Never Stop Improving

The marketing team behind Lowe's stores recent tagline "Never Stop Improving" deserve a bonus...and extra vacation time...in a pristine high-end resort...with umbrella laden drinks and fanning assistants.  It's just plain brilliant.  The tagline itself is actually rather generic and applicable to a myriad of situations (recall Nike's longtime "Just Do It" campaign?), but it tugs so strongly at the heart of every true do-it-yourselfer that you want to march yourself straight into a Lowe's and fill a cart with material courage to transform your spaces into the stuff of dreams.  It's like telling a shoe addict to "Never Stop Accessorizing"...it only fuels the fire.

While I have often categorized myself as a shoe addict, I never thought of myself as a do-it-yourselfer until a twist of fate (or act of God, as we see it) plucked me and my young family from our urban existence and plopped us into the rural countryside of Southern Oregon.  At the time, my husband and I had been married for a little over two years and carried a three month old bouncing baby boy in our arms.  When we married in June 2003, I understood full well that we would most likely move at least two or three times throughout the duration of my husband's career as a military Fighter Pilot.  And our first move was ironically from my hometown to his, as we were transferred to the military base he grew up at with his family when his father served in the Air National Guard.  Thankfully, my husband knew the area, but to me everything was as unfamiliar as stepping through the looking glass.  Yes, the landscape was extraordinarily beautiful, but I didn't know a soul and was navigating through the newborn phase, all while living among boxes and searching for a new home in a rural community.

We happened upon a diamond-in-the-rough in a tiny outlying town of 700 residents: a farmhouse on 5 acres built in 1936, unoccupied for the past six months.  The little community was first settled in September 1909 by Czech immigrants who named the town after their former home.  (Descendants of original settlers still maintain many farms and continue to build up the community.  A rich heritage indeed!)  We were intrigued and infatuated with the house.  But we didn't have a clue what we were diving into.  Over the past 6 plus years, we've had a front row seat to the renovation of our beloved farmhouse...and a restoration of our faith in the power of community, self-reliance, patience, penny-pinching, farm fresh eggs and the love of family.

{Photo by Kelly Armijo of Armijo Designs, featured in House of Fifty Winter/Spring 2012 Issue}

Last year, I received an invitation from Janell Beals, author of the wonderful blog Isabella and Max Rooms and also editor of new online design magazine House of Fifty, to write an article for the magazine about the changes I saw in ourselves and our house throughout the renovation (which is far from over, by the way).  I was tickled pink to receive such an honor, but daunted nonetheless by the task of summing up just how this experience has and continues to impact our lives.  While gathering my thoughts, I knew I wanted to convey to the reader the importance of being content with your life and all it's subtle and not-so-subtle nuances...to "Love the Life you Have" and appreciate your unique blessings.

{Find the article and the current issue here!}

{The House of Fifty app for iPad can also be purchased through iTunes!}

After the article and it's accompanying photos had wrapped and were being prepared for placement in the Winter/Spring 2012 issue, I spied a commercial for Lowe's introducing their "Never Stop Improving" campaign...and everything seemed to come full circle.  What continues to drive me to appreciate my home and unique life is the desire to make situations better for my family...to never stop improving.  This is at the core of every project created by any man, woman and child around the globe.  I'll say it again...that Lowe's team is brilliant, and our family may be inadvertently responsible for financing their campaign through the past six years of improving.

***********

A little retrospective of a few of our changes throughout the years...

Breakfast Nook

{Before}

{After}

{Before}

{After}

Guest Bathroom

{Handsome Hubby hard at work...demolishing!}

{Before}

{After}

{Before}

{After}

Living Room

{Before}

{After - Now to hide those unsightly electronics cords!! Cue next project.}

{Before - Popcorn ceiling that had to be hand-scraped off...eek!}

{After - No more popcorn ceiling and new life to an old door.}

Daughter's Nursery

(Once a tiny strangely shaped room across from the Master Bedroom)

{Before - The only surviving picture of an entire room of wood paneling...scary.}

{After - Chandelier from Lowe's!}

***********

And something to sum it all up from the very beginning...

