Monday, January 25, 2010

The Chalk Walk

This weekend I thought it would be fun to add some color to my block! So I went outside and traced my footsteps with chalk down the sidewalk.
As I was doing this, a grumpy old man came up to me and yelled at me to stop. I actually thought about stopping until a boy came up to me with a giant smile and said "make more"

and I liked his advice better =)

So I tested out the finished footprints,

ran up to my window to wait with Moo,
and took pictures when people walked by so that it looks like they are leaving trails of colorful footprints!
It was really cute to watch kids (and many adults who thought no one was watching) hop along the footsteps like they were playing hopscotch.

191 comments:

  1. This is the perfect way to start a Monday - thank you for giving me the perk of happiness I needed this morning! Wouldn't it be cute if Moo left his wee prints alongside yours! Your neighbors ( even Mr. Grouchy pants ) are so fortunate to have you!

    ReplyDelete
  2. You always have the best ideas. :) I'd love to be your neighbor!

    P.S. Grumpy old men just like to find things to complain about. There are far worse things in this world than colorful footprints. Silly, silly.

    ReplyDelete
  3. This is really nice and creative ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Your community is lucky to have you:) More footprints please!

    ReplyDelete
  5. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Beautiful! Just what I needed on a rainy Monday morning.

    ReplyDelete
  7. His favorite color must have been missing. Silly grumpy old man.

    ReplyDelete
  8. This is such a lovely idea! I would love to see colourful footprints outside my house! What a silly grumpy old man.

    ReplyDelete
  9. oooh, please come walk in my neighborhood! we could use some colorful footprints! :D

    ReplyDelete
  10. lovely idea! next time you should do like a wandering path and see who follows it! i know i would :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Love it! And ignore grumpy old men yes!

    ReplyDelete
  12. that's great ! :] it would definitely make me smile and hop along if I saw them on a sidewalk !

    ReplyDelete
  13. Katie--you amaze me. Your cheerful experiments never fail to brighten my day. Thanks for posting this on a Monday morning! :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. That's a really cool idea! And the pictures are lovely. :]

    ReplyDelete
  15. This is such a sweet idea. I LOVE how much cheer you spread around with your experiments. By the way, my kids cannot stop watching the "Magic Curtain" video and the "Moo" video.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Do more, more, and more things like these always, please :-)
    Biquiños!

    ReplyDelete
  17. I'm glad you didn't listen to that grumpy old man. Your posts always make me smile.

    ReplyDelete
  18. How cute! You always have the most creative ideas!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Oh, I think these are some of my favorites of your photos ... because New York has always seemed like this magical, mythical place to me, and for some reason looking at these views of your window and your street makes it seem real. And the footprint idea is great, too. (My kids have these "shoes" that you can fill with chalk and strap to your feet to make footprints - you can change out the stencils to make hooves or paws or whatever!) Thanks again for the inspiration to make the world a brighter place!

    ReplyDelete
  20. WOW is a great idea, that's what is called "trace", I loved it! is as if people stopped very devirtida a track behind her real genius! Katie good week

    ReplyDelete
  21. Great idea, I would have followed the footprints. Thx again

    ReplyDelete
  22. @ Rachel- woa, that's awesome! I've never seen those before!

    ReplyDelete
  23. This is beyond adorable. I love it.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Whoa! Those are some awesome shoes, girlie! I like having Moo get in on the fun, too. I'll bet he was watching you the whole time. :)

    ReplyDelete
  25. Aww I've done this before, but yours turned out so cute! I love that you're always trying to make the world a little more cheerful!

    ReplyDelete
  26. what an amazing idea! your pictures and creativity are so special

    ReplyDelete
  27. SO cute!! your neihbors are lucky to have you!

    ReplyDelete
  28. This is perfection. Thank you for sharing!

    And grumpy old men make me sad.

    ReplyDelete
  29. i adore this! you really know how to add a splash of colour in your world and i LOVE that. this is beauty!

    ReplyDelete
  30. i love that you did this. coolest.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Great idea - it looks so wonderful! As I was a child I wrote "hello" in front of each door in my street - there was an old man as well yelling at me that I should stopp mutilating our street...

    ReplyDelete
  32. I remeber when I used to draw with chalk in my school floor.
    I like the advice of the smiling guy, that is a cool person, not like that bitter men.
    I'm in love with your converse! they're perfect.

    kisses Katie!!!

