A Sweet Nursery Retreat - for the love of trees and birdies.

It's no surprise that birds and trees are a very popular motif for nurseries.  Nature is always welcome in spaces for children.

Birds have symbolism around the world and throughout history.  The Owl embodies wisdom and virtue, the crane eternity, the eagle power and courage and the nightingale love.  I'm not sure what the twitter bird stands for, maybe a short attention span.  Regardless whether they be animated silly birds or decorative tweets on fabrics and furnishings they bring nature in and herald joy as in the joy of spring.

My client, whose gorgeous craftsman style home sits remotely out in the country, asked that I create a room befitting their home and thought a natural theme would compliment their style and their surroundings.

We settled on a design that featured poppies along the baseboard, a tree and some visiting birds.  The colors of bedding and room accents varied from pale red, a mauve to an antiqued poppy orange.

The nursery had very high walls that followed the wood beam vaulted ceiling.  To make the room more cozy and bring the viewers eye down we incorporated a tree mural.

 

 To break the wall's height issue we created a focal  point using vintage style frames which were hung framing the mural illustrations of birds.

The soft beautiful light was glorious in the late afternoon as it beamed in the wood encased windows.

A bird in flight carrying a ribbon helps frame the opposing wall and diminish the wall's height.  Stripes of complimentary colors graces a small sidewall that flanks a door going out onto a patio.

In the studio we created the striped etagere to house trinkets and help carve up the height of the room.

The softness of colors, the implied tree and the elegance of the colors make this room charming and cozy.  Baby Elizabeth surely will have treasured memories in her sweet retreat.

From Pale to Precious - A Girl's Bedroom Makeover for Two

Confection colors and our studio created crowns add whimsy
in the made-over shared bedroom.

When inspiration hits, I like to grab a sheet of blank paper and jot down ideas, scribble my thoughts in picture form and transform it into a brainstormed blueprint to elaborate on.   When I asked for submissions from my Facebook page fans for rooms that need makeovers, I was struck by this room and couldn't resist the proverbial blank slate's allure.

A floating door and overwhelming pale walls.

The good sized room was divided ineffectively.

Eclectic furniture of varied scale.

The homeowner, Tara said in her email to me, submitting her two daughter's shared bedroom, that they had purchased some chandeliers and their placement presented a problem.  While I would have gladly offered help in placing light fixtures, the room pictures cried out for more.

When discussing the rooms potential with her, I found out that there were three assorted sized crawl-space access doors within the room.  You can see them in the pictures, one floating on the wall in the corner, a second hidden behind the toybox and the third covered by the crib's side panel.  These three eyesore doors added intrigue and a level of difficulty to the project that had my mind racing for ideas.

Unlike our previous makeover project for Nick, which focused on handyman skills and built on site custom aspects to transform, I wanted to confine this room to crafts, paint and light budget solutions.  These type of solutions are easily adapted and may serve as inspiration to others.

So, after an interview of the girl's likes and dislikes and a survey of the rooms furniture, bedding and existing items, I embarked upon my ideas.  The girl's bedding which was from Ikea featured animals celebrating in merriment with musical instruments, juggling, riding bikes and carrying birthday cakes.  This was my launching point for creating a confection colored room that had a celebratory tone to it.

The bedding offered fun and inspiration.

While, I restricted my own participation to simple affordable ideas, I did ask Tara to sell her youngest daughter's outgrown crib and replace it with the exact Ikea bed her oldest sleeps in.  This would give us some continuity in the room and help expand upon black as an accent color.  Other than a few accessories, paint and craft items everything in the room was either reused, altered or edited.

2 gallons and 3 quarts transforms the room.

Considering the room was two square shapes overlapping, it presented itself as a candidate for some color carving, with wall of different confection flavors, as illustrated in my layout concept below.

Here are side by side room shots presenting the before and after photos.

Addressing the issues that we agreed the room had, I presented my solutions-

The Crawl-space doors-  The floating one would be disguised by painting the door trim and adding a ribbon board facade.  The only technical issue was guaranteeing the door and door knob functioned.  The other two doors would be primed and painted to match the walls.  Any pattern would continue right over the doors as if they weren't there.  This basically camouflages them.

Shared Space solutions-  Considering the room was shared by sisters two and half years apart, I decided to separate their sleeping areas into the two natural room halves.  Our custom studio crowns would personalize each half.

Function-  The dresser and dresser hutch combination dwarfed the wrought iron Ikea beds.  To de-emphasis the scale difference our crowns would hold draped tulle adding weight and scale to the beds.  The girl's needed lighting and side tables.  To stick with our light budget theme and the Ikea tradition started by the family, I sought out two lack tables and fabric shade light pendants.  While I enjoy Ikea's lack table simplicity, it wouldn't do for this project so I altered them by moving the legs back and adding a scallop trim.

