A Year in Review

Phew, we made it through the first week of 2012.
For the past couple of weeks, everyone has been reminiscing about the past year while preparing for the year ahead of us.  I would be lying if I said I wasn't doing the same.  This week has been about analyzing, reviewing and planning for 2012.  The thing is, we can't help but look back on the past in order to plan for our future.  That being said, I am going to do my part and pay gratitude to all that made 2011 possible for Reenie Rose....it only seems right and a form of good karma for 2012.
So, here's a year in review for Reenie Rose:

Kara & Mike

Florist:  Kehoe Designs

Photographer:  Rick Aguilar

 Rachel & Jason

Carrie & Bill

Florist: Event Creative

Photographer:  Studio This Is

Kelly & Andrew

Florist: Grapevine Floral

Photographer: George Street Photo & Video 

Paula Jean & Brian

Florist:  Kehoe Designs

Photographer:   Stuart Rodgers Photography 

Laura & D.R.

Florist:  Elegant Creations

Photographer:   Brad Photographers and Video 

 Maureen & Kevin

Florist: Pistil and Vine

Photographer:  Darcy Demmel Photography

Sarah & Ernest

Florist: Blumen Design

Photographer:  Jaclyn Simpson Photography

 The paintings are lovely, but the vendors I work with are fantastic.  The people I continue to surround myself with are the ones that are helping to build Reenie Rose to it's potential.  

Just think, by the end of this year, I'll have completed a full calendar's worth...and then some.  2013 Reenie Rose calendars....I like that idea.  Is it too early to place orders?

Reenie Rose Craft Corner

I am forever inspired by all of the creativity out there and often find myself thinking, "This would be a really great idea for a business."  One business at a time chica, one at a time.  While I can't start a new business every other week, I can at least hold onto these ideas for a rainy day or that crazy phenomenon called "free time".  Ha!
There's this great site that is slowly growing on people, and I imagine it to be just booming by the end of the year.  Have you heard of Pinterest?  I am grateful to this site that allows me to organize all of my virtual inspirations onto "boards" in an orderly fashion that I can repeatedly return to for a mental reawakening.

I recently found a couple of fabulous ideas that just happened to appear around the same time and actually worked together to create an "aha" project for me / a possible source of income.

Check out this amazingly talented girl that is creating wallpaper out of stickers! 

I love this since I was an avid sticker collector in my youth and continue to stare at end caps of stickers whenever I encounter them.  Ah, the joys of playing with stickers...pealing and placing, pealing and placing.

Then this idea popped up on Pinterest and everything clicked.

Source: spearmintbaby.com via Loreen on Pinterest

In between painting, I sometimes will have another project of sorts come up.  Sometimes it's a job that strays away from the tight bouquet painting, and other times it's a craft that allows my mind and wrist a break from any brushes.  These two ideas above afforded me the perfect project for a baby shower I am co-hosting this weekend for a childhood friend.  Having played school and traded stickers as kiddies with this lovely friend, I just knew the perfect gift for her.  My two inspirations had a baby of their own, and viola....

Isn't this just the cutest for a baby's room!  I was having so much fun digging through my old collection and reminiscing about a good "trade" that I had to stop myself from creating the whole alphabet.  I can't wait for mama Hannah to see this.  I'm hoping it will remind her of all the good times we had as kids and how the simplest things like trading stickers brought so much joy to our childhood.  Boo to video games, yeah to $1.00 packets of stickers!

So back to that whole business idea.  What do you think about placing this idea on Etsy?  I could see monograms in blue and pink flying off the shelves.  Maybe I'm getting ahead of myself, but I think it's a neat idea and would love to hear your thoughts.

In the meantime, there are still paintings to be completed and paintings to come.  Here's a glance at the progress of my current business:

How ironic that I get the entrepreneurial bug this weekend.  Enjoy your Labor Day!

A Complete Weekend

For those of you late night viewers...or early morning ones that are catching this in the a.m., I have a Sunday deal for you.  I will be participating in an event Sunday, August 7th  from 4pm-7pm at the Loft on Lake (located at 1366 W. Lake St. in Chicago). CS Brides Luxe List vendors (including myself) and many other luxury wedding industry professionals will be featured during an evening of bridal bliss and extravagance as LOVE ROBERT unveils a sneak preview of Atha Sharod Bridal’s “The White Collection – LUXE.

I will be painting live and picking up where I left off on Dani and Michael's painting while displaying my latest masterpiece...Kelly and Andrew's painting.  On Friday, my work day ended with the completion of this piece, and I am so happy with the final product.  Here's a quick shot I took of it before packing up for the weekend.

If you are available this Sunday, I encourage you to stop by the show to take a look at this piece in person.  For super discount tickets, use the discount code "vendor" to enter the show for only $5!  Tickets can be purchased here: http://athasharodbridal.eventbrite.com/

I hope you'll visit me painting away and take advantage of all the fabulousness this event has to offer.
Cheers to finished paintings and sunshine weekends!

Switching Wedding Gears

I am working a wedding all day tomorrow as a day of consultant for a friend of a friend who is also going to be ordering a painting of her bouquet.  Pictures of the wedding to come, but in the meantime, I wanted to get a quick painting update in for those faithful viewers, wink wink.

Mystery Florist

This painting is looking like a mystery trying to be unveiled.  We know we've got calla lilies, but what else?!

Last fall I introduced you to Grapevine Floral.  Well, Trish has done it again and completed another gorgeous bouquet that was found painting-worthy...yes, this is our mystery florist!  You may remember the beautiful bouquet she created for Karen and Brandon last year....

Karen and Brandon's painting

Grapevine Floral is located in the northern suburb of Lake in the Hills, Illinois, where Trish and her team continually produce some of the most beautiful bouquets I've laid my eyes on.  I love her sense of color and texture.  Even an all white bouquet looks exciting!  Check out some of her other creations....

Gorgeous, right!?  I'm hoping to eventually have a whole gallery of Grapevine Floral paintings!  Now, wouldn't that be amazing....

Turning the Heat Up

The heat is on here in the Reenie Rose studio.  Ok, rather the ac is blasting to combat the outside temperature, but there is a momentum going on inside that I am not loosing track of. 
This next painting is for a client that has won the award title of "biggest Reenie Rose fan" because she consistently says the nicest things to me about my work.  Painting after painting she continues to be a cheerleader unlike anyone else in my little Reenie Rose circle.  I hope I can continue to enrich her life with a painting for her daughter and son-in-law.  No pressure, right?

Onto the next one....

Don't you just love these dahlias!?  I have a couple of yellow and orange ones growing in my flower boxes this season but the color of these purple ones is just stunning.

The sketch!  In my next painting update, I will unveil the mystery florist behind this dynamic bouquet.  Time to get started!