Jen Bowles Design

Happy Pinning or Pin Happy?!

Are you familiar with Pinterest?

If not, here's an explantion directly from the source:

Think of Pinterest as a virtual pinboard — a place where you can create collections of things you love and "follow" collections created by people with great taste.

People use Pinterest to collect and share all sorts of things -- wedding inspiration, favorite T-shirts, DJ equipment. You name it, people are pinning it.

We know you have great taste in something. Our mission is to make Pinterest the best place for you to share your taste with the world.

I first heard about Pinterest a few months ago on twitter.  I took a quick peek but decided not to delve in.  First there was the matter of needing an invitation.  Then there was the matter of already having several online social media sites to interact with.  Hello flickr, tumblr, my photo a day tumblr??  Not to mention my semi-neglected blog ☺.

Then I received an invite from my friend Candy (of Candy Howard Photography).

It was all over.

At this point, I'm pinning more than a bunch 4 yr. olds at a birthday party (4 yr. olds that are playing Pin the Tail on the Donkey...).

Wait, did I say Party?  I have a board for that.

Also beginning with the letter P, polka dots.  I have a board for that.

I love flowers and am longing for spring.  Beautiful Blooms?  I have a board for that.

My favorite board has to do with the beach (shocking!):  Sea of Love.

I have a board with Inspiration for Creating and Home Inspiration.  21 boards in all, with more being added all the time ☺

Really, the possibilities for boards are endless.  And inspiring.  And delightful.

One of the great things about Pinterest is that each pin links back to the original source (!).  No more uncredited photos or forgetting where you saw a great idea.  And of course there's seemingly unlimited inspiration and eye candy!

So, c'mon along and feel free to follow me on Pinterest.  If you're not on Pinterest and you'd like to be, no problem.  Just leave a comment or send me an email and I'll hook you up with an invite.

Happy Pinning!

Art Journal update

Hope you're enjoying the holiday weekend (and start of school vacation week...).  We had a light dusting of snow this morning and then dragged took the kids to the beach for a nature walk in the cold, bracing wind.  We did reward them with lunch.  At a restaurant.  Inside.

I've been working away in my art journal/Moleskine and have a few pages to share.

Just Go For It   

(fuzzy goat cut from vintage children's storybook)

Early Spring Beauty

 

Build A Nest   

(some text cut from a swap pile copy of Make Way for Ducklings)

 

Cheerio, Office Mates!    

 

Sailor's Song

(mermaid illustration cut from another swap pile book)

Start Fresh

(illustration cut from a magazine, silverware is rubber stamped)

Kite

Let Them Eat Cake     

Pikachu: a cooperative page with Cuyler ☺    

 

My book (that I started in 2008...) is filling up!  My goal is to have the entire book completed by the end of February.  One little trick to help me reach my goal: gluing the pages together.  Mostly for stability, with the side benefit of there being fewer of those sturdier pages.

Wishing for Spring...

 

 

MIxed media elephant collage

I've been trying to do more creating down in my studio, more playing.  To that end, a few weeks ago I whipped out my Kelly Rae Roberts book, Taking Flight and decided to actually do one of the projects.

Of course my project turned out much differently than Kelly's project in the book.  I did find it very helpful to build up the background of my piece per the instructions.  However, when it came time to draw a girl and make a plaster covered heart, I veered off☺.  From what I know of KRR from her blog, I'm pretty sure she wouldn't mind at all--and in fact that was probably her intention all along.  To get artists to play with their materials, learn techniques and make the finished product their own.

I daresay, mission accomplished.

Introducing 'When Zooville Met Farmville'

Yes, I cut those words and letters out of a thrifted book.  Several in fact.

The butterflies are punched with a Martha Stewart punch.

The animals and the farmer are illustrations from a vintage children's book that I casually pulled out of one of my neighbor's recycling bins.  He's an older gentleman and there was a stack of vintage Whitman children's books along with several paperback volumes in Italian.  In his recycling bin.  At the curb.  I had to save them.

The inspiration for the elephant came from a drawing in my sketchbook that was inspired by Polly Dunbar's illustrations in Down the Back of the Chair.  The idea for the butterflies coming out of the elephants trunk came from the children's game Elefun.  Obviously.

The title idea came from the illustrations and watching my husband play Farmville constantly on his iPad. 

Personally I think 'When Zooville Met Farmville' would be a great app.  Right? ;-)

{Handmade} Valentine Cards

Creating handmade Valentines was on my to-do list for 2011.  I'd been looking around online and at my materials for inspiration for over a week.  I finally started working last Wednesday.  My first batch of 4 cards was cute:  layered with doilies, tulle and various pre-made elements and handcut letters.

Then I took a peek in my sketchbook.  I was overtaken with a wave of Valentine inspiration.  The result?  This bunch of hand drawn, hand colored Valentine cards.

Cupcakes, sweet  

Sailing  

Tea and Cupcakes

Tea for two, my favorite.    

Until I made Be Mine, my new favorite.  

Happy Valentine's Day!

 

Handmade Valentine Signs

A few weeks ago I painted up some Valentine signs using my new favorite black gesso on scrap wood technique (thanks again Jenni of Mattie's Social Circle).  I was going to try to re-launch my Jen Bowles Design etsy shop for Valentine's Day but then I re-strategized.

And now the signs are happily hanging on my wall.  And door.  And doorknob.

Be Mine  

Love You   

xoxo        

I'm loving the texture and character with this technique along with the fact that I'm reusing materials (scrap plywood) from our basement project. 

Yay for creative recycling!

 

Still Life for a Monday

I've been practicing using my camera in manual mode.  Just a little bit.  Dipping my toe in.

I recently booked a one-on-one  workshop with my favorite lifestyle photographer, Miss Candy Howard. Early April in Charlotte?  Yes, please!  Miss Candy and I taught co-taught at a local preschool in Davidson, NC for one magical year in 2006 and it's been way too long since I've seen her.  I'm pretty sure I'm going to be able to convince her that we should be shooting cupcakes during our workshop ☺. 

I know we'll be eating a few when we're done!

 

Flashback Friday: Dinner on the Harbor Terrace

It's cold, there's about 3 feet of snow that won't melt on the ground and our driveway is covered in ice.

Sound familiar?

Winter, I'm sorry, but I'm done with you.  However, since I won't be jetting off on a tropical vacation any time soon, I figured I'd do the next best thing:  post pictures from last summer.  Maybe it will help warm me up.

One evening last August, my mom and I were invited to share a meal on our friend Pam's beautiful terrace.

Pam is an interior designer and has exquisite taste.  Everything she does, she does with flair, glamour and with an eye toward presentation.

The table was beautifully set with MacKenzie-Childs dishes and a Lark Rodriques pottery heart at each placesetting.    

The flowers were lovely and in keeping with the color palette for the evening.

Pam's hydrangea garden was also looking lovely.    

I adore this whimsical teapot garden adornment.

Pam had recently been featured in Southern New England Home magazine.  In fact, that's her work on the cover.   

{You can read more here}

Looking out over the boats on Hingham Harbor, we enjoyed a bountiful selection of appetizers including this mouthwatering shrimp cocktail.   I must say, that looks really good right about now...

When it was time for the main course, we sat down on these beautiful iron chairs.

Dinner was colorful and delicious.

We chatted, we noshed, we laughed.

All too soon the summer night bloomed and it was time to bid farewell.

It was a lovely, relaxing evening full of friendship, pampering and delicious food.

What more could we ask for?

Dreaming of summer...