The Joy of Childhood Play and Design

This is kind of like her little cozy readingnook.My other daughter is our foodie and she loves being able to use the little kitchenette and she'll make food and, like, bring it upstairs on a tray sometimes for us. There's something about toy food that I don't care how old you are, there's just something very magical and fun about them, so. Always want to play with it too. Get served coffee all the time and it's so good and yeah, and then we've got some additional photos.

I think, like just being surrounded in pictures of family is just makes everything better. Neither of us grew up with a playroom, so we didn't really have like a bar set for what a good playroom would entail. We just really tried to let our inner child, like kind of shine and figure out what we would have been excited about. Also, as adults, we wanted to be able to like, you know, visit the girls like space. And it's kind of like a time for us to, like, come check out their pad and just have it be kind of whimsical, good, clean design.

I think I've always loved bright color and pattern, but I think having kids is just like fully enabled us to lean into that and maybe do things that we would have done, but may not as boldly. I mean, it's kind of just our all-of-playhouse, really. This is the girls' bedroom. They asked for a pink room and I did not give them that. I gave them a pink rug. Really don't like the whole assigning color to gender situation. My girls love the color pink, but it's not necessarily just because they're girls. And so I wanted an opportunity to make pink pop.

I also love the ocean and love water. So to be able to have it feel like this immersive experience with pops of pink, I think makes pink feel stronger. Color can really create an environment without having to have a lot of space. The girls' room, we just painted this blue color that makes the room seem way bigger than it was before. It's not a massive space. Just because it's for kids doesn't mean it has to be straight out of the box kind of colors and that you could have something that's appealing for both a child and an adult to enjoy.

I think with my design and mural work, I try to balance that line of it being approachable by both children and adults. It kind of makes kids feel a little bit maybe more sophisticated, but then it makes an adult feel a little bit more playful. We also have these two Marimekko fabrics that are also stretched over canvas. My sister gifted this fabric to me when I was pregnant with each of my daughters. Just feels like something will have forever.

This is a piece by They Go by Dirty Bandits and it's kind of just like a traditional sign painter lettering format. This is kind of where Ryan's style comes into play, where we've got our lettering. And this just felt like the perfect kind of piece to put into the girls' room. This is also by my same friend. So she recreated childhood ornaments that she had, and she's actually my youngest godmother, so she's gifted us these that are also kind of like mementos from her childhood that have been made modern, which is kind of, in a way, a theme of a lot of the stuff in our home by having all these handmade objects by family members and loved ones around.

I hope it inspires them that if they have an inkling to be creative that they feel like they can just do it and they have examples of people doing it. I mean, we always say like, be like, just be unapologetically yourself. And I think for them to see us both following our dreams, it's exciting because not a lot of people get to see their parents do what they love. And so I think that in itself is powerful.

And then I think growing up in a house full of art, I think is just joyful. The artwork that they bring back home. Can see our house reflected in what they're doing at school. You know, it's what we're passionate about. And being able to share that passion with our kids is really exciting.

