Taking A Break

Stop and smell the peony!

So, everything I was trying to do- blog consistently, etc...got sidetracked because I just basically got burned out. I have been working on designs since December 2011 and with over 10,000 different designs created in a little over a year, I guess it was inevitable that I would need a break.


I was in a funk for about a week until I figured out what was going on- I wanted to do something else, I wanted to get my fingers covered in paint, I wanted to do stuff around my house, I wanted most of all to be OFF of the computer for awhile. So this week that is what I did! I stopped to smell the roses- or peony in my case- that beautiful specimen in the picture came right out of my yard!


We all need a break every now and then. No matter how much you love what you do, you need a rest from it. And I LOVE what I do- and I am not good at balancing- I pretty much work all the time, but it doesn't feel like WORK, which is why I can do it so much.  However, things got neglected around my house, things I needed to take care of- so I did and I still am. I am getting rid of stuff, repainting some walls that I decided needed to be lime green instead of taupe- yes, my husband is a very tolerant man. I am going to take pictures when I am finished of the before and after- I promise. I am going to take a little more time this week to work on some things and design some new things too, I am feeling my creative juices coming back. Maybe I will find some balance after all....nah, never in my life- I am ALL in, to whatever I am doing, but I am going to TRY!


And today I got the greatest surprise! One of my customers sent me a link to her blog where she had written all about one of the background sets she bought from me. Here is the link:


http://cheekylime.com/blog


She made some incredible designs and if you happen to have a camera- be sure and check out the camera bags on the cheeky lime website...they are awesome! I may be getting one for my sister for her birthday. I might even like one for a purse- they are so cute!


So that's it for me- I am off to eat tacos for dinner in honor of Cinco de Mayo and have a fun night with my sweet husband- who puts up with sooooo much!


Hope you all have a great rest of the weekend- and remember- take some time to smell the peonies!


xoxox

If you can't stand the heat....

Get out of the kitchen!!!

So, here is my dilemma- we have an old house, lots of character, charm and a 50 year old oven and it is neither charming or full of character. It is just UGLY, horrible and at this point pretty dangerous.

We have been searching everywhere to find a new oven- for years- the thing is - the damn thing still works!  However, we take our lives in our hands every time we turn it on.  It get so hot that you have to open it with a pot holder! Notice the bubbled paint above the oven....scaryyyyyyy

Ugliest Oven on the Planet

Now, there are a lot of things I would like to redo in our house- so it has crossed my mind now and then just to turn the oven on broil and go out for awhile, but then reality sets in and I think about all the things I would miss if the house burned down- plus, arson is just not my gig.

So here is the problem. The cabinets were built in the house, custom- to fit the stupid oven, and they were made to last a millenium. Not that I don't hate them, I do- but the thought of gutting the entire kitchen just wears me out to think about. Not to mention it took 2 years for my husband and I to agree on the new countertops when we redid them. Both of us are arty and like "different", so any type of normal countertop was out of the question. Finally, we did this:

Copper Engraving Plates Countertop

My husband owns a stationery store and I used to have a stationery/invitation manufacturing business, so when an old stationery engraving business moved from Birmingham, my husband got a bunch of their old copper engraving plates.
I laid them out all over the counters and then poured tons of epoxy over them. They look great (even though this picture doesn't look so great), and they are REALLY different, but perfect for us!

Back to the oven dilemma- The space the oven is in is just too small for ANY oven- we have looked, and because the way the cabinets are made, there is no way to enlarge the space.  

This is where I need your help. What do we do???

 Here are the options we have thought of:

1) Don't cook. Sounds pretty good to me, but not entirely practical.

2) Remove the cabinet with the oven and just replace that and get a new oven. Well, that would make me NUTS- I just don't think I can handle having ONE cabinet that is different from all the others.

3) Gut the kitchen- oh... 

4) My husband suggested taking the oven out and having a very small chef live in the space- he thinks he is SO funny....

So, I am open to any and all suggestions- would love to hear ANY kind of idea, because we can't figure it out and sometimes it takes just someone else's eye to figure out just the right thing to do...so lay it on me....and hurry, before my house burns down!!!

hope you all have a great week!!
xoxox