DIY: Decorate Your Classroom on a Budget!

 I love a good ole fashioned DIY...don't you? A week ago, I hit Goodwill and went COMPLETELY NUTS. I purchased a whole bunch of things that I just knew I could reinvent, rainbow-ize and breathe new life into. And here they are! I'm sharing super quick DIYs on each of these here today...as well as some of my favorite Goodwill finds that I wanna encourage you to keep an eye out for! 

But first, let's take a look at the BEFORE...

 Need a little DIY-inspo? How about a good ole fashioned time lapse? Here you go:

Painting things rainbow-y is just about the easiest thing. I now have my rainbow peace sign hanging in a formerly blank spot and my cork board hanging on my door with my schedule pinned to it!

Now let's see if that I can keep up with my ID and my keys with that keyholder! Magic eight ball says "no." 

I did also scoop up some things that I can use around my room...these are things I always keep my eyes open for when I hit the thrift store. Here's a little shopping spree share:

I'm so excited to try out that Pictionary game! I've already been putting the grassy dryer thingie to work and loving it. Yay for good finds!

 Some days I walk right outta Goodwill empty handed...and then other days I walk out with my arms filled with brand new and adorable Quiet Critters! 

I MAY have gone a little overboard...but you know what, it was so stinkin' cheap and stuff that I am loving for my students and my art room. 

Things I always look for: funky clothing, stamps, clay tools, stuffies that are cute (or rainbow-y!), games for my early finishers, PENCIL SHARPENERS!, those bottle drying things which are perfect for paint cups!

LOVING my new wallhanging! Peace, people!

I have now found three of these workhorse of a pencil sharpener. I had one as a high schooler (usually made by Panasonic) and, lemme just tell you, they have outlasted all of my pencil sharpeners bought recently. When you spot these faux wood finished beauties, GET YOU ONE. You will be thrilled with how they sharpen everything, including color pencils!

You know any chance I can get to do a DIY and further decorate my art room, I'm gonna take it. It makes me happy, scratches that creative itch of mine and makes my art room an even more colorful place. Thanks for letting me share!

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What the Art Teacher Wore #65: School's Out!

Field Day Monday: Hence the ugly but functional footwear. The kids had an awesome time running off their final-days-of-school steam. Meanwhile the teachers, armed with squirt bottles, managed to soak anyone within their squirting range. Being unarmed, I got drenched. dress: vintage, altered by me in this Vintage 911 post; belt: Pin Up Girl Clothing; shoes: Crocs

Important Correction: I mistakenly labeled a couple of photos on this post as Lucienne Day. They are in fact photos of the lovely Hannah Asprey! Doesn't she look just like Lucienne? You can see more of Hannah's photos from 2011 of the Robin and Lucienne Day Exhibition here. Thank you, Hannah, for your kind correction!

What you're lookin' at here is someone who doesn't have to go to work for the next two months. Das right, it's my summer vacation! I'm still trying to wrap my brain around it as it seems this break just sneaked up on me. One minute I'm frantically preparing things for the art show and the next, BAM!, it's all over. Not that I'm complaining. I'm ready for some breakage.

 I dunno if you've noticed but I've not shared a real What I Wore post for the last couple of weeks. In the midst of all the end-of-the-school-year craziness, I've not had the time to snap photos or even research artists. When I discovered the fabric designer Lucienne Day I just knew I had to share her work with you. I am in love.

Until next time, I hope you have a fantastic Memorial Day (all of my US friends) and a lovely week. I'll be back soon with another neglected blog series: my DIY! Later.

Textile designer Désirée Lucienne Day with her furniture designer husband Robin Ray. So, am I the last person on the planet to discover the work of this amazing fabric designer? Lucienne Day, who lived a long life from 1917 to 2010, brought bright and optimistic abstract patterns to a sad and broken post-war England. Her fabric was used mostly for the home, particularly her husbands furniture creations. Image from here.

 

 Lucienne Day was inspired by such artists as...can you guess? Miro, definitely. Maybe some Kandinsky? A pinch of Picasso? When asked why she didn't become a painter, she said she was "very interested in modern painting although I didn’t want to be a painter. I put my inspiration from painting into my textiles, partly, because I suppose I was very practical. I still am. I wanted the work I was doing to be seen by people and be used by people. They had been starved of interesting things for their homes in the war years, either textiles or furniture." Images from here and here.

Final Countdown Tuesday: It's so weird at the end of the school year. The kids are beyond ready to be out for the summer. Because my art room was still cleared out for the art show, I just set up art centers around the room for the kids to dabble in. Origami and free draw with my collection of How to Draw books is always a hit. dress and necklaces: thrifted; jacket: Modcloth, old; shoes: Frye, TJMaxx, old

Lucienne Day's stunt double Hannah Asprey of Asprey Vintage Design. Image found here.

 When I grow up and buy a vintage airstream trailer, I shall have the furnishings upholstered in this here fab fabric.

See Ya in the Fall! Wednesday: Saying goodbye to the kids this school year seemed especially hard. I'm gonna miss 'em!  sweater: Betsy Johnson, Buffalo Exchange; dress: Bernie Dexter, ebay; shoes: Target, last summer

Lucienne's fabric, her husband's furniture. These two were like the British answer to Charles and Ray Eames. Love the chair, I'll take two.

