Feed Your Soul Art

Free Valentines Card

2012-02-10T11:30:00.000-05:00

Just a quick hello :) and to say happy love day. I adore that there is a day to celebrate love, both being in love and being loved. I was never a big fan of the idea that V-Day was just for lovers. It made it feel like a kick to the face when you were young and single and alone on February 14th. The fact is, that we have lots of people in our lives that we love and who love us. Let's celebrate that! So since I've been playing with my new computer tools this week, I have a super cute printable card for you to give to the special person or people you are celebrating this week.

Just click on the pic to view it in its original size and download to your computer. Enjoy!

XO, HARMONY

What My Week Looks Like: Playing, Learning, Loving

2012-02-05T12:43:00.000-05:00

I've been playing with a few new toys on my computer. I FINALLY got photoshop (I've been using Pixelmator for all my photo editing). The excitement here is that there are so many fun tools and brushes that are made just for photoshop and I can finally play with all the cuteness that I see going on in the blogisphere. Anyone who isnt aware of Pugly Pixel should be. I picked up this super cute template from her blog and made a quick valentines collage for my mother. I've also been experimenting with using a Bamboo writing tablet (so many possibilities for design and edits with my artwork!). Still getting the hang of it, but there is something so cool about having my doodles done right in photoshop ready to be manipulated, and, I was finally able to get a set of photoshop actions to play with from Radlab that I've been dying to try out. I've been drooling over these effects for so long, and I am so excited to pump up my picture editing with them. That's what I've been up to... oh and a lot of this...

and this...

and some of this...

Hope you have a creative week ahead of you. If not, there are always many spaces able to be filled with something unique and out of the box in every mundane routine. What will you do this week to add a spark to your imagination?

XO, HARMONY

Animal Totems: The Bear

2012-01-24T11:04:00.000-05:00

Hello dear friends.

I was recently hit with enormous creative inspiration and have been painting up a storm. This is a feat within itself as I am still operating on newborn baby time. I did not expect my creative energy to return so quickly and with such force after giving birth 2 months ago, but I cant stop its flow and must just let it channel through me. I wanted to share with you a bit of what I did this weekend. This is a piece from what will most likely become a series on spirit animals. I love the idea that our animal friends teach us about ourselves through their natures. That we can both relate to them and gain insight into ourselves from their spirits. They can also teach us how to grow, and be more patient, more selfless, more balanced in our lives. I wanted to start with the Bear. Maybe because I feel like a Mama Bear right now, but nevertheless, here she is...

"I have the spirit of a bear.. grounded and strong,

fiercely protecting that which I love,

leading others with a cautious mind and an open heart"

Here's the finished piece. She's quite large (about 16" x 22"). I used vintage papers for the under layers, then kept building texture, color, shape, and design on top. I couldnt decide whether to add words to this one, so for now she is complete until I change my mind again. ;)

What other animal spirit would you suggest for the next one?

XO, HARMONY

Look What I'm Playing with...Knitters Loom!

2012-01-06T12:45:00.001-05:00

Oh how I adore funky chunky art yarns. I've been spinning art yarn for a few years and have been wanting to find ways to showcase them as art instead of knitting them into a functional piece. So you can imagine my elation at receiving a gorgeous knitters loom at Christmas. I've been eyeing this thing for awhile and I am super excited that it's finally in my home. I got a chance to start playing with it this week, and it's everything I hoped it would be. It's super easy to warp, super easy to use, and totally compact so I can hide it behind the table when I am not using it (saving my work from curious sticky fingers). It's made to handle the larger diameters of yarn, so I can finally use all my funky stuff and make wall art out of them. Here's a few pics of me warping the loom and getting ready to start.

A Mischievous Yarn Thief. He was creating "scenes" with his Disney Cars characters and apparently my yarn ball made the perfect addition to the story. I wish I could see into his imagination sometimes. It seems so magical.

I cant wait to create something out of this skein! I'll post pics as soon as its done. What was your favorite artsy Christmas gift this year?

XO, HARMONY

Birth

2012-01-05T14:20:00.001-05:00

"birth" Mixed Media Painting by Harmony Lenasbunt 2011

I created this painting about two months ago, while waiting for my second child's Birth Day. It's a strange space to be in, waiting for your life to completely change. Not able to move forward in my own time or power, but constantly reminded that in a moments notice you are going to be hurled into transition (both emotionally and physically). It becomes a practice of letting go, allowing yourself to become powerless to the natural flow of life, giving control over to God.

The painting says, "Waiting for you, my miracle, my child, I will never find a greater joy than discovering life through your eyes."

I had been promising to share my birth story of Baby Nazareth with you for a while now. I know that this isnt a baby blog, but my children have immensely influenced my artistic process and infected me with tons of inspiration and creative energy. Being a Mom is what, I believe, made me a better artist. It certainly gave me the courage to come out of the creative closet, so to speak, and start putting my art out in the world for others to see and enjoy. My second birth was such an empowering experience and has really motivated me to "birth" a new direction for my art and creative process. So it seems fitting to share this story with you here. I actually wrote this up once already, but in all the chaos of life with 2 kids I got distracted and my computer's battery died before I remembered to save the document. So in the bit of time I have this afternoon, (3 year old son at the park with his dad, and baby boy snoozing away in his bouncer at my feet) I will attempt to share with you the experience I was given for the birth of my second child.

2am-ish: I woke up randomly. I laid there in the dark for a few moments lamenting for the millionth time the woes of being pregnant and not being able to sleep properly. Just then, I felt a tingly rush of energy travel down my belly. I stood up to go to the bathroom and felt wetness running into my pajama bottoms. I was instantly wide awake. "This is it. Today is your Birth Day." I sent thoughts to my little babe and then prayed for peace for both me and the babe that day.

I tried to go back to sleep, having gone to bed only 2 hours prior, but to no avail. As I lay there in the dark, I felt the beginnings of labor rushes starting up, dull and low, but definitely regular every 4-5 minutes or so.

I woke up my husband and he called our midwife. The same midwife who helped me through my first home delivery, and I was so happy to have her back with me in this life event again. We told her not to come yet, but wanted her to know that she would probably have a short night of sleep.

3am-ish: My contractions are still 3-4-5 minutes apart, some closer together then longer stretches, giving me lots of time to recover and rest. The pain is easily bearable, and I am so tired at this point, just from lack of sleep, that I spend the minutes in between lying on the couch trying to zone out and rest as much as possible. Then by 3:30a, I start to feel the real stuff, the dreaded back labor that paralyzed me in my first birth, it was starting to build, and I had prayed against my fear of the pain, and prepared myself for what I knew would be a very strenuous and emotional process. With each tightening in my belly, I felt the pain wrap around my middle and then explode in my lower back and travel up my spine. Lower back counter pressure and ice packs helped some, but finally I knew I needed more relief. I told my husband to call the midwife back and have her come set up the birth tub.   This was one of my plans to help alleviate the back labor if it happened with this birth. (We assumed she would come set it up and then go back home for a few hours to sleep.)

3:30am-ish: My midwife arrived and we decided to do a check to see if I had made any progress (mind you I had been checked a few days before and there was no dilation with a very posterior cervix (meaning, not much had happened).   We were all surprised to find that I was already a stretchy 6cm. She also found that my water bag had definitely broken but it broke high up, and therefore still had quite a bit of water left in it. She broke it lower so that the baby's head could engage the cervix better (he was tilted back a bit). She then called my second midwife and told her to start coming our way in the next hour.

4:30am-ish: My contractions are still only 3-4 minutes apart, but at this point the pain in my back is so intense that it actually isnt subsiding with the release in my belly. Kneeling in the hot shower was helping quite a bit, but I knew that we needed all the hot water we could spare for the birth tub, and once I got out the back pain returned twice as intense and almost crippling once again. My second midwife arrives at this point and offers to do the sterile water shots we had discussed the week before. I had heard of this technique as a way to naturally reduce back labor without medication and was ecstatic that my midwives were familiar and willing to do it for me should I need it. They injected saline into my back in four pressure points during a contraction, and within 5 seconds the back pain was GONE! Praise the Lord! I would HIGHLY recommend this technique to anyone experiencing back labor who wants a natural no-medication birth. With the spinal pressure no longer an issue, my belly contractions felt totally manageable and almost too easy to focus through. The tub was ready at this point and I was able to slip into warm comfort and labor away with my husband at my side.

6am-ish: I felt like my contractions were slowing a bit in the water and thought I should get some gravity help to speed things along. As much as I didnt want things to get harder, I was really motivated to have as efficient a labor process as I could manage. I got out of the water, and we did an internal check to see what was happening. This is when we found that there was still a small bulge of water bag in front of the baby's head which was keeping him from applying full pressure to my cervix. She opened up that part and allowed the head to fully descend.

We continue to labor in the living room, leaning against the couch for rest in between and then getting on hands and knees to focus and vocalize through the contractions. It was a sweet time, quiet and dark, calm music playing and just my husband, my two midwives, and myself working together as a team. By the grace of God, my three year old son was sleeping peacefully in our bedroom, totally unaware that anything was going on in the house. In the moments of calm, we would chat easily about all sorts of things as if we were just having a friendly gathering, and then when I felt the wave of energy building up and a contraction start its way down my body, I would bend down and start my focusing routine while one of my helpers rubbed down my back and legs helping me to stay relaxed. When it was over, they greeted me with words of encouragement, and I continued to feel positive, strong, and in control the entire time.

Still at this point my contractions were not so overwhelming, not at all like I remembered in my first birth experience, and only about 3-4 minutes apart, with an occasional 1-2 minute apart phase. I was convinced that it was going to take quite a few more hours before the "real" laboring and transition process started. I felt perfectly fine in between the rushes and even when in a contraction, I never felt that I couldn't handle it. This was a HUGE difference from my first labor where the back labor was completely unexpected and totally threw me off, and I frequently lost my confidence and my focus to get through the pains. I was hurting so badly that first time, that I had begun to hallucinate and think REALLY crazy thoughts, like that I could just stop being pregnant and that I changed my mind about wanting to have a baby. I got through it though, with a beautifully successful natural home birth, but in the end I felt emotionally traumatized by the physical pain I endured. Back labor is truly a beast and I was totally unprepared for it in my first birth. This time I had a plan in case it happened and it was working beautifully. The water injections had given me the relief that I needed to stay present and calm as my body did what it needed in bringing my son to me.

7am-ish: I felt the back pain start to build back up again with every rush. "Ok, there you are ridiculous insane pain. I had forgotten about you." The water injections usually block pain for 3-4 hours, and they were definitely starting to wear off. I began to feel less strong and more frantic in the height of the contractions as my back labor pains surged. (its a lot like sciatic pain, only times a billion and it shoots right up from the tail bone up your back). We decided to do another round of the saline shots so I could finish my laboring process feeling strong. I will not pretend like the injections arent painful. It was actually the only time (except at the end of the pushing stage, that I actually cried out). It feels like 4 really bad bee stings happening when you are already hurting, but within seconds the pain is gone (other than some soreness on the actual skin where the needle went in), and then the back labor just melts away. At this point, I start to feel some pressure during my contractions, and I know that my baby is almost here.

8:00am-ish: The pressure is really starting to build, and we decide to get me back into the birth tub. I still didnt feel like I was close to the transition stage yet, that dreaded phase where contractions are right on top of each other as you body finishes opening and the baby starts to descend. My contractions were still only 2-3 minutes apart, and I felt a little silly getting in the tub to start pushing, when I was sure that it would take much longer. My midwife asked me to put a finger inside to feel where the baby was, and there was his head just over a knuckle deep. I was blown away. What an amazing experience! I was almost done and still had never found a point where I felt out of control or that I couldnt do it.

In the tub I start to push lightly with each contraction. The pressure starts to get more and more intense, and I change positions to get better leverage. The contractions slow to every 4-5 or so minutes, giving me lots of time to rest in between, and the room is silent as we all wait for the next pushing contraction.   I pray quietly for grace and for strength, as I am feeling that "I've been awake for almost 24 hours" jittery weakness that you get when you've had very little sleep. I push for about 20 minutes or so (my timeline is a bit fuzzy so all these times are estimations).   Then with a lion-like roar and one great big push, I feel his head move through the burning of my skin stretching and then come out of my body (literally the weirdest feeling ever).   We pause to check for any cord wrapping on his neck and then one final push and he's out in the water. My midwife helps bring him up to me, and I see his sweet little face for the first time as I wrap my arms around him. Only 6 hours of labor! I couldn't believe how much I instantly loved him. This time I wasnt meeting my little one at the same time as I was discovering myself as a mother. This was totally different. I've been a mother for almost 4 years now and really found a true identity for myself within that role. So this time, saying hello to my little one, I could just love on him and confidently care for him without all the bumps and bruises of the learning process to becoming a parent.

I am so blessed to say that I experienced no postpartum depression symptoms, not even so much as an hour or two of the baby blues. Within a few hours, I felt normal, exhausted, but normal, and was back at my regular routine within a few days. I really attribute the ease in which I was able to birth my son, and the incredibly quick recovery I experienced to several things... first, having the birth experience that made me the most comfortable and was the most supportive to my needs (not having constant back labor, Yay!), second, being able to exercise all the way up until my delivery day, and third, having lots of amazing support from friends and family with meals, occupying my three year old, to taking over with the baby when I needed extra sleep, I even had helpers keeping my house clean and laundry going for the first couple weeks! What a blessing it all was, and it allowed me to just sit back and relax and get to know my new little man.

I encourage anyone having a baby to make sure you have all those three things in place for yourself, and anyone who knows someone about to have a baby to see how you can help them have one of those things. Anyway, that's my story. Thanks for listening.

It's now been 7 weeks since that night, and I am really motivated to pick back up on this creative journey I've been on. I really want my boys to learn by my example that creating a life around those things that you are passionate about is a better life than any other you could have. I am passionate about my family and my art, and so I will always surround myself with those things no matter what. What are you passionate about? Do you let it be a focal point in your daily living?

XO, HARMONY

From My Heart to Yours...

2011-12-24T23:28:00.000-05:00

The Most Amazing Christmas Present Ever! My Sweet Baby Zay.