Personality-  Adding color, pattern and some whimsical features transformed the plain room.  In the studio I created the ribbon boards, the bird sculptures and the bunting pennants to add dimension and a low cost but customized touch.

While money can be thrown into any project to purchase style and whimsy, I offer this room as a testament to sweat equity and creativity.  The rooms walls are works of tape, small rollers and a level.  The scalloped crown trim is easily created using a cardboard pattern that is traced and filled in.   Some details about the individual pieces are described here.

Post makeover, Tara offered " First of all, I can't believe that was how I allowed the room to look!  I had no idea, sense of direction and just didn't know how to organize the room and make it cute for the girls."  Commenting on her favorite feature, the dotted wall she said " I could look at that wall all day.  I'm really glad that it acts as a feature wall and it's the first thing you see as you walk in."  While the girls proclaim to her "They love their crowns!" adding, "They really define each of their spaces, which is important to them since they share the room and pretty much everything in it!"  "Working with Aaron was such a fun experience.  There were so many ideas and surprises." she said.

While makeover contests don't happen often, we are thankful and excited to offer them when we can.  Be sure to join our Facebook page, that's where all of our contests are announced.

Pennants add a sense of festivity.

Studio made birds sculpted from foam add whimsy.

Pom Poms and Ribbons help the room celebrate with color.

Ikea's lack table purchase on sale for $4.00 transformed by moving the
legs back and adding a hand wrought scallop trim.

  

Out of the woods - a nursery mural for woodland friends and baby McClure

New Portland residents and blushing parents-to-be, the McClures and I sat down to talk murals.  They wanted their daughter, due in October, to be welcomed into her nursery by friendly animals and flora from their new stomping ground, the Pacific Northwest.  Our collaborative thoughts of mountains, trees and evergreen forests were enhanced by the idea of a flowering Cherry tree, an iconic Portland beauty.

A Kwanzan Cherry Tree beginning to blossom.

 Kwanza Cherry trees are radiant clouds of pink early in the spring and the McClures thought its splendor would be the perfect centerpiece for the mural.  Having an interest in the mural featuring watercolor-like imagery, we discussed the works of Beatrix Potter and I turned them onto a favorite illustrator of mine, Barbara Firth.  Her look was less whimsical than Potter's yet her terrific use of color, texture and pencil outline  was perfect inspiration, in my mind, for the baby's nursery.  The McClure's agreed.

I rendered several loose mockups to convey the idea of a blooming cherry tree mixed with Northwest flora and fauna.  The mural was to be executed in a similar styling to Firth's illustrations, with big washes of color, a framing composition and visible pencil outlines.  Short of my locating a gigantic pencil to render with, I chose to outline the mural in gray tone glazes to simulate the sketch of pencil lines.

A little bird will peer down at the crib.

The completed tree mural.

A friendly squirrel runs across the branch
to see what the baby will be up to.

The McClure's beautiful foursquare bungalow
frames the mural well.

I have to duck into the pictures now and then.

One of the best things about creating a mural, is that it becomes part of the family.  The proud parents and their new little one will enjoy this room for many years to come.  Its imagery will be engrained in their child's loving memory, a gift from me to her.

 Welcome baby McClure, your new painted friends are waiting your arrival.  Congratulations McClures and thank for for bringing me in on your special project!  

Boy's Sports Room Inspiration

Sports decor is a request that I get frequently for custom boy's rooms.  It's the combination of classic styling, longevity that goes from toddler to teen that makes it popular with both kids and parents.  As part of my ongoing quest as an artist and designer to bring new and unique offerings to the juvenile market I'm launching my latest art series.  The new football, baseball and soccer pieces revisit the genre with a contemporary style combined with classic and nostalgic accents.  Available in canvas reproductions in 14 x 14 inch and 30 x 30 inch dimensions.  As of this writing, the new additions are being added to the offerings of popular children's room boutiques, internet and catalog companies worldwide that carry my art line, as well as our online boutique.

I thought it might be fun to offer an inspiration guide showing a way that my new wall art can easily be combined with some of the products available through popular retailers.

1) 100 Series Art by Aaron Christensen

2) Wire Crate Storage - Pottery Barn Teen

3) Coco cabana chair - Urban Outfitters

4) Shaggy Brown Rug - Rosenberry Rooms

5) Vintage Sports Bedding - Whistle and Wink

6) Deep Sea Annabelle Wall Locker - Russell & Mackenna

7) Vintage one-of-a-kind letters - Relique

http://www.embellishmentsstudio.com/store/c76/SPORTS.html

Be Inspired Blog Hop - Aaron Christensen's visit to the Land of Seuss

Some of my artist friends and I have noticed an increasing amount of how-to's and knock off blogs that stray into the realm of copyright infringement, which is simply the stealing of others art. As an artist with art and artworks featured worldwide, this has me concerned and disappointed. So, to help the blogosphere out, and add a dose of originality, several of us (see permalinks below) are posting about how you can be inspired by another without stealing from them. Before you glean someone's art from google images, color copy it from a catalog, scan it with your scanner or take snippets of it to use in your art, please consider being an original. It's a great way to go and it will keep you out of hot water.

