waking up

Although I am slow to wake up, I love mornings. The light feels fresh and lately it's been overcast in the morning so it's a soft and cozy kind of light. Aside from a hot cup of coffee, my new favorite morning beverage is fresh squeezed orange juice made with organic oranges from my dad's farm. You can take a closer look at my dad's organic farm here: http://www.promacksfarm.com/

Corralled in my new-to-me robin's egg bowl (another item that got a raised eyebrow from my husband when it joined our family) they have become one of my favorite things to see in the morning. The bowl is one of the newest additions to our house which I unearthed at this wild antique event held in a fabulous old barn on the Betty Crocker estate in Valley Center. My mom and I spent hours in their extensive maze of antiques, oddities, furniture and more. Check out more information on them here: http://www.matildasmouse.com/index.html

recycled candles

Today's creative project snuck in after working and cleaning the house and right before making dinner. I have been saving up old candles for quite some time waiting for today to arrive. 

Combining different scents and colors of old used up candles (does vanilla go better with pumpkin or coconut?), melting them down on the stove and then pouring them into small glass bowls that I had saved just for this occasion was messier than anticipated, but still just what I needed. Today's batch was Vanilla Spice-if only you could smell them!

etsy shop

Well I have finally figured out my etsy situation and the shop is open! You can check out some of my latest designs at: http://www.etsy.com/shop/beckleydesign

some new projects

Here are some photos of what I have been working on in the jewelry department. They are made almost entirely of recycled materials. Enjoy!

what's in a name?

Mildred Elizabeth Beckley was my great grandmother on my mom's side. Since I was a child there has been this old photograph hanging in the hallway at my parents' house of Mildred as a young girl. My mom had typed up her full name on one of those label makers and put it under her photograph which forever ingrained her and her name on my memory. I look at that photo and I wonder what she was like. What did she enjoy doing? What did her voice sound like? Was that her favorite dress? What did she do the rest of this day-after this moment frozen in time?


I chose her name because to me it represents not only the history of my own family, but like the photograph, it hints at the beautiful mystery of old things. Where have they been? What have they seen? Incorporating something old into something new is like adding their rich narrative to my own. It feels like giving the past a future.

the beginning

Ever gotten to a point where you say "enough is enough!" That's right where I am standing.


Since I was a little girl I have had a passion for being creative. My mom and my grandma always encouraged me artistically and gave me great amounts of leeway to experiment. Walls in both of their houses have murals painted on them and years ago my mom even let me redesign my bedroom so I retextured one wall, painted another blue and was allowed to put in distressed wood flooring-none of which matches the rest of their house.

I am inspired by unique combinations and bringing new life to old things-the kind of person that rearranges the furniture when I clean just to see how it would look a different way. I really appreciate companies, designers and products that recycle or reuse old materials and hope to follow their lead in my own work. My creative outlets are painting, drawing, sewing, sculpture, graphic design, photography, making jewelry & interior design. Someday maybe I'll add ceramics, glass blowing or designing window displays for Anthropologie (wouldn't that be amazing?).


Now married & working a full time job and a part time job, I find myself with little time to do much of anything besides working, eating & sleeping. I live in a little condo with my husband who is learning to humor my artistic appetite. We have had a poster hanging in our house that says "created to create" and I think that's so true of myself. Sometimes if I haven't done something artistic in a while I start to feel like I am going to explode!


So after my most recent sob sesh about not doing anything creative I decided that's it. I could keep waiting for the time to be just right to start living my dreams but I might end up waiting my whole life. The time is now. This blog is to chronicle my artistic pursuits and ambitions. I have put off pursuing this side of myself for quite some time, but I can't wait anymore! Carpe diem!

Thank you!

A big thank you to my wonderful husband for helping me get my blog up and running. Here's to blogging!

hello world!