Stenciled Terra Cotta

I've been doing some gardening/landscaping at my house and wanted to get some Italian urns for my front pathway or door. However, on a recent trip to IKEA with a friend, I saw these flower pots for $8 or $9 with the saucer. So, I thought I would use these instead, but just dress them up with a beautiful stencil from Stampin' Up! (If you are my mom, make sure you are close to a box of tissues before you continue reading.)

Did you know they have a line of beautiful stencils? This one is called Adornment. Because this is for an outside project, I needed to use an outdoor acrylic paint from my local craft store.

Click here to see more stencils from Stampin' Up!
My mother is one of the most important artists in my life (happy birthday, mom)! She explored many different artistic fields as a student and displayed her work for her children to enjoy. (Not only did we enjoy seeing her art, it also inspired us. One of my brothers pursued photography, and another brother is a graphic designer. Mom saw our artistic inclination and sent us to Saturday morning art classes when we were young.)

She learned to sew because her mother sewed very well. (Happy posthumous birthday Gran!) She taught us to sew as well, even though we're no where near as good as our grandmother; she'd roll over in her grave if she could see some of the shortcuts we take! So, the sewing I've been doing lately is because of my grandmother and mother.

Then my mother and her friend became artisans. One would sew table linens and the other would stencil their original designs on them. They created many beautiful items and ran their business for about a decade. Mom allowed us to be involved by doing simple things like cutting ribbon, and tying bows with our tiny fingers, and later on hand-stitching mitered corners. (And no, cousins, it was not slave labor! She paid us for the work we did.) It was fun to work beside her. I'm so glad that mom allowed us in her workspace (and also in her kitchen) because it shaped us into who we are today. By day I teach, and by night I still enjoy art and creativity.
So, last month when I was painting these flower pots, she said I was going back to our roots: stenciling. Thanks mom, for giving me roots.