Cathy's Corner

I have an absolutely wonderful client!  The kind of person, as an artist, you can only dream about.  We have been working together for just about a year now on tons of projects.  She LOVES my work and I am forever grateful for that. The best thing about Cathy is that she always, and I mean always, gives me the artistic license to do whatever I want.  I try to nail her down on a basic color scheme, but other than that she says,  "I completely trust you!  My husband says, 'when you find someone who knows what they're doing, just move out of their way and let them do their thing.' So, I'm getting out of your way."

 Totally LOVE her!

SO, I'm going to start by sharing some of the smaller pieces I did for her, then share the largest piece (or shall I say a set) I've ever done. First off was a pair of very old, very worn out school desks.

 Both desks were extremely worn out.  I had to sand them and prime them several times.  The marker/ink/sharpie on the top kept bleeding through.  But after 3 coats of primer, it seemed pretty much under control.  Although the chairs were greatly worn they did not require as much prep work.

She had another small desk set for me next.  This used to be her mothers (I believe) as a child and she wanted to redo it for her grandchildren.  It was going to be passed on to her son, and first grandson so I stuck to a more masculine feel. Although really the patterns and color choices could have worked in any nursery/playroom.

The next item was for her youngest daughter who was soon to be a teacher.  She had seen a picture on my Facebook page of another reading/teacher chair I had done for another client and wanted one for her daughter.  She had a rocker she found and brought it down to me.

Next was 3 small rocking horses that her father had made for her 3 children when they were little.  With such sentimental value she didn't want to get rid of them now that her children were grown but hated them sitting in the basement too.  So...you guessed it, she brought them to me for a much needed face lift!  I have only had the chance to finish one completely.  The other two were put on hold for the biggest project yet.

Her daughter-in-law loved giraffes and asked if I could incorporate one into the horse someplace, so I did just that, right on the seat.

Now, drum roll please, here is the largest project I have done to date.  A six piece (5 + a cutting block) kitchen/dinning room set.  Again it was her mothers set and she wanted to pass it down to her children, but knew in the state it was in no one would want it.  

First, it was the butcher block.

A choice to do a simple faux finish on the sides with plain robins egg blue, highlighting the checkered door and diamond patterned door was perfect.  I switched out the out dated handles and swapped them out for more rustic, heartier handles.  She didn't want the top painted, so I left it neutral.  This piece would set the stage for the next 5 pieces that followed.

Then came the pedestal.  She kept the top in Rochester with her and had a gentleman refinish the top in just a plain stain and varnish.  The base was a beast.  She didn't like the original pedestal and searched high and low for one that fit just perfectly with the other pieces.  I was thrilled because this one was much more exciting to paint in comparison.

Each piece as it was finished was transported back to Rochester. I had never seen them (only in my head) all together.  BUT yesterday-she sent me a picture of all the items together, set up and ready to welcome guests! I was so excited to see them!

So that's that for now! At least what I've finished. I've still got 2 rocking horses, 2 rockers, one rather large chair and a desk set, plus she's bringing more down this week.  Like I said in the beginning-LOVE THIS LADY!

Please, check out my other social media sites and follow along there if you'd prefer!  I'm on Facebook Instagram and Pinterest!  Loads of creative and colorful quotes, pictures and inspiration! So check it out!

Have an amazing week!

Mary

Katie's Hope Chest

This summer our beautiful, oldest daughter is getting married to her high school sweetheart (who I must say, is pretty cute himself).  

Katie & Nick have been together since they were 15-they are now 20 (old, right).  People say, "well isn't that too young to get married?" Normally we would probably agree, but we knew from the moment they started dating that they would get married. They just clicked.

 Nick fit instantly right into our family and the chemistry was just there-they're one of "those" couples.  When he bought her a puppy for Christmas one year later-the deal was sealed.

Katie is an old soul.  Out of our 5 kids she's the "goal setter".  She sets a goal, plans it out, and executes  it with precision, then moves onto the next.  

She knew that college wasn't her thing, and decided in high school that she wanted to become a hair stylist? A What? She said she wanted to go through the BOCES program and get her certificate, so that she could start working right out of school.  You wanna do what? 

You have to understand, this was a kid with a 95 average, she played sports and had worked since she was 16-she was going to be our Ivy Leaguer. Not that there is ANYTHING wrong with a hairstylist , everyone needs one, but honestly, BOCES carried such a stigma with my generation, and we just didn't want her to regret her choice later on-I mean all teenage girls want to be hairstylists at some point in their lives-I know I did.  

But she was determined that this was what she wanted to do.  And because we are firm believers in letting our kids find their passion we said "do your thing!" and she did! 

So, right out of school she started working as a hair stylist. Now, in the overachiever fashion that makes Katie-Katie, while she's working, she's going to school to be an Esthetician (a skin care specialist) and will graduate  in August.  

We are so proud of her (can you tell)!  

Nick proposed on a warm afternoon in the park. Obviously, she said, "YES!" 


Since she is the first daughter, (first child) to get married 

I wanted to create and old fashioned hope chest for her.  I plan on doing this for all my children & their spouses. 

But Katie is far from old fashioned, so this hope chest had to have a twist.  In typical Katie fashion her wedding is NOT your "typical traditional" wedding either  

She is getting married at Bolt Castle in Alexandria Bay, which is followed by a dinner cruise around the St. Lawrence/Thousand Islands.  

See something else you should know about our daughter, ever since she was little she wanted to be a princess. For her senior ball, she picked out a dress that reminded her of Bell (Beauty & the Beast) not that, that cute little boy with braces looked anything like a beast.

So when it came time to plan her wedding Bolt Castle was the first place we thought of.   Yet,  Kate is a modern day princess.  Her bridesmaids are wearing black, with sashes made of a snow leopard. Her bouquet is made up of "black roses" (don't be alarmed they're just deep red), and the groomsmen are wearing Air Jordans. 

Katie with her bridesmaids looking for dresses

not her actual dress we'll save those pictures for after the wedding

I knew this cedar chest had to reflect Katie's personality, as well.  I also wanted it to be timeless too.  An heirloom she could leave for HER daughter.

I started with a plain cedar chest from a local unfinished wood shop.

Black, white and purple are her favorite colors. So those were a must.

I used metallic paint to accentuate the small details.  

This also pulled in the silver handles that we added at the end.  They were just $5 handles we purchased at Hobby Lobby and sprayed silver.  I love the way they give the piece a "traditional feel" and glammed it up a bit

We added the plaque on the front to make it personal, as well as traditional, but amped it up with the snow leopard patterns on the legs, the purple faux in the front and the small purple flowers on top. This keeps it modern and fresh.

I added even more pattern on the back just to make it funky.

The colors are all Benjamin Moore: 

French Lilac 1403, Snugglepuss 1405, Mauve Bauhaus 1407.  Silver Half Dollar 2121-40, Steel wool 2121-20 and Gray 2121-10.

Yesterday was her Bridal Shower and we gave it to her then.

She was thrilled! 

Now, if the wedding goes off without a hitch, we'll be happy too!

To find more inspiration, please come and find us on FaceBook, Pinterest or LinkedIn.  And if you're in the Syracuse area, stop on down to the Syracuse Arts & Crafts Festival next weekend and say HI!

Shared with these wonderful blogs:

Krafty Cards Etc...

BeColoful