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a new standard of measurement

It’s that time of year where we get our planners out and start to fill the pages with the goals and dreams and to-dos for next year. And, as I’ve been pondering my own 2019 and all of the promise it holds, I’ve been thinking about the push for more that is so prevalent in our society and more specifically in the online creative community. There is this trend, this idea that is being perpetuated in this world of “girl bosses” – that you have to have big dreams and you were not “made to be small” or live a small life. And, I have to admit that it all sounds good. But, there is something that doesn’t sit quite right with me… Who defines small? Small is relative. A mouse is small compared to an elephant, but it’s enormous compared to a flea. Something can really only be defined

December 11, 2018 219 Comments

All Things Home

The Mercantile in Knightdale

I spent Thanksgiving in Raleigh, NC, visiting Jeff’s family. The days were mostly filled with relaxing and visiting, but I did take advantage of my close proximity to one of my MMS Milk Paint retailers (In Sweet Time at The Mercantile in Knightdale, NC) and I spent an evening teaching a milk paint demo and signing books. The evening itself was so special. You know how magical it is when you get to spend time with creative kindred spirits? It was all of that and more. The demo turned into a full sit-down workshop (with several people from the “audience” participating in painting and finishing the piece) and a discussion about creative small business, blogging, and social media. I got to meet so many delightful people, some who dropped Thanksgiving preparations and others who drove several hours to be there. And I had the treat of touring the beautifully curated a

November 27, 2018 20 Comments

Furniture Makeovers

Instagram Q & A | Milk Paint Line

As I shared last week, I invited followers to ask questions on my Instagram Stories and I received so many questions that I decided to sort them into categories and answer them in blog posts. In the last Insta Q&A post, I answered home-related questions. You can find that post HERE. I was asked a lot of posts about my business and creative business in general, so I decided to pick out the milk paint related questions, so that post wouldn’t be a novella. This post on its own is pretty lengthy! How did you get started making paint? I’m so glad someone asked this question because it’s such a good story! I feel like I can say that because it’s an opportunity that unfolded for me. I was a participant and a character, but not the author. I merely took a step forward each time there was room in front

October 29, 2018 22 Comments

a slice of life

Back to School Week!

Well, the day has finally arrived and I just sent the boys off to school. When I started my blog, both of my boys were in diapers and now they are started 5th and 6th grade. It is crazy how time flies, but I am enjoying their current age. I never was much of a “baby person”, so the younger years were more of a struggle for me. I’m loving watching their personalities and sense of humor bloom as they grow. But, I also love that I’m sitting in a quiet house right now! Since it’s only half a week, I don’t have any grand plans, but I will work on deep cleaning the house, finishing up some small projects (like painting the door trim in the laundry room), and start to get myself focused and organized for fall. I have design projects lined up, freelance work (for magazines and

August 29, 2018 21 Comments

buying & selling antiques

A walk down Lucketts lane

This weekend is the Lucketts Spring Market and it’s the first time since 2010 that I am not there. Lucketts has been such a huge part of my business since the beginning, but it’s now over 1,000 miles away. It’s hard not being there, but I’ll admit that it’s nice to have a break from all of that physically taxing work and stress! I know that many who read my blog love watching the furniture makeovers and frenzy as we prepared for this event each year, so I thought I would share one big walk down memory lane, starting with my very first Lucketts event. Old Lucketts Fair 2009 (August, shared 10 x 10 space) This actually wasn’t the Lucketts Spring Market, but the Old Lucketts Fair, which is a craft event with some antique dealers held on the grounds of the old Lucketts Schoolhouse, across the street from the

May 18, 2018 37 Comments

Artistic Endeavors

rugs & quilts & other things dreams are made of

As my business has grown and hit milestones over the years, I’ve learned that things seem to come in waves. There will be a lull just before another swell. Right now is a swell. My first fabric line officially launched just a few weeks ago and in April we launched a new MMS Milk Paint color and I just got through the final approval stages of the two rugs I designed for Dash & Albert. Never thought I would string a sentence together like that. So, let’s start with the rugs. Here is the one I received a couple of weeks ago… It is still surreal seeing it in person. Even when I look at the picture, I have to remind myself that it isn’t a mock-up! This rug is beautiful. It has a thick, soft pile that feels so comfy underfoot. I think it works well with the pattern and

May 3, 2018 52 Comments

Artistic Endeavors

no-sew custom dinner napkins & fabric launch

After years of design work, coordinating, learning, waiting, and creating, my fabric line is finally going to be available for sale (find a store HERE), so this week kicks off the official launch of Bunnies, Birds & Blooms by Free Spirit Fabrics. I have partnered with some talented creators and Instagrammers to show off the fabrics. They are amazing quilters. I am not. They will be showing the super-fancy sewing projects. I’m going to show the super simple, no-sew project for my non-sewing, non-quilting readers. As I was thinking about a good, no-sew project, I was also working on a table setting for a photo shoot and I realized I had sold the majority of my colorful cloth napkins when we moved. I had a moment of inspiration. My fabrics would be perfect with my table setting and cloth napkins would be ridiculously simple to make. That’s the project I

April 2, 2018 41 Comments

a slice of life

the big three

When I worked in the corporate world (can you even imagine that?), I would keep a running to-do list on a legal pad. Each day, I would work through the list until it was “quitting time” and, whatever was left on the list would get transferred to a fresh piece of paper as the start of my to-do list for the next day. That method worked well when my job was over the minute I left the office to start my commute home. I was never nagged by what was undone. My work very rarely came home with me. Since I started my own business, I’ve used the same method of keeping a running to-do list. It seemed like a good business practice. Here’s the problem… my running to do list made me feel like there were never enough hours in the day and like my work day couldn’t end

March 20, 2018 42 Comments

I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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