Kelly Rae Roberts's Blog, page 44

Dear you..

Happy Holidays, everyone.
May we each stay safe and rest inside the beauty of the tiniest moments.
XO!

Christmas Decor!

John is a big believer in getting out all of the Christmas decor the day after Thanksgiving. I think it's sweet that he wants the Christmas season to last as long as possible.
But this year, our fantasies of all of us decorating together just didn't seem to work. Hello, active two year old! Parents, I know you know what I'm talking about.  Finally, one day, about a week or so after Thanksgiving, True and I left the house for a few hours and when we came home, John had fully decorated the entire house, except for putting ornaments on the tree (we did that as a family). I know, I know! I love him, dearly.
Here's a little tour:




I found a vintage Santa cookie jar! Although I'm afraid to ever wash it or actually use it, I love it so. And the adorable snowman music box was a hand-made gift from Jackie, who is ultra talented. True loves winding him up.





Our Oh Joy banner is from Minted. We also got our holiday cards from them (first time ever!) and I love the quality. Highly recommended for all special occasions.

John made this center piece using a live wreath, a vintage wreath, some clip on birdies, and teal bulbs. Love. 


True's first construction paper Christmas tree. Swoon. I love that we're in the age where we get to tape his creations to our windows. 

Grandma made True his first ever advent calendar banner using cut out mittens. So cute.

Sending cozy holiday wishes to each of you...Love, Kelly Rae

around here lately

Studio: Our little print studio has been buzzing over here. It was our busiest couple of weeks of the whole year and boy was it a total, joyful mess. If you were here you'd see boxes everywhere, papers everywhere. You'd see my studio mom busy printing, matting prints, and making shipping runs to the studio. We can't thank you enough for supporting our little print shop. The shop is now closed for the holidays, but we'll be back open after the holidays.



Home:  Love how alive our home is with a playful, toddler spirit. So much joy when everyday objects, like pots and pans become beloved tools and toys. We've also been getting the finishing touches done on the basement remodeling project which included a playroom for Mr. True. We scored an awesome train play table from a neighbor and he is digging it, immensely. The playroom and basement came together just in time for the rainy season and for this we are thankful. I'll share full basement before and after photos soon!


Gratitude: For the stranger who extended kindness toward me the other day and broke my heart open even more. For John who has been waking up with True each morning at 630am so I can sleep another hour (he is so, so supportive). For my parents who are a huge part of our team. For clarity that changes everything and for the opportunity to take small steps toward its vision. For good rain proof boots.  For really good books. For the slow cooker that is changing our dinner routine and making our home smell delicious. For meant to be partnerships. For love, love, and the expansion of it in our marriage, in our lives, in our work.

Seriously grateful.


True: Impossibly adorable. I thought I loved age one, but two is blowing my mind. His personality is shining. And I'm just so honored that I get to be his mom. Everyday can be categorized under cuteness overload. 
Sending many holiday wishes to each of you and continued love and prayers to CT...
XO

brave in brokenness.

Like so many of you, I have been deeply affected by what happened in Newtown, CT. I've been quiet over here, feeling incredibly tender. Without words. Life has paused.

I have also been avoiding quiet time in the bath. I've had the radio on in the car, in the studio. I've been reading books in bed until I can't keep my eyes open. Movies. Work. Anything to avoid the open space moments where my mind has a few extra seconds to linger. Anything to avoid the crushing vulnerability and pain that arrive when my thoughts go toward their terror, the terror of their parents and families. 
The other night, I came downstairs at 2:30am. No longer able to avoid the open space, I sobbed, prayed, lit more candles. 
And I made a promise. :: To simply be broken. 
It takes bravery to be broken. To let the grief linger. To let our hearts feel. To be angry. Then overwhelmingly sad. And confused. 
I don't have the answers on how to navigate the broken pieces, I just know that it's important that we let ourselves move through it instead of avoiding it, perhaps with political opinions and reactive commentary that has been so rampant these last many days. The children, the parents, their families... more than anything, need for us to be broken with them. 
This I also know to be true: Where there is brokenness, there are cracks. Where there are cracks, there is light. Where there is light, there is an opportunity to come alive. And grow. And change. And rise up from the ashes of despair and into a new way of seeing and being and believing and effecting change. Brokenness has the capacity to birth wholeness. 
I made a promise.:: To be brave in my brokenness and tell my story.
I grew up with guns all around me. I was shooting guns in the back yards of rural northern Florida from the time I was 7 years old. It was a part of the culture - a hunting culture, a personal protection culture, a deeply entrenched American culture. Later, I became a medical social worker where I had a front line view in ERs and ICUs across this country where lack of mental health care and gun violence would often intersect in countless heart breaking situations for all involved. My husband has worked for years as a trauma nurse in ERs where he has also seen the effects of poor mental health care (as it relates to gun violence or not), and just last week he was on duty when victims from a local mass shooting were sent to his hospital. 

