Hillcrest Decorating Tips

When you live in an apartment, there is a lot more wall space to decorate than in a dorm room. You sometimes have to get a little creative to keep those walls from being bear. Here are a few suggestions on how to get the job done.

1. Maps: These are a great way to to cover large amounts of wall space. They are also really handy during discussions about geography. This map belonged to my parents.

2. Montages: Another way to fill a big wall is by creating a sort of montage with smaller pictures. It is also a good way to preserve memories. My roommate and I bought two of these prints together when we were in Chicago last summer, and we bought two other ones from The Collaboration Room here in Bloomington.

3. Hanging: I have to credit my roommate for this, but we have a fun hanging decoration that adds a lot of character to our apartment. It is made up of lots of colorful paper circles, and hangs above our living room. It's one of the first things people notice when they walk into the room.

Getting Hands-on with Handmade Paper

Arts Council is a group involved in the funding and scheduling of all kinds of art-related events around Collins. One such event was a trip to Twinrocker Handmade Paper in Brookston, Indiana. Before the business was established in 1971, no one was making handmade paper in the U.S.; it was all factory-produced. Now, Twinrocker is one of the most popular places to find handmade paper in the country.
During the workshop we were given a tour and demonstrations on how to form sheets of paper. Then we got to be hands-on--and very messy--while making our own sheets of paper, using different paper fibers and colors. There are very specific steps to the process that take quite a while to be mastered, kind of like the steps of a dance.

An Enchanting Performance

This evening I got to see an enchanting performance of the musical Beauty and the Beast at the auditorium. The visuals were incredible; at one point during the song "Be Our Guest," confetti was shot into the crowd. Very exciting. The play followed the Disney movie very closely, but with a few changes like new songs. In following the plot and hearing the old songs, it was really fun to be reminded of the movie I watched as a kid. I really want to watch the movie again, now!