All Hands on Deck.

Hello Everybody!

Hope your February has been good to you all. 

I'm actually pretty happy for it to be almost over, not that it was bad or anything, just not wanting to be in another Winter month. Bring on Spring!

Spring means all the friggen' snow melts and my birthday will be coming up...yay!

So far this semester has been nothin' but smooth sailing. Honestly.

I only have 3 actual classes and they're all over before 2 o'clock everyday. 

Jelly man?

Thought so. 

Although I'm a little bummed that I don't have an actual printmaking class this semester (don't think it would've been the same without Bob anyway) I am interning for the two temporary instructors, who drive from Oshkosh everyday which seems like a total pain in the butt. So thats where us interns come in. 

Here's what I've been making so far this semester:

Close up detail of the Right hand.

Getting there

This is a bronze casting of my face!

Obviously it's a little dirty yet from the mold and what not but its so neat!

Super heavy too. 

I can't wait to show you all what it looks like when its all polished and clean.

I still have to figure out what to do with it, but when I do, I will definitely be posting more pictures. 

I'm still only a couple of weeks into the semester but there is still lots of opportunity to make a lot of great things! 

I hope.

Hope the rest of your February treats you well!

 And remember:

I also need to remember this one from time to time.

xoxo

My letter to thirteen-year-old Myia

Hello Everybody!

I've been thinking about somethings for the past few days now like about how things I've done in my past have affected who I am today.

I know, just about everybody thinks this way.

And I'm trying not to.

If I could go back in time, I'd tell myself to act a certain way or treat someone better or worse than I had, and I probably wouldn't be exactly who I am now, but who knows if it could possibly be for better or worse. 

(That's the point Myia, get on with it)

So, since I can't do that, this message is a reminder for my future children, my niece, my cousins' children and whatever other young people I encounter in my life, that need a reminder as they ascend into their early teens. 

This is the time of my life that I remember being the most crucial (cue teen angst).

                             

                                        -I wasn't sure what the hell I was doing.
                                        -I made a lot of dumb mistakes.
                                        -And clearly I got over them all.
                                        -And you will too.  <--- MOST IMPORTANT

          

^

             Dear thirteen-year-old Myia,

        At this point in your life, you probably think that having a boyfriend is the most important thing to have. Well, sorry to be General Buzzkillington but, it's not. To be honest, the most important thing is to actually get the grades you know you deserve and to focus on the things you most enjoy in life, like your art, or other passions. I know you don't think you are, but you definitely are much smarter than you give yourself credit for. Act like it. 

        Don't try to act like somebody you aren't. It actually makes you less likable as a person.

        You're going to get REALLY bad highlights and think that it doesn't look so bad, but it totally does. 

        Don't have Mom buy you stupid expensive clothes that everybody else has, they don't matter, it doesn't make you more likable as a person. Totally pointless. And for the love of God, don't wear pajama pants to school. Also, nobody cares if you're wearing skateboarding shoes, you don't know how to skateboard so stop it. But, trust me, you'll get a decent style that works for you. Eventually.

        Be nice to people. More than that, be nice to everyone. Even if they don't deserve it.

        Junior High, or Middle School, or whatever they're calling it now, isn't a proper reflection upon how high school will go, or college for that fact. It's kind of a joke, but you still have to go through it like everyone else. Just make it less painful with the right attitude. 

        What you do in the privacy of your own room doesn't make you a bad person. Trust me, pretty much everybody else is doing something they're not proud of either. And it may seem wrong now, but by the time you and your friends are all about 18-19, maybe 20 you've all done something that you're not comfortable talking about to others. Guess what, when you're 22, you can talk about things like that all the time with friends because you just don't care. Masturbation. There, I said it. 

        Now, this is one of the more important points you need to listen to. Please, please try your hardest to not let friends (or people that you think are your 'friends') coerce you into doing anything that you know is wrong or makes you feel uncomfortable. Just say no. Trust me, they're going to tell you that you're stupid, or weak, or a bitch, or something else that will just put you down. And it will. But, if they say those things just because you didn't give in to something that made you uncomfortable, then you don't want anything to do with them. Trust me, you're life is just fine without them. And you can make fun of them on Facebook years later. 

        And lastly but absolutely not least, your happiness is what matters most. Remember that.

                                         

                                                        Love, your future self.

Hope this can possibly hit you all right in the nostalgia.

Hope you have a great weekend. 

Make good choices.

xoxo

Fancy Shmancy Artsy Party 2016

(Is what it should really be called.)

Hello Everybody!

This past weekend Ryan and I went to an event put on by my university called Arts Bash. 

In a nut shell its a party where students and people of the community come to show art, buy art, eat a bunch of food, drink some stuff, watch some great entertainment and walk around in pretty clothes.

