Happiness on a wall

I posted an Instagram photo last night of my husband helping me hang frames. Around Christmas we did some rearranging, which left a big open wall with a lonely off-center clock. I had a dream of making a photo wall, but with people coming over for Lil’ Miss K’s 2nd birthday party this coming weekend, I suddenly got motivated to make it happen. After lots of “pinspiration,” I decided to use a few pieces I already had and purchase a few new pieces as well. I had bought the small 4×6 frames on clearance probably a year ago, and I had the metal Kansas City skyline hanging in our kitchen. I liked the clock on that wall, so I decided to integrate it with the art.

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This past weekend we visited Kansas City’s First Fridays antiques sales in the West Bottoms, and I found two pieces perfect for my photo wall – the “Home is where the heart is” wood panel, and the big open frame.

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I completed the photo wall with a trip to Michael’s on Sunday, where I struck gold with tons of options for letters (40% off!), ampersands, and more clearance frames. The “R” marquee lights up, but I forgot to turn it on for the photo.

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Finally, I sorted through some of our favorite vacation photos and settled on prints of Glacier National Park, Grand Canyon, and Rocky Mountain National Park. To arrange the art on the wall, I first laid it out on the floor, then cut newspaper to fit the size of the frames and it them to the wall to make sure everything was arranged how I wanted. That step was critical in my mind. From that point, we just lined up the holes and nailed right through the newspaper – super easy! I’m so happy with the final product – I smile every time I see it.

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Graphic Design | Baby Room Owl Prints

After looking around on etsy and realizing that purchasing and framing prints for our baby room would be expensive, I decided to make my own! Two of the 12×12 prints are shown below – the third one has the baby’s name so I didn’t want to post it yet. We’re making progress on the room, and we’re going to reveal the gender this weekend at a shower, so stay tuned for some exciting updates! Any guesses on boy vs. girl? (Please don’t comment if you already know.)

 

Photo of the Day: Chihuly Glass

Our Glacier National Park vacation started with a couple of days in Seattle and an Amtrak ride to the park. Seattle has so much to offer, but my favorite site was the Chihuly Garden and Glass Gallery at the bottom of the Space Needle. I believe it was a temporary display, so I can’t say whether it’s still there. We actually went twice in one day – once in the afternoon and once after dark. Dale Chihuly is the guy who designed the glass work in the Bellagio in Las Vegas, if you’ve ever been there. His art is absolutely stunning, don’t you think? Have you ever seen his art in person?

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Photo of the Day: Free Love Van

I’m a day behind on posting a photo, but yesterday was so busy. We started the day at 5 a.m. when we woke up to participate in the Hospital Hill run with a few friends. My husband and I ran the 10k in about 57 minutes, which I thought was pretty good considering all of the hills. I placed 169/1189 women. Check out my friend Julie’s blog to see photos and read more about it. After that our group had brunch at a cute downtown restaurant, then we went with Julie to the Liberty Arts Festival. The weather was gorgeous, and we enjoyed that the festival wasn’t overwhelmingly large. Although we didn’t purchase anything, it was fun to look at all the local artists’ talent. And all of that happened before 1 p.m. Below is my favorite piece of “art” from the art fest!

Two little girls decorating a chalkboard van at the Liberty Arts Festival

Photographic Prints for Relay For Life

I’ve been team captain for our Relay For Life team for several years, so I’m constantly trying to come up with creative fundraisers. Last year I decided to try my hand at selling photographic prints, and I raised about $250 with that fundraiser. Not too bad! Naturally I want to beat that number this year. If you like my photography, please consider purchasing a photographic print. You can pick one of the Kansas City photos below, or you can pick any photo from my blog. Visit etsy.com to place an order. And if you don’t want a print but you still hate cancer, the American Cancer Society and I will happily accept donations to Relay For Life. Thank you for your continued support!

Union Station during Making Strides Against Breast Cancer
Union Station during Making Strides Against Breast Cancer
Kansas City's City Market
Kansas City’s City Market
A cow silhouetted against a Kansas City sunset
A cow silhouetted against a Kansas City sunset
Downtown Kansas City at night
Downtown Kansas City at night

 

Downtown Kansas City at night - B&W
Downtown Kansas City at night – B&W
Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts at night - B&W
Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts at night – B&W
Liberty Memorial during Making Strides Against Breast Cancer
Liberty Memorial during Making Strides Against Breast Cancer
Liberty Memorial at dusk
Liberty Memorial at dusk
Country Club Plaza lights at the JC Nichols Fountain
Country Club Plaza lights at the JC Nichols Fountain
Country Club Plaza lights
Country Club Plaza lights
Kansas City skyline - B&W
Kansas City skyline – B&W
Western Auto building in Kansas City
Western Auto building in Kansas City

Project 52 Week 22: A Dabble in Street Photography

Here are a couple of shots from the streets of the Kansas City Crossroads Arts District during First Fridays. I’ve decided it’s the best place in the city for street photography, so if I’m brave enough I’ll go back for the sole purpose of practicing this fascinating genre of photography.

A local Kansas City banjo player at First Fridays.
A young man watches the crowd of people, lost in thought.

Purchase photographic prints for Relay For Life here.

Day 361: Windows and Mirrors

I am one of maybe 20% of my coworkers actually in the office this week, because most people save up their time off to use around the holidays when their kids are out of school. So I was pleasantly surprised when my parents called me at work yesterday morning, offering to take me to a small art exhibit at the KC Public Library over lunch. We spent some time looking at colorful, powerful murals depicting the War in Afghanistan at the exhibit titled, “Windows and Mirrors.” Learn more about the artwork here.

My dad studies paintings depicting the War in Afghanistan at the public library.