Its' Christmas Eve, and I wanted to take a moment and send a bit of holiday cheer and love to all of you. I pray that you are surrounded by loved ones, and that you know how incredible, creative, and amazing you are. Thank you all for giving a bit of your time this year to follow my creative journey as I balance my love of art and all things crafty with the other parts of my life... graduate school, pregnancy, mommy hood, family and friendship (you!). I have so many exciting new creative things to come in 2012, and I cant wait to share them with you this next year. Have a wonderful Christmas, my friends. Be blessed!!

XO, HARMONY

Give the Gift of Creativity...

2011-12-15T13:22:00.000-05:00

Still looking for a last minute gift for that creative girl on your list, or perhaps it's time to treat yourself to a bit of creative loveliness? I have several one of a kind, handmade art journals waiting to find new homes this Christmas season. Filled to the brim with tons of creative inspiration with lots and lots of vintage ephemera to prompt the journaling process, I made each one with painstaking care with hope to inspire a burst of creative energy for anyone who receives one. I will guarantee delivery by Christmas for all purchases made by 12/20, with free priority shipping. Use FREESHIPPING code at checkout to get the discount (discount good for any item in the shop). Have a wonderful and blessed holiday season!

XO, HARMONY

Living Slowly, Loving Fully.

2011-12-12T15:40:00.000-05:00

We've been up to our eyeballs in babyland over here. It never ceases to amaze me how much time, attention, and energy caring for a tiny human can take. Over the past 3 weeks, our little family has really pulled inward and just immersed ourselves in getting to know and falling in love with our newest member. Baby Zay has been unusually easy on us all (compared to his big brother's newborn lifestyle), but most especially on his mama (me!). He only took a few nights to get his nights and days on track, and wakes to eat every 2-3 hours but then happily goes back to sleep.

Big Brother Izzy is amazing! Not a hint of jealousy and he has been so sweet and helpful with the baby. We did deal with some jaundice with Zay for the first week and had to get the bili-light blanket to help. We called him our little glow-worm, and he is doing just fine now.

I've been incredibly blessed to have lots of help these first few weeks, with loved ones staying with us to help with early morning wake ups, so I can go back to bed and get a few more hours of sleep. I am actually averaging 6-7 hours each night, which is a miracle with a new baby. We have a lovely new routine of playtime, snack time, and nap time, with trying to keep the house in order as well as entertain my 3 year old in between. Balancing two kiddos is different, and I realized how much I got used to the independence my older son has. There is very little time for mommy to do anything not parenting-related right now.

I do miss my craft room. I really miss my painting time but know that there will be space for that in my life very soon once again. I did, however, finish reading a leisure book for the first time in like forever, did all my Christmas shopping (thank God for the internet), and caught up on all the episodes of Mad Men that is being streamed on Netflix. (all of these things done while rocking/nursing/ burping/ etc).

So right now, I am taking it slowly. Breathing in the sweet moments. Knowing so fully well how fast they will go by. I am hoping to post my birth story soon. I had it almost all typed up and then got distracted by a projectile vomit situation and then my computer died (before I remembered to save it, bummer.) So I am going to have to give it another go again soon when I can find the time and focus.

I am excited about starting up with the 2 e-courses I signed up for to get my creative momentum back up after Christmas and am really looking forward to diving back into art and creative time to myself soon. There are SO many amazing artsy courses being offered online this spring. It was really hard to choose, but I chose this one and this one, because they were so perfectly aligned with where I want to be artistically and creatively right now. What creative courses are you taking, or are wanting to take this year?

XO, HARMONY

He's Here! Please Meet Baby Zay.

2011-11-18T20:35:00.001-05:00

Just a quick check in...trying to type with one hand... we had a beautiful Birth Day. Nazareth Blue was born @ 8:49am after 6 hours of labor on 11/17/2011. We had a wonderful home birth and he was born in the birthing tub, just like I wanted. It was a truly beautiful and sweet experience. Will tell more about it later, until then we are getting lots of rest and tons of snuggles in.

XO, HARMONY

I'm Still Here, Just Waiting....

2011-11-14T12:57:00.000-05:00

"Simple Joys" 2011 by Harmony Lenasbunt (Prints available HERE)

I know the blog has been a bit silent the last 2 weeks. I had lots of intention to keep blogging daily with creative goodness and updates from my shop and life and all but once the craft show was over felt really confronted with the decision to focus on my family life without the distractions of my creative work. I chose my family (my husband and 3 year old son), mentally closed the door of my art room, and we've been preparing for the arrival of our new little one together ever since. First there was the practical stuff... cleaning and organizing the house. Holy Cow, how did I let it get so messy and dirty this year? Between graduate school, my art stuff, and family life, the house work fell to the side. We kept things relatively clean and straight, but did so by stuffing every closet full of randomness and ignoring all the dirt and dust that was gathering in the corners and cracks of our home. So a full home overhaul was desperately needed and with the help of friends and family, we got everything decluttered and cleaned. We gathered all the supplies we need for our impending birth (have a second home birth planned!), and started creating our birth plan for labor, what to do with my eldest son, who will be doing what and when, etc... We went on the mother of all grocery trips, stocking up for the next few weeks to make life more simple as we tackle the ups and downs of newborn care taking and labor recovery. And then we played together just the 3 of us as much as we could, celebrating our last days as a threesome and getting excited to add one more to the silliness. We went on lots of nature walks, visited a local farm, attended an art festival, built sheet forts, made gingerbread cookies, and had nightly snuggle times of storybooks and songs. All the while, I can feel my body starting to prepare, getting ready to bring this new life into the world. My normal labor process tends to take several weeks of on and off mild contractions, and we are definitely getting very close to the end of that preparation period. I am currently 5 days away from my "due date", but all that really means is baby could come at any point between now and 2 weeks from now. The waiting is the hardest part, next to the sleeping (so hard to sleep now). Trying not to get psyched out by all the starting and stopping my body is doing, but also trying to stay ready, positive, and strong for the "real thing" when it does begin. So I just wanted to let you know that I have decided to let this blog slow down for a bit while I focus on my family, on the coming birth of my second son, and on myself. I will be updating here as things happen, but it will be in the timing that works best for my family life and not on a regular schedule. Thank you all for sticking with me and granting me patience in this very special time.

My shop is still open and is a way that we support our family income, so if you are starting to think about the Christmas season, keep me in mind. I am still working on adding all the new artwork and journals I created this Fall there, and there are several new ones up this week, so take a look and see what I've been up to. Be blessed friends and have a very lovely week!

XO, HARMONY

Be Courageous

2011-11-03T11:00:00.000-04:00

"Be Courageous" Mixed Media Original by Harmony Lenasbunt 2011

It was an unexpected side effect of becoming a mother that finally started to realize that I didnt really have all the time in the world to pursue my passions and create the life of my dreams. Before kids, I just went along slowly, as I pleased, figuring, "I'll get to that someday." Then everything went into hyperdrive. Life is speeding past me, mostly the growing and changing of my now 3.5 year old child and almost arrived little one, and I am trying to stay on board while still holding onto those parts of me that make me feel authentic and true to my heart (mostly creating art). Sometimes I get stuck at a decision, weighing the options of what I want, vs what I can actually accomplish, vs what my family needs. Deciding to do shows this season, amidst preparing for baby #2 was one of those decisions. I am still not sure I made the right one, but we (my little family) survived it, and I definitely learned many things about my limitations and how to ask for help (something I've never been good at). I am in the middle of another of those decisions again right now. I am starting to realize that once you create a family you adore, these types of decisions continue to keep coming. So here I am, thinking about my son, my newborn son due in 16 days, my hardworking and loving husband, and then my desire to create art and pursue it as a lifestyle and buisness. Should I wait another year and just focus on nothing but family, like I did when my first son was born? Or should I go for it, pursue my passions, and ask my family to adjust to the changes in "mom's" schedule as we have before? Is it fair to my second child to be more distracted and busy than I was with my first? I think I know what the right answer is, because a happy and contented mommy really does make a happy and contented family, but man! this mom guilt thing is powerful. I am sharing this because I believe that we all face these kinds of decisions no matter what walk of life you are in. Whether you are a parent, are in a significant partnership, close family or friends, or are a singleton facing the daunting world with a dream in hand and very little direction, we all have our moments of wanting someone to tell us what to do and how it will turn out. But we will never have that, and so I wanted to encourage you as I have needed to encourage myself... Be Courageous! While it is perfectly appropriate to be cautious before making these such decisions, we should never make them while influenced by fear or guilt. So let's be courageous together! What obstacles are you facing this week? What choices will you take a leap of faith in today? Be blessed in all of them!

XO, HARMONY

Artsy Inspiration: Uppercase and Dottie Angel

2011-11-01T12:03:00.001-04:00

Image by Dottie Angel

I ran across this video this morning as I was enjoying my morning cup of coffee. Its kind of an advertisement for a book by Uppercase, but it is so full of inspiring colors, images, and pretty music that I had to share it with you. It features a lovely British Crafter named Tif, who goes by Dottie Angel in her creative business. I was instantly inspired by her home and and creations and fantasizing about moving to the countryside of England to craft my life away. The book looks really gorgeous and bursting with more inspirational images. I just might have to put it on my Christmas list. :) So if you need a bit of prettiness in your day, check it out and I hope it inspires lots of new creative energy!

XO, HARMONY

Nursery Artsy Inspiration: Mindy's Bunnies

2011-10-31T12:36:00.001-04:00

Finkle Floats - Mixed Media Painting by Mindy Lacefield

This is not a baby blog. That being said, I am about to have a baby and it's a big part of my head space right now. So I thought while I am nesting and working on getting our home ready for a Birth Day, I could share with you a few of my favorite artsy inspirations that I am crushing on for baby boy's room. First up today are the beautiful bunnies created by Mindy Lacefield of Tims Sally. I adore Mindy's art, adore Mindy's Spirit, and just plain adore her. She's a wonderful inspiration, and I have loved her bunny paintings for a long time. They are whimsical, playful, and just make me happy to look at. I have a print of this top one (Finkle) on my son's wall right now and hope to join it with others one day soon. So here's a dose of bunny cutesy prettiness and inspiration Mindy style.

Russell - Mixed Media Painting by Mindy Lacefield

Fiddlewink - Mixed Media Painting by Mindy Lacefield

Lucky - Mixed Media Painting by Mindy Lacefield

Edgar - Mixed Media Painting by Mindy Lacefield

Love, love, love them all. What artist are you crushing on to fill your home space right now? Share them with us in the comments!

XO, HARMONY

From My Art Journal: 3 weeks and Waiting

2011-10-28T12:35:00.002-04:00

I thought I'd try something different with my Art Journaling for a bit. I usually work in sketch books, because I can get one with heavy enough paper to handle all the abuse I do to it, but I came across a really lovely old book at the library sale last weekend, and felt inspired to try some altered book work with my journal pages. I've never really done altered book and am excited to try something new. The book is called "Art Stories" (seriously, that is what it is called), written in 1935, and has the sweetest illustrations and children's stories about art.

It was meant to be. I wasnt really sure when I would start working on it, since I had so much going on in my home life and a million things to list on etsy for the holiday season before I had this baby, and so tucked it away on a shelf, but then I came across this post about self promotion as an artist yesterday and it REALLY hit home for me. Did any of you see it yet? I found the message really powerful, and realized that the pressure to keep promoting my art was taking more time and space in my life than actually creating it (which is what I really love). So this morning I waded my way through my art room (which is currently a storage space for all my bins from the last art show), pulled out my paints, oil pastels, and alcohol inks, and started playing. The theme ended up being about my official arrival at 37 weeks pregnant today, giving me about 3 more weeks to wait until this lovely little boy arrives. Here's a quick tummy shot. Yes, I am wearing a zebra print tank and PJ pants with a sport bra. I am down to only 2 pairs of pants that fit and maybe 4 shirts, and sport bras are all I can stand to wear underneath right now, so fashion is not exactly a top priority.

I am still feeling good, doing regular activities and exercise, I just get really tired very fast. I am also getting a little impatient. I have never really been very good at transition. I just want to get the changes in my life over with and start the new chapter. I hate waiting for a major change that is almost here but not quite yet. It's like you have no idea what to do. I want to focus on my last few days of just the 3 of us as a family, but then don't want to be too detached from preparing for the impending birth and labor process about to happen to me. I also have a TON of work still to get the house ready for baby boy's arrival, but no energy to do it like I want to right now. So instead I Art Journal and purge out all the nervous energy and unsure feelings. It really helps. I dont actually get anything else done, but I feel better. Here is my first spread completed in the book.

I had to glue several pages together to give the surface enough sturdiness to work on with paint and inks, but that is kind of standard practice when working in altered books. Isnt the original illustration on the right adorable?! I couldnt stand to paint over it.

Any of you tried this medium before for journaling? I'd love to hear about what you liked, disliked about it. What worked well and see any pics if you got them. In fact, I am currently looking for anyone who wants to do a guest post about art journaling, (share some of your pages and tell the stories about their content or how you created them). Just send me an email and we'll chat! feedyoursoulart@gmail.com Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

XO, HARMONY

Use your scraps: DIY Lacey Stones

2011-10-26T13:07:00.000-04:00

I am always looking for unique ways to use all the scraps of lace, yarn and ribbons I collect after my major projects. As I was cleaning out some bins in my craft room last night, I found a collection of river rocks that I had gathered a while back in hope to do something crafty with them. With a little glue (or gel medium if you've got it) and a pair of scissors, I cut little bits of lacey lovely things and just adhered them to the surface of the rocks, then tied on bits of ribbon, yarn, or thread. It was super easy and so fast, and they turned out so cute.

They could sit on a shelf or have a sweet little message tied to them and be given to a friend in need of some artsy love.

These three will be sent with lovely little messages to to the next three people that join in on my Made With Love art mail project. What could be more fun!?

In fact anyone who sends me art in the next two weeks will get a lovely little stone gift from me. Speaking of gifts, the holiday season is coming fast, and I have lots and lots of new things to list in my Etsy Shop. First up will be these sweet little necklaces made from antique lace and linen.

I have listed this one here, and there will be lots more joining her throughout the day. Thanks for stopping by!