Hannah at the 2011 Robin and Lucienne Day exhibition. After doing a little digging, I found that getting your hands on this fabric is pretty tough. There's a website out of the UK that has reproductions of her fabric...for 75 euro a meter. A quick search of etsy found similarly high prices and slim selection. I wish some innovative fabric design team would reproduce an affordable cotton of her work.

Favorite Dress Thursday: If I'm gonna be in a powerpoint-induced too-many-meetings coma, I might as well do it in my new favorite summer dress. That's right, the kids got out on Wednesday but we had to finish off the week with professional development. Which was more like arrested development with our fried brains. sweater: Anthro; dress: vintage, Buffalo Exchange (where I snagged it for a mere 11 smacks!); brooch: vintage, St. Louis; shoes: BC Footwear 

 So Lucienne and her husband Robin were like this magical design couple. In the 1950's their home was considered the height of sophistication. And look, after a day of working together, they're still smiling! If this were a picture of my husband and I after a day's work, the captions would say something like, "I'm going to use this fabric to smother you in your sleep." "Oh, yeah? Well, I've already spiked your coffee with rat poison. Love ya!" Image here.

School's Out for the Summer! Friday: Which makes me feel like dancin'. Even though my dancin' skillz are embarrassing. dress: vintage, Wasteland; shoes: Frye

When not on the road, my airstream trailer will be parked outside of my atomic ranch which you can see a sneak peak of in the above photo. Image here.

 Oh, Lucienne. I'm off in search of your textile terrificness. Image here.

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In the Art Room: The Masterpiece Gallery

Welcome to the Masterpiece Gallery where every work of art created by small hands is tres magnifique.

 If you are a teacher for more than 10 minutes, you are going to be the recipient of many a gift. My personal faves? Well, aside from the Body Fantasies Body Wash I received my first year teaching (awkward), I'd have to say the handmade gifties. Just recently one of my students gifted me a wonderful woven basket she had created over the summer. I also scored this beautiful bouquet of gingko leaves collected by a student who remembered they were my favorite during our leaf printing last year.

This window looks into my office which is an eyesore, to say the least. I painted it (almost 10 years ago!) with the same thing I painted my other windows with: Window Chalk. I love this vibrant paint.

 The gifts I most often receive are drawings. The wee artists will bring them rolled up; folded and pulled from their pocket; flattened in a "special" zip lock bag. Students present these drawings in front of the class where we recognize them with a round of applause.

At first, I pinned their drawings to a bulletin board. Over time, this overcrowded spot became an eyesore in the classroom. And I didn't want their hard work to be showcased that way.

So I decided to create this little gallery to spotlight their independent work. Several years ago, a local frame shop went out of business and I was the recipient of many a frame. Over the years, I've picked up more at Goodwill and garage sales. Each frame is backed with a layer of cardboard and a jersey fabric in the primary colors. This surface is perfect for pinning and repinning little masterpieces.

Interested in creating your own Masterpiece Gallery? Well, it's very simple. Here's what you'll need:

• Cheapo picture frames. I like mine metallic, so I usually spray paint them gold or silver.
• Cardboard or foamcore. You'll notice I recycle my cardboard. Nothin' fancy here.
• Thin sheets of cork. This is optional. When I first created these, I sandwiched a layer of cork between the jersey and the fabric. Turns out the cardboard works just as well for pinning and repinning.
• Fabric. I used a jersey because it's what I had on hand. 
• Glue gun.
• Picture frame hangers. This will depend on the type of frame you pick up at your local thrift. It may already have a hanging device on the back.

Let's start with the frames. Remove the glass, artwork and backing if you purchased a frame that was not empty. I keep the glass, tape the edges and use them for palettes at home. Depending on the artwork that came in the frame, I'll either keep it or toss it. In the case of the above artwork on the right, I was able to use that as the backing for the frame. Cut cardboard or foamcore and cork (if you are using it) to the same size as the frame backing. Cover the front in fabric and hot glue to the back.

Place inside the frame. To secure, look at your frame. It might already have a way for you to secure the backing. If you look at the above frame on the left, I simply had to push the metal staples down. For the frame on the right, I just screwed the original backing into place. For the one in the middle, I hammered nails at an angle to secure the backing. 

The same goes for the hanging device. You can see the frame on the left has a mount already attached. For the one in the middle, I purchased hanging wire and stapled it into place with my electric stapler (best invention every, btw). Do you see the bits of foam I tacked to the corners? That's to hold the double sided tape. This prevents the frames from getting bumped and becoming an uneven mess on the wall.

I have found these little hangers to be the best for my concrete walls. Picked them up at the local hardware. Ask for concrete/brick picture hangers.

The ever-changing, always-inspiring Masterpiece Gallery.

You might recognize this area as where we play The Smartest Artist from this post.

Our little gallery is located in this odd corner I have in my room where the kids line up to exit. It's the perfect spot for them to see their classmates work and become inspired to create something of their own. And isn't that what a gallery is all about?

What ways have you found to display artwork?  I'd love to hear your ideas!

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