    ReplyDelete
  33. That is terrific. Glad that grumpy old man did not make you stop. STOP war. NOT footprints..

    ReplyDelete
  34. You sure walked all over the grumpy men in the world (haw haw)! It's little things like these that make my day. :)

    http://charmalade.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  35. this is so wonderful!
    you always have the most cheerful and fun ideas!! i wish i lived in your neighborhood!

    ReplyDelete
  36. Your blog makes me so happy! I can't wait to do this! :)

    ReplyDelete
  37. I live on this block, and didn't get to see the footprints because I was hibernating for the day. What a pity!

    ReplyDelete
  38. This is adorable!
    Don't listen to grumpy old men! Making the little boy and the passerbys smile is totally worth it!

    ReplyDelete
  39. I read about that Mr. Grump on your Twitter page and thought how stupid. This is awesome, thanks for sharing, as always. (:

    ReplyDelete
  40. I'm so glad that a happy person came by just in time to keep the grumpy person from stopping something so fun from happening. It just shows that we should be vocally supportive of people, even when they're strangers.

    ReplyDelete
  41. Your ideas are always so much fun. I am glad that you didn't listen to the grumpy old man.

    Tricia :)

    ReplyDelete
  42. You should have explained what you were doing to the old man and why it is important, and then using your charm got him completely on your side -- which i think would be possible. Next time!

    ReplyDelete
  43. I definitely tried to get him on my side but he was really stubborn!

    ReplyDelete
  44. Thanks for brightening my Monday! Love your shoes, by the way :)

    ReplyDelete
  45. This is such a great idea and it looks cute :)

    ReplyDelete
  46. That old man sounds like he needs a little color and childhood back in his life ;) I love the footprints, I think we may need some outside our apartment when it warms up and the snow goes away!

    ReplyDelete
  47. Your blog and ideas always make me smile! This one's so cool. <3

    ReplyDelete
  48. Mind if I use your idea? I love chalk! :)

    ReplyDelete
  49. I just recently found out about your blog, and I have to say, that every time I visit, your posts make me smile. That was super cool!

    ReplyDelete
  50. Happiest post I'll see all week. And this is only Monday.

    ReplyDelete
  51. hey, just to translate for you in case you don't read japanese, the hiragana above says "me-cha kawaii" or "sooooo cute!"

    felt like i should do sumtin for you for brightening up the neighborhood.

    -some white guy on green st.

    ReplyDelete
  52. You've never run out of brilliant ideas! Kudos to you! Happy Monday :D

    ReplyDelete
  53. If there was an angel at the bottom of the rainbow, that would be you...

    ReplyDelete
  54. so fun! I'd love to stumble upon some colorful footsteps when I'm walking around the city.

    ReplyDelete
  55. Can you please come to New York and brighten my day? I love your work of art once again!
    I need some color myself! The weather is depressing me..

    ReplyDelete
  56. Haha so cute. Too bad the old man couldn't enjoy it as well.

    ReplyDelete
  57. What fun. It would be fun to know what Moo thinks of all this.

    ReplyDelete
  58. This is brilliant! I'm gonna make this an activity for a sunny day.

    ReplyDelete
  59. I'm glad you didn't stop. This is a creative and fun idea.

    ReplyDelete
  60. This is totally awesome! Love it and glad you kept at it nevermind that grumpy old man.

    ReplyDelete
  61. this is super adorable! I am commenting to let you know that you have been chosen to receive the best blogger award by me Adeline at My Vintage Image.

    justanoldfashionedgal.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  62. You have to wonder what is going on in the life of a man who wouldn't smile at this. I feel sorry for him. Love this!

    Sue

    ReplyDelete
  63. Dear Katie,
    You made me smile! Love your blog, keep it up!

    ReplyDelete
  64. Boo! for grumpy old men. Yeah! for fun little kids. I love the idea. What a fun experiment!

    ReplyDelete
  65. I gotta say you are such an inspiration to me. I love, love, LOVE your work.

    ReplyDelete
  66. YAY for Katie!
    Another triumph for happiness and fun!
    P.S. I tagged for the Kreativ Blogger award on my blog cos you're awesome and your blog always makes me smile!

    ReplyDelete
  67. However do you think of all these things!? You're hilarious and adorable and I love your blog. :)

    http://wishesdreamsandmagicspells.typepad.com

    ReplyDelete
  68. What a cool art project!

    We need more public art like this. Kudos on your initiative.

