Taking a Break

Hey friends.... just want to let you know I'm taking the next week off blogging.  I really really need it.

I'll be honest here.  I'm struggling.  I've had a migraine nearly everyday for 2 weeks straight and I don't think I can handle much more.  So I'm having a moment.  A very trying moment.  It's taking every bit of faith I have to keep going and have hope for the future.  Things seemed to be going so well with getting off my meds, but this week has been especially painful and it makes me wonder if I ever will get better.  It's so discouraging.  Maybe I need more time to adjust... who knows? In the mean time, I'm going to take a break from the computer.  Maybe that will help.  We'll see.

Anyway, I don't want to be depressing here.  Just want to let you know what's going with me and thank you for all your kind comments here so far.  You have lifted me more than you know.

New Prints!

I finally ordered more prints of my work and they are finally here!  

Check out the new Giclee Prints in my Shop.

And in case you've never heard of a giclee print before and you're wondering what the heck that is, here's a little description from oberonart.co.uk:

Giclée prints: Inkjet prints printed from a computer where the image has been stored as a digital file, and is then outputted onto paper or canvas with a high-resolution wide-format printer. The image may have been created on-screen or may have been scanned in to the computer. Giclee prints may be produced on a wide choice of substrate including artist paper and allow the artist/printer great control over the resulting image.

I hope these prints all find happy homes soon :)

P.S.  Colletta's Kitchen Sink is featuring a little get-to-know-you post on me today... awesome!  Head on over there to see the post.

Bright Flowers Bookmarks

Hey guys!  Like the new header?  I can never leave one header up for too long before I get tired of it.  Plus, I figured it was time to incorporate my watercolors in my blog design somehow.  I'm pretty happy with it!

Anyway, so...... onto some more watercolor goodness.....

I painted these bookmarks right after my latest flower painting.  I was having too much fun with the watercolors to stop!

I painted two sets with bright flowers.  I just love how colorful and vibrant they are!  I used stencils on the other set.  I love them all!

Crepe Paper Flowers

When I found a tutorial for crepe paper flowers involving watercolors HERE, I just had to try it.... I love almost anything to do with watercolors!

It seems like a simple concept: shaping wet petal shapes over a bowl, coloring them with watercolors, then drying them in the microwave, but for me, it was WAY harder than it seemed.  My flowers don't even come close the the ones from the original tutorial.  And, they took me WAY longer than I thought.   Plus my floral tape didn't hold, so I ended up hot gluing the petals together.  It was hard!

So ya, these look nice, but I think it would take more practice (and more time than I'm willing to spend) to get them looking great. 

At least they look alright on my table next to my Jackson Pollock eggs for now :)

Photo of the Week

Hello friends!  How was your weekend?  I'm so glad the snow is over and mostly melted for us!  I think I might go crazy if it snows like that again this spring.  I'm too anxious to get outside and exercise (especially after all the birthday cake I ate over the weekend).

So here's another photo of the birds I spotted from my back yard.  This one makes me feel peaceful and happy :)  I hope you all are having a wonderful day!

Baby Girl Crochet Headbands

Hi there!  First of all, I have to say thanks for the awesome comments on yesterday's post... they put a smile on my face and made me laugh!  It was so fun to discover that we have some random things in common.  And it's kind of nice to know that I'm not the only one that locks myself out of my house... haha!

Now onto these: 

I made some crochet headbands for a friend who's expecting a baby girl....

making these seriously made me wish I had a little girl of my own to make these for!  Then I would have someone to try them on and model them for me.   I have no idea if they fit right, but luckily this pattern allows for a lot of stretch.

I found the free pattern for the headbands HERE  and the pattern for the flowers are HERE.  I use that flower pattern for just about everything!  It's a good one :)

A Few Random Facts About Me

Since it's my birthday this week (I'm turning 29-yikes!) I'm doing something different here. I'm writing about myself...just some random stuff.  I love reading personal and even random things about other bloggers.  It's a fun way to get to know someone!

So here are a few things about myself that I'm pretty sure I've never written on this blog:

• I have a sister with Down's Syndrome.  She's my youngest sister and my favorite!  She's really into the Cars movies and always will be.  She's an inspiration to me and a light in my family's life!

• I don't really like cooking.  It's more of a chore for me.  I think my husband is a better cook than I am.

