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sometimes i want things that just don't fit in my budget. ok, a lot more than sometimes. but, sometimes i'm fortunate enough to be able to work out something in the form of a trade. it's like a real life version of settlers of catan, but with art and things like yoga, instead of wheat and sheep.
this piece was born out of the art of the barter. my addiction to yoga, with this particular teacher, must be fed. so, art for her cutie cute baby girl's room equals my yoga addiction fed.
the piece started here (pardon the horrid basement lighting):
and morphed into this (that's a butterfly pun right there!). her room is lovely tones of pastel blues and pinks and sage greens, and she loves butterflies.
big butterfly gets a blue eye to match baby girl's, and a bob dylan lyric rounds out the art, since he's her namesake.
wanna chat about a possible trade? have a service i might be interested in? say hair cutting, massage, cutie cute jewelry? call me.
when baby sister was here, i created a little tutorial for y'all to whip up some magnetic clothespins. they're super easy to make, but if you'd rather i do them for you, we can arrange that, too!
to get started, gather all your materials:
-clothespins
-assorted paper
-mod podge or glue
-self-adhesive magnet roll
-scissors
-pencil
-foam brush
choose your paper - there are tons of 12x12 papers out there with fun designs on one sheet, which lets you have different style clothespins that still match. then, trace around your clothespins and cut out your strips.
glue your paper to your clothespin with your mod podge. swipe a little more over the paper to secure. let dry, then do a few more layers of Mod Podge to really secure your paper.
when they're dry, roll out some of your magnet, measure against your clothespin, and cut strips. if your magnet's too wide, cut it in half to fit on the clothespins. peel off the backing and stick to the clothespins. let sit for a bit 'til the adhesive sets.
rock your clothespins on your own fridge, or wrap them up as a fun, quick, homemade gift. they're the perfect hostess gift!
or, leave the magnets off and use them for the hippest chip bags
or clothesline around.
yo, yo, yo, i'm at it again. come enjoy the 80+ weather with a stroll around the west seattle summerfest, and while you're at it, stop by the art dive and say hello to li'l ol' me. maybe pick up some gifties for the besty, mama, or to restock the gift closet (do you have one, too?!)
k, see ya there!
wanna do the easiest tutorial ever? like seriously, easiest ever? that's the spirit! let's get started.
letters, initials, words, words, words are all the rage these days, and i've got my fair share adorning the casita. frankly, when i walk by the letter aisle at the joann's, michaels, hobby lobby persuasion, i'm hard pressed to resist dumping a few in the basket.
so, next time you're at one of the ol' crafter supply shops, don't resist the urge. pick up one or forty letters.
bring those bad boys home, and give them some color. if it isn't obv by now, black is my signature culuh. (my culuhs are blush and bashful).
then, find something around the casita with a sweet design you can use as a stencil. like, oh, i don't know, the mat from the front door. what? there's inspiration everywhere, i tell ya!
then, give those bad boys another shot of color. silver? my otha signature culuh.
and, they's done! let 'em dry, then hang 'em. or, prop 'em on a shelf or desk. or string 'em from twine over the beddy bye. you decide.
see how easy that was? hardest part is waitin' for 'em to dry. and, aren't they just the cutest things you ever done seen? mmhmm. thought so. of course, i could do it for ya, if you need me to.
and, i've since used that doormat on numerous other projects. poor thing's so confused as to its lot in life.
what y'all been workin' on? got any cool tutorials for moi?
*with the exception of custom canvases, all gifts are $25 or less. how awesome is that?!
some people start shopping for holiday gifts in july, some people wait until dec 24th. whatever people you are, check out some of these goodies, that are sure to brighten anyone's (holi)day! the best part is, you get custom fun without breaking the bank!
i always say, let's bring back the written word! ok, i don't always say that, but maybe i'll start. because, everyone loves finding something fun amidst the junk mail, so why not stuff some stockings with some fun notecards? personalized. thank you. an assortment. your choice.
have kiddos? then, i'm sure grandma and grandpa would LOVE this personalized desk calendar full of pictures of the little ones. no kids? i'm betting the hubs would love gazing at you instead of staring at that spreadsheet!
if photos are too personal, but there's someone on your list who realllly needs a calendar, i've got ya covered.