One month after purchasing our house in 2005.

{Ah, it says so much without saying a word! }

Christmas Wishes

It is such a treat to see Christmas through the eyes of my young children; filled with wonderment, delight, curiosity and faith.  My son is 6 and my daughter is nearly 3 (in two weeks), and to say they are excited for tomorrow would be an understatement.  It's more like they are so full of anticipation, they could burst at any moment!  I've always loved Christmas, but I feel a more invigorated appreciation this year because they have jumped into Christmas with both feet...like a cannonball dive into a cool Summer pool.

This season, more than Christmases past, my son is fascinated by Santa and his work.  He wants to know all the details of Christmas Eve, the delivery system, precisely how many cookies to leave on the plate, if the Santa in my Christmas show was the same Santa at the military children's Christmas party ("Is he the REAL Santa?") and so on and so forth.  He's convinced he is going to stay up "all night" tonight to hand-deliver Santa his cookies and milk.  Personally, I think he also wants to take advantage of one last opportunity to be sure Santa got it right with his gift.  He's such a little negotiator.  A few weeks ago, he wasn't convinced that sitting on Santa's lap was the best way to share his list, so I suggested he write a letter...like I once did.

While in beautiful Denver last week to perform with the Denver Philharmonic Orchestra, I popped into a cute little boutique appropriately named I Heart Denver.  It carries only handmade goods from local artisans, like Etsy with four walls...fantastic!  Within this adorable boutique, I stumbled upon quite possibly the cutest idea ever: the Letter to Santa Sack by Paper Plates Press.  Not only did the sack contain a beautifully letterpressed notecard and envelope, but three gorgeous gift tags and a tiny thank you card from the Jolly One himself.  Sheer perfection.  Recalling the thrill in my son's voice when he responded to the idea of writing a letter to Santa for the first time, I snapped up the sack and promptly paid...with a smile on my face and the joy of Christmas warming my heart.  I knew he'd be over-the-moon with excitement!

Sure enough, as soon as I pulled the Letter to Santa Sack out of my suitcase, my son ran to the dining room table to pen his letter.  In my opinion, first grade writing skills are just the ingredient for a perfect letter to Santa!

Rather than mailing the letter, we placed it near our stockings for Santa to see tonight...which also gives Santa the perfect opportunity to leave the little thank you note in its place (wink, wink).

Thank you Paper Plates Press for creating such a delightful little gift!  The memory of his first letter to Santa will be cherished for many years to come...as will the twinkle in my childrens' eyes as they experience Christmas this year.  The twinkle in mine will be a little brighter because of them, and because the radiance of a star atop Bethlehem announced the birth of Jesus Christ so long ago...giving us the real reason to celebrate.

Merry Christmas, from our family to yours!

Photographs and Card Design by Kelly Armijo of Armijo Designs

So Very Thankful

The Truth about Gratitude

For the past eight years, I've felt immensely blessed to serve as a media ambassador and spokesperson for Portland Rescue Mission, a tremendously well-run organization in Portland, Oregon that serves not only the city's homeless, but men, women and children in desperate need of total life transformation.  On November 3rd, I served as emcee for PRM's Annual Celebration Banquet, beautifully titled "Voice of Truth."  Together with hundreds of supporters, staff members, graduates of their New Life Recovery program and those currently engaged in the program, I witnessed an evening brimming with messages of hope.  These messages were very difficult to process at first, as the stories of those served by the Mission were startlingly fraught with despair, addiction, abuse, neglect and broken relationships.  But as each new word flowed from members of the recovery program's point of change (soon after entering the program), positive affirmations sprouted like buds on a fruit tree: "I know I am loved." "I matter." "I can face each day with the hope of a better tomorrow."  Brave graduates also shared how those encouraging words soon blossomed into truths - those that drive thoughts and actions every minute of every day, radically changing the course of a person's life - bearing fruit to restore relationships, break addictions and illuminate hope.