XO, HARMONY

Something old, Something new

2011-10-25T13:22:00.002-04:00

I was really hoping to have an Art Journaling video finished for you today, but I need a bit more time to edit it. Everything just seems to take me a bit longer to complete these days, but I guess I have the excuse of being almost 37 weeks pregnant. So I thought I'd give you a sneak peek into some other artsy fun I've been experimenting with lately. Remember the Flower Embroidery Hoops that I did a while back? Well, that particular idea has morphed into using vintage photos and "painting" on them with thread. Here is one of them. I did some fun close up shots of the stitches on the piece. I am really having fun with a new macro extender tube on my camera. It gives an unusual perspective on something typical, and I like that.

There she is...isnt she so lovely? The photo was an original of a newlywed couple from Germany all dressed up in their wedding attire. Here's the original photo...

Arent they gorgeous? I love how serious people are in old photos. Most likely because they have been holding that same pose for a ridiculously long time waiting for the image to expose, and couldn't hold a smile the whole time. So, I scanned it and cropped it down to just the woman's upper torso, printed on fabric, and framed in a vintage metal hoop. Then I spent days and days with her just letting the colors, shapes, and stitches present themselves to me organically as I kept adding and adding. She measures 5" across and is hung by a hand dyed silk ribbon. I have several more of these I will be sharing soon, so stay tuned. If you are interested in her, send me a message, otherwise I will be saving her for my next show. Have a splendid day, and remember to look at something typical today in an unusual way!

XO, HARMONY

Artist Spotlight: Interview with Kristin Dudish

2011-10-24T12:02:00.000-04:00

I am so happy to share a interview today that I did with one of my amazing sponsors, the ever lovely and creative Kristin Dudish. Kristin was a fellow Kelly Rae flyer, and I was fortunate enough to connect with her through that experience. She is truly a delightful woman, full of creative energy and boundless inspiration, and I couldnt be more excited to share a bit of her world with you here today.

Tell us more about your creative process as an artist/crafter? (what inspires you? how do you get new ideas? what kind of environment do you like to have when you create?)

I believe that inspiration is everywhere! I am inspired by words and phrases, music, books, art materials, other artists, my surroundings (I've even found inspiration in my shower curtain)...I could go on and on! The truth is that while I'm working on one project, my mind is already starting on next one - If only my hands could keep up! I am fortunate to have a small studio space in my house, but my favorite place to create is my screened-in porch (it is so wonderful to feel the current crisp fall breezes while I'm creating). I also have a tendency to spread out all over the house... The dining room, the living room, the bedroom... My poor family! hee hee

What do you love so much about the particular medium that you work with? How does it express a bit about who you are?

Although I work in many different mediums and love them all for different reasons, my favorite medium is acrylic paint - I love it's versatility... you can use it thick, thin, with a brush, with a knife, or with your fingers... the possibilities are endless! I also love that if something isn't working I can simply paint over it and start "fresh"!

Who/What were your influences growing up that led you to choose this craft/art as a large part of your life today?

I was very lucky to receive lots of encouragement from family, friends, and teachers at an early age. As a shy child, art was my way of expressing myself. When I was 10 years old I painted my first “mural”. My fifth grade teacher hung paper floor to ceiling the length of our classroom wall and told me to “Go for it!”. Looking back, that was a pivotal moment in my artistic career. It was the moment it started to become clear that my art might be valued by people other than my family and myself. Throughout school I continued to use my art as a form of communication. Instead of passing notes, I drew pictures for my classmates, and by the time I reached high school I knew that I wanted to turn my passion into a career.

What one step/phase did you take in your creative journey that is most memorable/makes you the most proud?

From 2000 to 2007, I was the proud co-owner of “Brush of Class”, a mural and decorative painting company. It was during that time that my confidence grew exponentially. I was able to do what I love full-time and I finally accepted that being an artist and supporting yourself don’t have to be mutually exclusive. It was also during that time that I realized that while I was doing what I love, I could also be helping others. It was that realization that led to one of the most unbelievable experiences of my life… my Oprah adventure!

Where do you hope to be creatively with your art/craft in 5 years?

I am passionate about pairing art and kindness and hope that 5 years from now I am continuing to find ways to do that! I also hope to still be playing with new materials, learning new techniques, and at some point I would love to write a book and teach classes!

Thank you so much Kristin for sharing these stories and being such a wonderful inspiration and encouragement to so many creative people. Find out more about Kristin on her BLOG and join in the fun of her FRIDAY PAINT PARTIES! She also sells her beautiful creations on ETSY. I encourage you to visit her creative world. She is truly a beautiful soul and you will really enjoy your time spent getting to know her. I definitely have. Thanks for stopping by this shiny Monday. Come back tomorrow for a long overdue Art Journal video.

XO, HARMONY

Soul Full Hearts

2011-10-23T11:09:00.001-04:00

"Believe You Can" (2011) Mixed Media Original by Harmony

AH-MAZING! I did it! I survived the show at 9 months pregnant and am now finally resting for a long lazy morning with my family. I believed that I could do it, and I did (although I will admit there were points along the way, that I was sure that I would not be ready in time, but wonderfully it all worked out). We had a good show day, the weather in FL was incredible, my team was stellar, and the crowd was a joy to watch and interact with. I had lots of plans to video and take pics throughout the day to share with you, but the truth is, I got caught up in the set up and selling process and just plain forgot. We had a pretty great response once again, and I was so excited to see some familiar faces that I had met in my booth the last year we did this festival. I absolutely love connecting with other creative women and soulful hearts. It is the reason why I started seriously doing this and the inspiration behind all of my original works, like these recent paintings.

"Soul Full Heart" 2011 Original Mixed Media Painting by Harmony Lenasbunt

So now all my boxes and displays are packed away ready for the next show in Dec. Now I get to take a bit of a break to rest, play, create just for FUN!, and get ready to have this baby. I am really looking forward to blogging again each day and really appreciate you sticking with me as I took the time I needed to focus on this show. I will also be stocking my Etsy Site with lots of new things, art journals, wood block prints, lace necklaces, and embroidery pieces, so keep checking for those updates. If any of you are new visitors to my blog after meeting me yesterday, please leave me a comment or send me an email, I'd love to connect further and hear more about your creative dreams. Have a wonderful and restful Sunday everyone!

XO, HARMONY

Art Journaling Pages: Featuring Anahata Katkin

2011-10-18T09:51:00.001-04:00

Today is my usual day to post my latest art journal pages, but since I've been so busy lately, I haven't had the chance to work in my sketchbook in a while. So I thought I'd feature the art journal pages of another artist who never ceases to inspire me. I recently discovered that the incredible Anahata Katin posts her journal pages on her blog. She has been such a motivation for me as she seems to be an unending source of new ideas, inspiration, and has created an incredible business from her work. If for some reason you've never heard of her, you may have seen this on the cover of Somerset Studios last year featuring her Fearless artwork. She is also the driving force behind Papaya (an amazing online boutique that features her artwork on the products). So without further accolade or adieu, here are some of my favorite Anahata journal pages from her online album.

Arent they amazing! Do they inspire you to grab your art supplies and get messy today? They really do for me. I cant wait for life to slow a bit and get back into my Art Journal. Who's work is inspiring you this week?

*All images seen in this post are from Anahata's Blog, they are all her amazing work, found HERE.

XO, HARMONY

Odds and ends

2011-10-17T17:38:00.001-04:00

Just another update from the ipad... I've finally finished with creating and have moved on to the finishing process. It's all about tags, labels, prices, signatures, framing, & packaging today. So here are a few pics from around my (now very chaotic and messy) house. Just a few more days until the show!
XO, HARMONY

The Evolution of an Idea...handpainted canvas flowers

2011-10-16T13:34:00.001-04:00

Hello lovelies! After countless hours of work, I now have 65 incredible handmade art journals complete for the craft show. Whew, my back is killing me from all the static sitting. I wanted to take a sec and show you one of the new embellishments I've been adding to them to make them really special. Remember the fabric flower necklace DIY I did on Mano Metal's blog? Well, I started using the same technique with hand painted fabric to make flowers for my large sized journals and have been ecstatic by the result! Here are a few fun pics from the process...

Isnt it so sweet? The colors faded beautifully when I washed the fabric and the flowers were so easy to make. I love it when an idea works out. There are so many times that I get some crazy idea for making something better and in the end I just waste time and end up scrapping the whole thing. I do hope you had a lovely weekend. I am starting to see light at the end of my show prep tunnel. I will be so happy when I can finally just pack it all in the trailer and start the fun! Keep checking back for more updates!

XO, HARMONY

Sometimes life just cant slow

2011-10-14T17:49:00.001-04:00

Ive been so busy this week that my blog has suffered a bit. So heres a quick check in...(ahem)... From my new iPad!!! Its totally a business expense right? :) Oh my, it is such a fun toy and I have no time to waste getting sucked in right now. Just one more week to go until the show and my transition into nesting for this new little babe due to arrive in just one month. Here are a few snapshots from around my house as I keep plugging along to get all the show stuff done. Have a wonderful weekend. I'll keep updating the blog with my progress, since its so stinking easy with this sweet iPad! Any favorite app suggestions of yours are welcome.
XO, HARMONY

Grow Fearless...new artwork and a message for you.

2011-10-11T10:55:00.000-04:00

This is a new painting and part of a new inspirational mixed media style for me. I have been really evaluating what I want from all this, the blog, the etsy store, the craft shows, the art that I make. I have some really big dreams for it all, hopefully resulting in the running of a creative retreat center. Sometimes I get really overwhelmed by how far I still need to go to get there. Sometimes those thoughts turn into negative voices telling me I wont get there so I should stop pretending that I will. Do you have big dreams that seem so far away sometimes? If so, I just wanted to say to you today to keep stretching, dont look back or hold yourself back with your fears, Keep Growing and Grow Fearless! I think that everyone should live their life free of fear and hold on to a boldness of heart to always move forward towards whatever they desire for their lives. Just wanted to encourage you with that today. I am offering prints of this painting at my Etsy Store, if you want to bring one home to remind you each morning to Grow Fearless in your life. My fearless moment in the next week or so will be putting all this new art I just finished out there for people to see, judge, and decide whether there is a market for it. It is always a scary moment to put new work out in the public, when I dont know how it will be received, but it is my dream to make inspirational art to encourage closet creatives like I was for so long. So for every "I dont like it" or "I could make that" comment I will hear at the show, I will hold on to courage and wait for the person that discovers the meaning and heart of my work and gains a bit of their own fearlessness.

Leave me a comment and let me know how you are going to take steps this week to be more fearless in your life.

XO, HARMONY

Made With Love: More Mail Art!

2011-10-10T10:15:00.000-04:00

It's Mail Art Day! I cant tell you how much this project has blessed me, especially right now while I am experiencing a very hectic and stressful month in my creative world. I truly believe that reaching out and connecting with other creative in whatever capacity you are able is the best way to stay positive and motivated in your own artistic work. We all need encouragement when pursuing our passions and to know that we are not alone in our struggles and triumphs, and the journey of art making is no exception. Here are the beautiful creations that were sent to me this week, by some very lovely and talented women.

First up is the amazing Micki Wilde of the Secret Hermit. I met Micki online about a year ago, through our blogs and just fell in love with her sweet and whimsical girls. She was also a huge encouragement to me as she is also a mom and totally understood my struggle to balance making and selling art and being a stellar mother. Micki, your package truly brightened a very stressful day for me and brought me new energy and perspective. Thank you, thank you for your sweet and generous spirit! I adore this piece you sent and it will continue to bring me daily joy as a part of my inspiration wall in my creative space.

This beautiful digital artwork came from Maureen of The Starry Me. I love the shapes and colors she created from this flower photo. I literally got a instant huge smile on my face when I pulled it from the envelope, such a peaceful and calming image. Thank you so much for sending it to me! It is a very special piece.

***(This leads me to mention that you dont have to be a painter or a sketcher to participate in this mail art exchange. Whatever your medium of creative expression is perfect, and there are no rules or restrictions, OR LEVELS OF TALENT required. As long as it is something you created from you heart, it is welcome!)

And finally, I received a beautiful piece of collage art and a very sweet note from a new friend Tina. I love the way she uses commercial images to create something completely different and truly her vision. I am honored to have been sent such a lovely collection of her work. Thank you Tina! Your images and sweet words were an encouragement in my week.

If you want to know more about this project, just click HERE or on the Made With Love button on my right sidebar. For everyone who has sent me mail art so far, THANK YOU, what a wonderful way to encourage each other. I mailed off all of your mail art envelopes from me on Friday (except for Micki, which will mail tomorrow), so keep and eye out for them.

XO, HARMONY

On my worktable today...vintage lace

2011-10-08T09:50:00.000-04:00

With two more weeks left before the show and a million things to do, here's a look at what I am creating today...

What do you think? Since I live in the South, I have to offer more crafty than artsy items to sell enough at festivals to make it all worth it, and so I come up with these ideas that I think are super brilliant, but sometimes wonder "is it just me?" I made them with scraps of dyed linen overlayed with vintage lace pieces left over from my artworks. I think they are adorable, but I also have a soft spot for lace. If there is lace on it, I will look twice, no matter what it is. I got the idea from this etsy jewelry artist, whom I have spent many days ogling her vintage lace necklaces and wishing I could splurge on myself. Any lace lovers out there? It was totally the "in" thing last season, I think the world has moved on to geometric shapes in clothing and jewelry design in the present though. How people keep up with changing trends, I couldnt say. Large expendable income I suppose, or a deep love for accessorizing. I am still stuck on lace. Any thoughts about these are welcome, I could use some perspective, other than my obliging husband's "its nice hun." Anyway, I do promise that Saturday coloring book pages will return very soon. It's just a bit hectic around here right now. Hope you have a wonderful Saturday!

