Girl's Gotta Eat

Monday of last week, Robbie got his wisdom teeth pulled out. {OUCH!}

Trying to live up to the saintly nature of my namesake, I decided to create this wellness soup for my dearest. Fortunately, this soup is not only healthy, but it is tasty! 

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To make this gloriously green soup, you only need a few ingredients that you may already have in your fridge and pantry. 

3-4 handfuls of dark leafy greens {baby spinach, baby chard, & baby kale}

1/2 cup chopped onions

2-3 large garlic cloves {peel & chop}

1 teaspoon salt

4-5 grinds of fresh black pepper

2 cups veggie or chicken stock 

1 tablespoon butter or earth balance 

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Directions:

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When I tasted this soup I fell in green leafy love. To make it into a meal, I put together a few simple snacks. Frozen grapes are super simple but a snappy cool treat in the summer. Avocado wedges on top of goat cheese cream cheese is a delicious topper for my favorite water crackers. 

Hope you all try this delicious soup and add some veggies into your daily meal routine. It would be an easy recipe to alter to your taste. You could easily change it up by using different veggies or by simply adding a hard cheese such a parmesan cheese. 

Jar Chic

 For the past few days, I started reorganizing my home studio. Instead of mundanely cleaning up the joint, I took the time to be creative with my storage options. Recycling jars to be used as containers for tiny objects is not new to my organizational methods. To put a new twist on jar storage, I decided to create hand stamped paper wraps.  

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 Lucky for me, I have access to an array of stamps and inks. At a moment's notice I can roll up my brayer with turquoise ink, cover the surface of several stamps, and print out a couple strips of soon-to-be wraps.  Even if you do not already have a collection of stamps and ink, the supplies are not expensive. You could make your own stamps or use store bought ones that match your surroundings. 

Pictured above are the jars au naturel.

            For the best result, I first wrapped the stamped paper around the jars to measure how much was needed to cover it. I left about a half inch overlap. 

The next steps are easy enough and I am sure pictures help. Create four tape rolls and then place them in the four corners of the paper strip on the reverse side. Then simply place the strip centered on the jar and roll the jar over until you reach the end. At the end of the strip, smooth the paper with your hand to make sure the tape will keep the paper in place. 

Now that the jars are finished, they add a custom and colorful touch to my studio. One of the best things about this project is how easily you can change the colors and styles of these jar wraps. I hope these little beauties inspire the use of recycled jars in new ways.

Reflection Redux

       Change is as natural as air, and very much just as necessary. If asked, anybody who has ever lived with me can tell you that any space I consider home is readily changing. Furniture gets rearranged on a whim, surfaces get a fresh coat of paint, fabrics get covered and recovered, and new things appear on the walls with regularity. In a way, rearranging is how I keep inspiration flowing.
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         In the picture below is a large mirror that I found during one of many "thrifting adventures" {as I like to call them}. I saw it and had to have it. When I got it into my apartment, I had no idea what to do with it. It was large, heavy and not exactly the right colors. Instead of getting rid of it, I kept it and shuffled it around the living room along with all the other furnishings. After some time it found a good home on the dining table.

    Being the artist that I am, I could not keep paint away from the mirror. Instead of the bright reds, and oranges, and dark blues, I decided to go with a more soothing analogous color scheme.

         After several coats of paint, and many brush cleanses later, the mirror changed into a piece that vibes better with the rest of the living room. That is not to say that I wont ever change it again ;-)

Flame Stitch Chair Makeover

One of my many hobbies besides stamping is revamping vintage furniture. I am very certain that it runs in the family. When you have to be thrifty and you are creative, wonderful things can happen. It is possible to have the living space you desire if you are willing to look at your personal space as a problem to SOLVE instead of just a problem. 

Turning a vintage chair modern can be a seriously rewarding and easy project. Above are a few of the supplies you need to get started. 

1. My personal favorite tool: a staple gun and staples

2. Screwdriver to remove the screws that secure cushions to chair

3.  Scissors for cutting your choice of fabric{*if you are into this blog you def. already have these}

4. Fabric {you wont need too much depending on the project you take on, I used about one and a half yards with still some to spare}

 

 This chair is a piece that I purchased a couple years ago for about $5.00 and it survived many college dwellings, parties, and cats. What I really love about this chair is how easy the cushions can be removed. When you are looking for your own project, keep that in mind. Fabric and padding are easy fixes as long as the structure of your chair is sound to begin with.

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Step 1: Use your screw driver to remove chair cushions. {keep screws in an easy to find spot. It would be a bummer to loose them!}

 

Step 2: Remove the old staples that are holding the existing fabric to the cushions. Sometimes you can achieve this by simply pulling at the fabric but if you need added leverage, I recommend using needle nose pliers. 

 Step 3: Use old fabric as your template for cutting new fabric. This is the easiest way to accurately measure your new fabric. 

 

Step 4: Lay the cushions on top of the new fabric and make sure the fabric is centered. Begin to staple new fabric to the backs of your seat cushion(s), working along one side at a time.

Step 5: Remember to keep the edges of your fabric folded over once so that you do not have leftover hang underneath of your seat. When you have finished stapling, replace your cushion(s) onto the chair frame.

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After a little elbow grease, this chair has a fresh new look that is simply elegant and reminiscent of Eames designed furniture. I hope this post will inspire some serious chair UP-CYCLING makeovers.  

Heat Wave

     
 Summer weather has officially arrived in Ghent. Everyone I know is taking shelter at a cafe, local shops, or any place with air conditioning.The Impressed studio has yet to receive this modern gift of A.C. What this weather has brought us is extra quick, extra strong drying power for the kitchen towels I dyed this week. It is fun to pretend that the apartment is actually in some tropical Caribbean city. The bright citrus colors of the towels hanging from the fire escape railings truly add a Carnival kind of feel to the place. Thank you to summer for such lovely musings and free and natural drying methods.

Inspiration Station

     
  Every design studio needs a designated space for a very, very important supply: Inspiration. A very fun and easy to refresh way of displaying things that inspire you is to create an "Inspiration Wire." This does not have to be an intense DIY extreme makeover project. In my home studio, I created my "wire" by using a few screws and natural twine. To hang my collected materials I used drapery clips, and clothes pins.
       If you are wondering what to hang, begin with magazines or catalogs that you subscribe to. There is a reason you were attracted to these publications and you may want to highlight or remember the most interesting things in them. Maybe you liked a wallpaper pattern in a home decor magazine, or a color scheme of cashmere sweaters in a fashion catalog. Another great item to add to your wall of inspiration is a collection of paint chips. You can usually find them for free at your local hardware store or at a place that sells interior/exterior paints. One last suggestion: vintage linens, such as the bird napkins in my studio, can add texture among paper goodies.

     Happy hanging!! If you have any other inspiration materials to share, please feel free. :-)