June Cleaver Nirvana

Hi honey, I'm home!

Notice anything different?

To the right?

To the left?

Up?

Down?

I know! I know! I am in love with my new place. It has the right balance between color and black and white, retro and today, perkiness and angst (OK, it might be a little light on the angst, but who needs a whole bunch of angst anyway?).

Can I just say that Nap Warden is the most patient, long-suffering, capable, level-headed, creative person I have worked with in a very long time.

And NICE. So NICE. Probably too NICE. She could write a giant essay...maybe even a book about what a pain I have been about this.

Here is my side of the story. I love my blog. I loved the way it looked but wanted to make a change. I wanted my blog to scream "HOLLY!".

Nap Warden did an amazing job. She designed a fabulous look that I ALMOST had her install last week. Then at the last minute I changed my mind...

And then started at square one again. She was so sweet that her obvious head banging and cursing in the general direction of Texas did not translate in her emails.

After another week of emails, scans, links and marker drawings, this is what we came up with.

I love it.

This is what a visual scream "HOLLY!" looks like (today).

Thank you Nap Warden. I will release you from any designer-client privilege to tell your tale of woe. You might even want to develop some sort of screening process to assure you never have another high-maintenance-like-Holly client.

We are She is not done. We have several more things that are being added:

-I will be all official at my very own .com address
-I will have Feedburner installed properly (unlike the unsuccessful attempts of my past)
-I will have email subscriptions available (mom)
-I am changing to Haloscan for comments so that I can more easily track you down
-and a few more things that hopefully will make things easier

Please hang in there while the kinks are worked out.

And go visit Nap Warden who will be very available in a few days. After me, you will be a breeze...

My hair and eyebrow maintenance issues have been covered here at the Nirvana for my long suffering (but dear) readers.

It has been a long and winding road. A road of horridity. A road of crapicity. A road that has left me unwilling to subject myself to regular maintenance due to the feeling of impending doom...

Monday I looked in the mirror and it was clear that something had to be done. Quite frankly, anything.

I called a salon that had just opened up in town. I figured the less Holly history someone has the better.

Of course they were closed on Monday (see how far out of the self maintenance loop I am?) but they cheerfully (yes...cheerfully) returned my call Tuesday morning and set me up for an appointment that afternoon.

I walked in. The receptionist was warm and friendly. I was taken back to the chair and I saw it.

I saw it...

They had tiled the walls with the most amazing tile I recently saw this very tile at the tile showroom. Ever since that showroom moment I have been mentally figuring out how to sell our current house and build a new house around that very tile. Hi tile of glory, I am home.

A lovely person did my color. She listened to me. *gasp* She made suggestions. *gasp* We had free-flowing conversation. *gasp*

The whole time I get to gaze at the tile of glory.

Another lovely person did my haircut. She listened to me. *gasp* She made suggestions. *gasp* We had free-flowing conversation. *gasp*

The whole time I get to gaze at the tile of glory.

She then waxed my eyebrows. I had no input here. I am a brow moron. She took over in a as-gently-as-this-is-going-to-go-down kinda way. *gasp...little tear...* We had free-flowing conversation. *gasp...little tear...*

And if I could see through the pain I could have gazed at the tile of glory.

Oh, oh, oh! I forgot a really good part. While I was in those foil thingys that you have to wait 20 minutes to do whatever they lead me over to a COMPUTER THAT WAS CONNECTED TO THE WORLD WIDE WEB and I leisurely visited many of you.

I know. I know. This is WAY TO GOOD TO BE TRUE. But wait, there is more...

I stop to pay at the front desk and this is posted, "We do NOT accept gratuities. We are professionals".

At this point my hair and brows could look like crap...

You had me at the tile.

But in another stroke of amazingness, my hair and brows look fabulous.

I will get someone to take a picture of me today just to prove it.

And then I am going back to take a picture of that tile...

It's MONDAY! You know what that means...POTLUCK!
Go Monday.
Go Monday.
It's your potluckday.
It's your potluckday.
Go Monday.
Go Monday.
It's your potluckday...

Today's potluck is all about the buzz of "The New Media". There has been lots of wise women blogging on this topic lately. And you know me, I can't refrain from jumping on a bandwagon. C'mon...there's a band!

I first would like to make some observations about the "old media". Wow. That doesn't sound so good. Wouldn't want to be them. They really should try branding that better. Where was I? Oh yeah, observations. These are some random observations by me, part of the new media (yeah) about commercials currently showing on the old media (boo):

*I don't know if anyone can answer this question but it has been burning a hole through my brain (not hot enough for me to Google, but warm enough to mention it here)...Does anyone know the last phrase in the Silk shaving lotion jingle? This is what it sounds like: Looks like, feels like, TASTES like real silk. I am assuming that the TASTES like real silk isn't what they were going for because really, who eats silk? And I really don't want my arm pits and legs tasting like silk after I shave.
*Blog-Stedman brought my attention that the new Skechers commercials for kids are using what he thinks is my life philosophy as their tag line: Look cute. Have fun.
*I am going to use capital letters here because it requires emphasis. WHAT IS WITH THE OVERLY GRAPHIC COMMERCIALS PROMOTING MEDICAL SOLUTIONS TO MALE SEXUAL DYSFUNCTION ISSUES? I have had it with these. Thanks for the education. I don't recall signing my KIDS up for your class. The whole "birds and bees" talk is now unnecessary because the boys have been exposed to these commercials... That is all I am going to say. But I could say more. MUCH. MORE.