XO, HARMONY

Show Update and Look Back at Myself

2011-10-06T12:42:00.000-04:00

This week has been flying by for me, mostly because I have been locked down at my house prepping for shows. I know I keep saying that in almost every post lately, but I promise it's true. You might be wondering what exactly is involved in this process. Well, it's designing covers for journals (like the pic above), printing prints, signing and packaging them, ordering selling and display supplies, designing and ordering new biz cards, creating this years calendar and ordering the cases, finishing paintings that need to have sides painted, or framed or varnished, making lots and lots and lots of art journals, making wood mounted prints, signing and pricing everything, checking the tent, my signs, my display signs, deciding on my set up, cleaning display shelves, finding all my table linens washing and pressing them, making buttons/magnets/mirrors (cause you have to have items in every price point!), and that's not even getting into organizing all the financial transaction materials, UGH! (It's tedious work, which I am terrible at doing efficiently, so everything seems to take me twice as long. Plus last year I had a helper and this year I am flying solo. So, I really apologize for not responding to comments and emails very quickly right now. I will get to them when life slows a bit, I promise. I thought it would be fun to take a look back at myself one year ago, doing this same show. It was my first REAL show. I learned a ton of lessons through it that I shared and put up a short video of what it all looked like in the end. Check it out HERE. If you do shows or even if you only attend craft/art shows, it's really a fun post to see a bit of what the vendors are going through behind all the pretty displays. Have a blessed day in whatever is on your agenda. I hope it goes productively and efficiently. ;)

XO, HARMONY

New Painting: Seek Adventure...be authentic

2011-10-04T10:23:00.000-04:00

Creative Authenticity has been an overwhelming theme for me lately in my own work. What does it mean to you to be creatively authentic? I find sometimes it's really hard to feel genuine and true to myself, my style, my heart in my artworks when I am stretching and learning and growing. I am so influenced by everything around me, everything I see, admire, get inspired by. I often wonder what the line is between influence by inspiration and true organic creating? If I use lots of ink and scrawled words am I being too Sabrina Ward? If I use bubble wrap to create a layer in one of my backgrounds, is that just being Kelly Rae? What about if I use type font stamps to create inspirational phrases, is that just Christine Masons thing? I haven't figured this one out yet, so I am working very hard to create with as much of all the other influences and images as stripped away from my conscious as possible and do things that make me happy.

What didn't shock me in this process was to see a gravitation in my style away from the folk artsy look that I started with last year and a drastic movement into bright, bold, and kind of grungy. These are the things that I really love and want to surround myself with in my own home, so it makes sense that this would come out of me. So I am on a mission to understand more about being creatively authentic in my work. This pic is of one of my latest mixed media paintings, and it is truly a piece from my heart. This one was created with lots of layers, vintage papers, paint, inks, vintage lace pieces, stamping, and did you notice the use of my handmade artsy tape from my DIY? It tells me to seek adventure in all things and not be settled with the normal routine for too long. I love this idea. If we arent pushing ourselves into new spaces, experiences, growing and moving, then we've lost opportunities for incredible discoveries and immense amounts of joy. So take a risk today, seek adventure in whatever you are doing. It doesnt have to be a gigantic step, adventure can be found in little details and small moments of magic. I'd love to hear your thoughts about creative authenticity and how you are taking an adventure today.

XO, HARMONY

Get Inspired by: Citlalli of Sew Beastly!

2011-10-03T10:26:00.000-04:00

Happy Monday everyone! I quite happy today to feature a truly talented crafter and wonderful fellow creative to you here on FYSA. I met this amazing girl through my sponsor exchange and was absolutely honored to have her also swap interviews with me for each others blogs. Citlalli not only has a super interesting and beautiful name, but she is just as fascinating and inspiring to get to know. She is a sewing fanatic and makes the most beautiful little clutches that she sells on Etsy. She also runs a really fun and inspiring blog. I have been truly blessed to get to know her and cant wait to share her words with you. Here she is... the lovely Ctilalli of Sew Beastly.

1. We got to know a little bit about you from the sponsor spotlight post last month but can you tell us more about your creative process as an artist/crafter? (what inspires you? how do you get new ideas? what kind of environment do you like to have when you create?)

I like to think I am a very free crafter and artist. Free in the sense that just like in real life I like to think of something and just do it. I have followed a grand total of 1 pattern since I started sewing; it was nice to get a step-by step, but I seem to grow a little impatient every time I try to get instruction. That's the main reason why I have been a self-taught crafter. I like to get an idea for a design in my head and just start cutting and experimenting...the risk of cutting too much or messing up is imminent, but I think that learning from mistakes is an acceptable way of learning.... I am very hands on.

I come up with my designs by observing anything from nature to fashion....I also think of functionality and a way to apply it to my designs.

I love to rock out to my music while I create....It facilitates me spending ridiculous amounts of time with my sewing machine. I love to get lost in my sewing. It is quite often that I sew the night away and realize it when the sun comes up.

2. What do you love so much about the particular medium that you work with? How does it express a bit about who you are?

I think my passion for sewing comes from the fact that I can go any direction I want with my designs. There are no rules in my book, and I love to have no limits in my creative process. I think my designs express my personality in the way that I love interesting, pretty things, but I also love it when they have a purpose.

3. Who/What were your influences growing up that led you to choose this craft/art as a large part of your life today?

My father. He has been a free-lance artist ever since I can remember. I have always admired his drive and work ethic. That's what keeps me going everyday.

4. What one step/phase did you take in your creative journey that is most memorable/makes you the most proud? My decision to go into business by myself.

5. Where do you hope to be creatively with your art/craft in 5 years?

I hope to have my brand well established, and of course to be able to rock it to the max like so many ladies do every day. I hope to find that perfect balance between my work and personal life.

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Thank you so much Citlalli! I am excited to see how far you go with your amazing creations. If you'd like to see the interview that I did for Citlalli's blog, CLICK HERE. I wish you all have a wonderful and creative start to your week.

XO, HARMONY

September Sponsor Giveaway: WINNER!

2011-10-02T17:11:00.000-04:00

Congratulations Aimee! You were randomly selected as the winner of the September Sponsor Giveaway. I'll be in touch with all the information soon. Thank you all who participated in this first round. I hope to offer more large group giveaways often. As a consolation prize to all of you who didnt win (even if you didnt enter), I am offering 20% off all items in my Etsy Shop through Wednesday 10/5. Use coupon code GIVEAWAY20 at checkout. I hope you had a wonderful weekend!

XO, HARMONY

DIY Saturday!! Fabulous Fabric Flower Necklace

2011-10-01T11:33:00.000-04:00

Hello Hello, good Saturday to you all. I am in an especially good mood today because for the first time the Florida humidity and heat that normally greets me first thing in the morning has been replaced by the most glorious 70 deg breezy sunshine. It is amazing to me how much weather can affect our moods and energy levels. We instantly opened every window in the house, shut off the A/C, and had a sweet little family breakfast on the porch. Now with the little guy playing happily with his sand toys and daddy mowing the lawn, I get to spend my entire Saturday CREATING! YES!! I absolutely adore Saturday projects. I am kind of locked down with craft show preparations; however, I have a guest post DIY up on Mano Metal's blog that I'd love for you to try.

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE ENTIRE DIY

This was a seriously easy and super cute project. I am planning on making these for several friends for Christmas. Also, my first Gigundo Sponsor Group Giveaway has ended! Thank you all so much for participating. I will announce the winner tomorrow. Have a wonderful Saturday everyone! Leave me a note and let me know what fun things you are getting your hands into today.

XO, HARMONY

Made With Love: Mail Art!

2011-09-30T09:11:00.001-04:00

Hello dear readers, and welcome Freckled Nest Fans (i know you are all checking in from her giveaway right now) :) Just FYI: for more giveaway fun, today is the LAST day to enter my sponsor giveaway! There are 8 gorgeous prizes available for one winner. Take a sec and enter your name in the fun. Well, I hope you had a wonderful week and have a restful weekend ahead of you today. Despite my ever expanding pregnant body and the mounting stress of being WAY behind in my schedule for getting ready for my craft show in 3 weeks, I had some truly soulful moments of connection and creativity that I wanted to share with you. As my 3 year old son loves to say for no apparent reason, "Ta-Da!" It's my first post from my Made With Love mail art project with three amazing creations sent to me by some incredibly talented and beautiful souls. I am so excited about this project. If you are new here, click HERE or on the button that says MADE WITH LOVE, on the Right Sidebar for more information.

Now on to the loveliness...

There are no rules for what you send in the mail art project, just that it be something you created that is intended to lift and encourage the recipient's spirit! I have to say, nothing lifts my spirit more than beautifully decorated envelopes sitting in my mailbox.

Love this sweet Creative Soul and her pink and blue hair! Thank you so much Nessa! She is just lovely and now sitting on my shelf reminding me to believe in myself.

This sweet little collage was made by Karenann. I love vintage illustrations used in artwork, and the mother and children was a truly sweet touch. Thank you dear girl, I cant wait to add it to my art journal that I work in for my kiddos.

This one was sent to me by the lovely Bonita Rose. She made this fun and gritty little card and included this incredible vintage crochet scrap. You have no idea how happy this made me! I collect vintage scraps like this for use in my artwork, and this one will have a special meaning to me when I decide to use it. Thank you Bonita, this was really special!

What a wonderful way to celebrate the end of a week, with friendship. I cant wait for you three to get your mail art from me! If you want to connect with fellow creatives, give and receive encouragement to each other to keep following our creative dreams, join my Mail Art Project! It's simple and fun, and I will feature all the art that I receive on my blog. Have a wonderful day everyone!

XO, HARMONY

New Painting! Bloom In Your Own Time.

2011-09-28T11:40:00.002-04:00

I've been working on a new series of paintings based on acceptance and empowerment of self. It's something that has been on my heart for a while. Maybe it's my background in Family Therapy work, maybe it was all those years working with at-risk teens, and maybe its partially due to my own trauma and drama of navigating womanhood as a teenager and in my early twenties, but I really have a heart for women young and old, reclaiming themselves as powerful, brave, beautiful, and special. There are too many negative messages in our culture, and I've been wanting to start creating paintings that will inspire and motivate women to love ourselves a bit more.

Here's the first one that I will share with you...

It says "Bloom in your own time, redefine beauty." I picked these words because I often feel the pressure to keep up with the women around me (in the art world, in the parenting world, in the business world...) in ways that I just may not be ready for yet. I am still growing, finding myself in my process, and when I am ready to bloom, it will happen in my own time and space that is perfect for me. I will redefine what is beautiful and lovely in my own way and time. Do you ever feel that way?

It was made using layers of vintage gift wrap papers, acrylic paints and alcohol inks for the background, then I applied vintage lace remnants and used my own hand carved stamps for the wings. I hope this message is meaningful to you, or perhaps pass the link along to someone you know that could use the encouragement. Have a lovely Wednesday because you are so lovely too.

FYI: There is still time to enter my Giant Sponsor Giveaway! I have 8 amazing artist and crafters donating incredible prizes for one winner. There are lots of ways to enter. Click HERE for more information. Dont miss out!

XO, HARMONY

From My Art Journal: Playfulness and Acceptance

2011-09-27T14:28:00.000-04:00

It's time to share a few more pages from my art journal. The first two were my own, the second two are a collaboration between my 3 year old son and I. I really love having him be a part of the creative play that I do each day. He keeps me on my toes, and teaches me to let go of expectation and vision (which can often be stifling boundaries in the creative process. Hope you enjoy them today!

If there are any other art journalers out there, feel free to share any links to pages that you've posted lately. I'd love to see them and learn a bit more about you.

There is still time to enter my sponsor giveaway this week! 8 incredible prizes for one winner! Click Here to Enter.

XO, HARMONY

The Gift of A Creative Mother: Guest Post by Cami Smith

2011-09-26T10:27:00.001-04:00

Hello! Here we are at the start of another week. I hope your weekend was whatever you needed it to be. Mine was hectic, but good. So to get inspired and start out our Monday, I am really excited to introduce you to one of the amazing women that I have recently gotten to know through my sponsorship swap project. Meet Cami Smith. She is the voice and heart behind her blog Colorsmith and an incredible fiber artist (all these amazing works are hers!). She also Art Journals and does beautiful Mixed Media work as well.

Cami has a heart for art making and has done so her entire life for no other purpose or intention than because it is who she is. In fact, Cami grew up with a creative artsy mama that taught her about the beauty and passion that living a creative life can offer.

This really struck a chord with me, because as a young mom and an artist, I want my own children to be given the opportunity to discover their creative spirit, and let art making be a part of their lifestyle regardless of whether the world believes they have "talent." I believe that creative expression is a natural part of being human, and that everyone should participate in it. So I asked Cami if she would be willing to share a bit about her experience growing up with an artistic mother. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I did.

"Turpentine in our kitchen cabinets were as common as a box of cereal. I grew up with an artist for a mother. All my friends loved coming over to our house. I'm not sure why... certainly not because we had some cookies baking in the oven. My mother was not one for cooking. Oh, I didn't go hungry. Certainly not intellectually. We just had food that seemed to mingle with art supplies.

Every thing was a drawing surface to my mother. When she would come home with some groceries, she would stop as she was folding the paper bags. She would tell us to hold still, then she would proceed with her charcoal pencil and start to draw us on the blank part of the paper grocery bag. Or maybe start drawing the fruit that she just placed in a bowl. Our kitchen had an on going mural of the fog coming over the San Fransisco Golden Gate Bridge being painted on the wall. In her bathroom, she drew her self portrait with her eye makeup pencils on many of the tiles around her mirror,. She had a wonderful collection of self-portraits until the house keeper decided to wipe it clean!

She loved studying wild life and insects. We always had some creatures in living in terrariums like turtles or tarantulas. She would often get us up at dawn ( reluctantly) we would go for a bird watching walks and stop to sketch what we saw. And ... I know this sounds kind of crazy but if she found a dead bird, she would wrap it up carefully and put it in the freezer so she could study it more closely and draw it when she had time. Yes, dead birds somewhere next to the frozen peas.

It was not uncommon for her to point out the "negative space" between the trees as we would be driving down the road. She always took us to classical music concerts, ballet performances, museums, gallery exhibits and operas. We had a big poster of Beethoven and on December 17, we propped up it on a chair by the kitchen table. She would get a cake from the bakery and would sing happy birthday to him. So our intellect was well fed.

I have an extreme appreciation for the creative soul. You might ask, how does this translate to raising my own children? Well my son is in grad school studying classical trumpet. My daughter studies ballet with the Russian Ballet company. But other than the free range chicken I buy at the super market, I don't have any dead birds next to the frozen peas in my freezer!"

(The photos included in Cami's guest post are of her mother (85) surrounded by her found objects, sculptures and canvases in her studio where she lives in Seattle. All other photos are of Cami's original artworks, as can be seen on her blog).

