SIMPLY HUE MOVING TO A NEW LOCATION

Hi everyone, not being too technically inclined, it looks like I might have created a BIG problem on my blog that can't be repaired.  I'm working on things with a friend who is much better at these types of things, but it looks like I might need to start completely over on a different blog. I still can't believe I created such a mess! LESSON LEARNED:  Never delete your primary e-mail address as an administrator of your blog unless you've replaced it with another one!  It's almost laughable ... but not.  lol.

So, my new blog domain is SIMPLY HUE DESIGNS.  If I'm not able to log into this blog anymore, you'll be able to find me at this link.  I hope you'll subscribe or enter your name to receive e-mail updates.  I'd hate to lose all of you.  :(

Have a great Wednesday and please drop by and see me!  I plan on doing my first blog post later today or tomorrow.  xoxo

Big Hugs,

Vicki

LAST CALL FOR RAINING UMBRELLAS CREATIVITY E-COURSE!

Happy Friday friends!  Hope you've got some nice plans for your weekend.  Our plans include going to a play in Seattle on Saturday and to my daughter's place on Sunday for the Super Bowl.

One last little reminder before I head out the door ... tomorrow is the last day to register for this session of my creativity e-course RAINING UMBRELLAS which starts this coming Monday, February 4th!  I hope you'll consider signing up?  I really think you'll be happy you did.   :0)

HANDMADE BY ... ARTIST BECCA STADTLANDER

Good morning! I came across the work of artist Becca Stadtlander on Pinterest today and fell in love. I adore the vibrant COLORS she uses in her paintings and her themes are so heartwarming. I've just recently picked up my drawing pencils again (I'm having a blast!) and if I allowed myself to compare ... which I do my best not to ... I could become a little discouraged with my simple line drawings of birds and horses in comparison to her illustrious paintings. But, I'm not even going to go there ... nope, not me. ;)

Have a wonderful weekend, sweet friends. Thanks for stopping by this week!  xx

RANDOM WEDNESDAYS ... WE GO TO AND FRO

Hi everyone, this day has really gotten away from me so I just have a couple of minutes to post, but I wanted to tell you about this inspiring blog called "We Go to and Fro".  Dennis Bovee is a homeschooling Mom and an amazing photographer who lives with her husband (who is also an extremely talented photographer) and girls' in Southern, California.  As part of their homeschool experience they go on daily adventures to the coolest places!  I love reading her blog and following her on Instagram.  They live such a simple yet beautiful life!!  I wish I had more time right now because I could go on and on, but since you have the above links now, you can take a look and follow them along on their travels yourself!  xx

COLORFUL WORLD ... ROMANTIC SPRING DAYS

Such a romantic image by lavendamemory!  Not only is it romantic, but it reminds me that Spring is just around the corner.  ;)

Have an awesome new week, everyone!  xo

I'M READY FOR SPRING

Good morning and happy Monday!  Did you have a good weekend?  Some weekends just aren't what we were hoping for, are they?  And then other ones surpass our expectations.  Ours was pretty uneventful, honestly, but I'm really looking forward to next weekend!  My husband and I have season tickets to a theatre company in Seattle called Taproot Theatre.  We go there to see one of their productions every couple of months and usually eat a ginormous burrito at Gorditos before it starts.  Also, with the Super Bowl next Sunday, we're going to our daughters cozy welcoming home to watch it.  Can't wait!!  The last couple of weeks have been pretty overwhelming with medical tests and doctor visits, so I'm needing a change of pace, for sure.

I'm definitely gearing up for Spring.  How about you?  I see a recurring theme in the last few photos I've dug up from the archive to edit .... floral and pastel.  Enough gray skies, enough rain, and for those of you in areas where you get snow ... enough snow!  I'm more than ready for flowers and blue skies.  :)

To purchase any of these photos (or if you want too see them as pillow covers, i phone cases, etc.) just visit my Society 6 shop!

 

REGISTRATION FOR "DROPLETS" IS NOW OPEN!

Good morning...or should I say "afternoon"?  It's nice to be posting again today!  I've been so unfocussed this week!  Have you ever had times like that?

Anyways, here I am, and I wanted to let you know that registration for my one week e-course, DROPLETS, is now open!  I wrote this "mini" creativity e-course shortly after my very first session of teaching RAINING UMBRELLAS ended because my wonderful students were wanting more.  It ended up being a really great week together but after that, life got busier and I haven't offered it since!  Student's really seemed to enjoy the lessons, the art work, the optional assignments and creative exercises, and the support and encouragement from me and from other students. And the length of the class fits most people's schedules (just 5 days long) since we're all so busy with family, jobs, and other commitments.

I'm happy to announce that I'm offering DROPLETS again with a tentative starting date of February 18!  There's a chance I might move the date out one more week depending on enrollment.

To register just follow THIS LINK and scroll to the bottom of the page where you'll find the very recognizable Pay Pal button.  :)

So excited about this and hope you'll be a part of it with me!!  xo

 

REGISTRATION IS OPEN ... SEE WHAT STUDENTS HAVE TO SAY!

