Oh Grow Up... Art ||Flip List Item No.4||

For a few months now, my collection of original abstract artwork has felt...off.  It's like you're trying to copy your mom's crowd-pleasing artichoke dip and yet it just doesn't taste the same when you do it - you feel me?

In an effort to solve this art conundrum, I declared "Grown-Up Abstract Art" as item No.4 on my furniture flip bucket list and began to do some research on what ingredients may be missing from my art collection.  After consulting pinterest, I kept stumbling on some delicious abstract art showcased in gorgeous, minimal floating frames.  

Source: Ellen Dodd

And so my first theory was formed.  I rummaged up some spare wood trim to fashion a make-shift gold frame for one of my smaller pieces, but when I finished it still felt juvenile somehow.  

Using my day off to work on a #furnitureflip #bucketlist item: grow up my artwork. I'm starting by experimenting with #diy modern frames. We'll see where this goes... #abstractart #floatingframe #gold #stylemuttprojects

A photo posted by StyleMutt Cate (@cate_stylemutthome) on Feb 26, 2016 at 11:54am PST

After mulling over it for a little while longer, I began to think that perhaps my portions were off.  I love to paint but I'm no professional artist - when I paint, I can't help myself: I love ALL THE COLORSSSSSS.  But perhaps I need to balance out the generous helpings of bold pops of color with some graphic patterns and white elements like this large piece I painted to help stage the cowprint bench.  [It actually sold at our Pop-Up Shop at Sweet Clover Barn so I never got the chance to mix it into my new abstract art recipe.]   And interestingly enough, despite my obsession with large-scale abstract art, I don't actually have any pieces hanging in our apartment. 

Ok so let's meet the "art ingredients" I do have in stock and let's see if we can mix them together for a winning combo.

Van Gogh's Les Alyscamps

• "Les Ales Camps" - a 3rd Grader made this piece at a school I worked for.  The elementary art program was doing a series on Van Gogh and this young artist was studing Van Gogh's Les Alyscamps (which she mistakenly labeled as "Les Ales Camps" in the top right corner lol.  I loved the playful take so much that I had it printed on a canvas to hang in my office.
• "Unnamed" - this is the largest piece of abstract art I've done and yet I haven't found a place for it.  I think I feel like it would overpower any of our small spaces so I've never hung it in our home.
• "Hadley" - this is the piece I tried to give a floating frame.  I think the proportions are off and I would like it better if the frame were thinner and little daintier.
• "Picasso" - this is another piece I can't take credit for.  I just love this line drawing so much that I traced it on some paper and popped it in a frame - forgive me Pablo P.
• "A Riot of Color [in a dreary world]" - name that movie!  I painted this poppy-inspired piece while watching a Heath Ledger favorite (may he rest in piece).  You may recognize this pop of red from staging this piece here. 

For plating purposes, I've enlisted the help of a fresh flip who'll be heading to his new home in DC soon [I removed the original toe-kick and added tapered legs with the nickle caps cut off and painted the top and sides a glossy white].

Art Recipe No.1:

Playful "Les Ales Camps" with a side of "Picasso" garnished with plant, brass candlesticks and record player served on a Mid-Century Record Console Table with storage for your vintage record collection.

[How cool is that rolling door for space-saving storage?!  And there are four compartments inside with removable vertical dividers.] 

To combat my tendancy to over-saturate with color, my thought here was to pair the two "lighter colored" art pieces on a white-wall background.  The smaller graphic "Picasso" cuts the intensity of the color in "Les Ales Camps" and the record player.

Art Recipe No.2:

A large helping of "Unnamed" abstract with a side of "Picasso" drizzled with candle sticks and a fern for garnish.  Since "Unnamed" is such a powerful flavor, I also tried to soften it with the dainty print and anchor it with a large plant. 

Art Recipe No.3:

Spiced "Riot of Color" and "Hadley" with creamy "Picasso" served with natural elements encased in glass cloches and garnished with a potted fern.

[Look at that gorgeous wood grain in the slats of the console table's rolling front.]

Since I was using two bold paintings, I again employed the "Picasso"print and accented with the airiness of the glass cloches.