Thank you so much Cami! I hope to be as creative and inspiring as a mother, as yours was for you. I highly encourage you to check out Cami's blog and get to know her better. She is also on Facebook and is an incredibly inspiring person to get to know.

Just a reminder: Only 2 days left to enter the BIG Sponsor Giveaway! 8 incredible prizes by 8 incredible women for ONE winner :) CLICK HERE TO ENTER!

XO, HARMONY

My Weekend Plans...paper paper and more paper

2011-09-24T12:37:00.000-04:00

It's a project weekend! With my husband out of town this weekend for a conference, I took the opportunity to pack up my three year old, our very curious boston terrier, and myself yesterday, along with a TON of paper supplies, and shuttle ourselves off to my parent's home in the country. The plan is to get swallowed up in art journal making production for two whole days while my son enjoys his grandparents. With only a couple weeks left before my craft show, I cant afford to lose a weekend of work. So here's a look at my next two days...

Hours and hours of cutting, sorting, organizing, binding ahead of me... Wish me luck!

I dont want you to miss out this week, so take a minute and enter the GIGUNDO sponsors group giveaway that just went up yesterday! EIGHT Amazing prizes will go to ONE winner, with lots of ways to enter. This is seriously a super exciting giveaway! Check out all the artsy crafty goodness you could take home HERE!

XO, HARMONY

Enormous Group Giveaway Goodness!

2011-09-23T10:13:00.004-04:00

Hello and Happy Friday! I am so excited to announce the biggest GIVEAWAY EVENT ever done on Feed Your Soul Art today. I have some incredibly talented sponsors this month, and they want to share their labors of love with you. One winner gets ALL THIS GOODNESS!

This gorgeous original mixed media artwork by the incredible Shari of Dashboard Hula. This very special piece is titled "Birds of a Feather," measures 9X12 and has a very special meaning of community and connection. Visit her BLOG and say hello.

This adorable hand crocheted little bird cage by Johwey. She makes the most amazing handmade things. Check out her work and leave her a note HERE.

A $20 credit to anything in Sew Beastly's Store. (there are some super cute sewn pretties in there), then stop by her BLOG and leave her a sweet note.

THREE Prints of Nessa's incredible artwork. See her prints HERE in her Shop, and then get to know more about Nessa and her amazing art journaling HERE.

A $25 credit towards your very own blog redesign by Amanda from Royal Daughter Designs. You can stop by her BLOG to see more examples of her amazing work.

Your choice of Ashely's incredible Chocolate or Vanilla Gluten-Free Vegan Cake Mixes from her brand new shop Sugar Mama Bakeshop! She's also offering Free Shipping with code GRANDOPEN. When you are done drooling over her incredible goodies, stop by her Blog and say hello.

FOUR adorable resin Bloom Rings by the lovely Bonita Rose. You get your choice of flower colors and bands. You can see them here in her Shop and then stop by her Blog to say hello.

This lovely set of THREE original art pins and coordinating bookmarks by Kathryn of The Collage Diva. This gift is sure to inspire your soul. Read more about the meaning behind the designs of these pins here.

With this being such a huge prize for the winner, I want you all to have lots of chances to win, so here are the rules.

To enter the giveaway, become a follower of Feed Your Soul Art blog either through google friend, my facebook page, bloglovin, etc, then leave a comment on this post, then take a peek at these amazing sponsor's sites and leave them some sweet words of encouragement.
PLEASE MAKE SURE THAT I HAVE A WAY TO CONTACT YOU IN YOUR COMMENT IF YOU WIN :)

Then for more entries:

1. Promote this giveaway either through your blog, facebook, twitter, etc... and leave a comment with a link to your shout out for each time you promoted it.

2. Become a follower of any of these amazing sponsor's blogs, then leave another comment for each blog you are now following.

That's a ton of ways to enter! The giveaway will run through Friday September 30th, so get all your entries in before then.

Thank you so much for your support of this blog, my amazing sponsors, and of the handmade arts. Good Luck to you all!

XO, HARMONY

Baby Love: The 8 Month Update

2011-09-22T15:45:00.001-04:00

Ok here it is.... time for a baby update :) I am no longer able to ignore it. I have reached the point where I am constantly aware that I am pregnant. Everything I do takes more effort, more time, more focus. I can no longer multitask, as I can barely remember all the details of one task let alone the several I used to easily balance. My feet are gone, hidden under this belly of mine, and the inner kicks and turns that were so sweet a few months ago are now annoying and painful. Even my "maternity" clothes are feeling tight and less comfortable, and I can no longer be bothered to get dressed out of my PJs unless I really really have to. Sleeping is hard, hard to breathe, hard to stay comfortable, hard to stop thinking about all the things that still need to be done. Oh and I am hot and sweating all the time...and all of this is dwarfed by the fact that I have a very active three year old constantly by my side.

I had sort of forgotten what the last 2 months can be like, or maybe I blocked it out. I am not a very good pregnant girl. I dont enjoy the extra attention, and I really just get more irritated by the physical limitations of my state than excited about all the extra food and naps I get to have. I know there are women out there that really love the experience of being pregnant. I am just not one of them.

At least I only have 8 more weeks of this. 8 more weeks until we meet this new little guy. I am really excited to meet him, to hold him, introduce him to his big brother and awesome dad, and to find out if God has finally blessed me with one of those "great sleepers" I hear so much about from other moms. We literally just pulled out the bins of baby stuff last night that we packed away from our first son and are finally sorting through clothes and toys and assessing what we still need to get. I was starting to panic for a bit there when I realized I was more prepared for my craft show in October than I was for the birth of my second son happening just 3 weeks after that. So I am slowly making progress on both fronts, realizing that I wont be as prepared for either as I want to be, or even as prepared as I had been before. Just for funsies, here's me 3.5 years ago with 2 months left to go... overly prepared and anxiously waiting our first son's arrival.

Of course, at that time I thought I was huge and completely exhausted and totally not prepared. Little did I know that I'd get bigger the second time around, I would now kill for the level of exhaustion I was dealing with then, and I had everything I needed in that moment to be a good mother. I have everything I need to be a good second time mom now too. For I know that even if we dont have everything we want/need in place when he arrives, this little boy will be very very loved and that is the most perfect beginning to life I can give him. We can scramble for the rest of it as we need to. So, I am not letting the stress of a too busy life wear me down, as I look forward to all the squishy sweet moments like this so soon to come...

And I welcome all the chaos, exhaustion, distraction, and oodles of fun that two of these little guys will bring my life...

XO, HARMONY

Guest Post: Inside Nessa's Art Journaling World

2011-09-20T22:00:00.000-04:00

Hello Dear Friends, I am so excited about today's Art Journaling Post! I get the honor to introduce you to my new friend Nessa. She is incredibly talented and makes the most beautifully expressive Art Journal Pages.

In fact, all the pictures you see here are her gorgeous work. Nessa has a sweet spirit and pure heart, which can easily be seen in her art and through her blog where she shares her creative process with others.

She also happens to be honoring me this month by participating in my sponsor swap. I couldnt be happier to show off her amazing artwork and let her share a bit more about herself with you.

From Nessa: "Hi! My name is Vanessa Colant but more known by my nickname as Nessa from Pretty Days Studio. I’m a creative Stay at Home mum who lives in Belgium(Europe) with my man and my 2 little sons. I’m 31 years old and I’m a creative soul. I can’t live without ART. I’m a painter. I’m a mixed Media Artist. I’m an Art Journaler. I love bright colors and using all my art supplies in my art journals. I love having paints on my fingers, feeling alive putting my hand in my gesso jar. Art has saved me, Art makes me feel alive. I need to write and draw into my journals to feel better and to write my story, my feelings, my emotion, …. I love staying hours and hours in my studio creating a canvas or an art journal page. I live a creative life and I’m so proud of it…It’s a full time job. I love being an artist and a mum together. You can see my art on my both English and French blog at Pretty Days Studios and being a fan on my facebook page. I hope you enjoy my art."

Nessa's website is so fun, colorful, and totally inspiring! I hope you'll take some time and check her out and add her to your read list. She also posts art journaling videos. I just love these! Here are a few of her latest videos, the first creating a background for a journal page and the second of her completing it. I got lots of new ideas and learned some fun tricks from watching her work, and now I am totally inspired to work in my own journal today! Check them out right here or on her blog.

Thank you Nessa for sharing so much of yourself with us today. Happy Journaling Everyone! I hope you got inspired too.

XO, HARMONY

Pinterest Inspiration...the power of words.

2011-09-19T19:30:00.000-04:00

A few words of encouragement that I found very Pinteresting today...

Source: None via Harmony on Pinterest

Source: lylaandblu.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Source: None via Harmony on Pinterest

Source: nicholeheady.typepad.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Source: debbie-smyth.com via Harmony on Pinterest

I hope you had an amazing start to your week. If you would like more encouragement today, click on the button on my sidebar that says Made With Love and join in on the fun!

XO, HARMONY

A Friendship Created through Art... Mail Art Exchange

2011-09-18T19:07:00.001-04:00

I recently jumped in on Mindy Lacefield of Tim's Sally call for a mail art exchange that she put out on her blog. I absolutely love the idea of exchanging art of all kinds with other creative people and didnt hesitate to whip up a fun 4X4" piece for her and send it out in a brightly painted envelope. Yesterday, I received my reply from her! Isnt it adorable? I have always loved Mindy's art, have been honored to get to know her a bit through the internet, and she has consistently been a huge inspiration for me to take risks and follow dreams in my art process. Getting an envelope full of her artsy goodness this week made me feel more connected to her and more in general with artists like me trying to live out their dreams.

Then I started thinking, what if we just kept this thing going and many more artsy/crafty people needing connection in their creative process started exchanging mail art? We could spread smiles and encouragement all over the world! I know that I dont have many artistic friends here in my hometown working to make a living from their creative passions, and often I feel a bit isolated in my journey. I am also in the phase of my life where I am growing a family, and my babies are little, so this Mommy is pretty tied down for a few years, no matter how badly I want to attend an art retreat or creative connection event somewhere across the country and find my creative tribe that way. This is exactly why the internet connections and friends I've made through my blog have been so important to me, and help me feel a part of something greater than just me alone in my art room making things I think are pretty or important. So here's me saying, let's connect! Send me your art! I'd be honored to send some of that magic back your way to encourage you as well. Let's call this project MADE WITH LOVE because it will be exactly that!

I hope to post pics, of the art I receive, here on my blog and would be honored to include a bit of a story along with them. If you feel brave and want to share a piece of your heart with me, send me some art and tell me a bit about you as well... why you created it or what your creative journey has been, or whatever your spirit desires. It's all about connecting and creating an encouraging network of creative friendships. This is will be an open on-going call, so at any time, this week/next month/next year, that you want to send me something you've created, I will receive it with a grateful heart and be overjoyed to send something back to you.

My Address:
Harmony Lenasbunt
2401 SE 12th Terrace
Gainesville, FL 32641

**FYI: If you are interested in joining Mindy's mail art call, (which you totally should, because she is amazing!), just visit HERE for the details.

XO, HARMONY

Even Pink Elephants Love A Good Chai Tea...Coloring Pages!

2011-09-17T09:20:00.000-04:00

Hello Saturday! We have a rainy morning going on here, so it's really the perfect day to break out the colors and play with new coloring pages. (I've also been informed that they also would make great stitching patterns for any embroidery enthusiasts out there). Here's a very special Morning and Night rendition of Color Your Saturday for you today, featuring some pretty pretty and FREE background papers made by my very talented friend Kristin Dudish. She offers free collage papers every Friday for anyone to grab and play with, and it was super fun adding her textures and designs to my digitally colored version of the coloring pages for this week. See how they adds extra cuteness to the elephant's bow, spots, and toenails and created a soft mosaic feel to the sky in the background.

I like to think that these two meet for a Saturday morning brunch each week to catch up on all the jungle gossip.

In the second one, I used a star pattern from Kristin's stash and created a sweet nighttime scene my little koala bears. I think its obvious the little one doesnt want to go to bed and is trying to hide from Mama. It wont work little guy, Mama always wins in the end.

So those are my versions, and it's time for you to create your own! Just click on the images below to view it in a larger size and save to your desktop. Then you can either color digitally, or print out the images to color with whatever medium suits your fancy today. Dont forget to pop by Kristin's page and grab a few fun papers to play with as well. Remember these are only for your own personal use, you are welcome to share them online, just please link back to my site.

I'd love to see what you created with these latest pages! Share links on this thread, if you post them up somewhere, and if you missed any of the past pages, check out the PRINT tab at the top of this page. Happy Coloring Everyone!

XO, HARMONY

My Pink Morning

2011-09-16T13:08:00.000-04:00

I am trying a few new techniques for fabric surface design today, and I loved the colors so much that I kept going and dyed some fibers to spin into a matching yarn. It was really fun and the colors turned out so bright and yummy; however, in the end I discovered that I literally turned my hands pink. Turns out my messy creating style with paint does not work so well with a dying process, as the paint does scrub off and well dye... not so much. Oh well, pink is a happy color, and at least I didnt turn them black or brown or some other color that translates as dirt. Here are some pics from my morning:

I used a regular washable glue to create the flowers and typical fabric dyes for the colors. I am planning on turning the fabric into journal covers and the fibers will be handspun yarn to tie onto the binding. I am loving the way it looks outside my window right now, blowing in the wind on the clothesline. I just might have to make some more in this colorway to turn into flags or something, just so I can enjoy it all year round. Happy Friday!

XO, HARMONY

Artist Inspiration of the Day: The Lovely Wyanne

2011-09-15T09:42:00.002-04:00

Together is Better by Wyanne

I really wanted to show you a new painting process video today, but it seems that hitting the 8 month mark in my pregnancy has seriously slowed me down and I am not working as efficiently as I used to. So until I finish that project later, I thought I would share another artist's process video today. This is a snippet of one of my favorite artists to get new technique ideas from. I watch her videos all the time and get filled with inspiration and creative energy. Her name is Wyanne, said "Y"-an, and if you havn't discovered her yet and explored her world, you've been missing out on some beautiful paintings and probably some of the best painting process videos I have ever watched.