    ReplyDelete
  69. I'm having stressed out kind of day, but this is so pretty and such a cool idea... :) Love it. TFS.

    ReplyDelete
  70. bummer on the grumpy old guy. you should take him some flowers or chocolate or something and tell him to CHEER UP!

    i saw your tweet a few days ago and was so excited to see your chalk project! love it!!

    ReplyDelete
  71. grumpy old man be gone - never stop!

    ReplyDelete
  72. I'm definitely glad you took the boy's advice over the grumpy old man. Thousands of smiles over his upside-down one? Definitely ftw. :)

    ReplyDelete
  73. That is probably the sweetest thing I've ever seen.
    I love your blog! It makes me want to make all kinds of wonderful things!

    ReplyDelete
  74. Wow! I love what you did...It just made my day. I love your blog!

    ReplyDelete
  75. Hey thats so cute ! :) AND I LOVE YOUR SNEAKERS!!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  76. Oh this just made my morning! I LOVE this.

    ReplyDelete
  77. I love this, this was exactly what I needed today.

    Your footprints added colour to my day just like it added colour to the grey sidewalk.

    ReplyDelete
  78. what a cute idea!! Nevermind that grumpy old man - that looks wonderful and I'm sure you brought smiles to a lot of people. Love it.
    cait xoxo

    ReplyDelete
  79. You fill our cup with good cheer. Who fills yours.
    Someone said your neighborhood is lucky to have you. I second that.

    ReplyDelete
  80. I like the boy's advice better too. Don't listen to grumpy old men!!

    Love the pictures!!

    ReplyDelete
  81. This is so fun! I wish there wasn't so much snow on my block, I'd spread the footprint love.

    ReplyDelete
  82. That looks such great fun. What a wonderful idea. It made me smile. I'm glad you ignored the grumpy old man. :)

    ReplyDelete
  83. What a great dose of happy this is!!!

    So glad you listened to the kid and ditched the grumpy old man's advice!

    ReplyDelete
  84. We need more colorful footprints!!!! Great job & I love the pics. I'm also sending love to Mr Grouchy, sounds like he needs it.

    ReplyDelete
  85. This is yet another super cute idea! =)
    I'm sorry about the grumpy old man, but I'm really happy you continued anyway. Yay for the little boy =)

    ReplyDelete
  86. Thanks so much for all of your sweet comments!!

    ReplyDelete
  87. we were in two neighborhoods in brooklyn this weekend and i really wish i saw this. fantastic! and the rain the next day is so mary poppins!

    ReplyDelete
  88. How cute! Boo on the grumpy old man.

    ReplyDelete
  89. you have the most amazing ideas ever. :)
    im so glad you took the kid's advice over the grumpy old man. kudos :)

    i love your posts!

    ReplyDelete
  90. How delightful! I was thinking of getting some sidewalk chalk the other day but it started pouring... it's been pouring for several days, and the colorful chalk would just wash away.

    ReplyDelete
  91. Golly! You are loaded with tons of ideas! (Looks like your magic wand is working...)

    ReplyDelete
  92. Love your blog... lovely and refreshing and just plane fun..

    Cheers

    Ian

    ReplyDelete
  93. his is so nice, im sure you made somebody;s day!

    ReplyDelete
  94. i'd love to see a video of the hoppers :) This is so neat Katie! Lovely lovely, i love thee :)

    ReplyDelete
  95. Fabulous. And if it made me smile from here, I can't imagaine how big the smiles were in person.

    ReplyDelete
  96. I love what you did!! Amazing shoes too! :)

    ReplyDelete
  97. Katie, LOVE your quirky ideas, wish I had time to explore creativity the ways you do! I'm sure the footprints brightened up everyone's day, even those who are just reading this but laughing to themselves :)

    p.s. HI to the leigh-ann above! we're practically namesakes! :)

    ReplyDelete
  98. Fantastic.
    Love the boys remark 'make more'
    Such a metaphor for LIFE!

    ReplyDelete
  99. that is so cool! i love it. you should trace out some dance steps to see if anyone would follow them down the street :)

    ReplyDelete
  100. LOve it Love it Love it. This is fab fab fab. Im so inspired by you katie, maybe I should do that too. And dont bother about that old man... he'll prolly forget everything the next minute.HAHAHAHA.

    Trying to find my life with happy art and all. FInding inspiration through kids too. I love barbie and I wear clickits to school. And oh... im 18 this year.