[Fun fact: the stand for the raw mineral is just one of my fluted candlesticks turned upside down].

Which recipe hit the spot for you?  Any suggestions on how to make my art collection more flavorful/ refined/ spicy?  Leave your tips in the comments below!

Mid-Century Record Console Table
48"W X 18"D X 29.5"H
SOLD
$525

If you are interested in a custom order like this piece, please contact me at  cate@stylemutthome.com. 

Check in on the progress of this year's furniture flip bucket list:

Reader Design: Lisa's Fashion-Forward Farmhouse

As I promised in my last post, today's reader design is a fun blend of fashion and bold vignettes.  With the life of a jet-setting fashion designer, Lisa's new-found happy place is her countryside home on outskirts of Seattle... I mean, just look at that view!

From Lisa:

I have been designing clothes for over 30 years in the Seattle region...  I have always followed interior design because it is so closely related to fashion and I love creating and advising others to create a unique home! My style is hard to define, but my approach and goal is to make my home a visual "experience" so I think I would call my style "experiential". I love to incorporate my fashion background and travels to evoke a sense of history, function and whimsy!!! (Framed garments are sprinkled around my home!) I want people to enjoy every corner in my home and get a design "fix" when they look around each room....I love it when my friends feel empowered to go home and change things up a bit in their own homes!

Her career has taken her to NYC, LA, Munich, India, Paris, London, Korea, HK, Montreal, Toronto and (Hong Kong 36 times!) - working with sophisticated brands such as Nordstrom's, Cutter & Buck, Annika Sorenstam's Collection by CB, Unionbay Jeans, Eddie Bauer and coat/ outerwear collections for Trina Turk and Pendleton.  Quite the resume I'd say!

We transformed a 1937 farmhouse into our current home. We stripped the house down to the studs [while]... my husband, son and I lived in a duck hunting lodge on our property for 5 months while we renovated this home!  I re-oriented the back door to become the front, with the expert help of an architect. During the warmer months we have hot air balloons floating by my kitchen window regularly! It's a treat to see!

In the Home Office, this mannequin is just "wearing" fabric that I draped and pinned on it ...I love having a pin board to see my lastest inspo ideas and tear sheets...I made the chalkboard from a old ugly print that I painted over, I loved the gold frame. My computer screen is huge so I can design multiple garments and get a big picture view of what the heck I am doing. I tend to get a little lost in my work at times and forget to eat, etc...I have an artist's personality and easily lose track of time!

This would be the office of my dreams Lisa!  A big visual board, comfy/cute chair, and adorably organized desk space... yum.

In the master bedroom, the [featured] artwork is a framed Chanel wool coat from the Paris boutique. I was lucky to buy this at one of our private Nordstrom "design sample" sale...it cost less than a couple lattes...heehee.   This wall was blank for 6 years until one day, I thought, hey, I don't wear that coat very often but I think it would be fun to hang on the wall...the rest is history!  I framed it with a black velvet trim and sprayed a hanger to match (recede to the wall) and voile' art!

Ooohh the perks for being a fashionists!  Tres jealous, Lisa.  But what a great idea to incorporate beloved sentimental pieces into your decor!

In the living room,  I made the coffee table from a wooden crate and thrifted mirror that cost me $5!  I love the natural elements, again on my mantel and the hide rug (a birthday gift from my hubby). Our floors are original to the home (1937) fir, they get "scars" easily as my husband would say...but we both like that well-worn effect, so shoes are welcome on them. 

I wish my hubby would get me a cowhide rug for my birthday *hint hint Caleb*

I hang branches everywhere in my home, I love the graphic quality and the expense!!!  And they are always available on our property, I spray them or paint them with white to freshen them up a bit...after I "de-bug" them of course!!!