I made a promise.:: To look at my brokenness and ask hard questions about how it can be used in service of repair.“God has called them all home. For those of us who remain, let us find the strength to carry on and make our country worthy of their memory.” - President Obama
I believe in supporting policies and reform that are born from a place of service. Often, our brokenness is our life-line back to our soul centered mission, a place from which purposeful change can be born. I believe in looking hard at all the ways our policies do and do not serve our most vulnerable (our children, our sick, our elderly, our mentally ill).I believe in having broad conversations about gun law. I respect responsible gun owners, our large hunting community, the history, but I also whole heartedly support a ban on combat style weapons. I believe in overhauling our public education (and miseducation) about mental health, its lack of funding, access, and all the irresponsible reporting done around it. (link via Brene Brown)I believe in telling our stories, perhaps even breaking from long held truths, and opening up the conversation - all in the spirit of being brave in our brokenness, brave in our sadness, and effecting change. I believe in looking at all the ways we allow and invite violence into our homes, our schools, our hearts.I believe our children need us to be their fiercest voice.

I made a promise.:: To remember
When 9/11 happened, we all stopped. We were still. Silent. Unified in our grief. And then, over time, our grief rose up and fueled our collective commitment to do whatever we could do to make sure it never happened again.
For me, what happened in Newtown is the same. We must remember. We must stop. Be still. And grieve with those who are suffering. 
And then we must make sure it never happens again. 

I made a promise:: To think of the little children and the adults that died protecting them as fellow Possibilitarians. 
Their lives were rich in possibility, in far reaching horizons. Though their souls live in the brightness of the horizons now, their earthly possibility did not end with their deaths. Their legacies of joy and love will forever live in the hearts of their families. And their legacies of bravery and courage will inspire me to be brave with my own life: to treasure every single breath, to remember that love always wins, to cherish every moment with my son, and to courageously champion efforts to fiercely protect our children, and their possibility rich lives, from violence in our homes, in our policies, in our schools. 
Where there is brokenness, there are cracks. Where there are cracks, there is light. Where there is light, there is an opportunity to come alive. And grow. And change. And rise up from the ashes of despair and into a new way of seeing and being and believing and effecting change. Brokenness has the capacity to birth wholeness. 
May their lives inspire us to birth a new kind of wholeness for our lives, and for our country. I believe it is possible. I believe their lives make it possible. 

our hearts are broken

We dropped off True earlier in the morning at my parent's house. There were plans to build a birdhouse with Grandpa.

A couple hours later, the horrific news came. Shock. Tears. Overwhelming sadness. As a parent, I could barely breathe. We stopped what we were doing and went straight to my parent's house to scoop up True and hold him tight. We haven't let him out of our reach since.

We are in deep prayer and mourning over here.  We're trying to stay away from the television and instead we are lighting candles, and sending up eons of wishes of comfort and light. We have to collectively help hold the magnitude of this for those who are suffering. And for a long time.

Our hearts are broken.

For those of you who have older children, Brene Brown has gathered up a list of helpful resources on how to talk to children about violence toward children. You can click over here to see her list. Super helpful.

As a social worker, I have deep deep concerns with our country's notorious poor access to mental health care yet high access to guns. I have deep concerns about how hard it is to purchase cold medicine in our stores (to deter meth labs) yet how easy it is to purchase bullets and guns. It just doesn't make any sense. We have to look at these things. Our lives are too precious.