    ReplyDelete
  101. I found you by way of Design for Mankind and have just added you to my blog roll. Great stuff!! Thanks so much!

    ReplyDelete
  102. Katie, where ever do you find such wonderful, bright colors of chalk? I would love to have some of my own!

    ReplyDelete
  103. I bought this chalk http://tinyurl.com/ycrjs37 . The colors are so fun and bright!

    ReplyDelete
  104. That's such a cute idea! I would do that to the sidewalk outside my house if it wasn't so cracked and if the people on my street weren't so grumpy and obnoxious.

    ReplyDelete
  105. Katie, this world is a brighter place because you're in it - thanks for shining your light.

    ReplyDelete
  106. You are amazing! What a beautiful mind you have! Glad I came across your blog... You've made my day!

    ReplyDelete
  107. This is so cute, I think I might go out and do this in my town :)

    ReplyDelete
  108. i love the brightly colored chalk! it must have been so disheartening to have that old guy come up to you, i'm glad the boy cancelled out his remarks :) adorable once again!

    ReplyDelete
  109. this is one of the best blogs ever.
    every little thing here makes me smile
    :)love this
    THANKS!

    ReplyDelete
  110. if only we could do that in singapore! and yes, the boy's idea was definitely much better and supportive! LOL

    ReplyDelete
  111. Thanks everyone! You're all so sweet!

    ReplyDelete
  112. What a colourful footpath. I would think it would cheer up the grumpy old man. Maybe he wanted to draw with you too? :)

    On another note, do you want to trade your awesome shoes? :)

    ReplyDelete
  113. He was actually mad because he didn't want to step on them. He said he didn't want chalk on the bottom of his shoes! I then politely let him know that he's stepping on much dirtier things on the street than chalk!

    Got a colorful pair of shoes I could trade you with? ;)

    ReplyDelete
  114. Hmmm, a pair of bright Indian flip flops..Thread on the top. Wonder what your Indian shoe size is. Hehehe, will send you a picture for fun and let you be the judge.

    ReplyDelete
  115. You´re a true inspiration. I just love your ideas. You live life like everybody should do. A big smile and i wish u all the best. Check out my scarfes at: asanorbergerdesign.blogspot.com "Tokyo" would be perfect on u.
    Take care.
    I´ll give u a big hug.Åsa

    ReplyDelete
  116. also, i just wanted to let you know that i tagged you in a blogger award. go to my blog to recieve it, congrats!

    ReplyDelete
  117. I live in Manhattan but I wish I lived in Brooklyn so I could be your neighbor!
    whenever I draw with chalk on my street, someone comes by and washes it off within a few hours :(

    ReplyDelete
  118. I'm glad you followed through and finished this--what a fun idea.

    ReplyDelete
  119. Haha! That's such an awesome idea!!! Would you mind if I used it here, in Stockholm. It's awfully gray here (seriously :/ it's depressing) and I wanta change that :).

    ReplyDelete
  120. That would be awesome if you did it there! Make sure to send me some fun pictures of it. I'd loooove to see =)

    ReplyDelete
  121. This is sooo cool. I love your website - it's new to me and already can't believe I've just now seen this. So inspiring and happy.

    ReplyDelete
  122. So perfect for these dull winter days. Thanks for bringing a smile to my face! my kids would love to do this, now if only we had some sidewalk chalk. I think ours is all gone.

    ReplyDelete
  123. I bet when you weren't looking that grumpy old man came back and walked along the colors with a tear in his eye. Who knows what makes him sad, disguised as grumpy. Good for you!

    ReplyDelete
  124. that is just so amazing!! i would definitely be hop-scotching along that :) thanks for brightening my day

    ReplyDelete
  125. Amazing!! I love inspiring things that anyone could do but no one thinks of :)

    Cheers!

    -Julie

    ReplyDelete
  126. As cliche as this sounds, this restores my faith in people after one of those days where I question the human race... Thank you for completely turning my day around... :)

    ReplyDelete
  127. You DO deserve some sort of award for this! You already got the REWARD. :) Thank you for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  128. AWESOME. what a wonderful idea :)

    your shoes are pretty badass, by the way.

    ReplyDelete
  129. Ouuu I fall in love with youre colorfull blog :) Great Sunny and powerfull. Greets from Poland.

