Blog — 9th&Mayne

My Signature Style Board

I’m back after a couple months….it’s been busy around here! I’ve been working on my 52/52 Challenge, lots of projects to post. I have my work cut out for me!

Since I started the 52/52 Challenge I discovered a lot about my ‘style’. Many of the things I liked, I know longer like. It’s a curse….I have a constant need for change. It’s rather annoying! One thing is for sure, I love the color WHITE! and always have.

I love simple, classic, cozy, minimal and lots of white.

Some of the projects I’ve done are not longer in my home. Sad. I know. My taste for decor changes so often. It’s a curse from my mother! Hi Mom!!

I finally figured out that if it’s pretty or fun looking, it doesn’t mean I’d like it in my house. We took a H.U.G.E load of my ‘pretty and fun’ decor pieces to the local DI (thrift store). It was embarrassing! Mostly because my Mr. saw all the things I’ve been buying and not using. What a waste!

So, I’m on a journey to ONLY buy items that fit in my ‘signature style’…..I got the idea from Fieldstone Hill. I’m very excited about this and I hope I can stick with it.

Do you have the same problem with decorating your house? Do you secretly take loads to the thrift store so your man won’t see?

May 23, 2013 By Kristin Filed Under: decorate 2 Comments

Blog Bulge Babes – Linky Party

A couple weeks ago, Julie from Redhead Can Decorate, did a post about her weight gain from Blogging….you know, sitting at the computer with a yummy snack while visiting and commenting on all the wonderful blogs out there. I was impressed she had the courage to post her weight, *gasp!, and share her weight lose journey with her readers. You Go Girl!! Read Julie’s Original Blog Bulge post!

I wanted to get rid of my blog bulge too, so I asked if she would be doing a linky party….long story, short…..A linky party was born, we invited a few friends and started a Facebook page so we can all stay motivated and encourage others. Fun, right!? You can also use the hashtag #blogbulge on photos, posts, etc. to stay connected.

I’ll share how I’m going to get fit and lose my Blog Bulge in a post later this week. I’ll come back and link it up here.

Blog Bulge Babes:

http://www.9thandmayne.com/2013/03/blog-bulge-babes-linky-party/I can’t get the link box to show up…grrr! You’re welcome to copy and paste this button and share on your blog. You can use the url above to link back here.

The other good news is that if you do have a blog, you are welcome to share this “Blog Bulge Link Party” on your blog if you would like to inspire your followers. We would love to share the code with you if you join the group. Inserting the code into your post will bring up all of these links below.

Just a few guidelines:

Please link up healthy recipes, weight loss/gain stories, weight loss tips, favorite exercise plans, anything “getting healthy” below.
This party will run until June 6th unless we decide longer (it takes time to get back on track).
You can keep coming back to link up more than one post and find inspiration on your visits.
Please take and copy/paste the Blog Bulge pink button above and share somewhere on your blog with the image linking back to this party (found under the button).
Only family friendly links will be approved.
OUR FAVORITES WILL BE FEATURED on Facebook, Pinterest, G+, and Twitter.

Please link up your healthy recipes, weight loss stories/goals, weight loss tips, favorite exercise plan, anything that will inspire us all to become healthier.

Have Fun!!

March 6, 2013 By Kristin Filed Under: get fit & healthy 6 Comments

Bye, Bye, Microwave :: 52/52 Challenge

I’m soooo loving this project!! I’ve been wanting to get rid of the microwave and install a hood fan for a while. I’ve always loved the Gourmet Hood Fans but they are pricey and I don’t have the space.

Here’s my list of reasons why the microwave HAD to go….don’t worry it’s getting a new home IN THE WALL by the pantry….the list:

Steam would collect on the microwave and drip into food I was cooking. *GROSS! I guess my fan in the microwave wasn’t doing it’s job.
The door of the microwave gets opened and closed so much, even while I’m cooking….so, what’s DROPPING into my pots? I don’t even want to think about that!
The stove, microwave, sink, fridge, are all in the corner. There’s 8 of us (#9 is at college) all trying to do ‘something’ in THAT corner, it gets crowded! *this is what sold the idea to the husband
I knew I could sell the old microwave and almost cover the cost.
We have a space by the pantry that gets low traffic and has enough room for the new little microwave to get built into the wall – post coming soon.
Because I wanted to and The Husband loves me!