To help erase those images out of your head...it is time for everyone's some people's a few people's a dear reader's Holly's favorite new Nirvana feature:
Sweet Potatoes. Top that Old Media.

I laughed REALLY hard at Betsy's shopping trip with her husband.

Last week I was working on some interior design art projects that were installed on Friday. I was worried about them. All my creative power had been channeled in that direction which explains My Friday verbal jump off the blog bridge. Thank you for all your sweet words. I am good. This is one of the things that I came up with in real life:

These are nine 2 ft. x 2 ft. canvases hanging in a playroom. In person it is yummy in scale taking up an entire wall. One of my client's boys had voiced that pink was his favorite color. Mine too. I think this allowed pink into the room in a very manly way.


You might want to head over to The Blissfully Domestic Baby Shower in honor of Fussy. She is due pretty soon...so hurry!


In an effort to get with the "new media" program, I am analyzing trends of the trendsetters who use the new media. This week I received 9 people who googled, "1479b8c8b6afd4ed1117dbbb5aa15b456f7f26756fbd9ffa". Wow. I have never thought of googling random numbers and letters. Good for you trendsetters. You have really earned that name. I am just proud to be the recipient of your trendy traffic. And to prove how worthy I am for such trendy traffic, I received one dear reader who googled, "thank you for participating in the potluck". No, really thank you.

See, here at the "new media" we are able to ebb and flow to the public's needs instantly. Try that Old Media. Try getting a thank you for YOUR potluck. Oh, you don't have a potluck...

I bought three candlesticks on the Southern Living discontinuation sale for $5 a piece. I grew to love the candlesticks. It was a beautiful thing. I was happy, they were happy. They reveled in the fact that they were the ONLY breakable items in my house. I reveled in the fact that they were so colorfully enthusiastic. It was a comfortable relationship of mutual respect.

Then one of the boys threw a ball in the house. One candlestick did not react well. One candlestick was shattered beyond repair.

Then there was two. Two. Only two didn't look very good. Two was too few. Two was too lonesome. Two didn't follow the rule of odd for decorating. Boo on two.

I went for help. Southern Living didn't have them (hence the DISCONTINUATION sale). Ebay did. I bid. I bid. I won! I won a lot of two for $15 a piece. Two plus two equalled four.

Then there was four. Four? Only four didn't look very good. Four was too many. Four was a crowd. Four didn't follow the rule of odd for decorating. Boo on four.

I separated the new pair. I placed one of the newbies in a closet. Bye, bye one. Four minus one equaled three.

Then there was three. Three. Three looked good. Three was company. Three follows the rule of odd for decorating. Yeah for three.

Then one of the boys crawled onto the counter and pushed a candlestick onto the floor. One candlestick did not react well. One candlestick was shattered beyond repair.

I brought back newbie. I released him from the closet. Hi one! Two plus one equals three.

Then there was three. Three. Three looks good. Three is company. Three follows the rule of odd for decorating. Yeah for three.*


*That is as of the time of this post. I still have three boys...and no candlesticks held in reserve. I am living on the edge.

These are works from Hans Jean, Jean Dubuffet and Meret Oppenheim that I borrowed from MoMA. They have inspired me. If people are willing to pay a lot of money for art that looks like this, why am I not capitalizing on what I have at home? I have budding Picassos whose art I can hang on the wall for a fraction of the price.

The big question is how to get children's art onto the wall without it looking like the front of the fridge. I have found a solution which translates kid's art stuffed in kitchen junk drawers to amazing wall hangings. No need to shop for posters and art for your home when you have birthed a factory for such things.

This is what creates the magic:

A floating frame. They can be purchased almost anywhere that sells frames. The prices range from under $10 for two pieces of plastic clenched by metal strips to $30+ for glass surrounded by wood. They are extremely easy to use. They look modern/contemporary (which I LOVE, but my house is not) in the store, but on my wall with my wall color matting my kid's art it is almost style-neutral.
Part of the brilliance of this is that kid's art is usually irregular in size and shape. They don't seem to crank out 8x10s, 11x13s or 14x16s. Their medium usually starts with a 8 1/2 x 11 piece of paper and then gets bigger with tape and glue or smaller with scissors. But with the floating frame you can frame the strange sizes and irregular borders with ease.
The other thing that I am not afraid to do (anymore) is alter the size and shape of the origianal art (gasp!). If you are altering it to frame it and display it proudly vs. not altering it to save it for eternity "just as it is" the loss of artistic integrity will be forgiven.
I also group like artwork together just like I would if I was arranging "fine" art on the dining room wall. Above is a grouping of Reid's "Blue Period" he painted when he was three. I think if I had just displayed one it wouldn't have the impact that the three together have. I also have space under this grouping to add 3-6 more paintings since his blue period seems to be in perpetual continuation.
Another thing I watch out for are things to frame that aren't traditional children's art. This is a paper that Ryan (then 5) wrote numbers and pretend multiplication tables. Not all his math is perfect, but I think framed it is pretty artistic.
I love placing the art in non-traditional places. I don't keep the children's art to just kid's rooms and playrooms. This grouping is hung in the kitchen. It is the first thing you see when you come in from the garage. The zebra above sits on a shelf in the masterbedroom.

My current to-do list includes picking up a few more floating frames because Ryan just brought this home from school:

Is MoMA in HIS future?