While he works - I create!

DISCLAIMER: Let me just start off by saying that these are not ‘those’ stories that always have a happy ending. It appears, that at times, my creative flair is just too much for some. It becomes apparent that these ideas need to be toned down a touch or completely removed without trace. This is not to say that I don't like them, because mostly I do, it's that those around me (mostly my husband) that may have conflicting ideas to my creative ideas.

Part 1 | White walls - be gone!

Japanese Cranes

I am home alone. My husband is at work. Some may become bored, but me, I love this time. It is the time I look around the house and pull out all the creative ideas I have kept in my head. In this instance, I look towards the wall, the ginormous white wall, screaming for something to make it less BORING.

My husband likes it. He continually said that he didn't want anything on this wall, this ginormous white wall, as it would draw your eye away from the TV. Distract you while you are watching TV. SERIOUSLY? For me, the ginormous white wall was distracting. A massive white space of nothingness crying out for attention. This was the obvious elephant in the room!

This time, neither a course or a YouTube tutorial aided me. It was Pinterest. Searching: wall art.

It was here I came across some Japanese cranes! Simple, effective, not too overpowering and surely wouldn't draw your attention away from the TV. The perfect compromise?

It was now that I started to collect all of the essentials required to complete this piece of art. I called on my old school overhead projector. Armed with some some acetate, OHP pens and some washi tape, I was ready to get designing. Projecting my image of the Japanese Cranes onto the ginormous white wall I got to work. Strip by strip, slowly taping out the cranes. Finally, my 2 hour effort of sticking tape to the wall had come to an end. Taking a step back, I begin to feel pretty chuffed with myself. I stood admiring my handiwork, thinking ‘how could my husband not like this?’.

The result, two ginormous Japanese cranes helped to remove the elephant in the room, that ginormous white wall. The only question left to ask: Would my husband like it when he arrived home from work the following morning? Surely he would.

Well, let’s just say he wasn't 100% convinced. He may have expressed his concerns around the distraction they would cause when watching television. I assured him it would be fine.

But, two years on, they are still on the wall. So I guess that is a win. I guess the 2 ginormous Japanese Cranes, adding life to the boring ginormous white wall aren’t much of a ‘distraction’ after all.

The Bear

A hallway, a long corridor with doors into rooms on both sides - BORING.

A corridor of white, no colour = NO personality.

When you enter someone's house, you need a statement piece. When I leave my Design Room, I want something creatively fun to look at. Cue ‘The Bear’.

Yes, this was another night home alone, while the husband was at work. It was just me and the fur baby embarking on yet another creative mission.

This one I knew would not spark any conflict, as it was not going to distract the eye from the TV and to be fair he would only see it when entering and leaving the house. I was on to a sure thing.

To be honest, I am not quite sure why I chose the bear. All I know is that I love geometric patterns and this was one of those.

Again, I was inspired by Pinterest. I was armed with my drawing on a piece of acetate and my OHP was all set up. I start to mark out the lines of my bear, cutting them carefully with a scalpel to ensure the edges were neat.

It took 3 hours to meticulously tape the lines of the bear. But now, sitting proudly in the hallway, as if he is keeping guard of those who enter and leave, is my bear. Still there, and with no complaints from the husband when he arrived home from work.

My creative design through the house so far was on point. I was on to a good thing. We agreed that my ideas turn out really well, and it was more the fact that he just couldn't visualise what it was going to look like in the end. It was a winning formula. How could I go wrong? I was 2 for 2. Surely he was beginning to expect (and love) these little creative gems when he walked through the door, surely? What could possibly go wrong?

So, what was my next project?