Garden Wild by Wyanne

It was actually her videos that encouraged me to start using alcohol and inks in my mixed media works. She just posted several new videos and listed new paintings, and I instantly fell in love with this amazing little owl. If I could afford to snatch it up and put it in my boys room, I would do so in a second.

Hello World by Wyanne

Whether you are a painter, art journaler, creative player, you should spend a little time today exploring her videos, they truly are inspirational and FUN to watch. Maybe it will give you he courage to try something new and artsy today.

I hope you found something inspiring here that brightens your day. The idea is to keep going, keep pushing through, and keep your eyes open to discovering your creative self bringing the world alive to you in totally new ways (oh and playing with lots of bright colors helps too).

XO, HARMONY

From My Art Journal: Embracing the Good with the Bad

2011-09-14T14:45:00.000-04:00

I sat down last night with the intention of creating a few pages in my art journal trying out some new stamps I had carved. It was supposed to be both intentional, since I needed to create a few new designs for my materials, and also therapeutic for me to zone out, as my day had been hectic and exhausting and now my husband needed to go out for a few hours leaving me in charge of night time routine with our 3 year old (an hour long battle every time, that I was willing to put off and avoid for at least another 30 minutes). So I thought I would take a bit of time while my son was occupied with his trains in the other room and have some creative play time just for mommy. So I thought... About ten minutes into it he shows up and insists that the paintbrush is his and that he should be painting. "Ok." I shift my work space to make room for him next to me, give him his own papers to work on and go back to my own work. This however, would not do for him. He was apparently feeling more like collaborative work with mommy, and continued to take over my paper and execute his vision. No matter how many times I started over, he would not let me finish a page without his heavy handed paint job on top. (and let me add taking frequent breaks to jump on me and tickle me and pull at my clothes). As cute as this was, I found myself getting frustrated and a little touch sensitive. "I've been with you all day doing activities and playing, cant mommy have a bit of time before showers!" was all I kept thinking. It was at this point that the now very strong and active little guy in my uterus decided to join the fun and began kicking away at my already uncomfortable belly. I kind of just wanted to run away and hide. But then I just took a deep breath and let go. I let the "bad" art happen all over my pages and then joined him, tossing to the wind any thought of what was good in terms of color palette, form, texture, design. We just painted and it looked awful, but it was fun. In that moment, I learned that my life isnt going to slow down and isnt going to be less crazy anytime soon, so if I dont figure out how to embrace those chaotic moments and just be a part of it, it will end up swallowing me whole. So here's to an insane lifestyle of motherhood and building an art business. You'll pardon me while I go take a nap.

Thanks for listening to my struggle today. I hope you enjoyed our "bad" art journal pages. (FYI: I really dont think that there is anything in the creative process that is "bad" Some of it is just more frustrating to get out and get through than others). Create some "bad"art in your journal today and see what you can learn from it.

XO, HARMONY

Get Inspired! Vintage Gift Wrap and the Feeling of Neon Pink

2011-09-13T12:26:00.001-04:00

Ever since a friend of mine gave me a few scraps of wrapping paper from the 1950's that she had found in a relative's attic, I've been hooked on the stuff. I cant get enough! I love using it in my artwork so much that I even bought a book about it and was even more inspired. Nobody can do patterns and odd color pairings like the paper designers of the 50s, 60s and 70s. I just love the bright colors, the bold patterns, and the thinness of the actual paper used, making it perfect for using in my mixed media background layers. I thought we could all use a dose of color inspiration today. Here are a couple of my favorites!

Do these colors inspire you too? I thought I'd turn one into a color palette for anyone to use. I really liked this particular palette because it plays with primary colors with the bright neony pink on a background of mustardy yellow, something I would NEVER think to put together, and it just works beautifully! Try this one out in your next work or in your sketchbook or art journal.

I dont know what it is about the neon pinks in these papers that just make me so happy. So here's hoping your day is feels like the color neon pink today! I've got the whole afternoon to work in my studio, so I know mine will! What color does your day feel like to you?

XO, HARMONY

Discovering New Friends... Sponsor Love Week 2

2011-09-12T11:51:00.000-04:00

Monday Monday! Hello Fellow Creatives and welcome to Feed Your Soul Art. I am featuring more really lovely talented and inspiring people today, whom have been super amazing in supporting my blog this month. I encourage you to check out their links and get to know them a bit more. They really are wonderful ladies doing amazing creative things, and I just know you will find lots of inspiration from them today.

Find Out More About Bonita Here:

BLOG ETSY PINTEREST TWITTER FLICKR FACEBOOK

Find Out More About Johwey Here:

WEBSITE FACEBOOK TWITTER FLICKR ETSY

Find Out More About Desiree Here:

BLOG SHOP FACEBOOK TWITTER

Find Out More About Amanda Here:

DAUGHTER DESIGNS PERSONAL BLOG

FACEBOOK TWITTER

Find Out More About Megan Here:

BLOG FACEBOOK TWITTER

Find Out More About Kristine Here:

BLOG

Find Out More About Britta Here:

BLOG FACEBOOK KICKSTARTER

I hope you enjoyed exploring the creative worlds of these new and inspiring sponsors of mine. They are all doing amazing things and I am honored to have them be a part of my blog this month. If you are a creative soul with a blog/creative Biz, check out my Sponsor Tab. It's Free and lots of fun!

XO, HARMONY

Shop Update: More Handpainted Art Journals

2011-09-11T21:05:00.001-04:00

I dont normally post twice in one day, but I couldnt resist jumping right in and sharing a few pics of the latest art journals I just finished making. I realize that there has been a lot about art journaling in my posts this week. It's been most of my creative world the past several days, and I hope you dont mind if I share just a bit more.

I really enjoy making these little books for other people to use as a creative outlet. There is a lot of love and creative energy put into them, and I just have to show them off. These recent books have been a bit of a departure from the art journals that I normally make for shows. They are a bit smaller, fewer pages, but way more details, personal touches, and I use all vintage paper ephemera and photos as my add ins in between the hand painted pages and the colored cardstock.

These two are now available in my Etsy Shop, with Free Shipping through Monday. Thanks for letting me show them to you. Have you caught the art journal bug yet?

XO, HARMONY

Honor Tragedy With A Celebration of Beauty

2011-09-11T10:44:00.001-04:00

Hello to you all. This post is a bit different for me. I usually try to keep the mood light and fun and full of creative inspiration. However, it seems obvious that today is special and that cant be ignored. It's September 11th, ten years after the words "war on terror," Al-Queda, and Osama Bin Ladin entered into our common vocabulary, ten years after the world acquired public threat color levels and we all started looking at people who were different than us with a bit of mistrust, and even more importantly, 10 years after thousands of people tragically died simply to be a symbol of hate. There are lots of thoughts and prayers being sent into our universe right now, and so many people still in pain from the loss that happened 10 years ago. It really was a loss for us all. no matter who you were or where you lived or whether you had any personal connection to NY City or the Towers, we all lost something huge that day. We all cried and got scared and called our loved ones.

Typically, I dont believe in making huge monuments out of particular anniversaries just because they are divisible by 5 (something our culture loves). I believe any major event be it joyous or heartbreaking should be honored in the way, timing, and frequency that is most significant to each person. This event, however, feels a bit different to me. This was a day that everything truly changed, and we were all thrown into a truly different kind of world.

I must admit there is something really special about joining people from every part of our planet at the same time to remember and honor the people that were lost that day and the beauty of their lives. There is something magical about a large part of the world taking a collective pause and sending love into the air. I too will join them. In my own time and way, I will have my moment of prayer and silence today, just like millions and millions of others. I will also hug my family several times more than normal today and cover my baby boy with a million extra kisses, because no matter what the politics are that surround this date and the tragedy that happened 10 years ago, what it has taught me the most is to treasure every single day I have with the beautiful people God has put in my life, and make sure they always know that they are very very loved. I want to honor this day by celebrating life, love, and the beautiful people in this world that we have with us.

(this is my amazing family! pic by Laura Dawson of Chick-a-dee Photography

Join me! Hug your loved ones today, skype them, call them, email them, write them letters, make them crafty gifts from your heart for no reason except that they are special to you. For sometimes we take it for granted that our special people know what they mean to us, and one day we will have no more chances to tell them. So if I can convey any message to you today, I hope it is an empowering message of celebrating life, and that through loving and connecting with the significant circles of relationship we have today, we will truly honor the memory of what was lost ten years ago.

***(All flower pictures are taken by the very talented Kristine Ortega. She is a very talented photographer, fellow creative, and a friend. She has also honored me by sponsoring my blog this month. I had planned a guest post from her this morning with some photography tips, but being the pregnant scatterbrain that I am, I had not realized what the date would be today, and so will post that later this week. You can get to know Kristine on her blog and see more inspirational pictures like these.)

YOU ARE ALL VERY LOVED!

XO, HARMONY

Crafty Saturday Fun: Make a Yarn Bouquet!

2011-09-10T11:51:00.002-04:00

Most of my DIY ideas come from the necessities in my own life. Today's project is no exception. I have several special birthdays coming up and also have a ridiculous amount of old yarn skeins from past projects (when I thought I was going to be a serious crocheter and turned out it was too hot in Florida to wear anything I made). So what could I make as a birthday gift that involved yarn?... super cute Yarn Flower Bouquet that's what!

This project was so simple and fast, it seems silly to lay out the steps but for the sake of clarity, here is what I did. (I do want to apologize for the inconsistency in photo quality, I was having some serious issues with clouds coming and going and constantly changing my light source, but you'll get the idea).

Step 1: Go on a stick hunting adventure in your backyard or local park. (this was my son's favorite part, except he kept finding borderline logs instead of sticks and insisted on lugging them back with us as well. So you are prewarned, you may need a wagon for this adventure if you are bringing a small friend.)

Step 2: Pick out some fun yarn colors from your stash.

Step 3: Break your sticks down to the sizes you want for the flower stems and wrap with yarn. (you may need to clean them off a bit before you do this). The wrap technique is simple, tie an overhand knot at the end and start wrapping tightly up, covering the knot tail as you go. When you get to the top, just tie another overhand knot and cut the yarn. It doesnt matter if you see a little bit of the stick since it will be covered with the flower.

Step 4: Make Pom-Poms for your flowers. You can either use the old fashion method of cutting cardboard donuts or use a pom-pom maker, like I did (Previous DIY on how to do this HERE).

Step 5: Grab your trusty Hot glue gun and put a glob of glue on the end that you want the flower to sit, separate the yarn ends with your finger to make a spot for the stick to go as close to the center as possible, and then press the flower on. At this point, I also added some fun ribbon ties to create a leaf look (felt leaves would also be cute)

Step 6: Arrange however you please. I had a little glass vase on hand which I filled with scrap yarn and arranged my bouquet in, but they could also be tied together with a cute ribbon for the birthday girl to put in her own style of vase.

There you have it, a simple cheap way to give a gift from the heart that will last so much longer than real flowers. Plus it's a wonderful way to decorate your home with bright cheeriness when the cold winter months come around.

Dont they make you want to create a whole garden of yarn-tastic flowers! I kind of want to yarn-bomb people's yards with them, mostly because I love the whole concept of yarn bombing and for some reason the pairing of brightly colored fiber art against the natural world makes me really really happy. If you have no idea what I am talking about, click HERE for some fun.

*FYI: I have a few more of the hand painted vintage art journals almost ready and will be listing them later today, if you missed out on the one that sold yesterday. Dont forget, everything is Free Shipping through Monday in my Etsy Shop. Have a happy and crafty Saturday!

XO, HARMONY

A Sweet Little Book Made with Love

2011-09-09T14:08:00.002-04:00

Hello! It's Friday :) Which for me means the opposite of most other people. The weekends are my time to get as much work done as possible in my art room, while my husband and little boy are off playing. So I am gearing up for a few days of creative play and crafty work, but I wanted to take a few moments and show you what I made yesterday.

Here is the finished journal that I made from the pages you saw me make yesterday. When I started putting it together, I really felt like it needed some vintage flair, so I added lots of extra pages from vintage wrapping papers from the 50s and 60s, and several vintage photos from the 40s and 50s, along with a few pages from vintage fairy tale books.

Overall there are 35+ pages of color popping goodness, lots of bright pinks and blues. The cover is hand painted much in the same way that you saw me paint the pages, with a vintage wrapping paper layer underneath that peeks through, and I layers some antique lace trims on the edge of it, just in case it wasnt girly enough ;)

The book is hand bound with a black metal spiral and embellished with a mix of recycled sari ribbons, hand spun yarn, and hand dyed silk. It is a truly precious little book measuring 4.5"w X 6"h.

This one of a kind entirely handmade journal is up for sale in my ETSY SHOP now, as well as lots of new prints and originals, at reduced prices. I will be offering Free Shipping on everything through Monday, just use the FREESHIPPING code at checkout *(see store announcements for details). Thanks for looking and I wish you a very happy start to your weekend. DIY Saturday is tomorrow, with a super fun project in the works, so perhaps I'll see you back here for more creative fun in the morning.

XO, HARMONY

How To Make Art Journal Pages With Your Fingers VIDEO

2011-09-08T12:53:00.000-04:00

Its only 11:30am and already I am covered in paint. What an amazing way to start the day! (and a tricky issue when baby boy wakes up and wants a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for breakfast. "Sure honey, would you like that with or without acrylic paint?" I am finally starting to break out the Art Journal making supplies, and trying to psych myself up for all this craft show prep that needs to happen in 6 weeks time. I've been wanting to make a few smaller journals that features hand painted pages ready to inspire their new owner, so I decided to start there today.

I have also been hearing from a lot of you that art journaling is something that you've always wanted to do, but just havn't jumped in that ocean of creativity yet. So I thought I'd show you how I made 12 double sided creatively prepped pages in just 20 minutes. I only used a few materials, pastels, pencil, white paint, and ink mostly with tools of roller stamps, and my finger (no brush needed!).

It was incredibly fun and fast, and I hope it encourages you that any one can do this with very little tools and very little art technique.

Here's the video of me creating the pages! Enjoy the colorful messy fun!

Just wait, and I'll reveal the final completed art journal tomorrow!

