Affordable Art

Are you an art lover like me? 

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Let me clarify.  It's not that I really "know" anything about art. I can't tell you who painted most masterpieces or necessarily go in to detail regarding the medium they used or their process.  Thankfully I don't have to be "educated" about art to love it though.  I just know what I like when I see it and I totally enjoy scouring the web, flea markets and local stores for affordable pieces.

These days if you love art but have a limited budget, you still have some great options available to you. Lest we forget how many creative geniuses can be found on Etsy?  You'll have to do some sorting, yes; but keep digging and you'll find them there. And lucky for us, there are some amazing bloggers out there who've already done a lot of the dirty work for us.  I'm sure you've all heard of The Jealous Curator ; love her.  And if you haven't read her blog before, I suggest blocking off several hours over several days to search through her archives.  The goodness is just too much to handle in one sitting!!!  And let's not forget sites like www.art.com and www.20x200.com; they both have great selections too.

Of course, I personally love the hunt for just the right piece.  And even if my client (or myself for that matter) can't afford a $10,000 original oil painting at this point, there is still great art out there that won't break the bank.

Case in point: Remember when I mentioned that I was decorating a guest room for my friend Liz in Ohio? Well, the project is in full swing and I am headed back there in early July to do the installation. Can't wait!  Oh, and you know that initial design plan I shared with you awhile back?  Just forget it because, as to be expected, everything has changed at least 20 times since then.  I guess that's why they call it a "process", right?

This last week I took care of several big purchases and finally got around to selecting the art too.   Isn't it true that the art and accessories in a space are really what bring it all together?  Well, this space is no different.  Our revised color palette is mostly aqua, navy and orange, with pops of bright white and hints of yellow.

If you'll recall, I told you that my friend Liz used to live in Los Angeles and is always jonesing for the beach.  I couldn't go too far towards a cheesy traditional "beach house" feel though, because it would be SO opposite the rest of their home. So I guess we're going for our own unique "version" of beachy; she specifically wanted the space to feel "happy".

As the pieces I've selected start rolling in, I'm getting more and more excited and a teensy bit jealous.  Myan Soffia photographs, Michelle Armas AND Samantha French artwork ALL in the same room? I die.

Just the other day, I received the Michelle Armas print titled, "Laura".  Wow. The colors are spot on perfection and oh so pretty; it's going to look super gorgeous against Benjamin Moore's "Oceanspray", which is the light aqua color that will be on the walls.  This print was our initial jumping off point for the entire room; I knew I wanted it for the space before I even knew what we were doing in there.  Seriously.

And then there's the beautiful moody photography of the super sweet Myan Soffia.  Liz flipped for these photos so we are going to have this grouping of four (in 20"x20" frames) above the desk area. I really think seeing them on a regular basis is going to make her super happy.

And my oh my.  I cannot fully express the love I have for this Samantha French print.  I can't wait for it to arrive! I want. I want. I want.   At $195 for the 16x20 print, this baby isn't cheap but it also doesn't quite break the bank and you know it's going to totally be worth it.  So come on.  Now if someone would just spot me $7,000 that'd be swell.  Because I so NEED this original Samantha French oil, titled "Breakthrough", above my fireplace.  Yesssssss!

So there you have it, folks.  Affordable art for the Ohio Project.  I'm green with envy but totally happy with the selections.   These, along with smaller, more personal, framed photos and decorative objects we've collected, are going to completely bring that room to life.

Oh how I love an art project.  String art, painting on canvas, taking photos, working with vintage arrows...it's all art to me and I have lots more to share on the subject.  Stay tuned...

And in the mean time, who are some of your favorite artists?

DIY :: String Art in the Dining Room

Today's DIY project started with my dear friends, Chase & Aaron.  Aren't they a cute couple? (Biff would kill for their VW Bus.)


Of course, as usual, I've never met these people.  But still.  I came across their insanely gorgeous wedding on Green Wedding Shoes last year and fell head over heels for them and their crafty skills.  Remember, I too, got a little crafty at our wedding so maybe I think of Chase & Aaron as kindred spirits or something.

You see, when I saw their DIY fence & backdrop signage, my head just about exploded because I loved this idea so much.


