Oh geez.....

It's been so long since I've visited my blog that I forgot my password.;/
Anyway, if anyone's out there wondering where I've been or what I'm working on...you can find me on instagram under karingrow. It's just so much easier for me to post little snippets than writing full posts. You never know though...I may return when life settles down and I have something amazing to share. Karin

Arts Alive Exhibit 2013

Yesterday was the unveiling for downtown 101's street banners. This is the third year that I participated and it's always fun to see what our local artists come up with. Being a beach town, you can always count on plenty of mermaids, seahorses and palm trees flooding the show. So many, that I have vowed never to paint those three subjects. I will however allow myself to paint other sea life......just not those. :)

This one cracks me up. The Pannikin is on the bluff at Beacons Beach. As the cliff slowly erodes, this could well be a reality someday.
Overall, it was a decent show.....I personally think that last year was the best and will be tough to beat.
Today and tomorrow they will be hung on the posts so take a drive down old hwy 101 and pick your favorite. The online auction has already begun.

Before and After

My computer is in a bit of transition right now. Just had to have it all backed up cause...well, I take too many pictures. So now I'm organizing my million photos while trying to track down the ones I set aside for specific blog posts. I did however find these before and after's that I finished recently for the Pannikin. They are there now and waiting for their forever home:)

Sorry the picture quality kind of stinks. The after shot was taken in the early evening...but seriously, isn't this the neatest waterfall nightstand? I love that it had the original gold and lucite hardware. It looks so much better in person. If only I had a space in my house for this.
I first attempted to refinish it and realized it wasn't a blonde wood veneer but a painted finish to look like blonde wood. So after a light sanding to get rid of the wear, it looked...well...not so good. So I painted it a pretty minty-ish, turquoise-y green. LOVE IT!!

Next.....
This little square table had a beautiful inlayed lattice design that was under a dark stain and pretty worn out so you couldn't really make out the pattern. The legs are way too provincial for my taste and I almost replaced them but was talked out of it. So I decided it needed a contrasting color to give it some life. This piece took hours of sanding, varnishing and repainting, but I'm really happy with how it turned out.

Random Updates and Activities

The holiday's were great....parties, family fun and a few more parties,....and then a new year began.
Time to focus on work again....deadlines begin to creep closer, a few friends worry about my whereabouts while I hibernate, and then...... I got an email from Erica at "I am Beyond Rubies" wondering why I haven't blogged. Thank you so much Erica...it feels good to know I'm missed here :)

So this is what I've been up to. (just in case you were wondering as well). Lots of work and of course plenty of play. Still haven't found a perfect balance of the two but I don't know if that's even possible. All I can say is that so far... this year has been so much FUN!

A licensing project for Round Tree Visuals I've working on since last summer has just been installed at Orange County Children's Hospital.

Just finished and turned in my street banner for this years Arts Alive project.

....and then for fun

Hanging out with my silly nephews.

Then I saw this Dad...? huh?

really?...I don't care how comfortable that stroller is....seriously dude!?
I had no choice but to take your picture and I think you knew what I was up to cause you got out right after. (say cheeeese!)

and then I went to a few "Barn Parties" at my friends amazing barn down the street.
The first one was going to be a disco party but then changed to a regular gig. I thought it would be fun to go in costume anyway

....which was hysterical! Here I am posing proudly in my blonde afro.

..and then they had a western themed birthday party! I'm a sucker for any costume party, can you tell?

Yesturday, we had extreme low tides, so the family gathered at Seaside to check out the tide pools. My sister and I found some beautiful Starfish(sea stars) That's my sister on the left, me in the hat.

....then family members started to gather around. Brother-in-law Zuri holding Healey and Ethan in his red hoodie. not pictured..Catharine, Lara and Cruz

So as you can see, there has yet to be a dull moment around here and that's how I like it. Hope you all are finding some time to enjoy your friends and family too. ;) Karin

Corners of my house

Everywhere you look....a bit of Christmas cheer has taken over. Here is just a glimpse.

I could take pictures like this all day,........oh wait, I did. Here's some more. :)

THE END.

More catching up.

My Artist market was not only successful but a whole lot of fun. A big "thank you" to all the artists that joined me this year.
Here are a few pictures I took before it started. Lots of art and vintage finds mixed together just the way I like it.

And.....if you're by the Pannikin, you can check out my latest before and after piece. The owner wanted something industrial to display her robot christmas display.
I took an old workbench, gave it a fresh coat of metal paint, added some locking casters with mahogany wood supports, and built the shelf and top with reclaimed wood I had. Definitely took a lot longer than I thought it would, but luckily, it was finished just in time.
Would make a great worktable or kitchen island/bar don't you think? I'm kind of hoping it makes it's way back home to me.

Before and After

As promised, here's one of my favorite before and after projects I finished recently. Oh, and don't worry, this is just the beginning. I have plenty more to share, just want to spread it out...you know...to keep you coming back for more.:)

I spied this super giant 6 drawer piece sitting on the side of the road with a free sign on it. I drove by it twice while doing errands thinking it was just waaaay too big and I didn't have the room in my studio to even work on it. By three o'clock that day, it started to haunt me...so I went back for a closer look. It was a super solid piece. The drawers opened and closed on smooth glides. The drawers were so big I could store plenty of fabric and supplies in them. So I called my husband and he helped me haul it home.
It was primed inside and out, the top was sanded down to raw wood and stained a dark walnut and waxed. Then the rest got a fresh coat of white paint, added caster wheels to the base, and ordered all new hardware. The sides weren't the prettiest so I'm in the process of covering them with used paint sticks. (that idea was inspired by my artist friend John Finkbiner who uses his old paint sticks on frames and art pieces. Genius!!!)