XO, HARMONY

Inside My Art Journal: New pages from a mama's world

2011-09-07T10:41:00.000-04:00

I am going to be honest here. Sometimes art journaling is about having fund with art with no pressure, and sometimes it really and truly is a healing process for my own emotional funk that day. I've been having one of those pregnancy hormone surge weeks where everything seems to overwhelm me and everything seems to make me cry. It's a normal thing, and having been through it once before, I know that it will pass soon. So instead of crying in my palette over a wrong brush stroke or a color choice misstep, I put away the expensive paints and canvases and pulled out my art journal and $2 craft paints. I played, I sketched, I doodled, I went over images several times. I wrote words to myself, and to my son (who has also been having a cranky week this week). I experimented with new techniques and materials I've been wanting to try. In the end, I got no closer to checking anything off my "To-Do for Craft Shows" List, but I feel a lot better. Thank Heavens for Art Making! It is my favorite therapy. Here's a few of my pages from my week.

There you have it. A peek into my head this week. I am definitely enjoying working messier and playing with brighter colors. Both of those things make me feel authentic when I work, instead of my previous process of working and reworking and obsessing over "perfection." I think I may be growing creatively :) Feel free to share links to your art journal pages, or if you dont art journal but want to start, dont wait any longer! Pick up a regular ol sketchbook with heavier pages, or stop by my Etsy Shop and take a peek at the creativity journals I make for art journaling, stock up on cheap supplies you can play with (sharpies, pencils, cheap paint, collage scraps, stamps, pens, markers, anything goes!), and start creating. There are no rules! Let the process free you from whatever worries and stresses you are carrying with you. Time to play :) (and that is my soapbox). Have a wonderful and creative Wednesday!

XO, HARMONY

Discovering New Friends... Sponsor Love.

2011-09-06T10:54:00.000-04:00

Today is a rainy day outside my window. A perfect day for cuddling with my kiddo reading books, building sheet forts in the living room, and baking our favorite chocolate chip cookies, oh yeah and drinking as much caffiene as I am allowed, being preggo and all, because this grey day makes me want to nap. It's also a perfect day to share a few of my bloggy friends with you. These amazing women are also bloggers, fellow creatives, and are recent supporters of Feed Your Soul Art! I am really excited to collaborate with them this month, and you can look forward to seeing them again throughout September with some really fun guest posts, creative process interviews and a REALLY big group giveaway. Here are the first group of them. I would encourage you to click on their links and visit their virtual worlds. They really are super talented and very very inspirational.

Get to know more about Jill here: BLOG TWITTER PINTEREST FLICKR

Get to know more about Kristin here: WEBSITE BLOG ETSY

Get to know more about Ashely here: BLOG PINTEREST or EMAIL to ashgreeno@gmail.com

Get to know more about Shari here: BLOG ETSY FACEBOOK

Get to know more about Ryn here: WEBSITE BLOG FACEBOOK

Get to know Citlalli more here: BLOG ETSY FACEBOOK

Thanks for giving a little love to my new sponsors. I'll be back tomorrow with lots of new art journal pages to share with you. Have a lovely Tuesday!

XO, HARMONY

Hello September, when is Fall going to get here?

2011-09-05T12:11:00.000-04:00

Source: weheartit.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Happy Labor Day! It is the symbolic end of the summer. I say symbolic due to the fact that, here in Florida, we will continue to experience summer-like weather until at least November (ugh!). I get so jealous when I see all the Fall weather energy sweeping over other states, those cooler evenings and spectrum of leaves changing colors, sweaters and hats. I love all of these things, but will have to wait quite a while to enjoy them here at home. Here in Florida, we can expect at least a few more months of flip-flop weather (although lets be honest, Floridians will wear flip-flops no matter what the temp). For those that know me well, it is no secret that I am not a Florida weather lover. I am dying to relocate to a more 4-seasonal mountain-y type climate, but our family is here and moving with kiddos is really really hard. So in the meantime, I have to live vicariously through those of you that do get a lovely Fall Season, by ogling your amazing pics and blog posts about the changes. Since, today it my Pinterest Monday Inspiration Post, and I am a 7.5 month, sweating, pregnant girl, wishing for a weather change, it's an all about Fall today. These are some inspiring pics of things that I am looking forward to this Fall, whenever it arrives here.

Lovely fall leaves with a little something extra

Source: blogdelanine.blogspot.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Pretty artsy Pumpkin Projects

Source: racheldenbow.blogspot.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Backyard campfires and drum circles with family and friends

Source: etsy.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Lots of chilly morning deer spottings as they come out to find more grass. Oh and if I lived somewhere with a mountain behind it, that would be fine by me.

Source: etsy.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Getting lots of new yummy yarns to make warm fuzzy things in the evenings.

Source: etsy.com via Harmony on Pinterest

I wish I had a reason to wear arm warmers other than a fashion statement (and sweating inside them).

Source: etsy.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Pretty, fuzzy, warm blanket cuddles. Dont you love when your toes peek through ones like these?

Source: attic24.typepad.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Going Camping! My favorite way to spend a weekend in the Fall.

Source: apartmenttherapy.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Decorating the house with Autumn-y things, like these lovely felt leaves.

Source: dana-made-it.com via Harmony on Pinterest

An autumn leaves abstract artwork to get in the mood.

Source: etsy.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Loving subdued hues for Fall like this necklace

Source: etsy.com via Harmony on Pinterest

I'd love to know what you are most looking forward to this Fall season. Share with me in the comments. BTW: I only have one day left on my Labor Day Etsy Sale. I am giving a special one day only 25% off everything with code LABORDAY25 Take a peek HERE. Enjoy your day everyone!

XO, HARMONY

Did You Miss Any of These? My Favorite August Posts

2011-09-04T11:42:00.000-04:00

It's been an amazing month for me on this blog. A kind of transformation is underway and I couldnt be more excited about it. I went from graduate student to full time artist and stay at home mom and have made serious commitment to creating this site into a place where anyone can come and get a daily dose of color, inspiration, and hopefully encouragement that art is for us all. Since many of you just started visiting and getting to know me this month, I thought I'd take a look back at some of my favorite posts from August. Perhaps you will discover something new and inspiring to you.

We got really messy remaking the "ART OF THE POUR"

I Graduated and said Goodbye to my journey as a Counseling student.

DIY Mini Hoop Messages Were SO FUN!

I discovered my son's fears and shared some of my own as a child.

Lots of new Art Journal pages and process videos!

I joined the Craftzine fun and shared my 5,4,2,3,1 things about me and my craft.

We tried a new technique for seeing your work in a new perspective.

I celebrated sisterhood with a new custom painting, and discovered a new artistic style for myself

DIY Artsy Tape, SO SO FUN!!

We started coloring together. Pick up the latest Free pages under my Print Tab.

I opened my blog up to other creative people to swap sponsorships! If you have a blog and etsy shop and are looking to get more exposure, click on my Sponsor Tab and find out more about what we can do together!

I hope you got to know a bit more about me and my blog through this look back in the month of August. I have so many fun projects, stories, and artworks to share with you in September, so I hope you find a reason to come back again soon.

Before you go I still have a Labor Day Sale going on in my Etsy Shop. There are lots of original paintings at reduced prices, plus I am offering an additional 15% with code LABORDAY off of your entire purchase, through Monday! Have a wonderful and restful weekend!

XO, HARMONY

The Nearsighted Fox and The Fashion Forward Turtle.

2011-09-03T11:10:00.000-04:00

Happy Saturday! Time for a new coloring book challenge! I hope you have your favorite coloring tools ready to play today, because I have two new coloring book pages to share with you. The idea behind this activity is to just play. Have fun and remember how much you loved coloring when you were a child. Let your imagination go wild, color outside the lines, make a pink sky, color the trees purple! Create stories for the characters as you go along, and make them come alive. Just click on the image and then save to your computer. You can color digitally, like I did here in my examples, or print off to paint, draw, scribble all over. Please keep to the honor code of using my images and not reproduce, alter, or use in anyway other than your own personal use. Have Fun!

Coloring Page #3

Coloring Book Page #4

If you missed the first 2 pages in the series, you can find them under my PRINT Tab at the top! So here are my versions of this weeks color challenge.

This is Sally the Fox. She is a shy little gal, and a bit nearsighted. She needs to update her prescription on her spectacles, but keeps forgetting, and so will often bump into the trees as she takes her morning walks through the forest. BUMP! Here come the leaves tumbling down on top of her.

This is Mortimer the turtle and his best friend Pickles. Mortimer has a flair for fashion, and is a typical turtle, slowly taking his time to enjoy the sweet flowers along his path. Pickles the song bird doesnt mind. He loves his slow Saturday walks with Mortimer, just gives him lots of time to practice his singing along the way.

I'd love to hear your imaginative versions of the stories this week, feel free to post in the comments here and share links your colored pages here too!

Dont forget that I am having a big Sale in my Etsy Shop through Monday in celebration of the 3 day weekend and Back to School redecorating time. Stop by HERE and check out my SALE section with lots of reduced prices on original works and artsy jewelry. Then use code LABORDAY to get an additional 15% off everything.

I hope you have a wonderful colorful day!

XO, HARMONY

Celebrate Your Weekend with ART!

2011-09-02T15:13:00.001-04:00

Happy Labor Day Weekend! I dont know what you have planned, but I will be locked away in my art room like a little Santa's Elf, getting things ready for Craft Show season. I need to make room for all the new artsy goodness that I am currently creating, and I have lots of original works from last year that need to find new homes and someone to love them. So let's celebrate the weekend with a Super Labor Day Sale to fill your walls with lovely art, and empty my own to make some space in my life.

I know there are many of you just starting a new college semester needing to decorate that new apartment or dorm room, or have a home that could use a unique statement piece. I'd like to invite you to take a peek at my ETSY SHOP, I just reduced prices on a bunch of original artworks (just check out the SALE section) and much more. In addition to the reduced prices, you can use code LABORDAY to get an additional 15% off anything (sale items included)!

I have a bunch of artsy jewelry and more originals that I will be adding throughout the weekend, so keep checking back, you never know what might show up on sale next.

Speaking of new things in the shop, remember the textured fabric painting I did a few weeks ago?

Well I tweaked her a bit and decided to take off the lettering, and she is now available HERE to find a home where she can inspire you to create from your inner child.

I am also currently working on a butterfly series using the same textural technique with bits of vintage fabrics, ribbons, and lacework. Here is the first one completed and she is now available in my shop.

The Flower Hoops from the Embroidered Botanical Series are also now listed in my shop. They are truly unique and lovely pieces in their vintage frames, and I am excited for them to bring joy to their new homes.

I do have to thank each and every one of you who are here for supporting my dreams. This has been an incredible adventure so far and I am just getting started. The opportunity and support to live my passion of creating art and inspiring others to believe in their own dream journeys has truly blessed my heart. Thank you. Come back tomorrow for some creative fun where I'll share my new FREE coloring pages!

XO, HARMONY

Blooms and Roofs: A Color Study

2011-09-01T15:02:00.003-04:00

I've been experimenting in my sketchbook lately exploring color and pattern, working up the nerve to do some serious fabric design on my newly purchased canvas cloth. I started with some loose sketching of flowers layered on top of each other on one page and then a repetitive pattern of house doodles on the opposite page. I really wanted to play more with using bright colors against soft hues. I watered down some simple craft paint and started to play. Here are a few peeks of what I created in the end.

Dont they remind you of crisp autumn leaves against a sunset sky? As I was painting the houses, I started to imagine a story about little costumed ghosts and princesses going trick or treating door to door. Do they inspire you to try a bit of fall inspired art making of your own? If you'd like to try working with this color palette, I made it super simple for you. I isolated the colors that I created with and made a digital palette just for you!

As soon as I completed my pages, I left the room and my 3 year old son snuck in and picked up his own creative inspiration on the next page. I was able to catch him on tape and interview him a bit on his process. If you have a child, a childlike heart, or maybe need a bit more childishness in your creative world, I highly recommend that you spend the next 2 minutes letting him inspire you.

XO, HARMONY

My Confessional: I Have Artistic ADHD

2011-08-31T10:43:00.000-04:00

I am a bit overwhelmed today. I am blown away that August is now over, and I have only 6-7 more weeks to get ready for the fall craft shows. That might seem like a lot, but from my point of view, which includes a seven month pregnant belly with a very active little guy inside and a very active 3 year old boy bouncing around me on the outside, I am feeling unsure at my ability to get everything finished in time. What happens to me in times like these is that my creative process morphs into something that makes me look downright certifiably dysfunctional, think ADHD meet Schitsophrenia and you've got me right now. I currently have 8 different projects in process, and I buzz from each to each like a maniac whenever I can steal an hour away in my craft room alone.

I am not condoning this behavior. Even though I am loving it, it's not healthy, and it's totally exhausting, but it has always been my norm for meeting deadlines. I am the work slowly (or not at all) until it's almost too late and then cram into overdrive for the last stretch before something is due, type of girl. Deadlines motivate me, but only when they are looming too close for comfort. Any of you do this in your own life processes? I know I'm not the only crazy crammer around here.

As I lay down on my pillow last night, body exhausted, and trying desperately to shut my head off from all the swirling thoughts and ideas of things I still need to finish, I made a decision to be more intentional with my time, and if needed, I will cut back on my expectations for the shows to allow that to happen. I desperately need some down time in my day, and right now between mothering/ household stuff/ and art time, it's just not happening. My art time is usually my downtime, but not when I am in craft show production mode. Then, while still really enjoyable and stimulating, it drains my energy just as much as my other roles during the day.

So here I go, day one of starting fresh, taking one project at a time and making a non-negotiable stop time, where I have to put down the paints and walk away and decompress. Do you need to practice the art of slowing in your day? Or do you have a particular process that helps you stay balanced? What does decompressing look like for you?

*all pics are from my art room, just a few of my latest partially completed projects.

XO, HARMONY

A Morning Photo Session: New Artwork!

2011-08-30T12:28:00.003-04:00

Remember my morning run and impromptu garden photo session a few weeks back? Well, I have turned some of those pics into art! I was really inspired by this artist and her incredible art yarn paintings, and thought I could do something similar with hand stitching. I printed the photos onto fabric and mounted them into my newly purchased oh-so-amazing vintage metal hoops, and just plodded along one stitch at a time. They took me a lot longer to complete than I had thought they would. Everything on them is done by hand, no pattern, just me slowly painting along with a needle and thread, creating a truly organic pattern that celebrates and tributes the beauty and art that can be found our natural world. I finished them last night, and so my son and I staged a bit of a photo session with them this morning so I could share a special first look at them with you.