    ReplyDelete
  130. and this is exactly why I love blogs.
    It inspires me oh so much

    ReplyDelete
  131. first of all, i LOVE your multicolor striped converse shoes!!!!!!!!!!! (i wonder if they are still being made at the land of rainbows!). oh katie, those footsteps are MAGIC. i would totally step on every one & drink in such joyful inspiration. you are a gift to the world/thank you for being dear you! (i'm now a follower). xox

    ReplyDelete
  132. How cute is this?
    Found your Blog just now and simply love it, making me very happy : )

    ReplyDelete
  133. This just made my not so great day, amazing. Please, can we be neighbors? Xx

    ReplyDelete
  134. So good! My lovely neighbour used to draw nice things on our sidewalks too... until the STRATA wrote a letter to say CEASE! (grumps)
    LOVE the footprints. so colourful.

    ReplyDelete
  135. THIS is exactly what I love about you.

    ReplyDelete
  136. This post made my day! It makes me want to go out an trace my feet... I hope you don't mind if I borrow your idea :-)

    ReplyDelete
  137. HI. I just found your blog and I love it. You are so much fun! I am going to do this with my kids today. I can't wait to spend an hour or 2 looking through your blog.
    I'll be back.
    Greta

    ReplyDelete
  138. This is absolutely, absolutely beautiful. Colour - my favourite! It's such an adorable idea and I love how an old man asked you to stop, while the child asked you to keep going. Sometimes, it's good remember how to be children. They have all the fun. Childlike faith is beautiful. x

    ReplyDelete
  139. What a fantastic idea! Great way to add color to the day. I think I'm going to have to do this with my 4 year old... though not many people walk by our house... :)

    ReplyDelete
  140. Coolest thing i've ever seen!!! I want to do that too!!!

    ReplyDelete
  141. wow! this is amazing....
    you're like a little sunshine on earth and I'm so happy people like you actually exist! it made my day!
    God bless u!

    ReplyDelete
  142. What a fun idea! I love it! The colors are so vibrant...and make me smile. :)

    stephanie@metropolitanmama.net

    ReplyDelete
  143. not sure if you read every comment you receive but I just wanted to say, tonight I needed to stumble across your blog. I needed to know that some one (other than me) loved her cat and to make people smile. You are such a gift Katie and I thank you from the bottom of my heart of existing and bringing so much joy to our world. How dull it would be without you. You are a true treasure and I'm glad you share yourself with the world.
    Be well,
    Jennifer

    ReplyDelete
  144. This made my heart beat so fabulously fast. I once wrote a short story about an old woman who draws hopscotch for blocks & blocks. This made my heart light & my day bright. Thank YOU!!!

    ReplyDelete
  145. O.M.G.

    I want to do this!

    You're amazing!

    ReplyDelete
  146. we could use more you's in the world :)

    ReplyDelete
  147. Beautiful idea, a kind of anticipation of Spring's blossoms, a service to the community. And don't underestimate the grumpy old man. People complaining about something that beautifies make the act all the more beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  148. What a great idea!!!

    ReplyDelete
  149. This is so cute (:
    Somethig i'd love to do too.
    Kate, x.

    ReplyDelete
  150. I have felt gloomy for the past couple of months, winter just gets me down. Looking through your blog I feel the sun shining down, helping me to look at things with a different perspective. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  151. This is so fantastic! Thank you for inspiring me today :)

    ReplyDelete
  152. What fun! Also: LOVE THOSE SHOES.

    ReplyDelete
  153. You make the world a better place(:

    ReplyDelete
  154. oh god, love the idea!!! You always make me smile. (I posted it on my blog)

    ReplyDelete
  155. Pure beauty. Such an awesome idea!

    ReplyDelete
  156. I love this, and I love your blog! My daughter who loves hearts,bright color, and chalk, loves your blog too.

    ReplyDelete
  157. Hello again! My daughter just started a blog, and she made a chalk walk!http://kealanisspark.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  158. your idea is so lovely !!!
    Wonderful work ~~

    ReplyDelete
  159. I just found your blog today, and I seriously can't stop smiling! :)

    Anyways, this is AMAZING, I think when the weather decides to stay dry for a longer span of time, I might do this all over campus :)

    ReplyDelete
  160. What a beautiful post. I love the whimsy in it.

    ReplyDelete
  161. OMG! I have searched and searched for you last year, I keep thinking about the name of your site but I just cant remember. But then I recalled, what project of yours really stuck to me, it was this chalk footprint art. Thanks to google. Silly me! I love your blog and just clicked follow to make sure I don't lose it again! More art power to you Katie!

    ReplyDelete