The art of contradiction

This afternoon I am headed to my little sister's house to help her set up for the large garage sale that happens in her neighborhood annually. Instead of putting out a lot of stuff she no longer needs, which she hasn't really accumulated yet, she is taking advantage of the foot traffic and hosting an art sale! She will be selling many of her paintings and drawings. She has invited my older sister to set up her pottery and me to bring over some homemade jewelry. I started making jewelry when I turned 16 and was allowed to get my ears pierced: I suddenly became obsessed with earrings! I received special jewelry making pliers for Christmas from my parents and began creating earrings to match every outfit I owned. Soon, I was creating jewelry for other friends and family members for dances and weddings, even designing my own prom jewelry to match the dress my mother had sewn for me. (I come from a pretty artistic family. I have four sisters and two brothers, all with their own unique artistic talents. They are potters/sculptors, sewing machine magicians, painters, illustrators, cartoonists, drawers, engineers, web designers, scrapbookers, etc.)

Couch was a fantastic find at the Habitat's ReStore and
tile end table was created by my artistic older sister. 

My artistic gift has always been putting colors together - whether it be with outfits or interior design or making jewelry. I love creating energy and evoking emotion through color combinations, space, arrangement, and accents. Throughout high school and college, I was frequently told how "put-together" I looked or what a cute matching ensemble I had. People told me I had my own style. When it came to decorating my itty-bitty dorm room, I was told the same thing: I had a unique style. My style is one of contradicting energies. I love to pair vibrant colors with soft, calming undertones, overtones or accents. For example, my living room area in my apartment currently has a muted maroon couch and deep mahogany and gold tones in the elephant lamps. I accented the couch with vibrant green and gold embroidered silk pillows. (I'll explain my elephant obsession in a different post.)

I believe the style I emanate from my living space and my presence creates a welcoming, relaxing space but with a robust flavor. Many of the people closest to me know how vibrant and loud my personality can be, but beneath that is an inner stillness and groundedness at my core. I love feeling surrounded by soothing tones, but not to the point of feeling sleepy or lazy. There's a delicate balance in combining seemingly opposing energies, but when done right, it's amazing what an environment can do for your mood.