Family Rules

Lots and lots of family rules! This design has been super popular and done in every color combination under the rainbow. I think these earth tones are my favorite. These two are both off to Canada! Thank you so much, Shauna.

I've also been doing lots of class rules lately for all of you teachers. I'll have those photos up soon!

Pineapples

This has been the summer of the pineapple! That's okay...I love them, too! This design has been done bunches of times. I think it is the khaki and cream dots with the pineapple that makes it a little different and so popular. I actually did two of these at the same time. Thank you, Julie and April!

This is a new pineapple design sent to me by Paula Smith. I do not know where this photo came from so I can't give credit. Just know that it came from somewhere! She wanted it changed up a bit and on an oval canvas. She has a glass oval in her front door. Great idea!

Here's the finished oval on my front door. I love it!

I really like the pineapple, but the modified diamond design in the background is my favorite thing about this canvas. The colors she chose are absolutely perfect for summer, too!

Celebrate Everything

I usually do this canvas with a black background and bright multicolored lettering. Elaine Alsup wanted it done in colors that would match her kitchen. I had been wanting to try the design in other colors but just haven't had the time to experiment. It turned out so cute and I just love the message! Not only is it perfect for those of us who don't always get their holiday decorations out on time, but it also reminds us to celebrate the little things, too.

Drake

Melissa in Texas wanted a personal gift to send to a far away friend on the arrival of their new son. She needed it to coordinate with the "Cheerful Critters" line of bedding from Pottery Barn Kids. I looked over the bedding and chose to focus on that cute little snail!
That is one of the great things about ordering a canvas. Shipping is included in the price and I will ship to someone other than yourself. That makes it super easy to send a personal gift to a friend or relative on the other side of the country!

Here's Drake's special gift. I love that it is all bright and cheery and small enough to fit just about anywhere in the nursery. That red gingham ribbon just tops it off perfectly!

Blue and Brown Bathroom

Nicole in Michigan is one of my new etsy customers. I am relatively new to the etsy world and I love it! It has just opened me up to a whole new world of customers. I spend quite a bit of time shopping on there myself!
Anyway, Nicole wanted a set of four 5x5 canvases for her son's bathroom. She ordered one set of bathroom accessories and sent me all of the details. When she got it out an opened it up, she hated it. She so sounds like me!

Luckily, I had not started on hers so the redo was no problem at all. She decided on the whale set available at Target. The colors are so cute and the canvases match so well. I can't wait to see pictures, Nicole! Thank you!

Show Us Your Life - Marriage Advice

Today I am participating the Kelly's Korner Show Us Your Life series. I do this every once in a while mostly because I love going through and reading all of the others! It's fun to get ideas, advice, and see how others do things.

Today's topic is marriage advice. I have been married for over fourteen years and am not pretending to have it all figured out or that I have a perfect marriage. I don't know that there is such a thing. Maybe that is my advice...don't pretend. We're not perfect. We get on each other's nerves sometimes. We even have fusses and different opinions. However, the fact is that when we married, we married forever. We have to find a way to forgive and meet in the middle.

My advice is nothing new. In fact, it is very old. Bible old. When I was asked to paint this canvas a while back, it was like my own thoughts in someone else's words. Forgiving each other's faults because of your love...I couldn't have said it better myself!

It also helps that we enjoy each other's company. We laugh a lot. We are opposites, so instead of arguing and trying to change each other, we balance each other out. We have date nights. Now I am off to do some reading. I can't wait to see all of the advice!

Summer Lovin'

I am having such a good summer! Yes, we have been busy with lots of different activities and painting, but I have also managed to find time to just do nothing. Nice. There have been several orders for these pineapples. I love the colors and the dots with the pineapple. This would look great on any one's front door this summer! Thank you, Julie and April!

Even though I love traveling and we usually have something planned, we did not go on a true vacation this summer. Normally, I would be busting a gut to go somewhere. We do have a couple of fall trips planned and are saving for something big next summer, so I have just enjoyed being home.
Mike had a conference in Alabama so me and the kids tagged along. We found fun things to do like Alabama Adventures, the McWane Science Center, and the hotel pool! It was calm and relaxing, much like summer 2011 has been.