Honestly, this is like it's going to sound kind of weird. I'm excited for the next adventure. Think that, you know, you learn so much with taking over a space like this and then it's like help me build my creative voice and my design sense and it makes me want to take on additional challenges and like what possibly could be next. Mean, it's exciting.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enThere's something about toy food.I always want to play with it too.I get served coffee all the time and it's sogood.Hi, my name is Rachel Gloria Adams, and thisis my handmade home in Portland, Maine.Hi, guys. Come on in.I'm so excited to show you my place.I am an artist and mural painter anddesigner.My mom's an artist and an art teacher, and Ithink that I kind of bucked against thereality that I had it in me.And so I didn't really start making artuntil my senior year in high school.I went to a college fair and talked to anart school, and they said that they didn'thave homework. And I was like, That's theschool I want to go to.I ended up getting into all the art schoolsI applied to, and I just haven't stoppedsince. Brian and I created these series ofvignettes around the house.I like to think of it as the patternmatching and the color stories, things thathappen within our artwork, but it's also nowkind of translated into the home as artistswere maybe doing things that, you know, aninterior decorator might not think to do justbecause of the way we process color andprocess pattern as texture and just not beingafraid to put it up, you know, whatever thatmay be.And then this is our living room.I kind of was going through this like greenperiod.So you'll notice that this wall color isactually a color that I used.And I think six or 7 or 8 or 9 or 10 muralslast year.And it was just kind of my go to green overhere is actually one of my pieces.A lot of my artwork from that time periodalso used a lot of greens and blues justreally craving like the Green of Summer.The artwork in my living room is kind of adeparture.I actually don't like the colors, red andorange that much, and I kind of challengedmyself to figure out a way to make it work.So I knew that I needed to warm it up alittle bit.I started with this vintage print that wegot in town and that kind of served as thebasis for everything.This is actually a pillow case that weframed.I just got a kick out of it as anillustration.This over here is actually fabric that'sstretched over canvas, which is a great wayto be able to get a lot of color at once ina really inexpensive way to have a uniqueartwork. We both are really drawn to justlike really bright flat color.And so and that's in our own personalartwork and then kind of the artwork that wegravitate towards a lot of the artwork isfrom, you know, friends of ours or just kindof our immediate art community.It's nice having a history with some of theartwork and so like that part of it's reallynice because it's tied to a relationship oran experience.I think everything has like a little bit ofa history to it.We have this Copenhagen print from Ryan andhis first trip to Europe together and it wason a fence and we pulled it down and somehowmanaged to fly it back here.I have a Jewish step grandmother whoneedlepoint.She didn't actually make this, but I thinkmy aunt gave it to my mom as a joke.And I saw it and loved it.And it's just kind of this thing that Ican't get rid of because it reminds me of hereven though she didn't make it, I don'tknow.So we knew that with having four of us livehere that we could never really fully committo one space always being one thing.And we had to be open with the fact that ourneeds were going to constantly change.So our basement was our office and studiofor a while and then that has now turned intoa playroom.We wanted the girls to just be able to feellike this was like their own little world.And we wanted there to be kind of like alldifferent activities for them to be able todo in here. We told the girls as clients,like, What would you want in a mural?They gave us a list of like all the thingsthey would want.And so on Christmas morning, we had the treeout and they came downstairs and there wasnothing under the tree, which I got a lot ofjoy out of first, second.And then they went downstairs and we hadlike a bubble machine going and they had noidea it was happening the whole time.We kept it all under wraps.Ryan and I both paint murals and so we kindof assigned each other the areas he was ableto do their names in his graffiti lettering.Nora has a thing for strawberries, and shealso asked for poop.So we've got a poop emoji as well.You know, clients have their needs.Zoe We call Zoe Bug.She's got a little ladybug.It's also kind of fun because Ryan's momlives in a condo in the same area as us, andhe got his start spray painting in herbasement like one of those sweet moments forhis childhood to be able to then do it forhis daughters.These dolls right here are a collaborationthat I did with a local doll maker, and thisis my fabric. They are the cutest.My two girls, Zoe and Nora.We left these large shapes so that differentthings could be hung within them.When I was designing this part of the mural,these flower shapes with matching frames.By having these removable picture frames,we're able to, you know, as the girls getolder, update the pictures.My oldest loves to read and so she's able togo into her little den, zip it up, and thenhave no one bother her.This is kind of like her little cozy readingnook.My other daughter is our foodie and sheloves being able to use the littlekitchenette and she'll make food and, like,bring it upstairs on a tray sometimes for us.There's something about toy food that Idon't care how old you are, there's justsomething very magical and fun about them,so.I always want to play with it too.I get served coffee all the time and it's sogood and yeah, and then we've got someadditional photos.I think, like just being surrounded inpictures of family is just makes everythingbetter. Neither of us grew up with aplayroom, so we didn't really have like a barset for what a good playroom would entail.We just really tried to let our inner child,like kind of shine and figure out what wewould have been excited about.Also, as adults, we wanted to be able tolike, you know, visit the girls like space.And it's kind of like a time for us to,like, come check out their pad and just haveit be kind of whimsical, good, clean design.I think I've always loved bright color andpattern, but I think having kids is just likefully enabled us to lean into that and maybedo things that we would have done, but maybenot as boldly.I mean, it's kind of just our all of ourplayhouse, really.This is the girls bedroom.They asked for a pink room and I did notgive them that.I gave them a pink rug.I really don't like the whole assigningcolor to gender situation.My girls love the color pink, but it's notnecessarily just because they're girls.And so I wanted an opportunity to make pinkpop.I also love the ocean and love water.So to be able to have it feel like thisimmersive experience with pops of pink Ithink makes pink feel stronger.Color can really create an environmentwithout having to have a lot of space.The girls room, we just painted this bluecolor that makes the room seem way biggerthan it was before.It's not a massive space.Just because it's for kids doesn't mean ithas to be straight out of the box kind ofcolors and that you could have likesomething that's appealing for both a childand an adult to enjoy.I think with my design and mural work, I tryto balance that line of it being approachableby both children and adults.It kind of makes kids feel a little bitmaybe more sophisticated, but then it makesan adult feel a little bit more playful.We also have these two marimekko fabricsthat are also stretched over canvas.My sister gifted this fabric to me when Iwas pregnant with each of my daughters.It just feels like something will haveforever.This is a piece by They Go by Dirty Banditsand it's kind of just like a traditional signpainter lettering format.This is kind of where Ryan's style comesinto play, where we've got our lettering.And this just felt like the perfect kind ofpiece to put into the girls room.This is also by my same friend.So she recreated childhood ornaments thatshe had, and she's actually my youngestgodmother, so she's gifted us these that arealso kind of like mementos from her childhoodthat have been made modern, which is kindof, in a way, I guess, a theme of a lot ofthe stuff in our home by having all thesehandmade objects by family members and lovedones around. I hope it inspires them that ifthey have an inkling to be creative that theyfeel like they can just do it and they haveexamples of people doing it.I mean, we always say like, be like, just beunapologetically yourself.And I think for them to see us bothfollowing our dreams, it's exciting becausenot a lot of people get to see their parentsdo what they love.And so I think that in itself is powerful.And then I think growing up in a house fullof art, I think is just I think it's justjoyful, the artwork that they bring backhome.I can see our house reflected in whatthey're doing at school.You know, it's what we're passionate about.And being able to share that passion withour kids is really exciting.Honestly, this is like it's going to soundkind of weird.I'm excited for the next adventure.I think that, you know, you learn so muchwith taking over a space like this and thenit's like, help me build my creative voiceand my design sense and it makes me want totake on additional challenges and like whatpossibly could be next.I mean, it's exciting.If you liked this video, give it a thumbs upand subscribe to Handmade.\n"