• Nearly ten years ago, right after finishing my freshman year of college, I was in a serious car accident that left me with a broken back, among other things.  I feel extremely blessed to have survived that and know I have a reason to still be here :)

• When we first bought our house last year, I accidentally locked myself and my son out in our backyard when the backdoor got jammed shut.  Kind of embarrassing.  I had to call my husband on my neighbor's phone to come home early from work and rescue us.. haha!

• For the most part, I enjoy keeping my house clean and organized. It makes me feel good.

• I once ran a half marathon.... a long time ago... before I was married.  It was fun!  One of my life's dreams is to do a mini-triathlon.  It may be a while though.  I have to take baby steps first.

• The only TV show I have ever been addicted to is The Gilmore Girls, which is funny, because the first time I saw it, it annoyed me.  They talked so fast!

• My husband and I lived in the same apartment complex and knew each other for a whole year before we ever went on a date.  And then it wasn't love at first sight... or date.  I feel like we were able to become such good friends because we weren't completely and obsessively attracted to each other at first.  The attraction grew as we got to know each other. 

Well, enough of me.  Have any random facts you'd like to share here?  I'd be happy to read them!

Why I Love Watercolors

I spent some time just playing with my watercolors... just letting them mix and blend within shapes I drew.  That's my favorite thing about these paints.  They can be unpredictable, but have so much expressive potential.

It's funny to think that back in college, I was so NOT into watercolors.  I told myself I would only love oils... HA!  Then I became a stay-at-home mom and oils weren't the best option.  They're so messy!

Over the past three years I have totally fallen in love with watercolors and I'm really addicted to painting with them :)  They never do exactly what I expect them too, but that's part of the fun!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/126088897/bright-flowers-original-watercolor

Photos of the Week

Last week was pretty good, (with the exception of some sleep problems),  But, the weather was perfect, I got some spring cleaning done, I didn't have a SINGLE migraine ( I can't remember the last time I had a good streak like that)  and I took lots of photos.... hence the photos (plural) of the week :)

Porter and I finally delivered our Love Rocks around the neighborhood.  I still don't know if anyone has found them yet, but it was fun anyway.  Porter loved the fact that we were doing something secret for our neighbors!

 a shot of my awesome walnut tree....

 my maple tree in bloom...

 And the last one- a close-up of the green coming up in my flower beds.  Most are the bulbs that didn't get picked out last year when we dug up the flower bed (those grape hyacinths are like weeds.. seriously!)  But, it looks like my hollyhocks survived the winter!  Awesome!  They are my favorite flowers :)

In the Mood for Spring

I am seriously on a roll here..... I've been painting like a crazy woman!  I have too many paintings to post and not enough time to post them!  I guess that's a good thing, right?  

 Maybe it's the warmer weather that's gotten me in the mood, but I'm loving everything to do with birds, butterflies, and flowers right now :)  Happy days!  Spring is almost here!

These three little birdies are up for sale now....

https://www.etsy.com/listing/124857892/original-watercolor-bird-painting-blue

https://www.etsy.com/listing/124858460/golden-crowned-sparrow-original

https://www.etsy.com/listing/124858187/eastern-kingbird-on-purple-flower

Thrifted Yarn Washcloths

Does anyone else buy yarn from the thrift store?  I know you take your chances doing that... you don't know what kind of yarn you have or where it's been, but you can always wash it!  Sometimes you even get lucky and get a bunch of yarn for an awesome deal... like this green yarn.  I got it in a bag with 4 or 5 other skeins of yarn for 75 cents!

I've now turned said green yarn ( I think it's cotton) into washcloths.  They aren't perfect, but the sure are handy!

Jackson Pollock Eggs Tutorial

Have you ever tried blowing eggs?  I love the idea!  You can save your eggs for a long time that way.  It does take some work though.  About half of mine cracked, but luckily I was able to cover that up with a little acrylic paint :)

Here's a quick tutorial on how I decorated my first ever blown eggs!

Materials: 
Blown eggs: washed and dried ( You can find a good tutorial on blowing eggs HERE )
Acrylic craft paints
paint brush and/or foam brush
paint pallet or paper plate
paper towels

Step 1:  On a paper plate or paint pallet, pour small amounts of acrylic craft paint and mix colors to get desired base color.  I used a medium blue, white, and bright green for my base colors.