For my kitchen island I chose to have in a dark wood finish to make it feel like a focal piece of furniture. I love the book shelves on one end and wine storage on the other. I also have this "thing" for butherblock tops...I LOVE WOOD. I love to polish this island with natural wood oil. My grandfather had an amazing woodworking studio in his basement and I loved to sweep up the saw dust when I was a little girl visiting my grandparents home. Even the smell of wood gets me! I think that's why all my candles are pine or wood scented!  Haha

I made the entry leaning mirror from our last home's bathroom re-model. I salvaged the mirror because it had a beautiful beveled edge and was HUGE....bought a hand saw and miter box, a sheet of plywood for the backing and cut and painted frame by myself. I own all the power tools in our home!!! Haha...

Welcome to the club Lisa ;)

That pheasant feather wall art was based off an actual feather Lisa's husband found at a friend's Montana ranch.  She cleverly printed a photo on architectural vellum and then paints over in acrylic and mounted it on wood to create our favorite faux pull-down chart art.

Thank you so much for inviting us into your home Lisa!  If you are as inspired by Lisa's fashion-forward touches to her home, be sure to follow her on instagram @ellegeestudio for more!

And remember my decor-loving friends, you don't have to be a well-traveled savant or even plumb trend-inclined to have your space featured here and on our Spaces page - just a home you love and your unique point of view.  Tag your pics with #stylemuttspaces on instagram or facebook and we'll contact you for more info.

Reader Design: Amy's Perfect Imperfection

It'sssssssssssssssssssssssss Friday!  And I'm particularly excited about sharing today's reader design because of the heart behind this home in Minneapolis, MN: Amy from Modern Chemistry at Home.  While emailing back and forth with Amy about sharing her style mutt space on the blog, it became very apparent she's a kindred spirit.  Much like us, her desire is to see people encouraged and empowered in their own home decorating.  She too believes that creating is a form of worship.  But like many forms of worship it can be too easy to get caught up in the beauty of what you're creating instead of why you're creating it.  We just love how Amy has made it her mission to embrace her home's imperfections and create a real, raw, and inviting space.

From Amy:

Hello, everybody! My name is Amy, and I really am a style mutt. In fact, my blog (Modern Chemistry at Home) got its name partly because my husband and I have very different tastes and my decorating is something like a chemistry experiment as we merge our styles.

My style perspective has definitely changed over the years. My point of view has developed through having children and learning to think about function just as much as how a space looks. 

I’m definitely drawn to spaces that have a mixture of styles. Some of my favorites include Midcentury and Scandinavian Modern, but I also really enjoy children’s spaces and would seriously put pretty much anything from Land of Nod in my living room or bedroom. 

I love a cheerful room. Natural light, lots of white, fun patterns, and bright colors speak to me. Clearly, my decorating isn’t too serious!

And a big part of my story as we renovated and decorated our fixer-upper is how God worked in my heart to help me be content and understand that my identity is not in how my home looks. Our home is a place to raise our littles, live life together, and bless others through hospitality. It can be beautiful, but perfection isn’t my goal. 

There are quite a few things in our home that I inherited from my grandparents. There is a special joy in decorating with these furnishings. 

GASP!  I must have this entire vignette - especially those bookends!!!!

One of my favorites is the big dresser in our bedroom. My sister-in-law discovered that it is probably an Empire style dresser. The shape is so lovely!

My favorite DIY might be the white bookshelves a friend helped me build. They flank the fireplace in our living room and I just love them so much. It’s satisfying to make something with your own two hands!

Well done Amy - those bookshelves look like they should've come with the house!

And my favorite room is probably the nursery. Again, I enjoy children’s spaces because they are often so bright and cheerful.

Decorating this room helped me develop my style and gain some confidence. So with this room as a sort of guide for how I wanted the rest of our home to feel, I reworked other spaces in my home that didn’t feel right to me. I made a lot of mistakes the first time around! But the process of trial and error can be really enjoyable—in hindsight, after we get it right. ;)

I just love decorating creatively and it is my heart to help and encourage others to do the same.

Thank you Amy for so sweetly inviting us into your perfectly imperfect home.  Follow Amy  @modernchemistryathome for more decor goodies and check out her full home tour on her fabulous website!

You want in on this? Submit to #stylemuttspaces for your chance to be featured in a Friday Reader Design.  No design experience necessarily you just got to love your space and what to share it ;)