Striped Flat Weave Rugs from VanEch Studio

The classic simplicity of stripes are to be found with these hand-crafted highly durable wool flat woven rugs. Each reversible piece brings together beautiful color palettes to compliment a broad spectrum of environments and aesthetics.

Lots of color combinations available, from bold to subtle.  Not sure what color combo will work for you?  I will bring  samples to your home to help you find the perfect color and size, at no charge with purchase.

Sample pricing 4x6=$190 5x8=$280 8x10=$530  Other sizes including round and runners available.

Simple Summer Green

Making these natural green centerpiece displays are easy and fun, and great for creating last minute table scapes for summer time entertaining.  I keep lots of glass cylinders on hand in varying sizes.  You can pick these up at Home Goods for next to nothing.  A combo of at least three jars creates a balanced design.  Walk out your door and look at what's in the garden, or your neighbors. Consider the shape of the glass containers you're working with and snip away.  I love the long grasses for the tall cylinders.  Pick leaves that are fleshy.  Hostas come in so many varigated varieties you can't go wrong with an assortment of these.  Colored leaves like Dieffenbachia and Coleus work great too.   Add a minimum amount of water and arrange to your liking.

Personalized Decorative Art Map Gifts from VanEch Studio

Looking for a unique anniversary, wedding or farewell gift?

I will create a customized decorative art map with 2 locations of your choice one for each half of the heart. Dates, cities, and names can be added and personalized. Choose any city from all over the globe. Add a wedding or anniversary date.

This is a digital collage created and personalized for you. You will receive an unframed print of the digital art. The paper measures 8 ½” x 11”, printed on Canson inkjet fine art paper. It will trim to fit an 8x10 frame of your choice. Frame not included.

Regularly priced $85, Summer Special $70 shipping included. 

Contact Niki VanEch to purchase: info@vanechstudio.com

Scavenging in the Desert

Friends who have been out and about with me know I will brake furiously for a good flea market and wild bittersweet vines, the latter of which about plunged me into a ravine.

 So no big surprise that I would wrestle with a Cholla cactus to get at a dead limb.  The Cholla spine is loaded with tiny spikes and from what I hear are extremely painful and difficult to remove and just brushing against one can ruin a beautiful sunny Arizona day which is what the day was when I armored up and set out on the property behind the house I was staying out, which by no coincidence, was on Cholla Drive.

I was later informed that rattlesnakes should have been on my high alert more so than the Cholla spikes.  Fortunately I had the pleasure of not meeting either of these two desert warriors and was able to extract ever so carefully a few dead Cholla spines.  They are woody, much like a piece of eastern shore driftwood and I love their natural look.  Next time I will head out with rattlesnake tongs, well maybe not.

Furniture in the Raw - The Art of Liming

My new heart throb - limed furniture.  On my trip to Arizona I was poking through a work studio and noticed a chair on a table with the artist scrubbing away at it with a wire brush.  She heard my ooohs and ahhhs and invited me in to observe what she was doing.  I tried to keep my squealing down to a minimum.  She enthusiastically answered all my questions and took the time to share with me the old techniques of liming furniture, only she was using a lime wax, not the real lime, as it is too caustic.

Liming is a technique that brings out the grain of the wood giving it a whitened look.  It is most effective on prominently grained woods such as ash and oak, oak she said being the preferred.  Liming can only be applied to bare wood so the piece must first be stripped of all stains and varnishes (OK so this part isn't much fun). The next step is opening up the grain and this can be done with a wire brush and she advises to keep with the grain and rub firmly.  Next the liming wax is applied.  She uses very little and doesn't leave it to stay on very long before wiping off.  The longer it is left on the more pronounced and grainy the final effect which is great for that weathered aged look. The excess liming wax is then removed with a steel wool pad and ordinary furniture wax, or, as she did on these pieces, a rag with solvent thinner.

Thank you Cecelia!  Can't wait to try this technique on my own.

Painting for a Cottage Look

A friend recently asked my advice on a wall color for a cottage look.  A cottage look almost always has in its scenario colors from the outdoors - muted, washed and distressed.  My favorite go-to color for this look is Benjamin Moore's Moonlight White.  Blues, grays and the earthy browns dance beautifully off this fresh neutral backdrop.  And the added accent colors like red or green will integrate perfectly.  And let's not forget our ceilings, the surface that often gets second class status.  Give the room a serene watery canopy with a gray/blue such as Benjamin Moore's Whitestone to complete the look.

Easton, MD Patrick Sutton

VanEch Studio Workshop "Chalk Paint"