Stenciled signs and Burning Ring of Fire

I have been having fun modifying these boxed style signs.  This one was a custom order-(size and saying).

Ken builds me the boxes, and I paint and stencil them. 

As opposite as the two of us are, we make pretty decent business partners. :)

For this sign, I painted the entire thing a deep cream color and then layered it with the stencil that I showcased in my last blog post.

(bottom left corner in pic below).

My kitchen island is still my favorite place to work.  Luckily my new porcelain counter top withstands the abuse of lots of washing and painting.

My client requested that the wording at the top fill the board and then gradually taper down to an angle. 

Longer phrases to shorter-

She has this sign hanging up in the entrance to her new home over a front foyer table.

Love the reminder. 

We are all these things and more. 

We are.

You are.

Another client of mine requested a different version of the "It is Well with my soul" signs.

Here is one that sold in my booth last week.

I made a little mistake on this one. I was chatting with a friend on the phone while stenciling and got distracted. The lettering on the right sign, should've been stenciled on the left of the board, not the right. But sometimes mistakes are happy accidents and this one I think turned out okay in spite of my unfocused error (I wasn't about to repaint and stencil the pattern on it again...a little too time consuming). Thanks for being a forgiving bunch and seeing the art in me.:)

Had to share with you one of my best garage sale finds in a while.

Ken and I stumbled on this gazebo/bbq tent on the northside of Holland one Saturday morning.

$50, but I got 'em down to $40.

We've already gotten it's money's worth...birthday parties in the backyard, neighborhood shrimp boils, and as of Sat. night, Michigan football driveway parties. 

Any where it is, there's a party! Such fun!

My mom did some entertaining last week as well in her new screen porch.  She was throwing a canjun themed dinner party and asked for my help with some simple decor ideas.

 After living in this same house for 40 years, they decided last year that it was time to put on the screen porch that Mom always dreamed about. She hadn't yet had the chance to entertain back there.  It was perfect for a night like this. 

 We kept things simple. Black, white and a little punch of gold in the napkins, and flowers-black eyed susans cut from her flower garden.

 I used white butcher paper to cover my paint splattered banquet tables and then rolled a smaller paper over the center of each table to act as a runner. Never mind the fact that mom told me that the green paper caught fire the first 5 minutes of the party when the candles were lit. 
I'm ashamed to admit that this isn't the first time that Pyro Christy nearly set party decor ablaze. Next time, I will have to bring a waver. Decorations are for looks only....use at your own risk. :)

 Mom's extra chairs were painted a country blue and distracted from the crisp black/white color scheme so I covered them with extra burlap bags I had brought over. 

 Drink station was below

The food was brought out to this table (below) and served buffet style in crock pots.

Whether or not Mom asks for help with her next dinner party remains to be seen. I've been told that I like to leave my mark wherever I go. Could this be what that means?

You Champs have nothing to worry about. 

You're in good hands with me.

Just make sure to have a fire extinguisher handy when I suggest the ambiance of candles.

Til next time...

Stay safe.