July Home Renovation Update

 

Well, last time I blogged (way back in February 2022), my husband and I were up to our eyeballs in plaster dust and paint as we did some remodeling on this old bungalow we call home. Six months later, we're still painting the downstairs, but we're a whole lot closer to the finish line on this project. It's all about sweat equity around here!... and "This Old House" is starting to look a whole lot prettier as a result of our efforts! The front porch is fixed and awaiting a fresh coat of my favorite color green (we're waiting for cooler weather before we work outside again). All the walls of the lower floor have been painted a warm white with crisp white trim (with the exception of our dining room, which is a pretty soft shade of green). The sun porch is bright white and we've just finished painting the porch floor an unexpected sunny shade of yellow. Next comes the butler's pantry which will be getting a fun pop of color too! It's amazing what paint can do to transform a tired looking house!... and it's encouraging to be able to see the good results from all our hard work!

I'm starting to paint some little canvases again to put in my Etsy shop, PholkartStudio! (YAY!!) The painting I posted above is called "Star Spangled Geraniums," and measures 3x3 inches. It comes with the cutest little easel to display just about anywhere! Honestly, it has felt really great to have the time to come up with some brand new sketches and finally play with my acrylic paints again! I've got four new designs that I'm excited about painting soon!... YAY for getting back to creating!

This Old House

 "Country Cottage"

It has been too many months since I updated my blog, or really done any art at all. The reason?... Ever since my husband retired, we've been sprucing up our little 1920's bungalow where we've lived for almost 35 years. "Delayed Maintenance" is what my husband calls it. Somehow in the middle of raising two boys here and working full time and living from month to month financially, things just never got done on "This Old House." The front porch was suffering from years of rain and snow that finally ate away at the floor boards. The plaster in my husband's office had developed major cracks that made an interesting spiderweb design on the walls. There were holes in the ceiling above our stairwell created by an old leaky roof. And every wall in the entire house was begging for a fresh coat of paint!

As I sit here typing, there's a BIG dumpster sitting out front and a porta-potty in the yard. We finally decided that some of the jobs that needed to be done were just beyond our handyman capabilities... and so we enlisted some help to get a few major projects finished around here. But Joe and I are doing most of the inside painting... which means the fun, arty painting I love to do has been set aside for a while. It's a good thing I really do like to paint, no matter what kind of painting it is!

While I'm away from my canvases and paint brushes for a short while, I'm still brainstorming ideas for new paintings and sketching in my sketchbook. New ideas are percolating and I can't wait to get back to more artful painting soon!

Big Changes And Finding Inspiration

"Tiny Mermaid"

Life has been happening around our house as my husband Joe and I get ready for his retirement in August. I almost can’t believe it’s actually happening... but it IS!! We’re both looking forward to living according to our own timetable and seeing what each new day brings!

After hunting and searching for a one story house that might "fit" our next stage in life, we finally decided that nothing quite felt like home to us after all. And so we decided to do some major renovations on "This Old House" where we've lived for 34 years now. Much more on that later as we work through the process of making changes around here!

With so much on my mind, I’ve found it hard to find inspiration for new paintings lately. I’ve been sketching quite a bit, but nothing has seemed quite right to actually transfer to a canvas and paint. So I decided to paint one of my tiniest canvases with this cute mermaid.  It felt important to keep creating... and she was not very intimidating to paint. Just a little project to get my creative juices flowing again!

What do YOU do when you find yourself without inspiration???... What are your tips for getting back to creating again? I'd LOVE to know your secrets!!

Until next time... HAPPY CREATING!!