Gallery Of Travel

It's Friday kids! Hooray!! Yes, we still look forward to Fridays even though we work from a home studio. It's not exactly like going to the office every day...we get to blast Pandora all day while snacking on toasted corn muffins...and we get to take quick breaks to cuddle with the pups. But with the change in seasons and the new house we are really looking forward to warm weather weekends! Big plans for the deck and back porch and fencing in the front yard for the pups! We plan on gathering some odd furniture and planters and some pastel summery paints...and getting to work!

We've been taking late night strolls around our town with my brother Jason and my sis Missy. It's so surreal. I never imagined being back here. It's an old beach town with an amusement park, lots of tiny houses with so much potential, whole neighborhoods full of old bungalows...some almost with a summer camp feel...with little court yards behind them. They used to be just summer rentals but now they're year round residences...and sadly, they're mostly neglected as far as repairs and upkeep. All of these tiny little houses in a row. I dream of buying them up, painting them candy colors...one for me & Aaron...one each for Missy, Jay and Walt.  

So anyway, here we are. Back in the little Jersey Shore town of my youth. Long ago it was a vacation place but now it's where families work and live all year long. And we're one of them. And like I was saying...we work from home...so we kinda get to see more of this place then most residents I guess. That's why we have to make the best of it. Embrace the days and nights...the indoors and the outdoors...the weekdays and the weekends. 

And...speaking of weekends...enough dreaming and planning and thinking...it's Friday Favorites time! 

How about this adorable polka dot teal dress? Love the fluttery ruffle! I've been peeking at it all week...I almost feel like I own it already! It is so on my wishlist!

Adoring these! Gold espadrille wedges...I love those 3 words in one sentence! :) And the price is totally right! 

Ever since I was a tiny girl I've collected gemstones, and crystals, and "shiny rocks". My very first piece was from the Museum of Natural History gift shop!  How can you not feel good looking at or holding them? This particular little piece of magic is Aqua Aura Quartz. I love it!

Take a good look...this is not your everyday ice cream sandwich or as we called them growing up in N.J. "Cartwheels". It is an ottoman! Can you even? How much fun would this be in a livingroom? I love love love it! It is just so fun! Too bad it's a bajillion dollars.  :/

I love these "Wall Dots"! They remind me of giant necco wafers. But shiny, and can be hung on your wall to hold fresh cut flowers! They come in a fabulous array of colors! I'd LOVE to hang some in the livingroom!

Thanks for popping in lovies!

Enjoy your weekend!!

xo Jenny

I am soooo loving this Chip it tool from Sherwin Williams. It is so easy to use...the little how-to video is maybe a minute long. You just click the Chip it tool and drag it to your toolbar. Then with a simple click you can use it on any image. It gives you a reference chart of all the colors that make up the picture. And it conveniently gives you the specific Sherwin Williams paint names and numbers. Right away I started playing around with it on some my fave paintings of ours.   

And for me it's not just some superfluous technological gadget. Making color scales and charts is something I've been doing manually forever. On any of our paintings...either on back, or just outside the frame of the image, you will find little squares of color that we've mixed and painted. These color squares are for us to reference...for whatever reason. A lot of times we'll do a mini collection of paintings...a series. And the color swatches help us to carry over the color theme into the next painting that we're working on. Or if we're using corresponding patterned papers...or painting stripes or polka dots on a frame or a border...the color swatches always come in handy. 

You must give it a try! It's perfect for your latest decorating project. ( Heck, you can take one of your collection of prints from Everyday is a Holiday...Chip it...and then pick paints and fabrics to decorate a whole room around it! ; )  ) Also it's fun to see colors come up that you didn't really realize were an integral part of the image. Anyway...have fun!

xo, Jenny

When we moved into our new home we became roomates with a bird. Moving a bird to a new home that's many hours away could be a very stressful process for the bird. So my parents thought it best to leave him here. There's something about birds in general that steers me away from saying we are "bird owners". Birds are synonymous with freedom. Sure, our little guy lives indoors and we feed him and put him to bed every day...but for the sake of bird rights...let's say that this is exactly where he chooses to be...living here with us.

And if you just look outside for a minute...it wouldn't be too hard to convince you that birds kinda like human company. They're always just outside your window aren't they? And we love the company of birds. We like to hear them sing and see them flit about. They bring us closer to nature and further from our daily stresses. So we repay the favor in the simplest of ways...it's no different for birds than it is for man. The quickest way to their hearts in through their bellys. 

So it goes without saying that I'm a big fan of birdfeeders. Because they're more than the sum of their parts. If we simply want to feed birds we could just throw some stale bread on the lawn. Birdfeeders are much more meaningful. They're charming...to birds and us. Their designs are often either zen like in their simplicity or kitschy, campy and cute. We design them to be ornamental jewels in our little environment. 

They benefit us just as much as the birds. They keep the little guys fed (and safe from ground predators)...and they keep us in the company of birds.