Yep, it's that time ... time to register for the February session of my creativity e-course Raining Umbrellas!  The next session won't be available until April or May, so if you're needing a creative boost right now, please join me!

Some of my closest friends have been made through this course because of the encouragement and support  we offer each other and the opportunity to give and receive feedback.  I am passionate about teaching Raining Umbrellas and genuinely care about each student.  :)

Here are just a few testimonials from former students:

"I just wanted to drop you a line to let you know how inspirational your courses were for me.  At the time I was in a total creative rut and raining umbrellas was just what I needed!  It really got me thinking about my work, what it means to me and how I can continue to improve it. I have such lovely memories of the courses."

"Vicki's course really sparkled my creativity and made me move forward in a way I hadn't anticipated. It was a delight to be part of the course.  It surpassed my expectations and really made me focus in a lovely way. I have recommended to several friends already!"

"Vicki's ecourse Raining Umbrellas is a treasure chest of inspiration and motivation. I've taken quite a few online courses about photography and creativity lately, some of them were really great, too, but Vicki's course is the one I enjoyed the most. I got to know so many different artists and creative subjects I otherwise never would have gotten to know. Vicki put so much effort and detail into the course, it was so versatile!  You get loads of information and inspiration. I still gain plenty of energy and motivation from the input the course gave me and I still do the exercises, just for me and just for fun. It was a wonderful and very enjoyable experience and I really look forward to her next e-course."

"I've been a fan of Vicki's inspiring blog, Simply Hue, for a long time and I knew when she had an e-course on creativity, I would definitely join.  And I am so pleased that I did!  The course sparked my inner creativity.  I liked Vicki's style of conducting the course ... she shared her knowledge with honesty and always gave us positive encouragement. My class was a small group so I got to know most of my classmates and it was a great social network!  I felt connected to other creative and lovely people from around the world."

To be a part of this next session, just visit my e-course page and pay through Pay Pal (it's very easy ... Pay Pal will walk you through the very simple process).  And, if you join with a friend, I have a "friend's special" going on.  :)

Can't wait to meet you!!!

MY PHOTOS IN TARGET!

Good morning, friends.  :)  On the tail end of a really tough week, I had some exciting news from my art publisher!  It looks like TARGET has selected a few of my photos to sell as wall art in their home department!  My publisher couldn't tell me exactly which one's they'd chosen, but I know it's at least two of the eight images above.  It always amazes me that at the same time extremely difficult things can be happening in your life, beautiful things can be happening at the same time.  This is definitely one of them.  :)

And, just a little heads up, in honor of this exciting news I'm offering these two collections as large 18x18 posters in my Etsy shop for just $20.00 each (HERE and HERE) and the pillow covers are for sale in my Society 6 shop for just $20.00 a piece!  You can find the pillow covers HERE and HERE.

Have a great weekend, everyone ... I'm hoping it's just what you need.  xoxo

WELCOME TO OUR HOME!

I am by no means an interior stylist or an interior photographer, so these photos are not the best quality.  But I wanted to give you a peek inside our 950 square foot condo.  We moved here just over a year ago and it's finally beginning to feel like home.  Since I'm home a great majority of the time not feeling too great, I wanted a place that was calming and relaxing and included elements of nature.  I still have several more rustic pieces I want to add and I plan on doing a water color painting and putting up a few more of my photos, but for now I'm enjoying the peace and calm our little home provides.

I'd love to hear you thoughts.  :)  xoxo

JUST A FEW UPDATES .....

Good morning everyone.  :)  I'm so happy to be back!  I haven't blogged in almost 2 weeks and as you might have guessed, I got hit really hard with an MS (Multiple Sclerosis) flare up that had me laying flat on my back for 24 hours a day.  Oh, it was getting so hard to be still and unproductive.  I read a couple of novels, watched the entire 4th. season of MONK and rested a ton.  I'm feeling mostly better but still not 100 percent.  Thanks for your patience as I was forced to neglect my blog.  Usually blogging is such amazing therapy for me, so some days I really missed it (and you).  xo

Just thought I'd post a few photos that just sold in my Etsy shop.  I think my customer did a wonderful job at creating a set of photos for her children's play room.  I never thought of putting these pieces together as a collection, but I think they really work!

Have a lovely rest of the day.  Hope to be back tomorrow to announce the "official" registration for Raining Umbrellas!  If you register before tomorrow you can still receive the low pre-registration price.   :)

OUR HOME FEATURED IN GATHERINGS MAGAZINE!

Good morning!  I hope you had a great weekend and feel revved up for another week.  My morning started out really nice.  I received an e-mail from Heather Spriggs, the creator of Gatherings Magazine, letting me know that my home (our 950 ft. condo) was featured in her lovely White Issue 2013 magazine on pages 50-55.  Very exciting!  We've lived here for a little over a year and it's still a work in progress.  I'll let you read the article and maybe I'll feature more home photos later this week. :)

I'd love if you came back and let me know what you think!  xo

TWINKLE ... A CHILDREN'S ONLINE CREATIVITY WORKSHOP

Lovely banner created by the talented Nicole of Kitten Lane

Well, hi everybody.  :)  After such a "deep" post yesterday and with so much encouragement and love being sent my way through your comments, I'm left a little speechless today.  I can't thank each of you enough for your loving words ... they meant the world to me.  xoxo  Thanks again .... so much!!!

