challenge accepted

Fun fact: I got a D in drawing in my first year at University. I’m not proud of this but I’ve accepted and moved on.

Sadly this near-failure lead me down a path of a limited logo and photoshop work; preferring layout, copy editing, rulers, and alignment. So, I decided to let loose and try the 31 Day Flower Drawing Challenge by the most adorable, talented and knowledgeable Brittany Watson Jepsen of The House That Lars Built. I did not do this in May and I did not do this in 31 days but I did it and you should too. I dare say, it’s a bit meditative and I learned a heck of a lot about flowers!

Check out my skills… I’m giving it a C.

And if you’re wondering, each flower lesson is less than five minutes and you can draw along at her pace. I added some colour but that’s not a part of the lesson. “Snap-dragon to it”, Y’all!

#LarsFlowerChallenge

Next up… photography!

psst. If you like what you’re reading, please subscribe and share. xomeg

Indiana Jones, this is one night you’ll never forget

Posted by meghanrushton

When I was a kid, we didn’t have cable but we did have a family friend who gave us VHS tapes with an odd assortment of movies that my sisters and I loved. Our favourite tape had Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Beetlejuice, and La Bamba on it and we have watched these movies more than 5o times each.

Obviously, there would come a time I’d introduce David to the Indiana Jones trilogy and convince him that although Harrison Ford can do no wrong, Indie will always beat Han Solo in our house. Luckily David loves the movies and I love that he was on board with this costume.

Our visual reference:

What we bought/made:

Archeologist hat and scar kit from a Halloween prop store
Boys white dress shirt dyed tan and ripped (Old Navy)
Khaki jeans and sneakers (Target (USA))
Whip made from rope and brown Duct Tape (Michaels)
Vintage army bag from my mom
Papier-maché Sankara Stones

He had no interest in smiling, which I get. His heart was almost ripped out and he just had an epic battle on a bridge:

Here’s a recap of our past Halloween costumes. And if I’m lucky, I can convince David to be Ritchie Valens next year.

Side note: These papier-mâché pumpkins are so beautiful.

Happy Halloween!

psst. If you like what you’re reading, please subscribe and share. xomeg

wtf wtr?

Posted by meghanrushton

Dear friends,

What’s the deal with Valentine’s Day at schools in Nova Scotia this year?

As a design mom I NEED to know if the Work-To-Rule is stopping v-day celebrations. I sure hope not – we all need a little extra love these days!

No judgement or options here, more so a question on whether I should bother putting the time and effort into making customized cards. And, how do I get my hands on the class list?

Making cards is my thing. A warmup for future science fair projects. Hell-to-the-no am I about to buy drugstore cards when I got a BFA!

And furthermore, like teachers, what I thought my job was going to be when I went to school is not actually what my day-to-day is (so much paperwork!) so designing cheesy cards for kids is my happy place.

Let me know.

Love Meghan

clay aching

Posted by meghanrushton

Frankly, I’ve never been a fan of Clay Aiken nor clay making but lately, I’ve got a thing for all things pottery. So much so, I am thinking about enrolling in a pottery class (but no, I don’t want to go to Clay Café).

Here is an assortment of items that I’m loving:

Biggest regret in life – not visiting the Heath Ceramic factory when I was in California. Okay, not my biggest life regret but still… I’d love to go. I saw their stuff at the Farmer’s Market and did not buy one thing. Silly girl. Big mistake:

Love at first sight. Everything from This Way To The Circus is amazing but palm trees and cactus will always win me over:

I need to make room for more hanging plants in my life. Especially this one from Orit Creative Workshop:

Shop local. The Bread and Butter Pottery studio is less than a kilometer from my house. I love her work:

And speaking of local, I went to high school with Anne. Her work is dreamy and would make a wonderful Made In The Maritimes gift:

I will admit, I actually bought some clay and supplies so I can make these Potted Succulent Magnets. Now, I need to do it and show them off. I also need to replace my fridge with one that can hold magnets:

I also found this Clay Cactus Bud Vase project… good thing I have lots of clay:Remember when I said you can’t have enough cactus in your life?

The colours used by Shino Takeda Ceramics is fabulous; I especially love this plant pot:

And finally, a hot coffee in a hot mug is almost as hot as… this … (you’re welcome)psst. If you like what you’re reading, please subscribe and share. xomeg

with a pom on top

Posted by meghanrushton

My office in Montreal has a secret Santa gift exchange – and not the cheap $10-here-is-a-bunch-of-crap kind. We are big spenders.

I got my favourite tank from Lilas, and Caroline gave Nancy a toque (made by her mom) as a gift. My instant reaction was to snap a picture and send it to my mom (hint hint):Although Nancy’s was not faux, I am all about the faux fur pom pom toque. They’re everywhere this season. How can you not want one?

So, I returned to Halifax and began crafting up a request to my mom but was feeling…

Guilty because she just made me an awesome sweater.
Concerned because I knew my request would not be at the top of her crafting list. Winter is here.

My revised plan was to skip mom and buy a toque, but then I discovered I had a reject hat that’d be perfect for a pom pom! Etsy is a great resource for faux fur poms and within a week my mink brown faux fur poms arrived (I got two poms for $10 total). It only took me two minutes to attached and voila! I am happy, my pom bounces, and winter just got a bit better.

psst. If you like what you’re reading, please subscribe and share. xomeg

Hello Sunshine

LIFE • INSPIRATION • DESIGN

craft

challenge accepted

Indiana Jones, this is one night you’ll never forget

wtf wtr?

clay aching

with a pom on top