how about a little art to fill some wall space? dream up an idea, and i'll put it to canvas. or, have a favorite saying framed for a wall. personally, the crosses are my favorite (prolly the NM roots talkin'). or, there's always the ever-popular hand cut name framed up to match a room or nursery. (rosita updated her site so you can see all the workshop's goods)
if you're looking for more stockin' stuffers, magnetic clothespins are super cute and perfect for hanging fun things in lockers, or on the fridge. (a picture of robert pattinson, por ejemplo...)
and, every girl's crazy for a little hair bling.
many of these items are sittin' on my shelf waiting for the perfect home, or we can do a custom order. to receive gifties in time for the holidays, you gotta place that order before december 15th.
gift wrapping (with gift tag) is available on all items for an additional $2.
in case you were wondering, there are less than 60 days until christmas! yikes!! oh, yeah - and order your holiday cards! (do i sound like your mother? eat your vegetables!)
and, that's a VERY good thing! here's a glimpse of the goods that have been churning out of the workshop lately. i like posts like this; they're little pick-me-ups for me and proof to mr. man that i am actually working all day (my tan tends to raise questions around here. pshaw!)
i'd also like to take this time to thank all of you, my three readers, for all your support. when you tell me things like 'you're the best' and 'the world sucked when you weren't doing this', it is like a jolt for the self-esteem. i know i say it all the time, but you'll NEVER, never, ever know how much y'all coming back time and time again means to me. i love ya, man!
ok, enough mushy gushy. behold the latest and greatest.
we've had weddin's
babies being born (can we talk about how cute this is?! mama painted this hooty-cute owl art for baby's room, and i knew it had to be his announcement! LOVE it!)
babies being celebrated (oh, just you wait til you see all this stuff come together!)
babies being welcomed
people on the move
goods to be sold
and gifts to be given (i sure hope the farmer isn't readin' this, cause this is what i'm tuckin' in my suitcase for his birfday. maybe one day i'll tell ya all about their farm. or, you could just go to his blog and read first-hand. yea, do that. i'd get everything wrong anyway)
my mom found some small wooden plaques that she sent to me. every time i'd see them, i'd wonder what i could use them to make. then, it came to me - the guest room needed a cute little door sign, and since a guest was coming, i went to work. the fact that i'd just bought chalkboard spray paint was a total bonus!
here's whatcha need (plaque/canvas/cardboard, spray paint, stick on letters):
choose a fun word (i chose sleep), and stick the letters on your plaque/canvas where you want them
spray paint over the letters (while chatting on speaker phone with your sister)
wait a little bit, then peel off the letters
ok, now, to be honest, my paint seeped a little under the letters, so make sure to stick those suckers down. because of that, i filled in the letters with silver, and it turned out super cute!
we're done! so, hang it up wherever you like (foam tape on the back sticks it directly to the door)
since i used chalkboard spray paint, i can leave a cute-c (inside joke!) message for my guests! so, come visit!!
i'm linking up over at the lettered cottage!
now, as shocked as most of you will be, i'm kinda shy. i'll wait while you pick up your jaw. no, really, i am. actually filling out the application for the west seattle summerfest was a huge (HUGE) step for me. so, when i heard back that they were saving me a table, i grabbed the nearest paper bag to breathe into.
O.M.G. that meant i actually had to show up. with goodies to sell. and talk to people. possibly toot my own horn. maybe ask friends for help. the horror.
well, i survived. i mighta had fun, too! and, it went really well. i even had to restock the goods once or twice! i almost got discouraged the first day, but decided the rest of the weekend would be better. (amazing what an attitude adjustment does for the situation! - stop laughing, mom)
i made new friends. met new clients. handed out hundreds of biz cards. got asked to other fairs. and, lost my voice from talking so much!
gargantuan thanks to all my pals who came out to support the biz, who helped behind the scenes, and at the table. you'll never know how much the moral support means to me.
things i learned:
do a dry run - i set up a mock table before the event, and it was a great way to make changes here and there without the stress of knowing you need to be 'open' in an hour. and, day-of set up goes so much quicker!
ask for help - i'm bad at this. but, i knew there was no way i'd get everything done without a little help from my friends. and, man, were they helpful. phew!
less is sometimes more - i put everything out the first day, and think it mighta been a weensy overwhelming. so i scaled back to give the table breathing room.
everything's negotiable - since friday started slow, i did a little price tinkering, and sales rolled in.
rice is nice (for wet phones) - i should be an expert at this by now (let's just say i have a history with water), but i went ahead and dropped my phone in a cup. nothing a tub of rice and 4 or 5 hours can't fix!
compliments feel good - duh, right? well, it felt reaaaally good to have the public compliment the goods. cause, your friends kinda have to do that already, right?
ok - enough words - how 'bout some pictures of the event?