As I interviewed program graduates onstage, hugged them backstage and continued to share more stories of transformation with the audience, I was struck by the importance truth plays in all our lives.  While I have not experienced homelessness firsthand, I have known pain, loss and despair...as have we all.  There is a very fine line separating haves and have-nots, often dictated by circumstances beyond our control: a truth we cannot and should not ignore.  What constitutes a life of purpose and substance is gratitude, though.  Each graduate radiated gratitude with such a wattage I've only previously observed by fireworks and my husband's attempts at Christmas light displays...magnetic in its attraction.  So much so that you can't look away, but only stare in wonderment.  

On the eve of Thanksgiving, I find myself thinking back to their gratitude and praying to be a person worthy of all the blessings God has bestowed in my life...especially to be front-and-center to such life-affirming evenings as November 3rd.  I am more grateful than I can adequately express for my family and those who have given so much to us over the years.  I am so very grateful for my husband's military service and his brothers and sisters in arms who dedicate their lives to the safety and solidarity of our country.  I am also grateful for reminders - tuggings of the heart - of that which is good and right and hopeful about the life we are each given.  To be fulfilled, we must be grateful for the One who gives us life and the ability He has given us to serve others.  This is a truth I absolutely, without a doubt, know is ripe for the picking.

Fruitful Life

In the spirit of gratitude and "ripe fruit," my family started a new tradition - albeit a very simple one.  We attempted a new and nourishing Fall treat with the acorn squash so prevalent in our area.  What was once a neglected item in our garden (feared by some and loathed by others), was plucked and primed for new life.  I am a fan of TV's toughest trainer Jillian Michaels, whose website is overflowing with wonderful tips for healthy living.  One of her featured recipes transforms acorn squash from an (and I quote) "icky orange thing" to a deliciously sweet and satisfying meal topper.  (*Side note: I can feel the eye-rolling from those of you who have been longtime fans of squash...I know, I know.  My family and I judged this delectable vegetable too harshly far too long...forgive us.  We are ever evolving, I confess.)  

Her recipe first called for the halving and scooping of each acorn squash.  The halves were then placed (scooped side down) in a thin pool of water in a shallow baking pan.  While they baked in a 350 degree oven for 50 minutes, I combined butter, pecans, brown sugar, cinnamon and ginger in a saucepan and let it simmer into a fabulously smelling mixture, filling our home with the alluring aroma of Fall.  Once the squash was fully cooked and wonderfully soft, each was filled with the warm pecan mixture and enjoyed to the last bite.

This was our way of giving thanks for the blessings we too often neglect or castoff because we don't quite know how to conceptualize them...a wonderful reminder, yet again, of how gratitude can bear hope in a life well lived and loved.

And how were my children giving thanks for their blessings while I was slaving over the stove?  The squeals of delight in simply being beautifully silly while sister pushed brother in her doll stroller were expression enough!  I am grateful they have the freedom to be children and the desire to make each other (and their parents) laugh.  Ah, to be young!

Philippians 4:6 (NIV)

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."

This Thanksgiving I urge us all to share our gratitude with those around us who have petitioned on our behalf for the life we are all so blessed to live...our loved ones, our military and our community leaders - those that hold our needs in high esteem - and our loving Creator, who gives us hope and provides us with truth each and every day.

Making Faces

When Domino magazine featured a glorious pop-art living room by designer Thomas Paul in it's April 2006 issue, I was fascinated by the silhouette art grouped on one of the room's walls.  It was so simple, yet so stylish.  I loved how a centuries-old art form could so brilliantly complement such a modern aesthetic.  From that moment, I was determined to incorporate meaningful silhouettes into my personal designs. (And save every single issue of Domino magazine henceforth!)

