Fiber Art for your Walls

Every wall has a story to tell. Are your walls white and empty? Does your current color theory include any shades you didn't even like in the 1970s? Or, maybe your colorful home is ready for a fresh addition? Adding unique art to your walls is a super-quick and satisfying way to wake up your walls. Being brave about adding color to your home can begin with a small leap of faith.

We hear it all the time that adding sparkle to a room's decor is the "cherry on top" when it comes to decorating. The accessorizing phase of decorating can certainly be a lot of fun, but sparkling elements are not required. For instance, wall art does not need to be shiny, under glass, or loud any any way to add the spark your room deserves. Textiles are a great example of a sparkle-worthy item that lends interest, emotional impact, contrast, and style to your home. [Original fiber art wool tapestry, Winter Sunset, 2012, Georgianne Holland.]

As you select wall art made with any artistic medium, keep in mind the 60-30-10 guideline for color in home decor. Your selected dominant color should take up around 60% of your room's space. Choose a secondary color and use it in about 30% of the room. Your pops of color choices can then take up the remaining 10%. These percentages seem to make for rooms that are both well balanced and relaxing. It is even said that keeping the darkest tones near the floor, medium values of your colors on the walls, and the lightest shades near the ceiling of your room also add to the balanced results. [Inspirational room is a Jodi Cook design.]

Once you get the overall colors of the room set up, adding art to the walls becomes an easier task. The overall colors in my home are tans that lean toward gold, a chocolate brown, and a soft robin's egg blue. In individual rooms, I have added interest by decorating walls with some pops of orange, and in other parts of the house, a bright apple green. I have taken my basic scheme from nature (no surprise there, I suppose) and I do use a variety of textile arts in my decor: hand-stitched quilts, a beloved embroidery made by my mom, and needle felted wool in warm earth tones. I love using textiles as decor because they add a warmth and satisfying texture that helps me feel cozy in every room of the house!

Some of my favorite pops of color in any room of the house are the people who share that space with me! They are the true works of art that I value. I predict that you are a work of art yourself and don't particularly want to have a home that is cookie-cutter in any way. I love using one-of-a-kind textile art in my home because opening my home to others is a great joy of mine, and folks seem to enjoy walking from room to room, looking for unique, hand-crafted items in an exciting range of colors and textures.

How would you describe your favorite wall art of all time? I would love to hear from you. Visit the Nestle And Soar wall art collection today to see my ever-changing collection of fiber art for the wall.

Thanks for stopping by, Georgianne

Studio Scene -- Storage and Organization Fuel Creativity

Horizontal filing and drawer labels are my best time-saving tips. 
 The large drawers are filled with handmade fiber art pillow tops and I love them because they keep the fiber art smooth, flat, and organized.

The handmade fiber art pillows I make are shipped in a muslin pillow case
and tied with a lovely ribbon.
I think of it like a designer dress being stored in a zipper bag!
I label each one with a photo for easy reference: this helps my team fulfill orders!

Early morning light from the window...my studio table while I am alone and all is quiet.
That's the sweet spot in my day!

Keeping organized may seem boring, or at least, it used to bore me. I thought that a messy desk meant I was happily busy, but now I realize that it simply slows me down. I'm glad I've taken on the ritual of cleaning up my office and my studio during the last 15 minutes of each productive day. That way, when I begin again in the morning, I am energized!

What do you do to fuel creativity in your space?

Thanks for stopping by,

Georgianne

Top Ten Tuesday -- February 7, 2012 -- Brrr!

From high atop a 6-foot snow pile in my front yard, I welcome you to a chilly Colorado Top Ten Tuesday! I am not actually sitting on the snow, but as plenty of winter weather has been front and center around here, it kind of feels like I am! There is hot chocolate to the left of me and a plate of ginger snaps to the right of me and I am excited to tell you all about the exceptional artists, items, and places that came to my attention this week here at Nestle and Soar Studio. I hope you will have a moment or two to click-through to a few of these wonderful web-based places, or if you live near Spooner, Wisconsin, perhaps you can visit Northwind Book & Fiber. Let's start there...

