Only a Bill on Capitol Hill.

Anyone else been keeping up with all the action the profession of Interior Design is gettin down in that peninsula state of Florida? Well they've been hit hard by people who just don't get it. Not understanding a profession is one thing but ignorance by choice and arrogance is a ridiculous game for grown adults to be playing.

House passed a bill called "Deregulation of Professions and Occupations" or House Bill 5005 and ASID members of Florida and many other states have been fighting tooth and neck to ensure this bill did NOT pass Senate. With interior design being one of the professions to be deregulated in the state of Florida, they assumed this would be beneficial...giving more people a chance to explore the world of design and make that leap from merely a decorator to a designer without laws and restrictions.

Pssshtt. What this would really do is actually detrimental and had it passed, could have affected the careers of designers in many more states. Regulation allows designers to practice commercial design and work on projects with building codes, LEED potential and really get their hands on some of those big markets in hospitality, health, education facilities and other spaces. These designers able to practice are licensed professionals who have worked hard, taken exams and achieved and maintained this status themselves, meaning no one should be able to take it away from them.

Last Friday, the bill for deregulation in Florida was defeated by an incredible 32-6 Senate vote. While this is a celebrated victory, that does not mean the profession won't continue to be a target for those wishing to simplify professions they may simply not understand.

Just because I don't understand medicine, does not mean I plan to take your MD away. Licensing is a great honor and show of commitment to a field that these people are passionate about. Hopeful to become a licensed designer and even a LEED AP myself, I plan to support the continued efforts to push away opposition and encourage understanding of the importance of regulation. The profession of Interior Design depends on it.

Get BLEEPin.

Yes. Our 3rd issue of BLEEP was just released as the clock struck midnight into this first day of May. This May/June issue is chalk full of EVERYTHING.

From food reviews and suggestions...

to a Travel feature on the places you won't wanna miss out on...
to my own behind the scenes take on the design masters of Mardi Gras...
to interviews with professionals in the theater and performance careers, incredible photography and graphic editing features and even a photo essay of readers' cell-phone-captured moments...

if there isn't something to get your creative and cultural juices flowing...well then something's wrong with your juices...OR...you need to become a contributor and have your own work seen in the next BLEEPmag!

Seriously. Get BLEEPin.

Atchafellatcha...

While on my most recent trip to New Orleans (yes. my family is obsessed with this city therefore I do blog about it a lot), we found this incredible restaurant. A true taste of New Orleans, Atchafalaya offers incredible Cajun food with both indoor and street side dining in its quaint uptown location.

With flawless weather and incredible eats out on the patio, this bistro had our family lovin every minute. But the real treat came when I went inside. Once a house, the floorplan had been converted into a bar area and several different dining rooms throughout.

The house and it's many spaces were not the only thing re-purposed though. From the hostess station and bar, you are greeted with a by a well of windows. Taken by the impressiveness of both the artistry and space planning functionality of the windows, I asked our waitress about them and she referred me to the owner.

He told me how the windows were all reclaimed from houses affected by Katrina. The windows create a work of art symbolizing new life and renewed hope. Beyond this window wall, at the end of the dining room, is seen a tree. Carved into a wall of wood, this tree has awkward limbs and dismembered branches but is looked upon with beauty in an effort to represent hope for those affected by this disaster.

A good design is one thing. Upcycling, reusing, repurposing, creating beautiful things out of nothing. That's all part of being a good, thoughtful, creative designer. But designing with a story. That is a whole other game. That is something I will forever strive to be. A designer seeking her story in each space. In each project. Always reflecting others and overflowing a hopeful joy into each and every client, in the hopes of affecting them with my designs.

Sappy designer dreams aside, I also am brought great joy by my dad's continuous inability to say "Atchafalaya"....his closest so far has been "Atchafellatcha"... Always good for a laugh, that dad.

Painting My Life Away...the Recap.

Finally, the pictures have been sifted through and edited and I am ready to share with you my art work from SING 2011! To learn more about this check out my post, Whoda Thunk, where I talked about getting this awesome opportunity to work with so many people and groups at my own home, Baylor University!

From sketches to CAD (computer aided drafting) work to renderings to painting these monstrosities, it is quite the experience and is all worth it when you finally see the group perform. From costumes to choreography to singing to props, my backdrops were just one supporting actor in the grand scheme but it still feels great to continue to be a part of it!

Here's some recap!Starting with some rough sketches, the group tells me what they like and I take it to AutoCAD to ensure accuracy in perspective and proportion...