Traditionally, silhouette art is cut by hand and dates back to early 17th century France.  Artists were hired to create hand-cut profile portraits of nobility and guests of the court.  In 1759, the French Minister of Finance, Etienne de Silhouette, took such a liking to the art form that he adopted it as his official pastime and his name was thereby stamped on the practice forever.  Silhouettes worked their way west in the 18th century and have been a means of capturing profiles and imaginations throughout generations.

As it so happens, the aforementioned (fabulous) issue of Domino offered a special deal on custom works by master silhouette artist Karl Johnson.  I promptly placed my order for a silhouette of my son who was one year old at the time.  I simply submitted a profile photo to Karl via email and he created a neatly cut silhouette from the photo.  A few weeks later, I nearly cried when I opened the small envelope from Karl...he had captured my son's profile perfectly.  A true treasure.

{The wonderful offer from Domino Mag and the beautiful hand-cut silhouette of my son by Karl.}

{Karl working his magic at a wedding featured in Martha Stewart Weddings!}

Silhouettes add such personality to a space.  I recently purchased a set of two velvet-tufted curved back chairs from Gypsy Soul, a cute little boutique in Bend, Oregon.  In an effort to re-design my living room (more on that later), I wanted the chairs to lend a feminine air to the quite masculine decor we already use in the space.  Let's just say, I'm going for "lodge chic"...when Northwest lodge style marries updated French Country.  (This is where my husband throws his head back and laughs.)  It's a work in progress.  I loved how black and white seemed to pop against the chairs, especially once the chairs were combined with a large gilded mirror and campaign table.  The graphic statement was a nice juxtaposition to the curved lines and distressing on each piece.  So I decided to make a striped pillow for one chair and breathe new life into a tiny footstool found at a local antiques shop by adding a silhouette image of our beloved black lab, Shadow.

{A time-worn vintage stool in need of a makeover.}

{Hooray! A new life!}

Similar to what Karl had done, but in a digital sense, I took a profile photo of Shadow and created a silhouette image by increasing the contrast in the photo until only a black outline image remained.  I cleaned it up a bit to be sure I had smooth lines and a solid image.  I then screen-printed the image onto black canvas fabric, also hand painting portions of the image to give it a textural quality.  It was very simple to pop the top off the stool and recover it with batting and my silhouette art, securing the new fabric with a staple gun.  I spray painted the stool's wooden base a glossy black before affixing the newly covered top with screws.  We now have a meaningful piece of furniture/art to display in our living room, and I'm over-the-moon with how it compliments our existing pieces.

 

There are so many wonderful ways you too can incorporate silhouettes into your style!

Some of my favorites:

{A brilliant headboard idea from HGTV!  A silhouette and chalkboard paint add tremendous style to this diy project.  I'm already planning to try this in my daughter's room!}

{Only Martha Stewart could whip up a cookie this cute!}

{Have your child's silhouette hand painted onto an oval canvas by Veronica at Le Petit Enfants.  

These two are of my children and I was delighted with Veronica's work!}

{For the bibliophile with a crush on Jane Austen, from my own line, Ma Chère Finery.}

{A lovely way to wear your devotion: custom silhouettes on a necklace. Made by Kerstin at Crafted by Kerstin.}

{Guests leave their thumbprints as balloons on this wonderfully creative commemorative wedding poster.  Custom made by Angela at Simply Silhouettes Weddings.}

{Angela is at it again with these fabulous customizable silhouette Christmas cards and tray! Made by Angela at Simply Silhouettes Holiday Shop.}

{This pair would look perfect on an old farmtable, or a shiny galvanized one for cool contrast! Made by Alyssa at BROOKLYNrehab.}

{Tote in style with this brilliant bag by Jimmy K Designs.}

{Country Living Magazine shares how a workspace and fireplace can be accented with silhouettes. Gorgeous!}