My Inspiration Wall

In any apartment I’ve ever lived in as an adult, I’ve always been hesitant to put anything up on the wall. I suppose it’s because I’ve moved so many times. (Patching walls is not very exciting!) But I have an abundance of art prints and photos. I just make sure that my frames have the little kickstands that allow for beautifully cluttering shelves and table tops. 

But now that the Brit and I are in Victoria, we have started to hang frames on the wall. It feels nice to do that. And I have this beautiful little nook in my office that I’ve made into a 3-D inspiration wall. It was the first area of the apartment that I set up because I needed a space of calm amidst all the (thankfully quickly unpacked) boxes.

I have such an appreciation for and wish I had the artistic ability to express myself on a canvas, as my friend Karlie Rosin does. Karlie created the header mixed media image you see at the top of this site (which is based on a photo taken of me by the talented Tia Vath) and some of the art in the below photo. (She makes it look so easy (you should see her sketch at a fashion show!), but I know it’s not.) As I don’t have that artistic ability, I write and surround myself with things that inspire me and make me smile.

My inspiration wall

Mostly left to right, from top-down:

• Camel painting (unknown artist) – I LOVE camels and to ride one in Sahara (or somewhere similar) is a big bucket list item of mine.
• Eiffel Tower – It’s just a trinket from my first time in Paris, but I’ve kept it as a reminder of my first time in Europe.
• Original painting (Karlie Rosin) – This started as a test painting that my very talented friend Karlie did for an art battle she was participating in. I saw it in her coat closet and asked about it. She was thinking of throwing it away and I was horrified. I asked how much she would charge for a finished product, and I’m now the proud owner of an original Karlie Rosin painting. (Merci, Karlie!) I love the colours and I feel like it’s what my imagination looks like sometimes.
• Yoga certificate – You have to show off your achievements, right? That’s what certificates are for. Even if to only remind oneself of goals when feeling disheartened. (It happens.)
• Family and friend photos – Me with my dad, with my mum, my lovely friends, and yup, that’s Gordie Howe. He was the NICEST man, I feel so fortunate to have had the opportunity to spend a lot of time with him when I worked in hockey.
• Rosé wine print (Karlie Rosin) – Another Karlie piece. While I can’t Rosé all day, at least I can a pretty picture of it in my office! If you’re keen to get a similar print, you can get one at her Etsy shop.

• Watercolour (Leanne Thompson) – This is another artistic spinoff of the photo that my site header is based on. The lovely Leanne from Little May Papery created this for me a few years ago, and I cherish it. It’s a piece that gave me some peace (ha) when I was going through a particularly stressful time in my life.
• Camel figurine – One day I’ll share why I love camels, but the short story is that my parents buy me camel figurines for my birthday and Christmas whenever they find them.
• Highland coos (Wanda Doyle) – I found this at an art event. It’s an original and makes me daydream of my favourite place in the world: Scotland. The coos (that’s how they pronounce it in Scotland) are also almost as adorable in the painting as they are in real life.
• Carnival mask – My dad got me this when he went to Venice. It’s another little trinket, but it make me happy and gets my travel juices flowing.
• My love – The Brit makes me laugh and reminds me not to take things too seriously. I keep that photo there to make me smile when I have writer’s block, or really just need a break.

Like the books I read, I like art to make me feel something in my soul. I don’t mean the annoyance I feel when I hear people analyzing why and artist randomly glued a piece of pasta, or what said artist was feeling when they painted that one corner purple. (Just stop. You don’t know.) Just the full-of-heart feeling of knowing you are looking at something lovely.

One day, I hope to be able to afford an Impressionist original, but that will likely involve having to have won the lottery… Until that happy day, I have plans for the blank space above my computer. Stay tuned!

Do you have an inspiration board or wall? What’s on it?

“A picture is a poem without words”

Horace

This post was created partly in collaboration with Karlie Rosin. As always opinions are my own. Photos: @jjosuephotos