Forgive me, Italy - a new dinner idea and a surprise art sale

Hi friend,

It’s August (what??!!). Cue the full-on panic that the holidays are around the corner. 

Due to my shock at flipping the calendar to August, here’s some good news for those of you looking to add colorful letters and numbers to your home or classroom:

I listed a sale on all ABC 123 digital downloads. 🎉

It’s the deepest discount I’ve offered, available exclusively on my website through next Tuesday—no code needed. Just add to cart, check out, and enjoy.

*Reading this late? Be sure to subscriber to the Studio Vibes newsletter to never miss a sale!*

Inside My Studio

I’ve been deep in the color-tweaking zone, finalizing my newest sports duo paintings. If you’ve purchased the Safari Jungle duo, these will fit right in.

My Photoshop process? A beautiful chaos of clicking layers off and on, adjusting one hue, copying a curve here, flattening a color cast there. It’s a dance of details, but I love it. I work hard (often during my 5am editing session) to make sure each piece matches a range of interiors and paint colors beautifully.

I'm planning more variations in this “duo” format (butterflies and flowers are calling!). Also, the Safari Jungle downloads now come in more sizes for all my DIYers.

I have a long list of blog ideas coming your way—but I’d love your help choosing what comes first:

• How to frame your art
  
• How to create a gallery wall
  
• How to buy art online (and know you’re getting quality)
• Styling a nursery with art prints

Reply and let me know what you’d like to read!

What I'm Cooking

My cooking ambition has been... optimistic. While I normally plan meals like a champ on Saturday mornings, the past few weeks have reminded me that life (and energy levels) don’t always follow the plan.

With new jobs, school transitions, and general life busyness, we’ve relied on a few shortcut dinners. Enter: Lindsay from Pinch of Yum and her Instant Pot Spaghetti.

Italian readers, please skip this section. Please.

Her recipe says it’s so easy a kindergartener could make it—and I believe her. You dump in half a jar of sauce, 2 cups of water, and (Italian readers, turn back now) break half a pound of spaghetti in half. 

I heard the collective gasp of a thousand Italian grandmothers. I winced but I did it anyway in the sake of saving time.

Eight minutes later? Perfectly saucy pasta. 

My edits: I skipped the browning beef part and instead tossed in a few frozen chicken meatballs.  Saved a step and it worked out beautifully!  I also modified the liquid to half a jar of sauce and increased the water to 2 cups.

Alberto (my Italian brother-in-law), you can come back now.

Here’s what’s on the menu this week:

• Salmon with preserved lemon couscous + steamed broccoli
  
• Tamale pie (Defined Dish)
  
• Stroganoff (Defined Dish again—Bonnie hugged me for this one)
  
• Margherita Pizza Friday
  
• Pulled pork tacos with hatch chile salsa
  

Hot tip: write down the page numbers from your cookbooks! I like to pick one cookbook and work from it all week—it makes shopping and planning way easier.

Also—has anyone had success with lunchbox thermoses? I’m packing lunches for Bonnie soon and am open to all recs. I lived off packed lunches as a kid but somehow remember none of it (did I really eat a sandwich every day??), much less how to keep something warm from morning to lunch.

Creative Sparks

My daughter Bonnie started gymnastics and dance at school... and it got me thinking.

Why is it so easy to say “yes” to her joy but harder to say “yes” to my own?

So, I booked myself into a reformer Pilates class this week. Just one. But I’m hoping to keep going for 2x classes per week for the next month. Because investing in your own happiness and health shouldn’t feel optional. We deserve a little fun, too.

P.S. If you’re looking for creative joy, The Pigeon Letters is hosting a free summer retreat with art tutorials. Available through August 8th!
👉Check it out here

P.P.S. Enjoy this hilarious (and slightly creepy) drawing Bonnie made for her teachers before changing schools.

What I'm Reading

Shield of Sparrows: LOVED. It gave me ACOTAR + Fourth Wing vibes. 5/5 stars. Like a perfectly grilled margarita pizza—comforting, just a little indulgent, and exactly what I wanted. A very, very good enemies to lovers.

Next up: Carly Fortune’s One Golden Summer. Reviews are mixed from my friends, and I’m curious where I’ll land.

Tempted to buy Silver Elite now because my Libby hold is 800 years away.

Coming Up...

I know, I know—it’s still summer. But mentally? I’ve blown through Christmas and landed squarely in Galentine’s Day. 😉 Fellow small business owners, I know you get it.

For everyone else who’s firmly planted in August: I’m also prepping for my biggest sale of the year this October. Early shoppers, rejoice!

Newsletter subscribers will be the only ones who get first dibs and discount codes—so if you’ve got a friend or family member who’s been eyeing art prints, forward this along so they don’t miss out.

And while that’s in motion, I’m also sketching up a little something romantic and bookish for the new year:
I’m envisioning Galentine’s dinner party vibes with pinks, reds, and a touch of enemies-to-lovers energy (it’s my favorite trope). 

I’m dreaming up a printed tablecloth, matching napkins, and maybe even coordinating art prints for your bookshelf or reading nook. Basically: the cozy, creative girls’ night of my dreams—and hopefully yours too.

In the meantime, more duos are on the way: sports, butterflies, flowers, cars, and planes.

xo,

Katie