New job, new office, new designs

I just got my first job as an art therapist working at the in-patient psychiatric wing of the hospital. I'm excited about working there, esp since i interned there, so it feels like i already know the ropes.
New job
     New paychecks!
            New office
                  New space to decorate
My office is a teeny tiny hole-in-the-wall.
I could paint it, but that's not worth the money or effort. the color isn't hideous. So, instead i'm just finding art and little things that are my style to make it feel like me.

I colored some pictures during a class (the torn book courtesy of Bailey)

And i hand-sewed this pillow (sadly, I copied the idea)

And the chair was a Goodwill find (on student-discount Wednesdays). I didn't take a "before" picture, but imagine a tired-out chair that needed a little sanding and some fresh polish...

And this little table was found on Craigslist 

After sanding and a little paint...

And the final product:

All done for about $30

For all my friends getting married... or having a party

I found this post on a friend's Facebook page:

http://www.downloadandprint.com/page/3/

It is a bunch of free invitation templates (mostly wedding, but you could change them around).

How much fun, esp for the crafty person, like myself.

Some examples- my personal favorites:

LOVE this one

and this one:

and last but not least

A little self-therapy

I am finishing up my academic career (for now, at least), and i recently got a job as the art therapist at the in-patient psychiatric wing at the hospital. so i'm working almost full-time with breaks for classes, and then fitting in homework, boyfriend, dog, friends, and occasionally sleep in between.
Needless to say, i'm busy.
However, i don't really take time for myself to unwind and relieve stress. how about a little art therapy? isn't is odd that while i'm an art therapist i don't actually practice what i preach?
A little musings in-between writing a research paper and in an 8 hour class on a saturday

My new face wash

I read on a friend's blog about her new face cleaning treatment. It's called the Oil Cleansing Method. At first it sounded crazy. Here, I'm going to smear oil over my face in the Florida humidity, and see what happens...
However, once i read the website on how to use oil to clean your face, it kind of made sense. My skin produces natural oil. So, why strip oil from my face with a face wash, only to re-apply fake "oil" through lotions? So i went to the drug store and bought my castor oil and my sunflower seed oil (read the article- it tells you everything).
My face isn't usually a problem, but I've been using this method for about two weeks and love it. My face feels so clean, and it doesn't end up oily at the end of the day like it used to. I recommend giving it a try. Your face will feel oh-so-clean, and it's a lot cheaper then constantly buying face wash!

Spring time gardening

Our neighbors across the street recently decorated their porch. Maggie (my roommate) and I declared Cute-Porch-War against them and have been working on making our porch cute, too. We did have a wreath on the porch, and had made a recent addition with a hanging fern. However, this adorable across-the-street-porch with its little potted flowers and hanging colored lanterns upped the competition.

Maggie is in charge of looking for cute lights or a new summer-y wreath for us, and i planted the flowers. I went to Home Depot and looked for pretty, hard-to-kill flowers that needed lots of sun. We ended up with four pots, and I'll highlight a few before they inevitably die!

I also took spoons I found at a garage sale and hammered them flat to make little decorations. 

And the finishing touch is one happy dog!

Rainy Day equals craft day

A blessed day free from any duties..... and it is pouring down rain

And a bored puppy who really wants a walk

So the best thing to do on a rainy day is something crafty- or several crafty things. I had a lot of little charms and pendants from old necklaces that i never wear anymore, and i've been wanting to combine them and make a new necklace for some time. So, today was the day. 

I went to Joann's and got some cheap silver chains and clasps (on sale!). 

And made this:

But i also had gold charms and finding a cheap gold chain was harder. 

So, i found a great alternative: a gold glasses chain (yes, like the one a grandma would wear). The charms were an old watch, a little gold locket and a four leaf clover pin that had all belonged to my grandmother. The chain was perfect!

The other rainy-day project was an old powder case i "borrowed" from my grandmother. It's gorgeous red leather with gold flowers and leaves on the cover. I found it in her attic and loved it, but had no idea how i could use it.

Until I thought about a picture frame. All i had to do was remove the pad and filter (and clean the make up out), cut a picture of me and Ben...

And now I have a new frame with old memories!

And, yes, Bailey did get her run- in the rain

How to not dehydrate your dog at the beach...

Monitor how much sand she eats,

Keep an eye on her in the ocean,

Make sure she finds a buddy (or two) to play with,

Force her to drink non-salty water

Once she stops throwing up, she'll have the time of her life!

