Happy Earth Day! - Oak Table Flip to World Map Statement Piece

Hello World of readers! Happy Earth Day to you!

Well this one took a while but well worth it. He is done... meet Magellan! Painted by hand with my favorite paints on the market! These make refinishing so easy to do!

Shabby Paints Brand paints used were: Cali Taupe, Old Gold Shimmer, Hazelnut ReVax, Sheer Vax and a custom Mixed color...

Vintage Sue Blue - 

• 3 parts marine blue
• 2 part licorice
• 1/2 part so serene
• 1/2 part oh so shabby

This blue was hand mixed by myself to achieve a color from my childhood. Our living room was this color for many, many years. In honor of my mother and her "vintage" love for this blue... It is now my first custom color I will be offering and it is called "Vintage Sue Blue". Love you Mom!

The entire piece has been hand painted and the land masses were drawn and painted freehand.

Here is an insight to the creative processes. I really wanted to label the land masses and larger bodies of water. So I took some transparencies and cut them into pieces and wrote on them while they were laying on top of the map design... testing to see how it would look.

I asked around and in the end I decided not to add the words. The top was then distressed and dry brushed with Hazelnut ReVax.  

The bottom legs have a gold dip dyed look to them with old gold shimmer dry brushed onto the Vintage Sue Blue base. I began this step by painting Cali Taupe under all the old gold shimmer edging.

Once the old gold was painted on I painted the legs with the Vintage Sue Blue recipe listed above. I painted it down over the tops of the Cali Taupe/Old Gold to a measured height and created the line you see here.

Once the blue was cured over night I dry brushed the Old gold on the underside of the table with a chip brush. Don't you just love the depth it adds to the legs?

The entire piece was sealed with two coats of Sheer Vax. I love the Vax product by +Shabby Paints, it is so easy to use, non toxic, VOC free and MADE IN THE USA!

Hope you like this project. Please help support me by sharing, pinning or commenting below with your thoughts about this piece. Thank you!

EDIT/UPDATE: This project won a prize from Shabby Paints as a monthly favorite project. Thank you Shabby Paints!!!! I could not have created this without you!

Find me on...
Facebook: Uniquely Grace
Twitter: Grace Lauer Artist @gracelauer
Instagram: @gracelauer_henna_artist
Pinterest: L. Grace Lauer

‪#‎Shabbypaints‬ ‪#‎Giveaway‬ ‪#‎Coffeetable‬ ‪#‎refinished‬ ‪#‎oneofakind‬ ‪#‎reduce ‬‪#‎reuse‬ ‪#‎earthday‬ #chalkpaint #handpainted 

If you don't have wings, choose another way to FLY! - Art Journal

Good afternoon! I hope you all had a fantastic Easter weekend. I finally got to create something in my new studio. It's just an art journal page but I wanted to share some sneak peeks. Since it is my journal I won't be sharing most of what is in it as it is personal. However I want to share some highlights.



I began journaling through art with an Art Journal (Journal52) Group on Facebook. This is week #1 - Up, up and away Challenge

This page spread says "If you don't have wings, choose another way to FLY!"

I hope your day is fun and full of creativity.

Coordinator at Party Time Tuesdays

Henna Tattoos hit the road... Clasic Car style!

Rockin' out to the classics... cars that is. Tattoos and Hot cars go hand in hand and I am trying my hand as a Henna Tattoo vendor at a car show this weekend. Here are some samples I worked up. What do you think?

Hope you like these. Do you know any classic car enthusiasts who would get one of these Henna tattoos?

Some of my other Henna:
Henna Hands - lotus, paisley, fun
Hand and Matching Foot
Henna for Homecoming
Henna Belly Blessing (baby shower)
Special Occasion Henna and Gilding
Classic Car Henna

Certified Helmar Educator

Henna for fun is a gateway medium...

Hello Everyone!

The summer is keeping me very busy and I have a new art medium I have discovered I am good at with some practice.

Lots and lots of practice.... and when I ran out of room on my body and my daughters I began working on paper.

Henna "for fun" is a gateway medium for the artistic business woman! So I was at a local East Indian Shop with my friend who was looking for some unique fabric and I saw the oh so beautiful henna cones on the shelf. My daughter was with me and she flipped out! We love henna and getting it done at the local events and fairs.  So we nagged 6 cones so we would have some for the 4th of July block party too and went home and began Hennaing everything! What a sight we have been this past month with a new found summer fun activity. (I wouldn't let her go to school all tattooed up like this) Here are just some of the designs we started off with...

The Henna Peacock design was done on her shoulder... she just loves peacocks.

"T" is for Trinity on her foot. She saw this one with a Hindu symbol on a foot and just loved it but she (being 8 and not understanding the symbolism) decided she wanted her initial not the "E" she saw.

This was my first attempt left handed working onto the back of my own right hand (which is my predominant hand)

Some of my other Henna:
Henna Hands - lotus, paisley, fun
Hand and Matching Foot
Henna for Homecoming
Henna Belly Blessing (baby shower)
Special Occasion Henna and Gilding
Classic Car Henna

Certified Helmar Educator

Art Bras for Breast Cancer - BRAvo Art Auction

I had an exciting Saturday night at the BRAvo Art Auction in our local town of Marysville, CA. Here are some photos...

They had Chocolate Boobies from The Candy Box... their Turtles are to DIE for!

Yuba-Sutter BRAvo

The Book "Rack"
L. Grace Lauer
In memory of Nita Rowe.

Inspiration: Scouring the internet I found something remarkable about how people relate to books helping them heal. Not medical text books or even the great power of praying and meditating on the Bible, but somehow a good novel made all the difference to them as they went through the process of chemo or other medical procedures. A distraction from reality? Perhaps, or maybe they relate to the story and struggles of the hero receiving inspiration to move forward, one more day at a time.
Literary healing programs have sprung up through out this country at hospitals wards for all ages, from Children to the elderly. There is no doubt that books can ease people through the pain, the time and the struggles of any medical issues, physical restraints or emotional war zones.

This bra “The Book Rack” is dedicated to my husband’s grandmother who in her eighties was diagnosed with breast cancer. She tried chemo and at her age decided it was best not to continue and live out the last few years of her life with the cancer. Not defeated though she researched dietary options to make her last few years, weeks and moments enjoyable. A courageous decision. In the end cancer was not the reason she left this world behind, in her own way she defeated this disease, leaving a legacy of courage, strength and love within the hearts of her family. I was honored to have met such a fine lady.

Certified Helmar Educator

BRAvo for Helmar and Multi Media "Book Rack" Bra Art

Loving this project! Couldn't think of a more fun way to raise funds for Breast Cancer Patients.

For a tutorial on how I created this art work please see the Helmar Blog at 

BRAvo for Helmar and Multi Media "Book Rack" Bra Art

via helmarusa.typepad.com

Certified Helmar Educator

Decorating on a Dollar ~ Chalkboard Plaque Tutorial with Helmar

Hello everyone!I am so excited today to show you this sweet little project created with some our fantastic Helmar Products! I was inspired lately by an event I am helping organize to really look into the "Arts". After working with so many creative people who do so many different things like write poems, Sing or play music, dance and create art I decided to make a little something that would hopefully inspire our next generation (my kids and those that will be benefiting from this local event) to express themselves through the Arts.Supplies:

 For the tutorial on how to make these and more photos please see this link:

Decorating on a Dollar ~ Chalkboard Plaque Tutorial with Helmar

via helmarusa.typepad.com

Certified Helmar Educator