See the baby microwave in the corner, it won’t be there long, yeehaw!

Now, what to do about the backsplash……..

1. Number Fifty-Three 2. The Kitchn 3. The Gold Jellybean

My first thought was to use faux tin tiles but the cost would be $36, I’d have left-overs tho, but I’m cheap and want to do it for less. I’m sure tile would be much more but it seems like it would be easier to clean. Making a chalkboard would be the cheapest but I’m concerned about my 6yo climbing up to draw on it….I could paint a chalkboard somewhere else for him. *now I’m thinking

What do you think? Chalkboard, Tile, Tin? What say you?

p.s. I can’t wait to show you my kitchen when it’s done….it’s getting there!

February 28, 2013 By Kristin Filed Under: 52/52 challenge, decorate 8 Comments

Learning How to Paint Watercolor Poppies, My Way – Part 4

Here we are at the end of my Poppy Challenge {learn to paint watercolor poppies, my way}. I’m excited about what I’ve learned, very excited! It’s hard to believe that just 4 weeks ago I could barely paint a Watercolor Poppy and now I can paint them with ease and confidence, my way. yay!

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

My goal was to learn to paint watercolor poppies in 4 weeks using FREE resources…YouTube, watercolor groups, practicing, etc. I’m happy to say that I did just that! I used YouTube most of the time because I’m a visual person and need to ‘see’ how something is done.

This is a group of most of my paintings, I didn’t realize how many I did until I started laying them out. This picture is interesting to me because of all the differences. My way of painting poppies really did change week to week.

This painting is one of my favorites, I don’t know why, it just is. I found that I really love the color orange, I’ve always been a red color person but now I lean towards orange-red.

I was playing with different colors on these flowers. The blue was fun, kinda weird but I like it.

I’m thinking of selling some of the original paintings, if you’re interested please leave a comment or email me at: kristin{at}9thandmayne{dot}com.

I’m joining Paint Party Friday and Make It Pretty.

February 26, 2013 By Kristin Filed Under: creative process 23 Comments

Learning How To Paint Watercolor Poppies, My Way – Part 3

{{UPDATE: The painting above was painted today. I couldn’t resist sharing it with my Paint Party Friday & Making It Pretty Friends}}

I’ve been practicing my poppies, can you tell?! I sure can! It’s interesting to me how different my poppies have been over the last 3 Weeks. Part 1 & Part 2

Here’s a recap:

Wow! See the differences? My flowers have loosened up and have more personality by week 3. I very happy with how my style and techniques have changed. It comes from practicing, relaxing my wrist and letting go….not being afraid of making a mistake. I’m on my way to perfecting ‘my style’.

Last week I told you I would be trying a new brush…the fan brush (pictured left)….and I did, but I wasn’t happy with the results. I’m sure it’s a great brush but, for now, they will stay put away.

The brush I used the most this week was my #2 Round Bamboo Brush (pictured right) that my kitty chewed up. I was going to toss the brush but instead I tried it out to see if I could get the effect I wanted. It worked perfectly! I’m pretty excited about this brush seeing how I saved it from the trash. *wink

I don’t know if you can tell but the two top paintings don’t have the same ‘feel’ as the bottom ones. I was still trying to ‘control’ the paint and brush strokes with the top paintings but soon learned that by loosening my wrist and using shorter brush strokes I could achieve a much nicer and prettier flower.

Here are my favorites. I really like the darker stems but I’m kinda digging the green.

Which is your favorite?