Bailey and bugs

By the way,
I know i just wrote a whole touching blog about my carving a block...  but i have to write one more little thing-
Since it's spring and my roommate and i have turned off our air, i open my windows at night to cool my room off. Of course, since i live in a ghetto house, i don't have screens. So my nightly entertainment now is to watch Bailey watch the bigs that fly into my room.
It really is quite hilarious. She's fascinated.
Sometimes she jumps after them but mostly she sits on the floor (or my bed) and watches the bugs fly around my room. For hours.
It's the little things in life, right?

Reflection art project

I had to do an art project for my internship as a reflection of the internship. 
Hmmm.......
Interesting. How to describe the drama? The chaos? The girls? The past three months?
I found this quote in my favorite magazine Real Simple. It's by Ralph Waldo Emerson. 

"What is a weed? A plants whose virtues have not yet been discovered."

When i read it, i thought how perfect to describe my feelings not only for my clients, but also for my internship. I have been frustrated throughout this semester and this internship hasn't been easy for me. This quote really nails my feelings because it made me realize that while my internship has seemed like a weed a lot of times, that doesn't mean that it is without virtues. I did learn a lot, and i did make a difference in a few girls' lives. 
The process of carving the block also mirrored my internship in that it was slow and took a lot of time and patience. Draw, trace, heat, carve, heat, carve, heat, carve... you get the picture. The whole process was therapeutic for me as i reflected on my last day at the internship, and what it's been like for me. I know that the more i think about it, the more virtues i'll find. 

Wallpaper, wallpaper, wallpaper

I have discovered a new love- wallpaper. Usually when i thought of wallpaper, i remembered the peach and baby blue floral design in our living room.... it was a decorating disaster. 

I remember going to this wallpaper store with my mom in the town i grew up in, and looking at all the sample books while she decided what would look best on our walls. I remember the plaids, the florals, even the pearlized seashells. 

Now, wallpaper has gotten a facelift, and i'm in love! I especially love the designs by York Wallcoverings. They're amazing! Check some of these out:

Therapy time

Today was a long day at my internship. I work with at-risk girls and there's a lot of drama. Girls who tell me about past abuse. Girls who are 14 telling me about sleeping with their boyfriends. Girls who are confused as to who they are in the world. Girls getting arrested. It's tough to take some days.

 I feel for these girls. They grew up in broken homes and have had to fend for themselves. 

I'm so glad that I didn't have to grow up like that. I'm so thankful my home was safe, that I have parents who love me.  

And a dog who's chewing her squeaky bone in my ear as I type this.

Sure makes me feel loved!

Spring time makeover

So Maggie and I have this back room/storage area. It's partly my closet, partly Bailey's crate room, mostly junky. I got a little overly ambitious one weekend and decided to clean it out and re-do it.
The inspiration came from going to the Senior Center's antique sale, where I bought the most adorable chalk board in an antique frame. This also came from my favorite blog, Frenchie and Flea also having a room makeover. So, I went to Walmart and bought some cheap paint (I am a grad student = low budget). The result was an inspiring craft room.... I hope!

before.    Don't judge me- it was a mess.

after. Much better, or at least, more organized!

The yellow lamp I found on Craig's List for $2.50.

The whicker dresser isn't my "thing" but it was given by a girl, and free is my "thing"!

The inspirational chalk board

this adorable potting table, once mint green. I painted it eggshell. 

I had this old frame that i painted the same color as the potting table. The picture is of a friend that I printed on tin foil.

I print by a friend in my art therapy class. 

Another antique sale treasure- two white bowls for $3

A failed beach trip turns into a new adventure

My roommate Maggie and I decided to go to the beach. It was supposed to be a beautiful day, and we packed our bags and Bailey into the car, and headed for St. George Island.

However
on the way there we pulled off and "tested" the beach because it was getting cloudy. The beach was freezing! The water was was even colder. Bailey loved it, and chased birds and swam in the water.
Maggie and I decided to give up on the beach, and continue on the to the adorable little town of Apalachicola.

We wandered around, looking in shops, Bailey visited with everyone she met, and made turned a failed beach trip into a fun adventure. 

St Mark's Adventure

Ben and I (and Bailey) went to St Marks today. The weather was perfect, it was sunny, and I was in need of a little adventure. We ate lunches of fried shrimp and hush puppies at the wonderful restaurant overlooking the river.

We then drove to the St Mark's lighthouse. This was Bailey's first time in the ocean. It would be an understatement to say that she enjoyed herself. She bounded through the water, dug in the sand, and tried to chase a seagull in the water until she realized it was farther out then her little paws could carry her.

 

We walked around a bit and enjoyed the awesome day. It's days like this that make me not too excited to graduate and get a "real job." I am enjoying moments like today because I know I won't always get them.