That being said, I'd like to introduce you to my art inspiration, he's Dr. Seuss. His 107th birthday was yesterday. I am a collector of vintage Dr. Seuss memorabilia and grew up with his books. To illustrate our point about being being inspired yet original, I'm sharing with you my faux taxidermy project. I've created this quip to get you into a Seuss frame of mind.

I made it my own with Seuss in my thoughts. A tribute to him, no stealing, no cops. Now look what I did, enjoy it you may. Now look what I did, be inspired this way. As you sit on your bumple, scratching your head, "what is it to be original, what is it I said?" It's a place in your heart, a place in mind, a place that all artists must honestly find. - A.C.

These are copyrighted characters and sculptures created by Dr. Seuss- Theodore Geisel. Property of Dr. Seuss Enterprises, all rights reserved. This image is being used to explain an editorial point and I claim no ownership of this photograph or it's contents.

Here in my studio we are lucky enough to have the materials and the know how to create magical things out of thin air. If I chose to, I could copy one of Dr. Seuss's character mounts, or to be really bad I could post a blog how-to and teach you all how to do it. But I'd never do that because it is morally wrong and frankly illegal. So to illustrate how he has inspired me as an artist, I'm in the process of creating my own wild character wall mount with Seuss-like silly characteristics, but it's 100% my own idea. She's something I dreamt up, created in sketch form and then sculpted into three dimensions.

She's a Bird Nesting Head Doe, a rare jungle treat.
She carries bird eggs till their up, up on their feet.

In her second stage of sanding, she's taking shape.
I'll need to finish her features, prime and paint her.

As she progresses, I'll post some new pictures here. I'd love to hear suggestions as to what her name should be. I have her new home picked out, it's just above my drawing table.

Here she is, long eyelashes, whiskers and all.

I hope my example illustrates the difference between being inspired, using that as motivation to create something of your own and the opposite, which is duplicating and infringing upon your inspiration. Remember, it's okay to be inspired by other artists, as long as you make your art your own. Be fresh, be original and be honest, you'll enjoy it!

Please stop by my artist friends blogs to see what they've come up with.

Brenda Pinnick ----- Shelly Kennedy / Drooz Studios

Phyllis Dobbs ----- Chris Chun

Joanne Sharpe ----- Sharyn Sowell

Vickie Lea ----- Monica Lee

Molly Smith ------ Jen Goode

Beth Parker ------ Jane Maday

Robin Pickens ----- Sue Zipkin

up, uP, UP on a pedestal - The Good Doctor, Dr. Seuss

While most artists rattle off a list of historical figures like Picasso, Monet or whomever as their inspiration. I take a somewhat more whimsical path into the dewberry dawn...the shimmering seas, where the swamie swans swim in the suntacular breeze. That's where you'll find the mind of Dr. Seuss. Theodore Geisel, the good Dr. Seuss is one of my most favorite artists. Although my art generally seems quite opposite to his. I share his love of advertising, having fonts be a subject matter and rethinking what's been thunk before.

Tomorrow, I will be posting a terrific Seuss-like adventure into my first D.I.Y. on this blog. It will also be a place to have conversation with visuals about being an original artist. Original artists takes what they find for fun that is funner, shake it around in their brain until it's new, like no other. (sorry, had to put a Seuss-like spin on it).

In the children's room decorating business, there's a lot of copyrighted properties that children love ie. Batman, Hannah Montana, Yo Gabba Gabba and so on. During my fourteen years designing children's spaces, I've been asked to duplicate or create murals of all the popular characters. As a business person, aware of copyright theft issues and liabilities and a sense of wrong versus right morally, I've chosen to steer my clients another direction. Yes, it can be hard work, but it's worth it. They appreciate originality and in the end respect you more for your creativity.

Understand that abandoning the idea of duplicating copyrighted works doesn't mean you can't please your client. You can create Batman's world, with skyscrapers, the moody night sky and even a cave as long as you are inventing the ideas yourself and not duplicating the work of others, which include his likeness, the logos or pages from comic books. Paint a great Batman-like room and order the licensed products to fill it, if that's what your client wants. But do not steal or as it's technically called infringe upon the intellectual property of others.

What about Seuss, what's this to do with Seuss? Okay...I had a client whom collected Dr. Seuss's art. Not only did they collect his illustrated works, they own several pieces of his contemporary art and sculptures. They wanted me to create a Seuss room for their daughter. Having had a lifetime love of the good Doctors work, I was eager to take on the challenge.