I’m linking up with Paint Party Friday and Making It Pretty

February 20, 2013 By Kristin Filed Under: creative process 60 Comments

DIY Drum Shade :: 52/52 Challenge

Welcome to another week of my 52 Projects/52 Weeks Challenge….visit my 52/52 Challenge Gallery (above) to see what I’ve done and check out my Notebook on Springpad to see my ‘to do’ projects.

So happy to share this DIY Drum Shade project with you! I had a great time making it and an even greater time watching My Man put it up….over the ceiling fan base! Yep, over the ceiling fan!

I’ve had a love/hate relationship with our ceiling fans so I HAD to find some way to hang a nice light fixture without taking the whole thing down, just in case we need the fan this summer. So, taking great advice from my mom, we took the blades off and stuck the shade right over the base…piece of cake! Thanks, Mom!

I got the idea for the shade from The Keylor Family blog. Her tutorial is awesome! I always forget to take pics…grrr. I love how hers turned out! I changed a couple things on mine but it looks mostly the same.

Project List:

2 – 23″ Embroidery Loops
2 yds Burlap + 2 yds Muslin
4 – Plexiglass sheets from Hobby Lobby (i cut mine so the shade is only 12″ tall instead of 16″)
E6000 Glue
Glue Sticks – lots!
Jute to hang
4 – Tiny Eye Hooks

I told you I forgot most of the pictures. I get so excited and totally forget! I’m trying to remember tho.

If you go to The Keylor Family blog, you’ll see that she put the plexiglass in between the hoops, so smart!..but I decided I didn’t want the bulky bolts and wood blocks showing so I used the inside of the hoops and glued the plexiglass to the hoops using E6000 glue and clamps. It took an hour or so for each side to dry and then it was ready to be covered.

I used burlap lined with muslin because I didn’t want the shade to be see thru. It was easy to glue the fabric on until I got to the bottom opening. It was harder than I expected. As you can see it’s not perfect but who’s going for perfect anyway!? ha!

We took the blades (see them on top the armoire?) and the light globe thingys off to see if the shade would fit without the bulbs touching the fabric….and it fit!! Angels were singing! The shade was hung by spreading the jute strings apart and resting them on the top of the fan motor. It was a bit tricky but we managed…when I say ‘we’ I really mean ‘My Man’. :)

I know I don’t have lots of pics, next project!…but if you want a great tutorial…go see The Keylor Family blog, she did a great job with lots of pictures.

West Elm Marquis Rug 8×10 - Pricey so I might need to find a cheaper version. My Man works for BYU so the Y’s are just perfect! ;)
Pottery Barn couch - We have one but our room really needs two…and we have 9 peeps in our family so we need more seating.
Fabric for curtains….haven’t decided on a specific one yet.
Drum Shade – CHECK!

I like using neutrals for the pricey and big items…accessories are a great way to add color and are way cheaper to change often

I’m linking up with Make the Scene Monday, Made by You Mondays, Get Your Craft On, Monday Funday, Creative Spark, What We Accomplished Wednesdays, Think Tank, Transformation Thursday & Inspiration Gallery & Fabulously Creative Friday & Chic on a Shoestring Decorating. So many great projects on these sites, check’em out!

February 19, 2013 By Kristin Filed Under: 52/52 challenge, decorate, diy 2 Comments

Learning how to Paint Watercolor Poppies, My Way – Part 2

Welcome to Part 2 of my Watercolor Series! You can see the first post here. I’m excited to share my watercolor poppies with y’all.

For this week, I wanted to practice painting small, dainty flowers that had a sketchy feel. I thought of what might look good on scrapbook paper or small print fabric to get the look I wanted. To accomplish this, I chose to use a repeating pattern with small details, dots and pen to outline the flowers.

What do you think?

I joined a watercolor group (i’m afraid of this group, they are all really good!) on LinkedIn and watched many videos on YouTube…I recommend YouTube if you want to learn how to paint, so many great tutorials!

Here are my favorite:

Free Watercolor Online Workshop – Poppy Spree

I’m linking to Paint Party Friday, a linky party for all types of painters.