They measure 4", 5", and 7" and have vintage hand dyed silk ribbon to hang them from. They are one of a kind original mixed media fiber art, and I couldn't be more proud of them. I will be listing these on Etsy later this week, so if you are interested in any of them and want them reserved for you, please message me.

So if you are wondering what happens behind the scenes when trying to photograph art while taking care of a small child, then here's a bit of the other side to our morning.

Here's me on the front porch, because its the only place in my horribly lit Florida home that gets decent light in the morning, and yes I am still in my PJs. I'll be honest though, I spend most of my days now working at home in my PJs. What's the point of getting dressed when all my pregnant self wants to wear is baggy shirts and stretchy pants anyway? I can still just barely see my toes, Yay! - I did have to lean forward a bit though :)

Baby boy was on the hunt for more flowers for me to photograph. We have very little as far as flowering plants in our yard right now (who has time to garden?) but he did very excitedly produce this lovely purple wild flower discovered under a bush. He loves to bring me flowers, roots and all.

Then he decided that he needed to paint the cardboard that I was using as a background for my hoop shots, and drug out some white paint and a brush that he swiped from my craft room while I was busy shooting. Here he is showing me how he painted my flower and made it pretty. He also apparently made the walkway pretty as well...(somebody should be watching this child more closely).

So there you have it, my latest creations and a bit of our morning. I have quite a few more of these hoops in the works that I am saving for Fall Craft Show season, but I just couldn't resist sharing these first few with you. Have a lovely Tuesday everyone! I am off to hose down an exuberant young painter and a walkway.

XO, HARMONY

Discovering My Vintage Side

2011-08-29T10:38:00.001-04:00

It's Pinterest Day! I've been noticing a bit of an odd trend in my pins for me lately and thought I would share a bit of my sources of inspiration with you today. You see something strange has happened to me this year. I am becoming a vintage girl totally without my consent. I was never attracted to "vintage" growing up. The word meant "old" to me as a child and that we'd be buying my Easter dress at a thrift store instead of a department store. Then later meant "country" while as a teenager as I watched my mother fill her home with "vintage" finds that made our rural home look like the decor of a Cracker Barrel restaurant (you southern interstate travelers know exactly what I am talking about). I was totally against vintage...until now.

Now I find myself obsessing to find the perfect group of 60's and 70's bed sheets to make a quilt from.

Source: flickr.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Or I'm doing late night ebay searches for vintage newborn outfits. They are just so precious on chubby baby legs!

Source: etsy.com via Harmony on Pinterest

I am also quite seriously thinking about starting a collection of vintage tea plates for my kitchen wall (yes totally Dolores Jane Umbridge style except less cats).

Source: etsy.com via Harmony on Pinterest

And I definitely am starting an obsession with vintage patterns and papers. (I would love to do this to all my doors in my home with vintage wallpapers, some paint, and a sander).

Source: flickr.com via Harmony on Pinterest

I still cant quite bring myself to shop primarily at thrift stores for my own clothing, but I figure I'm taking baby steps in my transition to becoming a vintage type of girl. Instead I fall in love with new lines of clothes in a vintage style, like these amazing tea dresses.

Source: etsy.com via Harmony on Pinterest

I am dying to donate all my matchy-matchy totally boring coffee mugs that I amassed from my wedding and start collecting retro cups and mugs to start my day out with some whimsy.

Source: etsy.com via Harmony on Pinterest

One thing I can say for myself is that I have always adored old books. I dont care if I ever read them, but I just cant stop collecting vintage literature. I love the way they make my living room feel when they are filling my book shelves with all their stories both told and untold.

Source: etsy.com via Harmony on Pinterest

I wish I had discovered the gorgeous magic and fun to be had by wearing enameled flower brooches before they became so incredibly popular. I mean have you seen those wedding bouquets made from collections of these vintage pins? I'm only seven years happily married and am ready to have a second wedding just to carry one of those. I just love the incredible colors found in these bobbles. I might have to let them inspire a painting...hmmm.

Source: flickr.com via Harmony on Pinterest

And lastly to share with you today, I have recently realized that vintage metal hoops make every embroidery project I frame in them look a bazillion times more lovely. I will never use another regular old wood hoop again. I've been converted to vintage only.

Source: etsy.com via Harmony on Pinterest

Well, there you have it. My latest obsessions and inspirations. Are you the vintage lovin type? What are your obsessions in the world of vintage right now? Any particular finds you are most proud of? I am just getting started in my discoveries and would love to hear from you pros.

XO, HARMONY

Even A Three Year Old Can Do It: Painted Fabric Video

2011-08-27T10:45:00.003-04:00

The weekend has begun! I hope that you are safe and sound and enjoying your favorite morning cup of whatever getting lots of creative inspiration for your days off. I wanted to offer you a bit of fun, energy, and lots and lots of color today! (oh and a bit of rock and roll) So for your viewing pleasure, here's my latest episode of Creative Play with my 3 year old son.

I needed to design some fabric for a project I will be showing you later next week, and it seemed like a perfect mommy and son art-tivity. We taped a piece of white muslin to a plastic table, grabbed a couple of sharpies (BTW: Under 5yrs + permanent markers typically demands being outside to avoid the "accidental" inspiration on your walls).

Then when our fabric was entirely covered in our creations, we watered down cheap-o craft paint and did a watercolor play over the design. The effect was gorgeous, lots of pretty mixing of color. There was seriously no way to screw it up, which made it PERFECT for little helping hands. When it was finished we hung it up to dry and Voila, ready to use fabric for lots of projects.

There it is drying with the sunshine coming through, so pretty. While it was drying, I started gathering up laundry to start a wash since we were already playing outside, and my son starts yelling "Mommy!" "MOMMY!" like something was wrong (but honestly right now, every bit of information he has to share is urgent to him, regardless of the reality). I poked my head out and asked what he needed. "Mommy! (still yelling like it's very serious) It's PRETTY! I LIKE IT!" pointing at our creation. Sometimes he totally kills me with cuteness.

(FYI: This fabric is NOT washable, so you cant use it in wearable art. To make it washable use fabric markers and watered fabric paint and then heat set). I hope I've inspired you to try to try this project by yourself or with a little helper the next time you need interesting fabric for a project.

BTW: If you didnt see my post yesterday, right now I am on the hunt for some artsy/crafty/creative bloggin people that I can team up with, more information HERE. Have a wonderful Saturday!

XO, HARMONY

Free Sponsorship! Getting Dreams Off the Ground

2011-08-26T11:03:00.001-04:00

Happy Friday Everyone! Today I am talking directly to those of you who have a blog or site that focuses on anything in the artsy/crafty/creative world. I have a friend request for you. (Yes, that is a doodle of my 28 week pregnant self with paint on my face. It's pretty much how I look right now)

Now that I am finished with my graduate school degree and am so excited about finally going full time into my dream of creating a business from my art and this blog. So this is where I need some help from you. Actually this is the part where we can help each other! I currently pay for advertising on other wonderful artsy/creative blogs and really want to expand my readership to others from different sources. I am working as hard as I can to offer new and dynamic content and inspiration on this blog and am posting every day. I cant afford to buy more advertising, but I thought maybe I don't have to. I am sure that there are many people out there just like me putting their heart and soul into getting their creative blog's wings up and going and are looking for ways to get their stories more visible. Is this you?

What if we teamed up? Basically, what I am talking about is swapping sponsorships on each others' sites and then offering a few different promotions during the month to help offer our readers a chance to get to know our new creative friend. I am really excited about this idea! It would be free! I would love to do joint giveaways, have guest posts, perhaps do some shared themes one week where we could do our own takes on the same idea, and/or share sales or feature a product that you might make and sell. I am totally open to any ideas that you might have as far as how this could work and will do as much or as little as you feel comfortable doing yourself. If this gets you excited and you want to be my bloggy friend, send me an email to feedyoursoulart@gmail.com and let me know what you are up for.

More information about this can be found under my Sponsorship Tab at the top bar, so please check that out. Thanks for listening to my idea, and I cant wait to hear from you! Tomorrow I'll be posting a new creative play video, documenting art making with a three year old. It's messy, fun, colorful, chaos. This week we painted fabric to be used in some future exciting projects that I'll be sharing with you, so please stop by and say hello.

XO, HARMONY

New Works! The Sojourners Series Begins

2011-08-25T09:46:00.000-04:00

I began a new series of paintings that I am really excited about, and since my husband is completely useless to me in reflecting an honest reaction to my art ("That's nice." - worst description of how you feel about an artwork ever!) and my sister (who is always the most blunt and honest with me about my work) is currently overseas for the next 4 months, I wanted to share them with you and see what you thought.

"Sisterhood"

2011 by Harmony

Original Mixed Media Painting

8X8 done on wood panel

I created this (above) painting on commission for a lovely pair of sisters to celebrate their journey both separate and together. It really inspired me to think about each of us and our individual journeys that almost always have at least one "other" that makes us brave and gives us strength to be our unique selves. My little sister does this for me. We are almost exact opposites in personality and style, this led to lots of competitive behaviors and fighting when we were young, but as I have grown alongside her, I have discovered it is the beauty of our differences that I love the most, and that she helps me be who I am today. So I was inspired to create a few more pieces of each sister on their individual journey, to reflect the duality of their spirits (connected together yet living separate lives).

"The Dreamer"

2011 by Harmony Lenasbunt

Mixed Media Original Artwork

6X6 done on wood panel

"The Seeker"

2011 by Harmony Lenasbunt

Mixed Media Original Artwork

6X6 done on wood panel

More about how I made them: Each piece is totally unique, full of texture and layers, as well as color and patterns. I used vintage wrapping papers to create a base layer which I kept overlaying with paint, pastel, inks, adding more and wiping away over and over until the background was built up with as much character and beauty as the figure herself. There are vintage lace pieces affixed to the edges, and the images are actually done on fabric, giving them a soft dreamy appearance.

I am absolutely over the moon with how my vision for these paintings turned out in reality and am currently working on several more pieces for the series of Sojourners. Thank you for letting me share them with you. They are very dear to my heart. Prints and wood mounted prints of them will be available in my Etsy Shop later today. If you are interested in the orginals, or a commissioned work like this, please email me.

If you were represented in an artwork like this, what would your title be? I am definitely the Dreamer, while my sister is completely the Seeker. Any Wanderers, Pranksters, Mother Hearts, Thinkers out there? Tell me what word describes your current journey best?

XO, HARMONY

Inside My Art Journal: Exploring My Yellow Self

2011-08-24T10:37:00.000-04:00

I am taking a fabric surface design ecourse right now and have been giving a lot of thought to patterns and colors that I want to experiment with in a textile. It's really hard sometimes to sketch out ideas and it feel totally original to me. There are so many iconic background creators out there right now, sometimes I feel at a loss for what is truly me and what is inspired by the images that I have seen. I believe that it is truly ok for an artist to use other people's work as inspiration. In fact it's how a lot of really famous artists got their ideas, by working alongside and being influenced by there artisan counterparts of their day. But sometimes when I use a technique frequently used by another much more famous artist, I feel inauthentic, and in-authenticity is a total killer of creative energy. So today's journal pages truly reflect me wrestling with myself to find a unique creative voice that is totally me. I also really wanted to experiment with pattern making on yellow backgrounds ever since I saw these! Yes, you can get inspiration from anywhere, even socks. The trick is how to take that inspiration and help it grow something new and unique that could only come from you.

So here are my 2 pages for today. I also used a lot of the artsy tape that I made with you yesterday. Can you spot all the different ones? If you'd like to create your own tape for a project, check out my DIY here. Thanks for stopping by today. I'd love to hear what you are journaling about (on paper or on your blog) today.

XO, HARMONY

Make This! Your Own Artsy Tape

2011-08-23T14:49:00.000-04:00

If you are anything like me, you drool over all the gorgeous new lines of colored and patterned japanese (washi) tapes that are blowing up the crafting scene these days. I would love to own tons of them in every sort that is sold, but I just cant bring myself to spend the $5-10 per small roll that they cost. There are so many different fun uses for them, and I knew there just had to be a way to make my own for such projects. Here is my version of making artsy tape, and in my opinion, they turned out so much more interesting and fun than the manufactured version.

Gather these materials: Freezer Paper (regular wax paper will also work, but is harder to peel off), Paint (no need for expensive stuff, get the cheap craft stuff), Paint Brush, Scissors, Masking Tape (of whatever width you like. I had the wide roll on hand but you may want to try the thinner version as well), lots of other fun art making supplies (whatever you have on hand that you like working with. I chose a sharpie, hand carved stamps with stamping ink, water color pencils, roller, distress ink, and vintage papers.

Tape down a sheet of freezer paper, waxy side up, and start adding strips of masking tape to it.

Add some pretty paint colors and paint a thin layer over each.

A cute helper is always better :)

When the paint is dry, start adding your decorations. This batch I did with my 3 year old so it's a bit messy, but when they were all done, they actually looked really cool! So dont worry about it turning out messy looking.

Here are a few other ones I did without my overly exuberant helper. From left to right, the techniques I used were: bubble wrap stamped, handcarved stamp, stencil overlay, another handcarved stamp, oil stick drawing, and the last two are collaged with vintage papers using regular craft glue.

Then carefully remove your tape strips from the original paper and move to a clean sheet of freezer paper.

You can just roll up the sheets like that to store away for another project day, or you can cut them down like I did so that they are ready to use. Dont forget to leave yourself a bit of paper tab on the ends to help you get started when peeling off for use.

There are so many fun ways you can use tape like this. I used mine today to decorate some mailers to send to a friend. How fun are they!? Who wouldnt love to receive a happy package that looks like this?

What other sorts of ways can you think of to use artsy tape? I saw this blog post recently that was full of creative DIY Washi Tape Projects, and it's definitely worth checking out. Also, you can come back tomorrow for my Art Journal Post, and see how I used them in my latest page creations. I do hope that this inspires you to try it yourself, and that all your tape using is colorful from now on!

XO, HARMONY