We drove up to Atlanta for one night before heading home. The boys were planning on a Braves game but rain changed that. We went to the American Girl Place instead. Carter was not happy, but he and his dad made the best of it! Lauren and Abigail, however, had a ball!

Basic Black

It doesn't get much better than basic black. Everything goes with it. Every color looks great with it. Black always looks polished and put together. This little 5x5 has an adorable quote painted on it and was shipped off to Jessy Meeks as a wedding gift. Great idea!

I've done this verse several times but this is the first time on black. The lettering and the little doo dad with the book, chapter, and verse are in gray. I think this one turned out so pretty and would also make a perfect wedding gift! This 8x10 went all the way to Shauna in Canada.

I'm A Cooking Machine!

Since we just got home from vacation last night, I had a to make a big run to the grocery store after church today. I had read all of these "woman" magazines that Mike's aunt had given me and was fired up to try all of these recipes. I knew there was a reason I never buy those things! After I got home, I absolutely tore up the kitchen! I started with Frozen Coconut S'mores. I love anything coconut and these just looked delicious. They are.

Frozen Coconut S'mores
6 to 8 graham crackers
1 1/3 cups heavy cream
4 oz semisweet chocolate
3 large egg whites
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup cream of coconut

Line the bottom of a 9" baking pan with aluminum foil leaving an overhang on the sides. Place graham crackers in the bottom of the pan, cutting them to fit if necessary. Heat 1/3 cup of the cream in a saucepan until it barely begins to simmer, remove from heat. Add the chopped chocolate and stir until smooth. Spread the chocolate over the graham crackers and freeze for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, with an electric mixer, beat the egg whites in a large bowl until frothy. Gradually add the sugar and beat until stiff, glossy peaks form. In a separate bowl (no need to clean the beaters), beat the cream of coconut and the remaining cup of cream until stiff peaks form. Fold the two mixtures together and spread over the frozen chocolate. Freeze for at least 6 hours. When ready to serve, lift the foil out of the pan, peel off the s'mores, and cut into squares with a pizza cutter.

I made my stand-by finger food, vegetable pizzas, for a get together after church tonight. These are the easiest things int he world, healthy, and delicious. My kids live them! I made a double batch so we would have some to snack on around here.

Vegetable Pizza

1 tub of whipped cream cheese
1 packet of ranch dressing mix
1 tube of crescent rolls
shredded cheese
assorted raw vegetables

Roll out the crescent rolls onto a greased cookie sheet. Pinch together the seams so your crust won't fall apart. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Mix the whipped cream cheese and ranch mix together. After the crust cools, spread evenly. Finely chop whatever vegetables you plan for your pizza. I always use broccoli and cauliflower. Sprinkle over pizza. Add shredded cheese. Press the entire mixture down with your hand and slice into squares with a pizza cutter.

Finally, I made a Coca-Cola Cake for the baseball team swim party tomorrow night. Yes, our summers are busier than our school year! This makes a large cake and everybody loves chocolate so it is perfect for when you have to take a desert.

Coca-Cola Cake

Cake:
1 package white cake mix
1 c regular Coca-Cola
2 eggs
1/2 c buttermilk
1/2 c margarine, melted
1/4 c baking cocoa
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 c mini marshmallows
Frosting:
1/4 c baking cocoa
1/2 c margarine
1/3 c regular Coca-Cola
4 c confectioners sugar
1 c chopped pecans

Ina a large mixing bowl, mix the first seven ingredients. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Fold in marshmallows. Pour into greased 13x9 pan and bake at 350 for 35 to 40 minutes. Cool before frosting. Meanwhile, to make frosting, mix cocoa and margarine in saucepan. Cook on low until margarine is melted. Stir in Coke until well blended. Bring to boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in confectioners sugar until smooth. Fold in nuts. Spread over warm cake. Let stand 20 minutes before cutting.

Early Christmas Shopping?

