I painted this mirror white in April of 2023, but I got the mirror from my step-gramma…well before that.
When I first got it, it was dark and moody and rustic — the total opposite of my vibe. My room is painted a light creamy/almond color, my valances are a sheer lace, and the picture frames and many of my plant pots are white. If I could walk into my room and feel like I was living in a cloud, that would be ideal, but since I’m not quite there (I only get the afternoon light through my windows), I do the best I can to brighten it in every way possible.
I love brightness, and airiness, and open space.
So obviously the mirror did not originally fit my aesthetic when I first got my hands on it, but I had a plan for it, I had a vision.
(don’t I always?)
And it all started with some plain white paint on a warm April day.
Then the progress stalled.
When it comes to painting things for the fun of it, I paint pretty naturally and it comes together fairly easily. But when it comes to painting my own personal projects for me, myself, and I? The pressure that I put on myself is crazy. Cause I need to be in love with something if I’m gonna keep it in my space.
The plan for this mirror was always gonna be some pastel florals, but I was originally envisioning more of some floral realism for it…something that just doesn’t come that naturally to me, if I’m being honest.
I painted some wild roses on a clock a couple years ago (I still have the clock tucked away in a bin somewhere because I like it too much to give it away), and although they turned out beautifully, the pressure of wanting to recreate this exact design on my mirror was too heavy…and thus I put off the project for about a year.
the clock of original inspiration
A whole year of this frickin mirror sitting in the dark corner of my room. You may or may not recognize it, because I used it as a photo prop in one of my posts last year, but it hasn’t gotten any real use since then. It’s just been waiting.
When it comes to my job, painting my pet portraits, it’s always been all about the tiny details — the miniscule brushstrokes, the layers of subtle color changes, the glistening eyes. Every time I start a new portrait, I worry that I won’t reach the level of perfection that I’ll feel proud of when it comes to a realistic portrayal of the beloved pet. It’s all about accuracy and making sure that every hair is in place so that the customer approves.
But in 2022 and early 2023 my step-gramma started commissioning me to paint an assortment of items for a shop booth that she had at the time, and it allowed me to start experimenting with a different kind of art.
A more relaxed art. An art that wasn’t asking people to approve it when it was finished, and to give critiques and suggestions on how to make a painted pet look more like a living, breathing animal. And it felt so good. I started to love to paint in a way that I hadn’t before.
My portrait work always has a layer of stress to it — especially when it comes to sending over photos of the finished portrait for the approval of the customer — but these new projects were just all me. I was given the freedom to create what I wanted, just because I wanted to.
I started using more paint, and larger brush strokes, and more bold, confident lines. And it was a lot of fun. I stopped worrying so much about realism and perfection, and just started creating what I believe to be ✨simple beauty✨
And I discovered a soft form of floral designs that I now love to paint (I even started offering them on some of my pet portraits!).
They’ve evolved a bit since I started, but now I follow the same basic pattern for them each time — three layered colors on the petals, and three layered colors on the stamens at the center. It’s straightforward, and simply, yet so sweet and pleasing when they’re complete. Plus they’re easy to make in literally any color.
One night recently, when my inspiration and creativity started to return, I just pulled out this mirror and stared at it. And I didn’t think too deeply about it — about the colors, and the placement of the flowers and leaves — I just found my favorite paints (always the pinks and yellows), and started working.
Did I have some doubts when the first messy layer of paint went one?
Of course.
Would I really be me if I didn’t…?
But once I got the black outlines started, I immediately felt it start coming together, and I couldn’t be happier with the end result.
She’s simple, she’s beautiful, she’s got all the spring-time vibes (while there’s snow falling outside!), and it only took two afternoons of crouching on my bedroom floor (and trying to patiently wait for the paint layers to dry so that I didn’t continue to smudge them) to complete her.
A year of sitting in a dark corner, all for this??
Typical.
But it feels good to have her done. Now I just have to hang her, because she’s currently just sitting patiently on my floor…and I don’t intend to keep her there for the next 365 days.
art by jordan rae 