I worked up some drawings based upon my thoughts of what I thought Dr. Seuss would do. How would he address a bed, paint a wall or decorate? If you are inspired by an artist, a designer or a product, you are free to use them as inspiration to generate something new. This doesn't mean color copying, collaging, tracing or altering it, it must be something new, from your own hand. In this case I dreamt up Seuss-like objects, that I sculpted in my studio. I do not claim for them to be Seuss, it's not using his characters or brands, I'm not selling them in the market place confusing people into thinking they are Seuss, they simply are inspired by him one-of-a-kinds. Because they are original, now they are my copyright, my creation that can not be duplicated, or used without my permission or license. I hope this makes sense.

My client is happy, they have a Seuss like room, no copied characters, no rip offs, nothing but originality inspired by the good Doctor.

I made it my own with Seuss in my thoughts. A tribute to him, no stealing, no cops. Now look what I did, enjoy it you may. Now look what I did, be inspired this way. As you sit on your bumple, scratching your head, "what is it to be original, what is it I said?" It's a place in your heart, a place in mind, a place that all artists must honestly find. So with these kind words, I bid you good day said Aaron the artist, on Seuss's Birthday!


If you need some studio magic for your child's room we can design, create and ship nationwide.  Visit my website for details.

What's old is new and what's new is hot!

What's old is new and what's new (meaning old) is hot, not that new (as new) is not, uhm.....we'll something like that....

Meaning, there's been a resurgence in interest of all things old, especially those of an industrial and pre-industrial era to expand back further than the recent revisit to mid-century. When companies like CB2, Restoration Hardware and Anthropology are looking backwards for design ideas and even offering vintage one of a kinds, that's something to take note of. Have you seen the recent Pottery Barn catalogs and in-store offerings? They're taking us back, way back to pre-industrial era with rustic pottery and rough hewn pieces.

Pottery Barn offering vintage cameras

Restoration Hardware's factory cart table

Restoration Hardware's Aviation inspired aluminum side table

Obviously, as an artist who enjoys vintage inspiration in his modernized pieces, I'm excited to see the trend grow.

In the realm of children's room design, I've always been a bit of a retro kinda guy. I like to procure vintage pieces or have reproductions and one of a kinds made by through my studio, to incorporate into our room designs. A vintage piece adds character and provides a sense of longevity or timelessness to the room.

Instead of a slick ultra bright race car, this client chose for us to create a

room with a sense of heritage and time worn charm. Our custom twin sized truck bed, although new, looked like it had been parked for 50 years.

My Speedway Art is available as reproductions and prints

Our Speed Demon room featured vintage objects combined with "new" creations we made

in the studio. I used my art as a visual replacement of a headboard.

The Max Transit wall art collection

http://www.embellishmentsstudio.com/store/c77/TRANSPORTATION_%26_RACING.html

Max Transit Art Collection is available as individual reproductions in many sizes and as a full collage containing all nine.

My latest art release entitled "Max Transit" does a bit of a switch a roo. Instead of reaching the vintage stage via texture I chose to go for a more graphic approach. With its gears, maps and instruments it has an industrial feel but done in a modern way. These pieces can bridge the gap between the slick modern furniture you see in stores today and yet allow the homeowner to bring in a vintage look.

Here, I've provided you with 3 vignettes showing how my work could be incorporated into a boy's transportation room that utilizes vintage industrial looks combined with a modern aesthetic. I'm quite fond of raw, unpainted metals like aluminum, galvanized, chrome and zinc plating. If you stick to the white metals you can mix and match freely. If you prefer the golden metals you can tone them down by using brown waxed shoe polish as you would a traditional wax polish. Be sure to let the piece dry before handling.

Option A utilizes one of a kind pieces, products from higher end retailers 1stDibs, Rejuvenation Lighting, Serena and Lily, Room and Board and a few off the shelf items.

Option B draws it's vocabulary of items from traditional retail environments like Rosenberry Rooms, Land of Nod, Lowes, Urban Outfitters and Caden Lane with some one of a kinds.

Option C incorporates similar looks for less with help from Target, Toys R us and Ikea.

The Max Transit collection is part of my spring introduction and is available through fine retailers and independent boutiques. Email me if you need assistance with finding a retailer or if you are interested in purchasing them directly from Embellishments.

Also available in a personalized growth chart.

Great resource for vintage industrial are Ebay, Etsy, 1stDibs.com, Dog dish lights, Rejuvenation and even Craigslist. Here in Portland, I love to browse a material handling company store. They often pass on used equipment such as carts, dollies, work benches and more. If you have a great site to pass on please leave it in the comments for others to browse.

Enjoy!