SO great, right???

Well, of course that lead to hours spent on google & pinterest searching and finding tons of other inspiration images.  And, once again, I was reminded how many incredibly creative and talented people there are in the World.

Case in point:

These ballerinas have totally twirled their way into my heart.

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This installation is super lovely too.  Megan Geckler, you are brilliant!



Hi there, pretty little tree.

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And these stairs???  Endless amounts of gorgeousness here.

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Oh my.  And thanks to the Jealous Curator via Emily Henderson, I'm crushing on these "Sewn Houses" (which are totally attainable btw...yay!) by artist, Hagar Vardimon-van Heummen.  Such a great name, right?

Yes.  All of these artists are aaaah-mazing.  But let's get back to the (simpler) art of string letter making.

Now, if only I had thought to look up a tutorial on-line (there are several) before I decided to start this project.  Why oh why must you make things so difficult, Cham+Thom?  No tutorials for me.  I just knew that I had the space and needed some art.   So here's what happened...

I came up with the idea to do a string art project with the word, "GATHER"; it would hang in the dining room over our table.  First I printed up the letters and simply taped them to the wall.  Truly, I probably left them up there for a week or so...just to see if this idea of mine would stick.


And it did.  So I bought myself a piece of wood, stained it and let it dry.


Next I taped my paper letters onto the piece of wood and hammered in the nails, outlining each letter.  This is where one of those online tutorials would've come in handy.  After the fact, I learned that I should've placed the nails equal distance apart all the way around the letters.  Oops.  We just randomly nailed in those suckers.  And of course, things turned out just fine in the end BUT I can see how having the nails evenly placed would've been super helpful.


I then went about removing the paper.  Hmmm... All those teensy weensy white paper dots sticking out where the nails attached to the wood?  Well, that was not planned and not good at all.  And quite frankly, a major pain in my arse.


Thank goodness for tweezers.


Once I had removed as many of the paper specs as possible, I got busy with my string.  I simply tied a knot around one of the nails and then randomly wove the string through the nails.  Of course, I'm absolutely positive that there must be a "correct" way to do this.  Again, a tutorial may've been helpful. For me though, the random pattern worked and I'm happy with it.


With Chase & Aaron's sign in mind, I started off using a thicker yarn.  Soon though, I deduced that the letters on their sign must've been way larger than mine.  For my project, I thought the yarn looked a little bulky.  So back to Michaels I went and I grabbed some Crochet Thread.

I tightly wove the thread in and out of the nails, intermittently pressing the layers of string down towards the wood base so I could gauge the thickness.  I also threaded the entire outline of the letter several times to make sure the shape was clearly defined.  
It took me forever to get to this amount of thickness and for me, it does the trick.  I suppose I could always add to it later though...if I ever feel like torturing my poor little fingers again.


In this photo I'm testing the yarn (on the "G") versus the crochet thread (on the "A").  I didn't want to unravel the "G" until I was totally sure that I wanted to go with the thread.  You can also see the difference between a completed letter (the "A") and the beginnings of weaving (on the "T").  As I mentioned earlier, I decided that the thread was the way to go.  It only took me FOREVER to re-do that "G".


What we ended up with was some rather lovely string art, folks.  I love that, at first, you don't even realize it's string and nails.


A closer look though, and all is revealed.  Hello, crooked nails.  Why must you torment me so?


It's not perfect, of course.  But here at Camp Cham+Thom, we love it.


Slowly but surely the dining room is coming together.  Next up, is the garden wall!  And perhaps one of these days, the addition of some sort of colorful window treatments?  Hmmm...  I'll keep you posted.

Wednesday Wishlist

Today I am wishing I had an extra $1700.  If I did, I would definitely buy this:

Or maybe this...

Who am I kidding?  They are all beyond amazing.  Can you see this guy's little tongue???  I'm dying over here.

Actually, what I'm really wishing for is an extra $6800 so I can own all four!

Catherine Ledner is the brilliant artist responsible for these beautiful prints.  She lives in SoCal and I am her newest fan.  All that color and so much fun!  I am so in love with these, I just can't stand it.


If you can afford them you should rush right out and buy them here.  You can thank me later.