 Our children are too precious.


I made this piece after becoming a mama and it's all I can think about when I think about all the parents who lost their children, and all the children who lost their parents. 
Their hearts will never be alone.

a blinking nose...

We are in the season. All in. True made his first tiny adorable snowman. We will remember it always. He also got a blinking nose, and friends, you have to watch....30 seconds of a two year old's joy...hilarious, esp at 10 seconds.


XO....
Kelly Rae

Wholehearted Parenting Manifesto!

(Brene and I earlier this year)
Recently, my friend Brene asked if I would design a special edition of her brilliant parenting manifesto. And I loved creating it for her.  The manifesto is straight from her best selling book, Daring Greatly, a book I highly recommend (I wrote more about her book here).
But the manifesto. My goodness. Brene's words makes me want to scream YES. As a newish parent, these words go straight to all my hopes and dreams of the kind of parent (and person) I want to be for my son, True. 

The manifesto is for sale and the proceeds go to Brene's charity: water campaign (she is so close to her goal to raise 15K!). I have to say, both sizes (either 9x12 or 18x24) look beautiful framed! Click here to order. The 9x12 is $18 and the large poster size 18x24 is just $20.

For the holidays, orders received on or before 12/16 at midnight will ship out on 12/17. Orders received after 12/16 will ship on January 2, 2013. 

Huge thanks to Brene for asking me to do it and here's to Daring Greatly in parenting and in life!
XO,
Kelly Rae

ps: Huge thanks for yesterday's 12/12/12 sale!

Nourish Your Soul: 12/12/12 SALE!

Each week, I shine a spotlight on a few creations that I'm particularly proud of. Most of my products are inspired by the rich conversations I have both in my inner life, and my outer life. My goal is to communicate the soul of those conversations so that each piece creates a sense of belonging + community.
May you be inspired — and perhaps find a little something to nourish your soul!
Click here to see all the posts in this series. 
TODAY ONLY: Garden Gallery, the online vendor who sells all of my products featured below (and more) is  offering FREE SHIPPING. No promo codes needed...just shop and enjoy free shipping! Today only! 

Friends, this switch lights me up. How could it not? Wouldn't these make awesome gifts or stocking stuffers this year? Super affordable and available here. 


Speaking of shining, I'm gifting this little dish (only $5!!!!) to all my favorite friends this year. Love, love, and love some more. Available here. 


And speaking of shining and radiating, this Believe In Possibilities metal wing piece is one of my favorite wall pieces. It either hangs from the chain, or from the keyhole on the back of it. Either way, love this so much, friends. Available here. 


I can't forget to mention the wall canvases. They are our biggest seller, ever, and for good reason. They look stunningly like the original paintings. They're also crazy affordable. There are many many sizes and designs to choose from. Pair them with of the "pop frames" (best invention ever) and you're all set. Love, love, and more love. Available here.


These cowgirl boots were a long time in the making until we could get the mold just right. The result? Awesomeness. I can't look at these and be anything but happy. Available here. 

PS: All of my products featured above (and more) are sold online via Garden Gallery Works (a local shop here in the Portland area), but if you're looking for signed/matted prints and/or originals, you can get these in my online shop. 
TODAY ONLY: Garden Gallery is offering FREE SHIPPING. No promo codes needed...just shop and enjoy free shipping! Today only! 
PPS: International customers, we love you! Please email me at kellyraeroberts@gmail.com and we can point you in the direction of online retailers that ship internationally!
  Psst: Mugs are back in stock over at Garden Gallery's online shop.
Psst: All prints in my shop are 20% off today! Use promo code "12/12/12" and enjoy 20% your entire purchase. Prints arrive signed, matted, and ready to frame. XO! 

Art In Motion: Follow the whispers

With Art in Motion, I share the visual journey through the life of one of my paintings — from the blank canvas, to the first splash of inspiration, all the way to the finished piece. Enjoy to the fullest!
Click here to see all the posts in this ongoing project series.


Start with a bit of paper....