DISCLAIMER: y'all! i've been without internet for 3 days. 3 DAYS! whoa. ok. breathe. i've had to surf the web on my phone (which is awesome, but...). can you imagine how horrible this was? ok, i'm being a little overly dramatic, but wanted you to know this was 'posta be a friday entry, but instead, it's a monday entry. carry on.
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sooooo, i've been kinda neglecting the old website. since i spend so much time over here telling you about all the workshop goodies, i tend to forget i need to update the site. whoopsie.
well, i'll neglect her no more. i promise. until i do neglect her again. but, anyhoodle...
when you check her out, here's what you'll see:
that's right! i'll be selling the goods in my first street fair in a few weeks. (kinda why i'm sprucin' up the site.)
and, i've updated the portfolio page. there's now a moving announcement link, since those were a bit lost before. and, there's now a gift section, because they've never been added to the site, and i know some people have been looking for them.
you'll also notice each section is broken out into sub-sections, because i know it was tedious to scroll through all the designs just to see save the dates, for example.
when you click on the sections, you'll see pages like this:
and this:
you'll know where you are, too, because whatever page you are on will be highlighted in red text. and, the image depicting each section will stay on the left side of each page.
so, let me know what you think - if there are any broken links, etc. i checked and checked and checked again, but my brain hurt, so it's quite possible something got lost in translation. especially since the webster went down in the middle of my updates. sheesh.
on that note, happy monday! mr man and i have elected to start having 'meatless mondays' where our dinner is of the vegetarian variety (sisty, you so proud?). last monday, i made this and these for dessert (and several brekkies after). tonight, it's mongolian bbq (no recipe for that - just throw veggies in a pan with sesame oil, red pepper flakes, garlic and soy sauce and serve over pasta).
ok - go. check out the site. order something. make a meatless monday meal.
as promised, i'm back to show you how to make some fun graphic art for your walls. just in time for a weekend project!
for this project, you're gonna need:
- a canvas or piece of wood cut to size
- vinyl or cut-out letters
- spray paint or paint
- a straight edge/ruler
first, you'll want to decide what saying you want, and figure out how many packs of vinyl letters you'll need. i got my canvas at michael's and the letters at staples, where they have a ton of sizes.
i wanted my letters to be some color besides canvas white. if you want the same, spray or paint the canvas/wood the color you'd like.
now it's time to start placing the letters. unfortunately, with the stick on vinyl letters, you can't really place them first, move them around, and still have them stick. you pretty much have to commit. so, i measured an inch down from the top and started placing my letters.
i decided i wanted mine to be about an inch apart vertically, so i used my metal ruler to provide the gap.
all done. how cute is that heart in the 'o'? when i realized there were hearts in my pack, i resisted placing them all over the canvas ala my 6th grade trapper keeper, and just used one.
now, it's time to spray/paint the top.
i'm sure you're thinking 'why the heck did she pick black letters if she's going to spray black over them?' well, i don't know why. i was worried for a minute, but they were visible! don't be like me - get brown or grey or blue, whatever. (if you can name that song reference, i love you!)
now, it's reveal time. drum roll please - dadadadadadadadadada
dundadah! just peel those letters off. now, here's the deal. those stickers don't love stickin' to the sprayed canvas, and i saw that dang 'e' flutter while i was spraying. i was super nervous it was gonna look u-g-l-y-you-ain't-got-no-alibi, and i'd have to scrap it and start over, but i lurved it! i wanted a grunge feel, and even thought of sanding some of the edges.
but, once i pulled off all the letters, and saw some of the edges weren't so crisp, i decided against grunging it up anymore.
we're done! only thing left to do is pat yourself on the back, and hang that sucker.
of course, if you don't want to do it yourself, you know i'm here for ya. i'll do all the labor for you and wrap it up in a pretty little bow.
and, if you do decide to whip one up, remember to come back and show me. i wanna see what cute phrase you pick. (also, if you know where my saying hails from, i'll love you even more!)
i linked up this project to The Lettered Cottage
