Balzer Designs

Around Here: September 2019

Hello, friends!  Here's a little bit about life right now:

What are you wearing?

I have been spelunking through my closet to figure out which clothes will work for my new body.  Thank goodness I've always like empire waist dresses!

This dress is an oldie from Asos Curve.

What have you bought?

Lighting!  This month we bought an antique chandelier and sconce for our front hall, along with some antique shades.

Choosing shades for the lights was really interesting.  First, you're limited by the number of available shades.  For instance, our chandelier requires 5 shades.  Finding 5 matching antique glass chandeliers is not super easy.  Then, you have to think about what actually matches the fixture and enhances it -- doesn't detract from it or clash with it.  Personally, I think we made great choices and I can't wait to see them hanging in our new house!

What are you reading?

Last week, I attended a fascinating conversation between author and economist Emily Oster and Jessica Grose, Lead Editor of the New York Times Parenting section.  They gave each of us a copy of Emily's most recent book, Cribsheet.

I have just started to read it and I'm enjoying it quite a bit.

Current art crush?

I follow a woman named Erika Lee Sears (erikaleesears) on instagram.  She makes and posts a small oil painting on paper every single day.

There is so much that I love about her work!  I love the wonky style.  I love how she makes every day objects look so fantastic.  I love how you captures the light.  I love her dedication to creating every single day!  I find her work enormously inspiring and I love finding it in my feed every day. 

So, there you have it!  That's the scoop on life around here at the moment. 

Thanks for stopping by!

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P.S. This month's livestream for YouTube channel members is TOMORROW (Saturday) September 28 at 5:30pm EST.  If you're not a member already, it's easy to join and just costs $4.99/month.

Around Here: August 2019

Hello, friends!  Here's a little bit about life right now:

What are you wearing?

When I'm not wearing a dress, my uniform is: maternity jeans, tank top, cute coat or top over it, and sandals:

Most of my maternity clothes have come from Kohl's.  They're one of the few stores that carry maternity clothes in plus sizes (up to size 18) in the store -- so you can actually try stuff on!  The coat is from my favorite clothing store in the world.  It's called W.O.W. and they carry artist-made clothing in sizes extra small through 3X -- so you can shop with anyone of any size!  I love that!

What have you bought?

On tax free weekend, we bought all of our towel bars and hooks and toilet paper holders -- you know, the glamorous stuff in life!

I wish that Home Depot gave out a frequent shopper card, like a coffee card.  I feel like we go there twice a week to grab something....

What are you reading?

I just finished two books by the same author: Luck, Love, and Lemon Pie and The Simplicity of Cider by Amy E. Reichert.

I had previously read her book The Coincidence of Coconut Cake and loooooved it.

I found Luck, Love & Lemon Pie a bit depressing.  It's about a marriage falling apart, so not a joy to read.  I enjoyed The Simplicity of Cider a bit more, but found the protagonist extremely frustrating.  Nonetheless, this is a trio of easy-to-read and well written romantic novels.  Good beach reading.

Current art crush?

Arianna Caggiano aka quiltkween.  She makes ultra cool modern quilts and I just adore them!  Take a peek:

I swoon over her clean design and superb color sense.  The variety she finds in triangles, squares, and lines is so inspiring to me!

So, there you have it!  That's the scoop on life around here at the moment. 

Thanks for stopping by!

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P.S. This week's livestream for YouTube channel members is TONIGHT (Thursday) August 29 at 5pm EST.  If you're not a member already, it's easy to join and just costs $4.99/month.

Around Here: July 2019

Hello, friends!  Here's a little bit about life right now:

What are you wearing?

Dresses!! It has been in the 90s+ around here and so I have been looooving dresses.

What have you bought?

This has not been a big shopping month.  We are trying to save our money for the house and the baby.  Most of what I've bought is food...

Man, I love food! This is breakfast at Cafe Landwer.

What are you reading?

I finished "Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows" at the beginning of the month and it has stayed with me.

I bought it in an airport book store because the title was so compelling.  It was really well written.

And speaking of reading, I also shared my kindle confession on instagram last week:

Current art crush?

Polina Oshu or oshupatterns on instagram.

I love this video because I was shocked by the scale of the books:

I love this video because I had always assumed these patterns were made with paint (wrong!):

Aren't these fabulous?!  Her work makes me want to grab a little notebook and make patterns!  I love following artists who inspire me to be creative, don't you?

So, there you have it!  That's the scoop on life around here at the moment. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Around Here: June 2019

Hello, friends!  Here's a little bit about life right now:

What are you wearing?

Maternity Jeans.

I have reached the point where my pants no longer fit.

What have you bought?

An antique lighting fixture for the living room in our new home.

Our house was built in 1890 and this fixture is from 1910.  So, not exactly the same, but close enough.

What are you reading?

"This is Marketing" by Seth Godin.  Meh.  After reading "Building a Story Brand," I wanted more!  So, I decided to try some other marketing books.  This one is such a disappointment after Story Brand.  I've reached the point where I'm debating not finishing the book.  Gasp!  I've carried it with me on several trips and keep making excuses not to keep reading it...probably a sign.

Current art crush?

Renee of flygurl_designs.

I swoon over her masterful patterns and the gorgeous color combinations she chooses for printing.  Every day is a delight!

So, there you have it!  That's the scoop on life around here at the moment.  If you'd like more behind-the-scenes real life fun, Steve and I sat down to chat about our baby and what the journey has been and might be going forward:

ALSO: The hour-long livestream for YouTube channel members will be on Saturday, June 29 at 3pm EST.  Some of the topics I will be covering include: drawing faces, bookbinding, creating paper cuts, and more!  Becoming a YouTube Channel member costs just $4.99/month.

Thanks for stopping by!

Around Here: May 2019

Hello, friends!  Here's a little bit about life right now:

What are you wearing?

This Marimekko mumu dress.  It has pockets and I love swishing around in it!

What have you bought?

I bought this dress from Amazon:

My original plan was to paint it for the MFA Summer Party, but I like it so much I'm wondering if I should just leave it alone?  

What are you reading?

I recently finished How to be Good by Nick Hornby and was very disappointed.  He's a good writer, but it was such a deeply depressing take on the world that I found myself quite unhappy every time I picked up the book. Anyone else read this one?

Current art crush?

Rainbow Village and Rainbow Grandpa who painted every single building in the village.

It reminds me a bit of some of Yayoi Kusama's intensely patterned paintings.

So, there you have it!  That's the scoop on life around here at the moment.  If you'd like more behind-the-scenes real life fun, here is the most recent vlog (and the last for a few months -- I'm taking a break for personal reasons):

Thanks for stopping by!