5 things I learned this summer } Home Creative Design Riffa

5 things I learned this summer } Home Creative Design Riffa

rifakhasanah   March 27, 2017   Comment  

I should make huge apologies for stalling my blogging over the last couple of months, but I have a letter from ... the artist.  I spent most of June, July and August at my summer house without access to the internet except through my phone. Blogging uses data.

 If you follow me on Designing Home you know my life is very cyclical.  I have to find time for two careers- interior decorating and art.  I often flip my attention for blocks of time, and traditionally summer is  art time. I allow my decor business to match my summer speed. It doesn't hurt to be unavailable!

 I'm finding it difficult to accept summer has dwindled into fall.   That doesn't mean I don't make art the rest of the year; I just have to share my time with business. But those summers are important for the rest of the year when you take time to reflect.  I found out that:

Nature fuels creativity

 

A long summer, spent on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean with whales breaching and ice bergs slowly drifting, begs you to slow down.

 

  Contemplation leads to renewal as you allow your mind to follow the rhythms of nature.  When you  relax  this wonderful feeling of "anything is possible" descends. You make new connections, have creative thoughts, and appreciate  your lot in life.  Even the small things, usually ignored, are suddenly worthy of comment.

There's new life in old things

 

 I love to see old houses on their last legs getting attention, and those that don't eventually fall down.  It is in this debris,  that I found inspiration for new work.

 

 What began quietly at the end of last summer has blossomed into a whole new series of  work this year and an exhibition in 2016.

Yes, I've taken over that holy of holies- the shed - as my studio.  Move over Don, I've arrived. Good thing I learned  how to use all the necessary tools years ago. I can make that band saw sing.

Nature provides the best colour schemes 

 

 

My  colour sensibilities are heightened every summer because I am so immersed in nature.  I see coastal colours in my colour schemes in both art and decorating. It's as if I am storing up the feelings of summer in the the palette of my surroundings. 

Know when to stop

Usually for a month each summer we trip around Europe with friends.  This summer we decided to stay put as they went off to China!  Yes, we traded China for a summer "around the bay" in a little harbour with a population of 30+.  I'm so glad I listened to my body.

 There are many kinds of artists

Past lives intersect in small communities where you know everyone and everyone knows you.  Our friends, The Mahoneys, who live in the next community,  have a lovely garden.  I featured it in my last post as proof that many people do not realize how talented they truly are.


What were your summer revelations?

What a coat of paint can do!

What a coat of paint can do!

rifakhasanah   August 24, 2012   Comment  

I love eclectic pieces of furniture rather than matched when I decorate my own home. Sometimes I paint these finds and other times  I strip the original finish and create a custom wash . 

  We recently had to replace this green washed oak  dresser in our summer house when we relocated  it  to our newly renovated master bedroom  in town (that will be another post).

We bought this gem  at  Habitat for Humanities Restore for $20 dollars when it passed my husband's structural integrity test being  pronounced solid and square with good sliding drawers. Sometimes being married to a wood worker can become tiresome.  I liked it  because it had great lines. 

 The walls of this bedroom have been  Ben Moore Revere Pewter for ten years.    I wanted the ocean view  to be the focal point so I choose a colour for the dresser  that was just a little darker than the walls.

  I sanded liberally and primed with Ben Moore Advance Primer.  The colour is  Ben Moore CSP upper west side (Aura). I love this gray as much as I love Revere Pewter.  I think Revere Pewter is the perfect gray so that is quite a standard to match. I'm still debating painting the legs. They blend in with the floor and the tips are gold.  My current feeling is leave them because gray would accentuate the gold tips.

I have to admit that the knobs and handles  purchased at Home Depot cost 4 times the price of the dresser, but they were a must to keep the mid century modern feel of the piece.