The Mother of All Organizing Tools

I'm the first to admit that I tend to be a messy person...but in my own organized way. As a former boss once told me, "You're office is so messy, but whenever I ask you for something, you're always able to find it so fast!"

And in classic right brain dominant fashion, I need to see stuff. I can't file things away and ever expect to remember not just where they are, but that they even exist! (Unless the item involves chocolate, in which case it will, unfortunately, be continually front and center in my thoughts).

We were walking through Costco the other day when I first spotted a great shelving unit. It seemed like just the thing my craft room/work space needed. I was tired of having to crawl around on the floor to find the exact jewelry supply container I needed. And the stacking plastic drawer units I was accumulating were starting to list from excessive weight. So we loaded the heavy carton into our shopping cart, continued down the aisle, and came to a stunned stop in front of the most amazing organizing unit I had ever seen.

"Can you believe this?" I asked my husband/partner. "If I had this, I'd reach a level of organization I have never known before." Everything would be in one place, visible, accessible. And my little craft room would be less cluttered, with fewer pieces of storage necessary.

After looking it over from top to bottom, we decided to go for it. We put back the boring shelving unit and instead, lugged the big box with my new super duper organization tool home.

It took a few hours to assemble, and then the fun began. Deciding what to put where was just as much fun as emptying out all the little storage bins that cluttered my craft room. The unit is made by Whalen Storage and is called a Multi-Size Bin Rack with Wire Deck and Melamine Top (in Black Wrinkle finish), and you can read more about it here. 

Check out the just opened box, and the shining end result. Organization never felt so good.

        

Not Exactly Wash 'n Wear

I had a totally different idea for today's blog entry, until I received an unexpected return. My friend Terrilynn brought me a glass tile pendant I had made for her of her sweet dog, Isaac. Without realizing it, she had tossed her clothes, along with the necklace, into the washing machine. It wasn't until she took her clothes out of the dryer that she found the necklace. 

She found the pendant part, with Isaac's adorable face, still in the washing machine. To her delight (and mine!), the pendant was intact, amazingly making it through the wash with nothing other than the paper backing and bail coming off. (The photo above is the actual pendant and necklace, after the laundry ordeal.)

I was amazed that the photo stayed nearly perfectly intact, and did not detach from the glass tile. While I never advise getting your pendants wet, under any circumstances, it was a nice surprise to see the strength of the Judikins Diamond Glaze in action. 

The pendant will be fairly easy to repair (I'll just glue another paper backing on, then reattach the bail). And Isaac can once again secure his place next to his Mommy's heart. :-)

What Makes a Style Distinctive?

When I was an art major in college, there was another art major I knew who had the most distinctive style I had ever seen. While the rest of us were creating what was assigned, in the manner in which it was assigned, he had a creative style that permeated everything he did. You could identify his paintings a mile away (well, maybe not a MILE). I was always impressed by that.

So today, when I read this post on Indie Public about Pantone's recently released Spring Color Trends forecast, and found Natasha Newton's beautiful work, it got me thinking about this again. What really makes a style unique? And couldn't color be one of the most powerful distinctions in creativity?

Natasha Newton has everything you would expect in an accomplished and note-worthy painter----beautiful compositions, emotional content and technical prowess. But what really struck me about her work was her color palette. Her use of color is consistent and sets such a particular mood for all her work. While the subject matter is near universal (trees, landscapes, birds), and her stylized simplicity is not ground-breaking, it's that sultry, smokey neutral palette that acts as the cherry on top.

(The stunning colors in my Whiskey's eyes. :-)

So rather than pop on the latest "in" colors....maybe there's something to be said for finding your own palette...and sticking to it.