I wanted to share something with you that I've been ever-so-slowly working on.  By telling you about it, I thought it might give me the kick in the pants I need to get going on it!  It's an online creativity workshop for children and their parents, called TWINKLE.  I've just started planning it so it probably won't be available for a few months, but I'm really excited about it!

I chose the name TWINKLE for two reasons.  First of all, I want to offer it free of charge to children going through difficult situations and I want to encourage them to look for the stars in their dark skies.  There's always beauty to discover in any circumstance and creativity is an avenue to do just that.  The second reason is to inspire kids to develop their creativity, to become their best selves, to  make a difference in their little corner of the world ... to basically TWINKLE, sparkle, and shine.  Oh, and if you're an artist or children's writer and would like to contribute in some way, please contact me at matissecolor@gmail.com

More info to come!!  xo

THINGS I'M AFRAID TO TELL YOU ...

Good morning. :)  Here I am for the second day in a row!  I never thought it would be so hard to get back into the swing of things after a 2 week holiday break.

One of my goals for 2013 is to continue to share a little more personally on my blog.  I had this goal last year and tried to be more real and open on Simply Hue.  It's not always easy, especially since most of my blog visitors are here for a beauty break in the middle of a hectic day.  I want this to be a therapeutic and calming place on the web, but I also don't want to put across that my life is all chocolate and roses ... because it certainly isn't!

Ez Pudewa from Creature Comforts wrote a post recently called "Things I'm Afraid to Tell You".  In her post she shared some of her personal struggles and encouraged other bloggers to be authentic on their blogs.  I've decided to start the New Year off with a bang!  Today I'll share something about myself that only those closest to me know.  As 2013 unfolds, I'll do my best to continue to be open and share a little more about my life and "the things I'm afraid to tell you".  I hope you can take this challenge, too.  :)

So, here goes!!

I have two chronic health conditions (Multiple Sclerosis and Trigeminal Neuralgia) that cause me to be almost homebound.  I have severe fatigue, excruciating nerve pain, and various neurological symptoms that make it almost impossible to hold a job, attend social functions, or even to leave the house some weeks.  I spend at least 3-5 days out of every week resting on the couch and the other couple days of the week I have to really pace myself and choose my activities wisely so that I don't have a flare up of my symptoms.  This can be extremely isolating and at times I struggle with loneliness and depression.  I love life and am a huge people-person and to be so limited physically can be almost unbearable at times. I'm so thankful for my blog and my photography because they help me to stay connected to the world (and meet people like YOU) and to a certain extent, they fill the void that chronic illness brings.

See why this is difficult for me to share?  I like to be positive and uplifting and this is definitely not a subject that will send you away with a smile!  Oh, and if I'm being 100% real with you I should tell you that your comments to this post would mean a lot to me.  One of my fears in writing this is that no one will respond.  I don't know about you, but I've got that insecure side that will be less likely to open up if I don't hear from anyone after putting my heart out there.  Eeek!  How's that for honesty?

HELLO 2013!!!

Well, hello!  I had no plans to stay away from my blog this long, but it really was a nice break from the norm the last couple of weeks.  My husband was home and we made the best of our time together ... we spent a full day in Seattle at the new Museum of History and Industry (it was awesome!), ate out at a couple of local restaurants, watched the entire 8th season of MONK, and enjoyed the Christmas festivities in our community (tree lighting, holiday lights, The Christmas Ship, etc.).  I hope you had a lovely holiday season yourself and that you feel ready for all that 2013 has in store.  :)

I'll be back tomorrow to share a few "deeper" thoughts with you, but for now I'm just trying to get back into the habit of blogging and wanted to wish you a HAPPY AND BLESSED NEW YEAR!   xoxo

P.S.  The above photos are from my Instagram feed for 2012.  I didn't use my DSLR camera as much last year, but it was really fun discovering the beauty around me via Instagram.

I COULD LIVE HERE ... ONE OF MY FAVORITE HOMES YET

Hello again.  :)  Hope your week's going well.  The weekend is not to far off, so hang in there!

As a blogger I feel like one of my goals is to point you in the direction of beautiful things ... things that make you smile, laugh, think a little deeper, enjoy the simple pleasures, and that challenge you to make your home a haven for you and your family.  When I spotted these gorgeous photos on Pinterest this morning, I knew I needed to show you.  There are so many things to look at and so much personality!  I also appreciate the homeowners use of color.  At first glance it seems very feminine because of all the vibrant color (pinks, oranges, purples), but because she uses black, white, and gray for her walls, artwork, tables & chairs, and in some of her textiles, it makes it a home where a person with more masculine tastes could live comfortably, too.

I COULD SEE MYSELF LIVING HERE.  WHAT ABOUT YOU?  COULD YOU LIVE HERE?

For even more photos, visit Lovely Life. xo