Add in some more papers, being sure to use gel medium both under and over the papers (link below to the gel med I love)

Quick painting of the face using oil paint sticks and a quick sketch of her form....

She's coming together now with more details and first layer of hair color....

Large wings collaged in, and more face and hair details....

Add in some more collage elements, stamping, and paint to the background.....and she's done!
I loved creating this one. Of all the questions I ask myself on a routine basis, it is "What is calling me?" - it's the question that propels right back to my center, right back to my intuition, and is the guiding force in my life. Love. 



I get so many questions about which art supplies I use and love. You can check out my favorite supplies for making art  (with descriptions) over here or if it's easier, I've put some easy links below for you :)
Tabletop Easel Canvas Boards Golden Fluid Acrylics Spray Bottle Liquitex Soft Body Acrylics Brayer Gel Medium (Gloss) Stabilo Pencils (Black) Gesso Shiva Oil Paintstiks Alphabet Stamps Face Color Pitt Pens White Sharpie Paint Pin (fine tip) Black Pitt Pens Ott light Heat Gun My Book (Taking Flight)InLinkz.com

A thank you + what crazy making (i.e., the creative process) feels like

I am learning a lot about my body.

It just simply cannot hold too much excitement and inspiration. My brain can hold it all. My heart can hold even more. My body? Not so much.

The original painting sale was awesome. Thank you you so much for all the love. Most sold in 14 minutes. All sold in about 30 minutes. Do I really live this life?

During the sale (plus the entire day before the sale), I was having full day jam sessions with the mega talented Alexandra Franzen. Before the back to back sessions with Alex, I had a life changing brainstorming session with my Hello Soul Hello Business partner, Beth Nicholls.

These possibility-fueled sessions plus nerves about the painting sale plus my heart and brain about to explode with what I now know I must create in 2013 = an explosion of too much possibility.

I've been sick in bed ever since.  Diagnosis: Possibility Overdose.

Do you ever feel like one of those really eccentric creative ladies who is up up up in the clouds with language and ideas and confidence in what could be, but you likely sounds crazy to everyone else because what you are talking about doesn't exist yet? Yeah? Me, too. Especially lately.

I've been out in the wild west territory of the Creative Inspiration Stratosphere these last couple of weeks, friends. It has indeed been wild, like discovering a whole new world. And I know this is how it goes. Inspiration hits and it feels like a tornado comes through and dismantles everything. This can last days, weeks. Adrenalin kicks in. You body, spirit, heart prepares for the onslaught of force and momentum. You try to grab a hold onto every piece of that inspiration explosion as it spins and whirls through. You're in survival mode, grabbing each piece of inspiration that flies by, not sure how it fits into the bigger puzzle, but you grab for it anyway. You scribble down impossible ideas that come to you in the shower, in your dreams, in the car. You lose sleep. Your brain is LIT UP. It's chaotic, frustrating, amazing. Then, when things settle a little bit from the storm, you try and distill it each piece that you were able to grab ahold of. You incubate it. You brainstorm it. You unravel it.

And then, finally, if you are lucky, it arrives: CLARITY. Clarity on how to best use the inspiration in service of your bigger mission. 

Ahhhh, some peace. Everything changes.

You have landed. You have survived the tornado. And all is well. But your body, your vessel, your temporary spirit home...well, it pays a price.

You rest for a good long while. You drink lots of water. You get over the acuity of Possibility Overdose.  (This is where I'm at right now in this crazy making process)

And then, later, after you give your body and soul its well deserved downtime, you slowly begin the tedious process of sifting through the debris,  picking up all the bits and pieces that got strewn all over your life during the divine creative explosion.

You organize them. You strategize. And you make a plan to birth it all.

I'm thinking nine months from now, there will be a big birth around here.

It's going to be amazing.

And you? I have you to thank for everything. And YOU will be a huge part (everything, really) of this new baby. Just wait...

In the meantime, I'm going to rest and enjoy the rest of the holiday season. I'm going to slow down, breathe it all in, and wish upon stars upon stars.

Can't thank you enough for everything. 

XO,
Kelly Rae