#1 Northwind Book and Fiber...A place for people with ideas.

If I had a storefront to call my own, I think it would be similar to Northwind. This charming shop is part independent bookstore, part fine yarn shop, part local artist gallery, and pretty much, fun all over. I can also see the beauty of having classes and special events in this space. They have made their website rich with ideas, as well. Check them out and enjoy yourself!

#2 Free Flying Boutique...Cruelty-free Feather Earrings

These paper earrings represent the feathers of a Scarlet Macaw, a South American bird with an entire rainbow of colors throughout their feathers! Don't you just know that these dramatic earrings are light and fun to wear? Artisan Jessie Bender of Fort Collins, Colorado has created these and other special earring designs for bird lovers who like to let the birds enjoy their own feathers! Well done, Jessie! Free Flying Boutique on Etsy.

#3 Knitting Pure & Simple...Women's Neck Down collared Bolero

I am a beginning-level knitter and always have my eyes open for a jacket or vest pattern that I do not find intimidating; here's one for my team! I like the collar on this bolero and the wrap-button closure. Because it is not full length, I think it will be perfect for some lovely hand-dyed organic merino sport weight yarn from Cheryl Oberle I stashed a while back. This, my friends, is a perfect example of why stashes of supplies are so important. One should never fear developing a varied stash. Good patterns and soft yarn are very important stash items! That's my story... Knitting Pure & Simple.

#4 Shapeway's Bird Nest Eggcup

I do think this darling soft-boiled eggcup would make a simple breakfast very sophisticated...without trying hardly at all! Designed by Studio Gijs and available on a site called Shapeway, they come in three colors: red, white, and blue. What a nice way to start your day.

#5 Little Chickadee Bowl by Mustache Cat Designs on Etsy

Now if eggs don't fit the bill for breakfast, how about a creamy bowl of hot oatmeal? This cold weather is making me hungry, and I've found the perfect bowl for most any beautiful meal! Lauren Maghini makes this special bowl using a carving technique that looks like wood-cut, and she glazes them in a transparent non-toxic glaze. I would feel special eating out of this Little Chickadee Bowl!

#6 Blossoming Tree for Inspiration

I am always excited to share a stunning tree image, and here is the one that keeps grabbing my attention this week. I love the way that the tree is reflecting in the water...isn't it romantic? I originally found this image on Pinterest, and have linked it back to Faye, an interior decorator at Ophelia's Garden. Her blog is lovely and you may enjoy seeing it, too.

#7 Birch Lampshade from Ruffled Blog

This DIY birch bark lampshade is so charming, I think it would be a real show-stopper in my kitchen. My kitchen table sits about 20-feet away from the kitchen stove, and I think I could get away with having such a textural lampshade in that spot. What do you think? Do you have any birch trees that have fallen on your property? Yes--I'll be right over! See the popular blog Ruffled's great DIY instructions here.

#8 Organic Cotton Canvas Box Bins from Dagmar's Designs on Etsy

Dagmar is a European designer and dress maker (by way of Canada!) who runs a lovely shop on Etsy called Dagmar's Designs. I fell in love with her hand-printed red bird and tree branch designs. At over 6" tall, these canvas box bins are ideal for many items I use daily in my studio. It will be difficult to choose only one!

#9 Bronze-infused Stainless Steel Bird Belt Holder

I love the idea of keeping my belt's open end tucked up and in place, especially when it can be done as stylishly as this! I had not seen such a useful and decorative belt holder until I came across this beauty. It fits a leather belt that is no more than 1.8-inches wide. You can learn more about it here.

#10 Baby Elephants Fill me with Happiness

If you have a cuter baby elephant than I do, please let me know! I especially like his hairdo.