I should've taken more pictures of everything there...*note to self for 2017*
One of the things I should've taken photos of was the food. YUM. I think my favorite was the tiny grilled cheeses from Father Fats Public House. If I remember correctly it was some sort of cheese and truffle mix. They were de-lish-us!
My second favorite would definitely be the local favorite from Politos, the mac and cheese pizza. Can't go wrong with that one.
I also ran into my 5th grade teacher, *shout out to Ms. Huntington* glad to see her again!

There was plenty to sample overall especially beer. Most of it was courtesy of Point brewery,  and O'so brewery, and they never disappoint with their selections.

I had a print of mine for sale in the gallery. 

We stopped at the gallery first to take a look at everything before it was sold and I couldn't find mine. It was sold already! I was super excited. Although, it didn't come as a complete surprise as it was one of my favorites.

(Imagine it with a simple black frame)

My cousin, Allison, and I. Dang we look cute.

Everyone who had pieces in the show put in really great stuff and half of the proceeds go to our school's art department. 

(And we definitely need it)

A view of the entertainment from the NFAC balcony.

My outfit the night of. I paired this lovely black dress with a pair of cute maroon flats and a maroon beaded clutch. 

I had a great time, enjoyed great food and met a bunch of great people. 

Great.

I definitely recommend buying a ticket for next year!

P.S. Thank you to the wonderful woman who loved my piece enough to buy it! 

Hope you all are enjoying your week and have a lovely weekend!

xoxo

Jan-U-Weary Faves. Get it?...weary.

Man I'm a hoot.

Hello Everybody!

(To be honest I still think that sounds kind of fake, but the next thing that comes to my mind is "Hey y'all" but 1) I'm not from the South and 2) Everybody else says that)

c'est la vie.

I hope that you have all enjoyed your January.
 It definitely felt like it went by super fast. For me, at least. 

I spent mine planning on doing much more than I actually had done, spending time with family, and the spring semester had also began. 

Lately I've been feeling super unmotivated, like I have all of these ideas, plans, and wants and I never do anything about them. Pretty sure it's January's fault though.
You know, winter. 

I also blame it on the fact that I'm also not drinking soda anymore so I don't have the added sugar and caffeine running through my bloodstream constantly. Which, is a very good thing, but I think I became dependent on it. Ugh.

Okay enough lame talk.
Here is what I've been loving throughout January and into February.

These lovely folks are Chip and Joanna Gaines of the HGTV show Fixer Upper.
And let me tell you what, I'm definitely not a newbie to this show but since theres not a whole lot to do during January I decided to DVR pretty much every episode. I absolutely love this show. I love the Gaines' personalities (Chip is a hoot), they're freaking adorable; and their kids? Don't even get me started.
I get HGTV magazine every month, and I'm obsessed with home improvement and I always thought I wanted to go into interior decorating as a career; it can still happen.
If I had an (almost) unlimited budget to do whatever I wanted to our house, Joanna Gaines would be getting a call.

This beautiful little thing is my planner. All I saw towards the end of 2015 was bloggers and their planners and I thought to myself, "I need one of those things ASAP". Although I don't get as in-depth with mine (washi tape, stickers, banners, multi colored pens, etc.) I honestly just use an inkjoy pen and a binder clip. I got this bad boy from Anthropologie. I try to use my planner everyday especially for school, I know I'll use it more when semester picks up.

I've heard lots of beauty you tubers rave about beauty blending sponges and I jumped on in and bought the one from Target's up&up brand and no matter how much I wetted it, it was so dense and it was like I was softly punching my face. I picked up this little miracle worker one day and now I use it instead of my realTechniques brushes. It literally blends my foundation and concealer so friggen well, it's like i've been airbrushed. Not even kidding.

I stopped by the Clinique counter at work about a month ago and my girl Dantzi hooked me up with their 3-step system which consists of a liquid facial soap, a clarifying lotion or toner, and the moisturizing lotion (I got the gel). My first impressions were that the clarifying lotion smells like cheap vodka. Once I got past that I fell in love with this. Being completely honest I'd say that my skin is definitely healthier and looks more even. 

Last but not least, I decided to cut soda from my diet just as a health option and I've really been making a conscious effort to do so. So, sparkling water has become my best friend. It has zero calories (which I have also been keeping track of) and basically zero everything else, which is kind of hard to believe since it still tastes great. The Sparkling ICE brand is great, so far haven't found one that I don't like (then again I've only had like 5 kinds ha!)

These are a few of the things that I've been loving throughout January. 

Now that we're into February I've been really making a conscious effort to come up with blogging ideas to keep up a consistent pace and to hopefully put out a new post every week maybe even twice a week if we're lucky. So, stay tuned!

Hope you all enjoy the rest of your week!

xoxo