My Story is Art – 2011 Intentions and a look back

I tweeted this on Monday:

“2011 planning continues this week. My go to words this year: RE-DEFINE, GRACE, PAINTERLY, NARRATE. What are yours?”

Then Michelle from Sage Wedding Pros tweeted this and my head has been spinning ever since:

What is your INTENTION for 2011?

This year has gone by faster than any other in my life.  To say this year was full of changes, landmarks and hurdles is an understatement.  All good, moving-forward type changes though.  The kind any good life lead needs.  Moving into 2011 I am forever mindful of 4 distinct intentions:

1. We get only so far doing things as we have always done them.  RE-DEFINEition is the key to growth.

Alchemy at the Barn  shoot. Read more here, here and here.

2. Creative endeavors are at their finest when approached with a measure of GRACE.

I love to travel and each year I look forward to the Engage Events.  Sketching this year’s speakers was an honor.  Sketching the event live allowed me to really soak it all in.

3. Painting is at the core of what we do.  The PAINTERLY the better this coming year is where it’s at.

The Inspired Invitation collaborations with Jen and Green Wedding Shoes this year were a thrill!  Read more here, here and here!

4. NARRATEing is the heartbeat of my life.  I tell stories in paper, paint and prose everyday; stories of life, love and passion.  Here’s to another year of living mindfully everyday

Several trips to Utah this past year gave me a certain peace and verve for creating new art.  Read more here, here and here!

Lastly as I launch into 2011 I need to say thank you to so many.  This journey is laden with people who make each step easier, more enlightened and full of fun.  For those of you who read along everyday and give encouragment with your sweet comments, I thank you too.  You support mean so much, everyday.  Cheers!!

Press – Feminine Wedding Shower Invitation on Green Wedding Shoes

When Leila Khalil of Be Inspired PR asked if I could create her bridal shower invitations, I jumped at the chance.  Why with a good friend as a flower and event designer and great style herself I knew this would be a fun project.  Carissa from JL Designs and  Courtney from Joyful Events sent along the design inspiration, some font preferences and the rest as they say, was history.

If you want to see all the lovely details from the shower, and I am sure you do you, check out what Jen, Carissa, Courtney and Leila herself had to say.  Details not to be missed are the custom scent bar and Pinkberry spread – unbelievable.

Jessica Claire was the day’s photographer and I was honored to have my pieces captured by such an artist alongside some other paper details by Olive Hue Paper.  Love the “L is for…” concept.  Fun!

I chose the sketchy peony after hearing about all the peony blooms incorporated into the event.  The fluid nature of this artwork is balanced well by the bold and clean nature of the font Carissa and Courtney chose.  A lowercase handwriting style font added to the mix was a needed touch of flourish.

Each peony was hand painted using a large brush and water thinned shimmery apricot ink.  The painting technique was fast but instinctive by layering the color in various thicknesses.  The color collected in shimmery pools throughout the design and gave each invitation a subtle personality all its own.

A striped watercolor effect was used to create the outer border of each invitation finished by a solid pale peach shimmer stock.

Still drying!

A big thank you to Carissa and Courtney for bringing me in on the fun!

Press – Momental on Green Wedding Shoes

Last week, we were featured on one of our favorite blogs, Green Wedding Shoes!  The first of three “Inspired Ink” style collaborations with Jen was posted last week with the two others to follow soon! Thought I would share a few behind the scenes shots not seen here!

Close-up of the storybook Sculpted Bloom.

Paint spattered circles just before being sculpted into blooms!

A huge thank you to Jen for making this dream a reality for me!

A Peek into the Studio – Landscapes and roses.

This time of year at the studio is insane to say the least, the good type of insane that keeps you creative and full of ideas, though.  With many orders leaving the studio each day it is so difficult to choose our favorites but inevitably certain painting techniques or color palettes really draw us in!

We have been creating a new invitation  style at the studio lately lovingly titled the Painted Landscape.  Originally inspired by Tonya’s design, many brides have followed suit requesting lush watercolor illustrations to literally fill the invitation space, where wording become secondary.  The girls had a blast with Rebecca’s invites last week as they are especially fun to hand paint!

Mary Lou’s contrast painted invites and now day of accessories have inspired quite a few brides recently just as the Live Oak has become a favorite wedding invitation artwork choice especially for southern weddings!

So, what am I up to?

Heading off to Austin this week for a top secret project with Caroline from Paloma’s Nest and other friends.  If you would like to follow our adventures just search #Austinshoot on Twitter!

Reeling from a fabulous collaboration with Jen from Green Wedding Shoes and planning the behind the scenes post to post soon!

A Peek into the Studio – Painted Dogwoods and an Enchanted Garden

Wow, it has been a busy few weeks at the studio.  The Momental Girls and I are rushing the last orders of 2009 out the door and will be working straight through to the new year to ensure everything is delivered when promised!  Personally I have been chatting with many new bride’s and am continually floored by their inspirational ideas.  New artwork has been the focus over the last two weeks and my creations have been fun to share on Twitter.

From left: Kristen’s Green Hydrangea, sketchy holly for my Holiday cards and Sarah’s Yosemite Map

Some favorites from the last two weeks:  Christine’s Enchated Garden Custom Save the Dates with a crawling vine illustration.  The hand-painted details were quite exstensive in shades of white and purple.  We just love Erin’s patterned elephants for her wedding in Thailand.  Carrianne’s bright pink dogwoods are just stunning!  The fuchsia shimmer hand-painting seems to just jump off the page.

So what inspired me this week?

This stunning wedding (including a field of goats) on 100 Layer Cake!

I proclaimed this to be my favorite wedding of the year.  My exact comment on Green Wedding Shoes: “This one might just be my favorite wedding of the year. Really – Lush romance meets rustic eclecticism. Thanks for sharing!”