Next is the full color rendered drawing. This is done on an 11x17" bristol and drawn to a scale of 1/2"=2 feet on the actual backdrop! Crazy!
This particular one ended up with some seriously longgg days (most of them did but this one had a couple exceptionally long and in closed quarters with high chemical concentrated paint...) These finished backdrops are about 26 feet tall and 56 feet long! Whew.
__________________

This group had some troubles too when the warehouse we were using was attacked by a monsoon! What a mess when half of a nearly finished backdrop gets soaked...like watching paint dry...oh wait...__________________

As the last group I worked with, I faced the least difficulty with this one! Simple, bright, and fun, I was able to finish in a shorter period than with any other!___________________

I set myself up for stress with this design...lines lines LINES everywhere. By the end, the boys were even saying "Ohp. Lisa's got her ruler again...watch out"...but I conquered. I did.__________________

This was the first backdrop I completed early on in the process and I actually painted this one in a BACKYARD! Have to admit I missed the grass when it came to my poor knees on unending concrete...but I did not miss the freezing cold and the outdoor weather uncertainty! Survived!___________________

I began work with this group late in the overall SING process so they had already done a design of sorts. I ended up redrawing it to my preferred scale before painting but haven't gone back to render it yet. These guys REALLY challenged me with wanting the stands to be filled with audience members and when I proposed black and white to add to the 1920's nitty gritt of their act, they said "we trust you"! Scary words!...in the end I did it and was very pleased with the results on both the frontdrop and the backdrop!



Hopefully this fun adventure will add some interest to my portfolio and it has already opened up doors in the painting world as I just completed some commissioned art work for a nursery!
Doors keep a openin and I'll keep a creatin!

All the Buzz.

If you look at my very first blog post you will see that I went downtown to get my DBA (Doing Business As) at the courthouse. That day, I went to get the rights in Bexar County to The LID while my friend, Lyndi, got her DBA, Sew Bee It! Lyndi sews aprons of all kinds and they are flawless, fun, and each unique! Yea okay, so today is a plug for my friend but this girl is amazing and has incredible sewing talents!

Last week, I got to help Lyndi set up her brand new booth in a San Antonio local handcraft mart, Homestead Handcraft. Looking around at the hodgepodge of various booths, each individually owned, each selling their own goods...some good goods...some not so good goods, I wondered how she intended to transform this 2 foot by 4 foot space to get her aprons sold! But she brought the goods and we got it together!

Here's what the booth looked like before with the previous tenant...not so cute...

It was tough work to get striated fabric to lay straight and attach to peg board!...
Good thing Lyndi is tall and not afraid of heights! This took some strategy...The beautiful handpainted window sign and all the fabric finally up. We used an ice pic to place and punch through the clothing hanger bars...
The finished space! Aprons aprons everywhere! And no two alike! And dont forget, the mannequin, Kate...she's fancy.All her aprons are reversible, hand sewn and come in a wide range of colors. Being a perfectionist like me, I know her work is GREAT! So stop by her booth at Homestead Handcrafts or send Lyndi an email with your inquiries at LBrewer10@gmail.com.
And like Sew Bee It on Facebook here!

Mardi Gras Highlights.

Welp. I have returned from celebrating a little Mardi Gras action in New Orleans. While I was not there for the actual Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday in English, I did get in on the celebrating, parading, costuming and general merriment that is the city of New Orleans...

Rather than gather all my thoughts at this very moment, I will simply leave you with some highlight images from the weekend. I. Love. This. City.

My sister lives in a perfectly located shot-gun style home, oozing with charisma and that amazing New Orleans feel...oh and Jack, the pup.

This lil Hacienda was on a street with wonderfully colored shot-gun houses parading down the block. This particular one has a lil Hispanic/Texan flair...puts me right at home...

I like color and artistic flair in almost every other aspect of my life...why not your car too, I guess?

This building looks like a painting. Looking to be worn from the start and screams New Orleans to me.

We toured Mardi Gras World where the Blaine Kern Studios make the magic of the 54 annual parades happen! From design to carpentry to artists to "krewes" of riders and bead throwers. We saw so many floats queued up and ready for their debut and saw them parading the NEXT day!

An artist hard at work painting a prop for a float to parade in the next couple days! Most of these artists simply answered adds in newspapers to get where they are. So. Awesome.

The seemingly empty artist's studio that I claimed as my own for when I get a fun new job as a float designer and artist. Clearly.

Dressed (in hats and face paint by yours-truly) and ready for a night out to celebrate this fun tradition and city!

Look forward to more fun details on the amazing artistry behind Mardi Gras in the next issue of BLEEP Magazine!

Bigger. Better. BLEEPier.

It's March. And that means BLEEPmag has dropped its 2nd issue! The first issue was a great success and you can still check it out here! The March/April issue is jam-packed with even more exciting things!

Food critiques, jumping out of planes, the latest on lighting, performers doing what they love, inspiring photo essays, men on fashion, Oscar recaps and more...the cover itself should be enticing enough!

Hop on over and take a look at the free digital magazine, BLEEP magazine. And don't forget you can always get involved, yourself, if ya think you've got something to say!

^click here^

Don't forget to like BLEEPmag on facebook and follow on twitter!