Step 2:   Using a foam brush, paint the base color(s) over one half of the eggs.  Let dry and then paint the other half and let dry completely.  You can paint one smooth color or blend in other colors to get a more varied look.

Step 3:  Lay eggs out on paper towels.  Cover your work area well... this gets messy! Load up a paint brush with the paint color of your choice.  Hold the paint brush in one hand next to the eggs and with a finger, flick the tip of the brush to splatter the paint onto the egg- Jackson Pollock style!

Step 4:  Let each side of the eggs dry before turning them over to flick paint on the other sides.  Then let dry completely.  Your'e done!

Photo of the Week

I really love the color of pink grapefruit and it's fun to photograph!  I'll admit that this photo is edited a bit.  I experimented with all kinds of patterned paper as the background and then played around with PicMonkey for a while.  This greenish-yellowish paper turned out to be my favorite.. so bright and perfect for spring!

I may have to print this one out and frame it :)

Patterson's Pond, #2

I love water.  I love hearing, seeing it, and being in it!  

This is my second watercolor of Patterson's Pond, the small body of water near my hometown of St. Johns, AZ where I like to go canoeing with my family when I visit.  It's one of the few recreational spots around. 

 I took some photos of it last spring when I visited and painted this from one of the photos.  Now it's hanging in my living room to remind of home :)

Guest Post: Everyday Art

Hey guys! Today is my first time having a guest post here... fun stuff!  I hope you'll take some time to read about my friends Emily and Jaime here.  They have a wonderful blog :) P.S. We're swapping today so my guest post is up at their blog.  Have fun!


Hi Everyone! We're happy to be here today on Grow Creative. Doesn't Elise have fantastic taste? :)
We LOVE her watercolors!
Today we just wanted to introduce ourselves a bit. We're Emily and Jaime from Everyday Art.

We're two sister-in-laws (Jaime married Emily's handsome older brother) who, like Elise, believe that everyday can be filled with creative outlets, and we love to explore them. Here we are with some of our kids.

It's so fun to have a sister-in-law that you want to find excuses to talk to each other--it's great! We started a blog because we used to live next to each other (literally a few doors down) and now that we are states away from one another we needed a way to bounce ideas off one another, show each other our projects, share recipes, etc.

 We have 5 basic areas where we create our "art" (playing chef, artistic home decor, throwing memorable parties, hand crafts, and fun with the kids) so we wanted to share our favorite in each category.

Creating Beautiful, Tasty food:

The Lemon Puff Pastry Dessert.

Light and fluffy and unique and dazzling and fun. There aren't enough adjectives to describe this one. We LOVE to cook and bake and try several new recipes a week, so new foods are always up-and-coming on our blog. Desserts are, of course, the most fun, but we have lots of main dishes and breakfasts too.

Creating Artistic Home Decor:

Apple Blossom Canvas Tutorial.

We both made a pair of apple blossom canvases, which turned out beautiful and unique to each of our styles. (Here's Jaime's). And we've shared the tutorial with you! Other of our favorites include the rag rug,  tree mural and turtle/frog canvases we did for our kids' rooms.

Creating Hand Crafts:

The Felt Flowers.

These flowers turned out great and were fun to make. Emily made an adorable yarn wreath with them, but they've been picked up by several hair-bow blogs--how cute would that be? We also knit and crochet and have made all sorts of beanies, Christmas stockings, animals, even dresses.

Creating Fantastic Parties:

Honeybee Birthday Party.

Such a cute party theme for such a cute girl! We love parties--we've thrown all sorts of fun ones--a pink puppy party, a garden lady bug party, a vintage Strawberry Shortcake party, monster party, a superhero party....

Creating Memories with our Kids:

Make your own SLIME!

Sooo fun--even for grown up! No one can resist giving it a squish with their fingers. We did it on a cold afternoon, but wouldn't it be fun for a scientist bday party? or an art party even....

We had lots of fun this year--making forts, painting, having fun with Food Dye, and just plain having fun, but this idea was a particular favorite.

We love creating lives that we want to live in and invite you to come along and see if you don't find some new recipes or projects you'd like to try. :)

Thanks Elise!

Lots of love from your crew at Everyday Art,