Having graduated over a month ago (eek! I can't believe that much time has passed), I am scrambling to get my design portfolio done. I have attempted many times to create a portfolio in the past, but kept putting it off because my senior project would be the driving force for the final product. Well now that my senior project is done, I have no excuse. I am finding that a few of my files have disappeared over the past few years... oops, but I have a good amount to work with. It is funny reaching back to freshman year and looking at some of my fundamentals projects then seeing what I have created since. The above drawing is a still life exercise using color pastels from Drawing II. Below is from Fundamentals of Design and was featured in the Furlong Gallery for the 2005 CIDA Accreditation Review. As I continue working on my portfolio, I will post a few of my images from interiors and other studio classes, along with the finished product.
Yesterday I decided to tackle the ridiculous mess in my bedroom (also my office/craft area). I have been trying to get my things organized for weeks, but only would get half way done before someone needed my motherly services. This would then leave an even bigger mess. I had cards and decorative papers covering my desk in an attempt to finish them and bills and other miscellaneous items scattered everywhere that needed to be dealt with.
I finally was able to get everything done yesterday. The majority of the cards were finished and filed away and bills were paid. In organizing my remaining paper crafting supplies, I stumbled upon half completed scrapbook pages from last summer. I ended up getting pretty excited because I love scrapbooking but was way too busy until recently to partake in the fun. Here is a page I finished up. It was nice to work with some summer pictures, especially because we are barely seeing the sun these days in Wisconsin. This page uses Basic Grey paper, my absolute favorite paper line. It has been for about 6 years now and I am always excited to see what designs and color combinations they come out with next.
I have been thinking about what my next creative ventures will be and have come up with two I am interested in. First I want to learn how to knit baby hats. There is a book I found called Baby Beanies that I fell in love with at first glance. The hats would make great presents. The other project idea I have is to make a scrapbook of my favorite recipes. I am really getting into finding new recipes lately and it would be fun to put together a book with my favorites. It would also be a really memorable gift to pass down to my daughter when she is older. I will update with posts of my progress as I begin my new projects.
Literally all I have done today is clean. I do not understand how my house gets so out of control within a matter of hours! Actually I do understand and her name is Faith. It is also the fact that Pete and I love to cook, yet do not enjoy doing dishes. I have been cooking like crazy these past few days (now that I have time to cook and actually am enjoying it again) but have had such a hard time keeping up with the dishes since I do not have a dishwasher.
For the past year I have been using green cleaning products. I took a science class last spring that focused on sustainability and since I have strayed away from using harsh chemical cleaners. I am a strong believer that if you can't breathe when you are cleaning your house, it cannot mean anything good. Here are my recipes for my two favorite homemade cleaners:
All-Purpose Spray/Glass Cleaner:
In large spray bottle (I bought a generic one from Walmart) combine 4oz vinegar with 16oz water. That's it! Works great on kitchen surfaces along with glass and mirrors. I also use a similar mixture in the kitchen sink to mop my floors.
Shower Cleaner:
In large spray bottle combine 4oz Dawn dish soap with 16oz vinegar. Shake to mix. Works amazingly in the shower and also on sinks. Just wipe with a wet sponge and rinse with water.
For a toilet cleaner I use GreenWorks, which does as good of a job as anything else I have used but is much more environmentally conscious.
Since switching to greener cleaning products, I feel much better about cleaning around my daughter.
The past few days I have been working on making greeting cards during my daughter's nap time. I like to give sets of them as gifts and they are also nice to have on hand for a quick thank you or birthday card. Generally when I see a patterned paper I like, I pick it up to have on hand for when I get motivated to create some cards. I only buy what I absolutely love, even if that means I leave a store with nothing. With this philosophy, I get much more excited about what I create. I have quite a collection of patterned paper and also scraps that I have been trying to use up for a few years now.
In high school and also after during winter/summer breaks from college I worked at Archiver's (an amazing photo memory store). I really built up my collection of paper, stamps, and embellishments during that time. I miss working there, it was a fun atmosphere and I loved to help others with their projects. I also taught various classes that were held at the store and was able to learn lots of tricks and techniques.
Last week I visited Michael's in Eau Claire and fell in love with their selection. I have never seen such a great selection at any other Michael's. I picked up a few things since I was in a time crunch, but cannot wait to go back and spend some more time looking.
Here are just a few samples of the cards I made this afternoon:
It is a new year and even a new decade. I recently completed a major goal in my life which was graduating from college with a bachelor's degree. I majored in interior design and minored in business at the University of Wisconsin - Stout. For me the biggest accomplishment was completing this goal while raising my daughter who is almost 2. I look back in amazement, especially at the month before I graduated, and wonder how I did it. In my last few weeks I was literally living in the senior design studio consuming ridiculous amounts of caffeine. All in all I did what I had to do to put out an awesome senior project (see the picture of my show space below), be a mom, and finish the rest of my course load. With that said, I ask myself now what? For the past 4 years my goal was to graduate, now that I have, I find myself questioning what my new goals will be. 
In this blog I would like to document my creative ventures. I am an avid scrapbooker, card maker, crocheter, baker, and designer. I also make some jewelry and want to learn how to sew and knit. I am always looking for new ways to save money, organize my home, and live healthier. This combination hopefully will create lots of interesting and insightful posts.