write your thoughts, if you're a foody: log your experiences. I think of the sketchbook like a journal. For artsy people, this is writing, comprehending and processing. Without a place to express our visual needs, we (the artist) don't grow. I've heard so many people say that they shy away from drawing in a sketchbook because it becomes something that they want to show people...then comes the pressure. It's no longer about your ideas, it's about what you think other people will think is cool.

I've learned that I have a sketchbook, it is solely for myself. It contains my ideas on the fly. I don't worry about if they make sense, I don't worry about what they look like. If I like a certain idea, I know i'll come back to it and make it look better. The blank pages are for doodles an thoughts that I need to jot down so I can sort through things and gain better insight. I don't believe the finished product should ever end in the sketchbook. I thought I'd post a few silly things from old sketchbooks (I might regret this?)...and it definitely feels like I'm revealing my private ideas and thoughts. Kind of like "hey world, heres my diary"! 

Playing with the Tablet

 Last birthday, my husband suprised me with a Tablet. I was so excited to finally play with one of these. I use it for editing all the time. It gets some getting used to of course, when I started it felt awkward and unlike paper. The balance of looking at your hands and the screen can be tricky. After you adjust you no longer have to look at the tablet. It helps me to have a piece of paper on the surface for texture. 
Tonight, for kicks and giggles, I decided to play with more of the art side of it. I've always been addicted to facebook's graffiti, but drawing something within Photoshop was more of a challenge. Now that I've learned the program backwards and forwards, I've realized that you can do so much more. 

I opened the picture that I wanted to draw and placed it within my screen to the left. I used it to reference, not trace. Using the pencil tool, I marked the proportions and began an initial sketch. I went back and strengthened the lines. With each building/part of the sketch I opened a new layer. First I shaded with black and white and then opened a new layer for color. After I finished the background, I realized I didn't like it. Easy fix: turn off the background layer and use a fill color. The great thing about layers is that you can keep your object separate and erase in sections. Also having the photo file open in photoshop allows me to grab the same colors instead of coming up with a palette. 

My baby is getting bigger

I hate to be such a mom, especially for my puppy, but she is my baby. I love her to bits. I can't imagine life without little Juneau. As I was going through some pictures on my computer I flipped through her first day at the house exclaiming "wawww she's so little!!" about every five minutes. Corny, I know. Here's a little update on the little girl: 

1.  She ain't little, she's catching up to her paws. She weighs about 25 pounds ( I think).
2.  She's not afraid to speak her mind. We are trying to lay down the law. 
3. mischief managed. this dog is a pro to sneaking and getting into trouble. 
4.  She is starting work as a therapy dog in a nursing home
5. She asks us to play in a low throaty growl.
6. She has several "happy dances"
7. She loves to lick Charley's shoes when he comes home from work. 
8.  Snow, yes she loves it, until her paws get cold.

Tappity Tap

photo by sarah scruggs

So just curious, what's your favorite mixed drink?

March of the Dimes Dinner Auction

Photos by Sarah Scruggs

 Sometime before Christmas, the hubby and I attended the March of the Dime's evening dinner with a dinner and restaurant auction for charity. We came with Saluda's, charley to cook, and I to take pictures.

 Guests paid for a ticket to the dinner, and were able to sample from tables set up around the room. Restaurants gave sample dishes of various delicacies that in turn helped people decide which packages to bid for. Packages were anywhere from baskets of food, or a 3 course meal in home or in restaurant from the vendors. Saluda's was giving away a dinner party for 4, and recieved a final bid of $1,500! (A higher bid than Terra or Rosso, the other high end restaurants of columbia!). 

My Hubby (the sous) and executive chef Blake Faries prepared a lobster bisque as their handout. While it was limited in it's presentation, it was warm and buttery and hit the spot!

Oh and not to mention some great cocktails :)