Feeling Creative ...

I am a creative person. As a child I was always doing crafts and using my imagination in any way possible. I am still that way but now my creativity manifests itself differently - usually in the kitchen and in the form of a D.I.Y. project. As much as I love doing creative things I feel like I don't get to do them enough! My dream would be to have a job where I would get to challenge myself creatively everyday. 

I have found the time to do something creative that I have been meaning to do for a while - TAKE AN ART CLASS! I would not say that I am artistic and am not sure if I really have much talent when it comes to painting and drawing but I figured I'd go out of my comfort zone and sign up for a class. My brother is quite a talented artist and I have always wondered what my capabilities are in this area. Unlike some of you, I never took art in high school and have no idea of what I am capable of. 

Despite feeling nervous I headed to my first class this past Saturday. The focus of the class was to learn how to draw faces - where to shade and proportions. I really learned a lot and am happy with what I drew (I still need to work on it). I don't think what I drew looks at all like the model in the magazine but it was a good effort! Prior to this class, I likely would have put the model's eyes way to close too her skull! 

I really enjoyed my class and am anxious to go back this week. I was so inspired to do something creative, I headed to The Paper Place to browse and buy some materials for a project I had in mind. 

I headed home and spent the rest of the afternoon on creative projects. Since I tend to have a racing mind and am always thinking of the million things I need to do/would like to get done I feel that having a creative outlet is vital to my well-being. It helps me relax and tune out. I love it!! 

What your favourite way to release your creativity?

D.I.Y. Framed Paper

I never thought of paper an anything that special until I stumbled upon The Paper Place a few years ago. The store is located in Toronto's Queen West neighbourhood and has a zillion kinds of paper and basically anything you can think of related to stationary. I often pop by there and flip though their prints for D.I.Y. projects which have included using transparent paper to cover lights and framed paper as wall art.

This past weeknd I took my mother there to pick out some prints for her bathroom. Here are some of the blue prints she chose:

I used Ikea Nyttja frames and put them in her bathroom...

I am in the process of putting up some framed purple prints in her bedroom...

I couldn't decide what to put above my headboard for the longest time and framed paper turned out to be a good option. I chose dark purple prints to compliment my LILAC (big surprise lol!) bedspread. Check out these beautiful purple prints in Ikea Ribba frames that I put up this past fall. I love looking at them!

What do you think?