Thanks for stopping by, Georgianne

P.S. I've added an email function to Nestle and Soar's blog...sign up and you won't miss next week's Top Ten Tuesday!

Watch for 100th Nestle and Soar Order on Etsy and You Could Receive a Present!!

Spring Tree Pillow

The Nestle and Soar Studio on Etsy has approached a milestone that I plan to celebrate--will you join me? The next order that comes to me via that shop will be my 100th Etsy Order! Isn't that fun?! I have very much enjoyed getting to know my customers by way of this fun-to-use virtual boutique and I am very grateful for all the support and encouragement I receive there.

Fantastical Tree Pillow

The fiber folk art item that is most often bought via Nestle and Soar on Etsy is...drum roll...custom work. That's right, most of my sales comes from private commissions. It is exciting that this is so, as it means to me that people find it easy to work with me in fulfilling their desire for a one-of-a-kind fiber art item. Out of the 99 orders I've fulfilled from my Etsy shop, 22 of them have been custom work. I hope you'll contact me if that is something you are interested in! You can read more about my commission work here.

Fantastical Tree Pillow

The next most popular item is one of my pillow designs that involves a tree. The Spring Tree Pillow and the Fantastical Tree Pillow are both big winners here at Nestle and Soar. It seems that everywhere I go, I find other tree lovers. In Colorado, trees may not be as old or as plentiful as they are in the eastern states, but folks from Colorado certainly love their trees! That is one of the benefits of operating a global retail shop: tree lovers from around the world tell me that they, too, have this "thing" for trees. I am very pleased to be able to continue my support of the Arbor Day Foundation through all of my different websites. If you love trees, your qualifying order from Nestle and Soar causes a tree to be planted in your honor in our National Forest system. I think that's exciting!

I am planning a special thank you for the person who submits the 100th order on my Etsy shop! I have a few special items in my cache that I haven't ever promoted, and based on what is ordered from me, I will select a special item to pass along. I think this free gift with order needs to find a new home where it can be appreciated by new eyes. Don't you think that would be a wonderful way to celebrate? In fact, on the day that my 100th order comes in, I will open a week of time where my blog readers can contact me via an email on my website, www.nestleandsoar.com. If you send me a note from there, I'll find a little something in my cache to pass along to you, too, just for saying hello! Remember, the one-week time frame for that offer begins on the day that the 100th order is placed, so you may want to keep an eye on my Etsy shop,  Nestle and Soar on Etsy. I hope you can help me celebrate!

Thanks for stopping by,
Georgianne

Awesome Ideas I Found Today

Today was fun for looking around at great ideas other people have published on the Internet, and I am excited to share what I found at Pinterest. Do you agree with me that each of these ideas are practical and whimsical? Take a peek and if you like what you see, learn more at the above link.

This is a beautifully simple way to store and enjoy your jewelry! A flatware organizer has been hung on the wall and tiny cup hooks were used to hang your necklaces and bracelets. Small boxes are placed on the bottom shelf to hold earrings. I love this idea!

My next awesome idea find shows how L-brackets from the hardware store can be lined up to make a decorator magazine rack. This is pretty enough to place front and center next to your favorite reading spot!

The fourth awesome idea I found involves a solution to one of my personal pet peeves...my messy plastic container drawer! This brilliant person used CD racks to make a parking spot for each plastic container lid. No more having to unload the whole drawer to find that one missing lid! Awesome.

Here is the first project I think I will undertake from this group of wonderful ideas...a vintage spoon collection rack has been re-purposed to store sunglasses. Isn't that clever? They have even used a little Modge Podge to decoupage a fun paper onto the display to dress it up quickly and easily. When my family comes to visit, there are often 3 or 4 pairs of sunglasses tossed onto my entry hall table. I've even found a few broken pairs left behind. This will make the sunglasses spot easy to find and use. I love it!

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed these awesome ideas like I have! Which one would you make first?

Georgianne