Well, I'm not sure! Judging by the size of this order and the fact that there are lots and lots of different names, I would say that it is a safe bet. I am a huge fan of Christmas shopping year round. It makes the time and budget go so much farther come December. I just have to stay organized and remember what I bought and where I put it!

I've been on vacation this past week and have gotten behind on my blogging and my orders. I am going to spend tomorrow getting unpacked and then sorting through emails, etsy, and facebook orders. Hopefully I can get a little painting in, too! If you haven't heard from me, be on the look out!

Don't you just love all of these names and established dates? I had a lot of fun making each one a little different and special. While I absolutely love the burnt orange, I think the top one might be my favorite. The crispness of the black lettering on the khaki background just does it for me!

It's never too early to place your holiday order. I am one stop shopping! Thank you, Gwen, and happy gift giving!

Bathroom Dots

Look at this adorable bathroom set! I love the bright colors and the simple dot design. All of this and more (like a mat and shower curtain!) are available at Target.

This etsy order just shipped out to Rebecca in North Carolina. She requested an aqua background, lots of lime green, and touches of all of those other colors. She also wanted the word "flush" instead of the usual "floss". These orders are custom!

I love what she chose and I know it will be so cute on that bathroom wall. Thank you, Rebecca!

Bright and Cheery

I am so loving these bright and cheery colors! I do so many earth tones that I forget how much fun color can be. For a little more fun, I did dots on the sides instead of continuing the stripes. Cute!

This was an etsy order going out to Karen in Alabama. She chose this quote for her little boy's room. I think it is a perfect choice!

Now you can see all of the stripes and just a hint of the dots. I had all of the colors done except the red. You all already know that I do not like red. It was so pretty and I didn't want to add it, but it is in the bedding. Once I finally broke down and did it, it all came together. It was the perfect finishing touch!

Here's colors in the bedding from Ikea. I thought they just had furniture!

Rustic Love and a Sneak Peek

Shonda's order has been number one on my to do list for what seems like forever! She has been so patient! She ordered a couple of canvases that she wanted antiqued and very rustic. This 4x12 for the bathroom is so cute! I love the antique/distressed finish and the burlap ribbon.

This is the hold up. It took me for-ev-er to find, break, and glue all of these little sticks. It takes a lot more than you would think to go around a 12x24 canvas. There will never be another one like this!

Here's a full shot so you can see just how many sticks I'm talking about. I really like this outdoor scene. This one has been antiqued and distressed as well. It also has burlap ribbon, but I knotted the center instead of a bow.

Here's a little sneak peek of a canvas for the Autumn Street Fair. It is October 1st in downtown McMinnville. I'll have lots of new fall, Halloween, and Christmas designs!

A Lazy Fourth

Happy Fourth of July! It's a lazy holiday here at the Mansfield house. We are just now getting up and about. We do have a cookout and fireworks to go to tonight, but until then we are taking it easy. We are usually busy or on a trip this time of the year. It is kind of nice to just be home doing nothing!

Here's a few red, white, and blue favorites to celebrate this special day. Enjoy your day off, too!

William

Do you all remember the birth announcement canvas for sweet little William? If not, you can click here to see it. It was so cute and had the prettiest color combination.

William's mom, Rachel, decided to order another sign for the nursery door that coordinated with that one. I used the same colors and font but changed up the dots a bit. I absolutely love the way all of the dots in different sizes look!

Rachel is one of my very best customers. I am so excited for them with their new addition. I am surprising her with this little 5x5 canvas for the doorknob. I thought it would be cute to do it in stripes.
I hope you like it, Rachel! Congratulations to you and your family!

Malachi

I've got more stripes and sports for you! I haven't gotten to do very many boy canvases lately, and then all of a sudden there were bunches! This 8x24 canvas is on its way to Florida right now.

New customer Tissan Howard wanted her son's name and a sports theme to match his room. She requested lots of red and navy as well. I did a wavy border instead of the usual rectangular one. I think it turned out really cute!

Here's Malachi's super cute room. I can just see the canvas hanging on that bright blue accent wall. Thank you, Tissan! I hope you and sweet little Malachi love your artwork!