300 PLATES

This Thursday Art Access Gallery is having their annual 300 Plates Fundraiser and Exhibition.  I was able to create 2 pieces for the show. They were created as a diptych entitled Resilience and Illumination. If you are interested in viewing them in the gallery, please visit Art Access this week, Monday May 11-Thursday May 14. The gallery is located at 230 South 500 West in Salt Lake City. It is open from 9-5. 

2 YEAR WOODLAND PHOTOS

Last year I began the tradition of taking photos each year on my son's birthday. On his first birthday we included 1 balloon in each of his pictures for his first birthday. This year we included two balloons (until they inevitably flew away) for my little two year old boy. 

I wanted a woodland inspired photo shoot this year and I couldn't have been happier with the location. If you are a Utah photographer message me and I will share it with you! The light was great and the old train tracks added a great depth to the photographs. I also love my new Florabella Photoshop actions. Can I just say, Wow!

THESE TWO

I really don't have much to say except that I love these two people so much. And I love this picture.

Every once in  awhile you get those "my life is perfect" moments and this just about sums it up for me. I am so happy for the joy that these two boys bring to my life. Justin is a wonderful father and husband and Holden is the sweetest little boy with a joy for learning and a caring heart. I couldn't be more blessed.

THRIFTED MEDICINE CABINET UPCYCLE

Today I wanted to share with you one of my favorite hobbies, thrifting! I am always amazed at the types of things you can find and it's a wonderful way to reduce waste by reusing something. I love finding items with alot of character and of course chippy paint.

I didn't make any changes to the outside because I loved it just how it was. I did add some paper liner to the inside so that when I opened it there was a pop of color! (I also tried to pick a color that would tie it into my bedroom decor). I love the vintage vibe of this scrapbook paper, it really pulls together the whole idea of thrifting.

I am using the medicine cabinet to hold my nail polish. It was the perfect find- practical and pretty.

PHOTO TO FRAME: OCTOBER EDITION

We are officially over half-way through October. Fall is here, so are the pumpkins, and it's time to get those cute pumpkin patch photos! Am I right?

Here is your inspiration for today:

Since my little guy is such a cutie (sorry, mamas have the right to brag) I thought the before picture was pretty great. But with a few quick steps I got it frame worthy in about 10 minutes flat!

1. CROPPING is a must. Try to zoom right in on the good stuff. I made sure I eliminated the path on the left hand side because it draws your eye out of the picture.

2. I almost always SHARPEN my pictures using these Photoshop steps: Filter- Sharpen- Unsharp Mask and these are my go-to settings for portraits: Amount-500, Radius- .2, Threshold-2. And bam! there it is, sharp as ever.

3. My ACTIONS have been speeding things up lately. I used the Pioneer Woman Action Set 2 "Warmer". I love this action because it doesn't change much except it really brightens the photo and makes it appear warm and inviting. You can find the Pioneer Woman Actions here, and I have to say I love all of her actions.

Thanks for stopping by! Have fun getting some fall photos with your little ones and feel free to contact me if you need any help editing!

GALLERY WALL STYLE

Gallery walls have been on the scene for a while now. But sometimes finding just the right arrangement takes time. When we first moved into our home almost 2 years ago I had only 2 of these 6 pieces in my collection. I knew that I wanted to fill in the wall around my television to take away some of the focus from the tv, and I new I wanted a very "art centered" collection, without family photographs or monograms, not because I don't like those, but because they are featured in other parts of my home. 

Over the next year I acquired 2 more pieces, one as a gift from my grandfather, which was done by him years ago, and one at an art fair. With 4 pieces that fit together well I decided to look through my portfolio and find 2 more pieces that would really make the collection pop! I decided that by sticking with the same medium for both I could make the wall look very cohesive. I have a large collection of linocut prints from a class that I took as part of my BFA program and I pulled pieces from those. 

The top left -"Uprising"-and bottom right pieces -"Relief Print 4" are the 2 that I chose, and I decided to frame them differently in chunky black frames to bring solidity to the collection. I am really happy with how my wall turned out. If  you are looking for original art pieces without a huge price tag my prints fit the bill! I have many to choose from to fill in your gallery wall just the way you want. 

Please feel free to visit my Etsy shop by clicking this link!

GLUTEN FREE, DAIRY FREE & CARE FREE (YA RIGHT!)

For most of my adult life I have dealt with extreme stomach aches. A lot of my troubles began in my Senior Year of High School and continued for several months until my first semester of college. I didn't know why I felt so sick and why I couldn't eat almost anything without feeling sick to my stomach. I began losing a lot of weight and we started going to doctors. We saw several Gastroenterologists and there were varying degrees of input such as: eat more fiber (what?), an intestinal parasite, and IBS. But unfortunately no one was able to give any advice on how to deal with my stomach issues. Several years later as a Junior I started having similar symptoms. We had more tests done and saw more doctors all with the same outcome.

About a year ago my symptoms started up again. I had recently had a baby and had heard that some women develop lactose intolerance as a result of pregnancy. I immediately cut dairy from my diet. This helped quite a bit but didn't solve the whole problem. I knew there was still something I was eating that was making me sick. I kept a food diary and it was very inconclusive- why would a salad make me sick while french fries didn't? It just didn't add up. 

I needed to see someone ANYONE who could offer any advice. I made an appointment with a new Gastroenterologist and hoped for the best. I couldn't take another disengaged doctor who didn't care about my problems and would just write it off as IBS and offer no additional help. My new doctor was incredible! She listened to my problems gave me options about treatment and diagnosed IBS. At first I was skeptical (other doctors had diagnosed IBS and said it was a mental issue, and there wasn't much to do but endure it.) But this doctor had a plan. She gave me a pamphlet on the FODMAP Diet (learn more here), which contained a list of foods that are triggers for IBS attacks, something I had looked for for years. It was a long list. After leaving that appointment I felt enlightened but also overwhelmed. Looking at my list I could see there were a lot of changes that I had to make, and honestly I felt like freaking out. I felt like I would have to discard the last 4 years of work that I have spent collecting delicious, money-conscious and easy recipes. 

I have spent the last month completely overhauling my diet. Going gluten free, dairy free cutting out fruits and vegetables and other things that are part of the FODMAP Diet. And I feel great! The hard work has been worth it, but it has been and will be HARD WORK. I am constantly trying out recipes and looking for resources to share on this blog. Next week we will be talking more about the FODMAP Diet. If you are part of the gluten free, dairy free, bean free, high fructose corn syrup free band wagon please follow along on this journey with me and feel free to share your experiences!