Throw away those winter blues for a new shade of happy. Allow yourself to get inspired!

Winter blues can be cured with a great day of warmer weather, as we have had this week! With everyone starting to feel a little more freedom we still continue to update our homes; want something fresh and new!

  This time of year we are all so done with winter and the cold, especially here in the Northeast!    We have all been inside and mostly isolated for a year, looking at the same four walls.  People have been more inclined to update their rooms with a fresh look, so they can feel good about their space, and now that they can start to see their friends, and have company again,  they will oohh and aaahh over how nice everything looks when they visit.

We all want a fresher look, cleaner, brighter and updated.  

An easy way to rejuvenate a room is with a fresh coat of paint.  I cannot walk into a paint store without gathering and collecting paint swatches, making new palettes which awakens the need in me for change!

Contractors will tell you that this is one of their craziest times. Especially now that Covid is more under control and people are less afraid and getting vaccinated.  Contractors can hardly keep up with the requests for quotes, let alone the job.  Many people hope to make changes to the inside, before they all start working outside; spending time in the nicer weather on outdoor projects. DIY stores are putting out flowers and bulbs and this "Spring cleaning" idea allows us to get ready for that and makes us crave for something fresh! 

  The big question most ask me as a designer is "where do I get started?"

Allow yourself to be inspired... all you have to do is look at what makes you feel good, what color is it, is it flowers that have a scent that is reminiscent of a time that makes you smile?

Living near a great small downtown... Princeton, NJ gives me the opportunity to walk around town, the University campus and the great stores! Grab a coffee, wander around streets of this historic town... the architecture, the art museum - so much culture here.... allow myself to get inspired!

 Palmer Square is exactly as it sounds, a "square" block that surrounds a "green"... a patch of grass where in the summer they offer concerts and movies. I always head down to this quaint, very unique home store in town called Homestead... They recently moved to a new location just outside of town, and the beautiful items they have are so inspiring.  They have a great way of pulling things together, offering very unique items and making you want and feel the need to buy something new to add to your home! If lucky you can catch the owners there and hear about a new piece he designed and repurposed from some very cool antique! This is a great source of inspiration for me, something always catches my eye- colors or the way things are put together that might work in my house.  

As you saw from one of my previous posts, I have a favorite art gallery store located in the heart of Princeton; Cranbury Station Gallery. If that didn't help my longing for springtime and flowers, and inspire me to create, nothing would!  Thankfully they were able to stay open in spite of the lockdown. Stop in, browse the art, the owner is a wonderful painter!

 So if you too are inspired by your surroundings, and crave something fresh... go down to your local paint store, pick out a few chips in colors that ignite your soul, stop in to your favorite store and buy something that makes you smile - paint the room, move some things around - add that new item you bought (doesn't have to be anything big to make a difference, even just a candle) and brighten up your home!

Reigniting My Love for Painting

I love painting!  The art of creating... it is what I do for a living, which is a luxury, as it does not feel like work!  I create textile designs, bedding collections, and home textiles; working in the industry over 25 years... can hardly believe it has been that long!

Finding love in an old hobby is hard to do... first you have to find the time, then the courage to try it again... asking yourself "is it worth investing the time, the money... what if I am not really good at it?"

Cranbury Station Gallery runs these wonderful painting parties, and every time I got an invitation, I wanted to go.  What with work, commuting in and out of NYC, the time never aligned for my schedule... until now! 

I am working from home since December and when this invite came, and it was a floral theme, I couldn't been happier to say yes!  I have been framing artwork with Kathleen for all the years I have lived in the area, a long time - and as an artist, her work is so pretty!  She has it in the gallery in Princeton for sale, and I always love to go in and peruse what is hanging.

Kathy sends out emails and shows you an image of the project you will be working on.... and when you have the winter blues and long for the colors of Spring, painting flowers feels like the right thing to do!

Located in Palmer Square, next to the garage it was easy to park and I could not wait!  Almost all of the art I have purchased, that hangs in my home is related to botanicals...  why not try...



I attended to two parties - some of the people who attend are regulars!
The first class I attended we were to paint these pretty pink flowers in a vase... I thought what better way to start!  Kathy gives great direction, we paint from a painting that she has done - which can be helpful when getting back into the art, or starting from scratch.

As amazing as it sounds, every one of us looked at the same painting and every one of us had a different outcome; one prettier than the other!

Here is my first painting; after over 2 decades of not taking paint brush to canvas...
Kathy convinced me to sign it, lol!

Over the years I have done multiple murals for friends kid's rooms and lead the design on both post prom events for my kids High Schools, but this is more personal... therapeutic and relaxing!

I really enjoyed the evening.  

When I received the next invite, I set up a "date night" with my husband, who is also an artist in his own right... I planned a day, then the painting party and dinner next door at Mediterra for afterwards

... This time Kathy showed us that we would be painting daisies; my daughter's favorite flower... so we went!

We had a really fun evening and I am pretty happy with how it turned out!  I keep critiquing it,   how I would add  more shadows, and how else I could have approached it... but overall I am pretty pleased and proud of myself.... for taking on the challenge and just allowing myself to have fun!

Spring is in the air!
I am now waiting for the town of Princeton to hang all those amazing flower baskets that they do every year to make it official!

Take time to take a deep breath, try something new or go back to an old hobby you once loved!