So far, most of my blog has been all art oriented, which is a huge part of my life, but I would also like to start sharing other aspects of my lifestyle.  Sharing what I do for fun and health, and I love fashion, particularly high heels :)  I think it will be fun to get a closer peak into my life and see how I incorporate my creative side into all aspects of my life.

Art absorbs at least half of my waking hours, sometimes all of them!!  We recently moved into a new home that needs to be completely remodeled and I ended up with a fabulous space for my studio, with it's own full bath and walk-in closet, although we are currently using the closet to store our clothes...and my shoes, while our other closet is being rebuilt.  Here is a sneak peek of what I'm doing with my studio, more photos and video's to come to show you my "Happy Place".

Since I do spend such a large portion of my time in the studio I'm usually in a pair of shorts or sweats with a t-shirt, and a sweater nearby.  Not very glamorous or fashionable!  But, whenever my husband and I go out to eat, to the movies, with friends, etc. it's my chance to dress up a little.  I tend to lean towards a chic, classy style with button up shirts (obsessed with the Express Portofino shirts), white jeans, blue jeans and a few accent pieces of jewelry, or on a rare occasion I will even wear a dress/skirt and even have this cute polka dot romper hanging in my closet.  Since I live in Florida, the summer's require mixing it up a bit with shorts or capri's, tank tops and sandals.   But, my one go to is pretty much to always wear heels, with sandals as a quick go to if not feeling to dressy.  There is nothing like a pair of heels to instantly dress up an outfit, even the simplest tees and jeans, and I actually prefer to walk in heels, it's more comfortable for me, I have a very tall arch.  I will be taking more fashion photos, and posting on this blog and Instagram.  I felt inspired to add the fashion aspect to this blog and social media after taking photos of my daughter Aroon Melane for her fabulous fashion blog!  It's so much fun, it's like playing dress up, takes me back to my childhood :)

A natural extension of being an artist for me is I LOVE interior design!  And with this new home that has almost 4,000 square feet of living, four bedrooms, five and a half baths, all of which need to be completely redone, I have so much opportunity to really delve into it.  I've been creating mood boards to inspire me, and you, to follow our creative paths within our homes, and I will be doing more of those and sharing the design process as our new home comes to life.  Here is a before photo of the house, it needs an insane amount of work inside and out!  Basically every inch of the house and property have to be cosmetically redone, but nothing my husband and I aren't used to, I was a 

Mood Boards for inspiration, click on images to see where to purchase all the products shown.

I LOVE to travel!  There are just so many amazing and natural man made places to see in this world, that a whole lifetime could never see them all.  But, I hope to spend a little more time traveling in the next few years and take in as much as I can.  One of the places I regularly visit, and never gets old, is my home state Alaska.  We have a cabin in the remote Alaskan fishing village where I grew up and I visit several times a year.  I will be heading up there soon to get out of this crazy Florida heat and humidity!!  I will sharing photos and stories of my adventures, and hope you enjoy and are inspired to create your own travel adventures.

And finally I will be sharing my journey on being as healthy as I possibly can!  Without our health everything else in life becomes unimportant and difficult to enjoy.  I've struggled with a low immune system most of my life, so I try to be as healthy as I possibly can, through food, exercise, minimizing stress, etc.  Several years ago I had some major health problems, since been fixed, and shortly after that I broke my foot in three places mountain biking, still out on the trails, I didn't let some broken bones stop me, and had to have two surgeries.  It was a frustrating period of my life that really made me be thankful for when I am healthy.  I gained about 25 pounds and it's been a difficult process losing that weight, but this year I am making a truly concerted effort to get back down to my most comfortable weight.  So far I've lost 11 pounds!!  I will be sharing more about my healthy habits, recipes, exercise, etc. and hope it will motivate all of you to be the healthiest YOU!!

In addition to my "Morning Art Challenge" paintings, which I have been slacking on I know, I am also going to be including some "Sketch Style" paintings too.  These are going to be single icon elements with a simple sketch feel to them, they will be painted in acrylics in a looser style with sketched out lines.  

I've decided to do these paintings and offer them for sale, one reason is for me to exercise my creativity and hone my painting skills with quick little works of art, and the other is to offer them as a collection of paintings that compliment each other, as well as compliment larger works of art as accent pieces.  They will look fabulous with other similar icon element paintings and also set up on a gallery wall setting with full color paintings.  Here are some of the completed paintings available, click on any image to see more details and purchase.

My newest mood board "Tropical Persuasion" is all about putting out a summery, coastal vibe, featuring the ever popular seahorse and on trend pineapple and flamingos.  The color scheme of soft aqua and shades of pink add to the coastal mood and will compliment any home decor design incorporating a beachy, summery theme.

There are so many different products to choose from with these designs, from shower curtains and duvets to phone cases and rugs, there is something for everyone to enjoy with these fun, colorful MADART Designs!  Visit Deny Designs to see all of the products shown below and much more.